Each year, across the world, the International Month of Francophonie is celebrated in March, in a bid to promote the French language. In the UAE, more than 30 events are taking place, including the FrancoFilm Festival, starting on Friday, during which nine films will be screened, as part of the "Emirati-French Cultural Dialogue" agreement between the two nations.
“We have decided to highlight Franco-Arab co-productions to underline the richness and diversity of these creations,” explains Ludovic Pouille, the French ambassador to the UAE. “This year, and for the first time, we are proud to join forces with the independent platform Cinema Akil to offer quality and thought-provoking films to audiences in the UAE,” he adds.
The festival has also partnered with Manarat Al Saadiyat to offer selected, free screenings in the capital, while Cinema Akil screenings are subject to regular ticket pricing.
New this year is also the Audience Choice Award, which will be given to the film that attracts the most viewers. Which ones deserve your time? Here's more on each of the films that are being screened throughout the week.
Paris La Blanche
Director: Lidia Terki
Run-time: 86 minutes
Subtitles: English
The festival kicks off at Cinema Akil at 7.30pm on Friday, with a screening of the 2017 film by Algerian director Terki, starring Tassadit Mandi, Zahir Bouzerar and Karole Rocher. The story follows 70-year-old Rekia, who decides to leave her village in Algeria to visit her war veteran husband, Nour, in Paris, and bring him back home. But 40 years abroad has changed the family man, who now seems more like a stranger.
Cinema Akil: Friday, March 1, 7.30pm; Sunday, March 3, 9.15pm; Friday, March 8, 5pm
Girls of the Sun (Les Filles du Soleil)
Director: Eva Husson
Run-time: 115 minutes
Subtitles: English
This 2018 drama directed by Frenchwoman Husson was a Palme d'Or nominee at the Cannes Film Festival that year. Bahar, the commander of the Kurdish battalion Girls of the Sun, aims to liberate her hometown from the hands of extremists, as well as her son, who has been taken hostage. French journalist Mathilde observes the bravery of these warriors first-hand.
Cinema Akil: Saturday, March 2, 5pm
Hannah
Director: Andrea Pallaoro
Run-time: 95 minutes
Subtitles: English
This is an Italian, French-language film by director Pallaoro, which won much praise when it came out in 2017, while actress Charlotte Rampling, who plays the titular character, won an award at the Venice International Film Festival for her performance. It's an intimate portrait of a woman who drifts between reality and denial after her husband is imprisoned and she's left alone to deal with the consequences.
Cinema Akil: Friday, March 1, 9.30pm; Monday, March 4, 7.15pm
Dilili à Paris (Dilili in Paris)
Director: Michel Ocelot
Run-time: 95 minutes
Subtitles: Arabic and English
A spate of kidnappings plagues Belle Epoque Paris. Kanak Dilili, with the help of her deliveryman friend, investigates. As she does, she encounters a bevy of extraordinary characters, who each provide her with a clue to solving the crimes. Ocelot's animated film offers a journey through French cultural history, wrapped up in a mystery.
Cinema Akil: Saturday, March 2, 3pm; Tuesday, March 5, 7.15pm; Friday, March 8, 3pm
Volubilis
Director: Faouzi Bensaidi
Run-time: 106 minutes
Subtitles: English
This Arabic-language film is a collaborative project hailing from Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. Moroccan filmmaker Bensaidi tells the story of Abdelkader and Malika, a newly married couple who are struggling to survive. They dream of leaving their family home to start a life together, but a violent incident changes the path of their lives dramatically.
Cinema Akil: Saturday, March 2, 7.30pm; Tuesday, March 5, 9.15pm
Les Rois Mongols (Cross My Heart)
Director: Luc Picard
Run-time: 102 minutes
Subtitles: Arabic
It's Montreal in 1970 and 12-year-old Manon's family is on the verge of collapse, as her father is dying of cancer and her mother is struggling with depression. Manon and her younger brother are about to be placed in foster care, so she hatches a plan to live free of parental control in an isolated rural cabin. This award-winning 2017 film from the French-Canadian director, actor and comedian tells a poignant story from the point of view of the children.
Cinema Akil: Saturday, March 2, 9.15pm; Wednesday, March 6, 9.45pm
Manarat Al Saadiyat: March 7, 7.30pm
L’Apollon de Gaza (The Apollo of Gaza)
Director: Nicolas Wadimoff
Run-time: 80 minutes
Subtitles: English
The Arabic, French and English-language documentary by award-winning Swiss director Wadimoff begins in the summer of 2013. That's when a 2,500-year-old statue of Apollo, the classical Greek and Roman deity of arts and poetry, was discovered in the nets of a fisherman in Gaza. Then it vanishes and its disappearance incites all sorts of theories, rumours and crazy speculation.
Cinema Akil: Sunday, March 3, 7.30pm; Thursday, March 7, 9.30pm
Manarat Al Saadiyat: Tuesday, March 5, 7.30pm
Seule à mon mariage (Alone at My Wedding)
Director: Marta Bergman
Run-time: 121 minutes
Subtitles: English and French
Bergman's directorial debut is a heartfelt tale about a Roma woman who becomes a mail-order bride. The French-Romanian film shows how Pamela, played by Alina Serban, who lives with her grandmother and two-year-old daughter, signs up for an online wedding service that leads her to Belgium to marry an older man, in the hope that she can start a new life.
Cinema Akil: Monday, March 4, 9.15pm; Thursday, March 7, 7pm
Manarat Al Saadiyat: Wednesday, March 6, 7.30pm
Ghost Hunting
Director: Raed Andoni
Run-time: 94 minutes
Subtitles: English
Palestinian director Andoni places an advertisement in a newspaper in Ramallah in an effort to find former inmates of Al Moskobiya interrogation centre in Jerusalem – where Andoni was held at age 18. The filmmaker finds an eclectic group of craftsmen, architects and actors who re-enact their interrogations and discuss in detail their experiences in the prison, as they all come to terms with painful memories that begin to resurface throughout the making of this film.
Cinema Akil: Wednesday, March 6, 7.15pm; Saturday, March 9, 5pm
For more information on the festival, visit www.institutfrancais-uae.com
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Greatest Royal Rumble match listing
50-man Royal Rumble - names entered so far include Braun Strowman, Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, Big Show, Kane, Chris Jericho, The New Day and Elias
Universal Championship Brock Lesnar (champion) v Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
WWE World Heavyweight ChampionshipAJ Styles (champion) v Shinsuke Nakamura
Intercontinental Championship Seth Rollins (champion) v The Miz v Finn Balor v Samoa Joe
United States Championship Jeff Hardy (champion) v Jinder Mahal
SmackDown Tag Team Championship The Bludgeon Brothers (champions) v The Usos
Raw Tag Team Championship (currently vacant) Cesaro and Sheamus v Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt
Casket match The Undertaker v Rusev
Singles match John Cena v Triple H
Cruiserweight Championship Cedric Alexander v Kalisto
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
City's slump
L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
L - Tottenham, 4-0
L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
L - Bournemouth, 2-1
L - Tottenham, 2-1
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
The biog
Nickname: Mama Nadia to children, staff and parents
Education: Bachelors degree in English Literature with Social work from UAE University
As a child: Kept sweets on the window sill for workers, set aside money to pay for education of needy families
Holidays: Spends most of her days off at Senses often with her family who describe the centre as part of their life too
Brief scores:
Toss: Sindhis, elected to field first
Kerala Knights 103-7 (10 ov)
Parnell 59 not out; Tambe 5-15
Sindhis 104-1 (7.4 ov)
Watson 50 not out, Devcich 49
Nick's journey in numbers
Countries so far: 85
Flights: 149
Steps: 3.78 million
Calories: 220,000
Floors climbed: 2,000
Donations: GPB37,300
Prostate checks: 5
Blisters: 15
Bumps on the head: 2
Dog bites: 1
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Company profile
Date started: January, 2014
Founders: Mike Dawson, Varuna Singh, and Benita Rowe
Based: Dubai
Sector: Education technology
Size: Five employees
Investment: $100,000 from the ExpoLive Innovation Grant programme in 2018 and an initial $30,000 pre-seed investment from the Turn8 Accelerator in 2014. Most of the projects are government funded.
Partners/incubators: Turn8 Accelerator; In5 Innovation Centre; Expo Live Innovation Impact Grant Programme; Dubai Future Accelerators; FHI 360; VSO and Consult and Coach for a Cause (C3)
THE APPRENTICE
Director: Ali Abbasi
Starring: Sebastian Stan, Maria Bakalova, Jeremy Strong
Rating: 3/5
MATCH INFO
Maratha Arabians 107-8 (10 ovs)
Lyth 21, Lynn 20, McClenaghan 20 no
Qalandars 60-4 (10 ovs)
Malan 32 no, McClenaghan 2-9
Maratha Arabians win by 47 runs
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
RESULTS
1.45pm: Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winners: Hyde Park, Royston Ffrench (jockey), Salem bin Ghadayer (trainer)
2.15pm: Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Shamikh, Ryan Curatolo, Nicholas Bachalard
2.45pm: Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Hurry Up, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
3.15pm: Shadwell Jebel Ali Mile Group 3 (TB) Dh575,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Blown by Wind, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer
3.45pm: Handicap (TB) Dh72,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Mazagran, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
4.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh64,000 (D) 1,950m
Winner: Obeyaan, Adrie de Vries, Mujeeb Rehman
4.45pm: Handicap (TB) Dh84,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Shanaghai City, Fabrice Veron, Rashed Bouresly.
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.