OSN’s launch this month of Sundance Channel HD, the regional version of the Sundance Film Festival-affiliated channel, should cause some excitement among the Middle East’s cinephile community. The region is not spoilt for independent film, either in cinemas or on TV. The big annual festivals and some commendable efforts by the OSN Festival channel are an exception, but the multiplexes and broadcasters tend to play it safe with local winners and Hollywood blockbusters – with some commercial justification, one suspects. The new channel could change all that, having already succeeded in a number of international markets. Here are five reasons why Sundance HD could be a very good thing indeed.
10 Days of Sundance
The channel is now a separate entity to the festival, but the links to the leading indie cinema festival in the US remain close. Robert Redford founded both and the channel is currently screening a strand entitled 10 Days of Sundance, featuring top picks from last year’s festival. Check out Andrew Bujalski’s geeky comedy Computer Chess as well as such flicks as The Meteor and Halley.
Step off the beaten track
Some of the channel’s original content is truly out there, though some of it may not make it to the regional channel as it can be a little close to the bone. Green Porno, for example, has Isabella Rossellini act out the reproductive habits of marine animals and insects in what the channel describes as a “scientifically accurate yet extremely entertaining” manner. The Honorable Woman, on the other hand, casts Maggie Gyllenhaal as the daughter of a Zionist arms dealer who inherits her father’s company, uses it to lay data cables between Israel and the West Bank and campaigns for reconciliation in the region, then causes an international incident by being appointed to the UK’s House of Lords. American Idol this is not.
Talking shop
This continuing series In Conversation With features some of the world’s great directors, writers and actors talking about their life and work in half-hour slots. Slots pop up in the schedules most days and the current crop of conversationalists includes Ken Loach, Stephen Frears and Ben Kingsley – who should have the odd interesting thing to say.
Great drama
In its early days, the channel existed solely as a premium movie channel, largely to promote work that had screened at Sundance. In recent years it has branched out significantly, with original drama series emerging as a strong point. The channel is home to the critically acclaimed Rectify, which is about to launch its second season in the US. The Red Road and The Honorable Woman also debut early this year.
Journey: mystery solved
I may be alone in this one, but way back in 2009, I was at the UK’s Download Festival. The ageing American soft rockers Journey had just inexplicably topped the iTunes chart with their 1981 track Don’t Stop Believin’ and I felt bound by a sense of ironic duty to check out their set. Imagine my surprise to see before me the expected group of guitar-toting pensioners, fronted by what appeared to be a young Filipino. Now, because of Sundance HD, I can find out why, thanks to the documentary Don’t Stop Believin’: Everyman’s Journey, a documentary telling the “rock ’n’ roll fairy-tale story of the Filipino musician Arnel Pineda, who was plucked from YouTube to become the frontman for the iconic American rock band, Journey”. It’s screening all this week.
cnewbould@thenational.ae
The bio
Date of Birth: April 25, 1993
Place of Birth: Dubai, UAE
Marital Status: Single
School: Al Sufouh in Jumeirah, Dubai
University: Emirates Airline National Cadet Programme and Hamdan University
Job Title: Pilot, First Officer
Number of hours flying in a Boeing 777: 1,200
Number of flights: Approximately 300
Hobbies: Exercising
Nicest destination: Milan, New Zealand, Seattle for shopping
Least nice destination: Kabul, but someone has to do it. It’s not scary but at least you can tick the box that you’ve been
Favourite place to visit: Dubai, there’s no place like home
MATCH INFO
Who: UAE v USA
What: first T20 international
When: Friday, 2pm
Where: ICC Academy in Dubai
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FIGHT%20CARD
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The%20specs
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THE%20SPECS
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THREE POSSIBLE REPLACEMENTS
Khalfan Mubarak
The Al Jazira playmaker has for some time been tipped for stardom within UAE football, with Quique Sanchez Flores, his former manager at Al Ahli, once labelling him a “genius”. He was only 17. Now 23, Mubarak has developed into a crafty supplier of chances, evidenced by his seven assists in six league matches this season. Still to display his class at international level, though.
Rayan Yaslam
The Al Ain attacking midfielder has become a regular starter for his club in the past 15 months. Yaslam, 23, is a tidy and intelligent player, technically proficient with an eye for opening up defences. Developed while alongside Abdulrahman in the Al Ain first-team and has progressed well since manager Zoran Mamic’s arrival. However, made his UAE debut only last December.
Ismail Matar
The Al Wahda forward is revered by teammates and a key contributor to the squad. At 35, his best days are behind him, but Matar is incredibly experienced and an example to his colleagues. His ability to cope with tournament football is a concern, though, despite Matar beginning the season well. Not a like-for-like replacement, although the system could be adjusted to suit.
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
BULKWHIZ PROFILE
Date started: February 2017
Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce
Size: 50 employees
Funding: approximately $6m
Investors: Beco Capital, Enabling Future and Wain in the UAE; China's MSA Capital; 500 Startups; Faith Capital and Savour Ventures in Kuwait
Rashid & Rajab
Director: Mohammed Saeed Harib
Stars: Shadi Alfons, Marwan Abdullah, Doaa Mostafa Ragab
Two stars out of five
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Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
What is Diwali?
The Hindu festival is at once a celebration of the autumn harvest and the triumph of good over evil, as outlined in the Ramayana.
According to the Sanskrit epic, penned by the sage Valmiki, Diwali marks the time that the exiled king Rama – a mortal with superhuman powers – returned home to the city of Ayodhya with his wife Sita and brother Lakshman, after vanquishing the 10-headed demon Ravana and conquering his kingdom of Lanka. The people of Ayodhya are believed to have lit thousands of earthen lamps to illuminate the city and to guide the royal family home.
In its current iteration, Diwali is celebrated with a puja to welcome the goodness of prosperity Lakshmi (an incarnation of Sita) into the home, which is decorated with diyas (oil lamps) or fairy lights and rangoli designs with coloured powder. Fireworks light up the sky in some parts of the word, and sweetmeats are made (or bought) by most households. It is customary to get new clothes stitched, and visit friends and family to exchange gifts and greetings.
