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NEW YORK (AP) — Shortly before he was to be flogged and imprisoned for eight years, Mohammad Rasoulof fled Iran. His weekslong journey would take him from Tehran, through rural Iranian villages, on foot across a mountainous borderland and ultimately to Hamburg, Germany. As arduous and dangerous as the trip was, Rasoulof’s travels had an added wrinkle: He was trying to finish a movie at the same time. A week after arriving in Germany, Rasoulof would premiere his film, “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” at the Cannes Film Festival in France. As he fled, Rasoulof was preoccupied with the movie’s edit, which was being carried out in Germany. “I remember when I was sitting in the car that was driving me to the border,” Rasoulof says. “I had my laptop and I was taking notes and sending them to my editor. The two friends who were taking me kept saying, ‘Put that thing away for a second.’” In Cannes, “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” won a special jury prize and Rasoulof was celebrated with a 13-minute standing ovation. The movie has since been hailed as one of the best of the year, and arguably its most daring. Rasoulof made “Sacred Fig” clandestinely in Iran, directing scenes from a separate location to avoid raising suspicions. (The opening titles read: “When there is no way, a way must be made.”) Its story — a devastating family drama set during the 2022 protests that engulfed Iran — would surely only add to Rasoulof’s prison sentence. So after all of this, how is he feeling? When he recently met with The Associated Press for an interview, Rasoulof shrugged. “Ordinary,” he says. Rasoulof, 52, has a more gentle, bemused presence than some of his films would suggest. But how could Rasoulof, after what he’s lived through this year, feel anything like ordinary? “I still haven’t grasped the meaning of exile,” he explains. “I think it will take some time. The feeling of that void has not hit me yet, and I think it may never come.” Rasoulof has been busy traveling from film festival to film festival. In September, he and his 24-year-old daughter attended the Telluride festival in Colorado. Many more such stops were to come. Since fleeing Iran, Rasoulof has effectively been immersed in the world he’s long known: cinema. “Maybe I am living in the world of cinema, and maybe that’s why things are so familiar,” he agrees. “Maybe that’s why I don’t feel I’m in exile.” “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” currently playing in theaters, is the Oscar submission from Rasoulof’s adoptive home, Germany. He’s settled in with his family, grateful for how the country has welcomed him. Speaking through an interpreter, Rasoulof grants that he’ll probably always mentally have a bag packed, ready to return to Iran should the chance ever come. But what “home” constitutes has changed for him. “I might be able to change this concept of home for myself,” he says. “I walk on the streets here and I see people of different colors and forms from all over the place, and they all call this place home. So there’s always the chance that one can build something new.” How oppressive politics can infiltrate the home is central to “The Seed of the Sacred Fig.” It concerns a family of four: Iman (Missagh Zareh), a lawyer newly appointed to the Revolutionary Court in Tehran; his wife, Najmeh (Soheila Golestani) and their two daughters, Rezvan (Mahsa Rostami) and Sana (Setareh Maleki). Iman is proud of his high position, but, when the government crackdown on protesters following the death of Mahsa Amini accelerates, his daughters are increasingly at odds with him. After Iman's gun goes missing, his wife and daughters turn into suspects. “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” populated with real cellphone videos from the protests, plays out as an excruciating microcosm of Iranian society. “It wasn’t like I put those videos in. They just came in,” says Rasoulof. “The reality is that it was through those videos I realized what happened. When the Woman, Life, Freedom movement occurred, I was in prison.” Rasoulof has spent several spells in Tehran’s Evin Prison. In 2010, he was arrested on set for filming without a permit. In 2022, he was jailed for seven months after pursuing the release of another of Iran’s most prominent filmmakers, Jafar Panahi. Panahi, who secretly made the film “No Bears,” was only released in 2023 after commencing a hunger strike. “My windows at home opened to the hills that have the Evin prison in them,” says Rasoulof. “I knew behind those walls many of my friends were sitting.” Rasoulof, inspired by the courage of the younger generation, resolved to pour the same spirit into “The Seed of the Sacred Fig.” Although it wasn’t until Rasoulof’s appeal of his sentence failed that he resolved to flee, he grants that deciding to make “Sacred Fig” essentially sealed his fate. “Making this film was part of that decision,” he says. “Although I had made up my mind earlier, because it was such a bitter decision, I was denying it and delaying it, waiting for a miracle to allow me to stay.” “I would open the fridge to make sure there was nothing there that would go bad,” he adds. “It was a strange circumstance.” For the film's actors and crew members, signing up for the movie meant also becoming co-conspirators. Everyone knew the risks. And, like Rasoulof, many of them have since left Iran. Rostami and Maleki also now live in Germany. Asked if his collaborators are all currently safe, Rasoulof responds: “No one is safe from the Islamic Republic.” In his new life, Rasoulof is experiencing freedoms he never had in Iran. His films, for example, are widely available outside his native country but not in Iran. His prize-winning 2020 drama “There Is No Evil,” about capital punishment in Iran, is banned — though, ironically, Rasoulof’s prison guards enjoyed watching it with him from a flash drive. “I haven’t seen many of my films on a big screen, especially my last film,” he says. “I really want to see ‘There Is No Evil’ on a big screen. A festival in Portugal has promised to take me to see my own film.” The name of Rasoulof’s film comes from his memory of an ancient fig tree he once visited on an island in the south of Iran. It’s a tree that, with apparent metaphorical meaning for the Iranian government, spreads its seeds onto other trees, killing them and growing in their place. Rasoulof pulls out his phone to share a photo of his apartment in Tehran. Outside a large window, you can see the walls of Evin running along a craggy hillside. Inside are many houseplants. “This is my home,” he says. “I have a lot of plants. I really miss my plants. I have a neighbor who takes care of them for me. I actually have a fig tree at home.”

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FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Navy quarterback Blake Horvath read the play perfectly and turned it into the longest in school history, a 95-yard touchdown run in the Armed Forces Bowl. “By somebody that’s not really that fast,” Horvath said after the 21-20 win over Oklahoma on Friday. The Midshipmen (10-3) fell behind by two touchdowns less than 10 minutes into the game, but Horvath's record run late in the third quarter tied the game at 14-all. He put them ahead on a 6-yard TD with 4:34 left before Navy’s defense stopped an Oklahoma 2-point conversion with six seconds left in the game. “Probably over-pursued by them,” Horvath said of the 95-yarder. “Some tendencies they showed earlier, just thought I could get a pull.” After faking a handoff on the read-option play, Horvath ran straight up the middle into the open field. Brandon Chatman cut off a pursing defender around the Sooners 20. By time another defender, cornerback Woodi Washington, was able to catch up and started to bring him down, Horvath stretched the ball over the goal line — though he was initially ruled short before a replay review resulted in the touchdown. “Brandon Chatman actually busted his tail to get his butt down the field,” Horvath said. “I can see him out of the corner of my eye busting his butt. And honestly, it’s almost not even my touchdown without him and the offensive line blocking.” The previous longest play for the Midshipmen came during the Roger Staubach era, when Johnny Sai had a 93-yard run against Duke in 1963. Horvath also had a 90-yard TD run against Memphis, making him only the second Navy player with two 90-yard runs in the same season. The other was quarterback Malcolm Perry in 2017, when he had runs of 92 and 91 yards. “That’s a play we know can hit big and it did, and definitely exciting to see,” fullback Alex Tecza said. “I was getting tired just chasing him. ... It's great. He's being doing that all year.” Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-footballTrump’s promises to conservatives raise fears of more book bans in US

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As part of a national “moonshot” to cure blindness, researchers at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus will receive as much as $46 million in federal funding over the next five years to pursue a first-of-its-kind full eye transplantation. “This is no easy undertaking, but I believe we can achieve this together,” said Dr. Kia Washington, the lead researcher for the University of Colorado-led team, during a press conference Monday. “And in fact I’ve never been more hopeful that a cure for blindness is within reach.” The CU team was one of four in the United States that received funding awards from the federal Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health , or ARPA-H. The CU-based group will focus on achieving the first-ever vision-restoring eye transplant by using “novel stem cell and bioelectronic technologies,” according to a news release announcing the funding. The work will be interdisciplinary, Washington and others said, and will link together researchers at institutions across the country. The four teams that received the funding will work alongside each other on distinct approaches, though officials said the teams would likely collaborate and eventually may merge depending on which research avenues show the most promise toward achieving the ultimate goal of transplanting an eye and curing blindness. Dr. Calvin Roberts, who will oversee the broader project for ARPA-H, said the agency wanted to take multiple “shots on goal” to ensure progress. “In the broader picture, achieving this would be probably the most monumental task in medicine within the last several decades,” said Dr. Daniel Pelaez of the University of Miami’s Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, which also received ARPA-H funding. Pelaez is the lead investigator for that team, which has pursued new procedures to successfully remove and preserve eyes from donors, amid other research. He told The Denver Post that only four organ systems have not been successfully transplanted: the inner ear, the brain, the spinal cord and the eye. All four are part of the central nervous system, which does not repair itself when damaged. If researchers can successfully transplant the human eye and restore vision to the patient, it might help unlock deeper discoveries about repairing damage to the brain and spine, Pelaez said, as well as addressing hearing loss. To succeed, researchers must successfully remove and preserve eyes from donors and then successfully connect and repair the optical nerve, which takes information from the eye and tells the brain what the eye sees. A team at New York University performed a full eye transplant on a human patient in November 2023, though the procedure — while a “remarkable achievement,” Pelaez said — did not restore the patient’s vision. It was also part of a partial face transplant; other approaches pursued via the ARPA-H funding will involve eye-specific transplants. Washington, the lead CU researcher, said she and her colleagues have already completed the eye transplant procedure — albeit without vision restoration — in rats. The CU team will next work on large animals to advance “optic nerve regenerative strategies,” the school said, as well as to study immunosuppression, which is critical to ensuring that patients’ immune systems don’t reject a donated organ. The goal is to eventually advance to human trials. Pelaez and his colleagues have completed their eye-removal procedure in cadavers, he said, and they’ve also studied regeneration in several animals that are capable of regenerating parts of their eyes, like salamanders or zebra fish. His team’s funding will focus in part on a life-support machine for the eye to keep it healthy and viable during the removal process. InGel Therapeutics, a Massachusetts-based Harvard spinoff and the lead of a third team, will pursue research on 3-D printed technology and “micro-tunneled scaffolds” that carry certain types of stem cells as part of a focus on optical nerve regeneration and repair, ARPA-H said. ARPH-A, created two years ago, will oversee the teams’ work. Researchers at 52 institutions nationwide will also contribute to the teams. The CU-led group will include researchers from the University of Southern California, the University of Wisconsin, Indiana University and Johns Hopkins University, as well as from the National Eye Institute . The teams will simultaneously compete and collaborate: Pelaez said his team has communicated with researchers at CU and at Stanford, another award recipient, about their eye-removal research. The total funding available for the teams is $125 million, ARPA-H officials said Monday, and it will be distributed in phases, in part dependent on teams’ success. U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, a Democrat who represents Denver in Congress, acknowledged the recent election results at the press conference Monday and pledged to continue fighting to preserve ARPA-H’s funding under President-elect Donald Trump’s administration. The effort to cure blindness, Washington joked, was “biblical” in its enormity — a reference to the Bible story in which Jesus cures a blind man. She and others also likened it to a moonshot, meaning the effort to successfully put Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon nearly 50 years ago. If curing blindness is similar to landing on the moon, then the space shuttle has already left the launchpad, Washington said. “We have launched,” she said, “and we are on our trajectory.”Brock Purdy and Nick Bosa are not available for the San Francisco 49ers when they enter Green Bay with designs on finding their finishing kick on Sunday afternoon. Purdy is out with a right shoulder injury and won't leave the sideline at Lambeau Field, head coach Kyle Shanahan said Friday, when he also declared Bosa out and confirmed journeyman Brandon Allen would make his 10th career start at quarterback. "Outside of here people haven't seen a lot of Brandon. But it's his second year (with the 49ers)," Shanahan said. "Obviously guys want Brock up, but guys are excited to see Brandon play." Shanahan said the 49ers are "a little surprised" Purdy experienced tightness and discomfort in his shoulder after an MRI exam on Monday that showed no long-term cause for concern. "The way it responded this week, it's really up in the air for next week," Shanahan said of Purdy's long-term prognosis. Allen's last NFL start on the road was with the Bengals at the Ravens in 2020. Allen completed 6 of 21 passes for 48 yards with two interceptions. He finished with a passer rating of 0.0 in a 38--3 loss. "It's definitely an opportunity for me to go out and play well and put our guys in a good position to win the game," Allen said Friday. "And obviously we want Brock back and healthy and all that, but for time being, it is an opportunity for me." Purdy took the practice field Thursday with the intent to participate. His shoulder tightened significantly, and the 49ers ushered him off the field to meet with trainers. Purdy beat the Packers in the NFC divisional playoffs at San Francisco in January, but Allen is familiar to Packers head coach Matt LaFleur. LaFleur was an assistant coach with the Rams during Allen's two-year run in Los Angeles. Allen broke into the NFL in 2016 with the Jaguars and is 2-7 in nine career starts. He went 1-2 with the Broncos in 2019 and 1-5 in six starts over two years with the Bengals in 2020 and ‘21. A victory against the visiting 49ers on Sunday would bolster the Packers' playoff chances, send a conference rival below .500 and avenge a bitter playoff defeat. Those seemingly rank in no particular order for the Packers (8-3), although they don't shy from living at least partially in the past ahead of a Week 12 showdown. San Francisco eliminated Green Bay 24-21 in the NFC divisional playoffs last season, scoring 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. "That's what you've got to sit with all offseason, is going back, watching the game, trying to see what you could have done better," Packers quarterback Jordan Love said. "What you could have done differently in that game. ... Just knowing that's the team that knocked us out, we're definitely hungry for this game." Ditto for San Francisco. The 49ers fell to 5-5 after last week's 20-17 home loss to Seattle, done in by Geno Smith's 13-yard touchdown run with 12 seconds to play. Still only a game behind NFC West-leading Arizona, the reigning conference champion 49ers are just 1-3 in division play and can ill afford to lose more ground. A visit to AFC East leader Buffalo awaits after the trip to Green Bay. While they're dealing with plenty of not-so-good news on the injury front, the 49ers do anticipate the return of other contributors. Cornerback Charvarius Ward, who missed the past two games following the death of his 1-year-old daughter, practiced Wednesday. Tight end George Kittle also is eager to play after a nagging hamstring injury sidelined him against the Seahawks. "Very excited," Kittle said. "Can't pass up playing the Packers, so no, I will be out there for sure." Allen was a three-year starter at Arkansas but has been a journeyman backup since entering the NFL in 2016 as the 201st overall pick of the Jaguars. Shanahan and LaFleur have been fierce competitors since twice working together, first as low-level assistants with the Texans in 2008, then on the so-called "dream team" staff in Washington that also included Sean McVay, Mike McDaniel and Raheem Morris; and two seasons with the Falcons (2015, 2016) where LaFleur was quarterbacks coach and Shanahan called the plays. Shanahan scored the most recent win over LaFleur in January. Green Bay has won seven of the past eight regular-season meetings between the franchises. But the familiarity and shared-brain approach to offense that has the coaches completed each other's play calls has led to some tight games. The past three at Lambeau Field were all decided by three points. Green Bay, which hosts a home game on Thanksgiving next Thursday, is starting a run of three games in 12 days. They'll play back-to-back Thursday games. Their Week 14 game is at Detroit. That might make it good news for LaFleur that surprising contributors have emerged of late. Packers wideout Christian Watson had a career-best 150 receiving yards on only four catches during last week's 20-19 road win against the Chicago Bears. His diving 60-yard reception in the fourth quarter put the Packers in position for Love's go-ahead, 1-yard scoring run with 2:59 to play. Watson entered the game with eight catches for 83 yards over his previous three contests, but LaFleur assured Watson remains a "big part" of the attack. "He's a guy who's got every measurable known to man in terms of the size, the speed, and it's not like those were easy plays he was making," LaFleur said. "He was making tough, contested catches." San Francisco will aim to generate more pressure against Love than the Bears, who sacked him just once. The 49ers collected four sacks against the Seahawks, with Bosa and Leonard Floyd contributing 1.5 apiece. Recent regular-season history between the Packers and 49ers at Lambeau Field has favored Green Bay. The Packers have won seven of their past eight home games against the 49ers and are 22-11 versus San Francisco at home all-time. Green Bay leads the series 34-28-1. --Field Level Media

Walmart ( NYSE:WMT – Free Report ) had its target price raised by Sanford C. Bernstein from $98.00 to $102.00 in a research report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the retailer’s stock. Several other research firms have also issued reports on WMT. Truist Financial raised Walmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $76.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Walmart from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Telsey Advisory Group upped their target price on shares of Walmart from $92.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Walmart from $66.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Walmart from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.88. Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Walmart Walmart Trading Up 2.3 % Walmart ( NYSE:WMT – Get Free Report ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $169.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.69 billion. Walmart had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 21.78%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.51 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Walmart will post 2.47 EPS for the current year. Insider Transactions at Walmart In related news, major shareholder Alice L. Walton sold 2,709,163 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.37, for a total transaction of $209,607,941.31. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 630,501,148 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,781,873,820.76. This represents a 0.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link . Also, EVP John D. Rainey sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.12, for a total value of $246,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 378,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,054,909.80. This trade represents a 0.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . In the last quarter, insiders sold 12,337,337 shares of company stock worth $958,823,647. Company insiders own 45.58% of the company’s stock. Institutional Trading of Walmart A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Walmart by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,720 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,915,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Walmart by 0.3% during the third quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 43,549 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,591,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in Walmart by 0.4% during the third quarter. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC now owns 32,633 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,635,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. CAP Partners LLC grew its holdings in Walmart by 2.1% in the third quarter. CAP Partners LLC now owns 6,054 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $489,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Investment Advisory Group LLC increased its position in shares of Walmart by 2.1% in the third quarter. Investment Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,182 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $499,000 after buying an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 26.76% of the company’s stock. About Walmart ( Get Free Report ) Walmart Inc engages in the operation of retail, wholesale, other units, and eCommerce worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Walmart U.S., Walmart International, and Sam's Club. It operates supercenters, supermarkets, hypermarkets, warehouse clubs, cash and carry stores, and discount stores under Walmart and Walmart Neighborhood Market brands; membership-only warehouse clubs; ecommerce websites, such as walmart.com.mx, walmart.ca, flipkart.com, PhonePe and other sites; and mobile commerce applications. Further Reading Five stocks we like better than Walmart What Makes a Stock a Good Dividend Stock? Tesla Investors Continue to Profit From the Trump Trade The Most Important Warren Buffett Stock for Investors: His Own MicroStrategy’s Stock Dip vs. Coinbase’s Potential Rally What Are Dividend Challengers? Netflix Ventures Into Live Sports, Driving Stock Momentum Receive News & Ratings for Walmart Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Walmart and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .

Exiled Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof's definition of home is shifting

Stuck for some seasonal gifting inspo? We know how you feel, which is why we’ve put together this collection of great gift ideas that will show your loved ones just how much you really care. From beauty treats and luxurious lingerie to something sweet and delicious, you’ll find everything you need to help make this a special Christmas for the whole family. For those who work in a rugged environment and like to rock out as they get the job done, the DigiFunk Work Site Radio is the ideal gift. Designed especially for builders, DIYers, and anyone else working in tough locations, the DigiFunk boasts fantastic durability, with a high-impact-resistant plastic casing and shock-absorbing rubber frame. It’s also IP65-certified waterproof and dustproof, making it perfect for construction sites, workshops and other outdoor spaces. The DigiFunk receives both DAB+ and FM stations, and you can also stream your favourite tunes from your phone or tablet via Bluetooth or aux input. Easily rechargeable via USB, it offers up to 34 hours of playtime on a single charge. Priced at just £69.99, DigiFunk offers fantastic value too. Discover more here . Dreading the thought of battling the crowds this Black Friday in search of Christmas gifts you’re not even sure your loved ones will like? Here’s a smart alternative that’ll make everyone happy. The One4all Digital Gift Card is your one-stop Christmas shop – and it’s a shop that incorporates more than 180 high-street favourites, including Primark, Ikea, Boots, TK Maxx, B&Q, Asos, Argos and M&S. Whatever your loved ones are dreaming of – from pampering beauty products and the latest fashion must-haves to some serious power tools – you can let them choose for themselves. With just a few clicks, you can sort all your gifting – no queues, no hassle. For an extra personal touch you can even add a custom message, image or video to your One4all Digital Gift Card, making it that bit more special! Discover more here . Is there someone in your life who is always on the go and finds it hard to unwind? Someone who deserves to give themselves a bit of regular TLC at the end of the day? (Maybe even yourself?) Why not give the gift of 5Kind Extra Strong Hemp Cream? This natural massage cream contains more than 14 therapeutic natural oils and extracts. Ideal for massaging tense and contracted areas, it’s especially suitable for those who lead an active lifestyle, aiming to leave you feeling refreshed and revitalised. This vegan-friendly formula is the No.1 massage cream on Amazon, with more than 7,000 positive reviews. Claim 15% off with the offer code OKAY24 . Discover more here . Lingerie to Love believes that women should have beautiful, comfortable underwear which helps them feel good. With a focus on quality, the lingerie brand creates elegant pieces at generous prices, to suit all age groups and body types. There’s a wide variety of brands on Lingerie to Love’s website, including its best-selling bras, Elomi. All sizes can be ordered on request, and free postage is offered for every bra ordered. Discover more here . Hikari Shimoda is a contemporary Japanese artist known for her colourful and surreal paintings of children and young adults. Her work combines pop culture, anime, and manga elements with traditional Japanese art and folk tales, creating a unique and distinctive style. Now, through Pop Art Fusion, you can buy a luminous figurine sculpture that Hikari has created from her original painting Children of This Planet #9. Available in a very limited edition of just 188 – signed by the artist and numbered – it stands at 22cm high and comes in a screen-printed wooden box. The figure lights up via a USB cable. This very special piece is available for £1,399. Discover more here . The festive season can be a frantic time, so bring some calming but positive energy into your home – while also making it smell delicious – with crystal-infused candles and wax melts from The Psychic Tree. For an especially festive flavour, check out the latest additions to the range, including Gingerbread Dreams, Twas The Night Before Christmas and White Christmas. The crystals infused with these products have been selected for their calming and soothing properties, which aim to help reduce stress levels over the festive period. The candles and wax melts are all hand crafted by The Psychic Tree’s team based in Kent. The company also offers an array of crystal products, aromatherapy, and all things spiritual with a focus on health and well-being. To get 10% off your order, use code OKNOV24 at checkout. Discover more here . Beauty Bay is your one-stop shop for anyone who loves to have the latest beauty products, and is passionate about following the latest trends on TikTok and other social media. With more than 10,000 products currently available* and new launches every week, there’s something for everyone, from the trending must-haves to the haircare goodies they don’t even know they need yet. Need some inspiration? Whether you’re looking for a particularly tricky teen or someone who prefers vegan-only gifts, there’s a wealth of gifting ideas on the website. What’s more, the company’s own brand, By Beauty Bay, includes an array of cruelty-free, high-quality-but-affordable skincare and makeup, including the By Beauty Bay Christmas collection, Celestial Charms. This festive season, save up to 76% on favourites from Olaplex, Sol de Janeiro, Made By Mitchell, Mario Badescu, and more with Beauty Bay’s Christmas Boxes. You can also download the Beauty Bay app for extra benefits. Discover more here . A new arrival in time for the festive season makes Christmas even more magical. Georgie Belle's Boutique creates beautiful, personalised clothing for little ones, making the perfect Christmas gift for a new mum. Handcrafted in Cheshire using 100% cotton by two best friends, Holly and Emma, each item has the personal touch. There are designs to make any occasion extra special for babies and children, and all designs can be customised to accommodate any name and age. Direct-to-garment printing aims to ensure a high quality finish, even after repeated washes. To add some seasonal magic, check out the Personalised Christmas collection, which includes matching pyjamas, babygrows, luxury Christmas sacks, luxury Christmas stockings, and soft toys. To unlock 15% off your first order, use discount code OKMAG15 at checkout. Discover more here . For some children, just getting a good night’s sleep can be tricky – and the excitement around Christmas probably doesn’t help. Moshi Kids is an award-winning sleep, meditation and learning app for children of all ages. It gives them access to thousands of bedtime stories, short and longform meditations, music and sounds, as well as educational, calming and non-stimulating activities. Moshi is scientifically proven to help kids in all stages of development sleep better (critical for early brain development), manage big feelings and learn to regulate their minds and bodies. The app has been recommended by physicians, sleep experts, educators and child psychologists alike. A study at NYU demonstrated that Moshi's audio stories can help kids fall asleep 28 minutes quicker and experience 50% fewer night wakings. Discover more here . In Italy, it’s impossible to celebrate Christmas without tearing and sharing a panettone – a traditional sweet bread with a centuries-old history. The sweet fluffiness of the delicious fruity dough is enjoyed from breakfast with a frothy cappuccino until after dinner with a glass of something sparkling. Italian food specialist Sacla' is famous for its pesto, and also offers a dazzling range of panettone, including classic, vegan, gluten free, Marron Glacé, Limoncello, Pistachio and Tiramisu. For a classic and delicious panettone, try the award-winning Sal De Riso, from a bakery on the Amalfi Coast: it’s fragrant, moist and very special. And there’s the 2 Gold Star Great Taste Award-winning Cipriani Panettone, which comes in a beautiful presentation tin. Sourced from bakeries the length and breadth of Italy, these make brilliant gifts for foodie friends and relatives, and a great addition to your own Christmas table too. Discover more Christmas treats here . All of the above businesses have paid to feature in this article. *Figure correct at the time of publishing.After acquiring the Arcadium Lithium operations, mining company Rio Tinto has now announced a US$2.5 billion investment to expand lithium carbonate production at its Rincón de Salta project. This will be the Anglo-Australian company’s first commercial-scale operation, and obtained its Environmental Impact Declaration a year ago. The investment decision, which will be presented for Argentina’s RIGI large investment regime, demonstrates “the company’s commitment to establishing a first-class battery materials portfolio,” Rio Tinto told the Herald ’s sister title, Energy Report , in a statement. The Rincón project involves the extraction of brine through a series of production wells and processing and effluent facilities, along with its associated infrastructure. The total production capacity is 60,000 tonnes of high-quality lithium carbonate for batteries per year. That figure includes an initial 3,000-tonne plant and a 57,000-tonne expansion plant. The project uses direct lithium extraction (DLE) technology, a process that helps conserve water, reduces effluents, and produces lithium carbonates more consistently than other methods. You may also be interested in: RIGI: understanding Argentina’s new large investment regime The company reports that Rincón’s expected lifecycle is 40 years, with the construction of the expanded plant slated to begin in mid-2025, subject to permit approval. “First production is expected to begin in 2028, followed by three years of increased activity until the maximum capacity is reached, which will generate a significant number of jobs and economic opportunities for local businesses,” the company stated in a press release. Rio Tinto Group’s chief executive officer, Jakob Stausholm, welcomed the investment decision. “The attractive long-term outlook for lithium driven by the energy transition supports our investment in Rincón. We are dedicated to developing this world-class resource at a large scale and at the low end of the cost curve. We are also committed to meeting the highest ESG standards, using our advanced technology to halve the amount of water used in the refining process while continuing to strengthen our mutually beneficial partnerships with local communities and the province of Salta,” he said. Rio Tinto’s plans to enter the RIGI Company sources confirmed that the intention is to incorporate this investment into the RIGI. “Argentina’s economic reforms and the RIGI provide a favorable investment climate, with benefits such as lower tax rates, accelerated depreciation, and regulatory stability for 30 years, which protects the project from future policy changes and further safeguards investors.” You may also be interested in: Argentina launches RIGI with changes in the fine print Stausholm added: “Thanks to exceptional resources, a skilled workforce, and favorable economic policies in Argentina, we are in an excellent position to become one of the world’s leading lithium producers. This investment, along with our Arcadium acquisition proposal, ensures that lithium will be one of the key pillars of our raw materials portfolio for the next decades,” Stausholm added. Rio Tinto buys Arcadium Lithium The mining company announced in October that it had acquired Arcadium Lithium for US$6.7 billion in cash. Globally, Arcadium has 1,300 employees, manages resources in Argentina and Australia, and operates conversion plants in the U.S., China, Japan, and the United Kingdom. It also has production projects in Canada. The sale, which is expected to conclude in the first quarter of 2025, includes all of Arcadium’s operations in Argentina: the Fénix and Sal de Vida projects in Catamarca, and Olaraoz I and II and Cauchari projects in Jujuy. The Fénix project, owned by Livent before being acquired by Arcadium, currently has a production of 20,000 metric tonnes of lithium carbonate in situ and another 9,000 metric tonnes of lithium chloride in the town of Güemes, an external plant located on the Salta plains. With that acquisition and the decision to expand its own Salar de Rincón plant, there is no doubt that Rio Tinto has a clear goal with lithium for the next decade. “The investment will support Argentina’s current ambition to become one of the world’s leading lithium producers,” the company said. Rio Tinto invests in copper in San Juan Rio Tinto, through its tech subsidiary Nuton, recently confirmed a new US$35 million investment for McEwen Copper’s Los Azules copper project, in the San Juan town of Calingasta. With the funds from the acquisition, the world’s second-largest mining company will boost work on the feasibility study for the San Juan copper project, which is expected to be published in the first half of 2025. Michael “Mike” Meding, Vice President of McEwen Copper and General Manager of the Los Azules project, told Energy Report that with this purchase, Nuton has now invested US$100 million, confirming the growing value of the initiative. “This fourth investment by Rio Tinto is an expression of confidence in the project, its leadership, and development, in a project that, measured in resources (according to Mining Intelligence), is the eighth largest in the world in terms of resources,” Meding said. You may also be interested in: UK Ambassador Kirsty Hayes: British companies are taking a ‘wait-and-see’ approach