LOS ANGELES: The Ruth Bader Ginsburg film “On the Basis of Sex” was about to fall apart when Felicity Jones got her hands on the script. The origin story about the future Supreme Court justice written by Ginsburg’s nephew Daniel Stiepleman had been in various stages of development since 2012, looking for the right star (Natalie Portman was originally attached), the right director (Mimi Leder could only do it after finishing the third season of the HBO show “The Leftovers“) and the right time to finally hit go. But it was looking wobbly again and they needed an answer fast.
The British actress, fresh off the Star Wars film “Rogue One,” had been looking for a project about a woman and her career and had recently become familiar with Justice Ginsburg, whose celebrity has only grown of late. And Ginsburg, who had seen Jones in her Oscar-nominated role in “The Theory of Everything,” had already given her informal approval to cast Jones. (“I think the only thing she was nervous about was getting rid of that English accent,” laughed Leder.)
Jones read it in a weekend, said yes, and, finally, the stars had aligned. The film was happening.
“I didn’t take it on lightly” Jones said despite her quick answer. “It was really intimidating at first, like gosh how do I do justice to this person?“
Ginsburg didn’t have advice for Jones when they met (“She said, ‘I’ve seen your work and I know you can do it,’” Jones said.) But she did have one request for the filmmakers: That they would be absolutely precise in capturing the law. Can you blame her?
“On the Basis of Sex,” in theaters nationwide on Christmas Day, caps off a big year for Ginsburg in cinema that started with the documentary “RBG” premiering at Sundance last January and going on to become a modest box-office phenomenon.
This film is complimentary to the documentary, and focuses in on two very specific parts of Ginsburg’s early days in law long before she would go on to be confirmed as an associate justice in 1993: First as one of the few female students at Harvard Law School in the mid-1950s, and then as a professor at Rutgers in the 1960s, when she started getting involved with gender discrimination cases with the American Civil Liberties Union.
It not only shows Ginsburg’s incredible work ethic and instances of the adversity she faced from both her professors and potential employers, but also her happy home life with her children and her supportive husband Martin (or Marty) Ginsburg, who died in 2010. He is played by Armie Hammer.
“It’s very much about showing how someone becomes the icon that they are today. She didn’t come out fully formed at 85. You see the struggle it takes,” Jones said. “She was constantly put in situations where she had to battle on every front, with her faith, with her gender, where she was from.”
It helped inform how Jones, 35, would craft Ginsburg’s voice, which in those days, at least publicly, was more Mid-Atlantic than the heavier Brooklyn accent many are familiar with today.
“When she’s frustrated her more Brooklyn vowel sounds come out because she can’t help but say it in her more kind of natural voice,” Jones said. “It’s interesting to show just how her public-self had to become something that was quite separate from her private-self.”
Although she’s of a quite different generation than Ginsburg, Jones did relate in her own way to feeling like the only woman in the room, especially on film sets where most of the crew are male. (“I would love to ideally walk out on a set and see half men and half women in all of the roles behind the camera,” Jones said.)
Leder, at 66, is of yet another generation, but also found commonalities with Ginsburg, as a trailblazer in her own industry. She was the first woman to be in the cinematography track at the American Film Institute, and like her contemporary Kathryn Bigelow, would go on to direct bigger budget action films like “Deep Impact” and “The Peacemaker” at a time when very few women were making those kinds of movies.
“I never compare myself to her accomplishments, but I connected to RBG in a very personal way,” Leder said. “We’re both mothers, both Jewish, both have (had) longstanding marriages and know what that takes. And both have broken the glass ceiling in different ways and paved the way for others for generations to come.”
A master at creating tension, Leder brings urgency to staid courtroom scenes fitting of her action-film background.
Jones observed that it has elements of a sports film too with its arc of an outsider and underdog finding her voice and power.
“We wanted it to be fun and entertaining. We go to the cinema not only to think about the world in a different way but to have a nice two hours,” Jones said. “I hope that people enjoy the humor of it and enjoy the experience of it and say actually, you know what, I might be able to change the world too.”
Felicity Jones strives to do justice to Ginsburg in film
Felicity Jones strives to do justice to Ginsburg in film
- “On the Basis of Sex” caps off a big year for Ginsburg in cinema that started with the documentary “RBG” premiering at Sundance last January
- This film is complimentary to the documentary, and focuses in on two very specific parts of Ginsburg’s early days in law
Sofia Carson shows off Elie Saab gown on the red carpet
DUBAI: US actress Sofia Carson showed off a gown by Lebanese designer Elie Saab at the closing ceremony of the 77th annual Cannes Film Festival.
The star, who has showed off Lebanese labels on multiple red carpets in the past, opted for an olive-toned ensemble from the designer’s Spring/ Summer 2024 couture collection.
Styled by Erin Walsh, Carson posed for photos on the red carpet in the look that featured a draped skirt and embellishments on the neckline.
The latest red carpet appearance proves Carson is something of a fan of Lebanon’s couturiers — In 2022 the “Purple Hearts” actress was spotted in New York wearing an ensemble by Zuhair Murad. Carson attended the Global Citizen Festival in a coordinating look from Murad’s Resort 2023 collection. The outfit featured an embellished crop top and mini skirt set with matching thigh-high leather boots.
In late 2023, the actress cut an elegant figure in a Zuhair Murad gown at the second annual Cam for a Cause event in memory of her former co-star Cameron Boyce, who died at the age of 20 due to an epileptic seizure.
Fast forward to 2024 and the now-concluded Cannes Film Festival has played host to a number of Arab-created looks.
Saudi designer Eman Al-Ajlan dressed British model and TV presenter Leomie Anderson in a structured look featuring a mini dress with a net-like skirt fitted underneath at the 2024 amfAR Gala in Cannes.
A few celebrities opted for gowns by Murad at the same event, including German model Toni Garrn, sports commentator Alex Scott and Brazilian model Thayna Soares.
Meanwhile, German model Kim Dammer dazzled on the red carpet in a glamorous halter-neck black gown, intricately embroidered with geometric shapes by Lebanese couturier Rami Kadi. Lebanese designer Nicolas Jebran was championed by Turkish actress Hande Ercel, who wore a black gown adorned with red and blue beads.
Egyptian actress Yasmine Sabri was also in attendance, wearing a sparkling silver dress by Lebanese designer Jean Pierre Khoury. The dress featured thousands of mirrored tube beads hand-sewn onto a corseted silhouette, according to the fashion house.
Saudi animation on pandemic-era worship in Makkah draws praise in Cannes
JEDDAH: Saudi film “Wa Isjod Wa Iqtareb” (“Prostrate and Draw Near”) won the “Animation That Matters” award during the Animaze Animation Day event at Marché du Film, the industry networking section of the Cannes Film Festival.
Directed, produced, and written mother-daughter duo Suraya Al-Shehry and Nabila Abuljadayel, the film was created via production company Suraya Productions and explores the period of time during the COVID-19 pandemic when cleaning staff replaced the usual mix of international worshippers at the Grand Mosque in Makkah.
The film integrates traditional art and 2-D animation, but it is its subject matter that makes it unique, according to Al-Shehry.
“In the history of cinema, there has been a noticeable lack of films focusing on Makkah and the Holy Mosque, particularly in the realm of animation. Collaborating with my daughter … on our short animated film has brought me immense joy and a profound sense of fulfilment,” she said.
She added that the film portrays a significant moment in global and Islamic history by showcasing the Grand Mosque devoid of pilgrims, with the exception of the cleaning and maintenance staff who had the unique opportunity to pray there during the pandemic when no one else could.
Abuljadayel reflected on the nearly two-year project, saying: “For me, the best reward was the chance to collaborate with my mother, an experience that transcends any accolade.”
She emphasized that receiving the award aligned with the film’s core message of celebrating shared humanity.
“I firmly believe that what comes from the heart resonates with others, whether expressed through animation or my artwork, and the greatest testimony of that is the success of this film,” she said.
The creative duo seem to be keen to continue their success, with another project scheduled for completion next year.
British-Pakistani opera singer receives royal honor for recording national anthem post-coronation
- Saira Peter says she is privileged to contribute her voice to British government’s public events, citizenship ceremonies
- She also recorded ‘God Save the Queen’ in 2018 and received acknowledgement and gratitude of Queen Elizabeth II
ISLAMABAD: A British-Pakistani Sufi Opera singer, Saira Peter, announced in a video message circulated on Saturday she received a letter of appreciation from Buckingham Palace for recording the British national anthem, “God Save the King,” following the coronation of King Charles III.
The British king’s coronation took place last May at Westminster Abbey in London. The event brought leaders and high-profile personalities from around the world and marked his official accession to the throne after the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022.
Upon receiving the recording, performed in the soprano vocal range, the highest of the female voice types in classical singing, the king sent Peter a letter conveying his good wishes and sincere thanks for her public services.
She also received a signed photo card from him and Queen Camilla.
“I want to share with all my followers how excited I am to receive a letter and card of appreciation and gratitude from His Majesty King Charles the Third,” Peter said in the video, where she mentioned she was Pakistan’s first opera singer. “This arrived in response to my civic service of recording the British national anthem, ‘God Save the King.’”
“Being British-Pakistani, I feel so privileged to contribute my skill and voice to the British government’s public events and citizenship ceremonies,” she added.
Peter informed the British national anthem was recorded at the request of UK Government offices at Hastings Town Hall in East Sussex. The recording is now used across her adopted country for official government events.
Previously, she recorded “God Save the Queen” in 2018, making her the first Asian and the only Pakistani officially invited to undertake the task. Peter also received acknowledgment and gratitude from the late queen.
Born in Karachi, the opera singer told Arab News during her visit to Pakistan last year she used to sing in church choirs and began her Western classical journey, learning from Paul Knight, a disciple of Benjamin Britten, in London in the early 2000s after her family moved there.
Peter’s father, Zafar Francis, pioneered the Noor Jehan Arts Center in London, which was opened by British superstar Sir Cliff Richard in 1998.
She is the director of the performing arts center and teaches both Western and Pakistani classical music there.
She said her work in Britain was projecting “a positive image of Pakistan.”
UK literary festival cancels sponsor after pro-Palestine boycott
- Speakers, performers pull out from scheduled appearances in protest over Baillie Gifford sponsorship
- Boycott organizer: Hay must shun future sponsorship by companies with links to ‘Israeli occupation, apartheid or genocide’
LONDON: The UK’s Hay literary festival has dropped its main sponsor over a boycott criticizing its links to Israel and fossil fuel companies.
Speakers and performers at the festival pulled out from scheduled appearances in protest over investment firm Baillie Gifford’s sponsorship of the event, The Guardian reported.
On Friday, the festival said it was canceling its sponsorship deal with the firm.
Singer Charlotte Church and comedian Nish Kumar had earlier pulled out of appearing at the event.
In a statement on her social media channels, Church said she had taken part in the boycott “in solidarity with the people in Palestine and in protest of the artwashing and greenwashing that is apparent in this sponsorship.”
Fossil Free Books, the group that has led the campaign against Baillie Gifford’s sponsorship of the event, has demanded that the firm divest from companies “that profit from Israeli apartheid, occupation and genocide.”
More than 700 writers and publishing professionals have signed a statement by FFB concerning the Hay festival campaign.
Kumar shared the statement online in announcing the cancelation of his appearance.
An FFB organizer said: “Hay festival is right to listen to the concerns of hundreds of book workers who are working to create fossil-free and genocide-free festivals.
“Hay must now develop a fundraising policy that rules out any future sponsorship by companies that invest or profit from the fossil fuel industry, Israeli occupation, apartheid or genocide, and any other human rights abuses.”
Hay CEO Julie Finch said the festival’s decision to cancel the sponsorship deal with the firm was taken “in light of claims raised by campaigners and intense pressure on artists to withdraw.”
She added: “Our first priority is to our audience and our artists. Above all else, we must preserve the freedom of our stages and spaces for open debate and discussion, where audiences can hear a range of perspectives.”
Baillie Gifford began its relationship with the festival in 2016 as a principal sponsor. A spokesperson said: “It is regrettable our sponsorship with the festival cannot continue.”
Saudi’s ‘Norah’ receives the Special Mention accolade at Cannes
DUBAI: Saudi film “Norah,” starring actress Maria Bahrawi, this week received the Special Mention accolade, which recognizes films for outstanding achievements, at the 77th Cannes Film Festival’s Un Certain Regard awards.
The cast and crew, accompanied by director Tawfik Al-Zaidi, stepped onto the stage to accept the accolade in front of a full house.
The film, shot entirely in AlUla, is set in 1990s Saudi Arabia when conservatism ruled and the professional pursuit of all art, including painting, was frowned upon. Besides Bahrawi, the movie also stars Yaqoub Al-Farhan and Abdullah Al-Satian. It follows the story of Norah and failed artist Nader as they encourage each other to realize their artistic potential in rural Saudi Arabia.
“Norah” had its official screening at the festival on Thursday, becoming the first film from the Kingdom to screen as part of the official calendar at the event.
The movie was backed by the Red Sea Fund — one of the Red Sea Film Foundation’s programs — and was filmed entirely in AlUla in northwest Saudi Arabia with an all-Saudi cast and a 40 percent Saudi crew.
Un Certain Regard’s mission is to highlight new trends in cinema and encourage innovative cinematic works.
Chaired by Canadian actor, director, screenwriter and producer Xavier Dolan, the jury included French Senegalese screenwriter and director Maimouna Doucoure, Moroccan director, screenwriter and producer Asmae El Moudir, German-Luxembourg actress Vicky Krieps, and American film critic, director and writer Todd McCarthy.
Chinese director Guan Hu’s “Black Dog” won the top prize in the Un Certain Regard section.
Marking Guan’s debut at Cannes, the film follows a former convict who forms an unexpected bond with the titular animal while clearing stray dogs in his remote hometown on the edge of the Gobi Desert.
The jury prize was awarded to “The Story of Souleymane,” directed by Boris Lojkine, marking his return to the festival after a decade since his 2014 feature “Hope.”
The film portrays the journey of a Guinean food delivery man who must create a compelling narrative for his asylum application interview in Lyon within a two-day timeframe.
