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    Lupita Nyong’o will head the jury at the Berlin film festival in February

    By SHOOTUpdated:No Comments751 Views
    Lupita Nyong'o poses for photographers upon arrival for the premiere of the film 'Black Panther: Wakanda Forever' in London, Thursday, Nov. 3, 2022. Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o will head the jury at the Berlin International Film Festival in February, organizers announced Monday, Dec. 11, 2023. The 2024 “Berlinale,” the first of the year's major European film festivals, will run from Feb. 15-25.(Photo by Scott Garfitt/Invision/AP, File)
    BERLIN (AP) --

    Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong'o will head the jury at the Berlin International Film Festival in February, organizers announced Monday.

    The 2024 "Berlinale," the first of the year's major European film festivals, will run from Feb. 15-25. It will be the last edition under the current leadership duo of executive director Mariette Rissenbeek and artistic director Carlo Chatrian.

    Nyong'o "embodies what we like in cinema: versatility in embracing different projects, addressing different audiences, and consistency to one idea that is quite recognizable in her characters, as diverse as they may look," the directors said in a statement.

    Nyong'o said she was "deeply honored" to serve as president of the international jury and looks forward to "celebrating and recognizing the outstanding work of filmmakers from around the world."

    The Mexican-born daughter of Kenyan parents has directed and produced as well as acting, and is the author of a children's book, "Sulwe."

    She won the Oscar for best supporting actress in 2014 for her role in "12 Years A Slave."

    Organizers typically name the rest of the jury closer to the start of the event. This year, a seven-member jury under actress Kristen Stewart chose the winners of the competition, giving the top Golden Bear award to French director Nicolas Philibert's documentary "On the Adamant."

    News of Nyong'o's appointment as jury president came the day before Germany's culture minister, Claudia Roth, plans to announce who will take over the festival from Rissenbeek and Chatrian. Roth has said the festival should in the future be led by one person.

    Tags:Berlin International Film FestivalLupita Nyong'o



    Ex-OpenAI engineer who raised legal concerns about the technology he helped build has died

    Saturday, December 21, 2024
    Suchir Balaji poses for a photo in Hawaii in 2018. Balaji was a former OpenAI engineer and whistleblower who died in November 2024. (Balaji Ramamurthy via AP)

    Suchir Balaji, a former OpenAI engineer and whistleblower who helped train the artificial intelligence systems behind ChatGPT and later said he believed those practices violated copyright law, has died, according to his parents and San Francisco officials. He was 26.

    Balaji worked at OpenAI for nearly four years before quitting in August. He was well-regarded by colleagues at the San Francisco company, where a co-founder this week called him one of OpenAI's strongest contributors who was essential to developing some of its products.

    "We are devastated to learn of this incredibly sad news and our hearts go out to Suchir's loved ones during this difficult time," said a statement from OpenAI.

    Balaji was found dead in his San Francisco apartment on Nov. 26 in what police said "appeared to be a suicide. No evidence of foul play was found during the initial investigation." The city's chief medical examiner's office confirmed the manner of death to be suicide.

    His parents Poornima Ramarao and Balaji Ramamurthy said they are still seeking answers, describing their son as a "happy, smart and brave young man" who loved to hike and recently returned from a trip with friends.

    Balaji grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and first arrived at the fledgling AI research lab for a 2018 summer internship while studying computer science at the University of California, Berkeley. He returned a few years later to work at OpenAI, where one of his first projects, called WebGPT, helped pave the way for ChatGPT.

    "Suchir's contributions to this project were essential, and it wouldn't have succeeded without him," said OpenAI co-founder John Schulman in a social media post memorializing Balaji. Schulman, who recruited Balaji to his team, said what... Read More

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