Culture Check: April 2018

If you didn’t follow the arts news this month, Creative Armenia is here to tell you about the most interesting cultural happenings in March.

March 29, 2018 | by Creative Armenia

1. Gary Oldman took home the Best Actor Oscar for Churchill, while Best Actress went to Frances McDormand for her role in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. In her speech, McDormand made female nominee at the Dolby Theatre stand up for women's empowerment.

2. That was a theme of CA's own summit at the Hammer Museum of UCLA, which brought together leading filmmakers and legal experts to discuss the intersection of human rights and entertainment. The event concluded with a stirring speech from actress Mira Sorvino as she accepted The Promise Institute Award for Contribution to Human Rights through the Arts.

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3. Meanwhile, critics didn't like the idea of casting Alicia Vikander as video game sex symbol Lara Croft in the latest adaptation of Tomb Raider. However, fans were quick to back the actress and her physique on Twitter.

4. Where you might have encountered hashtag #DeleteFacebook over the news that the data of 50 million Facebook users was used by London-based consultancy group Cambridge Analytica. Zuckerberg issued his latest apology for a breach of trust between Facebook and its users.

5. A new Banksy mural in New York brought light to the continued persecution of artists in Turkey. The mural depicts artist Zehra Dogan, who was sentenced to 2 years and 10 months in prison for painting the city of Nusaybin in a damaged condition.

6. Harper Lee sued Aaron Sorkin from beyond the grave. Her estate claims that Aaron Sorkin's Broadway adaptation of Lee's novel To Kill a Mockingbird is too unfaithful to the original.

7. 45 years after The Exorcist, director William Friedkin released the trailer of his new film, which features footage from a real-life exorcism. The Devil and Father Amorth is a feature documentary set for release on April 20.