Online gambling has seen exponential growth all over the world. Ever since the imposition of physical lockdowns and social distancing, the online gambling sector has become very popular even among people living in Japan, where most gambling forms are prohibited.

According to the country’s law, a person caught gambling shall be subjected to a fine or a petty fine of not more than 500,000 Yen. There are blanket laws in place that ban almost all types of physical gambling. 

Even though gambling is illegal and there are no legal casinos in Japan, gambling is still a popular entertainment form. It is legal in Japan to place bets on sports such as Horse racing, bicycle racing, motorbike racing, soccer, and powerboat racing. It is legal to place bets on National lotteries too. 

However, as far as online gambling is concerned, there are no laws in place legalizing online gambling sites. Hence online gambling in Japan falls into the legal grey area.

Currently, there are no major cases or records available to the public regarding people being prosecuted for betting or playing games on online casinos in Japan. Online gambling and online casinos in Japan are not covered under the Casino Acts, and as a result, there are no clear-cut regulations imposed on them. 

However, claims of online gambling being legalized in Japan have been dismissed by the government, stating that online gambling is illegal and there will be crackdowns and punishment on such activities. 

Japan has been witnessing an increase in its usage of offshore gaming portals ever since the pandemic. The Japanese have always been familiar with gambling despite their restrictive laws. Pachinko, a mix between a slot machine and a pinball machine, is a form of gambling that is very popular in Japan. A Pachinko player’s main aim is to try and control the pinball machine and try to save their steel ball for the longest time. 

A pachinko machine can process up to 100 balls per minute, and the game ends when the player loses all their steel balls or decides to end the game and exchange the steel balls for a prize. There are many Pachinko parlors all across Japan and are extremely eye-catching, inviting, and easy to access. You can exchange your winnings at the Pachinko parlors to get items such as cigarettes, electronic gadgets, groceries, silver, and gold. You could also win money indirectly as you could always choose to sell the prizes that you have won.

The Popularity Of Vera And John In Japan

Vera and John is an online casino company that is extremely popular in Japan. According to a study, it was the most popular casino platform in Japan, also because of easy Vera and John withdrawal. The casino site recorded a 119-fold jump in its monthly visits from Japan from 6,48,000 visits in 2018 to an astonishing number of 77.51 million in the year 2019

Some say that Vera and John was the reason for the growth of the online gaming community in Japan. The online casino platform was one of the first companies to enter the Japanese market who has managed to gain the attention of the Japanese players and their loyalty. 

One of the many reasons Vera and John became such a hit among Japanese players is its top-class language support, quality graphics, easy navigation, and diverse and wide range of online casino games. Vera and John have hundreds of online slot games, live casino games, and table games which are easily accessible on PCs, tablets, and mobile phones.

Are you wondering how to withdraw at Vera and John? The online casino platform offers its users easy transaction facilities where players can easily and quickly withdraw their winnings. They offer a wide range of withdrawal and deposit methods such as credit card and debit card payments, e-wallets, cheques, international wire transfers, and bank transfers. Apart from this, the company frequently runs several campaigns which specifically target Japanese players. This has helped them create a strong following of players from Japan. One could say that Vera and John have paved the way for other online gambling platforms to start and flourish in Japan.

Online Gambling In Japan

Since most forms of gambling are illegal, there are no physical casinos available to people residing in Japan. Everyone can’t travel to gambling destinations such as Macau to gamble. Hence, Japan’s online gambling sector has continuously managed to attract many players by providing them with a host of online games to bet on. 

Various online betting platforms now use marketing tricks such as displaying messages in Japanese to attract customers from Japan. Betting sites such as Bet365, Vegas Casino, Sloto’cash Casino, LeoVegas, and Bitstars casino encourage and welcome Japan’s players to use their betting platforms. The widespread advertisements of online gaming websites, ease of registration, and transactions have made it extremely easy for overseas players to register and play on online gaming portals.

Even though online gambling and most forms of gambling are illegal in Japan, awareness regarding the illegality of gambling is extremely low among people. According to a survey conducted on 1000 Japanese people by a group from Tokyo called the International Casino Institute, in December 2020, only 41% of the participants knew that online gambling was illegal and betting online was a criminal offense. 18% thought it was legal to gamble online, whereas the other 41 percent said it fell into the gray zone. 

Restrictions may be in place to stop people from most forms of gambling. However, the Japanese have always indulged in different forms of games similar to gambling to keep themselves entertained. Pachinko, Mahjong, Toto, and the lotteries are extremely famous and popular in Japan. They are classified as amusements and are regulated under separate laws. Betting on Horse racing, Bicycle racing, and various other motorsports are legal in Japan so even if online gambling and physical casinos are not available for you, you always have plenty of other legal options to place your bets on if you are from Japan.

Well, thank God that’s over. The final film award ceremony of 2021 is over, and not a minute too soon.

Viewers who tuned in to the 93rd Academy Awards ceremony (guilty, but I have a website. What’s your excuse?) were treated to un-enthusiastic presenters, amazingly long speeches (I’m guessing Questlove wasn’t told he could play people off) and an “In Memoriam” segment that looks like it was thrown together at the last minute. And can someone tell me how a show with no host, opening monologue and zero musical numbers – unless you count the embarrassing “Oscar Music Trivia” game that featured Glenn Close shaking her ass to E.U.’s “Da Butt” – ran almost 3 1/2 hours??

On a positive note, there were some great achievements rewarded. A woman of color (Chloe Zhao) was named Best Director, only the second time a woman has won that Award. Think about that. Out of 465 nominees only SEVEN women have been nominated: Lina Wertmuller, Jane Campion, Sophia Coppola, Kathryn Bigelow (who won), Greta Gerwig, Ms. Zhao and Emerald Fennell, who with Ms. Zhao was nominated this year. Which means such female directors, like Penny Marshall and Barbra Streisand, have been totally ignored, even though in the past they had directed films nominated for Best Picture!

Daniel Kaluuya and Youn Yuh-jing took home the Best Supporting Actor and Actress awards, respectively, putting a slight dent into the #OscarSoWhite reputation.

Frances McDormand became the second actress to receive (3) Best Actress awards when her name was announced last night, putting her right behind the immortal Katherine Hepburn, who won (4). Meryl Streep does have (3) Oscars, but one was for Best Supporting Actress. Ms. McDormand picked up a 4th Oscar as one of the producers of the evening’s Best Picture, “Nomadland.” And whose idea was it to give the Best Picture award out early? Normally it’s the last award of the night, but on this night it was awarded before Best Actress and Actor were named. My hunch is that the producers assumed the late Chadwick Boseman, who was nominated for his final performance in the film “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” would win, which would have made for a nice emotional way to end the evening. Instead, Joaquin Phoenix sheepishly announced Anthony Hopkins as the winner of the Best Actor award, and that was a wrap!

My beef with the “In Memoriam” segment was that, for some reason, the Academy figured if you were watching you knew who everyone was and what they did. An introduction that took u 1/3 of the segment, no film clips and, while known talents like Christopher Plummer, George Segal and Wilford Brimley got a few seconds of screen time each, others – among them Marge Champion (a great dancer), Shirley Knight (a fine actress), Kelly Preston (same) and Michael Chapman (an amazing cinematographer whose credits include “Taxi Driver,” “Raging Bull,” “Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid” and “The Fugitive”) whizzed by in a blink.

The fact that only nominees and presenters were allowed to be in the venue also made for dull television. Smatterings of applause signaled that the guests in the theatre were apparently as bored as the ones at my house.

Blame it on COVID. Blame it on the fact that none of the films nominated were “NAME” films – no “Titanic,” “Avatar” or “Lord of the Rings” in the bunch. Blame it on bad television. There’s plenty of blame to go around.

For those of you who went to bed early, here is a list of the winners:

Best Picture – Nomadland 

Best Actor in a Leading Role– Anthony Hopkins (The Father)

Best Actress in a Leading Role – Frances McDormand (Nomadland)

Best Director – Chloé Zhao (Nomadland)

Best Actress in a Supporting Role – Youn Yuh-jung (Minari)

Best Actor in a Supporting Role – Daniel Kaluuya (Judas and the Black Messiah)

Best Adapted Screenplay – The Father, Christopher Hampton, Florian Zeller

Best Original Screenplay – Promising Young Woman, Emerald Fennell

Best Animated Feature Film – Soul 

Best International Feature Film – Another Round (Denmark)

Best Sound – Sound of Metal, Phillip Bladh, Nicolas Becker, Jaime Baksht, Michelle Couttolenc, Carlos Cortés, Carolina Santana

Best Costume Design – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Ann Roth

Best Makeup and Hairstyling – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Matiki Anoff, Mia Neal, Larry M. Cherry

Best Live Action Short Film – Two Distant Strangers

Best Animated Short Film – If Anything Happens I Love You 

Best Documentary Feature – My Octopus Teacher 

Best Documentary Short Subject – Colette 

Best Original Song – ‘Fight for You,’ (Judas and the Black Messiah)

Best Visual Effects – Tenet, Andrew Jackson, Andrew Lockley, Scott R. Fisher, Mike Chambers

Best Cinematography – Mank, Erik Messerschmidt

Best Production Design – Mank, Donald Graham Burt, Jan Pascale

Best Film Editing – Sound of Metal, Mikkel E.G. Nielsen

Best Original Score – Mank, Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross

THIS COULD BE THE STRANGEST OSCAR CEREMONY EVER

In its 93 years the Academy Awards have seen some strange occurrences.

In 1973, Marlon Brando, who was announced as the winner of the Best Actor Award, sent an actress pretending to be a Native American up to the podium to refuse the award, citing the way Native American’s were portrayed in films.

The next year, David Niven was startled when freelance photographer Robert Opel decided to “streak” across the stage behind them.  I always thought that this was a set-up.  The camera angle was such that none of Mr. Opel’s nether-region was shown and Mr. Niven was awful quick and his quip: “The only laugh that man will ever get in his life is from stripping off and showing his shortcomings!” 

And, of course, who could forget the 1989 ceremonies when Rob Lowe and Snow White engaged in a musical number?  Only months before a sex-tape with Lowe and two women (one underage) had been released, which I’m sure upset the folks at Disney, who were already upset because they hadn’t given their permission for the character to appear.

But this year could be the strangest and most unpredictable ceremony ever.

Tonight, for really the first time since last year’s Oscars, nominees have been encouraged to be in attendance.  In the past year, shows like the Emmys have had a minimal crowd (usually first responders) and the awards have been “delivered” to the winner via Zoom.  Tonight we could actually see people walk across the stage to give their acceptance speeches.

Tonight also notes the first time that a streaming service has received more total nominations than any of the established studios.  NETFLIX leads the way with 35 total nominations, followed by Amazon with 12.  The highest number of studio nominations is 8, shared by Warner Bros. and the Walt Disney Company.

Streaming has been the thing this year.  Though theatres are now open again, very few people are going.  The one closest to me, and 18 screen mega-plex, is showing films that range from current (GODZILLA vs KONG, MORTAL KOMBAT) to titles that are months old.  They are even trying to fill their screens with Bollywood features.

In the past year, I have seen three films in a movie theatre.  The aforementioned GODZILLA vs KONG and MORTAL KOMBAT, both in the last 2 months.  Before that, the last film I saw on the big screen was TENET.  And I LOVE going to the movies.

With the exception of TENET, every other Oscar nominated film or performance I have seen this year has been either on a streaming platform or a DVD screener.  A nice way for a critic to binge on what they need to see but also a way that takes the fun out of the movies. 

I enjoy going to the theatre.  Getting my popcorn and sitting in a room with 250 strangers who are about to share an experience with me.  I like hearing others laugh along with me and I like sitting in the silence and hearing if anyone else is crying at the incredibly sad scene I just witnessed.  And I like talking to people as we exit the auditorium, discussing what we saw and whether or not we liked it. 

I should note that there were no more than four other people in attendance at the three films I have seen in a theatre.  Which makes for a lonely exit conversation.

Hopefully after the awards some of the winners will be released to theatres.  That is how Hollywood makes a little more money off of their films – re-releasing them to theatres after the awards to get a post-Oscar push at the box office.  I, for one, would love to see MANK on the big screen.  It’s impeccable recreation of 1940s filmmaking would be glorious to take in on a screen 40 feet high.

However, there are also good reasons to watch the Awards this year.  Many of the nominees are a “pick-em” – there are no such things as “Titanic” nominated tonight.  But my fingers are crossed for two awards and the reaction they will receive. 

The late Chadwick Boseman is nominated as Best Actor for his amazing performance in “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.”  It is his last film performance and it is brilliant.  A victory here would not only honor a talent gone much too soon but will surely bring the house to it’s feet.

Secondly, tonight Glenn Close is nominated (for the eighth time) for her Supporting turn in “Hillbilly Elegy.”  Not only is she the best thing in the film, she is so overdue for a win.  Should she not win tonight, she will tie the late Peter O’Toole as having the most acting nominations without a win.  O’Toole did receive an Honorary Oscar in 2002.  A win by Close would surely trigger and emotional standing ovation.  It certainly will at my house.

Instagram is one of, if not the most, popular social media platforms worldwide. With over one billion users, Instagram seems like it would be the ideal place to gain a large following, however it is not so easy. Everyone wants to have as many followers as they can in order to have their content seen by as many people as possible, but gaining a substantial amount of followers is not easy. Whilst gaining followers is not as easy task, it is not impossible and there are ways to help your account grow. One of the easiest ways to get your account more visibility is to make use of hashtags. If you are new to Instagram, you might not know how beneficial hashtags are or how to use them effectively. Here is a short guide on how to use hashtags to increase your Instagram following.

What are Hashtags?

Hashtags are essentially a way to make your posts searchable. The hashtag is a hash or pound sign (#) followed by a keyword that relates to your content. The hashtag started on Twitter by a man by the name of Chris Messina. He used the hash sign with his friends when coding/ programming and brought the idea to twitter. Since then, the hashtag has become one of the most prominent features of all social media today, and many services such as TaskAnt, which makes finding the best hashtags to use really easy, it has become even more popular. Hashtags allow your post to be searchable and more discoverable, get more views and be shown to a much more targeted audience. When using hashtags, you need to ensure that you only use tags that are relevant to your page and your content, otherwise your posts will be shown to people other than your target audience which does not help grow your account.

What are the Benefits of Hashtags?

There are many benefits to using hashtags. One of the most valued benefits is that it helps you gain followers. When you post with hashtags you gain many more followers than when you post without them. Hashtags are vital not only to the growth of your Instagram following, but also to the growth of your relevant followers. Hashtags allow your posts to be shown to people who are specifically looking for content like yours. When you use a relevant hashtag, you will reach your target audience and therefore gain relevant followers who are much more likely to interact and engage with your content. Hashtags are one of the most valued features on any social media platform and are absolutely essential for the growth and success of any Instagram account.

Easier to Find Content

When using hashtags, your content becomes much easier to find. A hashtag essentially makes your post searchable for users. If someone were to search a hashtag that you used, it becomes much more likely that your posts will be seen by that user, and much more likely that you will be able to grow your Instagram followers. Another popular and clever option is to make your own hashtag that is specific to your account. This allows people to post under your hashtag and for you to have a hashtag that is account specific and therefore a great place to have all of your posts in one place besides on your Instagram profile. When using hashtags, because your content is easier to find, you following is likely to increase much more and therefore sales are also much more likely to increase. There is a domino effect that comes along with the use of hashtags which is very beneficial to any business.

Trends, Target Audience and Competitors

Instagram is a great tool to find out what is trending and how to incorporate that into your own brand. By looking at the trending hashtags, you see what people are looking up and that allows you to post under similar hashtags which will ensure that people will see your content. Besides getting a bigger reach from trending hashtags, you can also reach a more targeted audience, which is important for follower engagement. By using audience specific hashtags, you can also see what your competitors are doing to gain followers and keep an eye out for new marketing strategies.

Twitter has 187 million daily active users and is a popular place for people, brands and businesses to market. Brands use twitter to engage with their audience and this is an effective marketing strategy. Twitter allows you to increase brand awareness, keep up with the latest trends in your industry, promote your brand, drive website traffic and get instant feedback about your product or service.

For you to grow on twitter you need to measure your progress. This is important because it helps you gain insight into the quality of your audience and how many followers are engaging with your content. It also tells you how well your content is doing with your followers and if you need to adjust your strategy or not.

If you have never measured your performance on twitter before, it might be a bit confusing. Here are a few ways to measure progress:

Keep up with follower count and engagement rate

Another important way to measure your performance on twitter is to measure your follower count and how it grows over time. You should create a timeline to compare your followers past and present. It’s also important to check how much engagement you get compared to your follower count. Engagement is important because it helps you connect and establish a relationship with your followers which is good for your brand and business, and there are many growth services similar to Twesocial that can help you with that. If you engage, you will gain followers. It is better to connect and engage with your followers than it is to have a huge number of people following you that you do not engage with. Engagement establishes loyalty from your audience.

Use analytics on twitter

A good way to measure your performance on twitter is by using analytics. Twitter analytics gives you details and summaries about individual tweets, media and ad campaigns. You need to understand how your content is being received and you can use this information to measure success, formulate a strategy and make money.

There are also different twitter metrics that you need to track. The top 10 metrics include:

1. Average tweet performance: Includes average engagement rate, average shares and average retweet numbers.
2. Audience type: What is the primary gender of your audience? Where are your followers from, what are their hobbies and interests etc.
3. Engagement rate: tracking your engagement rate will show you whether you are successful in connecting with your audience.
4. Type of engagement: You want your audience to like, retweet or comment on your tweets to show their commitment. Retweets and comments are more valuable than likes.
5. Content performance: Look for a good impression to engagement ratio.
6. Brand follower growth: analytics enables you to track how quickly you are growing your follower base by looking at your performance on a week-by-week basis.
7. Impressions: Shows you how many people see your account each day.
8. Video completion rate:  Video views on your twitter analytics shows how many people have seen and played your videos and completion rate shows how many people watched the whole video.
9. Hashtag performance: Gives insight into your most used hashtags and most engaging terms.
10. Return on investment: To make sure the money you are putting into twitter campaigns are coming back to you in the form of new customers and conversations.

The most important metric is engagement rate, hashtags, follower growth and impressions.

Check which tweets are most popular

You should always check which tweets perform the best and are the most popular. Pay close attention to the time that the post was tweeted, what the tweet was about and what the format was (whether it was an image, video or meme), as this can help you to get Twitter followers easily and effectively. Also check if tweets that are similar are as popular and keep in mind that there are different times where followers are more active.

Track hashtags

Hashtags are twitters most popular creation. It is not possible to run a social media Champaign without hashtags. Stick to a few popular tags to help gain your tweets more attention and then over time you can experiment with different hashtags to see which ones are best received.

To track your hashtags use Sprouts Social outbound. They provide insight into your hashtags and most engaging terms. Tracking hashtags shows what people are talking about and how many of your hashtags are used. This helps you strategize which hashtags to gain the most engagement.

Have you recently discovered that in order to grow on social media you need to have good, meaningful engagement from your followers and other users? Do you feel like the engagement on your social media account could be much better than it is but aren’t sure how to get it up?

One social media platform that seems to be taking all other platforms by storm and making the lead, is Instagram. Instagram has only grown more and more popular since its launch all the way back in 2010 and has managed to gain over 1 billion users making it a great place for both businesses and individuals alike to get noticed.

Over the years Instagram has gone through a lot of changes and if you haven’t used it in a while or it is your first time, you might not know the best way to use it. If you would like to increase the engagement you receive on Instagram, here are the best ways to do that.

Engage before and after posting

As mentioned earlier, engagement is everything hen it comes to social media, but in order to get any engagement, you need to engage with other users yourself. Not only will this encourage engagement but it will also give you a chance to get your name out there to other people who may not yet know about you.

Great ways to engage with your followers is by responding to comments on your posts, liking their posts, sharing their content, following them back, replying to their direct messages, or using a growth service that could do that for you. If you are interested in trying out a growth service, you can read more about Growthoid here. If you want to engage with people who don’t follow you, you can do the exact same things, like following them, commenting on their posts, and liking their content.

Post at the right time

Engagement is everything when it comes to social media and marketing on social media, especially when it comes to Instagram. A great way to ensure you can increase your engagement is by making sure you post at the right time. It may take a little while to figure out what the best time to post is, but through your different statistics on your account, you can figure out what time is the best and most optimal time to post in order to reach the most amount of people.

You will always need to consider what time zone your target audience live in, what kind of work they will be doing, and what times of the day they are most likely to be on Instagram and this give you the best time for you to post every day.

Use all formats when posting

Instagram initially started off as a place where you could only post picture to your feed. As the years have gone by, you can now do so much more than that. Newer features added to Instagram include allowing you to post both videos and photos to you stories, feed, and reels, as well as a section called IGTV where you can post longer videos, and a place for people to livestream.

If you are looking to increase your engagement, you should not only be posting to your feed, but rather making use of all the different features they have to offer you. Not only will this allow you to post multiple times a day and reach a much larger audience, but you will because to reach different audiences and demographics within Instagram.

Use different story stickers

Stories on Instagram have made social media a whole new ball game. When posting stories there are a variety of different filters, texts and fun little things to add afterwards that can just make it the much more entertaining. Some of the best things that have been added to the story feature are sticker. You get your standard sticker that sire just little things you can put on top of your post to make it look cute, and then you get sticker that can actually increase engagement such as the ones which allow you to have questionnaires, ask people anonymous questions, or even do polls. People are very likely to interact with your account, and you can gain more Instagram followers fast if you make use of them because they are so quick, simple, and easy to navigate.

Have you just downloaded TikTok and are looking for the best ways of getting followers as fast as possible? Have you had a TikTok account for a while but just can’t seem to get your follower count up?

TikTok is a relatively new social media platform to the game, having only been launched back in 2016, but it has since amassed over 1 billion active daily users making it the most popular social media platform to date. More and more people are downloading TikTok every day and it has now become one of the primary sources of entertainment among young users. There are millions of viral videos popping up all the time and trends that are frequently being copied.

Although there are so many users on the app, it’s not as easy as it seems to do well on TikTok because there is so much competition and it can be hard to get noticed, which is why many growth services like TokUpgrade have been launched. TikTok requires hard work and dedication, and if you want your new account to do well, here are a few tips to help get your first 100 followers.

Have an attractive profile

One of the first things thing you will have to set up when creating your TikTok account, is your profile. You profile is so important when it comes to practically every aspect of TikTok because it’s how people will recognise you and notice you. If you have a plain and boring profile you are more likely to be looked past.

You should always start off your profile creation with a catchy and easy to remember username. Make sure to keep it short and sweet, and easy to spell. Next up you have your profile picture. This is one of the most important parts of your profile as it will be what people will use to identify you. When choosing a profile photo, be sure to choose something that will still be able to be seen even in the small little icon, it should also be something that is suited to the tone a voice of your account. Lastly, in your bio, you should have something catchy and fun to say while also describing exactly what your account it all about.

Use hashtags for exposure

Hashtags are one of the greatest tools to ever have come from social media and there are so many reasons why. The biggest benefit of using hashtags in your content it because it allows you to reach an audience that might not yet follow you, but on top of that, because a hashtags is a searchable key word, by including a hashtags in your content, you are also directly targeting your content to an audience that is most likely to enjoy it.

This means that by adding hashtags to your content you are actively increasing the amount of people who see it, which in turn will allow for more people to see your account and potentially follow it.

Engage with others

Many people think that just by posting as much as they can, they give themselves the best shot as getting as many followers as possible, but without anyone to see your content, there is no point in posting so much of it. This is where engagement comes in. Engagement it key when it comes to any kind of growth on social media because people won’t always just follow your account just because they’ve seen it. A great way to engage with your followers, and effectively gain more of them, by actively following people, commenting on other people’s posts, sharing other people content and just making yourself visible to other users through engagement like this is no doubt one of the best ways for you to get noticed and for people to follow you. 

Create good content

It’s all good and well to have the account, but now you need to post because no one is going to follow an account with no videos. Your content needs to stick within the lines of what TikTok users enjoy, which is content that it in the moment and authentic, but it also need to be funny, and original. You content should also have a niche which will allow you to target people who are interested in that specific niche. By having good content, you will always be able to grow your follower base.

We all know that the TV and movie industry always typecast their actors and roles, surrounding movies within the gambling industry. Therefore, you often see those same types of actors consistently within the movies that are released on a year-on-year basis. Suppose some actors are just really good at hitting the spot, when it comes to acting perfectly, right?

NetBet and Casino777.es are great casinos that can suffice your gambling, should you be reminiscing right now on the casino gambling life, after seeing the great actors we list and remembering the entertainment value that gambling brought them (and you too from watching!). Continue reading to see which actors are listed as the most common stars when it comes to gambling movies.

Matt Damon

Matt Damon is an Oscar winner; we all know this. So, in all honesty he is not type casted, as he is able to act in any genre possible. We have seen him in action, drama, and so on. Yet we are sure you have probably watched the renowned movie Rounders, released in 1988. This movie actually introduced him into the gambling sector and left a super great impression in Hollywood. It led him onto greater and better things too! Ocean’s Eleven needs no introduction as it left a huge mark on the casino movie industry. Of course, if you combine Matt Damon, with a bunch of other great actors, the movie will obviously go down in history and hold epic proportions within the movie community-gambling or not.

Matt Damon went on to play his role further in the new releases of the Ocean’s Eleven; Ocean’s Twelve, Ocean’s Thirteen and Ocean’s 8. In each and every movie, Matt was able to bring an energy that reflects a hungry and eager gambler. The enthusiasm was believable, and that is when you know that an actor is good at what they do, as it is so believable. So yes, Matt you most definitely qualify as an actor perfect for the gambling scene, if we may say so ourselves!

Robert De Niro

Would this list even be valid, if we did not qualify De Niro in our lists? Robert is known for his heightened acting skills, and of course his role within mafia movie Godfather, really did give him a great reputation as an actor. There is no doubt about that. Robert’s performance within the film Casino, playing the character ‘Ace’ highlighted how versatile he is as an actor, even more. His character was charming with an underlying sense of ruthlessness.

De Niro even brought humour to his next casino role, Last Vegas. His acting skills were massively showcased here as he went from Mr narcissist to a comedian with some serious ability to make the audience laugh-we know we did. Despite the change in character and style of acting, he is one of the most respected actors today and will always be given roles most of the time now, without having to even audition. Why? He has proved his value, especially in the gambling genre specifically. So, we expect to see him again very soon within another gambling franchise.

Sharon Stone

We got to put Sharon Stone in this equation for gambling movies. Not only is she a very credible actress for the 1990s, but she also managed to really set tongues wagging, with her impeccable performance within the movie Casino (alongside De Niro). Her role as Ginger McKenna made the acting gigs come in just fine, as the role was really iconic, witty and sultry. All actors often wish to get given a role as versatile such as this, because you basically can show off multiple action capabilities at once-and that is exactly what she was able to do!

The other movie which she got cast into (also gambling related), was The Vegas Strip War. This movie had less sex appeal than the Casino movie, yet nevertheless she was selected as the director knew of her versatility when it comes to acting. Casino hit all the categories for acting required to get her cast into it. In fact, many women that love to inspire their casino glam outfits these days, will always take inspiration from Miss Stone herself, playing Ginger.

Paul Newman

Paul Newman is seen as one of the greatest actors within the Hollywood business. He graced the cinema screens with roles that really showed how fast and efficiently he can switch, in terms of one genre to another. We all know he’s of the old but gold actors, meaning his famous gambling roles are those that were made in the 60s and the 70s. The first one we will begin to mention, is The Hustler. It is a must mention. Created in 1961, this role has Newman playing Eddie Felson, the independently driven and confident cool that casino movies have never seen before. It is of course the fact that he is so good looking, which has allowed him to get the good roles that need such charisma. He managed to land the movie sequel to Hustler, called the Colour of Money, which had taken almost two decades to be released surprisingly.

James Caan

James Caan is another recognisable face from the famous Godfather series. That series immediately typecast him as someone who was very hard in character, yet deep down with a soft heart. James managed to land many gambling roles within his career. Las Vegas was the first, and this was a TV series in fact. Having the lead as a casino manager, Caan managed to play this role with the rigidity it needed, to then impress further and land the appearance within Honeymoon in Vegas. This role was unfortunately not as memorable nor did it impact as much as the other roles he featured in, however the movie the Gambler was what dominated his identity within the movie business for gambling. That role itself was huge for his career, and the movie itself goes down as a huge success for the value it brought to the movie making community. Even IMDB says so, they rated it a great 7.4 out of 10, which is not too shabby at all!

Winning At The Casino

As fun as casino games are, let’s not kid ourselves that the reason we’re playing isn’t to get a slice of the good-life pie, a ticket on the gravy train … you get our drift. But the phrase “the house always wins” wasn’t some bad marketing ploy. The business of casino is just that, a business. And if your business wasn’t successfully making a profit, you wouldn’t be sticking around for long.

But there certainly are steps you can take to shift those odds as much in your favor as possible. Whether you choose to play in the comfort of your own home and need to find an Interac casino Canada players are winning from, or are planning a future trip to Las Vegas, it pays to know which games have the best odds.

House Edge

This is the casino term for what they are going to make, on average, out of each game. Their profit. Sticking to games that have the lowest house edge will maximise your winnings. When you’re playing on online casino slots, you may have noticed a phrase called RTP; return-to-player. This is the opposite of house edge and is how much of your bet you are expected to receive in return for playing. It’s important not to mix the two up!

These are casino games with the lowest house edge, or highest RTP, and they should be your target:

Blackjack

Whether on the casino floor or using a RNG online, the house edge of only around 5% is perfect. But the reason the casinos still operate such a game is because one small slip and your profit is gone. With blackjack, you need to stay incredibly focused and you need to play with a sure fire strategy.

Forget counting cards. Smarter people than us have created blackjack strategies that will tell you when to hit and when to stay, which will increase your odds to the highest. You can easily find these strategies online. Find one, learn it inside out, and more importantly, stick to it no matter what. If you do, that house edge will drop to under 1%, but you must be dedicated.

Video Pokers

Again, this is a game where there is some skill involved, so you will need to know about poker terms and their hand ranking. But because so many players lack the knowledge and don’t pay attention, you can have the house edge drop to 3%.

Craps

For such a fun and exciting game, who knew you could walk away with some profit. The key to winning at craps is, again, to not get distracted by all that noise and complication. It’s a very social game and always attracts players who love a drink. That’s why you want to keep your head and avoid the complicated bets. Sticking to the “don’t pass” line will have you betting against the roller and with a house edge of just 1.36%. But when you win, most people will lose, so you won’t be making many friends.

Baccarat

Most people avoid it as there is generally a high table limit that scares people away. But suck it up and stick to betting solely on the banker, every time, whether the player is on a roll or not. The banker bet will see the house edge drop to 1.06%. Although you may not be having as much fun as some players, it’s the best game for anyone who hasn’t had the time to study all the intricacies that some games have.

Conclusion

If you are serious about looking to turn a profit whilst gaming, stick to the games that have some level of skill attached. Then learn that skill. Practice, practice, practice, until it becomes second nature. Because this is the way that you are going to get the odds in your favor and come out of it all with some coin in your pocket. Casinos make money, a lot of it, and they do so by distracting players to remove the skill from the games. Those loud noises, the bright lights and free drinks for players are all there to ruin your focus. Stay the course, use your skills and don’t fall for their distracti

• FROZEN (2010)
• Starring: Emma Bell and Shawn Ashmore
• Directed by: Adam Green
• Anchor Bay Pictures

Certainly not to be confused with Disney’s animated musical, this is easily one of the most intense films I’ve ever seen and guaranteed to stay with you FOR-EVER!

A must see for all horror fans, a weekend ski party at a lodge goes terribly wrong. Look for Kane Hodder, better known as Jason Voorhees, in a cameo, My favorite horror movies are the ones that feel real and that possibly could happen, no matter how unlikely. This movie is raw, nerve-wracking and one of the most gut wrenching films I’ve ever seen!

• TAXI DRIVER
• Starring: Robert DeNiro, Harvey Keitel and Jodie Foster
• Directed by: Martin Scorsese
• Columbia Pictures

 
You’ll find one helluva cab ride here!

Scorsese’s mesmerizing film is so low-key it might put you to sleep. Not because of boredom though – it’s combination of a soothing jazz score (the final one by the great Bernard Hermann, who died 24 hours after delivering the score to Scorsese) and DeNiro’s narration will definitely relax you.

Travis Bickle has a deep concern. He feels the need to be a hero in a society that’s gone wrong. In fact, he’s just an extraordinary person in normal circumstances.

“You talkin’ to me??”

Style and Hollywood are clearly synonymous but that doesn’t mean that every diva in the industry can pull it off every single time. 

In the day and age when film icons could be spotted and photographed at any moment, there are some actresses who manage to always look as if they’ve just stepped off or on to the catwalk.

These stylish acting talents know exactly how to present themselves, and their outfits, to their adoring public and we’ve highlighted three in particular who do so with aplomb.

Lupita Nyong’o

The Oscar winning actress oozes style in just about every pose she’s been captured in since she broke into our consciousness following her award winning performance in the harrowing Steve McQueen film Twelve Years a Slave

Never afraid to take risks and with a petite frame to die for, Nyong’o is a fashion house’s dream when it comes to over the top outfits that would look garish and ill-fitting on most of Hollywood’s establishment.

Every Met Gala she’s attended has led to viral action across social media, Lupita is not only a hugely talented actor she is also a bone fide style icon.

Gal Gadot

The Israeli actress comes from model beginnings and while it may have taken a while for the 35-year-old to convince the film industry she can act, she’s certainly making up for lost time and her latest release, the Wonder Woman sequel 1984, has proven a big hit despite the fact that a worldwide cinematic release hasn’t been possible due to COVID-19.

The wispy actor always looks perfect whenever she’s snapped. Whether she’s been papped leaving a restaurant or as she works her magic on the red carpet, Gadot most certainly has style running through her veins. 

Clearly her model upbringing helps her take every opportunity to come across well in front of the lens and there are few Hollywood star’s more photogenic than Gal Gadot.

Zendaya

This young acting prodigy has packed a lot into her fledgling career and it’s easy to forget that Californian is still only 24-years-old. 

The American actress-singer has become something of a household name thanks to her performances in the Spiderman franchise and the musical The Greatest Show on Earth as well as her excellent portrayal of Rue Bennett in the excellent Euphoria.

Zendaya is now also a leading light in the fashion industry having become the face of Tommy Hilfiger and cosmetics giant Lancome. She has quickly become a style icon and has done a great service for glasses frames for women due to her ability to shine even brighter when spectacled.

Charlize Theron

Another model/actress with previous experience of walking the catwalk, this South African star is an accomplished performer with three Oscar nominations to her name, one of which led to a win thanks to her astonishing performance in Monster in 2004.

The long legged style queen is always well presented and it’s no surprise that she is very much a brand ambassador to a number of major fashion houses and labels.

She has previously fronted John Galliano, Dior and Breitling and is always attracting attention both on and off screen. Perhaps never more so than when sporting the hip Saint Laurent sunglasses in her big money hitwoman success Atomic Blonde, a look that has inspired countless copycats and fancy dress outfits.

Margot Robbie

This Australian actress has grown from bit-part performer to Hollywood A-lister over the course of the past decade and she’s also managed to significantly up her style game in the process.

Clearly Robbie is a stunningly attractive actor but she also knows how to win the style war that so many fail. The Wolf of Wall Street star is always careful to be perfectly stylish whenever she’s captured by the camera lense and that’s a talent that isn’t easily honed.

In 2016 she became a key part of Calvin Klein’s fashion range, in 2018 it was Chanel who were making the most of her icon-like status, and look. She is regularly named in ‘best dressed’ lists and her quirky attitude is one that has helped to secure a key reputation as a real trendsetter. 

There isn’t a moment she’s in front of the camera and not pulling off an effortless level of style. Whether that’s in a simple ensemble coupled with a form fitted dress for a top designer, paired off with idyllic oversized sunglasses to die for, or in a simple pair of mom-jeans and a nice pair of Gucci framed eyewear.

Clearly while the five acting megastars named above are all leading style figures it’s also important to note that they are all very much at the top end of their acting scale. All are award winners in their fields and a great deal of their successful style input comes from their own unique characters. 

These are icons not only in the style game but also of the silver screen. They are A-listers in every sense of the word.

Many people use the word startup but know very little about its true meaning and the work behind it. For most of us, startups are usually associated with success stories, huge money, and people who became millionaires overnight. However, there is an ugly truth about startups that we all should know.

Fortunately, movie makers and streaming services became interested in startups as well. There are lots of TV shows and films dedicated to the most successful ventures and people behind them. Based on their life stories, choices, and struggles, we get to know more about entrepreneurship and the business reality in the XXI century.

To make it easier for you, together with the EssayHub team providing write my essay services, we’ve come up with a list of must-watch TV shows about startups for students. Grab your laptop and make yourself comfortable: they are not only interesting but also educational.

Silicon Valley (2014 – 2019)

Silicon Valley is a great TV show telling the story of Richard Hendricks who’s trying to build his own company. For 6 seasons, you get to know everything about the struggles of a programmer who desperately wants to maintain his company and withstand fierce competition.

Anna Jones, a literary analysis essay writer, who specifically recommended this show, tells that it is great at making a parody on the special culture that makes Silicon Valley different from other incubators around the world. You definitely won’t regret watching this show.

The Startup Kids (2012)

This documentary show is based on a series of interviews with young tech founders who indeed made a fortune on their creative startup idea. They let you in their stories of inspiration and drive and disclose what actually pushed them to go forward with the unique and impactful projects.

Even though most of them were lucky to find the source of funding and get over all the technological obstacles, we can still learn a lot from their personal obsession with business and its outcomes. On the majority of TV show review websites, the StartUp Kids rank at the top just like https://nocramming.com/ does across a wide variety of essay writing service reviews.

StartUp (2016)

This TV show is one of the top-ranked and most recommended for aspiring students who want to learn more about building a business and enjoy their time watching an organized crime thriller.

This is a story of a tech startup’s journey to success, full of unexpected U-turns and risky decisions. It shows that the path to big business is never easy and smooth. You have to overcome lots of obstacles and avoid dirty deals along the way.

Planet of the Apps (2017)

One of the favorite shows of Dan Chaon, Planet of the Apps features such movie stars as Jessica Alba and Gwyneth Paltrow together with a startup guru Gary Vaynerchuk. This is a reality show in which aspiring software developers try to impress the judges with their mobile app ideas in 60 seconds. Those who actually manage to do that, proceed to the next round.

Upstarts (2019)

This Indian TV show on Netflix brought lots of students to their screens since it features three college graduates on the path to success with their health tech app. They do not always make the right decisions; sometimes, they fail and have to work twice as hard. Shortly, it turns into constant ups and downs that challenge their persistence and determination.

Also, the show demonstrates how people change along the way from the startup launch to its success. Money and influence test their friendship in different ways.

There was a time, not so long ago, that the idea of making your own movie (be that a short for a college project or a full-length movie) would have been almost unthinkable. The costs and time to conduct such an undertaking would have made the concept of dead in the water before you’d even begun.

However over the past few years the associated costs with making a top quality production have dropped significantly. Firstly the equipment needed to make a project that looked big budget, even though the camera technology being used is still relatively cheap, became universally available.

This meant that an aspiring filmmaker could shoot their films with low cost cameras, or even their phones, and the results would still be acceptable and that meant that the success of your vision was not bound by technical restraints, only by your own imagination.

The Moving Image

As the cost of quality filming equipment, and online editing tools, have reduced so have the misconceptions around films and shows made by individuals outside of the traditional studio systems.

The increase in demand for UGC (User Generated Content) has led to an explosion of shows, usually broadcast via social media channels, available for the public to enjoy. No longer are viewers left with only terrestrial national or regional channels to view material.

This is a refreshing change in the mode of production that means that if you have great ideas, and the patience and determination to make them a reality, then it’s just possible that you could garner a strong following to watch the films and shows you produce.

The Perfect Soundtrack

A great film, or TV show, is not complete without a strong soundtrack. That soundtrack could come from individual tracks recorded, or purchased, to back your film or in the form of SFX (Special Effects).

These are crucial, not just from a technical perspective, for instance you may have not been able to record the sound you required on the day of your shoot, but also to make your production feel like the real deal.

Some look to use mainstream music to back the visuals in their movies, perhaps electing to use a well-known song in their soundtrack. However there are two major issues with going down this route.

Firstly the costs of securing the license for a mainstream track are very high indeed, they could end up as expensive as the entire budget of making your movie. And as well as the resultant cost, it’s incredibly difficult to find the relevant publishing house that owns the rights to a given track.

Another option that far too many filmmakers adopt is to use the music without permission or clearance. This is not a path you should follow. Failure to secure permission for a track will most likely result in a very large financial penalty, or worse. Also, if your movie or short film is posted on a social media channel you could soon find yourself the subject of a DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright notice) notice and then the fun really begins.

If you receive such a notice your social media channels are most likely to suspend, and delete, your post and if you commit such an offence on multiple occasions, you could be banned entirely from the likes of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Professional Results on an Amateur Budget

However there is an alternative at hand. Due to the massive demand, and output, created by UGC content there have been a number of sites who have opened that offer competitively priced royalty-free music services that will resolve these issues.

Royalty-free music traditionally means music, and SFX, that is available for your use for a flat fee. This means that you can get your hands on a near limitless amount of high-quality music and SFX for a fraction of the cost of paying for the license for an existing chart topping hit.

These providers offer mammoth liberties that offer music and special effects which will be ideal for any situation or scene in your films. The range available is truly vast and in many ways that will make your film far more original than just using a song that frankly we’ve heard far too many times over the top of your quality visuals.

The tracks provided are of the highest quality, usually by aspiring artists who are looking for the exposure they can secure from being used on soundtracks, advertising, social media posts etc.. and these are all helpfully placed in databases that are easy to search and inexpensive.

The Perfect Marriage of Sound and Vision

When you decide to make a film or show you do so because you want to bring your singular vision to an audience, be that large or small. Therefore you are looking to make your vision stand out from the rest, and the marketplace is huge.

So in that way royalty-free music and SFX services give you the security of finding and using bespoke solutions to your soundtrack needs. Using what is available on these sites will help you create a perfect soundtrack to the visuals you produce and the possibilities are frankly endless.

So what are you waiting for?!

There comes a time when we are all sat at the computer, feeling a little bored and looking for something different to try. You may be sat at your desk in work or in the office at home and want a break or just have some free time and want to fill it with something fun. Below you will find a selection of crazy things to try online, beginning with mobile app casino games.

Even if you have never visited a casino, you are sure to have seen a casino or casino games featured in a television show or movie. The adrenaline rush playing a casino game can provide is difficult to replicate with anything else in life and if you are searching for something new and crazy to try online, playing mobile casino games is a great place to begin. You can take advantage of the latest offers at some of the world’s best mobile casinos and these often include free bets and spins on the slots.

If you are single and looking for love, why not try one of the leading dating websites? There are plenty of niche dating websites should you be searching for a specific person based on location, religion, or profession. Even if you do not end up meeting the one, you are sure to make plenty of friends along the way.

Next, we come to one of the craziest things to try online, the Wiki Game. This is based on the Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon but uses Wikipedia. The game produces two random Wikipedia articles and your job is to find the fastest path from one article to the other via hyperlinks. You never know who or what you are going to come across and some the links can be totally bizarre, making the Wiki Game a great deal of fun.

You are unlikely to have ever considered what your pet would look like if it had your face but that is exactly what PetSwitch does and now you are curious. This website takes a picture of your face and adds it to the image of your pet. The results are often crazy and may leave you looking at your pet in a whole different way. If you do not want to do this for yourself, you can always add images of your friends and send them the hilarious results.

If you have been struggling to buy a gift for someone at Christmas or for their birthday then the Weird or Confusing website is the place for you. This website has been created to not only showcase the strange range of products eBay will not let you sell but also the ones it will let you sell. Weird or Confusing will bring you the craziest items you can imagine and it is up to you to decide which one you are going to purchase. There is a pink button that says ‘please’ and each time you click on the button, a new, crazy item appears from eBay.