City Doha Showbiz Latest News and Updates

Instagram pages, sharing five snaps of them together while Biancardi shows off her baby bump. "We dream of your life, we plan your arrival and know that you are here to complete our love, leave our days much happier," the caption read. "You're going to join a beautiful family, with a brother, grandparents, uncles and aunts who already love you very much! Come soon child, we are waiting for you! "'Before I formed you in the womb I chose you; before you were born I set you apart' - Jeremiah 1:5.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Saudi Arabia has landed its first film in the Cannes Film Festival official selection with “Norah,” a drama by pioneering director Tawfik Alzaidi set in 1990s Saudi, when conservatism was at its height and all forms of art and painting were banned for religion-related reasons. “Norah,” which premiered locally in December at Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah, will be launching internationally from Cannes’ prestigious Un Certain Regard section, marking the first Saudi film to screen in Cannes and becoming a symbol of the kingdom’s rapidly growing moviemaking ambitions since Saudi Arabia lifted its 35-year-old religion-related ban on cinema in 2017.

Mexican supervisor supervising sound editor Martín Hernández, who was Oscar-nominated for Best Sound Editing for Birdman and The Revenant in 2014 and 2015 respectively, says the category is wide open this year due to the variety of movies in the running.

Atom Egoyan has revealed that he was so traumatized by the negative reception to his Ryan Reynolds-starring thriller The Captive at the Cannes Film Festival that he will never return again with a film.

French director Claire Denis is set to return to West Africa for her next feature film, an adaptation of late French playwright Bernard-Marie Koltès’s 1980 work Black Battles With Dogs (Combat de nègre et de chiens).

French filmmaker Leos Carax discussed the sacred nature of the image and the challenge of retaining its power on the big screen in the digital age in an on-stage conversation at the Doha Film Institute’s Qumra event on Monday.

Jim Sheridan has dispelled rumors around a possible return to acting by Daniel Day-Lewis, who gave an Oscar-winning performance in the Irish director’s drama My Left Foot and also starred in his subsequent films In The Name Of The Father and The Boxer.

The Doha Film Institute (DFI) kicked off its 10th Qumra talent and project incubator meeting on a somber note on Friday as its organizers spoke out about the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Actress Toni Collette discussed her journey from a working-class neighborhood in northwest Sydney to Hollywood star in a masterclass at the Doha Film Institute’s Qumra talent and project development event on Friday.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent The Doha Film Institute’s unique Qumra incubator kicks off Friday with six days of master classes, labs and mentoring sessions and some 200 industry professionals – including programmers from Cannes, Venice, Toronto, Berlin and many other major festivals – expected to make the trek to the Qatari capital. Qumra, which is an Arab word believed to be the origin of the word “camera,” is dedicated to supporting and shepherding first and second works by Arab directors but also supports some projects from other parts of the world.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent International Sports Broadcasting, which specializes in broadcasting and distribution of live sports events including the Olympics, is officially launching a standalone film shingle called ISB Films at the EFM. The CEO of Madrid-based ISB Films is ISB managing director Ursula Romero.

Coco Gauff did not let her latest loss discourage her from spending a sweet Valentine’s Day. The 20-year-old tennis star spent some quality time with her mom Candi Gauff after losing to Katerina Siniakova in the second round of the WTA 1000 in Doha.Coco Gauff’s mom supports her daughter’s kind gesture to Alycia ParksCoco Gauff could have been a professional basketball playerCoco Gauff shares adorable photos at Disney World with her familyThe fan-favorite athlete was in good spirits celebrating Valentine’s Day with an adventure in the desert, making the most out of her time in Qatar with her mom.

Rafael Nadal has never broken a tennis racquet in his life. The Spanish player stands in sharp contrast to players like Novak Djokovic, who, according to a statistic shared on social media, has broken 62 racquets over the course of his professional career. Roger Federer, who’s known as a cool and collected player, has broken six racquets while playing.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Qatar, which put itself on the global entertainment map by hosting the 2022 soccer World Cup, isn’t known as a moviemaking hub. But Doha-based Katara Studios, which is keen on fostering filmmaking and content production in the minuscule gas-rich Gulf nation, is getting the ball rolling.

Qatar‘s Doha Film Institute (DFI) has announced the recipient projects for its fall 2023 grants cycle, featuring 44 films by first and second-time directors hailing from 32 countries. (scroll down for full list)

Naman Ramachandran Eimi Imanishi is thematically expanding her Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival winner, “Battalion to My Beat,” as a narrative feature film titled “Doha – The Rising Sun.” The film, written and directed by Imanishi, will follow Mariam, a young woman who is forced to return home to Western Sahara when she is deported from Europe. Adrift in the very place that was once her home, she desperately searches for the means to assert agency over her own life.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent Dubai-based distributor Front Row Filmed Entertainment has acquired Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region distribution rights to groundbreaking Saudi drama “Norah,” which world premiered in competition at the Red Sea Film Festival. Directed by pioneering Saudi director Tawfik Alzaidi, making his feature film debut, “Norah” is set in 1990s Saudi Arabia, when conservatism was at its height and all forms of art and painting were banned for religion-related reasons.

Nick Holdsworth For the producers of an international co-production about Palestinian refugees in Athens the Hamas attack on Israel Oct. 7 and subsequent bombardment and invasion of Gaza by Israeli forces looked as if it might derail the project.

Naman Ramachandran Tatino Films, a French production and consultancy company involved in industry events in Asia and Europe, has teamed with Kazakhstan-based Alternativa Film Project and the Philippines’ QCinema Project Market for three film residencies. The partnership will yield two Pop Up film residencies called the Pop Up Alternativa Awards for filmmakers from Central Asia and one Pop Up QCFC (Quezon City Film Commission) x QCinema Award for Southeast Asian filmmakers to develop their upcoming film projects.

Notice on MUSTB's exclusive contract termination pic.twitter.com/R4gPNmJG6U— MUSTB_OFFICIAL (@MustB_mustment) November 7, 2023Two members of MUSTB have since addressed the news with posts on their Instagram Stories. “Activities under the name of ‘MUSTB’ have concluded,” lead vocalist Doha wrote, seemingly implying that the group are disbanding.“We will remember and are grateful for each and every one who supported us during that time.

Rapture, the second film from Indian filmmaker Dominic Sangma, is being presented with  the Cultural Diversity Award at this year’s Asia Pacific Screen Awards. 

Marta Balaga Nadine Labaki heads “Back to Alexandria” in Tamer Ruggli’s debut feature that allowed him to celebrate Egyptian women. “I am very close to my mother, who is Egyptian. I don’t know if you know many Egyptian women, but they are exuberant, dominant and endearing.” In a story based on his mother’s experiences, Sue (Labaki) returns home after 20 years.

Thousands of holidaymakers will descend on Manchester Airport today as they prepare to jet off.

BreAnna Bell Director and screenwriter Sofia Alaoui has signed with WME for representation in all areas. She continues to be represented by Jerome Duboz of Ithaka Media. Born in Casablanca and raised in China, Alaoui is a French-Moroccan artist with an aim to create cinema that spans across borders and bends genres in new ways.

EXCLUSIVE: Netflix is continuing to ramp up its slate of sports docuseries.

Rafael Nadal and Cristiano Ronaldo, has exciting news for food and sports enthusiasts alike. They will soon open a new Tatel location in Valencia, joining the existing restaurants in Ibiza, Beverly Hills, Doha, and Madrid.

Naman Ramachandran Banijay has signed an agreement to acquire a majority stake in live entertainment player Balich Wonder Studio. Founded in 2013, Milan-based Balich is credited for the organization of the highest number of Olympic Games Ceremonies in the world and other events including the 2022 Qatar FIFA World Cup; Pan American Games ceremonies in Perù 2019 and Chile 2023; 2016 Rio Olympic Games ceremonies; and 2014 Sochi Olympic Games closing and Paralympic Games ceremonies. It has also delivered a range of exclusive events for top brands including Louis Vuitton, Formula 1, Ferrari, Dolce & Gabbana, UEFA, MSC, Maserati, Bulgari, IWC, Azimut Benetti and many others.

told The Sunday Times the annual observance — which takes place every February and recognizes the cultural achievement of black people — has a negative connotation to him and that it ‘regulates’ his culture to just 4 weeks. “Two things I can say publicly that I do not like,” said the “Million Dollar Baby” star. “Black History Month is an insult.

Lamia Chraibi is one of Morocco’s best-known indie film producers whose credits include Mica, about a boy from the slums who is discovered to have a talent for tennis, and Sitges prize-winning horror Achoura as well as co-producing 2016 Cannes Critics’ Week winner Las Mimosas.

The Doha Film Institute’s Qumra talent and project incubator event returned as a 100% in-person event last week, bringing participants together face-to-face in Doha for the first time since it was forced online in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Michael Winterbottom has devoted much of his filmmaking career to revisiting real-life events through works blurring the boundaries between documentary and drama to various degrees.  

The Doha Film Institute’s Qumra talent and project incubator event returned as a 100% in-person event last week, bringing participants together face-to-face in Doha for the first time since it was forced online in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

UK director Lynne Ramsay enjoyed international recognition early on in her career after short films Small Deaths and Gasman were invited to the Cannes and won the Jury Prize in its short film competition in 1996 and 1998 respectively.

Nick Vivarelli International Correspondent French-Moroccan director Sofia Alaoui made a splash at Sundance with her sci-fi thriller “Animalia,” which used genre to explore dark sides of Moroccan society. The filmmaker is now employing similar tropes in the early stages on a TV series titled “Let the Earth Burn.” “Animalia,” winner of the Special Jury Award for Creative Vision within Sundance’s World Cinema Dramatic Competition, is about a pregnant young woman from a rural Berber background who winds up emancipating herself as aliens land in Morocco. “Let the Earth Burn,” unveiled during the Doha Film Institute’s Qumra Arab film and TV series projects incubator this week, takes its cue from real abductions and slayings in remote areas of Morocco of kids known as “Zouhri” whom the kidnappers believe have supernatural powers.

Jacqueline West is one of Hollywood’s most respected costume designers with four Oscar nominations for Philip Kaufmann’s Quills, David Fincher’s The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button, Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s The Revenant and Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part One.

Oscar-winning UK producer David Parfitt shared insights from the highs and lows of his 35-year producing career at a masterclass for the Doha Film Institute’s Qumra talent incubator over the weekend.