With just four more days to go, it is nearly time for Dubai Lynx International Festival of Creativity that will take place from March 5-8, 2017. The top speakers at Dubai Lynx will explore the language of creativity through the lens of music, movies and dance. Revolving around storytelling across the different art forms the sessions will focus on entertainment’s evolution and the future of production.

Abe Naga, Head of Digital and Samar Akrouk, Group Director of Production, MBC GROUP sit down with singer and winner of Arab Idol Mohammed Assaf to discuss how the entertainment industry can work with brands to produce content that strikes a human chord. The Arab Idol show launched Mohammed’s successful career which has since been followed worldwide and resulted in his status as a modern Palestinian hero. Exploring the connection between content, context and brand the session delves into the relationship between the audience and the entertainment consumed.

Award-winning Emirati-Yemeni singer Balqees Fathi is one of the Arab world’s biggest names in music and a highly successful social media influencer. Since becoming a media icon almost 10 years ago she has leveraged her online presence of over 10 million followers to get closer to fans and highlight important humanitarian causes. Discussing her creative process with Odience Media at Dubai Lynx, Balqees will explore the collaboration economy and how it’s changing the way artists interact with followers.

Commenting on her involvement at Dubai Lynx, Balquees said, “The entertainment industry is increasingly evolving and it is time for us celebrities and influencers to lead that change. Social Media has given us the opportunity to connect directly with our fans, talk and listen to them and be trusted by them. I have great pride in partnering with prestigious brands to create great content that offers something interesting, engaging and useful to my fans. Dubai Lynx is a wonderful opportunity to be inspired and I’m delighted to be onstage with Odience Media who are driving change.”

This concept of brands and consumers growing closer through the medium of music is expanded further with a variety of platforms and entertainers. Rami Zeidan, Head of Marketing from leading music platform Anghami, Unilever’s CloseUp Team and Lead Singer Hany Dakkak from Massar Egbari discuss how building a platform that works directly with the brand can enhance unique experiences and provide opportunities to engage with a truly connected audiences.

Focussing on authentic storytelling Salah Negm, Director of News, Al Jazeera English delves into what makes a great story. Using the animated movie Hoodwinked as a springboard to open the discussion he will analyse how the different elements impact the audience. Onika Simon uses the medium of dance to examine varying styles of design and how unorthodox collaborations between artists and designers uncover novel approaches to research, communication and problem solving.

“The entertainment and branded content arm of the creative communications industry in the MENA region is burgeoning with fresh perspectives and a global appeal. The influx of technology heightens this appeal and makes it much easier to bring the talents of the Middle East to the world. We’re excited to be able to take a deep dive into how people and brands tell stories and what the future holds,” said Thea Skelton, Festival Director, Dubai Lynx.