Lebanese band Mashrou’ Leila will headline Apple Music’s first Balcony Music Sessions in The Dubai Mall on December 14.

The event will kick off at 2pm on the balcony of Apple’s flagship Dubai Mall store in the UAE, featuring unplugged sets by Jordanian singer Hana Malhas, Saudi Arabian crooner Hamza Hawasi, Syrian-born singer Ghaliaa and the Emirati singer-songwriter Hamdan Abri.

“We are excited to see the launch of The Balcony Series this week. Support from major brands is rare in the region and to have a forward-thinking and daring brand like Apple initiate a project like this is strongly needed. We can’t wait to be back in Dubai and see everyone there,” said Mashrou Leila’s composer and multi-instrumentalist Firas Abou Fakher.

Those interested in attending the event can find a full schedule of performances online and can register for each artist’s set separately through Today at Apple’s website.

French actress Juliette Binoche will head the jury of next year's Berlin Film Festival, organizers announced on Tuesday.

"The festival shares a strong connection with her, and I'm very happy that she'll be returning to the festival in this distinguished position," Dieter Kosslick, the director of the Berlinale, said in a statement.

Binoche said she would "embrace [the] task with joy and care."

The festival takes place from February 7 to 17.

Spice Girl Melanie Brown said Monday she has undergone three hours of surgery to repair a "severed right hand" following an accident which also left her with two broken ribs.

Brown, known as Mel B, posted on Instagram a photograph of herself in a purple sling along with a message of thanks to hospital staff.

"My right arm/hand is all stitched up and I'm trying to keep still to heal my broken ribs," she posted online.

"Ohhh the pain, but I'm in super safe hands with the care of everyone here at the hospital!"

A few hours later, the 43-year-old posted a GIF showing her in a hospital room with fellow Spice Girls Geri Horner, Emma Bunton and Melanie Chisholm.

The four have planned a reunion tour without Victoria Beckham next year.

Syrian short feature film “On the Roof of Damascus” by Director al-Mohannad Kalthoum won the Special Jury Award at the official competition of the 5th International Festival for Documentaries and Short Feature Films held in the Tunisian city of Medenine.

“On the Roof of Damascus” film narrates the story of a generation living a virtual life as they are unable to achieve their dreams in the real life which became worse because of the war on Syria, yet they announce, at the same time, that they want to keep living despite all types of death and they are searching for love though it seems impossible.

The film is produced by the General Establishment for Cinema and it is written by scenarist Samer Mohammad Ismail.

The second part of the animated film Rick It Ralph, titled "Ralph Brix the Internet," is topping the revenues of the North American movie theaters for the third straight week with $ 16.1 million.

The Second place goes to the animated movie The Grinch, with revenues of $ 15.2 million, while the second part of the drama film "Creed" was in third place with revenue of $ 10.3 million.

The second part of the Fantastic Beasts series, titled The Brothers of Grindelwald, continued to be in fourth place with revenues of $ 6.8 million.

The dramatic film "Bohemian Rhapsody" came in fifth place, earning $ 6 million.

Arab pop stars Amr Diab and Myriam Fares will headline New Year’s Eve celebrations on Al Maryah Island, Abu Dhabi.

The event, which will kick off at 7pm, will see Fares take the stage first. Known for her hits such as ‘Chouf Halak Alayi’, ‘Ana Gheir’ and ‘Kifak Enta’, Fares’ career spans more than 15 years and has been voted by Google as the Middle East’s Most Searched Online artist and recognised as the Number One Youth Artist of the Arab World.

Diab, a seven-time winner of the Best Male Arab Artist at the World Music Awards, will then take the stage with his highly-popular hit songs spanning more than three decades. Diab’s latest album ‘Kol Hayaty’ (All My Life) released on October 3.

The performances will be followed by a fireworks show at midnight. Doors open at 5pm. Entry to the venue is free and spots are on a first-come-first-served basis.

From :Gulfnews

US comedian and actor Kevin Hart will host the 90th Academy Awards, he announced Tuesday.

"I am so happy to say that the day has finally come for me to host the Oscars," the 39-year-old said in an Instagram post.

The star of blockbuster comedies "Central Intelligence" and "Get Hard" said it was the "opportunity of a lifetime" to host the ultimate celebration of cinema.

"I am blown away simply because this has been a goal on my list for a long time... To be able to join the legendary list of hosts that have graced that stage is unbelievable," he added.

Hart has experience hosting the MTV Movie Awards with "Central Intelligence" co-star Dwayne Johnson, but he will be the main event at the Oscars for the first time next year.

It's a goal he referred to in 2015 during a breakfast television interview.

"That would be a major accomplishment. With what I've done and the progress I've made in my career, that's definitely the next major step, I feel, for a comedian. To say you've hosted the Oscars, to grace that stage, turn that event into a youthful night," he said.

The last two Academy Awards shows were hosted by late night host Jimmy Kimmel and saw declining viewer numbers both years, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The 90th awards will be held at Hollywood's Dolby Theatre on February 24.

Stephen Hillenburg, the creator of the children's cartoon "SpongeBob SquarePants," which became a beloved world-wide phenomenon, has died at age 57, US television network Nickelodeon said Tuesday.

Hillenburg had announced last year that he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a neurodegenerative disease.

"SpongeBob" depicts the life of a goofy and excitable oceanic sponge along with his best friend, a starfish named Patrick, and a host of other colourful characters.

The show - first aired in 1999 - is one of the longest-running US television series and has won numerous awards, including multiple Emmys, and grown into a multibillion-dollar franchise. It has been dubbed or sub-titled in more than 60 languages, including Urdu, Azerbaijani and Maori,

"We are sad to share the news of the passing of Stephen Hillenburg, the creator of SpongeBob SquarePants. Today, we are observing a moment of silence to honor his life and work," Nickelodeon, which broadcasts the show in the US, said in a tweet.

Actress Lori Alan, who voiced the character of Pearl on the show, said the cast and crew were "devastated."

"I can't put into words how grateful I am to you for changing my life with your creative brilliance and huge heart," the 52-year-old added.

"Phineas and Ferb" co-creator Dan Povenmire, who worked on "Rocko's Modern Life" and "SpongeBob" with Hillenburg, tweeted an article about his friend's death with the caption, "This is the saddest day."

The creator of "The Fairly Odd Parents," Butch Hartman, said he had "no words" to describe the loss.

"Steve Hillenburg was a friend and immensely talented creator. We grew up together at Nickelodeon," Hartman wrote on Twitter, adding "You will be sorely missed, Steve."

After graduating college, Hillenburg became a marine biology teacher in California, Nickelodeon said in a statement.

"This interest, combined with his artistic talent and love of the sea and its creatures, led him to write and illustrate stories as teaching tools with colorful characters that would later become the denizens of Bikini Bottom," the network said, referring to the setting of "SpongeBob."

He completed his masters in animation in 1992, going on to become creative director on "Rocko's Modern Life" before his own show launched.

"SpongeBob is a complete innocent – not an idiot. SpongeBob never fully realizes how stupid Patrick is," Hillenburg said in a 2009 interview with the Washington Post.

"They’re whipping themselves up into situations – that’s always where the humor comes from," he added.

The Syrian creative artist, Muwaffaq Makhoul, who entered the Guinness Book of World Records for creating the world’s largest mural made of recycled materials, has been selected along 11 other artists to be honored as part of Ministry of Culture’s clelbrations marking its founding anniversary.

Makhoul is known for his impressive contribution to the art scene and his artworks reveal high level of creativity and innovation in terms of theme and techniques.

He founded “the rhythm of life” team which includes a group of plastic artists and worked together to create fantastic wall-murals decorating the streets at different neighborhoods of Damascus city with the aim of bringing joy to everyone and stressing the Syrian people’s strong will and determination to move on.

In his wall-murals, Makhoul addressed people of different cultural backgrounds and attempted to establish a close and special relationship between man and the street.

The 7-year terrorist war against Syria motivated Makhoul to go to the streets with his team, spread peace and beauty, and fight the obscurantist mentality on their own way.

The team made several murals on the walls of Damascus schools such as Dar al-Salam, Bassam Hamsho, Nahla Zeidan and the primary education school complex in Rukn Eddin, in addition to carving two deadwood trees dating back to more than a century at al-Manshiyeh Park under the title “Love, memory and a tree”.

In a statement to SANA, Makhoul expressed happiness over this recognition which indicates the Ministry’s respect for creativity and its keenness on honoring talents.

Artist Muwaffaq Makhoul was born in Damascus in 1958. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography. Makhoul participated in several solo and collective art exhibitions.

Oscar-winning Italian film director Bernardo Bertolucci, whose films include "Last Tango in Paris" and "The Last Emperor," has died, his publicity office said on Monday.

Bertolucci died at his home in Rome at 7 am (0600 GMT), Punto & Virgola, a communications agency, said in a statement. The cause of death was cancer.

With "The Last Emperor," an epic biopic about the last Imperial ruler of China, Bertolucci won nine Oscars in 1988, including for Best Picture and Best Director.

But the Italian's most famous - and scandalous - film was arguably 1972's "Last Tango in Paris," featuring a rape scene between Marlon Brando and Maria Schneider.

Other notable works by Bertolucci are "The Conformist," "The Spider's Stratagem," and "1900," dating from the 1970s, as well as 1996's "Stealing Beauty" and "The Dreamers" from 2003.

He was awarded a career award from the Venice Film Festival in 2007 and an honorary Golden Palm at the Cannes Film Festival four years later.

"[We] lament the passing of Bernardo Bertolucci," the Venice Biennale, which organizes the city's film festival, tweeted. "He will be remembered among the greatest of Italian and world cinema."

Bertolucci, who started out in cinema as an assistant to poet-director Pier Paolo Pasolini, was born in the northern city of Parma on March 16, 1941. His father Attilio was a famous poet.

He spent the last years of his life in a wheelchair following complications from hernia disc surgery in the early 2000s. His last movie was "Me and You" from 2012.

Nicolas Roeg, the acclaimed filmmaker whose cult movies starred the likes of Mick Jagger and David Bowie, has died aged 90, according to media reports.

Roeg's family confirmed his death to the PA news agency on Saturday, with son Nicolas Roeg Junior remembering his father as "a genuine dad."

The British director's best-known film, the 1973 thriller "Don't Look Now," starred Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie as parents mourning the loss of their daughter.

The couple's graphic sex scene became the focus of debate for years to come, with many speculating that the actors were having intercourse on camera.

The British Film Institute late Saturday described Roeg as "a true great if ever there was one."

"A pioneering force of cinema who created some of the most affecting moments of beauty, terror and sadness ever seen," the institute added on Twitter.

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), which presented the director with an Outstanding Creative Contribution to Cinema award in 2009, said its members were "deeply saddened" by Roeg's death.

Director Duncan Jones, the son of David Bowie, paid tribute to Roeg on Twitter: "Just heard another great storyteller, the inimitable Nicolas Roeg left us today. What an incredible body of work he's left us with!"

Bowie, who died in 2016, worked with Roeg on "The Man Who Fell to Earth," in which the singer starred as an alien who has come to Earth in search of water to save his home planet.

US comedian and actress Sandra Bernhard, who was directed by Roeg in the 1988 film "Track 29" and whose 1990 musical "Without You I'm Nothing" he produced, said it was an "honor to work with" him.

"A brilliant original whose canon is impeccable... never another like him," Bernhard tweeted.

Academy Award-winning director Guillermo del Toro was among those who paid tribute to Roeg at the awarding of his 2009 BAFTA.

Following the filmmaker's death, del Toro praised him for breaking "fresh ground" in cinematography and for his "infinite talent and multiple achievements."

Lebanese singer Haifa Wehbe will perform at Dubai’s Gotha Club on November 15.

The singer, best known for her hit tracks Ragab and Fakerni, will put on the show at the Radisson Blu Hotel Dubai Waterfront nightclub. Doors open at 11pm. Ladies get free beverages until 1am. Entry is free; contact the club for guest list access.

From :Gulfnews