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Industry Access & Career Pathways
Learn inside the industry. Build your career inside the industry.
The difference
At Ajyal Film Academy, students are prepared for employment — and connected to the professional industry while they are still studying.
AFA has been built from within the film, television, entertainment, education, exhibition and media industries. Through its founding stakeholders, strategic partners and affiliated companies, the Academy maintains direct relationships with organizations actively producing, financing, distributing, exhibiting and shaping film and entertainment across Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the GCC and the wider Middle East.
This gives AFA students something fundamentally different from the traditional film-school experience: direct proximity to the companies, studios, producers, executives and working professionals who are actually building the industry.
The AFA Industry Advantage
30–40%+
Industry Reach
Through the businesses, industry relationships and networks represented by AFA’s stakeholders and partners, the Academy’s ecosystem reaches companies with significant participation across cinema, production, distribution and entertainment in Egypt and the wider Middle East.
65%+
of the Historic Arabic Film Library
One of the companies within AFA’s founding ecosystem holds rights to a substantial portion of the historic Arabic film catalogue — more than 65% of Arabic films created across key periods of Arab cinema, and one of the largest Arabic cinematic and television libraries in the Middle East.
2/3+
of Egypt’s Cinema Exhibition Market
AFA’s founding industry network includes businesses and stakeholders historically connected to more than two-thirds of cinema exhibition in Egypt, alongside extensive regional and international film-distribution networks.
Global
Distribution Reach
The ecosystem surrounding AFA includes companies with extensive experience in the acquisition, licensing, distribution and commercialization of Arabic films internationally — connecting filmmakers and content with audiences throughout the Middle East and global markets.
From the Classroom to the Set
AFA students are educated where academic instruction is designed to connect directly with professional practice.
Students may have opportunities to participate in live productions, professional film sets, studio exercises, industry workshops, internships, apprenticeships and project-based training alongside experienced actors, directors, cinematographers, producers, screenwriters, editors, production designers and technical crews.
These experiences allow students to understand not only how a film is created, but how the professional industry actually operates — from development and financing through pre-production, principal photography, post-production, distribution and exhibition.
Depending on each production, program and student specialization, opportunities can include observing or participating in real production environments, assisting professional departments, undertaking structured internships, contributing to supervised projects and building relationships with potential employers.
Flagship campus
AFA’s flagship Riyadh students study within one of the Middle East’s most significant new film and television production destinations.
Instead of visiting a professional studio only occasionally, AFA is building its educational model around direct exposure to a world-class production ecosystem.
This gives students the opportunity to become familiar with professional studio environments, sound stages, production workflows, camera and lighting operations, art departments, production management, sound, post-production and the collaborative culture of large-scale filmmaking.
Students can therefore graduate having spent their education much closer to the environment in which they ultimately intend to work.
A Network That Opens Doors
AFA is developing structured pathways for internships, professional training, mentorship, production experience, project placements and employment opportunities throughout its growing industry ecosystem.
The Academy’s network includes relationships with organizations across film production, television, entertainment, exhibition, distribution, studios, higher education, training and investment:
And a continuously expanding network of production companies, studios, broadcasters, distributors, entertainment companies and academic institutions.
Several of these relationships go significantly beyond conventional university partnership agreements. Companies within the AFA ecosystem are owned, operated, invested in or closely affiliated with stakeholders involved in the Academy itself — creating a level of alignment between education and industry that is difficult for a traditional film school to replicate.
Why This Matters
01
Students can begin building real professional experience before completing their studies rather than entering the job market with academic knowledge alone.
02
AFA’s industry network allows students to learn directly from active filmmakers, executives and creative professionals who understand what employers and productions require today.
03
Students can experience how professional sets function — the pace, hierarchy, communication, technology, safety standards and collaborative processes that cannot be fully recreated inside a conventional classroom.
04
AFA works to create structured pathways into companies throughout its ecosystem, allowing qualified students to gain practical experience in their chosen discipline.
05
A student’s first professional opportunity often comes from someone they have already worked with. AFA is designed to create those relationships throughout the educational journey.
06
Because the AFA ecosystem extends beyond production into financing, studios, distribution, television, exhibition and media, students gain exposure to the complete lifecycle of entertainment content.
07
Students leave AFA having developed practical work, production credits, professional relationships and portfolio material that can differentiate them when entering the industry.
More Than a Film School
Our students learn filmmaking while being surrounded by the companies, studios and professionals responsible for producing, distributing and exhibiting entertainment throughout the region.
That connection between academic excellence, professional production and direct industry access is at the heart of the Ajyal Film Academy experience.
Our ambition is for an AFA graduate to leave with more than a qualification. They should leave with knowledge, a portfolio, professional experience, industry relationships and a pathway into a career.
Study the Craft.
Experience the Industry.
Build Your Network.
Start Your Career.