assault

Ex-model testifies in NY court that Weinstein assaulted her at 16

BY ANA FERNÁNDEZ

  • Sokola said she was a 16-year-old aspiring actress when she met Weinstein at a dinner with other models. 
  • A Polish former model testifying through tears Thursday at the trial of Harvey Weinstein said the disgraced movie mogul sexually assaulted her when she was a minor at age 16.
  • Sokola said she was a 16-year-old aspiring actress when she met Weinstein at a dinner with other models. 
A Polish former model testifying through tears Thursday at the trial of Harvey Weinstein said the disgraced movie mogul sexually assaulted her when she was a minor at age 16.
Kaja Sokola, 39, alleged in a New York criminal court circumstances surrounding an alleged assault in 2002 when she met with Weinstein in a Manhattan apartment.
"I was scared, I never had been in an intimate situation before that," Sokola said in graphic testimony, adding that as he molested her she noticed Weinstein "staring at me in the reflection" of a bathroom mirror.
"I'll never forget this," she said.
Sokola is being heard this week in criminal court for the first time, as one of three accusers in a 2020 New York case alleging Weinstein committed multiple sexual assaults. 
Weinstein does not face charges in the alleged 2002 incident with Sokola because it falls outside the statute of limitations.
On Wednesday, Sokola testified that Weinstein also sexually assaulted her in spring 2006, in a Manhattan hotel when she was 19, claims the Miramax co-founder denies.
The two other accusers -- onetime production assistant Miriam Haley and then-aspiring actress Jessica Mann -- testified at Weinstein's original trial.
Their accounts helped galvanize the #MeToo movement nearly a decade ago, but the case is being re-prosecuted as Weinstein faces a new trial in New York.
His 2020 convictions on charges relating to Haley and Mann were overturned last year by the New York Court of Appeals, which ruled that the way witnesses were handled in the original trial was unlawful.
Sokola said she was a 16-year-old aspiring actress when she met Weinstein at a dinner with other models. 
The film producer who is nearly 40 years her senior called her a few days later to propose a lunch meeting, she testified, but instead they arrived at an apartment and he told her to take off her clothes.
"He forced me to the bathroom. I told him I didn't want to do it, and he said I had to work on my stubbornness," she told the court, testifying that Weinstein touched her and forced her to touch him until he ejaculated.
Sokola recalled feeling "stupid, ashamed," as the 73-year-old Weinstein, seated in a wheelchair, looked at the jury or rested his hands on his forehead.
When she told Weinstein she wanted to leave, "he got upset" and said "I had to listen to him if I wanted to pursue my career in Hollywood," added Sokola, who is now a psychotherapist.
Sokola acknowledged that a year later she began losing weight and suffered from conditions including anorexia and bulimia.
Asked by prosecutor Shannon Lucey why she never reported what happened, she said "I thought it was my fault."
"I was a happy teenager before that," she said. "I had boundaries, but this happened so rapidly without my permission."
Sokola said she saw Weinstein again at a lunch in 2006, and that he had lured her to a Manhattan hotel room under the pretext of showing her a script.
She said Weinstein pushed her onto a bed and forced her to have sex.
"I told him to stop," he said in testimony set to continue Friday, "but he didn't listen."
Weinstein, the producer of box-office hits "Pulp Fiction" and "Shakespeare in Love," has never acknowledged wrongdoing.
He is serving a 16-year prison sentence after being convicted in California of raping and assaulting a European actress more than a decade ago.
af/mlm/sla/jbr/acb

television

Eurovision week's opening parade set to start the party

BY ROBIN MILLARD

  • Bracing for more protests this year, more than 1,300 police officers will be on duty in Basel during Eurovision week.
  • The Eurovision Song Contest comes shimmering into Basel on Sunday with a glitzy parade kicking off a week of high-octane revelry building up to the May 17 grand final.
  • Bracing for more protests this year, more than 1,300 police officers will be on duty in Basel during Eurovision week.
The Eurovision Song Contest comes shimmering into Basel on Sunday with a glitzy parade kicking off a week of high-octane revelry building up to the May 17 grand final.
The Swiss city is pulling out the stops as it hosts the 69th edition of the light-hearted TV spectacular that celebrates kitsch and pushes the boundaries of taste.
While Europop beats, dramatic staging and earworm choruses dominate on stage, the geopolitical backdrop always looms large, with protests again possible over Israel's participation as it ramps up its war in Gaza.
Eurovision is the world's biggest annual live televised music event, reaching around 160 million viewers.
The glamfest begins with Sunday's opening ceremony, when all 37 competing countries' entrants will parade through Basel, starting at the iconic 500-year-old city hall.
"This will create a unique spectacle in the middle of Basel's old town," says the city, which sits right on the border with France and Germany.

Israel and security

Last year's contest in Malmo, Sweden saw street protests over the Gaza war. Israel's entrant Eden Golan -- who finished fifth -- performed under tight security amid threats, and was largely confined to her hotel.
Bracing for more protests this year, more than 1,300 police officers will be on duty in Basel during Eurovision week.
Israel's entrant this year is Yuval Raphael. She survived the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the war in Gaza, hiding beneath dead bodies as Hamas gunmen attacked a music festival, killing hundreds.
The 24-year-old said she hoped her song "New Day Will Rise" would send a message of healing and solidarity.
Since the Hamas attack, music has been "something that heals my soul", she told AFP in a recent interview.
But more than 70 former Eurovision competitors called this week for Israel to be banned over the war in Gaza, which has claimed tens of thousands of lives.
Spain's public broadcaster has also asked the European Broadcasting Union, which organises Eurovision, to open a "debate" on the appropriateness of Israel taking part.
Israel's National Security Council meanwhile warned Israelis travelling to Eurovision that such high-profile events were a "prime target for threats and attacks".
It said there had been "360 protests and anti-Israeli demonstrations" in Switzerland over the past year. 
"These are expected to continue during the Eurovision Song Contest, directed at Israelis or the Israeli delegation," it added, urging Israelis to "stay away from these centres of friction and demonstrations, which may escalate into violence."

Celine Dion mystery

The semi-finals on Tuesday and Thursday will see 11 countries bow out, leaving 26 nations to contest Saturday's final at the St. Jakobshalle arena.
Switzerland is hosting after Swiss vocalist Nemo won Eurovision 2024 in Malmo with the highly personal song "The Code", about discovering non-binary gender identity.
Switzerland won the inaugural song contest in 1956, then triumphed again when Canada's Celine Dion competed for the Alpine nation in 1988, launching her career internationally.
Organisers are tight-lipped as to whether Dion, in fragile health, might spring a surprise star turn.
Swiss newspaper Le Matin, citing internal documents, said there was a two-minute slot in the grand final reserved for Dion -- but cautioned that the script was changing regularly.

Sweden steaming hot favourites

Sweden's entry KAJ are the hot favourites to win, with "Bara bada bastu" ("Just have a sauna") a comical take on the Swedish tradition driven by accordion licks and a catchy chorus.
Their number features the three singers in brown suits, surrounded by dancers in lumberjack shirts first grilling sausages over a bonfire before appearing in a mock sauna with towels around their waists, slapping their backs with birch branches.
"It's about relaxing with your friends, going into the sauna and having a nice time and coming out on the other side feeling great," one of the trio, Jakob Norrgard, told AFP.
It is Sweden's first entry in Swedish since 1998, when Eurovision removed the national language requirement.
If Sweden wins, "it's going to motivate more countries to send songs in their national languages", historian and Eurovision expert Dean Vuletic told AFP.
Austria's JJ is the second favourite with "Wasted Love", a song in the mould of "The Code", flipping between operatic vocals and modern beats.
France, the Netherlands and Israel round out the chasing pack, according to bookmakers.
rjm-nl-burs/jj

animation

'Jumbo': the animated Indonesian film smashing records

BY BAPTISTE ANSE

  • The movie -- which began production five years ago and called on the help of 400 local creators -- surpassed the regional record set by Malaysia's "Mechamato Movie" in 2022.
  • An Indonesian animated movie is smashing regional box-office records and could be set for wider success as it prepares to open beyond the Southeast Asian archipelago's silver screens.
  • The movie -- which began production five years ago and called on the help of 400 local creators -- surpassed the regional record set by Malaysia's "Mechamato Movie" in 2022.
An Indonesian animated movie is smashing regional box-office records and could be set for wider success as it prepares to open beyond the Southeast Asian archipelago's silver screens.
"Jumbo" -- a film based on the adventures of main character Don, a large orphaned Indonesian boy facing bullying at school -- last month became the highest-grossing Southeast Asian animated film, raking in more than $8 million.
Released at the end of March to coincide with the Eid holidays after the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan, the movie has hit eight million ticket sales, the third highest in Indonesian cinema history, according to Film Indonesia.
The film explores "what we've lost in life and the strength we need to overcome it", director Ryan Adriandhy Halim told AFP.
"We hope to encourage a change, it is for people to treat (each other) more kindly and we want 'Jumbo' to be a reminder that everyone deserves respect, no matter what is your background, whatever age group you are."
In the film, Don has a storybook filled with magical tales -- including a meeting with a fairy who wants him to help her reconnect with her family.
"This film is for us, for our children, and for the child within us," Ryan said.
For weeks after its release, 'Jumbo' kept theatres packed across Indonesia.
The movie -- which began production five years ago and called on the help of 400 local creators -- surpassed the regional record set by Malaysia's "Mechamato Movie" in 2022.
Its success has caught many in the Indonesian film industry by surprise.
"I predicted the film would be popular -- but not this much," said Petrus Kristianto Prayitno Santoso, film programming supervisor for operator Flix Cinema.

'Stepping stone'

However, the film's wider appeal will be tested when it opens in more than 17 countries in June, including Malaysia, Singapore, Turkey and Mongolia, said Anggia Kharisma, chief content officer at Visinema Studios, the film's production house.
The company says other release dates are still in discussion, meaning it could be set for a global rollout.
In an industry flooded with Hollywood blockbusters and local horror movies, "Jumbo" has stood out.
"It's been a long time since we've had an Indonesian family film," said Adi, 38, who watched the movie with his wife Ria and their two young children.
But he added that "in Southeast Asia, it will work because the culture is similar, but I'm not sure about regions beyond that".
The film has given hope to Indonesian audiences that their local productions could see more global success.
Cinemagoer Dika, 27, said she believes "the film could rival Disney productions".
Ryan himself has more modest ambitions, hoping simply that his debut feature will become "a stepping stone and a benchmark for Indonesian animation" in the future.
bpt/jfx/fec

television

Austria's JJ makes operatic pop soar at Eurovision

BY BLAISE GAUQUELIN

  • - Bach and Celine Dion - "When JJ sings, it's as if time stops," says Austria's 2014 Eurovision winner Conchita Wurst, describing the "impressive professional" as a worthy successor.
  • Falsetto voice and angelic smile: Johannes Pietsch, alias JJ, has emerged as Austria's best chance of winning this year's Eurovision song contest since the triumph of bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst 11 years ago.
  • - Bach and Celine Dion - "When JJ sings, it's as if time stops," says Austria's 2014 Eurovision winner Conchita Wurst, describing the "impressive professional" as a worthy successor.
Falsetto voice and angelic smile: Johannes Pietsch, alias JJ, has emerged as Austria's best chance of winning this year's Eurovision song contest since the triumph of bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst 11 years ago.
With "Wasted love," which fuses pop and lyrical elements in a crescendo that flows into techno sounds, the Alpine country seems to have made a risky but rewarding choice, being tipped to come second behind Sweden.
"It surprises people that a man can sing so high," the Austrian-Filipino countertenor, 24, told AFP.
JJ -- donning cropped pants and numerous rings -- grew up in Dubai before discovering classical music in Vienna, where he is currently honing his skills between talent shows and small roles at the opera.
Even though he says he appreciates Austria's "very strict" and famous "classical world", he also wants to have the "freedom to let loose" and "experiment".

'Something new'

In his Eurovision song, about the experience of unrequited love, he pivots from high soprano notes into a blend of lyricism and balladry, before ending with a techno flourish.
"We wanted to bring in something new, something unexpected," he said, adding its success surprised him.
"I did not expect that the mixture of pop and classical music would be so well received, because classical music is something different and not many people listen to it," he said.
Classical music was heard at Eurovision as early as the 1950s, then gradually mixed with varying success, with the Italian group Il Volo placing third in 2015.
JJ's "cross-genre and cross-disciplinary approach demonstrates exceptional versatility and innovative strength," said Andreas Mailath-Pokorny, rector at Vienna arts and music university MUK, where JJ studies.
JJ has dismissed comparison of his piece with that of Swiss artist Nemo, who won last year, saying there is no rap in his piece, which talks about a time in his life when he "wasted too much love" without receiving any.
Austria first won Eurovision in 1966 with "Merci, Cherie" by Udo Juergens -- a ballad about a break-up -- performed on stage by popular German singer Helene Fischer.

Bach and Celine Dion

"When JJ sings, it's as if time stops," says Austria's 2014 Eurovision winner Conchita Wurst, describing the "impressive professional" as a worthy successor.
Earlier this year, the two performers released a duet, while JJ says Wurst continues to give him "many tips" ahead of the Eurovision semi-final on May 15 and the final on May 17 in Basel, Switzerland.
Among his favourite artists are Mariah Carey and Anna Netrebko.
JJ got a taste for classical music from his father, an Austrian IT professional, especially for Bach and Mozart, while his mother, a cook from the Philippines, listened to Celine Dion and Whitney Houston.
Growing up in Dubai, where his father set up his company, he went to an international school there. He speaks German, English and Tagalog and learned Arabic and French.
He hails Eurovision's massive international following -- and the contest being a "platform for everyone", including the LGBTQ community.
"Music is a unified language that everyone speaks and understands," he said.
bg/jza/srg

television

Depoliticising Eurovision 'impossible', experts say

BY NINA LARSON

  • Carniel agreed, pointing out that there had been "a bit of a backlash against so-called identity politics at the song contest, and criticism of the extent to which Eurovision has really leaned into queer fandom".
  • The Eurovision Song Contest is meant to be about celebrating music and cultural diversity, but politics inevitably seeps in, challenging the competition's long-standing claim to neutrality.
  • Carniel agreed, pointing out that there had been "a bit of a backlash against so-called identity politics at the song contest, and criticism of the extent to which Eurovision has really leaned into queer fandom".
The Eurovision Song Contest is meant to be about celebrating music and cultural diversity, but politics inevitably seeps in, challenging the competition's long-standing claim to neutrality.
Hopeful artists drawn from 37 countries will compete in this year's contest in the Swiss city of Basel starting next week, with the big finale on May 17.
Politics is officially barred from the event, but as with most years, organisers will have their hands full striving to keep tensions over culture wars and conflicts like Israel's war in Gaza from spilling into the glitzy festivities.
Experts agree that is a tall order.
"It's impossible to depoliticise the event," Dean Vuletic, a historian and the author of the book "Postwar Europe and the Eurovision Song Contest", told AFP.
"It is completely impossible," agreed Jess Carniel, an associate professor at the University of Southern Queensland in Australia.
"With everyone competing under their national flag... there is always an undercurrent of politics." 
From the inception of the contest nearly 70 years ago, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organises Eurovision, has insisted on its non-political nature.
But politics have been omnipresent, from an Austrian protest over Spain's Franco dictatorship in 1969 to calls for European unity as the Soviet Union broke apart and Eastern European countries joined the contest in the early 1990s.

Mass protests

Before 1998 when Eurovision stopped requiring countries to perform in their national language, some strong political sentiments expressed in songs garnered little attention.
Greece submitted a song in 1976 slamming Turkey over its invasion of Cyprus, "but it was in Greek and there was not much attention", Lisanne Wilken, an associate professor in European studies at Denmark's Aarhus University, told AFP.
Since then, increased media attention and the possibility to put forth messages in English has meant that for "anyone who wants attention for a cause, Eurovision is a really good place to go", she said.
More recent expressions of political condemnation have certainly not gone unnoticed.
Russia's war in Ukraine dominated the discourse around the events in 2022, when Ukraine won the contest and Russia was barred, and again in 2023.
And last year, Israel's war in Gaza cast a long shadow over the event, when thousands of demonstrators protested in the Swedish city of Malmo against Israeli entrant Eden Golan taking part.
Demonstrations are already planned against Israel's participation this year, with Yuval Raphael -- who survived Hamas's deadly attack inside Israel on October 7, 2023 that sparked the war in Gaza -- due to perform her song "New Day Will Rise".

New flag rules

Experts say they do not expect protests on the same level as last year.
One reason, Vuletic suggested, was that "the campaign against Israel last year was not successful".
"No country boycotted Eurovision because of Israel" and the country garnered a high score, he pointed out.
Experts also said the EBU's introduction of new rules may have an impact.
The organisers have adopted a new flag policy, barring contestants from displaying flags other than that of the nation they represent, but loosening restrictions on the flags audience members can display.
Eurovision explained that it aimed to "strike a balance to ensure that our audiences and artists can express their enthusiasm and identities, (while providing) more clarity for the delegations when it comes to official spaces".
"I think the decision was mostly inspired by the references to Palestine last year," Vuletic said.

Trump effect?

Wilken meanwhile warned that the new policy could "backfire a little bit", with the ban on contestants waving Pride flags, for instance, possibly read as part of "the war on woke".
Carniel agreed, pointing out that there had been "a bit of a backlash against so-called identity politics at the song contest, and criticism of the extent to which Eurovision has really leaned into queer fandom".
By barring contestants from waving Pride flags or other symbols supporting LGBTQ rights, the organisers might "oddly be trying to bring more people in" by emphasising that the contest "is not an exclusively queer event".
The United States may not be part of the contest, but experts said President Donald Trump's anti-diversity messaging could energise efforts by conservative forces in Europe eager to rid Eurovision of its LGBTQ-friendly identity.
At the same time, the Trump administration's attacks on European countries could strengthen the contest's focus on forging a common European identity, Carniel suggested.
"Given the current political climate," she said, "that idea of European unity against the outside is a strong thing."
nl/rjm/giv/sco

tariff

Trump tariff plan brings Hollywood's struggles into focus

BY ROMAIN FONSEGRIVES AND HUW GRIFFITH

  • Newsom reacted to Trump's tariff suggestion with a counter-proposal for a $7.5 billion federal tax credit that would apply nationwide.
  • Donald Trump's proposal to put 100 percent tariffs on foreign movies left many filmmakers scratching their heads.
  • Newsom reacted to Trump's tariff suggestion with a counter-proposal for a $7.5 billion federal tax credit that would apply nationwide.
Donald Trump's proposal to put 100 percent tariffs on foreign movies left many filmmakers scratching their heads. But it did highlight a problem plaguing Hollywood: cinema is rapidly abandoning its long-time home.
For decades almost every film that hit US theatres -- as well as most of what was on TV -- emanated from a handful of movie lots in the sun-soaked capital of America's entertainment industry.
Actors, stunt performers, costume designers, set builders, editors and special effects wizards flocked to Los Angeles, where they worked with hundreds of thousands of drivers, caterers, location managers, animal handlers and prop wranglers to produce thousands of hours of output every year.
The city boomed from the 1920s onwards because it was an industry town with a virtual stranglehold.
Not any more.
"The Movie Industry in America is DYING a very fast death," Trump blared on his social media platform over the weekend.

All-time low

The number of shooting days in Los Angeles reached an all-time low last year -- lower even than during the Covid-19 pandemic, when filming shut down completely.
Less than one-in-five film or TV series broadcast in the United States was produced in California, according to FilmLA, an organization that tracks the movie industry.
"On-location production in Greater Los Angeles declined by 22.4 percent from January through March 2025," it said in a report, with film and TV production both down 30 percent year-on-year.
Southern California's high costs -- including for labor -- are a problem for studios, whose margins are small, especially as fewer people are prepared to shell out for pricey cinema tickets, preferring to watch titles at home.
As revenue pressures mount, production houses are turning to filming opportunities abroad that offer them savings. 
And there is no shortage of countries courting them: Britain, France, Germany, Australia, Hungary, Thailand and others all offer tax incentives.
The temptation to film abroad only increased during the Hollywood actors' and writers' strike in 2023, said entertainment lawyer Steve Weizenecker, who advises producers on financial incentives.
"During the strikes, I had production that went to the UK, that went to France, Italy and Spain, because they couldn't shoot here," he told AFP.
"And so the concern now is how do we bring that back?"
Toronto, Vancouver, Britain, Central Europe and Australia now all rank above California as preferred filming locations for industry executives.
Competition has never been more fierce: in 2024, 120 jurisdictions worldwide offered tax incentives for film and TV production, almost 40 percent more than seven years ago.

Canada first

Canada introduced a tax break for film and TV productions as early as 1995.
"That was when the term 'runaway production' started being thrown about, because suddenly producers did not have to shoot in California or New York," Weizenecker said.
Canada's success has since spawned competition between dozens of US states.
Georgia, where many Marvel superhero films are shot, has offered a tax credit since 2005. New Mexico, the setting for drug drama "Breaking Bad," has been doing the same since 2002. And Texas, which has offered tax breaks since 2007, wants to increase its budget allocated to such funding.
"Much like Detroit lost its hold on the auto industry, California has lost its dominance, mostly due to the arrogance of not understanding there are always alternatives," Bill Mechanic, a former Paramount and Disney executive, told Deadline.
State officials, prompted by the cries of anguish from Hollywood have belatedly begun to take notice.
Last year, California Governor Gavin Newsom called on lawmakers to double the money available to the state's TV and film tax credit program.
California currently offers a tax credit of up to 25 percent that can be used to offset expenses including the cost of hiring film crews or building sets.
Two bills trundling through the legislature could increase it up to 35 percent of qualified expenditures, and would expand the kind of productions that would qualify.
Newsom reacted to Trump's tariff suggestion with a counter-proposal for a $7.5 billion federal tax credit that would apply nationwide.
Whether or not the Republican would be keen to support an industry he views as hostile and overly liberal remains to be seen, but it would really help, according to George Huang, a UCLA professor of screenwriting.
"Right now the industry is teetering," Huang told the Los Angeles Times. 
"This would go a long way in helping right the ship and putting us back on course to being the capital of the entertainment world."
rfo-hg/des

entertainment

New accuser testifies against Weinstein in New York retrial

BY GREGORY WALTON

  • The former Miramax studio boss is charged in the New York retrial with the 2006 sexual assault of Haley and the 2013 rape of Mann, as well as the assault on Sokola.
  • A Polish model testified Wednesday against fallen film mogul Harvey Weinstein in his retrial on sex assault charges, the first time the woman claiming the former Miramax boss forced oral sex on her has been heard in criminal court.
  • The former Miramax studio boss is charged in the New York retrial with the 2006 sexual assault of Haley and the 2013 rape of Mann, as well as the assault on Sokola.
A Polish model testified Wednesday against fallen film mogul Harvey Weinstein in his retrial on sex assault charges, the first time the woman claiming the former Miramax boss forced oral sex on her has been heard in criminal court.
Kaja Sokola, 39, alleges that Weinstein sexually assaulted her in spring 2006 in a Manhattan hotel, claims the former cinema scion denies.
While the other accusers in the New York case -- onetime production assistant Miriam Haley and then-aspiring actress Jessica Mann -- testified at Weinstein's original trial, Sokola is being heard for the first time.
The accounts of the other two women helped galvanize the #MeToo movement nearly a decade ago, but the case is being re-prosecuted as Weinstein faces a new trial in New York.
Weinstein's 2020 convictions on charges relating to Haley and Mann were overturned last year by the New York Court of Appeals, which ruled that the way witnesses were handled in the original trial was unlawful.
The former Miramax studio boss is charged in the New York retrial with the 2006 sexual assault of Haley and the 2013 rape of Mann, as well as the assault on Sokola.
He was in court Wednesday, pushed to the defense bench in a wheelchair to which he was handcuffed until he was unshackled by one of the two court officers guarding him.
He leaned back in his chair as Sokola entered the courtroom and swore an oath, listening intently to her recall her experience which was not shared with the jury at his initial trial in 2020.
Prosecutor Shannon Lucey walked Sokola through her education and first forays into modeling, showing the court several shots of her as a teen adorning magazine spreads, before touching on how she came to New York in 2002 to work. 
Her testimony will continue Thursday.
Weinstein -- the producer of box office hits such as "Pulp Fiction" and "Shakespeare in Love" -- has never acknowledged any wrongdoing.
He is serving a 16-year prison sentence after being convicted in California of raping and assaulting a European actress more than a decade ago.
gw/acb

UAE

Disney announces new theme park in Abu Dhabi

  • The announcement comes ahead of US President Donald Trump's upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates next week.
  • The Walt Disney Company announced plans Wednesday for a new theme park in the United Arab Emirates, highlighting the country's growing prominence as a global financial and entertainment hub.
  • The announcement comes ahead of US President Donald Trump's upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates next week.
The Walt Disney Company announced plans Wednesday for a new theme park in the United Arab Emirates, highlighting the country's growing prominence as a global financial and entertainment hub.
The waterfront resort will be located on Abu Dhabi's Yas Island and developed in partnership with local firm Miral. 
Disney stated that it aims to attract tourists from "the Middle East and Africa, India, Asia, Europe, and beyond."
The announcement comes ahead of US President Donald Trump's upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates next week.
"Disneyland Abu Dhabi will be authentically Disney and distinctly Emirati," said Disney CEO Robert Iger in a statement, promising "an oasis of extraordinary Disney entertainment at this crossroads of the world."
The company stated that the new resort will blend Disney's "iconic stories, characters and attractions with Abu Dhabi's vibrant culture, stunning shorelines, and breathtaking architecture."
Disneyland Abu Dhabi will be the seventh Disney resort since the original Disneyland opened in Anaheim, California in 1955. 
Other Disney destinations are located in Florida, Tokyo, Paris, Hong Kong and Shanghai.
Iger told analysts that the location was chosen to bring the Disney experience closer to hundreds of millions of customers for whom visiting its other six locations "was pretty lengthy in nature and expensive."
He also noted the success of existing attractions in Abu Dhabi, including the Louvre museum and the Frank Gehry-designed Guggenheim, which is currently under construction.
Miral group operates numerous hotels, resorts, and amusement parks in Abu Dhabi including Warner Brothers World, Ferrari World and Sea World.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Disney Experiences chairman Josh D'Amaro described the new park and resort as the company's most "modern" and "tech-forward" destination. 
He added that in an unusual arrangement for Disney, the park would be funded, built, and ultimately operated by the Miral group "with oversight of course from us."
"But we're very confident in this part of the world, with this partner, that this is the appropriate business arrangement," he added.
The new park announcement coincided with Disney reporting a robust increase in quarterly revenues, which sent its shares skyrocketing.
The company said overall sales increased seven percent to $23.6 billion in the January to March period. 
Crucially, subscribers to its Disney+ streaming service grew to 126 million, adding 1.4 million new subscriptions, contrary to analysts' expectations of a decline. 
The Experiences segment, which includes theme parks, saw revenue increase to $8.9 billion.
da-bgs-arp/bfm

entertainment

J-pop mega-group Arashi to disband after final tour

  • "And that tour will end our activity as Arashi".
  • J-pop mega-group Arashi, wildly popular in Japan and elsewhere in Asia, said they would end their activities as a band following a final tour next year.
  • "And that tour will end our activity as Arashi".
J-pop mega-group Arashi, wildly popular in Japan and elsewhere in Asia, said they would end their activities as a band following a final tour next year.
Since debuting in 1999, the five-member boyband have rocketed to stardom with their catchy, chart-topping music to become the face of Japan's now-defunct boyband empire Johnny and Associates, before going on a hiatus in 2020.
Fans have since been anxiously awaiting news of their return to the spotlight, and on Tuesday, the group said in a bittersweet announcement that they will perform once again next spring -- except that will be their final act.
"In the last year before our hiatus, we couldn't perform in front of you due to the pandemic", Arashi's official X account said Tuesday. 
"The five of us will now reunite", it said, adding the idols, now in their 40s, will start preparing for a concert tour scheduled for around spring next year. 
"And that tour will end our activity as Arashi".
An outpouring of gratitude and lamentations soon inundated social media, with the prospect of the group's disbandment dominating Japanese news programmes for much of Wednesday. 
"Their dissolution is immensely sad and my brain can't quite process the information yet, but thank you so much for creating one last opportunity for us to see you all", one fan wrote on X.
Even Japan's top government spokesman offered a tribute, describing Arashi as the "national idol group that has commanded a big presence with their numerous hit songs".
"They have also taken on the role of promoting Japanese cultures overseas, and collaborated multiple times with the Japanese government to this end", Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters.
Arashi's former talent agency Johnny and Associates admitted in 2023 that its founder and music mogul Johnny Kitagawa -- who died aged 87 in 2019 -- had for decades sexually molested teenage boys and young men under his tutelage.
tmo/mtp

Trump

Trump's White House creates own media universe

BY DANNY KEMP

  • Rankin said Trump's unique use of social media, AI images and "direct appeals through partisan influencers" had "created a space of alternate versions of events where governance is not tethered to reality."
  • From influencer-only briefings to memes of Donald Trump as the pope and a "Star Wars" Jedi master, the White House is creating its own alternate media reality.
  • Rankin said Trump's unique use of social media, AI images and "direct appeals through partisan influencers" had "created a space of alternate versions of events where governance is not tethered to reality."
From influencer-only briefings to memes of Donald Trump as the pope and a "Star Wars" Jedi master, the White House is creating its own alternate media reality.
Since Trump's return to the US presidency in January, his team has given right-wing "new media" an increasingly prominent place as it steps up its war on the traditional press.
But now the White House is going a step further, effectively creating its own government-run media operation to stoke up Trump's loyal base.
Last week Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt held three alternative briefings reserved for a hand-picked group of partisan outlets.
These "new media" sessions exist in a parallel universe from the traditional White House briefings, and are held in a special auditorium across the road that reporters cannot access freely.
"I absolutely agree with the premise of your question -- which I usually don't when I take questions at a podium," Leavitt told right-wing activist Jack Posobiec at a briefing on April 30.
Another question came from Dom Lucre, a proponent of the QAnon right-wing conspiracy theory.
"Is there any possibility for names such as Barack Hussein Obama or Hillary Rodham Clinton to ever just possibly get investigated?" Lucre asked Leavitt.
The White House did not respond to requests for comment on its strategy.

'Echo chamber'

Former reality TV star Trump and his team have had a strong social media game since his first presidency from 2017-2021. 
Then during his 2024 election campaign he reached out to podcasters and influencers, inspired partly by his 19-year-old son Barron.
But the new approach is taking that campaign strategy and putting it at the heart of the US government's communications operation.
News outlet Axios underscored the new strategy, saying that now "Trump's White House is the hottest right-wing media outlet."
That risked creating an "echo chamber," said Sonia Gipson Rankin, a law professor at the University of New Mexico.
Rankin said Trump's unique use of social media, AI images and "direct appeals through partisan influencers" had "created a space of alternate versions of events where governance is not tethered to reality."
"In a second term, the concern is that this echo chamber could become even more insulated," she told AFP.
Last week also saw the launch of the "White House Wire" -- a website designed to look like the low-tech "Drudge Report" but with links to favorable stories and the administration's social media.
"Give a middle finger to the fake news and check out WH Wire!!!!" Trump's son Don Jr said on X with a link.
It came as the White House reduces access for several mainstream news wires -- most notably The Associated Press, following a clash over its refusal to call the Gulf of Mexico by Trump's designated name, the "Gulf of America." 
The White House has also taken control of deciding which outlets are in the "press pool" that covers some presidential events in close quarters like the Oval Office or Air Force One.

Light saber

The White House is meanwhile leaning more and more on provocative memes to fire up Trump's supporters and "own the libs" -- gaining attention by angering his "liberal" and left-wing opponents.
Trump caused controversy after his Truth Social account posted an AI-generated image of himself in papal garb on Friday, less than a week after attending the funeral of Pope Francis in Rome.
But while Trump insisted that he hadn't posted the meme himself, he also said that his wife Melania thought it was "cute" and rejected any criticism.
"They can't take a joke," Trump told reporters on Monday when asked about the pope image.
Then on Sunday the White House's official account posted an image of a muscle-bound Trump wielding a light saber to mark "May the Fourth" day -- when "Star Wars" fans celebrate in a riff on the movie's catchphrase "May The Force be with you."
"You're not the Rebellion -- you're the Empire," the post said, attacking Trump's left-wing rivals and comparing them to evil imperial forces of Darth Vader and others. 
There was just one problem, US media said.
Trump's light saber was red -- and in the "Star Wars" universe that suggests he is aligned with the Dark Side of The Force.
dk/dw

auction

Sotheby's postpones historical gems auction after India backlash

  • The Indian Ministry of Culture issued a legal notice on Monday calling the jewels "inalienable religious and cultural heritage of India and the global Buddhist community" and said the sale violated Indian and international law.
  • Sotheby's in Hong Kong postponed an auction of gems with ties to early Buddhism on Wednesday after opposition from India, which said the jewels were the country's religious and cultural heritage.
  • The Indian Ministry of Culture issued a legal notice on Monday calling the jewels "inalienable religious and cultural heritage of India and the global Buddhist community" and said the sale violated Indian and international law.
Sotheby's in Hong Kong postponed an auction of gems with ties to early Buddhism on Wednesday after opposition from India, which said the jewels were the country's religious and cultural heritage.
The Piprahwa gems, which the auction house said dated back to around 200 BC and were unearthed in 1898 by Englishman William Claxton Peppe in northern India, were scheduled to go under the hammer in Hong Kong on Wednesday.
The Indian Ministry of Culture issued a legal notice on Monday calling the jewels "inalienable religious and cultural heritage of India and the global Buddhist community" and said the sale violated Indian and international law.
It asked for the auction to be cancelled and the jewels repatriated to India, as well as an apology and full disclosure of provenance documents, according to the notice posted on X.
Sotheby's said on Wednesday morning that the auction has been postponed "in light of the matters raised by the Government of India and with the agreement of the consignors".
"This will allow for discussions between the parties, and we look forward to sharing any updates as appropriate," the auction house said in a statement.
Sotheby's said the night before that the auction would "proceed as planned".
The Indian Ministry of Culture wrote on X that it was "pleased to inform" readers that the auction was postponed following its intervention.
The gems in the Hong Kong auction were part of a collection of close to 1,800 gems and precious metal sheets -- including amethysts, pearls and gold pieces worked into small beads.
They were excavated at the Piprahwa village near the Buddha's birthplace and have been attributed to a clan linked to the religious figure.
Indian authorities said an inscription on one of the caskets confirms the contents -- which include bone fragments -- as "relics of the Buddha, deposited by the Sakya clan".
In an article written for Sotheby's, Chris Peppe said his ancestor "gave the gems, the relics and the reliquaries to the Indian government" and that his family kept "a small portion" of the discovery.
hol/cms

TIFF

Toronto festival head says Trump tariffs would hurt film quality

BY BEN SIMON

  • "Hollywood itself has always been, since the very early days, an international industry," Bailey said in an interview at TIFF's flagship Toronto venue, a complex that includes cinemas, bars and other social spaces. 
  • Hollywood has always been "an international industry," that would suffer creatively if cross-border work was curbed, the head of North America's largest film festival told AFP. Cameron Bailey, chief executive of the Toronto International Film Festival, joined other entertainment industry leaders in criticizing President Donald Trump's proposed 100 percent tariffs on foreign films, a surprise weekend announcement that plunged the movie industry into uncertainty. 
  • "Hollywood itself has always been, since the very early days, an international industry," Bailey said in an interview at TIFF's flagship Toronto venue, a complex that includes cinemas, bars and other social spaces. 
Hollywood has always been "an international industry," that would suffer creatively if cross-border work was curbed, the head of North America's largest film festival told AFP.
Cameron Bailey, chief executive of the Toronto International Film Festival, joined other entertainment industry leaders in criticizing President Donald Trump's proposed 100 percent tariffs on foreign films, a surprise weekend announcement that plunged the movie industry into uncertainty. 
"Hollywood itself has always been, since the very early days, an international industry," Bailey said in an interview at TIFF's flagship Toronto venue, a complex that includes cinemas, bars and other social spaces. 
He recalled the US film industry's "classic era" in the 1940s and 1950s, created by filmmakers who had come from Europe.
Bailey said the history of movie-making has proven the value of letting "story-telling brilliance to really flow across borders."
"Like any global industry, when you draw on the very best talent from around the world, you're always going to do better," Bailey said. 
Writing on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, Trump said he had authorized his administration to begin "instituting a 100% Tariff on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands."
"WE WANT MOVIES MADE IN AMERICA, AGAIN!" he wrote.
A survey of studio executives revealed that their top five preferred production locations for 2025 and 2026 were all outside of the United States, due to competitive tax incentive schemes on offer. 
Toronto was first on the list and Vancouver, in western Canada, ranked third. 
Trump has imposed tariffs on a range of Canadian goods including autos, steel and aluminum but his plans for the film industry remain unclear. 
Bailey said if Trump moved forward, any actions to limit film production in Canada would likely lead to less talent feeding into Hollywood. 
"Our actors become their movie stars sometimes," Bailey said.
"Our producers and screenwriters and directors and crews are all working to support Hollywood's movies, shows, series, and that's been going on for a long time."

'No sticky floors'

As cinemas face fresh challenges to attract customers amid the growth of streaming services, Bailey said future success for theaters will rely on their ability to offer an elevated social experience. 
TIFF's downtown Toronto venue, The Lightbox, includes a cocktail lounge and various other areas for social interactions to complement watching a film. 
"Nothing wrong with watching something at home on the couch, that's always nice as well, but we believe in the theatrical experience," Bailey said. 
"You'll see more and more movie theaters offer those kind of premium experiences, serving meals, serving wine, offering people places to hang out after the movie to talk," he added.
The "technical experience," including picture quality and sound, also need to be elite, Bailey said. 
"No sticky floors, obviously, it has to feel like it's something special when you go out."

Talent poaching?

Canadian universities, hospitals and other institutions are making targeted efforts to attract top US talent, trying to recruit disgruntled researchers who are facing political and financial pressure under Trump, including with threats of massive federal funding cuts.
Bailey told AFP he does not see the need for Canada's film industry to be "actively recruiting" US artists, but affirmed Canada should remain "a haven" for those uncomfortable with political circumstances in other countries, including the United States.  
"Canada has a not-too-distant history of welcoming people who didn't want to take part in the Vietnam War as Americans, and they came to Canada, and they were a significant part of building the culture in the 60s and 70s in this country," he said.
The 50th edition of TIFF opens in September. 
bs/md

music

Motown legend Smokey Robinson sued for sexual assault

  • Another former housekeeper alleges Robinson assaulted her more than 20 times over a four-year period, while a third says in the suit that she was "sexually harassed, sexually assaulted and raped" throughout her 12-year employment to 2024.
  • Motown legend Smokey Robinson was facing a multimillion dollar lawsuit on Tuesday from four former housekeepers who allege the soul singer repeatedly raped and sexually assaulted them.
  • Another former housekeeper alleges Robinson assaulted her more than 20 times over a four-year period, while a third says in the suit that she was "sexually harassed, sexually assaulted and raped" throughout her 12-year employment to 2024.
Motown legend Smokey Robinson was facing a multimillion dollar lawsuit on Tuesday from four former housekeepers who allege the soul singer repeatedly raped and sexually assaulted them.
A lawsuit filed in a Los Angeles court claims the 85-year-old forced himself on the women multiple times over a number of years, often when his wife was not at home.
One of the plaintiffs alleges the "Tracks of My Tears" singer would summon her to his bedroom in his Los Angeles area home, and greet her wearing only his underwear.
He would then sexually assault her, despite her protestations, with the suit claiming there were seven such attacks between March 2023 and when she felt compelled to resign in February 2024.
Another former housekeeper alleges Robinson assaulted her more than 20 times over a four-year period, while a third says in the suit that she was "sexually harassed, sexually assaulted and raped" throughout her 12-year employment to 2024.
The fourth woman says the singer began assaulting her in 2007 when she traveled with him to his Las Vegas home.
None of the women is named in the suit, which is common in cases involving claims of sexual assault.
The suit, which is seeking at least $50 million in damages, says none of the women reported the assaults at the time because they were intimidated by Robinson's celebrity, and feared attacks on their character.
Robinson's wife, Frances, who is also named in the lawsuit for allegedly creating a hostile work environment and ignoring her husband's behavior, told AFP the suit had come as a surprise.
"I'm as shocked as you are," she said when reached by telephone, but declined to go into details.
Robinson was one of the founding members of The Miracles, a Detroit-based outfit that came together in the 1950s.
The group had dozens of chart hits, including the smash "The Tears of a Clown" in 1967.
hg/bjt

Britain

Whole lotta legal argument: Led Zeppelin guitarist Page sued

  • "The film incorporates at least two performances of 'Dazed and Confused' -- one by the Yardbirds and one by Led Zeppelin," the suit says. 
  • Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page is being sued in California by the composer of "Dazed and Confused," one of the British rock band's biggest hits.
  • "The film incorporates at least two performances of 'Dazed and Confused' -- one by the Yardbirds and one by Led Zeppelin," the suit says. 
Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page is being sued in California by the composer of "Dazed and Confused," one of the British rock band's biggest hits.
Its epic guitar riffs and complex drum work made the song an enduring show stopper for one of the most influential groups of the 1970s.
Page's soulful licks and singer Robert Plant's soaring vocals in the song -- it was on their first album -- helped establish the band's trademark blues-rock sound.
But while the sound of "Dazed and Confused" was all theirs, it was originally by folk rocker Jake Holmes, who recorded it in 1967, a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles on Monday said.
The suit argues that Page and music publisher Warner Chappell disregarded a 2011 settlement over the song by issuing early live recordings and featuring it in Sony Pictures' new documentary "Becoming Led Zeppelin" without permission, payment or credit.
"The film incorporates at least two performances of 'Dazed and Confused' -- one by the Yardbirds and one by Led Zeppelin," the suit says. 
According to the filing, the film says the Yardbirds version of Holmes' song was written by Page alone, while the Zeppelin version in the documentary was written by Page, but "inspired by" Holmes.
Page played with the Yardbirds -- who had a version of the song -- from 1966 to 1968 before leaving to form Led Zeppelin with Plant, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. 
"Dazed and Confused" appears on the band's self-titled debut album, which came out in 1969.
Holmes and Page settled a copyright dispute over the song after a lawsuit in Los Angeles in 2010.
Details of that settlement were not made public, but Holmes' new suit claims he is now owed $150,000 per alleged infringement in connection with the song's use by the Yardbirds.
"Starting in or around 1968, the Yardbirds began to publicly perform the Holmes composition," the complaint says.
"Every performance of 'Dazed and Confused' by the Yardbirds is a performance of the Holmes composition."
Monday's suit is not the first time the provenance of a Led Zeppelin hit has been legally questioned.
The iconic smash hit "Stairway to Heaven" was the subject of a lengthy legal tussle when Los Angeles band Spirit claimed the famous opening riff was swiped from their work.
The case almost made it to the US Supreme Court, but ultimately the country's chief justices refused to take it up, and let stand a California court's ruling in favor of the British rockers.
hg/dw

pope

Move over Met Ball. For fashion wow head to the Vatican

BY ALEXANDRIA SAGE

  • And don't forget the Swiss Guards, the papal garrison wearing the Vatican's loudest colours.
  • Forget feathers, fringe and sparkles.
  • And don't forget the Swiss Guards, the papal garrison wearing the Vatican's loudest colours.
Forget feathers, fringe and sparkles. But if bold and brash colour is your thing, look no further than the conclave at the Vatican.
While the world's fashionistas have been eyeing the 2025 Met Gala in New York -- with audacious looks from leather-clad Kim Kardashian and Madonna in ivory satin -- in Rome another display of pageantry is poised for its moment in the sun. 
Starting on Wednesday, 133 cardinal electors charged with naming the next leader of the Catholic Church will be ablaze in the colour palette's most vibrant tone -- scarlet. 
The dazzling red, symbolising the blood of Christ, is the colour that marks cardinals out from lower-ranking prelates.
But for special occasions -- like the conclave to choose the next pope, held under Michelangelo's frescoed ceiling in the Vatican's Sistine Chapel -- they pull out all the stops.
The base of their so-called "choir dress" is the full-length red cassock, with 33 buttons down the front, partially covered by a rochet, a white garment with a lace border.
Covering the torso to the elbows is the red mozzetta, or short cape, atop which the cardinal wears his imposing pectoral cross.
The zucchetto, or silk skullcap, is worn on the head, covered by the biretta, the rigid, square-sided cap.  
In St Peter's Square on Tuesday, British tourist Stephanie Linnell, 56, marvelled at "the colours they'll use (and) this setting".
Michael Archibald, 54, added that irrespective of one's religion, "it's still an occasion that will blow you away".
But Lidia Spiezia, 75, grumbled that anyone not born into the Latin Catholic tradition wouldn't understand the rituals preceding the new pope's election. 
"For our culture it's a sacred thing," said the Roman.
"It's not a theatrical spectacle."

Vatican's loudest colours

The cardinals will on Wednesday afternoon walk in procession to the Sistine Chapel for their vote.
They will be accompanied by lower-ranking members of the church, whether bishops or monseigneurs dressed in another eye-popping shade -- fuchsia. 
And don't forget the Swiss Guards, the papal garrison wearing the Vatican's loudest colours.
Their uniforms, characterised by a cinched vest and roomy breeches, carry the Medici family colours in vertical stripes of red, dark blue and orange-yellow. 
The procession may be a colourful affair but it's hardly frivolous, with centuries of tradition and the solemnity of the event behind each ritual, liturgical object and item of clothing. 
"It's not the building. It's not the vestments. It's the spirituality," said Capuchin friar Kaisar Sihombing.
"There is something deeper."
The Indonesian friar, 35, was milling in St Peter's Square on Tuesday, dressed in the sober brown tunic and cord around the waist that mark the Franciscan orders, which take a vow of poverty.
The conclave's pomp and circumstance, he said, is "all part of the identity of the Church -- there's nothing wrong with it".
In his forward to a 2018 exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art -- site of the Met Gala -- on "Fashion and the Catholic Imagination", curator Andrew Bolton called dress "fundamental" to any discussion about religion.
"Although some might regard fashion as a frivolous pursuit far removed from the sanctity of religion, most of the vestments worn by the secular clergy and religious orders of the Catholic Church actually have their origins in secular dress," he wrote.
Throughout the Church's history, such garments have "affirmed religious allegiances, asserted religious differences, and functioned to distinguish hierarchies as well as gender," he wrote. 
ams/ar/gil

KSA

Cristiano Ronaldo's eldest son called up by Portugal Under-15s

  • Ronaldo, Real Madrid's all-time top goal scorer and still a Portugal international himself at 40, has five children.
  • Cristiano dos Santos, the eldest son of five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo, was called up to the Portugal Under-15 squad for the first time on Tuesday.
  • Ronaldo, Real Madrid's all-time top goal scorer and still a Portugal international himself at 40, has five children.
Cristiano dos Santos, the eldest son of five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo, was called up to the Portugal Under-15 squad for the first time on Tuesday.
The 14-year-old, who, like his father, plays for Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia, has also had spells with Ronaldo's former clubs Manchester United and Juventus.
The Selecao Under-15s will face Japan, Greece and England at the Vlatko Markovic youth tournament in Croatia between May 13-18.
Ronaldo, Real Madrid's all-time top goal scorer and still a Portugal international himself at 40, has five children.
The striker won Euro 2016 with his country, helping them lift their first major trophy, although he came off hurt early in the final against France.
tsc-rbs/ea

conflict

Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood says shows cancelled after 'credible threats'

  • We reiterate our call for all venues to refuse to programme this complicit event that can only artwash genocide," the PACBI-BDS movement, which had campaigned against the performances, said on X. Announcing the axing of the shows, Greenwood, Tassa and their musicians said the "venues and their blameless staff have received enough credible threats to conclude that it's not safe to proceed". 
  • Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood on Tuesday said two of his forthcoming shows with Israeli-born rock musician Dudu Tassa had been cancelled due to "credible threats".
  • We reiterate our call for all venues to refuse to programme this complicit event that can only artwash genocide," the PACBI-BDS movement, which had campaigned against the performances, said on X. Announcing the axing of the shows, Greenwood, Tassa and their musicians said the "venues and their blameless staff have received enough credible threats to conclude that it's not safe to proceed". 
Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood on Tuesday said two of his forthcoming shows with Israeli-born rock musician Dudu Tassa had been cancelled due to "credible threats".
The guitarist and keyboardist had been due to perform two dates with Tassa in the western English city of Bristol and in London in June.
A pro-Palestinian activist movement that advocates political and economic action against Israel over its treatment of Palestinians welcomed the announcement.
"Palestinians welcome the cancellation of both of their UK shows. We reiterate our call for all venues to refuse to programme this complicit event that can only artwash genocide," the PACBI-BDS movement, which had campaigned against the performances, said on X.
Announcing the axing of the shows, Greenwood, Tassa and their musicians said the "venues and their blameless staff have received enough credible threats to conclude that it's not safe to proceed". 
The letter posted on X said the decision would be "hailed as a victory by the campaigners... but we see nothing to celebrate and don't find anything positive has been achieved".
"Forcing musicians not to perform and denying people who want to hear them an opportunity to do so is self-evidently a method of censorship and silencing," it said.
"We believe art exists above and beyond politics...artists should be free to express themselves regardless of their citizenship or their religion -– and certainly regardless of the decisions made by their governments," it added.
The letter comes after Irish rappers Kneecap had several concerts cancelled.
British counter terrorism police last week launched an investigation into online videos of the Irish band after it denied supporting Hamas and Hezbollah or inciting violence against UK politicians.
The police probe came as nearly 40 other groups and artists rallied around Kneecap with a joint statement in which they said that "as artists, we feel the need to register our opposition to any political repression of artistic freedom".
Greenwood and his fellow musicians added: "We have no judgement to pass on Kneecap but note how sad it is that those supporting their freedom of expression are the same ones most determined to restrict ours."
Radiohead performed in Tel Aviv in 2017 despite being urged to cancel as part of a cultural boycott.
"Playing in a country isn't the same as endorsing its government," Yorke wrote on Twitter at the time. 
"We've played in Israel for over 20 years through a succession of governments, some more liberal than others. As we have in America," he said.
"We don't endorse Netanyahu any more than Trump, but we still play in America," he added.
har/rmb

entertainment

'Makes no sense': Hollywood shocked by Trump's film tariffs announcement

BY ROMAIN FONSEGRIVES

  • As Hollywood fretted over Trump's announcement, the White House said no decision on foreign film tariffs has been made. 
  • Hollywood reacted with skepticism on Monday to US President Donald Trump's announcement of 100 percent tariffs on foreign films, with movie insiders calling it a policy made up on the fly by a president who fails to understand how the industry works.
  • As Hollywood fretted over Trump's announcement, the White House said no decision on foreign film tariffs has been made. 
Hollywood reacted with skepticism on Monday to US President Donald Trump's announcement of 100 percent tariffs on foreign films, with movie insiders calling it a policy made up on the fly by a president who fails to understand how the industry works.
"It makes no sense," entertainment lawyer Jonathan Handel said of Trump's idea.
Handel told AFP that many US productions, from James Bond flicks to the "Mission Impossible" franchise, are filmed abroad for obvious creative reasons.
"If the stunt is Tom Cruise climbing up the Eiffel Tower, what are we supposed to do, shoot at the replica Eiffel Tower in Las Vegas?" Handel said. "I mean, it's just nonsensical."
Writing on his platform Truth Social platform on Sunday, Trump said: "I am authorizing the Department of Commerce, and the United States Trade Representative, to immediately begin the process of instituting a 100% Tariff on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands."
"WE WANT MOVIES MADE IN AMERICA, AGAIN!" he wrote.
His words plunged the movie industry into uncertainty as entertainment companies saw their stock prices fall, unions struggled to understand if the bombshell also applies to TV series and everyone wondered if the policy could even be enforced.
Handel said movies involve intellectual property.
"You can buy a movie ticket, but you don't buy a movie the way you buy a piece of clothing or an automobile," which can be taxed as they cross a border into the United States, he said.
Even if a system could be devised to impose tariffs on movies filmed outside the United States, such levies would do more harm than good to the US industry, Handel said.
"The result of that would be to reduce production, to increase the cost of movies, to reduce the number of movies available for movie theaters and streamers to show, which would damage the distribution side of the business," he said.
California Governor Gavin Newsom called on Monday for a partnership with the Trump administration to "Make America Film Again".
"We've proven what strong state incentives can do. Now it's time for a real federal partnership to Make America Film Again," he wrote on social media platform X.

'Confusion'

Unions for actors and other media and entertainment workers said they awaited more details of Trump's plan but supported the goal of increasing production of movies, TV and streaming in the United States. 
"We will continue to advocate for policies that strengthen our competitive position, accelerate economic growth and create good middle-class jobs for American workers," said one such guild, SAG-AFTRA.
Many movie studios and other industry organizations had yet to officially react by Monday but Trump's announcement triggered crisis meetings, Hollywood news outlets reported, publishing skeptical comments from insiders speaking on condition of anonymity.
"I can't see his target here other than confusion and distraction," the showbiz news outlet Deadline quoted a top distribution executive as saying.
"Let's hope this only encourages desperately needed increases in US state tax incentives being implemented ASAP," the person said.
Such incentives offered by other countries -- such as Britain, Canada and Ireland, among others -- are a lure for US movie studios to film outside the country.
Australia, which for years used generous tax breaks and other cash incentives to lure foreign filmmakers, said it still wants to make "great films" with the United States.
With Trump's tariffs threatening the home of Hollywood hits including "The Matrix", "Elvis" and "Crocodile Dundee", Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Tuesday that "collaboration is a good thing."
While Trump's idea is divisive, there is widespread agreement that the US movie industry is in dire straits.
Hollywood has struggled to get back on its feet since the historic strikes by actors and writers that shut it down in 2023.
The number of filming days in Los Angeles hit a record low in 2024, excluding the total shutdown in 2020 because of the Covid pandemic.
This is in part because many movies are now filmed in a growing number of countries that offer incentives such as tax rebates.
Deadline quoted a Hollywood movie financier as saying he agreed with Trump's goal of having more movies filmed in the United States.
"But obviously the need is for rebates, not tariffs. Tariffs will just choke the remaining life out of the business," they were quoted as saying.
As Hollywood fretted over Trump's announcement, the White House said no decision on foreign film tariffs has been made. 
"The Administration is exploring all options to deliver on President Trump's directive to safeguard our country's national and economic security while Making Hollywood Great Again," the White House said in a statement.
Trump told reporters Monday: "I'm not looking to hurt the industry. I want to help the industry. But they're given financing by other countries."
That seemingly conciliatory remark stopped short of walking back the film tariff announcement, as Trump criticized Newsom, who is pushing for his state to double the tax credits it grants to the movie industry.
"Our film industry has been decimated by other countries taking them out, and also by incompetence," Trump said of Newsom.
"He's just allowed it to be taken away from, you know, Hollywood."
rfo/dw/dhw/pbt

entertainment

'Aussiewood' courts Hollywood as Trump film tariffs loom

  • "Our message is we make great films together," she told national broadcaster ABC.  "We have films, American films, which are filmed here in Australia.
  • Australia still wants to make "great films" with the United States, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Tuesday, as new tariffs threaten the home of Hollywood hits like The Matrix, Elvis and Crocodile Dundee.
  • "Our message is we make great films together," she told national broadcaster ABC.  "We have films, American films, which are filmed here in Australia.
Australia still wants to make "great films" with the United States, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Tuesday, as new tariffs threaten the home of Hollywood hits like The Matrix, Elvis and Crocodile Dundee.
US President Donald Trump on Sunday announced 100 percent tariffs for all films produced in "foreign lands", saying struggling Tinsel Town would be better served by "movies made in America". 
So-called "Aussiewood" has for years used generous tax breaks and other cash incentives to lure foreign filmmakers Down Under, producing a string of hits for major Hollywood studios. 
Although little is known about how the tariffs might work, Australia's top diplomat Wong said they risk ultimately proving a flop with filmgoers. 
"Our message is we make great films together," she told national broadcaster ABC. 
"We have films, American films, which are filmed here in Australia. The collaboration is a good thing. So, let's not get in the way of that." 
"Crocodile Dundee", a 1986 comedy about an Australian bushman transplanted to New York City, helped put Australia's fledgling film industry on the map in America. 
Since then, some of Hollywood's hottest directors have used Australia to film Marvel blockbusters, Mission Impossible instalments, and box office winners like Elvis. 
The tariffs could also trouble neighbouring New Zealand, which famously lent its spectacular scenery to the beloved Lord of the Rings trilogy. 
New Zealand Film Commission boss Annie Murray said they were still trying to untangle how the tariffs might work.
"We're mindful, however, this is an evolving situation and it's too early to speculate on what this could mean," she told AFP. 
The tariffs appear to target a business model favoured by American studios who obtain tax breaks to film in countries such as Britain, Canada, Ireland and Australia. 
A recent survey of studio executives found that their top five favoured production locations were all outside the United States. 
At the start of this year, Trump appointed veteran stars Sylvester Stallone, Mel Gibson and Jon Voight to bring Hollywood back "bigger, better and stronger than ever before".
lec/sft/al/cms

fashion

Stars shine at Met Gala, showcasing Black dandyism

BY MAGGY DONALDSON

  • But for the fashionistas, the Met Gala -- always the first Monday in May -- is simply one of the world's top red carpets with blinding star power.
  • The brightest stars in Hollywood, music, sports and fashion hit the red carpet Monday for the Met Gala, the extravagant Manhattan fundraiser that this year spotlights the subversive style of Black dandyism.
  • But for the fashionistas, the Met Gala -- always the first Monday in May -- is simply one of the world's top red carpets with blinding star power.
The brightest stars in Hollywood, music, sports and fashion hit the red carpet Monday for the Met Gala, the extravagant Manhattan fundraiser that this year spotlights the subversive style of Black dandyism.
The blockbuster night's theme explores the sharply tailored dandy aesthetic and its rich, complicated history. It also celebrates the opening of a corresponding exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute.
But for the fashionistas, the Met Gala -- always the first Monday in May -- is simply one of the world's top red carpets with blinding star power.
Oscar-nominated actor Colman Domingo and Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton, two of the co-chairs of fashion's marquee event, were among the early arrivals alongside gala supremo Anna Wintour, the editor-in-chief of Vogue.
Domingo paid tribute to the late Andre Leon Talley, Vogue's first Black creative director and one of fashion's towering figures, in a royal blue Valentino cape with a glittering white collar over a snazzy black and gold jacket and gray tweed trousers.
Hamilton meanwhile wowed in a sharp cream suit and matching backwards cap, diamonds glittering in his ears, as well as on his lapel, cuffs and hands.
And musician and designer Pharrell Williams, another co-chair, looked snappy in a short, pearl-encrusted white jacket and flared black tuxedo trousers.
Tailored suits, bejeweled brooches, canes and jaunty hats were de rigueur for the men. 
Among the women in attendance, actor Teyana Taylor definitely understood the assignment, arriving in a black suit with red pinstripes and matching huge red coat, the back fully pleated and "Harlem Rose" embossed in the fabric.
Rapper Doechii wore a logo-heavy Louis Vuitton cream shorts suit with burgundy accents, a cigar dangling between her lips. 
And actor Zendaya, always a huge hit at the gala, stunned in a slim white suit and dramatic brimmed hat -- perhaps some bridal chic now that she is engaged to Tom Holland?
Last to arrive at the party was Rihanna, cradling her new baby bump in an all-black ensemble after revealing she was pregnant as the event began. 
Her partner A$AP Rocky, a gala co-chair, confirmed the pregnancy on the carpet: "I'm glad everybody's happy for us because we're definitely happy."
Former US vice president Kamala Harris skipped the red carpet, but attended the gala in an understated black and cream gown from Off-White. 

'New sense of importance'

The gala comes five years after the enormous anti-racist uprising of the Black Lives Matter movement, which pushed a number of cultural institutions in the United States to grapple with their representation of race and diversity.
This Met theme is years in the making but now coincides with Donald Trump's recent efforts to quash institutional initiatives to promote diversity -- a push to keep culture and history defined on the Republican president's terms.
The Met Gala and its exhibit, "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style," promises a sharp contrast to that notion, a deep dive into Black dandyism from the 18th century to today.
"Obviously, this exhibition was planned many years ago, and we didn't know what would be happening in the political arena, but it's taken on a new sense of importance and purpose," Wintour told AFP. 

Subversion

Guest curator and Barnard professor Monica Miller's book "Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity" was the Met's inspiration.
Her book details how dandyism was a style imposed on Black men in 18th century Europe, when well-dressed "dandified" servants became a trend.
But Black men throughout history subverted the concept as a means of cultivating power, transforming aesthetic and elegance into a means of identity establishment and social mobility.
During the vibrant Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s and 1930s, men wore sharp suits and polished shoes as a show of defiance in racially segregated America.
"Superfine" is a rare Costume Institute exhibition to spotlight men and male fashion, and the first to focus on Black designers and artists.
The Met Gala was first organized in 1948 and for decades was reserved for New York high society -- until Wintour transformed the party into a high-profile catwalk for the rich and famous in the 1990s.
It remains a fundraiser for the Costume Institute. The famed Manhattan museum said Monday it expected to rake in $31 million this year.
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