Boxo at GITEX North Star 2025 – Film, Technology and Middle East Vision

Boxo participated in GITEX North Star 2025, one of the Middle East’s leading technology and innovation forums held in Dubai. The event brought together founders, investors, policymakers and industry leaders to discuss how emerging technologies are reshaping global markets, including the creative industries. Boxo joined the forum to present a production-focused perspective on how film increasingly intersects with technology, financing and long-term infrastructure development.

During the event, Boxo’s CEO David Štýbr took part in panel discussions with regional technology and cultural leaders, including participants connected to Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 agenda. The conversations reflected a broader regional shift toward economic diversification, where culture, media and creative industries are becoming strategic components of national development plans.

A significant part of the dialogue focused on the rapid evolution of the film industry in Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East. Since the lifting of the cinema ban in 2018, Saudi Arabia has taken a structured approach to building a domestic film ecosystem. Initiatives such as the Red Sea International Film Festival and state-supported film financing programs have created tangible opportunities for local filmmakers while attracting international production partners.

From Boxo’s perspective, the discussions highlighted the importance of practical collaboration rather than symbolic partnerships. During the panel, David Štýbr emphasized direct integration of regional crews into international productions, allowing local professionals to work alongside experienced Hollywood teams. This approach prioritizes skills transfer, production discipline and hands-on experience within real production environments.

Technology was a central theme throughout GITEX North Star, particularly its growing role in modern film production and financing. Conversations covered AI-assisted production workflows, advanced visual effects pipelines and blockchain-based financing structures. These tools are increasingly relevant as film production becomes more distributed, data-driven and globally coordinated.

For Boxo, engagement at GITEX North Star aligns with a long-term focus on combining creative execution with production efficiency. The company’s approach prioritizes structured financing, disciplined production processes and scalable workflows that can operate across multiple markets. Technology is viewed as a supporting tool that enhances production capabilities rather than replacing creative decision-making.

Beyond individual productions, the discussions underscored a broader shift in the global entertainment industry toward collaborative production models. Streaming platforms and international distributors continue to drive demand for premium content produced at scale while maintaining consistent quality. As a result, emerging regional production hubs, including those in the Middle East, are becoming increasingly relevant within global film pipelines.

Participants also addressed the importance of long-term planning in creative industries. Sustainable growth depends on aligning talent development, production infrastructure and capital allocation. Forums such as GITEX North Star provide space for these elements to be discussed together, enabling more realistic cooperation between technology companies, creative producers and investors.

For Boxo, participation in these discussions reflects a production-first approach to international collaboration. Film is treated not as an isolated cultural product, but as part of a broader industrial ecosystem that includes technology, financing and skilled labor. This perspective mirrors how contemporary film production operates in practice.

The discussions in Dubai illustrated how international producers and Middle Eastern partners are moving toward concrete, execution-focused cooperation built on shared expertise and operational clarity. For Boxo, this environment reinforces the importance of aligning creative ambition with production discipline and technological capability.