#Fifer group

[clove-pinks]

I want to share even more of my River Raisin Battlefield living history event pictures tonight because I had such a great time!

The actual River is in the background of this picture where the iron bridge can be seen (and today the battlefield is surrounded by train tracks). To truly understand the scope of it, you need to travel to multiple sites along the river where the conflict took place 211 years ago.

Everyone was very friendly and eager to talk about their hobby and kit. The gentleman at centre kept saying "I love my manpurse!" about his haversack (they store items in there like wallets and cellphones), and the man at right is portraying a settler called up to muster for militia who brings a farm implement instead of a firearm.

The drummer and fifer were quite talented, especially the fifer (who also sewed reenactment clothing), and they played "The Girl I Left Behind Me" and other tunes.

I love, love the sound of just ONE fife and ONE drum, and I'm always looking for music with this minimalist arrangement, if anyone has any recommendations!

The militia reenactors cheered when they managed to get their guns to stand up like this: it felt like something the ragtag Michigan militia would have cheered two centuries ago.

They were such a lovely group of people, and I'll see them next weekend at the First Siege of Fort Meigs!

[thebaffledcaptain]

No such thing as dumb questions, so might as well ask it…

Advice for one starting out in reenactment (specifically American Revolution/18th century) and I don’t mean acting - I mean things new people should know?

Great to see other people getting involved with reenactment—hope your search is going well!! Certainly not a dumb question—as I am definitely still a reenactment beginner myself, relatively speaking, this stuff is still fresh in my mind and relevant to me as well. Here's a couple things I can think of off the top of my head:

I'm gonna start with the unfortunate safety caveat: reenactment, as a hobby, is not the most accepting one out there. It's probably 85% middle-aged white dudes who have been doing this for like 20 years, and I'm not going to lie and say that it's a super inclusive environment. If you're queer, non-male, or non-white there is a very real possibility that you might encounter some Bad Opinions. There are definitely units out there who are assholes about ""historical accuracy"" and don't want, for example, women/non-males in their ranks because ""it's not historically accurate."" This is a flimsy excuse for bigotry. If any of it was truly historically accurate, no one over the age of, like, 25 would be allowed to participate, and we'd all have dysentery—which is to say, if they're assholes, find another unit. There are more accepting ones. The community is gradually becoming more diverse and more inclusive, slowly but steadily, and if you don't feel safe in your unit, there's definitely a better one out there.

In my experience, I definitely don't feel unsafe in my own unit, buuuut there are definitely guys who I would avoid talking politics with. That being said, I also think we have an awesome group of probably the queerest fifers in the British Brigade, and more than one well-intentioned dad who I absolutely trust to accept my queerness. Reenactment is a mixed bag, but again, you can definitely find the right people, and I hope you don't settle for less.

Next thing I would say is probably one of the first things you’ll hear after joining a unit: don’t buy anything without the approval of your unit! In all honesty I would say you probably don’t have to worry much about assembling a kit at all, initially—most units have spare gear that they loan out to people, often for long periods, so that they can get out on the field and start having fun as fast as possible. Now it’s probably going to be the old stuff that’s been in someone’s basement for ten years, but it gives you the time to put together your own stuff at your own pace (and reenactment gear is not cheap, so it saves you having to blow a whole lot of money at once, that’s for sure). If you’re hoping to procure anything yourself, ask someone, ideally a commanding officer, before you buy—not only to make sure you buy the right thing, but also because there’s a good chance someone in the unit might either be able to give you one, help you make one, or know a guy who could. A lot of reenactment is making your own stuff, fixing up hand me downs, and trading stuff around the unit (at my last event I straight up switched shoes with another fifer from my regiment…) so there are definitely less expensive (and in a sense, more accurate) ways to go about it.

Another thing I would say as a reassurance, if you’re anything like me and Generally Anxious about doing new things, especially things where everyone has been doing this for years and know a lot of things you don’t, and also especially if you’re by yourself: it may be “battle,” but the stakes are low here. My favorite way to look at reenactment is as a bunch of grown men dressing up to play war. As part of field music I was super nervous about my “performance” at my first event—it was before I had really mastered the art of, you know, consistently getting sound out of my instrument—only to discover that it really, really didn’t matter that much. Having a whole bunch of experienced people around means that you are almost never left without someone to turn to for help. As long as you’re trying your best to play your part, that’s really all anyone expects from you as a new member—you learn as you go, and you learn by doing.

And that kind of brings me to what I think is the most important thing you can do as a reenactor: be willing to learn. If there’s one thing I really respect about the reenactment community, it’s that they’re very, very knowledgeable. Everyone is here because they’re interested in the history and they love doing this, and a good portion of them are already retired and spend, like, all their time researching this stuff in order to present the most accurate impressions. The best units, in my opinion, are the ones that prioritize historical accuracy in their presentations—not in an exclusionary way, but in a way that makes that accuracy as accessible as possible. In my experience all you have to do to make a good impression is show up, be a decent person, and express interest—these guys love when young people want to get involved, and they do these events specifically so they can rattle on about niche history stuff to people who want to listen. Learning from them will help you with your impression, of course, but it’s also just such a wealth of highly specific knowledge from people who are super eager to talk about it. It’s hard not to learn something from them.

Anyway, that’s some of the best “beginner” stuff I’ve learned so far—I have another event coming up this weekend (very exciting) so I expect to learn some more. If you want more specific suggestions for a first event or something I’d be happy to come up with some stuff but I’m assuming this was a more general question. Either way, hope this was helpful and best of luck in your reenactment endeavors!

[scotianostra]

The Citizen Shop.

J&G Innes (a.k.a. “The Citizen Shop”) is a bookshop in St Andrews with a rich history spanning over 3 centuries. It was bought by the Innes firm in 1927 after John Innes, founder of the St Andrews Citizen newspaper, purchased the printing and publishing business of the Tullis family in 1879.

The Tullis family also had deep ties with the University having, among many other things, made donations to Mathematics prizes. Prior to its purchase, the building once housed Baillie Bell, co-worker of Alexander Wilson (one of the first type-founders in Scotland, and recognized in astronomy for his observatory work on sunspots) and John Baine (credited by some to have owned the Philadelphia type-foundry in which the dollar-sign [$] was first cast in the 1790’s).

This bookshop was the first in Scotland to use a printing process involving amalgams of noble metals – the newest printing innovation of the early 1900's. It sells many boos including The Weem Witch and other books written by my friend, Fifer Leonard Low. Follow his page here https://www.facebook.com/groups/206183239422463

[reiverreturns]

i just scrolled your blog to take a wee look 'cause oh look a fellow Scot perhaps?? and ooft man your take about the Merida post pic actual near enough had me yelling in agreement at my computer screen. Thank you for getting it! Sincerely, a fellow exhausted Scot that would like to not be treated as a joke waiting to happen for how I sound.

(And not just because I'm a Fifer)

thank you friend! unfortunately you're just asking for it being a fifer, eh <3

taking this as an opportunity to re-post the tags, because i've got a lot of followers who aren't scottish and won't understand why the jokes about merida not being understandable and other scots-speaking characters are bang-your-head-on-a-wall frustrating for a lot of scots speakers.

dinnae even get me started oan the pokemon trainer...

#i think what most non-scottish audiences who don't see the problem miss is the broader context of it being part of a tradition #of using scots language exclusively for comedy or otherwise pastoral entertainment #where a group of people (scots) are 'othered' by their foreignness/social class/lack of education/financial standing/etc #in the modernist tradition you can trace this right back to the 18th century #the most obvious example being robert burns as 'the ploughman's poet' #having this humility about his image as a rural man because he wrote in scots #despite the fact he was extremely clever and educated and spent huge amounts of time rubbing shoulders with #high society at the peak of the scottish enlightenment #this translates today to scots being almost exclusively used in comedy broadcasting despite it being one of scotland's three major languages #we get still game and gary tank commander and rab c nesbitt but i've NEVER heard a news broadcast in my own language #scots is a language weaponised in mainstream media to hammer in the idea that scottish people are stupid and our voices have no value #in isolation i don't get offended by jokes like this (because i am difficult to understand! my accent is thick! it's cool!) #but you've gotta be aware of the tradition this unwittingly feeds #and know how it harms everyday scots still trying to find a little pride in their native leid to this day

[sunshinestatecineplex]

FANTASIA 2024: HAZE - A Slow-Burn Descent Into LGBTQ+ Fear

One cannot help but feel the anxiety of Fifer's work as it partakes in a deeply upsetting character study.

It’s hard to describe the impact of the AIDS crisis to non-LGBTQ+ individuals. While safe sex and fears of STDs are present across every group, AIDS completely changed how some men and women perceived sex within their communities. Even worse, non-urban areas saw the plague as a perceived punishment. Haze, a new horror feature from director Matthew Fifer, feels the reverberations of this trauma. A…

[screamingforyears]

IN A MINUTE: // A BUZZ_BIN EXPRESS… // “HEART ATTACK” is the final single in the run-up to @howstrange_it_is_’s forthcoming LP titled ‘In the light of the blistering moon’ (7/14 @candlepin_records @budtapes) & it finds the PDX-based quartet of Jordan Krinsky, Annie Miranda, Kyle Gordon & Annie Fifer bringing some indie-tinged & rustily rooted EmoRawk. @wanderingyearsmusic are here w/ “NEW YEAR SONG,” the first single from their forthcoming debut LP titled ‘Mountain Laughed’ (8/25 @candlepin_records) & it finds the Brooklyn-based group, consisting of Gene Stroman (vocals/guitar/drums), Martin Besa (guitar), Justin Hla-Gyaw (guitar), Kenny Hamilton (bass/piano/vox), Alex Alfaro (drums), Kevin Copeland (pedal steel/vox) & Matt Schlatter (bass/keys) bringing those early indie good across 6+ mins of melancholically burnt AltRock. @whitebeastband are here w/ a new single titled “THE RICHEST LAND ON EARTH” & it finds the Richmond, VA-based duo of Sam Roberts (Private Hell/Fried Egg) on drums & Jeffrey Rettberg (Beachmover) on bass/vox bringing the seething restraint & dastardly disdain across damn near 6 mins of range_rawking & heartland-tinged PowerIndie.

////

PEEP EM BELOW...

[revolutionarywarhistory]

The story of the Extra Regiment's ordinary soldiers: From McCay to Patton [Part 2]

Continued from part 1

The wild story of Philip Huston

Apart from William Simmons and John McCay, a young man named Philip Huston also enlisted in Kent County. In the summer of 1780, he enlisted in Captain Archibald Golder's company as a drummer. Just like James Murphey and Richard Goldin in the First Maryland Regiment, Philip likely played snare, side, or bass drums, and was a non-commissioned officer that received the same pay as corporals. Since music regulated the lives of soldiers in the Continental Army, and such musicians, including fifers, helped maintain discipline and efficiency within the Continental Army, he was vital. Such peoples sounded signals of the day and served the same purpose of the bugle in the 19th century but many duties focused on signaling. Additionally, drummers sometimes administered discipline, at times performing the unpopular duty of lashing or flogging of soldiers. Even so, the training of drummers like Philip likely caused disruption, leading to confusion and annoyance among the rank-and-file. Since fifes and drums worked in unison with standard musical units in the continental army consisting of group of at least one fifer and one drummer, and playing popular tunes during camps or long marches, he worked with the company's fifer, whose name is not currently known, but could be discovered.

Reprinted from my History Hermann WordPress blog.

It is possible that the Extra Regiment was understaffed in this area, but documents cannot disprove or prove this assertion since they are relatively limited on this regiment. Philip was lucky in a sense since there was a high turnover of drummers and fifers in the Continental Army. Like the rest of the unit, he marched from Annapolis to Carolina and joined the Continental Army. However, as he describes it, the regiment was broken up to "fill up vacancies" with officers returning as "supernumerary." He was one of those people, coming back with Captain Golder and Lieutenant John Plant to Annapolis. Once there, he joined Peter Adams' regiment, the First Maryland and attacked to Francis Reveley's company. From there, he again marched South, this time to Yorktown and fought at the battle there. Afterwards, he went further south, joining Nathaniel Greene until they stayed at Ashley Hills on the Ashley River. After that point, the unit was ordered to return to Maryland, and from then on, he went from Annapolis to Frederick Town. He ended up doing "garrison duty over the Hessians" until piece was declared. Interestingly, this means he may have rubbed shoulders with Mountjoy Bayly, who was the commanding officer in Frederick Town at the time, a former commander of the Extra Regiment!

Courtesy of American Rivers. Used under the fair use exception to copyright law. According to SCIWAY Net, Inc., this river winds through the lowcountry of South Carolina and was the first designated scenic river in that region of the state.

In August 1783, Philip gained an honorable discharge. He was advised to send his charge to Annapolis to try and get money from it, by selling or exchanging it. As he tells it, he sent it to...

one James McDonald who received about thirty dollars upon it from a merchant by the name of James Williams or Williamson, which was to be repaid to him when the certificate of soldiers pay should be given out. This man Williamson received the whole of my final settlement and retained my discharge in his possession. I called afterwards upon him but he refused to give me anything more than the thirty dollars I had already received; he however made me a present of a black silk handkerchief, and made me sign a receipt in full.

As a result, he noted that he was unable to send his "discharge agreeably to the requisition of the department of war." Basically Philip got swindled by these scammers who wouldn't give him back something which was rightfully his.

William Elkins, non-existent discharge papers

In July 1780, as William Simmons and John McCay were enlisting in Kent County, a young man named William Elkins enlisted at Frederick Town, now called Frederick, within Frederick County. He first joined the company of William Beatty, who was then in John Gunby's regiment. Later on that summer, perhaps even later that month, he joined the Extra Regiment. According to his recollection, the regiment marched from Frederick to Annapolis, then to Elkton Maryland, then on to "Christein" (likely Christiana) and to Philadelphia. From there, his company went back to Annapolis and after sometime went South. Again, this list of events follows Johns's pension saying that the regiment went to Alexandria, Virginia, then Pee Dee River, and joined Nathanael Greene. But, there is a difference between the stories.

Courtesy of Wikimedia. This means the Extra Regiment would have been, at that point, in North or South Carolina, although they were likely in the latter more than the former.

William Elkins, unlike William and John mentioned earlier, fought in other major battles in the Southern Campaign. He fought at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, possibly in the Second Maryland Regiment, at the short engagement at Hobkirk's Hill, at the Siege of Ninety Six, and at Eutaw Springs. After this, he marched to James Island near South Carolina's Charleston from where troops went by ship back to Annapolis. It was there he received a furlough, in 1784, after serving a term of three years and one month, but since he was absent from the regiment when peace was declared, he "neglected to obtain a certificate of his discharge" at the time.

William Patton was another man who enlisted in Frederick County at age 26. He claims he enlisted in 1776 in the regular army when he resided in "Creagerstown Destrict Frederick County" which refers to Creagerstown, Maryland, and also  enlisted there as well. He claims that he served with Captain Samuel Cock (one transcript of the pension says he enlisted with "James L. Cock" but this is incorrect) from 1776 until 1781, leaving the company three of four days before the "battle at gilford." He goes on to say that General Greene then gave him his full discharge. But before all that, he relates how the regiment marched to Annapolis, then to Elk River, then to Baltimore Town (not mentioned by others), then to Philadelphia and to the Potomac River, and then southward. This is a bit jumbled, but he was recalling this when he was in his nineties! Anyway, he argues that he served over four years in the military service, which could invalidate his previous claims.

He even says that he did receive a discharge from his military service. However, his discharge wet while deer hunting and as a result, it got destroyed. He also says he may have served in a company of Capt. Mountjoy Bayly. Other records show that he was given payments for his service, $13.30 in fact, at the time.

© 2016-2023 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

[23films]

PBS POV presents LET THE LITTLE LIGHT SHINE trailer from Kevin Shaw on Vimeo.

National Teachers Academy (NTA) is considered a beacon for Black children: a top-ranked, high-performing elementary school located in the fastest-growing neighborhood on Chicago's South Side. As the neighborhood gentrifies, a wealthy parents’ group seeks to close NTA and replace it with a high school campus. How will NTA's students, parents, and educators fight to save their beloved institution? A co-production of POV and ITVS, in association with Black Public Media.

LET THE LITTLE LIGHT SHINE makes its national broadcast premiere on POV Monday, December 12, 2022 (check local listings) and will be available to stream with no PBS Passport membership necessary until March 10, 2023, at pbs.org, and the PBS Video app.

Directed and Produced by Kevin Shaw Produced by Rachel Dickson Executive Produced by Steve James, Sally Jo Fifer, Erika Dilday, Chris White and Leslie Fields Cruz

[nekkotheodd]

31 Days of Halloween - Grab Bag Edition: Day 15 - Deadbeats

This entry is a bit different as I kind of know some of the creators. We are diving back into the printed page with Deadbeats by my friend, Chris Lackey, and the lovely Chad Fifer and I.N.J. Culbard. Set in 1924 Chicago, the story follows a group of jazz musicians that find themselves tangled with a cult trying to bring forward an eldritch horror. There is a little more flare to the plot but that's about all i can give without giving it all away. I certainly think it's worth buying and my copy sits nicely on the comic shelf in my room. The art is great. The story is great. Check it out.

[topiadrita]

Fifa 20 icons

#FIFA 20 ICONS HOW TO#

#FIFA 20 ICONS HOW TO#

It’s a dangerous team including Ronaldo and Messi, and you’ll get the usual nice chunk of points for beating it. It's now possible to play with icons in career mode on console, and in today's video I'm going to be showing you exactly how to use icons in FIFA 20 career m. Lastly, Squad Battles got its weekly reset, and this week’s challenger is Rodri. German Regionalliga (with 20 Teams) all 18 missing CL,EL and Conference League. I would personally just focus on the Icon Swaps challenges and check back for juicier SBCs later in the week. In case you use FIFERS RealismMod PREVIEW() with the new beta of FIFA. The reward is a Premium Gold Players pack, so you can take or leave this one. players they found would represent Ghana in U-17 and U-20 FIFA youth tournaments. You can knock it out for 7K, according to FUTBin. James was met by a similar response to that at Future Icons FC. Like with the first set, you will have one month to try and collect Icon Swaps items to exchange for Icons. You have a group using their best players to try and win, and then you have another group just very specifically doing objectives in these games, and some of the time you don’t even need to win when doing specific objectives. Again, as I’ve said before, I don’t know if I love this because you have two groups of people with very different goals playing Rivals. In general, Rivals remains the place to go to do online objectives for these Icon Swaps. Experience unique versions of each ICON with Stories, featuring individual player items that represent each players milestone career moments. Add some of the biggest football legends to your squad with a set of new FUT ICONS that are being introduced in FIFA Ultimate Team. Others are much easier, like winning four games in Rivals with seven first-owned Serie A players on your team. FIFA 20 Icons FIFA 20 Icons - Football Legends 1 of 8. One of the harder ones, depending on how you deal with the AI, is winning five Squad Battles games on legendary with 11 EFL Championship players in your squad. I’m not going to detail every single one of the Icon Swaps objectives, but they are broken down between single player and online like the first set. The 2019-2020 season of most top football leagues will start in august 2019, alongside that, the successor of fifa 19 - fifa 20 is confirmed to come out at the end of september, pre order the fifa 20 ultimate, champions or standard edition, you can get rich bonus. EA told us we would get the next set of Icon Swaps objectives today, and we indeed did get them.

[jamonkanilfifer]

Its all about me

[whattolearntoday]

March 4th is...

Day Of Unplugging - Disconnecting or unplugging from all the digital static offers us an opportunity to reset. It also allows us to make more human connections with the people around us. Digital connections lack the tactile essence of the real world such as sounds, smells, and touch. Eye contact, for example, lacks depth in the digital world. In person, however, we gain a sense of someone even if we don’t know what it is yet. Another benefit of unplugging is better sleep. When we push away from the computer, put down the smartphone, and turn off the computer, we’re more likely to stretch our legs. Going outdoors into the fresh air, we might actually get more natural exercise causing our bodies to sleep better. Other things about unplugging that might surprise you are that you’ll find more time to do the things you keep saying you have no time to do. For example, reading that book or visiting with an old friend, cleaning out the closets, or hiking a trail.

Dress In Blue Day - Much like the pink ribbon represents those lost to breast cancer, a blue star honors the memory of those lost to colon cancer. Continuing the blue theme on Dress in Blue Day, awareness efforts provide support through fundraising for screening, research, and awareness education. Screenings are vital. Colon cancer often has no symptoms until its advanced stages placing its victims at higher risk if they wait until symptoms appear. Screenings are recommended beginning at age 50 and younger if you are at high risk.

Employee Appreciation Day -  Employees are one of a company’s greatest assets. Recognition and appreciation are known as some of the key motivational factors in the workplace. An employer may show their gratitude for an employee’s efforts and contributions to the company’s goals in a variety of ways. Many organizations include employee appreciation as part of their business structure. It shows how much they value their employees and keeps morale high in the workplace. Employers who express employee appreciation tend to increase employee job satisfaction as well.

Grammar Day -  Language is something to celebrate. Some people might suggest that grammar is a set of rules for language, but it is a system for understanding language. Understanding the system and the structure helps us understand each other better and help us learn new languages.

Hug A GI Day -  Gather around your servicemen and women to give them a hug. It’s simply a way to show your support. With either a pat on the back or a hearty handshake, be sure to give both past and present G.I.s your appreciation. While G.I.s refer to Army personnel, the day encompasses all those who have served in the military. So, hug those Jarheads, Wingnuts, Squids, and Coasties, too!

Marching Music Day -  For centuries, the beat of a drum has kept military units moving in unison. From the training field to the battlefield, the football stadium to the Broadway stage, marching music delights performers and spectators. They also perform in small gyms, auditoriums, and grand arenas. From small parades to impressive spectacles, fifers, pipers, buglers, drum corps, marching bands, parade groups, drill teams, and color guards bring music to life. They bring audiences to their feet while stirring a crowd to an enthusiastic roar.

Pound Cake Day -  The traditional recipe for pound cake makes a cake much larger than most families can consume, as it calls for a pound each of flour, butter, eggs, and sugar. Hence the name Pound Cake.

Sons Day -  Around the world, slightly more sons are born than daughters. Both bring joy to families, though. Our rambunctious sons grow into adult men and forge their own independence in the world. Some are soft-spoken and gentle. Others with a spark of curiosity fill every hour with questions, some unanswerable.

[thebaffledcaptain]

For writing purposes, have you any anecdotes from battle reenactment, or references on the battle of Yorktown (1781)?

Oh that's a fun question… my first disclaimer is that I only started reenacting fairly recently, so I only have so many anecdotes. My second disclaimer is that I definitely know more about the British side of things than the Continental side, but luckily most of the military organization and conduct was virtually the same on both sides. My last is that I am no particular expert on Yorktown specifically—I've heard they've done huge reenactments there in the past but I have not been in the hobby long enough to have gone to one, unfortunately. However, what I would be happy to talk about are some historical details you could use in setting up your scene and kind of bringing it to life, most of which only occurred to me after experiencing them firsthand!

“The Fog of War”

Which is to say, powder smoke. Great white plumes of it, tearing from muskets on every volley, drifting across the field and saturating the air with the bitter smell of sulfur. I find myself holding my breath on every volley just so I won’t inhale a big lungful of it—at certain points it’s like marching through a cloud, and humid weather can exacerbate that even further, since it won’t dissipate. And it lingers. I remember standing up at the very top of the valley at Monmouth in the evening after the first day and you could still see that smoke blurring the horizon, hours later. We tend not to think so much about it as a modern audience, but it was a huge factor in these historical battles: you could write about how it obscures the visibility, how the smell lingers, the terrifying sight of an enemy battalion emerging from the smoke with bayonets fixed…

The Scale

Let’s be honest, reenactments don’t tend to be really massive events—some events are bigger than others but overall it’s a niche hobby and even our best turnouts are nowhere near the size of these battles in reality (my regiment requires a minimum of a mere 8 members to commit to an event for us to go…). Historically you’d be having somewhere between roughly 500–700 men per regiment, divided into ten companies. As a field musician, since it would have been my job, I’m always thinking about how it would have been to actually communicate with and maneuver a group that large with only a handful of drummers and fifers per company, especially with that many other companies on the field—it’s hard enough playing for 20 something reenactors across two units! And Yorktown was one of the biggest conflicts in the war, both literally (with regard to number of men involved) and figuratively, given how decisive it was; I can only imagine how much pressure it would have been on the commanding officers as they actually made those decisions for dozens or hundreds of men. Being on the battlefield is actually rather isolating, in a way—I’ll see certain regiments in camp and then never see them on the field because we’re in completely different places, so, you know, could make for some dramatic Character Worrying in the story if you're so inclined.

Last but not least, because I’m a little biased but still feel it’s important:

The Music (and other Sounds of War)

Being on a battlefield is loud! You’ve got men roaring as they head into a bayonet charge, drumbeats punctuating shouted orders, volleys firing, the shrill sound of another company’s fifes playing on the advance. When you've got artillery you can literally feel the shots reverberate through the ground beneath your feet, even across the field. Occasionally muskets don’t fire the first round, so they get double-loaded with gunpowder on the second—the 54th had this happen at my last event and when the shot went off it was so loud it temporarily deafened the two men closest to it. War is noisy. And of course I can’t not talk about the music—you could mention the musicians switching tunes to reflect a different maneuver, or mention listening across the field, hoping to hear the Cease Fire from the enemy. Fifes are loud instruments, designed to carry across these wide-open spaces, so often you’re hearing multiple companies’ musicians on top of each other (and even on top of that, some light infantry and dragoon companies were actually using bugles instead of fifes!). On bayonet charges we play the Reveille, on the advance we tend to do British Grenadiers. When men are aiming and firing there’s a different short drum beat for every command (make ready/present/fire). Obviously it’d be a bit much to write in every one of those instances, but it kind of puts it in context how frequently you’d be hearing music on the battlefield.

Anyway. If you can’t tell I love talking about reenacting. Thanks for letting me infodump to you and, though it’s not Yorktown-specific, I hope this maybe gives you some inspiration or some contextual material to work with while you’re writing!

[tarambradley]

The final take of Fifer, Henry, and Ragna. I love seeing them all together and I think they work well as a group here. Next up are character interactions! 💖🎉 #characterdesign #characterdesigner #watercolor #coloredpensil #posca #illustration #mixedmedia #mixedmediaart #flute #sword #scared #human #bird #dragon #warrior #artistoninstagram https://www.instagram.com/p/CRFn3FyjBGq/?utm_medium=tumblr

[glenngaylord]

OUTFEST 2020 FILM REVIEWS:  The Rest Of The Fest

As the curtain closes on another Outfest, this one presented under extremely unusual circumstances, I sit in awe of the filmmakers and of the staff who put together not only a great group of films, but managed to creatively bring them to its audience online and at drive-in screenings.  Typically, you find yourself having to choose one film over several others, but with this new format, you have a great chance of seeing everything you want.  In past years, I found myself lucky if I saw 15 films.  This year I saw 23 features and 4 shorts programs out of the 160 on the schedule.  

As it’s impossible to get full reviews submitted for everything while the festival is still chugging along, I wanted to write capsules of the remaining films not covered at TheQueerReview.com .  Please visit the website for all the other reviews I wrote as well as those by my colleagues.

THE OBITUARY OF TUNDE JOHNSON ★★★★★

Melding a Groundhog Day-style concept with police violence against black people, this stunning film could not be more prescient and emotionally overpowering.  A black gay teenager relives his moment of murder over and over again, with slight shifts in the narrative taking us to someplace unexpected and earned.  Director Ali LeRoi directs his first feature as if he’s been doing it all of his life and has interpreted Stanley Kalu’s ingenious script with a great cinematic approach.  Gorgeously framed, beautifully acted, written, and directed, this is one of the most powerful films of 2020.

TWO EYES ★★★★★

I can’t form sentences here so I’m gonna vomit out words:  Instant classic. Glorious. Set over three centuries seamlessly melding a triptych of stories about gender identity.  I’m a blubbering mess.  Fantastic and very funny last line.  Travis Fine is a very gifted filmmaker who screams love child of Terrence Malick and Kelly Reichardt.  Heartbreaking. Inspiring. Unforgettable.  Montana is so beautiful.  Barstow is not.  A perfect film for anyone who wants to find their place in the world. I wouldn’t complain if TUNDE and TWO EYES both received Best Picture Oscar nominations.  

DRAMARAMA  ★★★★

Theater nerds rule in this incredibly endearing, early 90s set film about a group of high schoolers discovering themselves in one night at a ridiculous Murder Mystery-themed party.  Hilarious script, vivid and wonderful performances, and the opposite of a “Coming Out” movie in the best possible way.  Jonathan Wysocki has given us The Breakfast Club for air-kissing, mid-Atlantic accented freaks and geeks. 

CICADA ★★★★

What happens when a traumatized, bisexual man who has more sex partners than any standard montage can contain slows things down to concentrate on one kind but also traumatized young man?  This elliptically told film has a fun, flirty side but carries its heaviness with great ease.  A terrific feature debut for director/writer/editor/lead actor Matthew Fifer. 

THE STRONG ONES (LOS FUERTES) ★★★★

From Chile comes this sexy, moving story of two men at cross purposes who form a beautiful bond.  Set against some stunning scenery and mining the chemistry between its two leads for everything it has, I am half-jokingly calling it Brokeback Andes.  It’s so much more than that trite, hackneyed comparison.  

MONSOON ★★★1/2

Director Hong Khaou’s followup to Lilting sets its sights on modern day Vietnam as Henry Golding’s character visits to find a suitable place to distribute his mother’s ashes.  It’s a terrific mediation on a gay man finding a sense of belonging in a place he’s never been and Golding proves himself to be a subtle, compelling actor.  Perhaps a little too quiet and reflective, the film makes up for what it lacks in narrative drive with its awe-inspiring cinematography and immersive qualities.  

P.S. BURN THIS LETTER PLEASE ★★★★1/2

What an unexpected surprise.  Michael Seligman and Jennifer  Tiexiera’s documentary about a treasure trove of letters dating back to the 1950s brings us into the world of drag queens from almost 70 years ago.  With many of its subjects not only alive but in fine form telling their stories and the dishiest voiceover readings ever to grace a film, I was not only thoroughly entertained, but I didn’t expect to weep like Laura Dern at the end.  Oh, this is so so so so good. 

MINYAN ★★★★

Eric Steel’s feature debut has its own unique tone and a star making performance by Samuel H. Levine, a spitting image of a young Al Pacino/Sylvester Stallone hybrid.  With its 1980s Jewish Brighton Beach backdrop, this powerful yet subtle film about a young man coming to terms with his sexuality as well as his place within his religion, it’s a stunning debut.  Ron Rifkin is stellar as Levine’s charming grandfather and Alex Hurt (William Hurt’s son) has his father’s intensity.  Fantastic, lived-in production design which feels like its decade without resorting to the usual candy colored tropes and a evocative score makes this a memorable experience.  Reminiscent at times of On The Waterfront, this film puts a fresh new spin on a coming of age tale and finds so many moving moments from first sex to an elderly gay couple hiding in plain sight.  A must-see. 

SHIVA BABY ★★★★

Writer/Director Emma Seligman must have studied Rosemary’s Baby quite a bit with this angsty story set mostly at a memorial service.  Rachel Sennott is fantastic as a young lesbian who moves from one cringe-worthy moment to the next in an attempt to avoid as much conflict as possible.  The great supporting cast includes Polly Draper, Fred Melamed, Dianna Agron, Molly Gordon, and Jackie Hoffman, all note perfect.  Less a comedy and more of an emotional horror story, Seligman knows how to make the best of a cramped space and throw up an endless variety of obstacles.  You just want Sennott’s Danielle to get her goddamned bagel with lox and cream cheese, but the fates have something else, something better, in store. 

COWBOYS ★★★★

Steve Zahn gives a career best performance in this moving story of a father with mental health issues and his trans son escaping into the Montana wilderness.  Sasha Knight makes an impressive debut as Zahn’s son and Jillian Bell expertly walks that fine line between villain and empathetic character.  Its comparisons to Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid are not coincidental.  Not perfect by any stretch, it may feel fairly conventional, but it’s tackling a vibrant subject matter.  Extra points for giving Ann Dowd a role where we don’t hiss at her. 

BREAKING FAST ★★★

Solid romcom with a Muslim backdrop, this very tight, deceptively simple script provides just the right amount of sparks between its charming leads, Haaz Sleiman and Michael Cassidy.  While structurally not breaking new ground, the entry point into a world we don’t see enough of on screen coupled with food porn for days makes this a fun, funny, goes down easy delight.

ASK ANY BUDDY ★★★1/2

Q: Daddy!  Daddy!  What were the 70s like down at the Piers in NYC?   A: Oh shut up and watch this movie.  

An experimental collage of vintage gay porn and archival footage from the disco, pre-AIDS heyday gives this film a mesmerizing, museum installation quality.  While technically without a story, you feel like you’ve gone on a journey nonetheless.  Would pair well with William Friedkin’s Cruising. 

DRY WIND ★★★1/2

Slow cinema meets voyeuristic gay porn in this one of a kind Brazilian exploration an arid small town, a workers’ union crisis, and a man obsessed with the Tom Of Finland drawing come to life who motors into his life.  Overlong and a little too obtuse as it goes along, it’s worth watching this Alice In Wonderland takes a quaalude, gets a very hairy back, and has a lot of sex in the dirt. 

NO HARD FEELINGS ★★★★

This year’s Teddy Award Winner at the Berlin Film Festival, Faraz Shariat’s film uses its backdrop of a refugee camp in Germany to tell the story of Iranians and Irani-Germans searching for a better life.  Its three leads bring a spark and youthful energy to a story with devastating undercurrents.  A wrenching glimpse into the emotional effects an oppressive culture has on its people, yet told with a driving pulse. 

LILY TOMLIN: THE FILM BEHIND THE SHOW ★★★

A look behind the scenes as Lily Tomlin and wife Jane Wagner workshop their legendary 1980s Broadway show, The Search For Signs Of Intelligent Life In The Universe.  It’s great to see these two at the top of their game and get a glimpse of their creative process, but this documentary is almost devoid of incident and feels more like a sweet gift to the fans than a fully realized film. 

SHORTS: WHAT A BOY NEEDS ★★★1/2

A mixed bag here of people searching for excitement, I found a couple of gems here nonetheless.  Not to take away from the shorts I don’t mention, I want to single out two exceptional films. Ruben Navarro’s Of Hearts And Castles looks great, has a beautiful vibe, and shows us a lovely connection forming right before our eyes.  Kiko’s Saints proves highly original as we follow a female Japanese artist on assignment in France become obsessed with a gay couple who have a lot of sex on the beach.  Combining animation with fairly explicit sex, I loved seeing the male gaze from a female perspective. 

THE CAPOTE TAPES ★★1/2

I love Truman Capote. I grew up at a time when smart authors found themselves on talk shows and were treated like superstars.  I’ve read his books and always have been in awe of his ability to be himself.  Featuring never-before-heard tapes of Capote’s friends being interviewed by George Plimpton, unfortunately, I don’t think this repetitive documentary gave me anything all that new.  It’s still touching at times and for the uninitiated, this is a great overview of his life, but I was watching the clock. 

OUT LOUD ★★★1/2

A moving look at the Trans Chorus of Los Angeles as they prepare for their first public performance.  With its ticking clock storyline, director Gail Willumsen expertly interweaves storylines of its founder and members.  As such, you really learn what’s a stake and what it means to them.  I was lucky enough to see the chorus perform David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust a few years ago and basked in the power of its mere existence…and was also ridiculously entertained. 

TWILIGHT’S KISS (SUK SUK)  ★★★1/2

This quiet charmer form Hong Kong shows us something we almost never get to see on film - two elderly gay men meeting and falling in love.  The fact that both have been married to women doesn’t stop them from exploring their feelings.  A little to gentle by half, I still was in awe of this rarity.

[hansdampfinallengassen]

Reynard the Bard.

Fifer, Bugle Boy and Field Musician. Shifter. Last remainig member of his wiped-out mercenary group, looking for a new band.