Quinta Communications founder Tarak Ben Ammar, Endemol chief commercial officer Tom Toumazis and Al Jazeera documentary channel head Atef Dalgamouni are among the participants at next month’s The Circle Conference in Abu Dhabi.

Also taking part are Rotana Studios president Dr Hala Saran, Kuwaiti producer and financier Sheikha Al-Zain Al-Sabah, Kuwaiti producer Walid Al Awadi and Syrian director Najdat Anzour.

The conference will feature panel discussions and workshops on topics such as global investment models, the global sports media business, women in film in the Middle East, the rise of mobile technology and regional co-productions and location filming in the UAE.

The Abu Dhabi Film Commission (ADFC) will debut a business-to-business social media platform at the conference allowing registered guests to network and organize meetings online.

The Conference runs from October 13-15 and will culminate with the presentation of the $100,000 screenwriting competition Shasha Grant,

“The growing scope of the Circle Conference, and the amazing range and diversity of this year’s Shasha Grant submissions, have been hugely rewarding for all of us at ADFC,” ADFC director David Shepheard said. We look forward to welcoming these industry leaders to Abu Dhabi.”