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META Film Fest to Return to Dubai in November

The annual festival showcases the best of international films. WAM
The annual festival showcases the best of international films. WAM
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META Film Fest to Return to Dubai in November

The annual festival showcases the best of international films. WAM
The annual festival showcases the best of international films. WAM

META Film Fest, the star-studded, four-day international motion picture gala, will return to Dubai for its second edition from November 9 to 12, Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported.

The annual festival, which showcases the best of international films, promises an extraordinary celebration of cinema for filmmakers, industry professionals, and movie lovers alike, WAM said.

The META Film Fest 2023 will focus on delivering an unparalleled experience through its emphasis on quality content, workshops and masterclasses tailored for budding filmmakers, premieres of cutting-edge independent and studio-produced films, and a prestigious, high-profile judging panel.

With the support of content partners such as the Royal Film Commission – Jordan, Papillon Creative, Frontrow Entertainment, and MAD Solutions, and Festival Partners including Cinema Akil, the META Film Fest is set to bolster Dubai’s Creative Economy and support the UAE’s National Strategy for the Cultural and Creative Industries. The four-day celebration of films will take place at VOX Cinemas, Wafi City.

“This year’s META Film Fest will cement Dubai’s position and capability as a hub for filmmakers and creatives to congregate, share knowledge, and promote their own and their peers’ work. The festival garners immense appreciation from movie enthusiasts and industry professionals, and this year’s edition will see significant growth in the number and caliber of films being shown,” said Founder of META Film Fest Leila Masinaei.

The META Film Fest adopts an independent, objective approach in its shortlisting process, ensuring the best of the regional industry is spotlighted at the event. Over the four days, it will show more than 70 movies from 20+ countries, host 10+ workshops, and welcome more than 50 global celebrities and 15,000 attendees. The incredible roster of shortlisted films will be announced in the coming weeks, WAM said.

This year's awards will span 12 categories, covering feature films, short films, documentaries, debut works, student projects, films with a sustainability focus, and newly introduced special categories to celebrate home-grown UAE talent.

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Entertainment

'Gladiator 3' Already in Works, Say Director And Star

Paul Mescal says he would be "massively down" to appear in Gladiator III. Photo: AP PHOTO
Paul Mescal says he would be "massively down" to appear in Gladiator III. Photo: AP PHOTO
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'Gladiator 3' Already in Works, Say Director And Star

Paul Mescal says he would be "massively down" to appear in Gladiator III. Photo: AP PHOTO
Paul Mescal says he would be "massively down" to appear in Gladiator III. Photo: AP PHOTO

Ridley Scott's long-awaited "Gladiator" sequel has not even hit US theaters yet, but the veteran director is already hard at work on a third installment.
"Gladiator II," which arrives in North American cinemas Friday, stars Irish actor Paul Mescal ("Normal People") as Lucius, the son of Russell Crowe's Maximus from the multiple Oscar-winning original, AFP said.
A bloody, blockbuster epic of revenge, treachery and -- yes -- gladiators, it has drawn positive reviews and already hauled in a muscular $87 million at the global box office since opening in several countries last week.
"Given the performance in the rest of the world that we've seen yesterday, there's certainly going to be a 'Gladiator III,'" said Scott, in Los Angeles on Monday for the movie's glitzy US premiere.
"Because it also becomes financial, and you'd be insane not to consider a third version," said the British director of seminal films such as "Blade Runner" and "Thelma & Louise."
The plot of "Gladiator II" was also "planned to leave it wide open to a sequel," added Scott, a famously prolific filmmaker who is still directing roughly a film per year at the age of 86.
The second film opens with Lucius -- sent into exile by his mother to avoid certain death in Rome -- battling in vain to defend his adopted North African home city from the arrival of seemingly unstoppable Roman soldiers.
Captured as a prisoner of war, he is brought back to the imperial metropolis, where he must prove his worth in the Colosseum in order to exact revenge on invading general Marcus Acacius, played by Pedro Pascal.
Danish actress Connie Nielsen reprises her role as Lucilla from the 2000 original, while Denzel Washington is already earning Oscar buzz for his conniving, mercurial and highly flamboyant ringmaster, Macrinus.
"Jewelry, sandals and everything -- I just looked like a Roman pimp... I couldn't put on enough rings," joked Washington on Monday.
'Political'
Mescal -- whose character battles bloodthirsty baboons, rhinos and sharks in addition to humans in "Gladiator II" -- also expressed excitement about returning for another film.
But he said Scott had discussed a new direction for the plot that would not simply "go back to the arena as we know it."
"The last time I spoke to (Scott) he said he had nine pages. Yesterday, he said he had 14," Mescal told journalists.
"I would be excited for it to go into a more political sphere," with Lucius thrust into a world of court intrigue that he does not want to inhabit, like Michael Corleone in "The Godfather," added Mescal.
Asked how the second film's themes tackled power and politics differently, some 24 years after the original Scott said: "They're exactly the same."
"A super-rich man thinks he can take over the Empire. Is that familiar?" he said, just days after billionaire Donald Trump's re-election as US president.
"We don't learn anything historically. We keep repeating the same mistakes. We're going through exactly the same thing right now in several parts of the planet," he added.