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All Qatar Film City Film City
AO Edited

Film City

A creepy, deserted mock Arabian village can be found in the middle of the Qatari desert.

Film City, Qatar

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Tiffany Ammerman
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Film City   Isabell Schulz/cc by-sa 2.0
Film City   Isabell Schulz/cc by-sa 2.0
  thegoodishtraveler / Atlas Obscura User
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About

If you drive out from Doha for several hours into the Qatari desert, jump off the road and start bumping through rocks and ruts, you'll pass a very interesting and lonely looking camel corral. Eventually the sand dunes will give way to sand cliffs, and on the horizon will start to rise a truly bizarre sight.

This is "Film City," a palm tree-laden, beige artificial village built for a film or television series. It's a contemporary replica of a picturesque ancient Bedouin-style village, completely deserted, with the creepiness factor turned all the way up.

The abandoned set sits in the middle of the secluded desert peninsula of Zekreet. There are almost no people or cars around, and no signs to give any clues as to why the ghost town is there. Film City's original purpose, and subsequent desertion, remain something of a mystery. It's believed that it was built either for a Hollywood or Qatari TV series, or perhaps a promotional film for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Visitors may freely walk through the empty main square, climb the turrets, and really sink into the surreal atmosphere of this abandoned movie set in the desert. 

Related Tags

Film Locations Television Abandoned Deserts Ghost Towns Film

Know Before You Go

Get on Dukhan highway taking D-Ring Road to Shamal and then after traveling 90 kms or 55 miles, turn right once you see the Zekreet sign OR you could take someone with you who knows where it is. I also recommend using a LandCruiser or Jeep to get to Film City. A small car won't make it!

This site has been "temporarily" closed since 2021.  

Community Contributors

Added By

thegoodishtraveler

Edited By

Max Cortesi, Meg, BspSlp

  • Max Cortesi
  • Meg
  • BspSlp

Published

July 23, 2018

Updated

January 24, 2024

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Film City
Abdulla Bin Jasim St
Film City
Qatar
25.576763, 50.845199
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