Three feature films and one short by Arab directors will be shown at the 77th Venice International Film Festival, which will take place from September 2 to 12.
Festival director Alberto Barbera announced this year's line-up on Tuesday, July 28, and said organisers were keen to feature more international films to ensure the festival remained "a shop window for the best cinema production in the world".
It will be the first film festival to be held in a physical location since the pandemic began.
Screenings will take place in traditional venues, as well as at two outdoor arenas – Giardini della Biennale and a skating rink on the Lido – with adopted safety measures established by authorities. The films selected to screen at the festival will be divided into three categories: The Venezia 77 (the main competition), Horizons and Out of Competition. Actress Cate Blanchett will lead this year’s competition jury.
Three films from Arab filmmakers will debut in the Horizons section, which is dedicated to international cinema. Two other films by Arab filmmakers will also be screening outside of the main programme.
The short film A Fleur De Peau (Under her Skin) by Algerian filmmaker Meriem Mesraoua will be screening in the Horizons short films competition. The drama 200 Metres, by Palestinian director Ameen Nayfeh, will be showing at Venice Days, an independent programme held in association with the Venice Film Festival.
Here's a closer look at the films:
‘The Man Who Sold His Skin’
Directed by Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania, the film tells the story of Syrian refugee Sam Ali, who agrees to have his back tattooed by a caustic contemporary artist so he can travel to Paris and be with the love of his life. However, he soon becomes a sought-after work in the art market. The film, which was written by the director herself, stars Yahya Mahayni and Monica Bellucci.
Ben Hania is best known for her 2013 feature Le Challat de Tunis, a mockumentary that shines an unsettling light on Tunisian attitudes towards women. The film revolves around the director's search for a man who is travelling around the country slashing women's rears.
Her 2017 drama Beauty and the Dogs tells the story of a college student who seeks help after an assault. But she soon faces a bureaucratic nightmare when she discovers the perpetrators are police officers. The film was selected as the Tunisian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 2018 Oscars.
‘Zanka Contact’
Zanka Contact "mixes western and romance, violence and laughter, rock 'n' roll and traditional desert music. It is directly inspired by the crazy mix of western and eastern influences that is Casablanca," French-Moroccan filmmaker Ismael El Iraki said about his debut feature.
The film revolves around an Irish ex-rock star, Oisin, who loses his voice and sobriety to cancer. Oisin’s hope in the future is restored after he falls in love with golden-voiced streetwalker Rajae, in Casablanca. They soon embark on an adventure across Morocco’s underbelly, where they encounter various seedy characters.
El Iraki's 2007 short film Carcasse won the Short Film Corner Prize at Festival de Cannes, where it debuted. His 2009 short Harash won a special mention at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival.
‘Gaza Mon Amour’
Directed by Palestinian twins Arab and Tarzan Nasser, Gaza Mon Amour tells the story of 60-year-old fisherman Issa, who is in love with Siham, a dressmaker at his local market. As he musters up the courage to propose, Issa discovers an ancient Greek statue of Apollo in his fishing net, which he then hides at home. The discovery soon upends life as he knows it.
The storyline is inspired by a real-life incident in 2014, in which an ancient statue of Apollo was fished out of the sea off the Gaza coast.
The Nasser brothers had their feature debut at the 2015 Cannes Critics' Week with Degrade, a film about a group of women who become trapped in their local hair salon.
'A Fleur De Peau' (Under her Skin)
This short film by Algerian filmmaker Meriem Mesraoua, which will screen in the Horizons competition, is a childhood tale set in Oran, Algeria. The film tells the story of Sarah, who must follow new rules set by her mother as she forbids her from biting her nails.
‘200 Meters’
Directed by Ameen Nayfeh, 200 Meters tells the story of Mustafa and Salwa, a Palestinian couple from villages that are only 200 metres apart, but separated by the wall that wends through the West Bank's border communities. The situation puts a strain on their otherwise happy marriage, but the pair strive to make it work. Every night, Mustafa shines a light from his balcony to wish his children on the other side goodnight. After receiving news that his son has been in an accident, Mustafa rushes to the checkpoint but is denied entry. He then hires a smuggler to help him cross.
Nayfeh has worked on several award-winning short films, including the 2017 title The Crossing. He has also directed documentaries, including The Eid Gift.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
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Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
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What's in the deal?
Agreement aims to boost trade by £25.5bn a year in the long run, compared with a total of £42.6bn in 2024
India will slash levies on medical devices, machinery, cosmetics, soft drinks and lamb.
India will also cut automotive tariffs to 10% under a quota from over 100% currently.
Indian employees in the UK will receive three years exemption from social security payments
India expects 99% of exports to benefit from zero duty, raising opportunities for textiles, marine products, footwear and jewellery
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.”
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
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Pad Man
Dir: R Balki
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor, Radhika Apte
Three-and-a-half stars
PROFILE OF SWVL
Started: April 2017
Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport
Size: 450 employees
Investment: approximately $80 million
Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani
MATCH INFO
Manchester United v Everton
Where: Old Trafford, Manchester
When: Sunday, kick-off 7pm (UAE)
How to watch: Live on BeIN Sports 11HD
The specs: 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor
Price, base / as tested Dh220,000 / Dh320,000
Engine 3.5L V6
Transmission 10-speed automatic
Power 421hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 678Nm @ 3,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 14.1L / 100km
Charlotte Gainsbourg
Rest
(Because Music)
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
