This documentary tells the fascinating story of Special Economic Zones: geographically demarcated areas of countries where different rules and regulations apply. There are more than 7,000 of these across the world, and they have helped shape the development path of countries as diverse as Ireland, China, and the UAE. This documentary explores how they originated, how some of the leading modern zones function, and what the future of these zones could be.

Credits
Director: Timothy Allen
Co-producer: Chris Tremann
Co-producer: Peter Young
Cameraman and editor: Thomas Cytrynowicz
Researcher: Hynek Fencl

Interviewees in order of appearance:
Peter Young, Managing Director, Free Cities Foundation
Mark Beer, Chairman, The Metis Institute
Krysta Fox, Partner, Economic Zones Development Alliance
Dr. Dr. Andreas Baumgartner, Former Executive Director, DIFC Dispute Resolution Authority
Dr. Titus Gebel, CEO, Tipolis
Ivan Ko, CEO, Victoria Harbour Group
Dr. Samir Hamrouni, CEO, World Free Zones Organization
Jan Bladen, Former COO, Dubai Financial Services Authority
Dr. Vera Kichanova, Research Fellow, King's College London
Stephan Livera, Podcast Host
Olivier Roland, Entrepreneur
Zuby, Rapper
Amier Alawadhi, Director, Masdar City Free Zone
Chirag Shah, Director, Roatán Financial Services Authority

Special Thanks to:
Montelibero
Mikkel Thorup, ExpatMoney.com
Masdar City
EER Business Services, Dubai Multi-Commodities Center
Dubai International Financial Centre
https://disruptive-horizons.com/ (blog by Oliver Roland)

With thanks to the donors who supported this project:
Chris Tremann, Montelibero, Mikkel Thorup, Marc-Felix Otto, William Markus, Matthias Kelm, Rodrigo Quercia, Mondher Khanfir, Mason Leschyna, Sam Roberts, Seth Haymes, Craig Peters, Albert Sanchez, Dennis Ainsworth, Kathleen Reily, Tas Dienes, Martin Hartmann, Paula Koren, Joe Quirk, William Milonas, Sondre Bjellås, Kristy Gilger, Axel Metschies, Christopher Albanese, Glen Guhr, Tyler Heidebrecht

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