Dubai: Saudi Arabia-based DJ Lujain Albishi, whose stage name is Biirdperson, is making waves in the evolving electronic music world in the kingdom.
She will be on the stage of the MDLBEAST SOUNDSTRORM Music Festival in Riyadh, which will be held from December 16th to 19th.
The filmmaker and DJ named after the characters in the animated TV show "Rick and Morty" has previously shown her indifference at the German Consulate in Saudi Arabia, Jeddah Music Space, Riyadh Vague and Bayada MDLBEAST Freqways One-of-a-kind taste.
A post shared by Lujain Albishi (@biirdperson)
"Witnessing the early electronic music scene in Saudi Arabia and seeing it grow into a strong community makes me want to be a part of it, support it and study it in depth," she said.
Inspired by local artists such as Vinyl Mode, Hats and Klaps, Majid, Cosmicat and Baloo, and international talents such as Mihai Pol, David August and Kiasmos, Albishi learned how to mix by observing the DJs she is often surrounded by. Local scene.
"Because I am a filmmaker, I used to shoot my DJ friends at parties or improvisations they used to attend. Therefore, I developed my ears and mastered some skills, and through observation and I learned the basics by shooting them," she explained.
A post shared by Lujain Albishi (@biirdperson)
Then the coronavirus disease came, and the ensuing lockdown created an excellent opportunity for her to focus on her music and hone her skills.
"If you want to pursue a career in music, you have to make sure to explore all options and try your voice," she said. "Keep it original and authentic. The best way to do this is to be yourself, don't worry about which style is the most popular or follow the latest trends. Focus on creating the quality music you like."
A post shared by Lujain Albishi (@biirdperson)
Although electronic music is becoming more and more popular in Saudi Arabia, Biirdperson is one of the few female DJs who have made progress in a male-dominated field.
"Gender is not important, we are all equally talented," she said. "However, I believe that as it develops, more women will be on the stage, and we will see more female DJs in a few years. Now this is happening in the region...more and more Of women began to share and celebrate their voices with confidence and excitement."
Jeddah: As the 10-day Red Sea International Film Festival is coming to an end, Arab News interviewed some people behind the scenes who contributed to it.
In 2018, film producer Antoine Khalife, who has long been hailed as the catalyst for global Arab cinema, received a call from Saudi film producer Mahmoud Sabbagh. Khalife is eager to work with Sabbagh to make a new film; the Saudi director wants to persuade Khalife to join his team and participate in the first international film festival RSIFF in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.
"He asked me to go to Jeddah to see what I thought," Khalife recalled. "I went and fell in love with this city and its people. I realized that Jeddah has great potential for the audience to accept movies. What convinced me was the people I met in Jeddah and the people in Saudi Arabia. Young filmmakers."
After making this decision, Khalife, who has participated in numerous films in Lebanese director Nadine Labaki and film festivals around the world (including Dubai, Venice and Cannes), joined the director of Arabic shows and classic films.
Although the art director of the festival has changed since then, Sabbagh, the director of the romantic comedy "Barakah Meets Barakah" (2016), will step down in 2020 and be replaced by Edouard Waintrop, but Khalife has maintained his promise and believes in its potential for the Saudi film industry Great catalyst.
This is not the first time that Saudi Arabia has hosted a film festival, but RSIFF marks the first time that it has hosted an international film festival with filmmakers from the Kingdom, the Greater Middle East, Africa and the world. This year, the festival launched a $14 million fund to support filmmakers in Arabia and Africa, which reflects its international influence.
After Khalife joined, several months of planning and organizing the whirlwind amidst the unpredictable pandemic were to launch the first version of RSSIF.
He (Saudi film producer Mahmoud Sabbagh) told me to go to Jeddah to see what I thought. I went and fell in love with this city and its people. I realized that Jeddah has great potential for audiences who accept movies. What convinced me was the people I met in Jeddah and the young filmmakers in Saudi Arabia.
“Last year, we completed a strong plan, but it was delayed due to COVID-19,” Khalife told Arab News. "It was frustrating, but I stayed anyway because I saw the huge potential of the film festival and the Saudi film industry."
Khalife said that the team needed to overcome many challenges. "The first challenge is to create a strong Arab film program. I started contacting producers and distributors very early to select strong Arab films," he said.
Given the challenges of COVID-19 and the fact that it is the first edition of RSIFF, he often has to explain to colleagues that the festival is still taking place and why it is relevant to the Arab and international film industry.
"People often express doubts and ask if we will edit and edit political or emotional scenes," Khalife told Arab News. "Finally we got the guarantee of the movies we wanted, and all the movies are shown in their original versions."
He emphasized that none of them have been cut, which proves the changing social pattern in Saudi Arabia.
"It is vital that we have a strong plan that contains a lot of perspectives from all over the Middle East," Khalife said.
"We cooperated with the Ministry of Culture and they gave us the freedom to do what we want. Sometimes I worry about the public's reaction to certain movies, but the discussion after each screening is very amazing and respectful. Especially here Of women’s questions to filmmakers are educational and professional rather than aggressive. They want to understand.”
Rana Jarbou is a Saudi film director and manager of Talent Days. This is a two-day event affiliate program that provides opportunities for Saudi youth to participate in film production. She pointed out how beneficial it is to work at the festival, but added that the challenge is to It is integrated together for the first time.
Jarbou joined in August 2021, as she said, “join and start swimming to get the job done” to create a plan that fits the festival “to encourage budding young Saudi filmmakers and develop the local film industry”.
"It's really challenging to go on stage because this is the first time. I have been to many film festivals, but I have never worked for a film festival," she told Arab News. “Organizing a two-day show with more than 50 speakers participating is a lot, but it’s totally worth it. I know what I’m doing, and through this project to help young filmmakers, I can promote for my country Creative change."
The highlight of Jarbou is that she can take the initiative, be creative and come up with an unprecedented plan to support Saudi youth-this is one of the goals of the Kingdom’s 2030 Vision, which aims to enhance the vitality of Saudi society and diversify the local economy .
Other project highlights include the Red Sea open-air market managed by Saudi artist Zain Zedan, featuring project markets, offering presentations of more than 20 projects from the Arab world and Africa, and ongoing film seminars.
"We have planned to hold this festival in March 2020 starting in 2019, so we have worked hard for this for two years," Zedan told Arab News. "We are working hard to support everyone through the open-air market to create opportunities for young filmmakers."
On December 12, the winners of the Red Sea Open Air Market Award announced that more than $700,000 in prize money was used to produce their project. The winners were selected from 23 participating projects of Arab and Saudi filmmakers, 11 of which were launched in the open-air market and 12 were launched in the Red Sea Lodge. The latter was created in collaboration with TorinoFilmLab to enhance the capabilities of film talents.
"It really makes a lot of sense, everyone wants a platform where they can meet each year, create opportunities, build their networks, and advance their careers (and) perform at local and international festivals," she added road. "After these hard days and long hours of work, it is very beneficial to see people burst into tears with excitement after finding commercial deals for their projects."
"This year is a good start, and we are ready to make the second edition," she added. "The energy is huge and the possibilities are endless. We are making history here."
Riyadh: During the busiest week in Riyadh, the XP Music Conference will lead participants to experience different cultures and music styles.
The conference was held in Jax, Diriyah, in cooperation with the Saudi Music Commission, and aimed to lay the foundation for the Kingdom’s booming music industry. It included 17 different seminars, conferences, keynote speeches and discussion groups to promote Saudi Arabia. Cultural and economic changes. Middle East Music Industry.
One of the showrooms showcases Arabic music and its instruments, bringing Arab heritage to the world, displaying some of the oldest musical instruments in the Arab world, such as udha, canon, rubab and tabla.
"As Arabs, we have a unique taste in music. We are showing our old musical instruments to the world in the XP theater showroom," Salman Hussein, who showed the musical instruments to visitors, told Arab News.
He provided some background on the displayed musical instruments: "qanun is the mother of all musical instruments. You can get any notes you want, and rubab is available to everyone because it is made of cheap materials such as leather and wood. of."
Hussein praised the XP Music Conference, saying that he had the opportunity to meet many people and learn about different cultures on this occasion.
"We have integrated all tastes and cultures in XP, and we all know each other. We are different people from different countries, but we are all connected in the same thing, which is music," he added.
The XP Music Conference witnessed a gathering of thousands of professionals in the music industry from all over the world.
After the conference, the region’s largest music festival MDLBEAST’s Soundstorm will return for the second time and will provide four days of thrills.
Dubai: The Arab world is remaking the popular French comedy series "Intouchables".
Dubai-based distribution and production company Front Row revealed this week that the shooting of the Arab remake will begin in Egypt in May next year.
The restarted screenwriter is Amr El-Daly from Egypt and will be directed by Jad Aouad from Lebanon, who will make his first feature film.
The Arabic version is set in Egypt and tells of a wealthy Egyptian paraplegic and his relationship with the little hood who became his caregiver. Despite the huge social and cultural differences between them, they have established a strong connection.
"Our mission is to find and cultivate emerging talents that we believe will have a profound impact on the creative industry and drive change," said Gianluca Chakra, CEO of Front Row. "We are very happy to be cooperating with Jad and Amr to develop'Intouchables'. They have a truly authentic sound and natural intuition, which will make this version unique to Arab audiences, while also providing great opportunities for international audiences. translate."
The original drama series starring French actors Omar Sy and Francois Cluzet was released in 2011 and earned more than US$426 million in the international drama market.
Dubai: Twenty years ago, the now very popular Tunisian actor and director Dhafer L'Abidine was talking on the phone with his mother in London. His mother wanted to hear how his booming film career was progressing.
He said that everything went well. He didn’t want his family to know that he was washing the dishes to rent a house. After his career as a professional football player went wrong, he worked hard to find a role that could prove that he crossed the continent to pursue his dreams. reasonable. The promising career as a model proved to be too unfulfilling.
Just when he doubted himself, the 49-year-old Rabidin, who is a cross-screen star in the Arab world and the West, knew the level of trust his parents placed in him. This was the reason that pushed him to achieve great success. Actors.
It was the same love that drove him to never limit himself, and why—even though he had achieved great success in Egypt and around the world—he took the biggest risk in his career; writing and directing his own film "Ghodwa" ( English is "Tomorrow"), the film has just been screened at the first Red Sea International Film Festival in Jeddah.
"Why should I risk making a movie that might fail? As an actor, if it doesn't work, people usually don't blame you," L'Abidine said. "Through the director, people can actually judge you, and the box office will immediately show you whether your vision is successful. This is cruel. To do this, you have to believe in something. You have to believe in yourself."
Two weeks after the initial production of "Ghodwa", L'Abidine's mother passed away; years after his father's death, he suffered a devastating blow, a loss he never fully recovered.
"To be honest, it was a stressful time, but we have been moving forward. For the team and myself, I have to push myself. I want to do this for my mom and my dad. I hope they can see It, but even if they can't see it, I can do it for their memory, for everything they did for me," Rabidin told Arab News. "In a way, this is what keeps me moving."
"Ghodwa" took place 10 years after the Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia. The wounds of the previous regime have not yet healed. Although this movie has a strong political trend, because L'Abidine has always been highly involved in Tunisian politics — he told us to check news five to six times a day — what is important to L'Abidine is not political information, it is Personal information.
The film finally tells the story of a father struggling to survive in a flawed society, and his teenage son who is still in school has no choice but to take care of his father and patiently help him through the difficulties, even though This will hurt him, even if he doesn't understand what his father is going through. What L'Abidine believes most is this father-son relationship, and why this is a story he must tell by himself.
"Their relationship is the most important. Political and economic themes give the story depth, but if there is no relationship between father and son, then it's nothing," he said. "I never wanted it to be related to politics. No matter where you are from, you are connected to this relationship. No matter where you watch this movie, whether in the Arab region or around the world, we want to be as close to us as possible Your father or son has the best relationship. This is what I believe most."
However, becoming a writer and director—especially a good director—is a daunting task, and it allows L'Abidine to discover new things about himself.
"When you are behind the camera, everything is new. You have to adapt and learn quickly, listen to everyone around you, try to understand the logic behind each of their opinions, and try to make the right choice. In the final analysis, this It's the meaning of a director—to make a decision because you have no choice but to yourself," L'Abidine said.
"For the first time through all this, I have to stay open and accept it, which helps me a lot. I never thought it would be easy, so when it's not so easy, I never complain," he continued . "I know I have left my comfort zone-this is the point. I am in charge of acting, directing and production. I hardly have time to eat. But this trip is very rewarding. I like every minute of it, even in the most Hard times."
As evidence of this statement, L'Abidine revealed that he has written his second feature film, which delves into the way East and West interact.
“Actually, I think I’m addicted to it. It’s really fulfilled my dream for a long time. My life is like a puzzle. I slowly put it together. As a director, you have the ability to create stories. Explore what you can never do as an actor. As a director, you cannot hide. Everything is your responsibility. You are creating life, you are creating a soul where people can see themselves. Your thoughts and your choices become people You can reach things all over the world. This is what I have always wanted to do," he said.
The momentum is by his side. At the world premiere of the Cairo International Film Festival this month, "Ghodwa" won the International Film Critics Federation Award, which is one of the festival's highest honors. This is a moment that L'Abidine will always cherish, just like its performance in Jeddah.
"I'm so excited. In (Jeddah) and Cairo, audiences from all over the world responded very well," he said. "We tell this story so that people from all over the world can connect with it, and people really feel that way."
When L'Abidine focuses on the next steps of the production company named after his parents, he plans to stay true to the values they instilled in him and become the person he has always wanted to be.
"I am very satisfied with the whole experience. For now, I just need to keep my head clear and be careful. As long as you do things with your heart, as long as you can feel what you are doing, I think you can do it well," he said. "This is what I will always urge myself to do."
Dubai: Lebanese designer Zuhair Murad has added another first-class client to his growing client list. "West Side Story" actress Rachel Ziegler is the latest Hollywood star to support Murad's shiny ensemble. The 20-year-old singer and YouTuber participated in the 15th Annual CNN Heroes: All-Star Tribute in New York, wearing a golden bell-sleeved mermaid dress with chain details from the fashion designer's spring 2022 ready-to-wear collection.
At the event, Zegler awarded the 2021 CNN Hero Award to Jenifer Colpas, the founder of Tierra Grata, a non-profit organization that provides clean water, solar lights and electricity, as well as ecological toilets and showers to remote rural communities in Colombia. "Last night I paid tribute to Jennifer Kolpaz on #CNNHeroes for her incredible work in Cartagena, Colombia, providing people with housing, electricity and sanitation. "Thank you for inviting me, @cnn! What a beautiful night. The American actress played the leading role in the 2021 film version of "West Side Story," directed by Steven Spielberg and adapted by American writer Tony Kushner.
Check out this post on Instagram. Posts shared by rachel zegler (@rachelzegler). In addition to receiving positive reviews for his outstanding performance, Zegler has also been nominated for the Golden Globe and Critics’ Choice Awards. The budding genius will play Snow White in the live-action adaptation of the Disney animated film, and the Queen of Evil alongside the "Wonder Woman" actress Gal Gadot. Ziegler joined the superhero movie "Shazam! "The Fury of the Gods", adapted from the DC comics Shazam, is scheduled to be released in 2023.
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Check out the post shared by rachel zegler (@rachelzegler) on Instagram. Murad recently dressed for a model at the first Red Sea International Film Festival in Saudi Arabia. American-Brazilian model Alessandra Ambrosio (Alessandra Ambrosio)'s all-white styling is cut in perspective at the waist and hip high slits, and the torso and shoulders are decorated with gem-encrusted details. Portuguese model Sara Sampaio chose a striking black dress with silver accents throughout the length.
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Check out this post on Instagram. A post shared by Rachel Zegler (@rachelzegler), Oscar-winning actress Marisa Tomei has provided the latest support for Murad's glamorous dress. Tomei wears a gold long-sleeved sequined gown with jewellery details and high thigh slits from his 2022 ready-to-wear holiday collection.
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