ENTERTAINMENT

New York, United States | AFP | Director Martin Scorsese unveiled his new film “The Irishman” Friday, kicking off the New York film festival with the ambitious Netflix movie that was more than a decade in the making. The star-studded gangster epic had a budget of $160 million, using 117 different …

Berlin, Germany | AFP | Berlin boxer Zeina Nassar’s fighting spirit has won her plenty of titles, but her battle to wear the hijab in the ring has also made her an equal opportunity champion. Today, the 21-year-old, who discovered female boxing by watching online videos as a teenager, is a …

Zurich, Switzerland | AFP |  Heidi and Super Mario may not seem to have much in common but anime and video game aficionados will detect the signature style of Japanese character designer Yoichi Kotabe in both. Far from the Swiss Alps, the cherished 19th-century storybook character Heidi has played an unlikely …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |  A team of actors from Uganda, Kenya and Nigeria have acted a movie dubbed “Kyaddala” loosely translated as it’s real. The film reveals sex violations against teenagers both in and out of school. Brought together by Reach a Hand Uganda –RAHU, a youth led non-governmental organisation, the …

Vienna, Austria | AFP | With his lederhosen and lyrics about his love for the mountains, Andreas Gabalier has become the biggest name in Austrian pop music, but recently has had to defend himself against claims of far-right sympathies. As the political atmosphere in Austria hots up ahead of parliamentary elections …

  New Delhi, India | AFP |  Siddharth Desai grew up in humble surroundings but now he’s living the life of a millionaire sportsman, driving a souped-up jeep and taking selfies with fans — and it’s all thanks to kabaddi. The ancient game has undergone a glitzy makeover through the …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Ugandan musician Eddy Kenzo has written a 700 word missive on facebook following reports that his partner Rema Namakula is set to wed a doctor, Hamza Sebunya. Here it is, un-edited, mainly in Luganda and in uglish. ****** I wanted to record this on …

Paris, France | AFP | Neymar announced on Tuesday he had “realised” his dream with a cameo appearance as a monk in his favourite Netflix show. The Brazilian was originally edited out of two episodes of La Casa de Papel (Money Heist) by Netflix pending the outcome of his rape case. …

Cologne, Germany | AFP | Gamers at the industry’s biggest  fair in Europe have taken aim at US President Donald Trump’s assertions that violence in video games was partly to blame for recent mass shootings. Experts and fans alike at the Gamescom trade fair in the German city of Cologne rejected …

Los Angeles, United States | AFP | Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has reclaimed his position as the world’s highest-paid actor, according to a Forbes rich list otherwise dominated by the cast of Marvel’s record-breaking “Avengers” films. Former professional wrestler Johnson raked in $89.4 million over 12 months, rising back to the …