A remarkable Thursday during a week in Cuba

The "portmanteau film set in the same city" concept is one that has risen in popularity over recent years, most notably with Paris Je t'aime and New York, I Love You. But this week at Cannes sees the world premiere of a Caribbean twist in the story, with some regional influence thrown in for good measure, too.

The film 7 Days in Havana features seven shorts, each set during a day in the same week and each made by a different director. And Thursday's entry is a short from the Palestinian filmmaker Elia Suleiman.

"The idea was to make this movie now because of the shift that's happening in Cuba," says Suleiman. "It's opening up, and the producers' idea was to document this moment."

Making the film was unlike anything Suleiman had experienced before, with the preselected crew being the same for all the directors and only two cinematographers to choose from. "I was working with nobody I knew and in the beginning it was scary. I was really panicky," he says.

But despite the difficulties in Havana, Suleiman admits he's pleased he took up the offer.

"These films are dress rehearsals for the sort of experimentation that I want to do," he says. "Because shorts don't carry the same weight, or the same responsibility or finance, you dare to actually see if you can try out certain things. I had an idea of a certain shift in my style that I wanted to do and didn't know if I could do it. And I'm very happy that I did it because, in my opinion, it went well."

Despite the shift, will Suleiman's short feature the sort of absurd portrayals of life he's become renowned for (2002's outstanding Divine Intervention saw a tank famously blown up by a peach stone)?

"Yes, it's very consistent with my other films. It has the melancholy and humour," he smiles.

Expect Thursday in Havana to stick out like a sore - but comically wonderful - thumb.

City's slump

L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
L - Tottenham, 4-0
L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
L - Bournemouth, 2-1
L - Tottenham, 2-1

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The specs

Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax

Power: 310hp

Torque: 583Nm

Transmission: 8-speed automatic

Price: From Dh192,500

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U19 WORLD CUP, WEST INDIES

UAE group fixtures (all in St Kitts)

Saturday 15 January: UAE beat Canada by 49 runs
Thursday 20 January: v England
Saturday 22 January: v Bangladesh

UAE squad:

Alishan Sharafu (captain), Shival Bawa, Jash Giyanani, Sailles
Jaishankar, Nilansh Keswani, Aayan Khan, Punya Mehra, Ali Naseer, Ronak Panoly,
Dhruv Parashar, Vinayak Raghavan, Soorya Sathish, Aryansh Sharma, Adithya
Shetty, Kai Smith

The Sand Castle

Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5

If you go

Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.

When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.

How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.

Ticket prices

Golden circle - Dh995
Floor Standing - Dh495
Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
Upper Bowl standard - Dh295

Business Insights

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Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: ARDH Collective

Based: Dubai

Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi

Sector: Sustainability

Total funding: Self funded

Number of employees: 4

What is a Ponzi scheme?

A fraudulent investment operation where the scammer provides fake reports and generates returns for old investors through money paid by new investors, rather than through ligitimate business activities.