http://www.voanews.com/archive/arts-and-entertainment/latest/594/602.html arts-and-entertainment http://www.voanews.com/img/voa/rssLogo_VOA.gif http://www.voanews.com/archive/arts-and-entertainment/latest/594/602.html en-US 2012 - VOA 60 Sun, 26 May 2013 01:12:46 -0400 Pangea CMS – VOA A man pretending to be South Korean rapper Psy talked his way into glitzy parties at the Cannes film festival and posed with fans until he was spotted drinking champagne by the real Psy's manager. Psy, in Singapore on Thursday night to perform at the inaugural Social Star awards, said that Scooter Braun spotted the imposter, took a photo and sent it to him. Here the picture of #fakePSYinCannes spotted by @scooterbraun!! lol#realPSYinSingapore twitter.com/psy_oppa/statu… — PSY ... http://www.voanews.com/content/fake-psy-party-crashes-in-cannes/1668437.html http://www.voanews.com/content/fake-psy-party-crashes-in-cannes/1668437.html Sat, 25 May 2013 20:19:24 -0400 Arts & Entertainment Reuters A documentary using small clay figurines to tell the story of how Cambodian filmmaker Rithy Panh's family perished under the Khmer Rouge regime won the top prize in the second most important competition at the Cannes film festival on Saturday.   L'Image Manquante (The Missing Picture) was among the 18 films that premiered in the Un Certain Regard category that was set up to encourage emerging and innovative filmmakers and run alongside the main competition at the world's top ... http://www.voanews.com/content/cambodian-documentary-wins-cannes-prize-for-innovative-cinema/1668433.html http://www.voanews.com/content/cambodian-documentary-wins-cannes-prize-for-innovative-cinema/1668433.html Sat, 25 May 2013 19:41:01 -0400 Arts & Entertainment Reuters America's immigration debate finds echoes in a period drama that premiered at the Cannes film festival on Friday about a Polish woman who arrives at Ellis Island and fights to survive in 1920s New York. “The Immigrant” features French Oscar winner Marion Cotillard as the immigrant Ewa, speaking English and Polish in the film, with Joaquin Phoenix and Jeremy Renner as the two men with whom she becomes entangled as she is forced into prostitution. The film competes with another period ... http://www.voanews.com/content/immigrant-drama-shoots-for-top-cannes-prize/1667806.html http://www.voanews.com/content/immigrant-drama-shoots-for-top-cannes-prize/1667806.html Fri, 24 May 2013 13:25:32 -0400 Arts & Entertainment Reuters http://www.voanews.com/content/immigrant-drama-shoots-for-top-cannes-prize/1667806.html#relatedInfoContainer What looks like a little red birdhouse with a pitched roof sits on a post outside Centreville Elementary School in Virginia, attracting a lot of attention. But there are no birds inside. The wooden box contains about two dozen children’s books. Any child in the community who wants to read is welcome to pick one. Promoting love of reading This little free library was built as a service project by a group of young Girl Scouts at the school. “It was kind of a challenge,” said Kyra Gosney, ... http://www.voanews.com/content/little-free-libraries-promote-love-of-books/1667629.html http://www.voanews.com/content/little-free-libraries-promote-love-of-books/1667629.html Fri, 24 May 2013 10:34:13 -0400 USA Faiza Elmasry http://www.voanews.com/content/little-free-libraries-promote-love-of-books/1667629.html#relatedInfoContainer Life is often stranger than fiction as filmmaker Rick Beyer found out when he learned that an American Ghost Army helped defeat the Germans during World War II. The story was classified for decades, and after it was declassified it took Beyer eight years to piece the story together with hard-to-find footage, interviews with selected veterans, and artwork created by soldiers at the front.  Beyer created the first documentary account of this specialized unit that was charged with helping ... http://www.voanews.com/content/fank-tanks-ghost-army-defeated-germans-in-world-war-ll/1667445.html http://www.voanews.com/content/fank-tanks-ghost-army-defeated-germans-in-world-war-ll/1667445.html Fri, 24 May 2013 06:26:39 -0400 USA Penelope Poulou http://www.voanews.com/content/fank-tanks-ghost-army-defeated-germans-in-world-war-ll/1667445.html#relatedInfoContainer Academics, professionals and Star Trek fans are once again discussing the iconic franchise's influence on society, science, and technology, as the dazzling new sci-fi adventure Star Trek Into Darkness plays in theaters.  The starship Enterprise is well-known to viewers of the iconic Star Trek TV series and visitors to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, where the original model is on display in the gift shop. The fictional craft - whose long-running ... http://www.voanews.com/content/star-trek-movie-influence-live-long-and-prosper/1666982.html http://www.voanews.com/content/star-trek-movie-influence-live-long-and-prosper/1666982.html Thu, 23 May 2013 12:26:02 -0400 Science & Technology Suzanne Presto French singer and songwriter Georges Moustaki, beloved in France for his songs celebrating liberty and collaborations with Edith Piaf, died on Thursday after a long illness. He was 79.   The singer was born in Alexandria, Egypt of Greek parents, and arrived in Paris in 1951, where he began to play guitar at nightclubs and met some of the period's best-known singers.   He was introduced to Edith Piaf in the late 1950s and started to write songs for the Parisian star, the most ... http://www.voanews.com/content/edith-pilaf-songwriter-singer-georges-moustaki-dies/1666989.html http://www.voanews.com/content/edith-pilaf-songwriter-singer-georges-moustaki-dies/1666989.html Thu, 23 May 2013 12:24:46 -0400 Arts & Entertainment Reuters In many ways, Singapore is the ultimate modern society - uber efficient, affluent and safe - but at what expense? The recent legal trials of a young graffiti artist and a cartoonist being investigated for alleged sedition has some Singaporeans saying it’s time for politically uncomfortable art and speech to be allowed.  Samantha Lo is the street artist responsible for a series of satirical stickers that cropped up all over Singapore last year. She also painted a message that some say was ... http://www.voanews.com/content/Singaporean-traversing-political-boundaries-through-satire-and-art/1666746.html http://www.voanews.com/content/Singaporean-traversing-political-boundaries-through-satire-and-art/1666746.html Thu, 23 May 2013 08:48:51 -0400 Asia Kate Lamb Massive corporations like Coca-Cola have a primary goal: Sell their products to make money. Sometimes, if they’re lucky, that goal aligns with another endeavor: Make peace. A new three-minute advertisement released by the beverage company this week aims to do both. Coca-Cola filmed the advertisement in two locations: Pakistan and India, South Asia’s nuclear-armed neighbors mired in political mistrust that has spurred three historic wars. The company set up Coke vending machines outfitted with ... http://www.voanews.com/content/coke-ad-hawks-pop-and-peace-to-india-pakistan/1665675.html http://www.voanews.com/content/coke-ad-hawks-pop-and-peace-to-india-pakistan/1665675.html Tue, 21 May 2013 16:54:55 -0400 Asia Kate Woodsome Microsoft Corp gave the world the first look at its new game console on Tuesday, hoping the Xbox One will attract existing video game fans while also becoming a hub for living room entertainment.   The third-generation Microsoft console, coming eight years after the Xbox 360, was unveiled by games unit chief Don Mattrick at an event at the software company's campus near Seattle.   The Xbox One is an “ultimate all-in-one entertainment system,” Mattrick said.   The ... http://www.voanews.com/content/microsoft-unveils-new-xbox-one-game-console/1665564.html http://www.voanews.com/content/microsoft-unveils-new-xbox-one-game-console/1665564.html Tue, 21 May 2013 14:44:21 -0400 USA Reuters The relationship between the flamboyant pianist Liberace and his young lover dazzled at the Cannes film festival on Tuesday and threw the spotlight on gay rights at the movie industry's largest annual gathering.   Director Steven Soderbergh said he struggled five years ago to secure funding for "Behind the Candelabra" because some financiers thought the film would only appeal to a gay audience and, at a cost of $25 million, would be a financial risk.   Eventually he ... http://www.voanews.com/content/liberace-film-casts-spotlight-on-gay-rights-at-cannes-festival/1665475.html http://www.voanews.com/content/liberace-film-casts-spotlight-on-gay-rights-at-cannes-festival/1665475.html Tue, 21 May 2013 13:07:17 -0400 Arts & Entertainment Reuters Zach Sobiech, an 18-year-old whose battle with cancer became a global story, has died. The Minnesota native became famous when his song “Clouds,” which is about facing death, became a viral sensation on YouTube, topping 3 million views. The song was originally released in December of last year. The video was so popular that a group of celebrities were inspired to create a video tribute in which they lip-synch the lyrics. Sobiech was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer, osteosarcoma, ... http://www.voanews.com/content/teen-who-made-viral-video-clouds-dies-of-cancer-zach-sobiech/1664874.html http://www.voanews.com/content/teen-who-made-viral-video-clouds-dies-of-cancer-zach-sobiech/1664874.html Mon, 20 May 2013 17:20:43 -0400 Arts & Entertainment VOA News http://www.voanews.com/content/teen-who-made-viral-video-clouds-dies-of-cancer-zach-sobiech/1664874.html#relatedInfoContainer A new app launched on Monday aims to bring William Shakespeare's sonnets to the masses with the help of short films starring stage actors performing them in front of New York landmarks.The Sonnet Project is a free app for the iPhone and iPad that showcases the bard's poetry through films of up to two minutes and performances by Tony-Award winning actors Joanna Gleason and Cady Huffman, among others.   “Shakespeare gets a bad rap. A lot of people say 'I don't like ... http://www.voanews.com/content/shakespeares-sonnets-come-to-life-in-new-app/1664596.html http://www.voanews.com/content/shakespeares-sonnets-come-to-life-in-new-app/1664596.html Mon, 20 May 2013 12:43:24 -0400 Arts & Entertainment Reuters Indian movie actors and a new wave of directors are on a mission at the Cannes film festival - to show that their industry, which turns 100 this year, is more than just Bollywood. The largest Indian contingent to date is on the French Riviera at the world's leading cinema showcase to promote their country, which has the world's biggest film industry, making over 1,000 films a year compared to about 600 in Hollywood. Movies from Mumbai-based Bollywood and other regional India films ... http://www.voanews.com/content/india-cinema-cannes-bollywood-image/1664182.html http://www.voanews.com/content/india-cinema-cannes-bollywood-image/1664182.html Sun, 19 May 2013 20:45:04 -0400 Arts & Entertainment Reuters Danish singer Emmelie de Forest has been crowned the newest winner of the annual Eurovision song contest, with a "folky" pop song called Only Teardrops. De Forest was favored to win the song competition, watched by well over 100 million viewers, though competitors included Welsh pop star Bonnie Tyler and a number of other high-profile stars. De Forest succeeds last year's winner, Swedish singer Loreen. The contest is usually set in the home country of the previous year's ... http://www.voanews.com/content/denmarks-emmelie-de-forest-wins-eurovision-contest/1663852.html http://www.voanews.com/content/denmarks-emmelie-de-forest-wins-eurovision-contest/1663852.html Sun, 19 May 2013 04:41:15 -0400 Europe VOA News More than $1 million worth of jewels due to be lent to movie stars at the Cannes film festival were stolen from a hotel room in the French Riviera town, a police source said.   The jewels were in the safe of the room rented by an employee of Chopard, a luxury jeweler, the source said on condition of anonymity.   The incident at the hotel in central Cannes took place on the night of Thursday to Friday as the festival got under way, drawing thousands of movie stars, film industry ... http://www.voanews.com/content/jewels-for-cannes-movie-stars-stolen-from-hotel/1662941.html http://www.voanews.com/content/jewels-for-cannes-movie-stars-stolen-from-hotel/1662941.html Fri, 17 May 2013 10:09:18 -0400 Europe Reuters British actress Emma Watson has turned to crime in her latest role as part of a celebrity-obsessed teenage gang robbing their Hollywood idols' homes in a film that made its debut at the Cannes film festival on Thursday.   “The Bling Ring”, written and directed by Sofia Coppola, is based on a real-life gang fixated by glamor who tracked their targets' whereabouts online and stole $3 million of luxury goods from celebrities including Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan.   Watson, ... http://www.voanews.com/content/Emma-watson-turns-to-crime-in-celebrity-obsessed-film-at-cannes/1662373.html http://www.voanews.com/content/Emma-watson-turns-to-crime-in-celebrity-obsessed-film-at-cannes/1662373.html Thu, 16 May 2013 12:42:51 -0400 Arts & Entertainment Reuters Danish filmmaker Lars Von Trier's "Nymphomaniac,'' one of the most hotly anticipated movies of 2013 for its erotic content and all-star cast, will open in theatres on Christmas Day, the producers said on Thursday. The provocative director, expelled from the Cannes film festival in 2011 for joking that he sympathized with Hitler, cast Charlotte Gainsbourg as the self-diagnosed nymphomaniac of the title, alongside rising Hollywood star Shia LaBeouf. Uma Thurman and Willem ... http://www.voanews.com/content/von-triers-hotly-awaited-nymphomaniac-film-gets-december-launch/1662298.html http://www.voanews.com/content/von-triers-hotly-awaited-nymphomaniac-film-gets-december-launch/1662298.html Thu, 16 May 2013 11:40:05 -0400 Arts & Entertainment Reuters In a nation of immigrants, with a 'melting pot' culture, it should not be surprising that American music is also an international blend.  That's especially true of Flamenco, brought to southern Spain by 18th-century Romanis-Gypsies from North India, and performed today by a California band that incorporates Arabic and other Islamic influences from Turkey, the Black Sea, Persia and North Africa.   The unmistakable sound of flamenco - Spanish guitar and heels - is ... http://www.voanews.com/content/us-flamenco-band-has-arabic-islamic-influences/1661552.html http://www.voanews.com/content/us-flamenco-band-has-arabic-islamic-influences/1661552.html Wed, 15 May 2013 12:05:02 -0400 Arts & Entertainment Lonny Shavelson http://www.voanews.com/content/us-flamenco-band-has-arabic-islamic-influences/1661552.html#relatedInfoContainer In the basement of a villa in central Tripoli, young Libyans seeking an escape from violence and disorder watch an American movie classic screened using a simple projector and laptop.   They may feel they have plenty to relate to in James Dean's teenage character as he battles society's constraints and institutions in “Rebel Without A Cause''.   Nearly two years after the revolution that toppled dictator Muammar Gaddafi, Libya's progress towards democracy has ... http://www.voanews.com/content/libya-tripoli-secret-cinema/1661532.html http://www.voanews.com/content/libya-tripoli-secret-cinema/1661532.html Wed, 15 May 2013 11:57:21 -0400 Middle East Reuters http://www.voanews.com/content/libya-tripoli-secret-cinema/1661532.html#relatedInfoContainer