Kristen Stewart on Friday became the first American actress to win a César, France's equivalent of the Oscar, while Timbuktu won seven awards including best film for its portrayal of northern Mali under extremist control. The Twilight star Stewart received the best supporting actress award for her role alongside Juliette Binoche in Clouds of Sils Maria. Directed by France's Olivier Assayas, the film stars Stewart as the personal assistant to an actress played by Binoche and the film follows their intense relationship. Timbuktu, which was screened at last year's Abu Dhabi Film Festival, is also nominated for Best Foreign Film at tonight's Oscars. Its director Abderrahmane Sissako, who became the first black African to win the best director César among the film's haul of awards, said he wanted to show the residents of the ancient city struggling to maintain their daily lives in the face of brutal rule of extremists who seized a large portion of Mali's desert in 2012. – AFP
Chance to see Oscar hopeful Wild Tales
If you missed the chance to see the Dubai International Film Festival audience favourite Wild Tales last year, you can catch the film in Dubai tomorrow and Tuesday – and the screenings could not be better timed, with the Argentinian thriller in the running to scoop the Best Foreign Language Film award at the Oscars tonight. Produced by Pedro Almodóvar, the offbeat black comedy is made up of six short stories linked by the theme of revenge and mixes tension and humour. Free tickets for the screenings, at Knowledge Village Conference Centre at 8pm, are available from www.thesceneclub.com. Head to www.thenational.ae/blogs/scene-heard to read our full interview with the film's director Damián Szifrón. – The National staff
Student short film festival returns
The ON: Original Narrative Student Short Film Festival has returned to the American University of Dubai and runs until Tuesday. Organisers promise it will be bigger and better than last year's debut edition, with 65 films by students from all around the world selected for the competition, from more than 400 entries. The films come from as far afield as Australia, Brazil and Denmark, and around 30 per cent are from Arabian Gulf countries, including five from AUD students. This year's festival is a day longer than last year's event. A new section will feature screenings of non-student films, including Sarah Ishaq's Oscar-nominated short Karama Has No Walls and Georges Khabbaz-scripted, multi-director, festival favourite Void. Also for this year, the festival has partnered with the Dubai Film and TV Commission which will be on the lookout for suitable AUD students to intern at the organisation. For more information, visit www.originalnarrative.com. – The National staff
Blur to make comeback at British Summer Time concert
Britpop icons Blur are back, with a big summer show and their first album in more than a decade.
They will headline a British Summer Time concert in Hyde Park on June 20, the first time they will have played together since the 2012 Olympics closing ceremony. Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, Dave Rowntree and Alex James also said they planned to release a new album, The Magic Whipon April 27. Blur was one of the biggest British bands of the 1990s, alongside rivals Oasis. The band’s last studio album, Think Tank, was released in 2003. – AP
Bruce Jenner responsible for chain-reaction crash according to new video
Video footage shows former Olympic athlete and reality-TV star Bruce Jenner starting a chain-reaction crash that resulted in a woman’s death on a Malibu motorway, a law enforcement official said at the weekend.
Jenner was hauling an off-road vehicle on a trailer behind his Cadillac Escalade on February 7 when he steered to avoid cars slowing for a traffic light in front of him on Pacific Coast Highway, the official said
Jenner’s SUV rear-ended two cars, pushing a Lexus into oncoming traffic, the official added. The driver, Kim Howe, 69, was killed when he vehicle was struck head-on by a Hummer.
The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department is investigating the cause of the crash and will consider whether to issue a citation that could result in criminal charges. The official said the video, was filmed by cameras on a bus.
Investigators are looking at mobile-phone records to see whether any drivers were distracted, but the video appears to show that Jenner was not using his phone. – AP
Bruce Dickinson cured of tongue cancer
Iron Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson has been treated for cancer of the tongue and hopes to be back to full fitness soon. A statement posted on the band’s official website over the weekend said a cancerous tumour was discovered during a check-up in December, and Dickinson has completed a seven-week course of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. It says the prognosis is “extremely good,” and doctors expect the singer to make a full recovery, “with the all-clear envisaged by late May.” – AP
Ben Woolf critical after accident
Ben Woolf, an actor on American Horror Story: Freak Show, was in critical condition on Friday after being hit by the side mirror of a passing vehicle in Hollywood.
The accident happened on Thursday night on Hollywood Boulevard, police Officer Drake Madison said.
Woolf, who is 4 feet 4 inches (1.3 meters) tall, was hit on the head and taken to the hospital. The motorist stopped at the scene and was not arrested.
“Ben is one of the kindest and hardest-working people I know,” publicist Zack Teperman said. “His condition remains critical at this time, and we ask that everyone please keep Ben in your thoughts and prayers, and respect his family’s privacy during this time.” . – AP
Parks and Recreation writer found dead
Harris Wittels, who worked as a writer and executive producer on the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation, was found dead of a possible drug overdose on Thursday. He was 30.
Wittels’ assistant found him at his home in the Los Feliz area around noon, and he was pronounced dead at the scene, police officer Rosario Herrera said. She said the death is being investigated as a possible drug overdose.
Wittels talked about his struggles with drug abuse in a podcast last fall.
He was a co-executive producer and writer, with occasional acting appearances, on Parks and Recreation, and his death comes just a few days before the series finale of the seven-season comedy starring Amy Poehler. – AP
Police department in Kentucky announce arrest warrant for Frozen’s Elsa
The cold might not bother Disney's Queen Elsa, but it's wreaking enough havoc in Kentucky that a police department announced a joke warrant for the popular Frozen character's arrest. Police in the small, rural town of Harlan posted a Facebook message about Elsa. They wrote: "Suspect is a blonde female last seen wearing a long blue dress and is known to burst into song `Let it Go!' As you can see by the weather she is very dangerous."
Police soon posted another message, telling residents that all kidding aside, they should take the weather seriously and be careful. A massive weather system dropped more than a foot of snow in parts of Kentucky. Bitterly cold temperatures moved in on Wednesday night and were likely to stay for several days. – AP
