Mendes wins best artist at MTV

Cabello bags best pop artist

LONDON, Nov 13, (AFP): Canadian teen singer Shawn Mendes on Sunday won best artist and best song at the MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA) in London, pipping heavyweight competitors such as Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus and Ed Sheeran.

The awards ceremony at Wembley Arena, the first to be staged in the British capital in 20 years, were hosted by Rita Ora and featured performances by U2 and David Guetta.

In a first for the EMAs, which were created in 1994, MTV announced categories stripped of gender in a bid to “break barriers”.

Mendes, 19, who launched his career by posting song covers to the internet before getting signed to a record label, also scooped the “biggest fans” award.

He performed the track that won him best song — “There’s Nothing Holding Me Back” — in front of an electrified crowd in London.

Eminem, who opened the show by unveiling his new single “Walk on Water” — ahead of the release on Friday of his latest album “Revival” — won for best hip hop artist.

Cuban-American singer Camila Cabello was honoured with the best pop prize, while Coldplay snatched the best rock award.

French DJ David Guetta, who performed in front of the youthful crowd, won for best electronic act.

Taylor Swift, who was expected to be one of the big winners of the night with six nominations, failed to win any awards.

The majority of the winners were picked by music fans in an online vote, from 12 categories listed and a further 32 separate prizes for different countries and regions.

Louis Tomlinson, from the boy band One Direction, landed the best UK and Ireland act.

The best video, claimed by US rapper Kendrick Lamar, was one of the few awards to be chosen by the MTV team.

Other big-name winners included Ed Sheeran, for best live act, and Dua

Vahid Jalilvand for his feature film “No Date, No Signature”. (AFP)

LOS ANGELES:

Poland’s Camerimage cinematography fest, which kicked off Saturday, will honor Paula Wagner with its prize for “producer with unique visual sensitivity,” in recognition for her work on such films as “Mission: Impossible” and other partnerships with co-producer Tom Cruise.

With four decades of work, starting with projects such as Alejandro Amenabar’s Lipa, for best new performer.

Thirty Seconds to Mars were named best alternative.

Irish band U2 collected MTV’s “Global Icon” gong, previously awarded to Queen, Whitney Houston and Eminem.

Impact

“U2’s impact on music, pop culture and social issues around the world has been tremendous,” said Bruce Gillmer, producer of the awards ceremony.

“For over four decades and counting, they’ve entertained, influenced, and inspired fans around the globe,” he added.

U2 performed in London’s Trafalgar Square the night before the MTV awards, along with DJ Guetta, to a crowd of 7,000 who won free tickets in a ballot.

This year saw the MTV Europe Music Awards return to London for the first time since 1996.

British singer and actress Rita Ora took charge of the ceremony and also turned in a popular stage performance.

The cable channel also runs the Video Music Awards which are renowned for top performances and the occasional controversy, including pop diva Lady Gaga wearing a dress made of meat to the ceremony in 2010.

The previous Video Music Awards saw hip hop artist Kanye West leap on stage to interrupt an acceptance speech by Swift and argue that Beyonce was better.

The show, formerly known as the MTV Europe Music Awards, opened with a clip of Eminem performing his new single “Walk on Water” in a London pub. He then emerged onstage in jeans and a black hoodie to perform the slow-burning number live, with Skylar Gray filling in on the duet duties Beyoncé performed on the recording.

“I don’t know how I got this because I haven’t had an album out in a few years,” he said.

The show featured plenty of visual dazzle, from the 50 dancers accompanying Demi Lovato on “Sorry Not Sorry” and “Tell me You Love Me” to the giant animatronic bird carrying

chiller “The Others” and Billy Ray’s journalist drama “Shattered Glass,” the former actress built her career via agency work, repping talents such as Sean Penn, Val Kilmer, Demi Moore and Liam Neeson while at the Creative Artists Agency.

In 1993, she launched Cruise/Wagner Productions, which took on the film adaptation of the hit ’70s TV suspense series “Mission: Impossible,” launching the franchise that continues to roll along. Cruise and Wagner also worked on Cameron Crowe’s mystery Travis Scott onto the stage.

Singer Camila Cabello, who won the best-pop prize, performed “Havana” with a troupe of dancers dressed as bathing beauties around a realistic projection of a pool. London grime artist Stormzy arrived in a police car and left in a blaze of fireworks after performing the rousing “Big For Your Boots.”

Performers ranged across genres and generations, and included singersongwriter Kesha, electronic act Clean Bandit, rapper French Montana, rockers The Killers and former One Direction heartthrob Liam Payne.

Kendrick Lamar won best video for “Humble,” a lavish clip laced with religious and art-history imagery.

British singer-songwriter Dua Lipa was named best new artist.

Apart from the occasional hint of marijuana smoke wafting across the arena, there were few of the unscripted-feeling moments that made past shows stick in the memory. There was no equivalent of Kanye West crashing the stage after losing in 2006 or Miley Cyrus smoking a joint in Amsterdam in 2013.

The awards are held in a different European city each year, with winners selected by fans across the continent. Next year’s ceremony will be held in Bilbao, Spain.

Winners

Best Artist: Shawn Mendes Best Song: “There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me Back” By Shawn Mendes

Best Video: “Humble” By Kendrick Lamar Best Pop Artist: Camila Cabello

Best Electronic Artist: David Guetta Best Rock Artist: Coldplay Best Hip Hop Artist: Eminem Best Alternative Artist: 30 Seconds To Mars Best Live Artist: Ed Sheeran Best New Artist: Dua Lipa Best Look: Zayn Malik Biggest Fans: Shawn Mendes Best Push Artist: Hailee Steinfeld Best World Stage: The Chainsmokers

Global Icon: U2

romance “Vanilla Sky,” based on Amenabar’s “Abre los ojos.” (RTRS)

LOS ANGELES:

The Australian Academy has revoked an award to Harvey Weinstein that it intended to give the now scandal hit producer in 2013 - but never actually presented.

Weinstein was named as the first recipient of an outreach award at a time when the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) was stepping up its international profile. The awards presentation did not go ahead.

“In November 2013, AACTA announced Weinstein as the inaugural AACTA International Fellowship recipient in acknowledgment of his support of independent and innovative filmmaking. This award was, in fact, never actually presented - the event planned for the presentation was cancelled. However, our communications in 2013/14 did not make it clear that Weinstein no longer held the award and has rightly caused some confusion. We have now officially rescinded the offer of the award,” AACTA said in a statement. (RTRS)

LOS ANGELES:

Mexico’s first stopmotion animation feature, “Inzomnia,” is in pre-production with Luis Tellez directing and former Mexican Cinematheque director Paula Astorga and producer Milko Luis on board as producers.

Budgeted at an initial $2 million, the toon has participated in Venice’s GapFinancing Market and will next be taken to Buenos Aires confab, Ventana Sur, to be pitched in its Animation! section. (RTRS)