Cate Blanchett will once again take part in the IWC Jury panel for this year's Dubai International Film Festival. AP
Cate Blanchett will once again take part in the IWC Jury panel for this year's Dubai International Film Festival. AP
Cate Blanchett will once again take part in the IWC Jury panel for this year's Dubai International Film Festival. AP
Cate Blanchett will once again take part in the IWC Jury panel for this year's Dubai International Film Festival. AP

Cate Blanchett to head jury panel at Diff 2017


  • English
  • Arabic

Hollywood actress and director Cate Blanchett is set to return to the Dubai International Film Festival to head up the IWC Filmmakers Jury for the sixth IWC Filmmaker Award.

The coveted award gives cinematic talent from the region a chance to bring their projects to the silver screen.

It will be presented during this year's Diff, which is scheduled to take place from December 6-13.

Marking her third appearance on the Diff red carpet, and having already chaired the IWC jury in 2013, Blanchett joins the panel that will select a win­ning project from the shortlisted entries.

Cate Blanchett was involved with Diff back in 2013 when she presented Waleed Al Shehhi his award alongside Georges Kern and Diff Chairman Abdulhamid Juma. Getty Images
Cate Blanchett was involved with Diff back in 2013 when she presented Waleed Al Shehhi his award alongside Georges Kern and Diff Chairman Abdulhamid Juma. Getty Images

A US$100,000 cash prize will be awarded to one feature-length film pro­ject in development to help the winning filmmaker bring their idea to fruition.

Previous years have seen winning scripts from Emirati directors Abdullah Hassan Ahmed and Layla Kaylif, Kuwaiti director Abdullah Boushahri and British-Iraqi director Maysoon Pachachi.

“Each year, the bar is set higher by the scripts we receive for the IWC Filmmaker Award and our expert jury members have tough decisions to make," says DIFF Chairman Abdulhamid Juma.

"We are privileged to welcome back an icon of the silver screen to Dubai to lend her insight to the distin­guished jury and inspire emerging talent from the reg­gion."

Two-time Oscar winner Blanchett has featured in hits including The Aviator, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, all three The Lord of the Rings films, Carol and Blue Jasmine.

The Australian actress has broken multiple Academy Awards records, including being the only actress in history to be nominated more than once for the same role, having played Elizabeth I in both Elizabeth (1998) and Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007), and the first person to win an Oscar for portraying another Oscar winner for her per­formance as Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator.

The IWC Filmmaker Award will be presented to the win­ning filmmaker at a star-studded gala on December 7.

For more on Diff go to www.dubaifilmfest.com

____________________

Read more:

____________________

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Groom and Two Brides

Director: Elie Semaan

Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla

Rating: 3/5

Our legal advisor

Ahmad El Sayed is Senior Associate at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.

Experience: Commercial litigator who has assisted clients with overseas judgments before UAE courts. His specialties are cases related to banking, real estate, shareholder disputes, company liquidations and criminal matters as well as employment related litigation. 

Education: Sagesse University, Beirut, Lebanon, in 2005.

Scream%20VI
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirectors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Matt%20Bettinelli-Olpin%20and%20Tyler%20Gillett%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Melissa%20Barrera%2C%20Jasmin%20Savoy%20Brown%2C%20Jack%20Champion%2C%20Dermot%20Mulroney%2C%20Jenna%20Ortega%2C%20Hayden%20Panettiere%20and%20Courteney%20Cox%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

Keep it fun and engaging

Stuart Ritchie, director of wealth advice at AES International, says children cannot learn something overnight, so it helps to have a fun routine that keeps them engaged and interested.

“I explain to my daughter that the money I draw from an ATM or the money on my bank card doesn’t just magically appear – it’s money I have earned from my job. I show her how this works by giving her little chores around the house so she can earn pocket money,” says Mr Ritchie.

His daughter is allowed to spend half of her pocket money, while the other half goes into a bank account. When this money hits a certain milestone, Mr Ritchie rewards his daughter with a small lump sum.

He also recommends books that teach the importance of money management for children, such as The Squirrel Manifesto by Ric Edelman and Jean Edelman.

Company profile

Name: Steppi

Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic

Launched: February 2020

Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year

Employees: Five

Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai

Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings

Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year

While you're here
MATCH INFO

Uefa Champioons League semi-final, first leg:

Liverpool 5
Salah (35', 45 1'), Mane (56'), Firmino (61', 68')

Roma 2
Dzeko (81'), Perotti (85' pen)

Second leg: May 2, Stadio Olimpico, Rome

'Munich: The Edge of War'

Director: Christian Schwochow

Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons

Rating: 3/5

The%20specs%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.0-litre%204cyl%20turbo%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E261hp%20at%205%2C500rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E400Nm%20at%201%2C750-4%2C000rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E7-speed%20dual-clutch%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E10.5L%2F100km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh129%2C999%20(VX%20Luxury)%3B%20from%20Dh149%2C999%20(VX%20Black%20Gold)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Tiger%20Stripes%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Amanda%20Nell%20Eu%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Zafreen%20Zairizal%2C%20Deena%20Ezral%20and%20Piqa%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204.5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Remaining Fixtures

Wednesday: West Indies v Scotland
Thursday: UAE v Zimbabwe
Friday: Afghanistan v Ireland
Sunday: Final

The biog

Place of birth: Kalba

Family: Mother of eight children and has 10 grandchildren

Favourite traditional dish: Al Harees, a slow cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled cracked or coarsely ground wheat mixed with meat or chicken

Favourite book: My early life by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah

Favourite quote: By Sheikh Zayed, the UAE's Founding Father, “Those who have no past will have no present or future.”

COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3ECompany%20name%3A%20CarbonSifr%3Cbr%3EStarted%3A%202022%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Dubai%3Cbr%3EFounders%3A%20Onur%20Elgun%2C%20Mustafa%20Bosca%20and%20Muhammed%20Yildirim%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20Climate%20tech%3Cbr%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%241%20million%20raised%20in%20seed%20funding%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
From Zero

Artist: Linkin Park

Label: Warner Records

Number of tracks: 11

Rating: 4/5

Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EXare%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJanuary%2018%2C%202021%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPadmini%20Gupta%2C%20Milind%20Singh%2C%20Mandeep%20Singh%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20Raised%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2410%20million%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E28%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Eundisclosed%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMS%26amp%3BAD%20Ventures%2C%20Middle%20East%20Venture%20Partners%2C%20Astra%20Amco%2C%20the%20Dubai%20International%20Financial%20Centre%2C%20Fintech%20Fund%2C%20500%20Startups%2C%20Khwarizmi%20Ventures%2C%20and%20Phoenician%20Funds%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
 
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)