MENA Distributor Front Row Promotes Nicolas Torloting, Carine Chaiban, Elie Touma as Operations Ramp Up

Nick Vivarelli
·3 min read

Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region indie distributor Front Row Filmed Entertainment is promoting company execs Nicolas Torloting, Carine Chaiban and Elie Touma to partners as it ramps up operations.

The trio joined the company, headed by Gianluca Chakra, in early 2019 as part of an initial revamp. Torloting, a former Disney exec in the region, is currently Front Row’s COO, while Chaiban, who is an acquisitions and distribution expert, heads post-theatrical sales and Touma is in charge of acquisitions and theatrical distribution. The announcement was made during Saudi Arabia’s ongoing Red Sea Film Festival. Front Row recently scored big at the Saudi box office with the wrestling comedy “Sattar,” released by Front Row Arabia via its joint venture with leading local exhibitor Muvi Cinemas.

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Amid the region’s rapidly evolving film distribution landscape, Front Row has grown to establish itself as one of the leading players in the MENA market since it was founded by Chakra in 2003. The company’s distribution arm currently handles the release of over 200 indie films per year, a large number of which are released theatrically through Front Row’s vast distribution network that includes joint ventures with Muvi Cinemas in Saudi Arabia and the Kuwait National Cinema Company (Cinescape).

Chakra’s Dubai-based company has long been at the forefront of distributing independent cinema in the MENA region, initially developing its VOD and SVOD business through innovative solutions and partnerships with global streamers such as iTunes, Google Play and Netflix, acting as a preferred partner and aggregator. More recently, they’ve taken bold initiatives such as being the first player to premiere films day-and-date in the territory during the pandemic, as well as curating several collections promoting and championing Arabic cinema on Netflix and the various other players. The company also has an existing multi-year output deal with Doha-based pay TV/SVOD powerhouse beIN Media Group.

Concurrently, the company delved into the development and production of Arabic films and TV series and released its first production, the Arabic adaptation of Italian smash hit “Perfect Strangers,” on Netflix in 2022. The film, which was Netflix’s first Arabic original, went on to top the charts regionally and even reached No. 3 globally. Subsequently, Front Row signed a multi-year first look deal with Netflix and is currently developing a full slate of features and TV series. The company is currently in post production on the Matty Brown-helmed atmospheric thriller “Sand Castle” starring Nadine Labaki. About a family of four stuck on an idyllic island that hides a shocking reality, the film reunites Labaki with Zain Al Rafeea, the Syrian refugee she cast in “Capernaum” as the young protagonist who sues his parents for giving him a life of neglect and poverty.

“It’s been and is an absolute joy to work with the guys who fully understand and support the Front Row vision and have been vital to the company’s expansion in both the distribution and production arena,” said Chakra in a statement praising Torloting, Chaiban and Touma.

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