Latest news with #ReporterswithoutBorders
Yahoo
29-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey Gets Backlash Over Controversial Decision
Christopher Nolan has been asked to stop filming scenes from The Odyssey in the city of Dakhla, located in the Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara. Why has Christopher Nolan received backlash for filming The Odyssey in a controversial location? The Western Sahara International Film Festival (FiSahara), which takes place in the Sahrawi refugee camps in Algeria, and international human rights activists have urged Nolan to suspend production in the Dakhla region. FiSahara released a statement, explaining how the indigenous Sahrawi population in the military-occupied city is 'subject to brutal repression' by Moroccan forces. 'By filming part of The Odyssey in an occupied territory billed as a 'news black hole' by Reporters without Borders, Nolan and his team, perhaps unknowingly and unwillingly, are contributing to the repression of the Sahrawi people by Morocco, and to the Moroccan regime's efforts to normalise its occupation of Western Sahara', said FiSahara Executive Director María Carrión. The festival continued, 'We are sure that were they to understand the full implications of filming such as high-profile film in a territory whose indigenous peoples are unable to make their own films about their stories under occupation, Nolan and his team would be horrified. Morocco routinely touts Sahrawi cultural expressions as uniquely Moroccan. They created a film festival in Dakhla to counter ours, and produce high budget films that portray Western Sahara as part of Morocco. However, Sahrawis trying to make films about their lives are persecuted and must work clandestinely and at great risk to themselves and their families.' Nolan and Universal, the studio behind The Odyssey, have yet to comment on the issue. The Odyssey is an adaptation of the Greek epic about Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, who embarks on a treacherous journey home after the Trojan War. The Odyssey stars Matt Damon as Odysseus and Tom Holland as Odysseus' son, Telemachus. The large ensemble includes Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong'o, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron, Jon Bernthal, and more. Nolan writes and directs The Odyssey for Universal. It will be the first blockbuster to be shot entirely with IMAX cameras. The Odyssey opens in theaters on July 17, 2026. The post Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey Gets Backlash Over Controversial Decision appeared first on - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Arrests in Russia as Navalny supporters mark his birthday
The birthday of Alexei Navalny was marked on Wednesday by his supporters more than a year after the Russian dissident's death in a penal colony. OVD Info human rights group reported that eight people had been detained while laying flowers in Novosibirsk in Siberia. Videos broadcast on social media showed supporters gathered at Navalny's grave in Moscow. His mother was among those attending. Navalny, one of the most prominent opponents of President Vladimir Putin, would have turned 49 on Wednesday. After surviving a near-fatal attack with the Novichok nerve agent in 2020, he died under mysterious circumstances in the Polar Wolf prison in the Arctic Circle in February last year. His widow, Julia Navalnaya, has continued his work in exile. Her latest project in collaboration with the organization Reporters without Borders is television broadcaster "Russia's Future," whose launch was announced in Paris on Tuesday. The broadcaster is to be available in Russia via satellite from Wednesday. "It is important to keep his legacy, and I am sure he would be very happy that new people are receiving information about the Kremlin regime, corruption, war, and everything that's going on in Russia right now," Navalnaya said at the launch. She posted a photo of herself with her husband on X. No day went past without thinking of him, she said. Navalnaya also announced a memorial concert in Berlin on June 28, at which a prize in Navalny's name will be awarded for the first time. Internet portal Meduza reported that Pet Shop Boys would headline the concert.
The Advertiser
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Advertiser
Assange open to political action as Cannes hosts doco
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is thinking about how to become politically active again once he has fully recovered from prison, his wife Stella says. The couple walked the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival for the premiere of The Six Billion Dollar Man documentary about Assange's life. Assange, 53, returned to his native Australia after pleading guilty in June under an agreement with US officials to one count of illegally obtaining and disclosing national security materials. The plea ended Assange's five-year stay in a British prison, which followed seven years at the Ecuador embassy as he sought to avoid extradition to Sweden on sexual assault allegations, which he denies. "He was in a very grave situation in the prison. He's recovering from that," Stella Assange told Reuters in Cannes. "But now he's coming to understand how grave the situation outside (prison) is and thinking, making plans to find the means of what to do about it," she added. "He's very, very concerned about the state of the world and the state that we're all in right now," said Stella, who met Assange in London in 2011 while working as part of his legal team. Julian and Stella Assange, wearing a brooch with a picture of British designer Vivienne Westwood holding a sign saying "Stop Killing", walked the red carpet on Wednesday evening local time. Julian has so far not spoken at any of his appearances. WikiLeaks in 2010 released hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on America's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - the largest security breaches of their kind in US military history - along with swathes of diplomatic cables. The documentary from Emmy-winning director Eugene Jarecki takes on the tone of a high-tech international thriller to recount Assange's fight against extradition, using WikiLeaks footage and archives, and previously unpublished evidence. Jarecki was awarded a Golden Globe prize for documentary at Cannes ahead of the premiere. Jarecki, who began filming before Assange was released, said he never expected to see him walk around Cannes as a free man. By inviting Assange, the festival was sending a message about the need for freedom of information and a free press, Jarecki told Reuters, as those values are in decline in many parts of the world according to an index from Reporters without Borders. The director called Assange "a canary in the coal mine" in foretelling the US government's current moves to exert more control over media access to President Donald Trump. "If we had taken that bit more seriously, we might have seen a bunch of this coming," said the US director. Assange's lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, told Reuters the film portrayed the WikiLeaks founder as he should be shown. "This film is absolutely necessary in terms of telling the story of free speech and what Julian Assange, his case means for the world, not just for him, but for the world," she said. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is thinking about how to become politically active again once he has fully recovered from prison, his wife Stella says. The couple walked the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival for the premiere of The Six Billion Dollar Man documentary about Assange's life. Assange, 53, returned to his native Australia after pleading guilty in June under an agreement with US officials to one count of illegally obtaining and disclosing national security materials. The plea ended Assange's five-year stay in a British prison, which followed seven years at the Ecuador embassy as he sought to avoid extradition to Sweden on sexual assault allegations, which he denies. "He was in a very grave situation in the prison. He's recovering from that," Stella Assange told Reuters in Cannes. "But now he's coming to understand how grave the situation outside (prison) is and thinking, making plans to find the means of what to do about it," she added. "He's very, very concerned about the state of the world and the state that we're all in right now," said Stella, who met Assange in London in 2011 while working as part of his legal team. Julian and Stella Assange, wearing a brooch with a picture of British designer Vivienne Westwood holding a sign saying "Stop Killing", walked the red carpet on Wednesday evening local time. Julian has so far not spoken at any of his appearances. WikiLeaks in 2010 released hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on America's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - the largest security breaches of their kind in US military history - along with swathes of diplomatic cables. The documentary from Emmy-winning director Eugene Jarecki takes on the tone of a high-tech international thriller to recount Assange's fight against extradition, using WikiLeaks footage and archives, and previously unpublished evidence. Jarecki was awarded a Golden Globe prize for documentary at Cannes ahead of the premiere. Jarecki, who began filming before Assange was released, said he never expected to see him walk around Cannes as a free man. By inviting Assange, the festival was sending a message about the need for freedom of information and a free press, Jarecki told Reuters, as those values are in decline in many parts of the world according to an index from Reporters without Borders. The director called Assange "a canary in the coal mine" in foretelling the US government's current moves to exert more control over media access to President Donald Trump. "If we had taken that bit more seriously, we might have seen a bunch of this coming," said the US director. Assange's lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, told Reuters the film portrayed the WikiLeaks founder as he should be shown. "This film is absolutely necessary in terms of telling the story of free speech and what Julian Assange, his case means for the world, not just for him, but for the world," she said. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is thinking about how to become politically active again once he has fully recovered from prison, his wife Stella says. The couple walked the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival for the premiere of The Six Billion Dollar Man documentary about Assange's life. Assange, 53, returned to his native Australia after pleading guilty in June under an agreement with US officials to one count of illegally obtaining and disclosing national security materials. The plea ended Assange's five-year stay in a British prison, which followed seven years at the Ecuador embassy as he sought to avoid extradition to Sweden on sexual assault allegations, which he denies. "He was in a very grave situation in the prison. He's recovering from that," Stella Assange told Reuters in Cannes. "But now he's coming to understand how grave the situation outside (prison) is and thinking, making plans to find the means of what to do about it," she added. "He's very, very concerned about the state of the world and the state that we're all in right now," said Stella, who met Assange in London in 2011 while working as part of his legal team. Julian and Stella Assange, wearing a brooch with a picture of British designer Vivienne Westwood holding a sign saying "Stop Killing", walked the red carpet on Wednesday evening local time. Julian has so far not spoken at any of his appearances. WikiLeaks in 2010 released hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on America's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - the largest security breaches of their kind in US military history - along with swathes of diplomatic cables. The documentary from Emmy-winning director Eugene Jarecki takes on the tone of a high-tech international thriller to recount Assange's fight against extradition, using WikiLeaks footage and archives, and previously unpublished evidence. Jarecki was awarded a Golden Globe prize for documentary at Cannes ahead of the premiere. Jarecki, who began filming before Assange was released, said he never expected to see him walk around Cannes as a free man. By inviting Assange, the festival was sending a message about the need for freedom of information and a free press, Jarecki told Reuters, as those values are in decline in many parts of the world according to an index from Reporters without Borders. The director called Assange "a canary in the coal mine" in foretelling the US government's current moves to exert more control over media access to President Donald Trump. "If we had taken that bit more seriously, we might have seen a bunch of this coming," said the US director. Assange's lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, told Reuters the film portrayed the WikiLeaks founder as he should be shown. "This film is absolutely necessary in terms of telling the story of free speech and what Julian Assange, his case means for the world, not just for him, but for the world," she said. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is thinking about how to become politically active again once he has fully recovered from prison, his wife Stella says. The couple walked the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival for the premiere of The Six Billion Dollar Man documentary about Assange's life. Assange, 53, returned to his native Australia after pleading guilty in June under an agreement with US officials to one count of illegally obtaining and disclosing national security materials. The plea ended Assange's five-year stay in a British prison, which followed seven years at the Ecuador embassy as he sought to avoid extradition to Sweden on sexual assault allegations, which he denies. "He was in a very grave situation in the prison. He's recovering from that," Stella Assange told Reuters in Cannes. "But now he's coming to understand how grave the situation outside (prison) is and thinking, making plans to find the means of what to do about it," she added. "He's very, very concerned about the state of the world and the state that we're all in right now," said Stella, who met Assange in London in 2011 while working as part of his legal team. Julian and Stella Assange, wearing a brooch with a picture of British designer Vivienne Westwood holding a sign saying "Stop Killing", walked the red carpet on Wednesday evening local time. Julian has so far not spoken at any of his appearances. WikiLeaks in 2010 released hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on America's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - the largest security breaches of their kind in US military history - along with swathes of diplomatic cables. The documentary from Emmy-winning director Eugene Jarecki takes on the tone of a high-tech international thriller to recount Assange's fight against extradition, using WikiLeaks footage and archives, and previously unpublished evidence. Jarecki was awarded a Golden Globe prize for documentary at Cannes ahead of the premiere. Jarecki, who began filming before Assange was released, said he never expected to see him walk around Cannes as a free man. By inviting Assange, the festival was sending a message about the need for freedom of information and a free press, Jarecki told Reuters, as those values are in decline in many parts of the world according to an index from Reporters without Borders. The director called Assange "a canary in the coal mine" in foretelling the US government's current moves to exert more control over media access to President Donald Trump. "If we had taken that bit more seriously, we might have seen a bunch of this coming," said the US director. Assange's lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, told Reuters the film portrayed the WikiLeaks founder as he should be shown. "This film is absolutely necessary in terms of telling the story of free speech and what Julian Assange, his case means for the world, not just for him, but for the world," she said.
Perth Now
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Assange open to political action as Cannes hosts doco
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is thinking about how to become politically active again once he has fully recovered from prison, his wife Stella says. The couple walked the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival for the documentary The Six Billion Dollar Man about Assange's life. Assange, 53, returned to his native Australia after pleading guilty in June under an agreement with US officials to one count of illegally obtaining and disclosing national security materials. The plea ended Assange's five-year stay in a British prison, which followed seven years at the Ecuador embassy as he sought to avoid extradition to Sweden on sexual assault allegations, which he denies. "He was in a very grave situation in the prison. He's recovering from that," Stella Assange told Reuters in Cannes. "But now he's coming to understand how grave the situation outside (prison) is and thinking, making plans to find the means of what to do about it," she added. "He's very, very concerned about the state of the world and the state that we're all in right now," said Stella, who met Assange in London in 2011 while working as part of his legal team. Julian and Stella Assange, wearing a brooch with a picture of British designer Vivienne Westwood holding a sign saying "Stop Killing", walked the red carpet on Wednesday evening local time. Julian has so far not spoken at any of his appearances. WikiLeaks in 2010 released hundreds of thousands of classified US military documents on America's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - the largest security breaches of their kind in US military history - along with swathes of diplomatic cables. The documentary from Emmy-winning director Eugene Jarecki takes on the tone of a high-tech international thriller to recount Assange's fight against extradition, using WikiLeaks footage and archives, and previously unpublished evidence. Jarecki, who began filming before Assange was released, said he never expected to see him walk around Cannes as a free man. By inviting Assange, the festival was sending a message about the need for freedom of information and a free press, Jarecki told Reuters, as those values are in decline in many parts of the world according to an index from Reporters without Borders. The director called Assange "a canary in the coal mine" in foretelling the US government's current moves to exert more control over media access to President Donald Trump. "If we had taken that bit more seriously, we might have seen a bunch of this coming," said the US director. Assange's lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, told Reuters the film portrayed the WikiLeaks founder as he should be shown. "This film is absolutely necessary in terms of telling the story of free speech and what Julian Assange, his case means for the world, not just for him, but for the world," she said.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Julian Assange open to political action as Cannes hosts documentary
By Hanna Rantala and Miranda Murray CANNES, France (Reuters) -WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is at the Cannes Film Festival this week for the documentary "The Six Billion Dollar Man," is thinking about how to become politically active again once he has fully recovered from prison, said his wife, Stella. Assange, 53, returned to his native Australia after pleading guilty last June under an agreement with U.S. officials to one count of illegally obtaining and disclosing national security materials. The plea ended Assange's five-year stay in a British prison, which followed seven years at the Ecuador embassy as he sought to avoid extradition to Sweden on sexual assault allegations. Assange denied those allegations and called them a pretext to extradite him to the United States over WikiLeaks. WikiLeaks in 2010 released hundreds of thousands of classified U.S. military documents on Washington's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq - the largest security breaches of their kind in U.S. military history - along with swaths of diplomatic cables. "He was in a very grave situation in the prison. He's recovering from that," Stella Assange told Reuters in Cannes. "But now he's coming to understand how grave the situation outside (prison) is and thinking, making plans to find the means of what to do about it," she added. "He's very, very concerned about the state of the world and the state that we're all in right now," said Stella, who met Assange in London in 2011 while working as part of his legal team. Julian and Stella Assange, wearing a brooch with a picture of British designer Vivienne Westwood holding a sign saying "Stop Killing," walked the red carpet on Wednesday evening. Julian has so far not spoken at any of his appearances. CANARY IN A COAL MINE The documentary from Emmy-winning director Eugene Jarecki takes on the tone of a high-tech international thriller to recount Assange's fight against extradition, using WikiLeaks footage and archives, and previously unpublished evidence. Jarecki, who began filming before Assange was released, said he never expected to see him walk around Cannes as a free man. By inviting Assange, the festival was sending a message about the need for freedom of information and a free press, Jarecki told Reuters, as those values are in decline in many parts of the world according to an index from Reporters without Borders. The director called Assange "a canary in the coal mine" in foretelling the U.S. government's current moves to exert more control over media access to U.S. President Donald Trump. "If we had taken that bit more seriously, we might have seen a bunch of this coming," said the U.S. director. Assange's lawyer, Jennifer Robinson, told Reuters that the film portrayed the WikiLeaks founder as he should be shown. "This film is absolutely necessary in terms of telling the story of free speech and what Julian Assange, his case means for the world, not just for him, but for the world," she said.
