Top 10 Oscar Winners 2021

The 93rd Annual Academy Awards were presented on Sunday night, April 25. So who won in this most unusual year?

“Nomadland” won Best Picture at the Golden Globes, Critics Choice Awards, Producers Guild Awards, BAFTA Awards, and Independent Spirit Awards, while its filmmaker Chloe Zhao was feted by the Directors Guild.

What do you think of the winners, and did any of them take you by surprise? Check out the list of winners below.

 

1.“Nomadland” – A woman embarks on a journey through the American West after losing everything during the recession. A poetic character study on the forgotten and downtrodden, Nomadland beautifully captures the restlessness left in the wake of the Great Recession.

AWARDS: Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress: Frances McDormand, Peter Spears, Mollye Asher, Dan Janvey and Chloé Zhao

 

2.“Minari” -- Led by arresting performances from Steven Yeun and Yeri Han, Minari offers an intimate and heart-wrenching portrait of family and assimilation in 1980s America, following a Korean-American family that moves to a tiny Arkansas farm in search of their own American Dream

AWARDS: Best Actor: Yuh-Jung Youn

 

3.“The Father” – Led by stellar performances and artfully helmed by writer-director Florian Zeller, this film is a devastatingly empathetic portrayal of dementia, by Anthony Hopkins, a 80-year-old mischievous man , living defiantly alone and rejecting the carers that his daughter,

AWARDS: Best Actor & Best Supporting Actor:  Anthony Hopkins, Christopher Hampton, and Florian Zeller

 

4.“Promising Young Woman” -- Nothing in Cassie's life is what it appears to be -- she's wickedly smart, tantalizingly cunning, and she's living a secret double life by night. A boldly provocative, timely thriller, Promising Young Woman is an auspicious feature debut for writer-director Emerald Fennell -- and a career highlight for Carey Mulligan.

AWARDS: Best Original Screenplay: Emerald Fennell

 

5. “Mank” -- 1930s Hollywood is reevaluated through the eyes of scathing wit and alcoholic screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz as he races to finish "Citizen Kane." Sharply written and brilliantly performed, Mank peers behind the scenes of Citizen Kane to tell an old Hollywood story that could end up being a classic in its own right.

AWARDS: Best Cinematography & Best Production Design: Donald Graham Burt, Jan Pascale and Erik Messerschmidt

 

6. “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” --  In 1920s Chicago as a band of musicians await trailblazing performer, the legendary “Mother of the Blues,” Ma Rainey framed by a pair of powerhouse performances,  pays affectionate tribute to a blues legend -- and Black culture at large. 

AWARDS:  Best Costume Design, Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Ann Roth, Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Mia Neal and Jamika Wilson.

 

7. “Sound of Metal” – During a series of adrenaline-fueled one-night gigs, itinerant punk-metal drummer Ruben (Riz Ahmed) begins to experience intermittent hearing loss. An evocative look at the experiences of the deaf community, brought to life by Riz Ahmed's passionate performance.

AWARDS: Best Film Editing & Best Sound: Mikkel E.G. Nielsen, Nicolas Becker, Jaime Baksht, Michelle Couttolenc, Carlos Cortés, Phillip Bladh.

 

8. “Soul” – Joe is a middle-school band teacher whose life hasn't quite gone the way he expected. But when he travels to another realm to help someone find their passion, he soon discovers what it means to have soul.

A film as beautiful to contemplate as it is to behold, Soul proves Pixar's power to deliver outstanding all-ages entertainment remains undimmed.

AWARDS: Best Animated Feature & Best Original Score:  Pete Docter and Dana Murray Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste.

 

9. “Judas and the Black Messiah” -- FBI informant William O'Neal infiltrates the Illinois Black Panther Party and is tasked with keeping tabs on their charismatic leader, Chairman Fred Hampton. An electrifying dramatization of historical events, this film is a forceful condemnation of racial injustice -- and a major triumph for its director and stars.

AWARDS: Best Original Song:  “Fight for You” from— H.E.R., Dernst Emile II, Tiara Thomas.

 

10. “Tenet”— A secret agent embarks on a dangerous, time-bending mission to prevent the start of World War III. A visually dazzling puzzle for film lovers to unlock, Tenet serves up all the cerebral spectacle audiences expect from a Christopher Nolan production 

AWARDS: Best Visual Effects -- Andrew Jackson, David Lee, Andrew Lockley, Scott Fisher

 

 

 

 

DEFINING YOUR BRAND STRATEGY

“Be Active, Aggressive, and Attentive to Strategize the Growth of Your Brand.”- DRKKJOHAN

Brand development is the process of creating and strengthening your professional Brand. 

The process can be divided into three parts:

1. Get your Brand strategy right and aligned with your business objectives.

2. Develop all the tools you need to communicate the Brand, such as your logo, tagline, and websites.

3. Finally, Strengthen your newly developed or updated Brand.

Your Brand development strategy is how you go about accomplishing these tasks.

SpaceX rocketship launches 4 astronauts on NASA mission to space station

 

SpaceX has successfully launched its Crew-2 mission, carrying four humans to the International Space Station (ISS) for NASA on the U.S. company’s third human spaceflight.

The Falcon 9 rocket carrying the crew aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft lifted off today, Friday, April 23 from Cape Canaveral in Florida at 5:49 A.M. EDT.

The vehicle lifted off in the darkness of the early morning, soaring into the skies above Florida on its way to the orbiting space station.

On board were NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, along with Japan’s Akihiko Hoshide and ESA’s Thomas Pesquet, the first European to fly with SpaceX.

“Watching a human spaceflight launch will never get old,” said NASA Acting Administrator, Steve Jurczyk, following the launch. “It was just spectacular.”

Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) is an American aerospace manufacturer and space transportation services company headquartered in Hawthorne, California.

 It was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk with the goal of reducing space transportation costs to enable the colonization of Mars. SpaceX manufactures the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch vehicles, several rocket engines, Dragon cargo and crew spacecraft and Starlink satellites.

For more info, visit: https://www.spacex.com/

IN THE NEWS: https://www.thestar.com.my/tech/tech-news/2021/04/23/spacex-rocketship-launches-4-astronauts-on-nasa-mission-to-space-station

BRANDING TIP #8: Brand Building is a Never-ending Process.

 BRANDING TIP #8:  Brand Building is a Never-ending Process.

Branding is not a one-day effort or a short-term investment. It will take a lot more than a team of marketing experts and a marketing budget to turn your company into a trusted Brand of the people.

Just like you have to keep adding elements to your website to keep it usable and relevant, your Brand identity also needs to evolve. Here’s how:

·        Pay attention to altering your brand strategy whenever your customers demand for a fresh new look.

·        Invest in market surveys and customer feedbacks like other successful Brands have done over the ages.

·        Overhaul your Brand image. For example, Coca-Cola has changed its logo over the last 130 years to appeal to the masses all over the world

 

 

THE WORLD'S TOP 10 CITIES OF 2021

There are plenty of lists out there ranking the world’s best cities, but Resonance, a consultancy group in real estate, tourism, and economic development, wanted to create a ranking that was more comprehensive.

Chris Fair, president, and CEO of Resonance Consultancy said: “When we say ‘best cities,’ it’s not just the best city to live in, it’s not just the best city to work or the best city to visit. It’s taking a cross-section of all those factors.”

And this year, considering how the city responded to the COVID-19 pandemic re-released the World's Best Cities of 2021 list which includes considerations like  -- outdoor experiences, clean air, and the ability to innovate.

With all of those things factored in, here’s how the rankings of the world’s best cities landed for the 2021 report.

1. London, England -- is still London and the pandemic has made us value other aspects of city life-critical things, like cool, breathable air, which is made possible by a city’s trees and its green, open landscapes.

2. New York City, United States --- is, above all, a gathering place where brains and bodies in indecent proximity to one another create the sparks of genius, invention, progress. Today New Yorkers stand at the ready, together and alone, on their stoops and balconies ready to defend their city.

3. Paris, France -- The Notre-Dame fire was a devastating reminder of how well-loved Paris is by travelers worldwide, and as the capital gears up for the 2024 Olympics, it’s only getting better. Improved infrastructure and 24 new hotels in the past year alone add to a city we love for its world-class art, shopping and global cuisine.

4. Moscow, Russia -- The Russian capital is well known for its iconic attractions like Red Square’s colorful St. Basil’s Cathedral, beside Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International was recently named the most on-time airport in the world.

5. Tokyo, Japan -- Despite earthquakes, tsunamis and typhoons, Tokyo grabbed the #1 spot for safety. There is so much to explore and discover at all hours of the night. Tokyo continues to mesmerize global visitors with its innovation, efficiency and round-the-clock kinetic mobility.

6. Dubai, United Arab Emirates – may be associated with its record-setting skyscrapers. Santiago Calatrava’s Tower will surpass the Burj Khalifa as the tallest building in the world when it is completed, but it’s the outdoors attractions  – including man-made islands, a nature-inspired shopping mall with a rooftop park and 200,000 total square feet of open-air gardens to explore.

7. Singapore -- The city-state continues its ascent among the planet’s most prosperous cities.  The Little Red Dot, as the city-state is affectionately called, earned its top spot for its famous hawker stall street food, its garden-like airport terminal, and newly renovated (and reopened) Raffles Singapore hotel, which has been welcoming travelers since 1887.

8. Barcelona, Spain --  is an almost ideal European city, one with near-perfect weather year-round, miles and miles of beaches, iconic parks,  Gaudí’s architectural landmarks, and colorful neighborhoods that march to their own beat—artistic, sophisticated, bohemian.

9. Los Angeles, United States  -- L.A. welcomed more than 50 million visitors in 2019, from across the globe to the city’s beaches, movie studios, museums, and star-spotting potential. But Los Angeles has also undergone a culinary renaissance, with an abundance of rooftop bars and restaurants  from West Hollywood, to Venice Beach and Echo Park.

10. Madrid, Spain -- The city’s  dazzling museums have reopened at reduced capacity—and with recent expansions to the Prado, Reina Sofia and Thyssen-Bornemisza, now you can stroll its wide boulevards or wander down the halls of the Reina Sofia, or Prado museums.

 

 

DRKK SUCCESS QUOTEl BE A GLOBAL BRAND

 “Be a Global Brand.” – DRKKJOHAN

GLOBAL brands are products or services that are recognized worldwide. A good global reputation will attract new customers.

One of the reasons why businesses expand globally is to be able to provide a reliable service to their international clients.

A Brand's position refers to the way that customers and prospects perceive it, relative to the other Brands in the same category.

Companies that promote global branding use the same, or similar marketing strategy to promote their Brand everywhere it is offered -- regardless of the country or region.

BE A NATION OF BIG BRANDS WITH THE BRANDLAUREATE AWARDS.

For more info, go to our website at: https://www.thebrandlaureate.com/

 

 

HAPPY 58th BIRTHDAY TAN SRI NOOR HISHAM

The BrandLaureate wishes a Happy and Blessed 58thBirthday to Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, the Health

Director-General from the Ministry of Health Malaysia.

May you have a great day today, and the year ahead with many

blessings.

On July 17, 2020, Noor Hisham was awarded The BrandLaureate

“Outstanding BrandLeadership Award 2020” for his heroic leadership

in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic in the country.

Noor Hisham’s award presentation was featured at The BrandLaureate’s

First e-Branding Awards 2020 on August 10 last year.

The award was dedicated to the commitment, sacrifice, and resilience

of every individual in the Ministry of Health and agencies to provide the

best healthcare service for the rakyat and nation.

The BrandLaureate Awards will always stand as a worthy recognition to

Noor Hisham and his team of front liners from the Ministry of Health Malaysia

for their commitment and sacrifice in saving lives and bringing healing to the

nation.

We pray that you will stay strong and persistent in the fight against Covid-19

in the country, to lead the nation forward to emerge victorious in the war

against the invisible enemy.