ABU DHABI: Image Nation Abu Dhabi, a leading media and entertainment company, has announced that production has begun on its newest feature film “On Borrowed Time”.
Having kicked off on Sept. 16, the production will be shooting for one month at locations around Dubai including famous landmarks such as Atlantis The Palm and SEGA at Dubai Mall.
The feel-good comedy is written and directed by filmmaker and music video pioneer Yasir Al-Yasiri, produced by Rami Yasin, with Emirati director Majid Al-Ansari serving as executive producer along with Mansour Al-Feeli.
Director Al-Yasiri, whose first short film was nominated for an award at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2013, commented, “I am excited to be making my first feature-length film with such a renowned studio as Image Nation, whose reputation of supporting artistic and forward- thinking filmmakers is critical to the establishment of a film and television industry in the UAE. The script is based on the short story of famous poet and celebrated songwriter Kareem Al-Iraqi and is an inspiring story of human adventure and unquenchable hope”.
The narrative follows four elderly men spending the latter years of their lives in a senior home, down and dejected, until their world is turned around when one of them inherits 50 million dirhams and is able to support the dreams they had all but forgotten.
The production enlists an all-star cast of Arabic talent including renowned Kuwaiti actor Saad Al-Faraj (Souq Al-Maqases, Darb Al-Zalag); Syrian star Salloum Hadad (Al-Kawasir As Shaqeef); Emirati actors Mansoor Al-Feeli (Qalb Al-Adala, Dishoom) and Marie Al-Halyan (Khiyanat Watan, Wadeema Wa Haleema) in the four lead roles.
Ben Ross, Head of narrative film and television at Image Nation said: “The recent success of Arabic films such as ‘Zinzana’ and ‘Theeb’ not just locally but around the world, proved that global audiences have an appetite for regional stories.”
Yasir Al-Yasiri starts filming for new Arabic comedy in UAE
Yasir Al-Yasiri starts filming for new Arabic comedy in UAE
Cambodia takes back looted historic artifacts handled by British art dealer
- The objects were returned under a 2020 agreement between the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts and the family of the late Douglas Latchford, a British art collector and dealer who allegedly had the items smuggled out of Cambodia
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia: Cambodian officials on Friday received more than six dozen historic artifacts described as part of the country’s cultural heritage that had been looted during decades of war and instability.
At a ceremony attended by Deputy Prime Minister Hun Many, the 74 items were unveiled at the National Museum in Phnom Penh after their repatriation from the United Kingdom.
The objects were returned under a 2020 agreement between the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts and the family of the late Douglas Latchford, a British art collector and dealer who allegedly had the items smuggled out of Cambodia.
“This substantial restitution represents one of the most important returns of Khmer cultural heritage in recent years, following major repatriations in 2021 and 2023 from the same collection,” the Culture Ministry said in a statement. “It marks a significant step forward in Cambodia’s continued efforts to recover, preserve, and restore its ancestral legacy for future generations.”
The artifacts were described as dating from the pre-Angkorian period through the height of the Angkor Empire, including “monumental sandstone sculptures, refined bronze works, and significant ritual objects.” The Angkor Empire, which extended from the ninth to the 15th century, is best known for the Angkor Wat archaeological site, the nation’s biggest tourist attraction.
Latchford was a prominent antiquities dealer who allegedly orchestrated an operation to sell looted Cambodian sculptures on the international market.
From 1970 to the 1980s, during Cambodia’s civil wars and the communist Khmer Rouge ‘s brutal reign, organized looting networks sent artifacts to Latchford, who then sold them to Western collectors, dealers, and institutions. These pieces were often physically damaged, having been pried off temple walls or other structures by the looters.
Latchford was indicted in a New York federal court in 2019 on charges including wire fraud and conspiracy. He died in 2020, aged 88, before he could be extradited to face charges.
Cambodia, like neighboring Thailand, has benefited from a trend in recent decades involving the repatriation of art and archaeological treasures. These include ancient Asian artworks as well as pieces lost or stolen during turmoil in places such as Syria, Iraq and Nazi-occupied Europe. New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of the prominent institutions that has been returning illegally smuggled art, including to Cambodia.
“The ancient artifacts created and preserved by our ancestors are now being returned to Cambodia, bringing warmth and joy, following the country’s return to peace,” said Hun Many, who is the younger brother of Prime Minister Hun Manet.
