A female Saudi film-maker won an award for best drama at the Saudi Film Festival, the chief juror said Wednesday, hailing a higher quality of entries despite the kingdom's cinema ban.

The five-day festival was only the second in seven years, and aired films at an arts and cultural centre in the Gulf coast city of Dammam.

Giuliana Rancic is apologizing to Zendaya and others offended by Rancic's "Fashion Police" jab at the actress-singer's Oscar-night dreadlocks.

On "E! News" Tuesday, Rancic said the reaction to her comments has increased her awareness of, in her words, "cliches and stereotypes."

U2 faced such a backlash over its free album that the band apologized, but the Irish superstars claimed vindication Tuesday as research showed its music dominated iTunes listening.

U2's "Songs of Innocence" was automatically sent to the world's half billion iTunes customers as a promotion for the new iPhone 6, leading to so many complaints that Apple set up a special webpage on how to delete the album.

R&B star Chris Brown, notorious for brushes with the law including an assault on then-girlfriend Rihanna, ditched a performance Tuesday in Canada at the 11th hour after he was barred entry.

"Unfortunately I will not be able to perform in front of sold-out crowds in Montreal and Toronto," the controversial U.S. singer wrote on Twitter.

Jazz musicians from around the world will gather this April in Paris for International Jazz Day, an event UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Herbie Hancock hopes will bring an uplifting "positive message" to a city still reeling from last month's terrorist attacks.

Hancock and UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova announced Wednesday that Paris had been selected to be the global host city for the fourth annual International Jazz Day on April 30.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences issued a statement Monday acknowledging the complaints that Joan Rivers was not featured in the "In Memoriam" tribute during Sunday night's Oscar ceremony.

"Joan Rivers is among the many worthy artists and filmmakers we were unfortunately unable to feature in the In Memoriam segment of this year's Oscar show. She is, however, included in our In Memoriam gallery on Oscar.com," the statement said.

Racy bondage flick "Fifty Shades of Grey" kept its spot atop the North American box office this weekend, a week after scoring the biggest February opening ever, industry data showed Monday.

The erotic tale of billionaire Christian Grey (Jamie Dornan) and his sadomasochistic relationship with college graduate Anastasia Steele (Dakota Johnson) grabbed $22.3 million, according to box office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

TV ratings for the Oscars' U.S. broadcast fell 16 percent from last year, according to figures published Monday, amid lukewarm reviews and criticism for its first-time host Neil Patrick Harris.

Sunday night's show averaged 36.6 million viewers, down from 43.7 million in 2014, according to Nielsen ratings cited by industry journal Variety, which noted that the total viewer count was the lowest in six years.

London Fashion Week draws to a close on Tuesday after five days that have showcased an eclectic range of talent, from luxury brands to rising stars.

Here are five themes from the autumn/winter 2015 collections.

Sean Penn's remark about Mexican-born Oscar-winner Alejandro Inarritu's immigration status at the end of Sunday's Academy Awards telecast struck many as an insult, but the director says it was nothing more than a brutal joke between old friends.

In announcing the win for "Birdman," Penn asked, "Who gave this son of a bitch his green card? Birdman."