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Month: September 2021

Bond film premiere pulls out all the stops

by: Stephanie Horsman
30/09/2021

It was a glittering night that would turn even the world-weary James Bond’s head, as singer Shirley Bassey joined a debonaire Prince Albert, actress Sharon Stone and director Cary Fukanaga at the screening of the latest installation in the 007 series, No Time To Die.
It was quite an evening for fans of 007 in Monaco. The Principality was the site of the unique premiere screening of the latest Ian Fleming-inspired James Bond film, No Time To Die.
The event attracted super-celeb Sharon Stone, whose slinky Dolce & Gabbana silver cocktail dress was an absolute showstopper. The 63-year-old actress was all smiles as she rocked the dress with the confidence of a woman who knows she can still turn heads at any age.
She was joined by Prince Albert II who wore a white tuxedo worthy of Bond himself. Also at the screening was the film’s Director and Princess Grace Award winner Cary Joji Fukunaga, together with Christian Moore, son of the late actor and former Bond Sir Roger Moore.
The red-carpet screening took place at the iconic Opera Garnier and was followed by a black-tie after-party at the Casino de Monte-Carlo, another homage to the 007 series from Casino Royale, complete with croupiers, masked waiters, and glittering, golden ‘gun’ wielding dancers.
Singer and Monaco resident Dame Shirley Bassey was also there to celebrate the 25th film in the series. Bassey recorded theme songs to three Bond films including Goldfinger, Diamonds are Forever and Moonraker.
Other notable gusts were designer Philip Plein, Lady Tina Green, model Victoria Silvstedt, and Monaco royals Camille Gottlieb and Louis and Marie Ducruet.
In a speech displayed on the big screen ahead of the film, Prince Albert II said: “It is my distinct privilege to welcome the screening of No Time To Die to Monaco. It is particularly meaningful for us to honour the late Sir Roger Moore and Princess Grace Award winner Cary Joji Fukunaga here because of the special ties that connect them to us. Sir Roger Moore was a dear friend to my mother and we remain grateful for his guidance establishing the Princess Grace Foundation-USA. We are equally proud of Princess Grace Award winner Cary Joji Fukunaga’s masterful direction of No Time to Die, and to know that my mother’s legacy lives on through his flourishing career.”
Cary Fukanaga added on screen: “Becoming part of the Princess Grace Awards family has been incredible. I received a scholarship that helped propel my career in a multitude of ways. Several years ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Sir Roger Moore in Monaco when I received my second Princess Grace Award, I never would have imagined that just five years later I would be helming No Time to Die.”
Proceeds from the event are being targeted to a new Princess Grace Award in honour of Sir Roger, who was a long-time resident of Monaco as well as being a founding member of the Princess Grace Foundation-USA. The Roger Moore Film Scholarship will be endowed in perpetuity to an emerging filmmaker, with the first recipient being announced in 2022.
“My father was a great man, a beloved actor and deeply committed to the arts,” said Christian Moore. “He adored Princess Grace and believed in Her mission to support emerging talent and ensuring the arts community remained vibrant and impactful. My family thanks the Princely Family for their generosity recognising my father by bestowing him with this named award. I know he would be truly humbled.”
 
Monaco Life is proud to have been the main media sponsor of the exclusive James Bond event, organised by the Princess Grace Foundation-USA. To see more pictures of the red carpet, click on the images below… 
 


 
Photos by Benedetta Pizzonia for Monaco Life
 
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“It was clear I was creating the final chapter”

by: Cassandra Tanti
30/09/2021

Ahead of the red carpet premier of ‘No Time To Die’ on Wednesday night, Cary Fukanaga spoke to Monaco Life about what it was like to co-write and direct the film that famously closes the book on Daniel Craig’s James Bond.
It could have been a scene straight out of a 007 film – Cary Joji Fukanaga, handsomely dressed in a white tuxedo jacket, drives up to the Prince’s Palace in a sexy Aston Martin. As the last of the September sun sets over the horizon, the award-winning Fukanaga reveals to Monaco Life what it was like to be the only American to direct a film in the iconic British spy series.
“I didn’t find out I was the first American until I looked deeper into the production,” he tells me, “but I think I brought a different sensibility to the franchise. I am from a different generation than the other directors as well, so that changes perspective I guess.”
In fact, he is one of 13 directors behind 25 Bond films, each one helping to shape the character and mythos of agent 007. But Fukanaga surely had the most difficult task of all the directors  – closing an important chapter in the legendary life of James Bond.
“I thought Spectre was going to be Daniel Craig’s last film, but they said this was absolutely going to be his final role as Bond,” says the 44-year-old. “It made it very clear that what I was writing for them would be a final chapter, so I approached it as an end. You can think of Casino Royale as the beginning, followed by a run of five chapters – this being the fifth and final chapter. ‘No Time To Die’ would be the end of the book; you could close it and feel satisfied.”
The film’s premier has been a long-time coming for Cary Joji Fukanaga. After nearly 18 months of pandemic delay, ‘No Time To Die’ had its world release at the Royal Albert Hall in London on Tuesday attended by the British Royal family and much of the film’s cast. Less than 24 hours later, he jetted down to Monaco for the red carpet premier at the Opera Garnier in the original Casino Royale with Prince Albert, Hollywood legend Sharon Stone, and former Bond theme song singer Dame Shirley Bassey.
“It was a major relief to finally show the film,” Fukanaga reveals, “and more than anything, it was a major relief to show it to audiences and not have it end up on streaming.”
Not so lucky were most other highly-anticipated films this year, including Marvel’s Black Widow, The Suicide Squad and The Matrix 4, all of which had simultaneous theatre and stream releases.

Photo of Cary Fukunaga at the Prince’s Palace by Cassandra Tanti, Monaco Life

But Wednesday night’s event in Monaco was much more than a glitzy red carpet film premier and dazzling after party. It was a celebration of Cary Fukanaga himself, a Princess Grace Foundation Award Winner. It was also an opportunity to raise money for the Foundation’s newest award, the Sir Roger Moore Award, to support emerging talent in film making. And Fukanaga knows all too well how such an award can change the life of someone in this industry.
“The original award I got in 2005 was massively important because I was in the last semester of film school, and that’s when people usually have to decide whether to get a job or try to pursue their dreams making movies. The award allowed me to focus on writing the screenplay that ended up becoming (the award-winning film) Sin Nombre. As I didn’t have to work, I was able to focus on my project and continue my art, and because of that I ended up making my movie and I’ve been working ever since as a film maker.”
Fukanaga says that Casino Royale, Daniel Craig’s first film as James Bond, was a “jumping off point” to complete the film series, adding: “I think there are nods to the classic Bond films in there, but there is also a sentimental emotional layer exposed in the character that we haven’t seen before, which I think creates a whole new feeling when you’re watching it. You get all the action, all the thrills, but you also get some emotion, which I think might be unexpected for some viewers.”
According to IndieWire, ‘No Time To Die’ is indeed the most emotional 007 movie ever, while other critics appreciate the scope that Fukanaga has afforded to Craig in his final role as Bond.
The Independent’s Clarisse Loughrey, comments: “No Time to Die is at its very best when it allows the actor room to take his final curtsy with both grace and style, allowing him to leave the franchise with not only a good dollop of dignity, but a reminder that he gave Bond a soul.”
Prince Albert emerges from the Palace gates in his own white suit jacket to greet a smiling Cary Fukanaga. The two drive off in that gorgeous Aston Martin, bound for the Casino de Monte-Carlo and the 007 fans that await them, eager to see for themselves how this James Bond chapter will play out.
 
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Top photo by G. Luci/Prince’s Palace
 
 
 
 
 

End of an era in Cap d’Ail

by: Stephanie Horsman
30/09/2021

The legal battle for Plage Mala has come to end with the forced demolition of eight cabins that have been deemed illegal on the site since 2019.

The cabins that inhabited the peaceful cove at Plage Mala are being demolished by the owners after a prefectorial decree landed the final blow to their legal fights.

The State summoned the property dwellers to the Prefecture insisting they destroy the illegal structures or they would step in and do it for them. To prevent this, the occupants took matters into their own hands and have begun demolition works themselves.

The site has been the source of legal trouble since a decree in October 2019 that stated private dwellings at this location were not permissible as they encroach on the maritime public domain. They were ordered to be destroyed after 10 total proceedings by a judge. 

Since Monday, excavators have been on the beach and in recent days, five of the eight huts have been emptied by the reluctant owners.

“These are 70 years of history that are going away,” Dorian Botticini told France3. “Our heritage, our identity. It’s kind of what hurts, we have more identity in this country, we have more history. Tourists were happy, with my grandfather, we made bouillabaisse, fish soups, tourists were amazed by the smells, many personalities often came to the shed. Now everything is standardised.”

After 10 years of court cases, his cabin was demolished on Tuesday at a personal cost of €32,000.

The three hut owners who did not comply with the court’s request will have the structures destroyed in the next few months, with the State sending them the bill for the costs.

“Since 31st August 2021, the Departmental Directorate of Territories and the Sea (DDTM) had given this date for the demolition and evacuation of property and the restoration of natural sites. On 20th September, a report of bailiff noted that three sheds did not implement this demolition,” explains Stéphane Liautaud, divisional engineer of state public works at DDTM des Alpes-Maritimes.

He goes on to say, “Five other offenders implemented it with a company of their choice and demolished their own sheds. At the level of the other three sheds, they will be the subject of automatic works, the state will implement the evacuation of the goods and furniture.”

Restoration of the site as a natural reserve will begin in December.

In a precursor to the demolitions, a petition had been launched to save the structures. It collected 1,438 signatures, but it was clearly not enough to sway the courts on the matter.

La Réserve de la Mala and Eden Plage, the two restaurants on the same site, have also been fighting battles in court. This summer, the Nice Administrative Court rejected their latest pleas to be spared. They, too, will be forced to demolish their establishments.

Neither restaurant has been legally operating on the spot since 2011. They intend to appeal the decision.

 
 
Top photo by Dorian Botticini
 
 

Jazz Festival is back with fantastic line-up

by: Stephanie Horsman
30/09/2021

The Monte-Carlo Jazz Festival will return bigger and better than ever this autumn with a colourful line-up including some of the top names in the music world.
The Monte-Carlo Jazz Festival, created in 2006 by the late Jean-René Palacio, is returning to the Opera Garnier Monte-Carlo for a series of amazing concerts running from 23rd November to 4th December.
The roster includes some seriously well-known names and will be kicked off with the Avishai Cohen Trio on 23rd November. Cohen, an internationally renowned bassist, singer and composer, has formed a group with pianist Elchin Shirinov and drummer Roni Kaspi and they will be performing songs from their latest album Arvoles to the delight of crowds.
On Wednesday 24th November, British jazz-pop superstar Jamie Cullum, who played at the open-air Monaco Red Cross summer concert on the Place du Casino in July, is back for the Jazz Festival, hot on the heels of the release of his first-ever Christmas album. The crooner is famous for his singing and piano playing but has been known to play other instruments such as guitar and drums. He is sure to have a few surprises up his sleeve on the night as a pre-Christmas gift for fans.
The festival also welcomes former Genesis lead guitarist Steve Hackett to the stage. The Englishman has forged a solo career as a singer-songwriter and will be rocking the stage at the Opera Garnier on Thursday 25th November.
American singer, songwriter and actor Gregory Porter is next up on 29th November. The two-time Grammy winner for best jazz vocals hits all the right notes with his distinctive booming baritone and refined style, making him one of the jazz worlds rare cross-overs into big commercial success.
On Tuesday 30th November, Chucho Valdés featuring Yilian Cañizare will perform together for the festival. Valdés is a Cuban pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger whose career spans over 50 years. He welcomes Cuban-Swiss sensation Yilian Cañizares to the stage, described as one of the most intriguing contemporary violinists, singers and composers of the age. Together the two make for a unique Latin music experience, sure to get the hips swinging all evening.
French blues singer and guitarist Paul Personne, “The Gibson Man”, performs live on Friday 3rd December. Called a “guitar genius”, his bold playing is unforgettably mixed with his warm, silky voice creating a night of magic for fans and newcomers alike.
Finally, David Hallyday performs on Saturday 4th December in the Festival’s grand finale. The multi-talented musician has 12 studio albums under his belt and a massive following to rival his French music legend father, Johnny. Influenced by bands such as the Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd, Hallyday’s rock n’ roll vibe compels concert-goers to stand up and dance.
For more information and to purchase tickets for the events, go online at https://www.montecarlosbm.com/en/shows-monaco
 
 
 

Strong business tourism to continue in October

by: Stephanie Horsman
29/09/2021

After a hugely successful Monaco Yacht Show, industry professionals will continue to descend on Monaco during the month of October thanks to three major expos and one popular concert at the Grimaldi Forum. 
The first event is the much-anticipated Sportel Monaco, running from 5th to 7th October. Sportel is the world’s leader in the Sports Content Media Rights and Technology Convention marketplace. Each year, key stakeholders from around the world meet up at Sportel events for targeted business meetings, knowledge sharing and decisive deal making.
Next up is the Cybersecurity Assises forum, where cybersecurity experts come together for one-on-one meetings, discussions, live demonstrations of the latest technologies, workshops and round tables on major trends in the sector. This show will run from 13th to 16th October.
To inject a bit of culture into the mix, renowned concert pianist Lang Lang will perform at the Forum on 21stOctober. He will be playing one of the most celebrated piano pieces in the history of classical music, Bach’s Goldberg Variations, consisting of an opening aria followed by 30 variations on it – a masterpiece that dazzles even today, nearly 300 years after it’s creation.
Rounding out the month, from 26th to 28th October, the One-to-One Retail E-Commerce Monaco show is coming to town for three days of conferences, business and networking made for the heavy-hitters in the retail and e-commerce world. Market players and decision-makers are joining together for the event’s 10th anniversary with 130 workshops and five keynote speakers on the roster.
The Grimaldi Forum says all events will be held following the most current health guidelines and with the safety of all participants in mind.
 
 
Photo: Grimaldi Forum Monaco/Olivia Marocco
 
 
 

Passing through Monaco: Investor Patrick Tsang 

by: Cassandra Tanti
29/09/2021

Monaco is like honey to the world’s brightest, most successful entrepreneurs and investors. Their stories are inspirational and motivational, and we at Monaco Life are pleased to share them you. 
“I came to Monaco for the Grand Prix in May and I had a really good time,” Patrick tells me as we sit in the lobby of the Hermitage Hotel. “Before Covid, the word ‘holiday’ didn’t really exist for me. I was in a different city every few days, working non stop from 8am until 2am. I would always mix work with pleasure and enjoy travelling, but I realise now that health is the most important thing in life.”
Life didn’t start out easy for Patrick Tsang. Growing up in Belfast during The Troubles, he was one of the rare non-white people in Northern Ireland, speaking not a word of English the day he started at a Protestant school.
“The first day of school was very vivid to me. I was four years old and during recess all the kids got out their packed lunches with milk and biscuits. My mother, who didn’t know too much about the western education system, didn’t pack me anything to eat during recess. Obviously, a teacher brought me some biscuits.  After lunch, we had some play time, as we were all heading back to the classroom I got beaten up by five boys, just because I didn’t look the same as them. I was crying and hurt and asking myself why they beat me up. That day taught me a big lesson: you have to fight for everything that you have in life. I needed to show people that I can be just as good as them, if not better.”
Patrick Tsang is now the fourth-generation chairman of the single family office Tsangs Group, an innovation-focussed company which bridges East to West and invests in companies primarily in Asia, North America and Europe.
“We try to invest by making a positive impact and positive influence with a mission to try to change the world to make it a better place,” says Tsang.
That determination to do better and aim higher is in Patrick Tsang’s DNA. His ancestors originated from Henan in central China thousands of years ago. They were part of an ethnic group called the Hakka, a nomadic tribe that moved all around China and were never considered ‘locals’ anywhere. About 700 years ago, the family emigrated to Hong Kong, which was essentially made up of fishermen and farmers, where they settled.
“My great grandfather came from the period during the Qing dynasty, had four wives and little resources. As he was illiterate, he saw that the power was with the pen and not the sword. So, he decided to use all his savings to educate one family member – his oldest son, which was my grandfather.”
Patrick’s grandfather went on to become one of the first Chinese entrepreneurs to open multiple Chinese restaurants and takeaways in north west England, and then the first to open restaurant businesses in Belfast, Northern Ireland and Dublin, Ireland.
“I was there for 18 years before I moved to London for college. Can you imagine? A bunch of Chinese kids growing up with thick Belfast and Dublin accents,” laughs Patrick.
Patrick Tsang went to London to read law and graduated from the prestigious College of Law in Guildford, England. He qualified as a solicitor in Hong Kong and England before changing careers to finance.
As an investor, lawyer, advisor and chairman of various ventures, Patrick Tsang was always on the move, until Covid hit and the world was forced to a standstill. A hip operation last year also saw Patrick Tsang out of action for three months, giving him time to reassess his outlook on life and effect positive change.
“That immature, never say never mentality changes as you get older,” reveals Tsang. “You evolve to the point where it is not about me beating you, it is about me beating myself.”
It also gave Tsang the motivation to start a not for profit, social impact project.
“We had two years of social unrest in Hong Kong, very similar to Northern Ireland, and I had a lot of young people asking for advice on what to study, how to buy a house in Hong Kong, etc. At the end of the day, you can’t blame other people or the environment for your situation, it’s all to do with your own attitude. We can’t change the circumstances of the environment around us, all we can do is change ourselves and our attitude. Most of the time, successful people prevail in times of adversity.”

Patrick Tsang interviewing Lord of the Dance star Michael Flatley at the Monaco Streaming Film Festival 2021

In order to share these stories of success with as wide an audience as possible, Patrick Tsang created a podcast, interviewing celebrities, influencers and successful entrepreneurs. Titled ‘Anything is Possible’, the podcast now boasts over 60 episodes of one hour with personalities including venture capitalist Tim Draper, Bitcoin titan Brock Pierce, and former White House Director of Communications Anthony Scaramucci.
“There are others who are not perhaps as well-known but have very interesting stories, like a 24-year-old Indian lady called Dr Malvika Iyer, an international motivational speaker, social worker and disability rights activist who suffered a bomb blast at the age of 13 and lost both her arms.
“We also interviewed Adam Cheyer, handpicked by Steve Jobs and founder of Apple’s Siri. He’s also the founder of change.org which has had over five billion users since it began and has been instrumental in women’s rights movements.”
The interviews can be viewed on the ‘Anything is Possible Podcast’ channel on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts as well as DeFiance Media, a digital network broadcasting coverage of decentralised culture, finance and technology.
Patrick Tsang affirms he has no agenda with his podcast, apart from helping people.
“The objective is youth empowerment and education. I believe the same as my great grandfather, and the generations that came after him, that education is the key to everything,” says Tsang.  “If we can help one, five, 10 young people, then they can have a multiplying effect of helping other people in issues like sustainability, climate change, food shortages… there are so many problems that need to be resolved and only the young can change them. The young generation is our future and if we channel the right energy and resources, Anything is Possible.”
 
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