memorandum

DUBAI: Film AlUla has signed a memorandum of understanding with international film financier Sherborne Media at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival, establishing a financial framework designed to expand production support for Saudi, regional, and international filmmakers shooting in AlUla in the northwest of Saudi Arabia.

Qualifying productions filming in AlUla will be able to access debt financing solutions secured against available production rebates, grants, incentives, and soft money. The combined support packages will cover up to 50 percent of eligible production expenditure incurred in AlUla.

The partnership aims to address one of the filmmaking industry’s key barriers: upfront liquidity for producers against their contracted rebate and incentives receivables, ensuring sufficient cash flow to facilitate production.

By providing a standardized, transparent process for financial due diligence, the initiative supports established Saudi, MENA (Middle East and North Africa), and international storytellers in bringing their projects to life using AlUla’s production facilities, purpose-built soundstages, and historic landscapes.

The partnership will also integrate workforce development opportunities to support the sustainable growth of Saudi Arabia’s film industry. Film AlUla and Sherborne will collaborate on structured training programmes, crew upskilling, and local hiring initiatives to build long-term regional production capacity.

Zaid Shaker, acting executive director of Film AlUla, said: “Financing remains one of the most critical challenges facing creators today — particularly for emerging creators in Saudi Arabia and the region. Our partnership with Sherborne Media allows us to establish an efficient, transparent mechanism that bridges the gap between creative vision and financial execution. By pairing our state-of-the-art facilities and rebate structures with institutional debt solutions, we are providing a reliable platform for local and international artists to tell authentic, compelling stories – right here in AlUla.”

Alastair Burlingham, CO-CEO of Sherborne Media, said: “Saudi Arabia’s screen sector is expanding rapidly, supported by strategic leadership and infrastructure investment. After the successful financing and production of ‘Chasing Red’ earlier in 2026, and leveraging the services offered by Caravan — our Saudi joint venture company with Stampede — we are delighted to join forces with Film AlUla during TIFF 2026 to help facilitate its growth by introducing a structured financing model.

“Curated credit facilities against soft money and incentives receivables give producers the financial certainty required to execute high-quality feature and television projects efficiently in AlUla.”

The U.S. Secret Service dealt with several drone-related incidents without adjusting its protection policies or documenting why it didn’t, according to a government report released Thursday. That information may have helped illustrate the emerging threat of civilian drone use before one was used in the 2024 assassination attempt on then-candidate Donald Trump in Butler, Pa.

The report from the Government Accountability Office found delays and holes in how the Secret Service updates its policies regarding threats, and arrives after a few turbulent years for the agency charged with the president’s protection.

The would-be assassin in Butler positioned himself on a roof left unsecured, nicking the president’s ear with a bullet. Months later, a man with a rifle got surprisingly close to Trump at his West Palm Beach, Fla., golf course. And in April, an armed man got beyond security barriers at the White House Correspondents’ Assn. dinner, where the president sat.

The report found that between 2015 and 2025 the Secret Service dealt with 83 security incidents and that it updated its protection policies in response to 25 of them. Among the incidents was a drone that made contact with President Obama’s motorcade in 2015 and another flown about 200 feet over a rally for then-presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.

Failing to document why the Secret Service decided not to change its policy is the concern, said Nathan Tranquilli, acting director of the Government Accountability Office, adding that the drone incidents were a “compelling example” of that.

“Some of the missing information has been relevant to subsequent attacks,” the report read. It cited the Butler incident, where the culprit flew a drone for 11 minutes over the crowd, which helped him position himself to get a clear shot at Trump.

The Secret Service also failed to update eight of 22 protection policies within a required time frame of four years. A memorandum of understanding between the Secret Service and the Diplomatic Security Service, which designates each agency’s responsibilities for the president’s overseas security, hasn’t been updated since 1991, even though an annual review and update are required. As a consequence, the memorandum doesn’t address newer threats, such as drones.

“When you look at the Secret Service and you look at their mission, really it’s a zero-fail mission, and they’ve got a ton of challenges,” Tranquilli said. “When decisions were being made about where to put time and energy, some of these things fell to the side, and, as a result, there were some delays.”

The report recommended three fixes, including that the Secret Service revise its policy to require that, when a security incident doesn’t warrant a policy update, that the rationale is documented.

A spokesperson for the Secret Service did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but the report stated that the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the Secret Service, agreed with all recommendations and plans to implement changes.

Bedayn writes for the Associated Press.