La La Land director and star set sights on next year’s Oscars
Acclaimed La La Land director Damien Chazelle may have finished one Oscar season, but it appears he may be headed for another, albeit with a film due out in 2018. Universal Pictures this week announced that Chazelle's First Man, starring Ryan Gosling as astronaut Neil Armstrong was set for an October 12, 2018 release. The film will return Chazelle to the heart of awards season with the follow-up to this year's musical film sensation. First Man focuses on Armstrong ifrom 1961-1969 and follows Nasa's race to get a man on the moon. The script, based on James R Hansen's book, is written by Spotlight scribe Josh Singer. The 32-year-old Chazelle became the youngest to ever win best director at the Academy Awards. La La Land, which has made nearly $400 million globally, took home six Oscars. — Associated Press
Coroner: George Michael died of ‘natural causes’
It's been confirmed that music legend George Michael died of natural causes. The cause of his death was confirmed on Tuesday after a British coroner acknowledged that heart failure and liver disease was to blame for Michael's death on Christmas day last year. The coroner said that there was no need for further inquiries into the death of Michael, 53, who rose to stardom in the 1980s with Wham! before going on to enjoy a successful solo career. "As there is a confirmed natural cause of death, being dilated cardiomyopathy with myocarditis and fatty liver, the investigation is being discontinued," Darren Salter, the senior coroner for Oxfordshire, said in a statement. Dilated cardiomyopathy is a heart condition that impairs the pumping of blood around the body. The initial autopsy into the singer's death had been inconclusive, though his manager said previously the star had died of heart failure. Wham! were one of the most successful pop duos of the mid 1980s, with singles such as Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, Last Christmas, Careless Whisper, and Young Guns (Go For It!). - Reuters
TCM to honour late host
Turner Classic Movies will honour its late long-time host Robert Osborne with a 48-hour tribute celebrating his 23-year tenure with the network. The tribute will run from Saturday, March 18 and Sunday, March 19. Osborne, the longtime face of TCM, died Monday. He was 84. The tribute will feature long-form interviews conducted by Osborne, an interview of Osborne conducted by Alec Baldwin for the host's 20th anniversary and Osborne's very first movie intro, filmed for Turner Classic's first broadcast in 1994, for Gone With the Wind. Some of Osborne's interviews include sit-downs with Debbie Reynolds, Liza Minelli and Peter O'Toole. Earlier this week, TCM recalled Osborne as "fundamental in shaping TCM into what it is today". - Associated Press
Streep/Hanks dream team to unite for debut movie
Two of the most celebrated actors of their generation, Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks, will star together for the first time in new Steven Spielberg political drama The Post, according to Hollywood trade magazine Variety. The film will focus on the Washington Post's publication of the 1971 Pentagon Papers, which made headlines around the world when the newspaper's editor and publisher challenged the United States federal government over their right to publish them. Two-time Oscar winner Hanks will play the editor, Ben Bradlee, while three-time Oscar winner Streep will take on the role of the publisher, Kay Graham, Variety says. No dates for filming were revealed in the report, with award-laden director Spielberg currently in post-production on sci-fi action movie, Ready Player One, which is due to hit theatres in March 2018. — Reuters
Indian actresses release Women’s Day messages
Actresses Raashi Khanna and Rakul Preet Singh have released special videos for International Women's Day. In a video titled Believe in You, narrated and produced by Khanna, the Jil actress asks "Why are we afraid living the way we want to. Why do you have to compromise your dreams and give up. Whom are constantly fighting, whom are you competing with?" She went on add that as women, they are not here to race against men, but to thrive together. "A soul has no gender, yet we are fortunate to have a woman's body. Fortunate to be the most beautiful expression of the universe. Embrace it and celebrate. You're beautiful and powerful and deserve every chance in the world. Then, what is that stops you? Is that judgemental voices that discourage or is it something that's within," she said. Raashi said women should define the way they want to be. Rakul Preet, on the other hand, in a very different take on Women's Day, asked in a video why we remember women, their achievements and their struggle just for a day. She asked why it always takes a Sunita Williams or a Nirbhaya to make people talk about us. She also asked why it is an issue with what women wear and how they look, and why do they need to be corrected about whom they choose to love.
On a concluding note, she said women don’t need any hypocrytic celebration in the name of Women’s Day. — IANS
Scarlett Johansson files for divorce
Actress Scarlett Johansson has filed for divorce from her husband Romain Dauriac. The Avengers star's attorney Judith Poller served the divorce filings to Dauriac's lawyer, Harold Mayerson, on Tuesday, reports pagesix.com. Mayerson added that the estranged couple are "gearing up for a nasty custody battle" over their only daughter. "He would like to move to France with his daughter and Johansson does a lot of travelling. It will be an interesting process," he said. Johansson and Dauriac were first linked to each other in 2012. They got married in a private wedding ceremony in 2014, shortly after they welcomed their daughter. Earlier this year, it was confirmed that the two separated in summer 2016. — IANS
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Traits of Chinese zodiac animals
Tiger:independent, successful, volatile
Rat:witty, creative, charming
Ox:diligent, perseverent, conservative
Rabbit:gracious, considerate, sensitive
Dragon:prosperous, brave, rash
Snake:calm, thoughtful, stubborn
Horse:faithful, energetic, carefree
Sheep:easy-going, peacemaker, curious
Monkey:family-orientated, clever, playful
Rooster:honest, confident, pompous
Dog:loyal, kind, perfectionist
Boar:loving, tolerant, indulgent
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.”
SCHEDULE
Saturday, April 20: 11am to 7pm - Abu Dhabi World Jiu-Jitsu Festival and Para jiu-jitsu.
Sunday, April 21: 11am to 6pm - Abu Dhabi World Youth (female) Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Monday, April 22: 11am to 6pm - Abu Dhabi World Youth (male) Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Tuesday, April 23: 11am-6pm Abu Dhabi World Masters Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Wednesday, April 24: 11am-6pm Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Thursday, April 25: 11am-5pm Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Friday, April 26: 3pm to 6pm Finals of the Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Saturday, April 27: 4pm and 8pm awards ceremony.
German plea
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the German parliament that. Russia had erected a new wall across Europe.
"It's not a Berlin Wall -- it is a Wall in central Europe between freedom and bondage and this Wall is growing bigger with every bomb" dropped on Ukraine, Zelenskyy told MPs.
Mr Zelenskyy was applauded by MPs in the Bundestag as he addressed Chancellor Olaf Scholz directly.
"Dear Mr Scholz, tear down this Wall," he said, evoking US President Ronald Reagan's 1987 appeal to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate.
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
Hamilton profile
Age 32
Country United Kingdom
Grands Prix entered 198
Pole positions 67
Wins 57
Podiums 110
Points 2,423
World Championships 3
States of Passion by Nihad Sirees,
Pushkin Press
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Scoreline:
Cardiff City 0
Liverpool 2
Wijnaldum 57', Milner 81' (pen)
The design
The protective shell is covered in solar panels to make use of light and produce energy. This will drastically reduce energy loss.
More than 80 per cent of the energy consumed by the French pavilion will be produced by the sun.
The architecture will control light sources to provide a highly insulated and airtight building.
The forecourt is protected from the sun and the plants will refresh the inner spaces.
A micro water treatment plant will recycle used water to supply the irrigation for the plants and to flush the toilets. This will reduce the pavilion’s need for fresh water by 30 per cent.
Energy-saving equipment will be used for all lighting and projections.
Beyond its use for the expo, the pavilion will be easy to dismantle and reuse the material.
Some elements of the metal frame can be prefabricated in a factory.
From architects to sound technicians and construction companies, a group of experts from 10 companies have created the pavilion.
Work will begin in May; the first stone will be laid in Dubai in the second quarter of 2019.
Construction of the pavilion will take 17 months from May 2019 to September 2020.
Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
Januzaj's club record
Manchester United 50 appearances, 5 goals
Borussia Dortmund (loan) 6 appearances, 0 goals
Sunderland (loan) 25 appearances, 0 goals
Warlight,
Michael Ondaatje, Knopf
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
