DUBAI – In 2010, shuttles will pack air-space over Shaikh Zayed Road, hi-tech skyscrapers will line the streets and underwater stations will be the birthplace of robots — it’s a city where anything can happen. Such a glimpse into the future for Dubai is the latest hit on the Internet. “People have a fascination of the future, of things to come, and in a rapidly developing city like Dubai, the future seen in this video is maybe not that far fetched,” said Hermann Venter, managing director of Rolling Thunder, creators of the Dubai 2010 video that has already generated thousands of hits within days of its release.
Featuring majestic orchestral strings, a low-pitched voiceover and vistas typical of a Hollywood movie trailer, the video introduces viewers to a Dubai that creators say, with the city’s architectural design, was not much of a stretch. “As the ever-evolving skyline is even today rather futuristic, and adding some elements to it to make it look like something out of a Hollywood feature film is not very drastic. Actually, we’re kind of surprised nobody has done this before. Dubai would be a good location for a sci-fi movie,” said Venter. He said the in-house concept was partly inspired by the global credit crunch and negative articles that were being published about Dubai. “Living in Dubai for many years, and seeing the city grow up around us is inspiring, and that’s part of the humour with this trailer – that it could look like this here next year! We wanted to flex our muscles as a company and show people what we are capable of, and also do something that depicts a positive and cool picture of Dubai,” he added.
The creators are surprised by the video’s popularity and the backlash from those who consider it a mockery of American movies. “We prefer to say that we’ve done a spoof on your typical movie trailer format. But for us it is not just about pretty images, or making any political statements, it is more about doing something cool,” said Venter.
