It was the final awards ceremony ahead of the Academy Awards on February 24, and at the 34th Film Independent Spirit Awards it was If Beale Street Could Talk that came out on top.
Two years after his Moonlight triumphed on the eve of the Oscars, Barry Jenkins's adaptation of the James Baldwin novel If Beale Street Could Talk took home best film, best director and best supporting female for Regina King.
Click though the gallery above to see all of the stars arriving at the 2019 Independent Spirit Awards.
The Spirit Awards, always a casual, ocean-side preamble to Sunday's Academy Awards, featured a few things the Oscars don't have: a host (actress Aubrey Plaza) and female filmmaker nominees, including Tamara Jenkins (Private Life), Debra Granik (Leave No Trace) and Lynne Ramsey (You Were Never Really Here).
In her opening monologue, Plaza tweaked the Oscars: "The network's first choice was no one, but they were already booked for tomorrow."
Focus on female filmmakers
But as much as the afternoon belonged to women, Jenkins' lyrical period drama emerged the biggest winner two years after his Moonlight won at the Spirits and (despite a touch of trouble with the envelopes) at the Oscars. Given his fellow nominees, even Jenkins was sheepish about it.
"I'm not gonna lie, man," said Jenkins accepting the directing award. "I didn't want to win this."
Jenkins used his speech to instead largely urge more movies to be made with female directors and specifically credited the Scottish filmmaker Ramsey — who encouraged Jenkins as a film student — for inspiration. "This award has your DNA in it," Jenkins said.
Leave No Trace and You Were Never Really Here won other awards, though. You Were Never Really Here won for its editing. Granik was honored with the Spirits' second annual Bonnie Award, a grant for mid-career female directors. The audience gave her a standing ovation.
"I wasn't expecting such a love bomb," said a clearly moved Granik.
A day before many expect her to finally win her first Academy Award, best female lead went to Glenn Close for her performance in The Wife. Close was accompanied everywhere by her loyal white Havanese dog Pip: on the awards' blue carpet, on stage with her, and backstage speaking to reporters. While Close accepted her award, Pip rolled on his back alongside her.
"I hope you don't mind Pippy came up here with me," said Close. "He's my date."
This year's Spirits included fewer Oscar contenders than usual, which meant a chance, as Plaza said, for the Spirits to get back to their roots and honor "the movies that are too good to be seen."
Awards season draws to a close
Their best-picture winner has often predicted Oscar-winners, including Moonlight, Spotlight, Birdman and 12 Years a Slave. But last year Jordan Peele's Get Out took the Spirits' top honor before Guillermo del Toro's The Shape of Water won at the Academy Awards. This year, Beale Street is nominated for three Oscars but not best picture.
King, though, is the front-runner for best supporting actress. "If you haven't seen it, go see it," said King of Beale Street before chuckling. "I'm still promoting."
The Spirit Awards limit nominees to films with budgets of $20 million and under, eliminating bigger budget contenders like Black Panther and A Star Is Born. They also focus on American movies, limiting Oscar nominees like Roma and The Favourite to the best international film category — which Alfonso Cuaron's Roma won.
Cuaron, whose film is favored to become the first foreign language film to win best picture on Sunday, said he believes cinema is growing more diverse, "and that will make this category irrelevant."
A night of performances
Plaza led a profane, sarcastic and often very funny ceremony that was broadcast live on IFC. The show featured a show-stopping song-and-dance performance by performer Shangela who turned the night's top nominees, like Paul Schrader's anguished religious drama First Reformed, into a disco medley. "If Beale Street Could Talk, what would she say?" sang Shangela while Jenkins doubled over in laughter.
Plaza also brought in her old Parks and Recreation co-star Jim O'Heir for a spoof on Andy King, the infamously dedicated producer featured in the Netflix Fyre Festival documentary, Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened.
Ethan Hawke won best male lead for First Reformed, an award collected for the absent actor by his co-star, Amanda Seyfried.
Marielle Heller's Can You Ever Forgive Me? took awards for both Richard E Grant's supporting performance and best screenplay for Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Witty. Holofcener called up Heller to join them on stage.
Best first feature went to Boots Riley's madcap political satirical Sorry to Bother You. In his acceptance speech, Riley, a longtime musician making his directorial debut, spoke out against U.S. involvement in Venezuela. He said film is growing more socially conscious.
"There are real movements out there happening on the streets," said Riley. "Rightly so, film is responding to that."
Other awards included best documentary for the Oscar-snubbed Fred Rogers documentary Won't You Be My Neighbor?; best first screenplay went to the comedian-turned-director Bo Burnham for Eighth Grade; Luca Guadagnino's Suspiria won the Robert Altman ensemble award and best cinematography; and the micro-budget En El Septimo Dia won the Spirits' John Cassavetes Award, which honors movies made for less than $500,000.
Day 2, stumps
Pakistan 482
Australia 30/0 (13 ov)
Australia trail by 452 runs with 10 wickets remaining in the innings
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
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Russia's Muslim Heartlands
Dominic Rubin, Oxford
Liverpool's all-time goalscorers
Ian Rush 346
Roger Hunt 285
Mohamed Salah 250
Gordon Hodgson 241
Billy Liddell 228
New Zealand 15 British & Irish Lions 15
New Zealand 15
Tries: Laumape, J Barrett
Conversions: B Barrett
Penalties: B Barrett
British & Irish Lions 15
Penalties: Farrell (4), Daly
Ad Astra
Director: James Gray
Stars: Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones
Five out of five stars
Profile of Tarabut Gateway
Founder: Abdulla Almoayed
Based: UAE
Founded: 2017
Number of employees: 35
Sector: FinTech
Raised: $13 million
Backers: Berlin-based venture capital company Target Global, Kingsway, CE Ventures, Entrée Capital, Zamil Investment Group, Global Ventures, Almoayed Technologies and Mad’a Investment.
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Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
Our House, Louise Candlish,
Simon & Schuster
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
Company: Instabug
Founded: 2013
Based: Egypt, Cairo
Sector: IT
Employees: 100
Stage: Series A
Investors: Flat6Labs, Accel, Y Combinator and angel investors
Where to Find Me by Alba Arikha
Alma Books
The biog
Marital status: Separated with two young daughters
Education: Master's degree from American Univeristy of Cairo
Favourite book: That Is How They Defeat Despair by Salwa Aladian
Favourite Motto: Their happiness is your happiness
Goal: For Nefsy to become his legacy long after he is gon
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
The%20specs
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Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
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'Brazen'
Director: Monika Mitchell
Starring: Alyssa Milano, Sam Page, Colleen Wheeler
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 400hp
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SCHEDULE
December 8: UAE v USA (Sharjah Cricket Stadium)
December 9: USA v Scotland (Sharjah Cricket Stadium)
December 11: UAE v Scotland (Sharjah Cricket Stadium)
December 12: UAE v USA (ICC Academy Oval 1)
December 14: USA v Scotland (ICC Academy Oval 1)
December 15: UAE v Scotland (ICC Academy Oval 1)
All matches start at 10am
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
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Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
THE SPECS
Aston Martin Rapide AMR
Engine: 6.0-litre V12
Transmission: Touchtronic III eight-speed automatic
Power: 595bhp
Torque: 630Nm
Price: Dh999,563
Sri Lanka-India Test series schedule
1st Test July 26-30 in Galle
2nd Test August 3-7 in Colombo
3rd Test August 12-16 in Pallekele
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