Entertainment News Roundup: Without fanfare or PR, Japanese anime master Miyazaki's likely final film opens; Actress and singer Jane Birkin dies, France loses an 'icon' and more

Miyazaki, now 82 and known for a long roster of films including Academy Award winner "Spirited Away," called a press conference a decade ago to say he was too tired to make another full-length feature film and was retiring. Drag queens compete for top prize in Nicaragua pageant In a packed bar in Nicaragua's capital, Managua, on Friday night, more than 1,000 people gathered to see a group of drag queens battle it out to snatch the crown for best performance while representing several Central American countries.

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Without fanfare or PR, Japanese anime master Miyazaki's likely final film opens

Without trailers, ads or any promotion at all, the likely final film by Oscar-winning Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki opened in Japan on Friday, with early viewers saying the lack of information made the experience more exciting. Miyazaki, now 82 and known for a long roster of films including Academy Award winner "Spirited Away," called a press conference a decade ago to say he was too tired to make another full-length feature film and was retiring.

Actress and singer Jane Birkin dies, France loses an 'icon'

British-born actress and singer Jane Birkin, a 1960s wildchild who became a beloved figure in France, has died in Paris aged 76. The French Culture Ministry said the country had lost a "timeless Francophone icon".

Drag queens compete for top prize in Nicaragua pageant

In a packed bar in Nicaragua's capital, Managua, on Friday night, more than 1,000 people gathered to see a group of drag queens battle it out to snatch the crown for best performance while representing several Central American countries. The Mix Imperial Central American Tropical Drag Royale provided a stage for drag performers in a region where LGBT people often face discrimination and economic hardship.

Canada's 'Hollywood North' hurt by twin strikes in US

Rare twin strikes by Hollywood actors and film and television writers are casting a pall over British Columbia's creative industry, which has become a hub for American film and TV production. Known as "Hollywood North," the Canadian province and the city of Vancouver comprise one of the largest production centers in North America, with more than 50 animation studios alone, employing up to 88,000 people, according to a provincial agency. It generated an estimated C$3.6 billion in revenue ($2.7 billion) in 2022.