Audrey Azoulay, the UNESCO Director-General, presented the report in Paris alongside esteemed filmmakers Abderrahmane Sissako and Mati Diop.
“This landmark publication reflects on the importance of strengthening international cooperation to enable all countries, in particular developing countries, to develop cultural and creative industries that are viable and competitive both nationally and internationally,” she said.
The report aims to help the African film industry, and decision-makers, to take stock of the current landscape and plan strategically for future growth.
Africa’s potential as a film powerhouse remains largely untapped, despite a significant growth in production across the continent, the report argues. Nigeria alone produces around 2,500 films a year.
Even though affordable digital film equipment and online platforms allow direct distribution to consumers, opening new avenues for content creators, Africa is the most underserved continent in terms of movie theatres. Currently, there is only one cinema screen per 787,402 people.
Lights, camera, piracy
The film industry also faces the significant problem of piracy. The UNESCO report estimates that 50 per cent to over 75 per cent of revenue is lost to piracy, though precise data does not exist. Additionally, just 19 out of 54 African countries offer financial support to filmmakers.
The report outlines further challenges, including limitations on freedom of expression, as well as education, training and internet connectivity.
Films as ‘public goods’
This year marks two decades since the adoption of a UNESCO Declaration that upholds cultural diversity as being as necessary to humanity as biodiversity is to nature.
Ms. Azoulay said in commemorating the anniversary, “we must raise our voice to reaffirm that films are indeed ‘public goods’ that require public support and investment to ensure equal access to creation, production, distribution, dissemination and consumption.”
Before considering what comes next for the Toronto Raptors, one must look at their sojourn in Tampa Bay. Broadly speaking, was the Raptors’ 27-45 record more about misfortune or mismanagement? Before the COVID outbreak and the late-season tank job, was Toronto primed for a playoff push?
On Feb. 26, the Raptors were fourth in the East. Their plus-2.3 net rating, which ranked ninth in the league, suggested that they were better than their record. They’d won 10 of 15 games, including matchups with the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers, and they appeared to have found something with their smallball starting five.
If you remember how Toronto played during that stretch, you’re at least intrigued by the current iteration of the team. The Raptors don’t have a player taller than 6-foot-9 on the roster, and coach Nick Nurse can throw out lineups in which everybody is at least 6-foot-7. On defense, they will pressure ball-handlers, swarm stars, rotate like crazy, switch a ton, play zone and force turnovers. Toronto wants chaos, and it wants to run.
The Raptors want to run in part because they don’t have the talent they used to. They ranked eighth in halfcourt offense in 2019 and 15th in that category without Kawhi Leonard the next season. Last season, they fell to 20th without Marc Gasol’s passing and Serge Ibaka’s floor spacing. Now that Kyle Lowry is out of the picture, Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam are the only remaining players who participated in the 2019 Finals. (OG Anunoby was injured and Chris Boucher didn’t play a meaningful postseason minute.)
Toronto’s roster is overflowing with athleticism, length and versatility, but light on playmaking, especially with Siakam still rehabilitating from shoulder surgery. It’s time for VanVleet to run the show and Anunoby to stretch his game. Even in the preseason, it’s clear that the Raptors are much more interesting when rookie Scottie Barnes — tailor-made for the Raptors with an almost 7-foot-3 wingspan and “6-9 PG” in his Instagram bio — is on the floor. Precious Achiuwa, acquired in the Lowry sign-and-trade, has been empowered to shoot 3s and put the ball on the floor. Goran Dragic, also in that deal, will be an important source of offense — for now.
There are League Pass favorites (Boucher swats 3s!) and curiosities (Dalano Banton, another 6-9 PG!) all over the place. Toronto’s distinct style will make it annoying to play against, particularly if you’re the guy dealing with a box-and-1 on the second night of a back-to-back. In this way the Raptors are returning to their home city the same, but different. They’re younger and wilder, with only a select few core players walking into entrenched roles. How far will their brand of chaos get them in the short term? Well, that depends. There is a freedom inherent in Toronto’s offense, and, if you’re a player trying to establish yourself, that freedom is tantamount to opportunity. Let’s see what these guys can do with it.
Raptors believer: This team is going to be a blast. I want Nurse to play everybody on the roster, partially because there is good depth here and partially because it’s fun when the Raptors are going a zillion miles per hour. I’m going to be laughing when they frustrate an opposing superstar and upset a championship contender for the first time.
Raptors skeptic: I’m not holding my breath on them upsetting a real contender. Look, I get that this franchise’s whole thing is “everybody always overlooks us,” but most rational people see the Raptors as a fringe play-in team for good reason. The East is way better than it was when they were perennially near the top of the standings, and they no longer have the pieces that ensured they’d pile up regular-season wins. We used to go into every season wondering whether or not Toronto’s formula would translate to the playoffs; now I’m wondering how in the world it’s going to score when it can’t run.
Raptors believer: I knew you’d start with the halfcourt offense! It’s a valid concern, I guess, but it bothers me that nobody talks about, say, opponent turnover percentage this way. It really seems to bother people when teams aren’t awesome in this one particular area, even though the supposedly fatal flaw didn’t end up sinking the 2020 Lakers or 2021 Bucks. Did you know last year’s Kings were 10th in halfcourt offense? Of course you didn’t because they were one of the worst defensive teams of all-time and nothing is more overrated than “bucket-getting.” If the Raptors are elite defensively and in transition — both very possible — then they can surely live with being below average at scoring against a set defense. Besides, they only need a little bit of growth here and there to be better than people anticipate offensively. Siakam quietly improved as a passer last season, VanVleet has been preparing for this role for years and Anunoby has shown some flashes as a creator.
Raptors skeptic: VanVleet has shot between 50 and 52 percent at the rim in each of his five seasons. Siakam had that blazing start in 2019-20, but just hasn’t been all that efficient since then. I’ve been hearing about this hypothetical Anunoby breakout for years, but am still waiting for him to justify the hype. I think the Raptors are going to need Dragic to do a fair bit for their offense, but I’d be pretty surprised if those other three guys improved to the point where it makes sense for the 35-year-old to stick around past the trade deadline.
Raptors believer: Did you see Barnes hyping Dragic up in pregame introductions? How could he possibly want to be anywhere else?
Raptors skeptic: Oh, right, Barnes is going to save the Raptors with vibes alone. How could I forget? In all seriousness, though, this is a play-in team at best, right?
Raptors believer: To return to your earlier point, I actually think Toronto does have a good formula for regular-season wins: a top-tier defense and a decent-enough offense. That might not mean home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs this time, but the bottom half of the East’s playoff picture is pretty messy. Don’t overreact to what happened in Tampa, and don’t dismiss the Raptors’ chances of making the postseason outright.
Raptors skeptic: I’m hardly reacting to Tampa at all. I’m reacting to a strange offseason in which Toronto paid a whole lot of money to retain Gary Trent Jr. and Khem Birch, passed up Jalen Suggs for Barnes and has positioned itself to be in the league’s murky middle. This seems like a team that is poised to be more entertaining than good.
Eye on: Scottie Barnes
Watch Barnes film from summer league and preseason and you’ll say things like:
Look at that pass!
Whoa, he’s picking up the point guard!
Imagine if he can make that shot all the time!
You’ll also probably marvel at his energy. He never stops, not even when he’s supposed to be resting. From the moment he sat down on an NBA bench, he has been perhaps the most active, encouraging spectator in the league.
Barnes has some attributes that suggest he can be a helpful role player immediately. Toronto drafted him fourth overall, though, because of the attributes that give him a chance to be a star. Before the Raptors’ first preseason game, Nurse said he would make sure to sub Barnes out early and reinsert him with a bench unit, so he could have the ball in his hands. Sure enough, at the end of the first quarter, Barnes was out there with four guys on minimum, non-guaranteed or two-way contracts. By his third preseason game, Toronto was running offense through him on the elbow with other starters on the court. He recorded eight assists in 30 minutes. Where can he be in a few months?
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A Russian actor and a film director rocketed to space Tuesday on a mission to make the world’s first movie in orbit.
Actor Yulia Peresild and director Klim Shipenko blasted off for the International Space Station in a Russian Soyuz spacecraft together with cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov, a veteran of three space missions.
Their Soyuz MS-19 lifted off as scheduled at 1:55 p.m. (0855 GMT) from the Russian space launch facility in Baikonur, Kazakhstan and successfully reached the designated orbit.
Space officials reported that the crew was feeling fine and all spacecraft systems were functioning normally.
Peresild and Klimenko are to film segments of a new movie titled “Challenge,” in which a surgeon played by Peresild rushes to the space station to save a crew member who suffers a heart condition.
After 12 days on the space outpost, they are set to return to Earth with another Russian cosmonaut.
In this handout photo released by Roscosmos, Actress Yulia Peresild, left, director Klim Shipenko’ right, and cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov, members of the prime crew of Soyuz MS-19 spaceship pose at the Russian launch facility in the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Monday, Sept. 27, 2021. (Andrey Shelepin, Roscosmos Space Agency via AP)(Andrey Shelepin, Roscosmos Space Agency via AP)
In this handout photo released by Roscosmos Space Agency, the Soyuz-2.1, a rocket booster with Soyuz MS-19 space ship carrying actress Yulia Peresild, film director Klim Shipenko and cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov to the International Space Station, ISS, blasts off at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2021. Actress Yulia Peresild and film director Klim Shipenko blasted off Tuesday for the International Space Station in a Russian Soyuz spacecraft together with cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov, a veteran of three space missions, to make a feature film in orbit. (Roscosmos Space Agency via AP)(Roscosmos Space Agency via AP)
Speaking at a pre-flight news conference Monday, 37-year-old Peresild acknowledged that it was challenging for her to adapt to the strict discipline and rigorous demands during the training.
“It was psychologically, physically and morally hard,” she said. “But I think that once we achieve the goal, all that will seem not so difficult and we will remember it with a smile.”
Shipenko, 38, who has made several commercially successful movies, also described their fast-track, four-month preparation for the flight as tough.
“Of course, we couldn’t make many things at the first try, and sometimes even at a third attempt, but it’s normal,” he said.
Shipenko, who will complete the shooting on Earth after filming space episodes, said that Shkaplerov and two other Russian cosmonauts on board the station will all play parts in the new movie.
Russia’s state-controlled Channel One television, which is involved in making the movie, has extensively covered the crew training and the launch.
“I’m in shock. I still can’t imagine that my mom is out there,” Peresild’s daughter, Anna, said in televised remarks minutes after the launch.
Dmitry Rogozin, head of the Russian state space corporation Roscosmos, was a key force behind the project, describing it as a chance to burnish the nation’s space glory and rejecting criticism from some Russian media.
Some commentators argued that the film project would distract the Russian crew and could be awkward to film on the Russian segment of the International Space Station, which is considerably less spacious compared to the U.S. segment.
A new Russia lab module, the Nauka, was added in July, but it is yet to be fully integrated into the station.
Once they arrive at the space station just over three hours after the launch, the three newcomers will join Thomas Pesquet of the European Space Agency, NASA astronauts Mark Vande Hei, Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Novitskiy and Pyotr Dubrov and Aki Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
Novitskiy, who is set to star as the ailing cosmonaut in the film, will take the captain’s seat in a Soyuz capsule to take the crew back to Earth on Oct. 17.
LAS CRUCES – Moviegoers will once again see Clint Eastwood grace the silver screen in his newly released “Cry Macho,” a movie filmed in New Mexico about a former rodeo star who finds himself teaching a boy what it means to be a good man.
Eastwood starred in and directed the film — the latest in a string of movies the actor/director has worked on in the state. His previous New Mexico-filmed movie was “The Mule,” a 2018 film about a man who becomes a drug mule for a Mexican cartel. “The Mule” was filmed in locations around Las Cruces as well as White Sands National Park.
County music singer Dwight Yoakam (“Sling Blade,” “Panic Room”) and Daniel V. Graulau also star in the new film. It is based on the 1975 novel of the same name by N. Richard Nash.
The story takes place in Texas and rural Mexico, but was filmed in in Belen and Polvadera, New Mexico — in Valencia and Socorro counties, respectively.
More:1960s to today: Popular movies filmed in the Las Cruces area
This was only the second crewed outing for New Shepard. The first, on 20 July, carried Mr Bezos, his brother Mark, Dutch teenager Oliver Daemen; and famed aviator Wally Funk.
Mumbai police registered an FIR against lyricist Javed Akhtar on Monday over his alleged remark against the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), an official said.
The First Information Report (FIR) was registered at the Mulund police station on a complaint filed by city-based lawyer Santosh Dubey.
“The FIR has been registered under Indian Penal Code Section 500 (punishment for defamation),” the official from Mulund police station said.
The lawyer last month sent a legal notice to Akhtar for allegedly making “false and defamatory” remarks against the RSS in an interview to a news channel, and sought an apology from him over it.
Akhtar (76) in a recent interview drew parallels between the Taliban and Hindu extremists.
Dubey in his notice had claimed that by making such statements, Akhtar committed an offence under IPC Sections 499 (defamation) and 500 (punishment for defamation).
“I had earlier sent a legal notice to Akhtar and asked him to apologise over his remark, but he fail to do so. Now, an FIR has been registered against him on my complaint,” the lawyer told Press Trust of India.
A film by Dylan Wickrama, and reviewed by Sam Manicom
The cover of the book “When the Road Ends” got it right with the words, “The tale of an incredible journey.” I absolutely devoured the book when it was first released in 2015, and when I heard that a film was going to be made, I couldn’t have been more delighted. But I was nervous; too often films simply don’t do a book justice.
In brief, this is the story of Dylan Wickrama’s solo motorcycle journey around the world. The focus is on what he decided to do when he reached the Darien Gap, that infamous stretch of virtually impenetrable, mountainous jungle that straddles the border between Panama and Colombia. Most overlanders quite logically freight their bikes over this barrier by container, yacht or air. Any of those options alone can be a challenge and present their own steep and intense learning curves. But Dylan Wickrama is a guy who sees obstacles through a different lens than most of us.
Instead of viewing this section of his journey as a barrier, he saw it as an adventure to be had. And he did have it, with the help of others he met along the way, utilizing skill, a sense of innovation, and optimism. So, how’d he do it? Dylan designed a raft powered by a propeller and shaft connected to his motorcycle. His plan was to sail the Pacific Ocean side of the Darien Gap on his raft of oil drums and bamboo, with a scrap of sail to back up the modified outboard engine of his trusty GS. I’ve heard it said, with respect, that this man is barking mad!
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The film in no way lets the book down. There’s some wonderful footage, and the tales told will have your mood swinging from trepidation to incredulity. From heart-in-the-throat moments, to laughing-out-loud humor, there are some real gems woven into the story, too. And if you ever have the chance to meet this man, shaking his hand will be something you’ll feel privileged to have done.
Narrated by Dylan and his wife Martina, with some very well-chosen music, this is an absolutely gripping film. Quite simply, get it. You’ll not be sorry. It’ll be one of those films that easily stands up to repeat viewing.
When the Road Ends – Lost in the Pacific: A film by Dylan Wickrama
On Monday, a Thane court issued a show-cause notice to Bollywood lyricist Javed Akhtar on a defamation suit filed against him over his alleged remarks seeking to compare the RSS with the Taliban.
The suit which is filed by RSS activist Vivek Champanerkar in the court of the additional chief judicial magistrate and joint civil judge (senior division), seeks Re 1 as a compensation from Javed. The court ordered the issuance of the notice returnable on November 12.
Earlier this month, the 76-year-old poet, lyricist and screenwriter triggered a controversy when he told a news channel that there is a similarity among right wing all over the country. Although he didn’t name the Nagpur-headquartered Hindutva organisation, the former member of Parliament was quoted saying, “The Taliban want an Islamic country. These people want to make a Hindu Rashtra.”
Advocate Aditya Mishra, who appeared for the complainant, argued in the court and claimed the defendant (Javed) had made “derogatory” remarks against the RSS while appearing in a show of a private news channel. In the petition, Vivek said that the statements made by Javed were aimed at destroying the RSS’s image in front of the general public.
