Our recommended reading is a recent release by Todd Reisz, Yale ‘03, Showpiece City: How Architecture Made Dubai. In this fascinating history, Reisz explains how Harris and other hired professionals planned Dubai's transition in the 1970s. Todd Reisz uncovers the perseverance that was used to sell Dubai as a successful business strategy by drawing on exclusive interviews, private archives, and old photos. Reisz highlights the city's first hospital, national bank, and skyscraper, among other early architectural accomplishments.
Our recommended viewing for the month is the first Saudi content on Netflix, the award-winning six-short film collection “Six Windows in the Desert,” produced by Telfaz11.
The films depict Saudi stories that will give the viewers an experience of Saudi culture, humor and art. Telfaz11 started as a Youtube / multichannel network in 2011, and they now have 3.4 million subscribers. Their award-winning content led Netflix and Telfaz11 to partner in 2020 and reach a global audience. Key investors in Telfaz include VentureSouq, a VC firm with two Yale alumni partners, Tammer Qaddumi ‘06 and Sonia Weymuller ‘05. Netflix has partnered again with Telfaz11, to direct and produce 8 short films that will reach Arab and global audiences.
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