DUBAI: Israeli May Tager has become the first model from her country to pose for a photoshoot in the United Arab Emirates, after the two nations agreed to normalize relations last month.
She posed in modest pyjamas during a desert shoot alongside a UAE-based model known as Anastasia.
Israel and the United Arab Emirates on Aug. 13 agreed to normalize relations, making the UAE the first Gulf country and the third Arab state to do so when a final agreement is signed.
The shoot, which involved the models waving the Israeli and UAE flags, took place in the sands of Dubai.
FIX is an Israeli woman’s lingerie and pyjama brand. Out of respect for customs in the UAE, they modelled only pajamas.
“We respect the rules here,” said Tager.
Easily accessible visas for Israeli citizens and direct flights between the countries have not yet been established, so the photoshoot team arrived on flights via Europe and on non-Israeli second passports.
“The moment we heard about the normalization agreement we thought it would be the most exciting thing to film in Dubai,” said producer Noya Yohananoff, adding that getting the right paperwork took some time to figure out.
Israel and the UAE have stressed the economic benefits that normalization could bring, with several business cooperation agreements already signed.
An Israeli delegation last week visited Abu Dhabi for normalization talks.
Israeli brand shoots pyjama advert in Dubai after normalization deal
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Israeli brand shoots pyjama advert in Dubai after normalization deal
- Israel and the United Arab Emirates on Aug. 13 agreed to normalize relations
- An Israeli delegation last week visited Abu Dhabi for normalization talks
Review: ‘Sorry, Baby’ by Eva Victor
- Victor makes a deliberate narrative choice; we never witness the violence of what happens to her character
There is a bravery in “Sorry, Baby” that comes not from what the film shows, but from what it withholds.
Written, directed by, and starring Eva Victor, it is one of the most talked-about indie films of the year, winning the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at Sundance and gathering momentum with nominations, including nods at the Golden Globes and Gotham Awards.
The film is both incisive and tender in its exploration of trauma, friendship, and the long, winding road toward healing. It follows Agnes, a young professor of literature trying to pick up the pieces after a disturbing incident in grad school.
Victor makes a deliberate narrative choice; we never witness the violence of what happens to her character. The story centers on Agnes’ perspective in her own words, even as she struggles to name it at various points in the film.
There is a generosity to Victor’s storytelling and a refusal to reduce the narrative to trauma alone. Instead we witness the breadth of human experience, from heartbreak and loneliness to joy and the sustaining power of friendship. These themes are supported by dialogue and camerawork that incorporates silences and stillness as much as the power of words and movement.
The film captures the messy, beautiful ways people care for one another. Supporting performances — particularly by “Mickey 17” actor Naomi Ackie who plays the best friend Lydia — and encounters with strangers and a kitten, reinforce the story’s celebration of solidarity and community.
“Sorry, Baby” reminds us that human resilience is rarely entirely solitary; it is nurtured through acts of care, intimacy and tenderness.
A pivotal scene between Agnes and her friend’s newborn inspires the film’s title. A single, reassuring line gently speaks a pure and simple truth: “I know you’re scared … but you’re OK.”
It is a reminder that in the end, no matter how dark life gets, it goes on, and so does the human capacity to love.
