film

Britain's Harris Dickinson on John Lennon, directing and news overload

BY ADAM PLOWRIGHT

  • - 'Get obsessed' - Dickinson is currently in the middle of an exhausting filming schedule for four biographical films about "The Beatles" from "American Beauty" and James Bond director Mendes.
  • He's acted as Nicole Kidman's love interest, delivered an acclaimed directorial debut, and been cast in Sam Mendes' upcoming "The Beatles" films, but Britain's Harris Dickinson insists he's keeping his feet on the ground.
  • - 'Get obsessed' - Dickinson is currently in the middle of an exhausting filming schedule for four biographical films about "The Beatles" from "American Beauty" and James Bond director Mendes.
He's acted as Nicole Kidman's love interest, delivered an acclaimed directorial debut, and been cast in Sam Mendes' upcoming "The Beatles" films, but Britain's Harris Dickinson insists he's keeping his feet on the ground.
The modest Londoner, who turns 30 later this year, has had a whirlwind year that has seen his stock rise further as an actor who can straddle both art house cinema and more commercial TV and film work.
But the "Babygirl" star and upcoming on-screen John Lennon insists he won't be swapping Hollywood for his beloved home in the British capital -- now or ever.
"It feels like I'm grounded by London, east London specifically. It feels like a very important place," he told AFP in an interview.  
"I have my people. I have my family. I have my own little community there," he added.
The city is the backdrop to "Urchin", his first film as a director which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival last May and which includes a cameo from his mum.
- 'Stay on track' - 
The premiere in Cannes, where he starred in 2022 prize-winner "Triangle of Sadness" by Ruben Ostlund, was so stressful Dickinson felt sick before the screening. 
But his film, about a homeless man struggling after his release from prison, won over critics with the strength of the acting and directing, as well as its wry humour. 
Dickinson sees it as containing an important message about community: the importance of it, as well as the dangers for drug users of "exhausting (their) support networks".  
"It's very common, even for people with good family setups, or friends and family, they get to a point where no one wants to help them anymore," he said.
Keeping destructive behaviour at bay is a battle he relates to, having seen the ravages of alcohol in his family -- but also as a member of the notoriously addiction-prone entertainment industry. 
"Ultimately no one's safety or path is guaranteed. You have to do a certain amount of work in order to stay on track, especially if you've got addictive tendencies or destructive tendencies," he explained.

'Get obsessed'

Dickinson is currently in the middle of an exhausting filming schedule for four biographical films about "The Beatles" from "American Beauty" and James Bond director Mendes.
Each one is shot from the perspective of one of the Fab Four, with Dickinson landing what is arguably the plum role as Lennon. 
Paul Mescal ("Hamnet", "Gladiator II") plays Paul McCartney.
"I'm getting up at 4:45 am every day, and I'm getting home at 8:00 pm," Dickinson explained.
Working with Mendes has made a big impression -- "he's a big canvas director" -- but one of the hardest things is pulling himself out of the daily news doom cycle and his research into the 1960s. 
"I do go through periods where I tune out from news a little bit because I can get obsessed with it. I go deep, and I get very troubled by it," Dickinson explained.
"I don't think our brains and our systems are designed to be that tuned into injustice and tragedy and darkness."
The troubled post-war era "doesn't feel any different to what we're going through today, that's the alarming thing really," he added.
"The Beatles" is a long-term job that will keep him busy until December. 
After that?
"I'm quite interested in anything apocalyptic, anything dystopian, or a survival film," he explained. 
"I'm interested in the idea of what happens when society falls, what happens when we are left with nothing or we're stripped of everything."
adp/rmb

film

Glitzy Oscar nominees luncheon back one year after LA fires

BY PAULA RAMON

  • The more than 200 nominees enjoyed a buzzy afternoon, all the more energetic after last year's lunch was canceled as huge fires razed whole communities around Los Angeles.
  • Hollywood stars embraced and champagne corks popped at this year's Oscars nominee lunch, the glamorous pre-show gathering that was canceled amid last year's devastating Los Angeles wildfires.
  • The more than 200 nominees enjoyed a buzzy afternoon, all the more energetic after last year's lunch was canceled as huge fires razed whole communities around Los Angeles.
Hollywood stars embraced and champagne corks popped at this year's Oscars nominee lunch, the glamorous pre-show gathering that was canceled amid last year's devastating Los Angeles wildfires.
Timothee Chalamet, nominated for best actor in "Marty Supreme," flashed a smile while fellow Best Actor contenders Micahel B. Jordan and Ethan Hawke also flitted around the annual luncheon in Beverly Hills.
Mexican director Guillermo del Toro chatted with his tablemates as Wagner Moura, the Brazilian star of "The Secret Agent," enthusiastically embraced Stellan Skarsgard and Oliver Laxe -- the latter of whom has his film "Sirat" up for best international feature film.
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Lynette Howell Taylor praised the diversity of this year's nominees.
"Ballots were cast from 88 countries and regions," the British producer said, adding that "the mission of the Academy is to amplify your art, movies and your voices."
The more than 200 nominees enjoyed a buzzy afternoon, all the more energetic after last year's lunch was canceled as huge fires razed whole communities around Los Angeles. That year the lunch was replaced with a smaller dinner at the Academy's museum.
"This is a recognition of Brazilian cinema, and of the cinema of our region," Moura told AFP.
Nearby, "The Secret Agent" director Kleber Mendonca Filho joked he was feeling animated -- "like a generator."
Skarsgard said that the impact of international films is growing, as evidenced by his historic nomination for Best Supporting Actor for Norwegian film "Sentimental Value."
Foreign films and their stars typically notch nominations in the international categories, but Skarsgard is competing against nominees from US blockbusters, including Benicio del Toro in "One Battle After Another" and Delroy Lindo in "Sinners."
Benicio del Toro meanwhile told AFP he was doubly thrilled after watching fellow Puerto Rican Bad Bunny perform at the Super Bowl halftime show over the weekend.
"I got goosebumps," he told AFP, adding: "It was beautiful."
The luncheon's other legendary del Toro, the director Guillermo, meanwhile said he was "calm."
While his "Frankenstein" is nominated for Best Picture, del Toro himself is off the hook for Best Director, which he said took the pressure off him and meant he could focus on promoting his team.
"I'm happy because nine nominations don't happen every day," he said.
Lanky heartthrob Jacob Elordi, up for best supporting actor, offered a similarly toned down vibe at an impromptu photo shoot.
"I'm chilling," he said. "It's all good."
pr/nro/jgc

anime

'Artists of steel': Japanese swords forge new fanbase

BY TOMOHIRO OSAKI

  • From repeatedly whacking steel with a heavy hammer to sitting sweat-drenched by a hearth for hours, the daily grind of blademaking is also not for the faint-hearted.
  • Sparks illuminate the soot-covered studio of Japanese swordsmith Akihira Kawasaki as his apprentice hammers red-hot steel, showcasing a millennium-old craft now enjoying a resurgence in popularity.
  • From repeatedly whacking steel with a heavy hammer to sitting sweat-drenched by a hearth for hours, the daily grind of blademaking is also not for the faint-hearted.
Sparks illuminate the soot-covered studio of Japanese swordsmith Akihira Kawasaki as his apprentice hammers red-hot steel, showcasing a millennium-old craft now enjoying a resurgence in popularity.
Despite the rapidly greying, shrinking population of blademakers in Japan, their fine steel swords known as katana are amassing a new generation of fans, particularly younger women, on the back of pop culture.
Driving the sword boom of the last decade has been video game "Touken Ranbu," where swords take on the form of handsome men, with more recent hits like US series "Shogun" and anime "Demon Slayer" also feeding the trend.
"It's really encouraging to see more young people who genuinely love swords and engage with them so deeply," 57-year-old Kawasaki told AFP.
Katana buffs "used to be exclusively male", he said, with "these old men dismissive or quite scornful of younger people showing interest, condescendingly telling them: 'You don't know nearly as much about swords as we do'." 
"It was no fun community". 
The 2015 release of "Touken Ranbu" has since turned some of its fans into serious admirers of the katana, the name given to the lightweight but extremely sharp Japanese sword with a curved blade.
Among them is Minori Takumi, 25, who began poring over blades showcased at museums after getting into the game as a teen.
"I was interested in finding out what similarities an actual sword has to its matching character" in the game, she said.
"I found myself growing absorbed in the craft itself, especially the hamon" -- distinctive, milky-white patterns along the hardened edge of a katana. 
Her devotion ultimately changed her life when she joined the Bizen Osafune Sword Museum in western Japan's Setouchi city as a full-time curator.
The museum periodically displays the legendary sword "Sanchomo," a national treasure purchased by the city in 2020 for more than $3 million through crowd-funding.
Sanchomo is featured heavily in "Touken Ranbu" and whenever the museum exhibits it, "our visitor numbers skyrocket", Tumi Grendel Markan, a cultural guide at the museum, told AFP, calling their demographic "about 80 percent female".
"That's, I think, the biggest impact we've seen within Japan," Markan said, while international shows like "Shogun" have helped "introduce a new generation of people to samurai culture and Japanese swords".
The runaway success of "Demon Slayer" too, has seen DIY buffs and craftsmen worldwide post YouTube videos recreating some of its characters' outlandish katana, and racking up millions of views.

The daily grind

Despite the boom, swordsmiths themselves are far from thriving.
Their numbers nationwide have halved to around 160 from nearly 40 years ago, with many in their 70s or 80s, according to the All Japan Swordsmith Association.
Young recruits are scared away in part by the unpaid, mandatory apprenticeship that lasts at least five years, explained Tetsuya Tsubouchi, who heads the association's business unit.
From repeatedly whacking steel with a heavy hammer to sitting sweat-drenched by a hearth for hours, the daily grind of blademaking is also not for the faint-hearted.
But more fundamentally, "you can barely make ends meet" as a swordsmith today, with prices kept low by disdain for newly crafted swords among the industry old guard and collectors, 66-year-old Tsubouchi said.
"The view still exists within our industry that ancient swords are undeniably the best," he said.
Kawasaki's work is an exception, with his pieces selling for tens of thousands of dollars.
As well as "Touken Ranbu" fans seeking replicas of their favourite katana, practitioners of martial arts such as Iaijutsu value their practicality as weapons, he said.
But what he really wants is the katana recognised not as an antiquity but as a "masterpiece" of contemporary art.
Not all of his fellow swordsmiths see their work this way.
Some are content to produce quality products "but never exercise creativity", he said.
As long as this mindset prevails, the contemporary katana will continue to be undervalued, Kawasaki warned.
"Unless we declare ourselves artists of steel, I doubt swordsmiths will ever be properly recognised."
tmo/aph/fox/abs

SuperBowl

Super Bowl, Bad Bunny halftime show shy of ratings record

  • Overall the halftime show by Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican superstar who became the first ever halftime show headliner to sing only in Spanish, averaged 128.2 million viewers.
  • The Seattle Seahawks Super Bowl victory over the New England Patriots -- and Bad Bunny's hyped halftime show -- fell short of broadcast ratings records, according to figures released on Tuesday.
  • Overall the halftime show by Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican superstar who became the first ever halftime show headliner to sing only in Spanish, averaged 128.2 million viewers.
The Seattle Seahawks Super Bowl victory over the New England Patriots -- and Bad Bunny's hyped halftime show -- fell short of broadcast ratings records, according to figures released on Tuesday.
The Seahawks' 29-13 victory over the Pats averaged 124.9 million viewers on NBC, streaming platform Peacock, Spanish language Telemundo, NBC Sports Digital and NFL+, according to same-day ratings from the Nielsen media research company's Nielsen Big Data + Panel ratings system.
That makes it the second-most watched show in US history behind the 127.7 million US viewers that watched the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22 on Fox last year.
In the second quarter, the game reached 137.8 million viewers, the highest peak viewership in US television history.
Telemundo averaged 3.3 million viewers, marking the most-watched Super Bowl in US Spanish-language history.
Telemundo's audience peaked during the halftime show, with an average of 4.8 million viewers –- the most-watched Super Bowl halftime in Spanish-language history.
Overall the halftime show by Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican superstar who became the first ever halftime show headliner to sing only in Spanish, averaged 128.2 million viewers.
Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl halftime show in 2025 was the most-watched ever with 133.5 million viewers.
That surpassed the record of 133.4 million viewers set by Michael Jackson in 1993.
A lackluster game first half may have contributed to lower audience figures. 
This was also the first Super Bowl to be reported using Nielsen's Big Data + Panel method, a hybrid system that combines data from panel households with that from smart devices such as smart TVs.
Prior reporting used Nielsen's Panel-only measurement.
bb/jgc

model

New York model, carved in a basement, goes on display

BY BEN TURNER

  • The final display joins together more than 300 of the polystyrene boards to depict the entirety of New York City, including its waterways.
  • A painstakingly detailed model of New York City will go on display this week after a US truck driver spent 21 years building it in his basement as an evening hobby.
  • The final display joins together more than 300 of the polystyrene boards to depict the entirety of New York City, including its waterways.
A painstakingly detailed model of New York City will go on display this week after a US truck driver spent 21 years building it in his basement as an evening hobby.
The wooden model, made to scale with some 800,000 pieces, gives a bird's-eye view of landmarks like the Empire State Building and the Statue of Liberty, as well as New York's more distant boroughs.
"It's almost like coming in on an airplane when you're looking out the window at 4,000 feet," creator Joe Macken, 63, told AFP in front of the colorful 50- by 27-foot (15- by 8-meter) structure. 
"People walk around the city all the time, but they don't really see it like this. They're looking up. Now you're looking down," he said. 
The exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York opens Thursday and runs through the summer. 
Macken began his project in 2004, spending a couple of hours each night crafting sections of the city by carving balsa wood and sticking it to small polystyrene boards, which he then stored individually. 
He said his wife and three children had been "very supportive" of the hobby.
The final display joins together more than 300 of the polystyrene boards to depict the entirety of New York City, including its waterways.

'Did I really make this?'

It is not an exact replica of today's New York: the Twin Towers, which were destroyed in the 9/11 terror attack in 2001, feature alongside the new One World Trade Center.
Macken, a native New Yorker now living elsewhere in the state, said even he was surprised to see the finished project after more than two decades. 
"I can't believe it. I mean, I look at this and I'm just like, did I really make this?" he said. 
Museum staff organized the exhibit after seeing Macken sharing his work on TikTok, where he gained millions of viewers. 
Elisabeth Sherman, chief curator and deputy director at the Museum of the City of New York, said she hopes visitors will "find their stories in the model."
"We want people to find where they live, where their family is from, where they want to visit, whatever their relationship to the city is," she said.
The largest model of New York is the Panorama, which is also the world's largest architectural scale model -- spanning more than 9,000 square feet (836 square meters). 
It was built for the 1964 World's Fair and sits in the Queens Museum in New York.
bjt/ksb

music

Britney Spears sells rights to her music catalog: US media

  • Spears, 44, joins a growing list of artists who have sold their music rights in recent years including Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan, as well as Shakira and KISS. US media reported that the rights were bought by music publisher Primary Wave, whose portfolio includes the works of Whitney Houston, Bob Marley, Prince and others. 
  • US singer Britney Spears has become the latest musician to sell the rights to her catalog that includes hits like "...
  • Spears, 44, joins a growing list of artists who have sold their music rights in recent years including Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan, as well as Shakira and KISS. US media reported that the rights were bought by music publisher Primary Wave, whose portfolio includes the works of Whitney Houston, Bob Marley, Prince and others. 
US singer Britney Spears has become the latest musician to sell the rights to her catalog that includes hits like "...Baby One More Time" and "Oops!...I Did It Again," US media reported Tuesday.
The deal is believed to be worth around $200 million, according to sources cited by celebrity site TMZ, though it said the exact amount is not detailed in legal documents. 
That sum would be comparable to the sale of Canadian singer Justin Bieber's catalog in 2023. 
Spears, 44, joins a growing list of artists who have sold their music rights in recent years including Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan, as well as Shakira and KISS.
US media reported that the rights were bought by music publisher Primary Wave, whose portfolio includes the works of Whitney Houston, Bob Marley, Prince and others. 
Owners of a song's publishing rights receive payment for every broadcast, album sale or use in advertising and films. 
The growing music rights market allows artists to monetize their catalogs, which are attractive long-term assets for investors in the streaming era. 
Major labels like Sony, Universal and Warner have also expanded in this line of business, alongside specialist investors Recognition Music Group and Concord Music Publishing. 
Spears shot to fame in the late 1990s but has largely stepped back from the music scene in recent years.
In 2021, a US court terminated a 13-year conservatorship that had allowed Spears's father to control her finances -- an arrangement the singer had described as abusive. 
pel/ube/bjt/sla

religion

Istanbul bars rock bands accused of 'satanism'

  • Slaughter to Prevail, a "deathcore" rock band, were formed in Russia but are now based in the United States.
  • Istanbul authorities on Tuesday banned concerts by two foreign rock bands, Slaughter to Prevail and Behemoth, after Islamist commentators accused them of "satanism".
  • Slaughter to Prevail, a "deathcore" rock band, were formed in Russia but are now based in the United States.
Istanbul authorities on Tuesday banned concerts by two foreign rock bands, Slaughter to Prevail and Behemoth, after Islamist commentators accused them of "satanism".
The Besiktas district governor's office in Turkey's largest city justified the cancellation of the concerts by saying the events had caused a "public reaction" because of "their incompatibility with our societal values".
The Zorlu Center, where the "metal" bands were to have played Tuesday and Wednesday, was barred from holding events until Thursday. 
Opposition to the bands was highlighted by the Yeni Akit newspaper which is close to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
It ran a story demanding the banning of the concerts under the headline "the satanist children of the devil are arriving in Istanbul". It stated that the bands had been banned in Russia and Poland "for having spread satanic propaganda and poisoned the spirit of young people".
Slaughter to Prevail, a "deathcore" rock band, were formed in Russia but are now based in the United States. Their lead guitarist is British. Behemoth are a Polish "death metal" group.  
Yeni Akit said the groups "promote satanism through their writing and visuals representing the devil". It said Turkey's social media had been flooded with calls to ban the groups.
Slaughter to Prevail singer Alex Terrible said in an instagram video that one "Islamist group" had put pressure on the government to ban them.
He said the Satanist claims were "completely not true" and that he "believes in God". But the singer added that the band could not go against the Turkish government and that it was a "very sad situation". 
ach/tw/gv

exhibition

Say cheese! 'Wallace & Gromit' expo puts kids into motion

BY MARTIN POLLARD

  • "But more than that, we wanted to use those... to inspire children to become kind of the next animators and the animators of the future."
  • A new London exhibition is aiming to inspire children to follow in the footsteps of the creators of "Wallace and Gromit" and their beloved animated world.
  • "But more than that, we wanted to use those... to inspire children to become kind of the next animators and the animators of the future."
A new London exhibition is aiming to inspire children to follow in the footsteps of the creators of "Wallace and Gromit" and their beloved animated world.
The British capital's biggest children's museum is giving a behind-the-scenes look at Aardman, the studio that created the popular stop-motion favourites, Shaun the Sheep and others.
Opening Thursday at the Young V&A museum in east London, "Inside Aardman: Wallace & Gromit and Friends" uses interactive and colourful displays to explore how the British studio's iconic clay characters are brought to life.
Timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of Aardman's first production and showcasing over 150 objects -- including models, sets, and storyboards from the studio's archives -- the exhibition took nearly two years to prepare, said chief curator Alex Newson.
"It's really celebrating... how those characters have survived the test of time, and if anything, are more loved today than they were when they kind of first came out," Newson told AFP.
"We really also wanted to show the process behind how they are made," said the curator, including how the creators came up with characters like the hapless, cheese-loving inventor Wallace and his floppy-eared dog Gromit.
"But more than that, we wanted to use those... to inspire children to become kind of the next animators and the animators of the future."
Despite the rise of children's exposure to screen time, Newson believes "people want to make things by hand still". 
"I know that in today's increasingly digital world, it's easy to create something without having to do anything. But there is a real thirst to make things, and there's also a real thirst to see things that have been made by people."
Aardman, based in Bristol in southwest England, uses the word "thumbiness" to describe how viewers can almost see the fingerprints of the people who make the puppets and scenes.
"You can understand that this was a handmade thing, and there was love, sweat and tears that have gone into the creation of it," said Newson.

'Beast of Mossy Bottom'

To mark its half-century, Aardman will release a new movie later this year: "Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom".
Schoolchildren previewing the exhibition, which runs to November 15, enjoyed the interactive displays, which included a praxinoscope -- an animation device -- and character design stations.
They also saw lighting experiments on a film set from "Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl", the process behind stop-motion video creation, and how animators make sound effects.
"It's very fun," said Zahre, aged eight, whose favourite character is Gromit. 
Founded in 1972, Aardman began with friends Peter Lord and David Sproxton making animations together on their kitchen table while they were still at school. 
The studio went on to become one of the UK's largest animation production companies, producing hits including "Chicken Run", "Shaun the Sheep", and "Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit", which won the 2006 Oscar for Best Animated Feature.
mp/aks/jkb/phz

film

'Family and intimacy under pressure' at Berlin film festival

  • - The era of co-productions - This year's festival will notably feature European co-productions with financing from several countries.
  • The 76th edition of the Berlin Film Festival opens on Thursday, featuring productions from over 80 countries and with German film legend Wim Wenders presiding over this year's jury.
  • - The era of co-productions - This year's festival will notably feature European co-productions with financing from several countries.
The 76th edition of the Berlin Film Festival opens on Thursday, featuring productions from over 80 countries and with German film legend Wim Wenders presiding over this year's jury.
AFP sat down with festival director Tricia Tuttle, who is in her second year at the helm, for a look-ahead at Europe's first big cinema festival of the year.
Here are five things to expect from this year's festival, which runs until February 22.

'Reflecting international cinema'

Of more than 200 films shown during the 10-day festival, 22 will compete for the coveted Golden Bear, which was won last year by the drama "Dreams" from Norwegian director Dag Johan Haugerud.
In assembling this year's diverse programme, Tuttle said that "the guiding principle was to reflect where international cinema is right now".
She said that she had noticed "family and intimacy under pressure, questions of care, power, belonging, and the experience of living between worlds" as themes running through this year's selection.
"Many of the films look at how private lives are shaped by larger political and social forces."
The festival will also honour Malaysian actor Michelle Yeoh -- who won the best actress Oscar in 2023 for "Everything Everywhere All at Once" -- with a lifetime achievement award.

Spotlight on women directors

As in 2025, women directed most of the films being screened at the festival.
Among those in the official competition, nine out of 22 were directed by women, a higher proportion than at the Cannes or Venice festivals.
"One thing that is encouraging for me is the number of second and third time female film-makers who have made strong work," Tuttle said.
The opening film, "No Good Men", is itself the third feature-length film from Afghan director Shahrbanoo Sadat.
"It's about Afghan women's experience, which you wouldn't see if it wasn't for Shahrbanoo's work," Tuttle said.
Sadat fled her home country following the Taliban takeover in 2021 and now lives in Hamburg.

American films remain elusive

In contrast to Cannes or Venice, which regularly attract Oscar contenders, Berlin does not feature as many large-scale US productions and the sprinkle of stardust that often accompanies them.
"Some of the biggest authored films of the year, those sort of commercial-arthouse crossover films, haven't launched out of festivals this year," Tuttle noted, perhaps in a nod to titles such as "One Battle After Another", "Sinners" and "Marty Supreme".
For such films, which can easily cost more than $100 million to make, producers and distributors are increasingly keen on controlling all aspects of a film's release.
"Festivals can be busy, noisy places where you might not get the cut-through that you want," according to Tuttle -- not to mention running the risk of negative reviews from critics.

The era of co-productions

This year's festival will notably feature European co-productions with financing from several countries.
According to Tuttle, "there's an opportunity right now for Europe, for European producers to work together" as the industry more broadly continues to fracture. 
She cites the example of Joachim Trier's "Sentimental Value", nominated for nine Oscars, which is a co-production between Norway, Denmark, France and Germany.
"Sentimental Value is a film that is made by many countries in terms of investment, but it's very much the work of an author and a really important filmmaker," said Tuttle.

Streaming platforms almost absent

Unlike in Venice, where three Netflix-produced films entered the official competition, the giants of the streaming world are relatively marginal in Berlin.
"There's real value to be had in theatrical exhibition, not just because there's money to be made there ... but also, for us as movie fans, it's the best way to see a film," said Tuttle.
The only Netflix film at this year's Berlinale will feature in the "Special Presentation" section -- outside of the official competition.
"Un hijo proprio" ("A Child of My Own") is a documentary-length feature telling the story of a Mexican woman who invents a pregnancy in an attempt to escape pressure from her family to have a child.
agu/jsk/fz/cc/abs

music

Despite Trump, Bad Bunny reflects importance of Latinos in US politics

BY WITH DANNY KEMP IN WASHINGTON DC AND GERARD MARTINEZ IN SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO

  • "What a slap in the face.
  • President Donald Trump called Bad Bunny's Super Bowl halftime performance a "slap in the face" to the United States.
  • "What a slap in the face.
President Donald Trump called Bad Bunny's Super Bowl halftime performance a "slap in the face" to the United States.
For US Latino voters, however, the show was a reminder of their significant role in American society.
Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, a former Florida congresswoman who was born in Ecuador, told AFP: "What Bad Bunny was able to do in the largest stage in American media was make a statement of what the Hispanic community, the Puerto Rican community, represents to this country."
The 31-year-old performer, born Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, sang entirely in Spanish in a spectacle that showcased Latino neighborhoods and culture within the United States, including his native Puerto Rico.
"He was presenting the culture of Latino Americans who live in his country and embracing the language not as a form of protest, but in some ways as an educational piece that Latinos who speak Spanish don't pose a threat," said Mucarsel-Powell, now head of George Washington University's Graduate School of Political Management.

'We are important'

The show drew backlash from the US right, especially for its use of Spanish, with Trump calling it "an affront to the Greatness of America" on his Truth Social platform.
But for Martina Grifaldo, 62, Bad Bunny's show was "a powerful message because it is saying that we are important and necessary in this country."
"It gives strength to those Latinos who can no longer cope with everything that is happening," added Grifaldo, who leads the International Latino Alliance in Houston, Texas.
Trump won 48 percent of the Latino vote in 2024, a 12-point increase from 2020, but his immigration policies since returning to office have begun to reverse that trend. 
More than 36 million Latinos were eligible to vote in the 2024 presidential election, about 15 percent of the country's electorate.
"The Hispanic/Latino vote has been a swing vote and what we saw in 2024 was a result of the pain of what the Hispanic community was feeling on the economy...and they saw Trump as a means to get out of that," said Mucarsel-Powell.

'Racism still exists'

"They have not seen any changes or any economic gains for their community...But now the issues of respect and security are important. They are starting to see immigration affect their friends and their community."
According to a January NYT/Siena poll, 58 percent of Hispanic voters disapprove of Trump's performance, while 39 percent approve. A Pew Research poll from November showed that 70 percent of Latinos disapproved of his performance.
Trump "has an erroneous view of Latinos. He believes that we bring crime and bad habits, but we have always been working," said Lenny Medina, a 26-year-old parking lot attendant in San Juan, Puerto Rico, which has been a US territory since 1898.
"Racism still exists in the 21st century," he added.
Michelle Venegas, a 50-year-old Puerto Rican resident of Austin, Texas, told AFP that because of Trump's immigration crackdown, "we're having to walk around with our passports and even that doesn't guarantee that we're not going to be detained." 
"What a slap in the face. That's a slap in the face," she added.
mav/jgc/mlm

internet

YouTube star MrBeast buys youth-focused banking app

  • Though it offers credit and debit cards, and interest-bearing accounts, Step is technically not a bank, but rather a financial services platform backed by Evolve Bank & Trust.
  • MrBeast, the world's most popular YouTuber, has purchased a Gen Z-focused banking app, he said Monday, marking another addition to his sprawling business interests.
  • Though it offers credit and debit cards, and interest-bearing accounts, Step is technically not a bank, but rather a financial services platform backed by Evolve Bank & Trust.
MrBeast, the world's most popular YouTuber, has purchased a Gen Z-focused banking app, he said Monday, marking another addition to his sprawling business interests.
The online star, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, announced on social media that his company Beast Industries acquired Step, a financial services platform.
"Nobody taught me about investing, building credit, or managing money when I was growing up," the 27-year-old said. "I want to give millions of young people the financial foundation I never had."
Though it offers credit and debit cards, and interest-bearing accounts, Step is technically not a bank, but rather a financial services platform backed by Evolve Bank & Trust.
It was not revealed how much the purchase cost. Step and Beast industries did not immediately respond to AFP's request for comment.
MrBeast boasts more than 450 million YouTube subscribers -- the most in the world -- with his channel specializing in absurd contests and globe-trotting philanthropic ventures.
Videos can cost millions of dollars to produce, with a team of around 300 people.
He has spun that success into a television game show on Amazon Prime Video, as well as a pop-up amusement park in Saudi Arabia dubbed Beast Land.
His snack brand, Feastables, meanwhile rakes in hundreds of millions in sales, rivalling the revenue from the YouTube videos that first made him famous.
"We're excited about how this acquisition is going to amplify our platform and bring more groundbreaking products to Step customers," Step CEO and founder CJ MacDonald said in a statement.
The contestants on MrBeast's videos could perhaps benefit from Step's goal of teaching financial literacy.
Recent posts include: "Survive 20 Days Chained To Your Ex, Win $250,000" and "30 Celebrities Fight For $1,000,000!"
tu/nro/mlm

crime

US news anchor says 'hour of desperation' in search for missing mother

  • We are at an hour of desperation."
  • A US TV host whose family has been at the center of national attention for a week since her elderly mother was apparently kidnapped said Monday she and her siblings had reached "an hour of desperation."
  • We are at an hour of desperation."
A US TV host whose family has been at the center of national attention for a week since her elderly mother was apparently kidnapped said Monday she and her siblings had reached "an hour of desperation."
Nancy Guthrie, mother of NBC News "Today" co-host Savannah Guthrie, is believed to have been snatched from her home in Tucson, Arizona, on the night of January 31 or in the early hours of February 1, sparking a massive hunt in a case that has gripped America.
Savannah Guthrie on Monday released the latest video appeal for public help in tracking down her ailing mother, who suffers from heart problems and needs regular medication.
"As we enter into another week of this nightmare... thank you so much for all of the prayers and the love that we have felt, my sister and brother and I, and that our mom has felt," an emotional Guthrie said on Instagram.
"Law enforcement is working tirelessly around the clock trying to bring her home, trying to find where she was taken, and we don't know where.
"We believe our mom is still out there. We need your help.
"If you see anything, you hear anything, if there's anything at all that seems strange to you... report to law enforcement. We are at an hour of desperation."
Nancy Guthrie's disappearance has garnered wall-to-wall coverage in US media, with dozens of reporters and camera crews descending on the quiet Arizona suburb where she lives.
Authorities said they believed the missing woman was still alive, and said blood discovered on her doorstep belonged to her.
hg/msp

Canada

'Schitt's Creek' star Catherine O'Hara died of blood clot in lung: death certificate

  • The actress's death certificate said she had died of a pulmonary embolism and listed rectal cancer as a secondary factor.
  • Emmy-winning actress Catherine O'Hara, who starred in "Schitt's Creek" and "Home Alone," died from a blood clot in her lungs, her death certificate revealed Monday.
  • The actress's death certificate said she had died of a pulmonary embolism and listed rectal cancer as a secondary factor.
Emmy-winning actress Catherine O'Hara, who starred in "Schitt's Creek" and "Home Alone," died from a blood clot in her lungs, her death certificate revealed Monday.
The Canadian-born performer was rushed to the hospital on January 30 after having difficulty breathing at her home in the ritzy Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles.
The 71-year-old, who starred in "Beetlejuice" and more recently in Apple TV's Hollywood satire show "The Studio," was declared dead a short time later.
The actress's death certificate said she had died of a pulmonary embolism and listed rectal cancer as a secondary factor.
O'Hara was born in Toronto in 1954, where she joined the legendary comedy theater Second City, alongside Eugene Levy, with whom she would collaborate throughout her career, including on the smash TV series "Schitt's Creek."
Her break into movies came in 1980 with "Double Negative" -- also alongside Levy, and John Candy.
In 1988, she played Winona Ryder's stepmother in Tim Burton's "Beetlejuice." She would later marry the film's production designer Bo Welch. The couple had two sons, Matthew and Luke.
But it was in 1990 that she became widely known to a global audience, as the mother of Macaulay Culkin's Kevin in "Home Alone."
She would reprise the role in the film's sequel, "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York," which featured a cameo from Donald Trump, decades before he would become US president.
In 1993 she collaborated again with Burton on "The Nightmare Before Christmas." 
The versatile comedienne also appeared in British filmmaker Christopher Guest's mockumentaries that revel in silly spectacles of Americana, like zany dog handlers in "Best in Show," vain folk singers in "A Mighty Wind," and award-hungry actors in "For Your Consideration."
But she is perhaps best known by modern audiences for her role in "Schitt's Creek," created by Eugene Levy's son, Dan Levy.
The role brought her an Emmy for best lead actress in 2020. She was also awarded a Golden Globe and a SAG Award.
hg/nro

Highlife

Music world mourns Ghana's Ebo Taylor, founding father of highlife

  • Born Deroy Taylor in Cape Coast in 1936, he began performing in the 1950s, as highlife was establishing itself as the dominant sound in Ghana in the years following independence.
  • Tributes have been pouring in from across Ghana and the world since the death of Ghanaian highlife legend Ebo Taylor.
  • Born Deroy Taylor in Cape Coast in 1936, he began performing in the 1950s, as highlife was establishing itself as the dominant sound in Ghana in the years following independence.
Tributes have been pouring in from across Ghana and the world since the death of Ghanaian highlife legend Ebo Taylor.
A guitarist, composer and bandleader who died on Saturday, Taylor's six-decade career played a key role in shaping modern popular music in West Africa.
Often described as one of the founding fathers of contemporary highlife, Taylor died a day after the launch of a music festival bearing his name in the capital, Accra, and just a month after celebrating his 90th birthday. 
Highlife, a genre blending traditional African rhythms with jazz and Caribbean influences, was recently added to UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list.
"The world has lost a giant. A colossus of African music," a statement shared on his official page said. "Your light will never fade."
The Los Angeles-based collective Jazz Is Dead called him a pioneer of highlife and Afrobeat, while Ghanaian dancehall star Stonebwoy and American producer Adrian Younge, who has worked with Jay Z and Kendrick Lamar, also paid tribute to his legacy. 
Nigerian writer and poet Dami Ajayi described him as a "highlife maestro" and a "fantastic guitarist".

'Uncle Ebo'

Taylor's influence extended far beyond Ghana, with elements of his music appearing in the soul, jazz, hip-hop and Afrobeat genres that dominate the African and global charts today.
Born Deroy Taylor in Cape Coast in 1936, he began performing in the 1950s, as highlife was establishing itself as the dominant sound in Ghana in the years following independence.
Known for intricate guitar lines and rich horn arrangements, he played with leading bands including the Stargazers and the Broadway Dance Band.
In the early 1960s, he travelled to London to study music, where he worked alongside other African musicians, including Nigerian Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti. 
The exchange of ideas between the two would later be seen as formative to the development of Afrobeat, a political cocktail blending highlife with funk, jazz and soul.
Back in Ghana, Taylor became one of the country's most sought-after arrangers and producers, working with stars such as Pat Thomas and CK Mann while leading his own bands.
His compositions -- including "Love & Death", "Heaven", "Odofo Nyi Akyiri Biara" and "Appia Kwa Bridge" -- gained renewed international attention decades later as DJs, collectors and record labels reissued his music. His grooves were sampled by hip-hop and R&B artists and helped introduce new global audiences to Ghanaian highlife.
Taylor continued touring into his 70s and 80s, performing across Europe and the United States as part of a late-career renaissance that cemented his status as a cult figure among younger musicians.
Many fans affectionately referred to him as "Uncle Ebo", reflecting both his longevity and mentorship of younger artists.
For many, he remained a symbol of highlife's golden era and of a generation that carried Ghanaian music onto the world stage.
str/tba/sbk

SuperBowl

Bad Bunny celebrates Puerto Rico at Super Bowl, angering Trump

BY PATRICK T. FALLON AND JOSH EDELSON

  • Since that time, the list of Super Bowl headliners included Jennifer Lopez and Shakira (with a guest spot for Bad Bunny), but the duo did not perform exclusively in Spanish, leaving Bad Bunny to set that benchmark.
  • Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny on Sunday turned the Super Bowl into a giant street party, emphasizing unity over division in his groundbreaking Spanish-language set -- but still earning President Donald Trump's scorn.
  • Since that time, the list of Super Bowl headliners included Jennifer Lopez and Shakira (with a guest spot for Bad Bunny), but the duo did not perform exclusively in Spanish, leaving Bad Bunny to set that benchmark.
Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny on Sunday turned the Super Bowl into a giant street party, emphasizing unity over division in his groundbreaking Spanish-language set -- but still earning President Donald Trump's scorn.
Anticipation was high for the 31-year-old's set, amid rampant speculation about whether he would use his platform to renew his criticism of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown in front of tens of millions of viewers. 
But the wildly popular musician, whose real name is Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, instead made good on his pre-game promise to joyously share his culture -- and largely avoided overt political statements in favor of subtle messaging through symbols.
In a set featuring a sugar cane plantation, a traditional "piragua" cart selling treats, and even a wedding, he opened with "Titi Me Pregunto" and feminist anthem "Yo Perreo Sola," with a cast of dancers fueling the party atmosphere.
Actors Pedro Pascal and Jessica Alba, and rapper Cardi B were among the guest stars vibing in his familiar "La Casita" backdrop, representing a home in Puerto Rico.
Bad Bunny wore an all-white ensemble, with a football jersey featuring the number "64" and "Ocasio," before donning a classy suit jacket. 
He delved into more political territory with "El Apagon" (Blackout), which touches on the displacement of Puerto Ricans on their own island, and the constant problems caused by the unreliable power grid. He carried a Puerto Rican flag at one point.
The performance also included a young boy watching the Grammys on an old television set. Bad Bunny, who won the Album of the Year prize a week ago, presented the child -- perhaps a younger version of himself -- with a golden gramophone.
The internet went wild with unverified rumors that the child was Liam Conejo Ramos, a five-year-old Ecuadoran boy recently detained by US immigration agents in Minnesota.
An NFL spokesman confirmed to AFP that the boy was an actor, and an Instagram post seemingly from the child in question, Lincoln Fox, was hashtagged #youngbadbunny.
Surprise musical guests included Lady Gaga, who sang a Latin-inflected version of her hit "Die with a Smile" -- the only English lyrics in the show -- and Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin. 

'Affront'

At the Grammys, Bad Bunny made a searing statement about Trump's sweeping immigration crackdown, earning cheers for saying "ICE out" from the stage.
But on Sunday, he did not call out the Republican president.
At the end of the set, after listing Latin American countries, Puerto Rico, the United States and Canada, Bad Bunny spiked a football that said "Together, we are America."
A giant screen in the stadium read: "The only thing more powerful than hate is love."
Trump nevertheless quickly took issue with the performance, saying: "Nobody understands a word this guy is saying" -- even though government data shows more than 41 million Americans speak Spanish.
Posting on his Truth Social account, he called the show "an affront to the Greatness of America."

Early backlash

Bad Bunny has been Spotify's most-streamed artist in the world four separate times, including last year, and won Album of the Year at the Grammys with "Debi Tirar Mas Fotos" -- the first Spanish-language work to win music's highest accolade.
But the decision to showcase his work at the Super Bowl in California was met with conservative outrage -- specifically about the idea that he would not sing in English.
The NFL entered into an agreement in 2019 with Jay-Z's entertainment company Roc Nation, which leads the league's entertainment strategy. 
Since that time, the list of Super Bowl headliners included Jennifer Lopez and Shakira (with a guest spot for Bad Bunny), but the duo did not perform exclusively in Spanish, leaving Bad Bunny to set that benchmark.

From Vega Baja to Super Bowl

Bad Bunny grew up in Vega Baja, a small municipality near Puerto Rico's capital San Juan.
He was working at a supermarket bagging groceries when he got a call from a label over his viral plays on the DIY platform SoundCloud.
Thus began the reggaeton star's rapid explosion to the top of global music.
Late last year, Bad Bunny released "Debi Tirar Mas Fotos," a history lesson in Puerto Rican music that he promoted with a hometown concert residency in San Juan and a world tour.
In Puerto Rico, a US territory since 1898, there was nothing but pride for the island's native son.
"For someone from here to be at one of the most important events in the United States is a source of pride for every Puerto Rican," Olvin Reyes, 39, told AFP. 
bur-sst/jfx

Canada

'Send Help' repeats as N.America box office champ

  • Gross called it a "weak opening for a horror remake," noting the film's total production cost of $50 million and its modest $30 million take abroad so far.
  • Horror flick "Send Help" showed staying power, leading the North American box office for a second straight week with $10 million in ticket sales, industry estimates showed Sunday.
  • Gross called it a "weak opening for a horror remake," noting the film's total production cost of $50 million and its modest $30 million take abroad so far.
Horror flick "Send Help" showed staying power, leading the North American box office for a second straight week with $10 million in ticket sales, industry estimates showed Sunday.
The 20th Century flick stars Rachel McAdams and Dylan O'Brien as a woman and her boss trying to survive on a deserted island after their plane crashes.
It marks a return to the genre for director Sam Raimi, who first made his name in the 1980s with the "Evil Dead" films.
Debuting in second place at $7.2 million was rom-com "Solo Mio" starring comedian Kevin James as a groom left at the altar in Italy, Exhibitor Relations reported.
"This is an excellent opening for a romantic comedy made on a micro-budget of $4 million," said analyst David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research, noting that critics and audiences have embraced the Angel Studios film.
Post-apocalyptic Sci-fi thriller "Iron Lung" -- a video game adaptation written, directed and financed by YouTube star Mark Fischbach, known by his pseudonym Markiplier -- finished in third place at $6.7 million.
"Stray Kids: The Dominate Experience," a concert film for the K-pop boy band Stray Kids filmed at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, opened in fourth place at $5.6 million. 
And in fifth place at $4.5 million was Luc Besson's English-language adaptation of "Dracula," which was released in select countries outside the United States last year.
Gross called it a "weak opening for a horror remake," noting the film's total production cost of $50 million and its modest $30 million take abroad so far.
Rounding out the top 10 are:
"Zootopia 2" ($4 million)
"The Strangers: Chapter 3" ($3.5 million)
"Avatar: Fire and Ash" ($3.5 million)
"Shelter" ($2.4 million)
"Melania" ($2.38 million)
bur-sst/dw

award

Paul Thomas Anderson wins top director prize for 'One Battle After Another'

  • Twenty of the 22 winners of the Directors Guild Awards have subsequently won the Oscar for best director, including the winners of the last three years: "Everything Everywhere All at Once," "Oppenheimer" and "Anora." 
  • "One Battle After Another" director Paul Thomas Anderson won top honors at the Directors Guild of America Awards in Los Angeles on Saturday, solidifying his film's position as a strong favorite for the Oscars.
  • Twenty of the 22 winners of the Directors Guild Awards have subsequently won the Oscar for best director, including the winners of the last three years: "Everything Everywhere All at Once," "Oppenheimer" and "Anora." 
"One Battle After Another" director Paul Thomas Anderson won top honors at the Directors Guild of America Awards in Los Angeles on Saturday, solidifying his film's position as a strong favorite for the Oscars.
Anderson, whose movie follows a former revolutionary who tries to protect his teenage daughter when the past comes back to haunt him, won the feature-film prize -- the award considered a key indicator of what might happen at the Academy Awards, which cap off the Hollywood awards season.
"It's a tremendous honor to be given this," Anderson said upon accepting the award at the gala held in Beverly Hills.
"We're going to take it with the love that it's given and the appreciation of all our comrades in this room," he added.
Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, the film, which depicts a timeless America where white supremacists plot behind the scenes, immigration raids sweep through communities and revolutionary groups take up arms, also won recognition in January at the Critics' Choice Awards and the Golden Globes.
"One Battle After Another" will enter the Oscars as the second-most-nominated film, with 13 nominations. It is behind only the vampire film "Sinners" directed by Ryan Coogler, which garnered 16 nominations, a record for the Academy Awards.
Coogler was also nominated for the feature-film prize at the Directors Guild Awards.
Anderson received the statuette from Sean Baker, who won last year with his dark comedy "Anora," which went on to be an Oscar winner.
Twenty of the 22 winners of the Directors Guild Awards have subsequently won the Oscar for best director, including the winners of the last three years: "Everything Everywhere All at Once," "Oppenheimer" and "Anora." 
Also on Saturday, Oscar-winning Ukrainian filmmaker and journalist Mstyslav Chernov won the award for best documentary film. His film "2000 Meters to Andriivka" follows a Ukrainian platoon on a campaign to liberate a Russian-occupied village and offers a glimpse into the harsh realities of war.
"It's scary to live in a world where, instead of a camera, you have to get a gun to defend your home, to defend what you believe in," Chernov said at the event hosted by comedian Kumail Nanjiani.
"I want to thank… every soldier, every civilian, every filmmaker who made a choice to leave the camera for now and get a gun and go and fight so I have a chance," he added.
pr/mas/lga/jfx

SuperBowl

NFL embraces fashion as league seeks new audiences

BY ANDREW MARSZAL

  • The adventures into fashion can relax players in the locker room prior to games, as athletes rib one another for their more brash selections.
  • It has become a staple of every NFL game's pre-show coverage -- footage of players strutting their way to stadium locker rooms wearing the latest daring sartorial choices.
  • The adventures into fashion can relax players in the locker room prior to games, as athletes rib one another for their more brash selections.
It has become a staple of every NFL game's pre-show coverage -- footage of players strutting their way to stadium locker rooms wearing the latest daring sartorial choices.
And a VIP fashion show Saturday ahead of the New England Patriots' Super Bowl clash with the Seattle Seahawks was the latest bet by the league that indulging its players' penchant for high-end designers is also good for the NFL's bottom line.
A sport for decades associated with no-nonsense jocks has in recent years encouraged its stars' newfound obsession with attire as a way to capture new fans beyond the sport's traditional base.
Female and global supporters are particularly coveted by a league that has essentially saturated its core, male-heavy demographic, with some 125 million Americans already tuning into last year's Super Bowl.
"People who love fashion are paying attention to it. Brands are getting involved. So I think it's opened another element to the game," Detroit Lions star wide receiver Amon-Ra St Brown told AFP at the event.
NFL marketing bosses have been pursuing a broader "helmets off" strategy, including behind-the-scenes documentaries and social media clips, that seeks to make players more relatable by emphasizing their personalities and off-field interests.
Clubs regularly share footage of their players in designer outfits, or attending events like an Abercrombie & Fitch fashion event in San Francisco, hosted the night before Sunday's Super Bowl. 
Guests included league boss Roger Goodell and Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
"Fashion is global," the San Francisco 49ers' All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey, also in attendance, told AFP.
"Especially when you talk about the European market, a lot of the Asian markets where fashion is such a big part of culture.
"I think when you add a lot of our walk-out or entrance outfits that guys wear now, it helps reach a global audience."

'Gives us that swagger'

Abercrombie & Fitch was last year named the NFL's first official fashion partner, and athletes have countless personal tie-ins with brands like American Eagle.
Some of the game's top players, including Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, have dedicated personal stylists and have popped up at global fashion shows in Paris and at the Met Gala.
According to Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins, experimenting with haute couture can serve as a confidence booster.
"We don't just do it when we go to the games," he said. "We put this stuff on because it makes us feel good personally, and just gives us that little swagger, just to go about our day like that."
The adventures into fashion can relax players in the locker room prior to games, as athletes rib one another for their more brash selections.
"You'll always get some comments, especially when your outfit is pretty loud. But guys have fun with it, man," said McCaffrey.
Still, St Brown added, the fun stops when game time arrives.
"At the end of the day I'm still there to play football. It's not a fashion show," he said.
"But I still want to dress nice and feel good."
amz/nro/jfx

France

Veteran French politician loses culture post over Epstein links

  • Lang is best known as an innovative and popular culture minister during the presidency of socialist Francois Mitterrand in the 1980s and 90s.
  • Veteran French politician Jack Lang, a former minister, was forced out of a key cultural post Saturday as pressure grew on him over revelations in the latest release of the Epstein files.
  • Lang is best known as an innovative and popular culture minister during the presidency of socialist Francois Mitterrand in the 1980s and 90s.
Veteran French politician Jack Lang, a former minister, was forced out of a key cultural post Saturday as pressure grew on him over revelations in the latest release of the Epstein files.
He offered to resign in a letter to French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, who told reporters he planned to launch the process to name an interim president for the IMA.
But Lang continued to insist he was innocent of any wrongdoing.
Lang, who has headed the Arab World Institute (IMA) since 2013, is the most high-profile public figure in France caught up in the latest release of private messages from the convicted sex offender.
"I offer to submit my resignation" at the next board meeting, the 86-year-old wrote in the letter, seen by AFP. As recently as Wednesday, he had ruled out stepping down from his post over the affair.
Lang had been summoned to the foreign ministry for a meeting on Sunday but that has now been cancelled, said a source at the ministry who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Lang's lawyer, Laurent Merlet, told broadcaster BFM TV his client was "very sad" to be leaving an institution he loved so much but also "extremely combative and will not let slander gain ground".
On Friday, French prosecutors said they had opened a preliminary investigation of him and his daughter Caroline over "laundering of aggravated tax-fraud proceeds" after they were mentioned in files related to Epstein.

'Baseless' accusations 

Earlier Saturday, before news of his resignation emerged, Lang told AFP that the accusations against him were "baseless" and he welcomed the probe.
"It will bring much light on to the accusations that are questioning my probity and my honour," said Lang, whose name appears more than 670 times in the released documents.
He has denied any wrong-doing, saying he was "shocked" that his name appeared in the statutes of the offshore company in 2016 and that he had only appealed to Epstein as a philanthropist.
His daughter Caroline, a film producer, also appeared in Epstein's will as a beneficiary of five million euros, according to investigative website Mediapart. 
She has already resigned from her job as head of the Union of Independent Producers (SPI), which represents independent film producers in France.
A mere mention in the files does not imply wrongdoing.
Le Monde newspaper and Mediapart said no files released by the US Justice Department suggested either Lang or his daughter had been implicated in Epstein's sexual crimes.
Lang is best known as an innovative and popular culture minister during the presidency of socialist Francois Mitterrand in the 1980s and 90s.
He launched popular events such as the annual "Fete de la Musique" street party which exists to this day, an idea since picked up by other countries.
Lang also oversaw major modern architectural projects such as the building of the Louvre Pyramid and the Bastille opera house.
- Pressure - 
Public pressure had grown on Lang throughout the week despite his insistence that he had done nothing wrong and that he was unaware of Epstein's criminal behaviour.
Epstein was convicted in 2008 for soliciting a minor for prostitution.
The head of the Socialist party, Olivier Faure, on Thursday had urged Lang to step down "to protect the institution he runs".
The Arab World Institute ("Institut du Monde Arabe") promotes Arab culture from its prestigious left-bank headquarters that frequently host some of the capital's most talked-about exhibitions. 
Lang has said he was introduced to Epstein by American actor-director Woody Allen.
Epstein owned a vast apartment on a west Paris street favoured by the rich and famous -- Avenue Foch -- and was a frequent visitor to the French capital before his death in prison in 2019.
mng-adp/jj/

media

Opinions of Zuckerberg hang over social media addiction trial jury selection

BY BENJAMIN LEGENDRE

  • - 'Start fairly' - Jury selection was dominated by recurring references to Zuckerberg, the head of Meta and co-founder of Facebook who reached global fame after the Hollywood film "The Social Network."
  • A jury has been confirmed in a landmark social media addiction trial in the US state of California, a process dominated by references to tech giant Meta's divisive founder Mark Zuckerberg.
  • - 'Start fairly' - Jury selection was dominated by recurring references to Zuckerberg, the head of Meta and co-founder of Facebook who reached global fame after the Hollywood film "The Social Network."
A jury has been confirmed in a landmark social media addiction trial in the US state of California, a process dominated by references to tech giant Meta's divisive founder Mark Zuckerberg.
Meta's lawyers fought for six days in court to remove jurors who they deemed overly hostile to Facebook and Instagram, two of the social media platforms involved in the case.
The plaintiff's lawyers sought to dismiss people, mostly men, who believed that young internet users' mental health issues are more attributable to parental failures rather than tech platform designers.
With the jury of 12 members and six alternates approved on Friday, arguments in the case are now scheduled to begin Monday in Los Angeles Superior Court.
The case is being called a bellwether proceeding because its outcome could set the tone for a tidal wave of similar litigation across the United States.
Defendants at the trial are Alphabet and Meta, the tech titans behind YouTube and Instagram. TikTok and Snapchat were also accused, but have since settled for an undisclosed amount.
The trial focuses on allegations that a 20-year-old woman identified by the initials K.G.M. suffered severe mental harm because she became addicted to social media as a child.
She accuses Meta and YouTube of knowingly designing addictive apps, to the detriment of her mental health. 

'Start fairly'

Jury selection was dominated by recurring references to Zuckerberg, the head of Meta and co-founder of Facebook who reached global fame after the Hollywood film "The Social Network."
"I feel impartial toward the plaintiff, but based on things Mark Zuckerberg has done objectively -- I have strong feelings about -- and I think the defendant would start further behind," said one young woman.
Many potential jurors criticized Facebook's early days -- it was designed as a platform for college students to rate women's looks -- and cited the Cambridge Analytica privacy breach of 2018.
They also said it would be difficult for them to accept the billionaire's testimony -- expected in the next two weeks -- without prejudice.
Meta's lawyer, Phyllis Jones, raised frequent objections to such jurors.
She said it was "very important that both sides start fairly, with no disadvantage, that you look at the evidence fairly and decide."
Others were dismissed for the opposite reason.
"I like this guy," said one rare Zuckerberg fan. "I regret not owning Meta shares." 
He was dismissed by the plaintiff's lawyer, Mark Lanier.
Others to be removed included a man who expressed his anger against psychiatrists, and several people whose loved ones suffered from social media addiction or harassment.

Seeking distance

Alphabet's lawyers were keen to ensure that their platform YouTube was not lumped in with Meta.
"Does everybody understand that YouTube and Meta are very different companies? Does everyone understand that (Zuckerberg) doesn't run YouTube?" asked Luis Li, a lawyer for Google's video platform.
One man said he saw the potential for YouTube to seek to trigger "immediate dopamine" rushes among users through its "Shorts" feature.
He said his niece spends too much time on TikTok, which popularized a platform that provides endless scrolling of ultra-short-format videos.
The case will focus not on content, on which front platforms are largely protected by US law, but on the design of algorithms and personalization features.
The plaintiffs allege that the platforms are negligent and purposely designed to be harmful, echoing a strategy successfully used against the tobacco industry.
Meta and YouTube strongly deny the allegations, and also unsuccessfully argued on Friday for the judge to declare statements comparing their platforms to tobacco and other addictive products to be illegitimate.
The debate on the platform's level of responsibility for their effect on users was already underway, even at this early stage of the trial.
Alphabet's lawyer Li asked the panel if people spend too much time on phones, with the majority nodding in agreement.
"As a society, is it a problem?" he asked, with most hands again going up.
He then asked if this is "because of YouTube?" prompting hesitation from the jurors.
bl/aha/mlm