Vice Arabia launches with original doc ‘Bil Arabi’

Vice Media, the media company focused on millenials, has unveiled its first original production, a documentary titled Bil Arabi (In Arabic).

The hour-long project aims to highlight Arab youth perspectives on modern-day life in the Middle East and North Africa. Spanning 12 cities throughout the region, the film documents visual landscapes and wide-ranging opinions in an effort to spotlight a variety of topics including religion, politics, love and money, as well as how it feels to be an Arab millennial in 2017.

Islam Alrayyes, editor-in-chief Vice MENA, said that Bil Arabi serves as a “testament to the important work we’ll aim to do at Vice Arabia in representing the many voices of young people across the region”.

Vice’s Middle Eastern expansion was announced earlier this year following a partnership with the Moby Group. The regional hub is based in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and is headed by Alrayyes, who will lead a team of regional writers, editors, directors and producers. The Arabic team will push original content spanning Arabic lifestyle and entertainment in several languages including Arabic, English, Farsi, Turkish and Urdu, which will then be translated and published across all of Vice’s global platforms.

Elsewhere, Jason Leavy has been appointed as managing director for the Vice MENA operation. He will be responsible for overseeing the creative and strategic development across all mediums for Vice Arabia. Most recently, Leavy served as MD of UAE-based agency Edelman DABO.