DJ Hardwell, Afrojack and Adam Beyer are just some of the big names announced for Creamfields Abu Dhabi. The dance luminaries will descend on Yas Island's du Arena on December 12 for the annual music festival, featuring the cream of the international and local EDM scene. The Dutchman Hardwell is ranked number one on the highly influential DJ Magazine's Top 100 DJs list. His compatriot, the Grammy Award-winning Afrojack, is in the enviable position of having managed to break into the pop-music world while retaining his dance credentials. Tickets begin from Dh250, but special early-bird offers are available from Dh150 for a limited time. For details go to www.ticketmaster.ae. – The National staff
Mother of seven reaches the finals of film competition
A mother of seven is one of three Emirati filmmakers who have reached the finals of Arab Film Studio – Image Nation (a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Media and the publisher and owner of The National) and twofour54's amateur film competition. Fakhrah Abdullah, 34 from Fujairah, whose short film, The Last Petal, tells the story of a boy in a wheelchair, said: "I am overwhelmed at the news that my film has been selected as one of the final six. It's been an incredible few months." The other Emirati finalists, chosen by a panel that included the American actor David Hasselhoff, are Ali Al Marzouqi and Shahad Al Shehhi. They will be joined by a British/Pakistani expat, a Kuwaiti and an Egyptian, at an awards ceremony on October 30 at the Abu Dhabi Film Festival. Six awards will be handed out, including the coveted Best Film which includes a Dh50,000 prize. – The National staff
DIFF section to feature films from around the world
The Dubai International Film Festival's Cinema of the World section, which showcases movies that have been generating buzz around the world, will include the Oscar-nominated director Bennett Miller's film Foxcatcher starring Steve Carell and Channing Tatum; Bafta-nominated director Morten Tyldum's The Imitation Game starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightley; Oscar-nominated director Jean-Marc Vallee's Wild starring Reese Witherspoon; and Andrea Di Stefano's Escobar: Paradise Lost. Xavier Dolan's fifth feature, Mommy, which won the Jury Prize at Cannes, will also play, along with the actor Paul Bettany's debut as a writer-director, Shelter; the Argentine comedy-drama Wild Tales; the French comedy drama, Samba; and Indian writer-director Chaitanya Tamhane's debut feature film Court. Also on the schedule is the Pakistani film Dukhtar; British film The Goob; and These Are the Rules from Croatia. The festival runs from December 10 to 17. – The National staff
Ella Eyre and Cris Cab at RedfestDXB Festival 2015
Ella Eyre and Cris Cab are the latest acts added to next year's RedfestDXB Festival at the Dubai Media City Amphitheatre on February 12 and 13. The British singer Eyre is renowned for her soulful vocal turn in Rudimental's big hit Waiting All Night. The American singer Cab is making waves on the radio with his latest single Liar Liar, featuring Pharrell Williams. Both acts join already announced headliners The Script and Iggy Azalea. Ticket go on sale tomorrow at www.redfestdxb.com, and start from Dh350. – The National staff
Catherine Deneuve honoured by Mumbai Film Festival
French cinema queen Catherine Deneuve said she was “pleased and touched” to accept a lifetime achievement award at the Mumbai Film Festival on Tuesday. She was presented with the honour, celebrating her five decades of stardom, by Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Indian industrialist Niraj Bajaj. “It’s a very strong word, life achievement – it is a great honour. I am pleased and touched,” said Deneuve, 70. “It is nice to be here in India, which is so much the country for cinema, as France is as well.” Deneuve, often described as the “ice queen” of French cinema, has appeared in more than 100 films. She is heading a French delegation to the festival. - AFP
1D’s Zayn Malik in a Bollywood movie?
The One Direction band member Zayn Malik is reportedly being wooed by Bollywood producers to “sing and act” in a forthcoming Hindi-language film. Producers in Mumbai, where India’s Hindi film industry is based, want to tap into his “global popularity” and are offering the 21-year-old pop star £500,000 (Dh3 million) to feature in a song, according to a report by mirror.co.uk. “One very big production company is putting together an offer for him to act as well as sing. He has turned down one song so far, but if the right one comes along it could be great for him,” said a source. One Direction is due to perform in Dubai in April next year. – The National staff
Jack White cancels tour after band member’s death
Rock star Jack White has cancelled the remaining dates on a tour of Mexico after the death of his band’s keyboard player. Isaiah “Ikey” Owens, 38, died on Tuesday morning. The White Stripes frontman’s band had been scheduled to perform in Guadalajara on Tuesday and Monterrey on Wednesday. Owens also played in the bands Mars Volta and Free Moral Agents. - AP
Singer Keys joins protest over kidnapped Nigerian girls
Singer Alicia Keys took part a protest in New York on Tuesday to raise awareness about more than 200 Nigerian schoolgirls who were kidnapped by Boko Haram militants in April. Tuesday marked the six-month anniversary of the abduction. Keys joined a lunchtime protest with about 30 other people at the consulate general of Nigeria, holding signs that read “We Are Here” and “Safe Schools Now!”. Keys, 33, who is pregnant, said she felt moved to take action because she is a mother herself. Her son, Egypt, turned 4 on Tuesday. “Today is my son’s birthday and it is also making me stand in solidarity with all the mothers of the Chibok girls who have been abducted for six months and are still missing,” she said. Keys recently launched the movement “We Are Here,” which fights for social justice. She was joined at the protest by her husband, producer-rapper Swizz Beatz. -AP
Plan to rename tunnel in honour of comedian Robin Williams
A politician in California wants to rename a tunnel near San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge after the comedian Robin Williams. The Waldo Tunnel is in Marin County, where Williams grew up and lived before committing suicide at his home there in August. Democratic state assemblyman Marc Levine of San Rafael says he plans to introduce the name-change resolution in December after an online petition collected more than 55,000 signatures. He said Williams’ family supports the project. The tunnel, which has a rainbow painted on the outside, is named after William Waldo, a Whig Party candidate who ran for governor in 1853. - AP
Kesha sues producer, claiming years of abuse
American pop star Kesha on Tuesday sued her producer Dr Luke for allegedly abusing her sexually and emotionally for years, while threatening to harm her career. The singer – who signed with his Kemosabe label at 18 – accuses the producer, real name Lukasz Gottwald, 41, of forcing her to take drugs and drink alcohol so that he could abuse her sexually when she was under the influence, court documents show. She also said that Gottwald’s criticism of her weight caused bulimia. She has said publicly she went to rehabilitation for the eating disorder. Kesha also says that the producer alienated her from her family and threatened to destroy her career if she reported these incidents. Dr Luke has filed a countersuit says that that Kesha wants to damage his name in an effort to cut short her contract. His lawyer, Christine Lepera, described the charges as malicious lies. - AFP
