As is reflected by the filming of international blockbusters like Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol Star Wars: The Force Awakens and now Star Trek Beyond and Kung Fu Yoga in the country the UAE's role as a budding film hub us becoming more definitive.

The studios sound stages workshops backlots and other filming facilities are more than just surpassing the expected quality standards of an industry so young. The Dubai Studio City's sound stages for example at 50000 sqft in size can accommodate a crew of up to 500 and is the largest in the region. The film festivals held in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi have grown to becoming the most efficacious in the region.

The 12th edition of the Dubai International Film Festival kicked off on Wednesday with attendees including Jake Gyllenhaal Naseeruddin Shah Shahrukh Khan and Kajol among others.

Total entertainment and media spending in the Middle East and North Africa region is forecast to grow by 13.2 per cent between 2013 and 2018 accounting for 65 per cent of the total entertainment and media spending growth according to PwC Middle East's annual media report.

PwC forecasts a cumulative annual growth rate or CAGR of 7.2 per cent for the region with Saudi Arabia as the fastest-growing market globally at a 36 per cent CAGR. And while Egypt has been the traditional leader of Arabic films the UAE has notably been playing an active role in the recent years with the government fostering the infrastructure and providing assistance to nurture the local media industry.

But there still remains one factor - critical to sustain a film industry - that the UAE has considerable catching up to do: films.

Although there is an ample stream of locally-produced and short films screened throughout the year the annual number of locally made full length feature films is still rather exiguous.

The first full-length Emirati feature Al Hilm was screened in 2007 and since then at least a feature or three are produced a year. The first locally-produced film to achieve a general release in UAE cinemas was City of Life in 2010 by director Ali F. Mostafa. In 2011 Nawaf Al-Janahi's film Sea Shadow was released which then came out on DVD in September 2013. So while has been a definite progression over time in what the local film industry has to offer it is not as ambitious as ought to be based on the available resources facilities and raw aspiration of the available talent.

One of the most plausible reasoning behind this is the inaccessibility of sufficient funds available to most first time filmmakers.

"We filmmakers need to find creative ways of tackling the lack of funds and getting the project on its feet" says Mostafa.

He says that he personally tries to assist students and aspiring filmmakers in as many ways as he can. Recently he held a screening and panel in the SAE Institute.

Currently the most notable international production incentive is from the Abu Dhabi Film Commission: it offers a 30 per cent cash-back rebate on productions post-production digital content services and visual effects services for projects shot inside or outside Abu Dhabi. There are also a number of distinguishable grants schemes such as Enjaaz by the Dubai International Film Festival and Sanad by the Abu Dhabi Film Festival that while are proving to be effective within their scope do have curbs that limit their accessibility to many aspiring filmmakers.

A recently successful trend in some parts of the world made feasible by social media's tendency to create sub-communities is to crowd fund films. While the concept hasn't reached the UAE yet it is always probable in the time to come.

Patrick Fonda director and cinematographer well-established for his short films mentions that he does aspire to make a full-length feature film some day.

"I'd prefer crowdfunding it so I won't have to worry about the return on investment - something that every director fears. Hopefully soon the general public here would be actively keen in funding films" he told Khaleej Times.

Independent filmmakers have been looking through the various possible ways to combat financial restrains although none are concrete as of now.

"An idea someone suggested to me was to take Dh1 out of every movie ticket sold in the UAE and put it in a pool of funds to make a few UAE-based films every year. But it's a system that the relevant authorities have to consider for the future" Faisal Hashmi a Dubai-based producer and writer said via e-mail.

Although filmmakers may have different tactics and attitudes towards what they believe is the most sound way to fund a film they seem to all follow the same school of thought when it comes to one thing - the only way to make a film is to make one.

Fonda stated that he believes it is very important for young filmmakers to not let the inaccessibility of expensive equipment stop them from learning and practicing the art of filmmaking. "For now focus on your story telling and visual language practice shoot and share don't be afraid to try and experiment."

Hashmi being a self-taught filmmaker himself says that his biggest advice for a filmmaker is to stop thinking about being one and actually becoming one.

"The difference between an aspiring filmmaker and a real filmmaker is the fact that a real filmmaker went out and made a film" he added.

Rabiya Shabeeh is a freelance UAE-based writer.