#i know it’s inspired by a lot of Asian cultures (so exciting!) but the creators also seemed to have included indian culture too

[sweetshire]

btw i’m watching atla and i’m OBSESSED w it. hhhdhsjsaks it’s such a pleasant surprise bc this series is like this is the kind of thing i always used to daydream about. Little me would be so happy. It has quickly become all i can think about. Many many atla posts incoming, beware lovely mutuals!

[classicanalyzer]

Star Wars Visions - Journey to the Dark Head Thoughts and Analysis

"I'm sorry. This was a waste of time. You were right. No matter what we do, it won't end. There's no way to stop this war. And even if we did, it doesn't matter. Another would just arise." Ara (아라)

"Nothing is fixed. Light and dark will always coexist. And if nothing is set in stone, that means there will always be hope. We are always caught in the tide of uncertainty, but the next wave carries as much hope as it does despair. Ara, I actually needed this mission. And I think you did too." Toul (토울)

Journey to the Dark Head is really special to me. Seeing my culture represented in Star Wars warms my heart. As a Korean-American, it's special to see Korean voice actors as the main dub and talent in Star Wars (another reason why I'm so excited and hyped to see the Acolyte!). Alongside Ninth Jedi, I hope this short gets its own show (the team in Studio Mir's Radio Talk even mentions how they have many ideas for the universe of Journey to the Dark Head!). This is my dedicated piece for Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month (I know this is very late but a lot was going on preventing me from completing this earlier).

The focus setting of the short is the world of Dolgarak, a world home to two giant statues known as the Statues of prophecy, during the Old Republic Era (a reminder that Visions is non-Canon but it seems like it took place during this Era). The Hanbok-inspired outfits in the opening are amazing. We see a group of kids from a community of Force Oracles, beings who read prophecies when the stones of the temple experienced rainfall, stepping into the temple. Ara sees a prophecy as the rain drops on the rocks: Three figures in a duel. An Interpreter is there to record the prophecies into the record...a practice that Ara questions after seeing a prophecy said to take place in the future. She wants to deliver their information to the Jedi at which the Interpretator points out that they're not Jedi. Star Wars has delved into how visions can often be misleading despite having truth in them. Something which the Interpreter seems to be aware of than Ara at the moment. The theme of war as a cycle and how they come and go. The community keeps records of conflicts and prophecies so they can be read...and hopefully from my interpretation of the goal to prevent the cycle from repeating by learning about them. However, the idealist Ara just can't believe that their life is just a part of a never-ending cycle. Then she wonders...could the war end by cutting off the Dark Head?

(Fun Fact: my blog's banner is taken from the Hangul-inspired language shown in this short!)

"There is much you don't understand. War and conflict are constants. They are both built on the sands of time, which will continue to ebb and flow for all eternity. And their record remains on these stones. We read and keep their record." Interpreter

As the short transitions to the modern day, we see a hopeful pilot, Ara, and a disillusioned Jedi, Toul. Ara still believes that by cutting off the Dark Head, the war will finally turn against the Sith as she appeals to two members of the Jedi Council. One Jedi Master senses that approving the mission is the right course of action despite another Master's low opinion of this theory. With Toul being sent to go with Ara, the Master senses how it's destiny for him.

We see Toul trying to mediate as he remembers the day his Master was killed. Bichan (비찬), the Sith Lord with a Korean mask-influenced helmet and a Lightsaber with a chain, seeks to turn Toul into his apprentice after seeing the rage in him. Bichan left behind a "parting" gift in the form of a scar. Interestingly, visually Bichan shares similar facial similarities with Ara. The creators and team behind the show confirmed that he and Ara are the same species native to Dolgarak. The markings are based on the Haechi.

Toul when awoken displays a dark view of the point of mediating when the Sith will come for them anyway to kill them. The fear has taken hold of him as he doesn't have much to hope for. When the two finally meet...to say their respect for each other is low would be an understatement. Ara doesn't view Toul as what she imagines a Jedi to be (calling him a "kid" even though they're very likely around the same age but Ara is actually slightly taller than him) and even states how he should at least pretend to be one. Vice versa, Toul believes Ara's idea to be a foolish endeavor. As the two make a quick pit stop at an Asteroid City's Black Market, Ara buys supplies for their mission (I love how the team said they were able to keep the Goolbi-looking bombs in despite the runtime)...however as Toul spots a group passing by, he spots Bichan who muses something familiar nearby.

Once they reach Dolgarak, they're attacked by Bichan who is after the Statues of prophecy as well. As the two struggle to both survive in a tense high-speed sequence, Bichan taunts Toul about the Jedi sending Toul alone to be confronted by him. The teamwork and trust Ara and Toul display to each other despite their troubles with one another shows what they truly think of each other underneath. The action in this sequence is Studio Mir at their best: the exaggerated movements in the Lightsaber duel, the launching of the bombs, and the frantic pace of the camera. All the while, Bichan speaks to how futile their attempts to stop the Sith are with the Statues revealing the interconnecting nature between the Light and Dark Sides of the Force.

A major theme in this short is the cycle of Star Wars. We all know the usual story: Jedi vs Sith. A cycle between the two brings chaos and death across the galaxy. It's a seemingly never-ending conflict as the representation between the Light and Dark Sides of the Force clash. Ara's drive is the belief that destroying the Dark Head would finally end this seemingly eternal cycle. However, just as she's finally about to bring an end, both heads illuminate both light and dark. The Light and Dark Sides of the Force, for better or worse, are forever interconnected. With this realization, she sees Bichan incapacitating Toul with his chain...and realizing she's the third figure in the vision. Not wasting a moment after realizing this, she redirects her bombs to Bichan who uses the Force to send them into the air...which Ara activates them to clear the skies. All the while, Toul realizes why the Master sent him there as his mental Light Side self smiles at his Dark Side self. He realizes there is nothing to be scared and he has to find peace to overcome the darkness inside him. With the light from the bombs blinding Bichan, Toul uses this chance to kill Bichan. I think as Toul fell from the Statues, he made peace himself with a possible death...until Ara calls out and in a beautifully animated sequence saves him as the two parachuted down.

For a while, after they landed safely back at the seemingly abandoned temple, Ara gives into despair and cynicism much like the viewpoints of Kreia and Baylan Sköll about the pointlessness of trying to stop the darkness. However, Toul makes a beautiful point against such despair and cynicism, showcasing his redeveloped idealism and hope. Even if the cycle is seemingly destined to carry on forever, the future is uncertain, and there is always a chance to challenge destiny. Even if the cycle continues again, there will be even more beings with the spark of hope to carry that on. As Snoke once said in The Last Jedi,

"Darkness rises, and light to meet it." Snoke

Toul points out how they both needed this mission to finally see that and Ara has a spark of genuine hope come back as she decides to continue the fight with Toul...with a little banter about Ara's crashed ship with whose fault it was. One can imagine how far their friendship will go in their fights against the Sith.

A story about two beings trying to find hope in a seemingly never-ending conflict. It's fascinating to explore the side where it's acknowledged how the cycle of Star Wars can wear down on people. Yet we see why they should never stop fighting for what's right and good despite the possibility of the cycle restarting again.

As this short ends, I get so much happiness seeing a story ripe with potential for more. I really wish we get to see a show following Ara and Toul. Even the creators stated that they had a lot of ideas that could be used in a show based on the short. Ideas such as diving more into the pasts and histories of Ara, Toul, Dolgarak, and even Bichan. Give us that 13-episode series Lucasfilm! Otherwise, this was the best short for me in Visions S2.

Note: The score in this short by Lee Byung Hoon was great! Korean traditional instruments were used in the score which made this short stand out among the other Vision scores.

"You know, we make a pretty good team." Ara

"Let's get back to continue this fight. But we're gonna need a new ship, since you kind of crashed our last one, pilot." Taul

"Uh, what? Are you serious? Well, I wasn't the one who crashed the speeder. That's on you, Jedi. So, I'd say we're even." Ara

"Are you kidding? Crashing a ship is so much worse." Taul

"Oh, for what it's worth, you've definitely destroyed any illusions I had about the mighty Jedi." Ara

[zsweber-studios]

To the critical fans of Critical Role,

With the announcement of Campaign 3′s premier and the three week approach of our return to Taldorei, I have seen hundreds of excited posts by Critters flood the tag here on Tumblr joyfully cheering for the new characters, new setting, new exciting experiences to enjoy. It’s a wonderful and heartwarming sight, though it has been tempered with some concerns--specifically due to the setting.

Campaign 3, as we are all well aware at this point, is taking place on the continent of Marquet, a place we’ve only been to a couple times in Campaign 1. The Marquet we saw then was heavily inspired by Middle-Eastern and South-Asian aesthetics, and as far as we know that region is still inspired by those cultures. It’s an interesting and brilliant piece of worldbuilding that I’ve been excited to dive deeper into since we were introduced to it.

And it seems I wasn’t alone in this--months before the end of Campaign 2, even, there were people filling the Critical Role tag with their predictions for Campaign 3, and most common amongst them was the speculation of a Marquet-based campaign. People were excited at the concept of returning to Marquet and really seeing it fleshed out, especially four years after the last time we saw it and with all the experience Matt has gained and grown into with worldbuilding. We were excited to see the unique characters that the cast would make once they went there.

But now that the setting has been confirmed to be Marquet indeed, that same tag has been filled with wariness and unease.

Don’t get me wrong, I totally understand the reasoning. As many have pointed out already, Critical Role’s cast are all white, and the creator of Exandria himself is a white man. The fact that they are choosing to take the next leg of their story in Marquet inevitably means that they are choosing to tell a story in a land and with characters that are based on cultures they are not innately familiar with. Specifically, they’ll have to portray people of color in some manner, and if they want to be accurate to the setting, portray that culture as well.

It’s a difficult balancing act--creating a character in a background and culture that is so different from one you’re familiar with, and doing so in a respectful manner. Not many creators have successfully threaded the needle--I’d argue Miles Morales is probably the most successful, and even then I’m sure my inbox would be filled shortly by the influx of complaints in how poorly Miles was made. The fact of the matter is there’s no pleasing everyone, and even the most sincere of intentions can be flawed and imperfect.

That’s not what this is about.

This is specifically calling out those fans of Critical Role who are arguing that if Matt wanted to do Marquet for Campaign 3, then he should have handed the reins over to another creator that was non-white, replace at least half the cast with POC players, and have the rest play characters non-native to Marquet. This is to those fans who want Critical Role, but different.

Because at the end of the day, that’s who you are. I’ve been following some of the discourse surrounding Critical Role for a while before I dove into the actual show myself last year. And a lot of the discourse was exactly why I avoided this series for so long, because it seemed so worrying to me. There were people getting upset that the cast weren’t playing any non-white characters--then, when Beau and Veth came on the scene, they got upset that they weren’t ‘accurate’.

You know, in a game where characters can shoot lightning and talk to gods.

People will find a way to complain about anything in something they like but don’t love, and racism is an easy option to look for complaints. I’ll admit, the cast of Critical Role isn’t perfect, but they’re people. They’re constantly growing, moving, changing, as all people do. What they’re going to make isn’t going to be perfect, but I honestly believe it’ll come from sincere love and joy. For most of the critters, that’ll be enough. For those I’m writing this to, it won’t be.

To them, Critical Role will never be good enough. If the cast stays the same, they’ll complain that they’re white people playing non-white cultured characters. If the cast changes, they’ll complain that it’s not Critical Role anymore and doesn’t have the right chemistry. If they were to not play in Marquet at all, they’d call Matt a coward and a racist. There’s simply no appeasing everyone, and definitely no appeasing those who just want to complain.

I for one am excited to see what Campaign 3 will hold for us, and am hopeful the cast does well in their portrayals of the cultures that inspired a fantasy world of Matt’s making. I know I’m not alone in this. For those of you who just want to complain, though, feel free to tell my why I’m wrong.

My blocked list has been feeling a bit empty anyways.

[dayseternal-blog]

Alright, these are the questions I wanted to ask the most: 7) When is your preferred time to write? 8) Where do you take your inspiration from? 45) What spurs you on during the writing process? 48) What is your favorite trope to write about? -- Love you so much for all your support 😘💕💕💕

💗💗💗 omg #8 got a little too long.  I just couldn’t stop with how deeply important it is to me.  Like, I’m sorry it’s an essay, but please read the whole thing if you have the time. 😘😘

7) When is your preferred time to write?

Whenever I have bubble tea in my system!  Although I think night time might be my most productive time strictly in terms of creativity.

8) Where do you take your inspiration from?

I might read something and think, hm that wasn’t enough for me.  I want more!  Or I think, what would this be like if it was NaruHina?  Movies, folktales, fairytales, other fanfics, fanart, prompts, my own life or others’ stories!  I basically put NaruHina in every romantic situation possible, and some ideas develop really promisingly into viable stories.  Only two of my ideas are “original” in that they solely started off with a wondering “what if...” question - It’s No Secret and Undercover.

And as I told you before!  ❤️❤️ You, @mmmbuttery, and agitosgirl inspired me to write my own fics!! ❤️❤️

How you unapologetically leaned into Japanese culture when no other fic writer seemed to know anything basic about Japan in their canon-divergent fics (like some fic writers got them walking around in his apartment with their shoes on AHHHHHHHHH😱😱).  I thought how great it was to not feel like Naruto and Hinata were white people when I read your stories, and I felt like your fics were so much more relatable.

I thought if I’m spending my free time reading stories of my own choice, I am not about to read stories that have a Hinata who’s never had ramen before!  But I couldn’t find any other stories quite like yours and emmykay’s, and at this time, both of you weren’t writing anymore...basically I needed that representation.

So THANK YOU for doing what you did and what you still do, I have appreciated it SO MUCH 🙌🏼.  Just thinking about representation in English YA fiction and literature, like did I mention I watched Crazy Rich Asians at least 4 times in theatres and read the whole series?  Fanfiction is so important to me in this aspect.  It’s free!  And the characters can be Asian, in love, and just be themselves.  (yes there’s jdramas, kdramas, manga, anime, and translated literature, and I love those things, too, but I want all the things.)

And how agitosgirl would just drop stories and start new ones without warning or caring lol.  Her catchphrase as she leaves you forever dangling on a cliffhanger: A/N: There you have it!  or There you guys go.  Just a little bit of something for you.  The role model of role models in IDGAF.  Yeah, I thought, I can do that too.  I can handle that level of no expectations for myself to finish my stories.  At first, as a reader, I was annoyed, and then I started to find her breezy attitude really very admirable.

So many authors would write end notes about forcing themselves to finish writing a story, or completely losing interest in writing because readers were nagging them, and I always thought that was really sad.  I wondered: Why couldn’t they just do what agitosgirl did?  Why couldn’t they just do whatever they want?  Why on earth do they let their readers’ excitement become an unwelcome pressure?  I thought, well, if I write my own fanfics, I’m going to do my best to be like agitosgirl.  Write seriously whatever topic I want for however long I want, and readers can choose to read or not to read.

She would write the most frowned-upon tropes and have zero shame about it.  She never, not once, apologized for what and how she wrote.  I really got the feeling that she was writing for her own enjoyment.  And in return, as a reader, I felt no shame in enjoying her work.  As a fic writer now, I’m still trying to be like her!

So I’ll end it there, really the inspiration is endless and I could credit every content creator out there. 

45) What spurs you on during the writing process?

I guess it’s usually a certain scene I’m looking forward to a lot.  That’s what makes smut and flirty fluff stories so easy to write!  They’re full of fun scenes I want to see.

48) What is your favorite trope to write about?

Three of my longer ones, Nightdreams, It’s No Secret, and Catskin are all secret relationship tropes.  I also have 5 high school aus 🤭  I guess secret young love somehow became my favourite thing!

Love you bunny 💓💓

[queerfilmclub]

Q&A with Christina Xing

For the first week of Queer Film Club, you voted for Christina Xing’s short film HOW THE MOON FELL FROM THE SKY AND NO ONE EVEN NOTICED. It was an incredibly sweet film about growing up Queer in a small town. With gorgeous art direction, creative flair, and musical sensibility, Ms. Xing’s film leaves a strong impression, but what’s most impressive about this project is that the entire cast and crew was comprised of high school students. Even the beautiful score was performed entirely by a high school orchestra. She was kind enough to join the Queer Film Club Facebook group to answer some of our questions.

Queer Film Club:

How did you secure funding for this film? Do you have any tips you’d like to give to fellow young filmmakers? What kind of equipment were you able to have access to?

Christina Xing:

So we actually only had about $3,000-$4,000 at the time of shooting. Half of it was through a grant from Seamless Strategy and the other half was through my friend's production company. (beginning of the film)

I'd say my biggest tips for young filmmakers is to always think the opposite when it comes to creating things. don't go to the places where most people will secure their funding, brainstorm places where no one has thought about securing funding before. same thing with the resources within the film (equipment, orchestra, dancers, etc) I went to an arts boarding school but most people only focused on the arts in their discipline. so I thought the opposite, what's a way to utilize all the arts at my school?

We had access to the schools gear (c-stands, stingers, general gear) but had to get crafty with camera and camera setups due to lack of money and resources

QFC:

You seem to have a keen eye for art direction, what are some of your favourite set designs in film history? How about some favourite musicals?

Christina:

Thanks so much! I grew up watching musicals so I found myself taking a lot of interest and inspiration through there. THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG, THE YOUNG GIRLS OF ROCHEFORT, ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER, PIERROT LE FOU are some of the main films I pulled for inspiration on set designs (and some of my favs in history)

QFC:

Who are your biggest filmmaking role models? If you could collaborate with anyone in the world, who would you choose?

Christina:

My favorite filmmakers of all time are Fellini and Ozu. But if I could collaborate with anyone in the world, I would choose Spike Jonze or Michel Gondry because I think they are always bringing fresh concepts and perspectives to the table. they also come from the world of music video and commercial, which I appreciate.

QFC:

What were your main takeaways from the production of HOW THE MOON FELL FROM THE SKY AND NO ONE EVEN NOTICED? Did you learn any important lessons you’d like to share? If you were to make this film all over again, what might you have done differently?

Christina:

I think with that film, that was the first time I completely trusted myself and just made something I cared about with no focus on how it would be perceived or seen. It was also made with all my best friends and we had some of the best memories through creating that film together. My biggest take away is that if you aren't creating a labor of genuine love with people you love, you're not ready to be creating that project. It took so much love to make that film possible, I couldn't have done it myself. I think often young filmmakers worry too much about making something that impresses others, wins awards or 'changes their life'. The film I least expected to do that, ended up changing my life the most. If I could do it all over again, I would have probably focused more on sound. I cringe a lot when I think about the ADR and sound of the film. It's a shame we didn't find a way to funnel more money in to getting good lavs.

QFC:

Do you have any funny anecdotes from the set? What was your favourite part about working on this project?

Christina:

So much of the film was so grass roots. We stayed over night at my best friend Shane Bagwell's house (he photographed the film) and had a big old spaghetti dinner together, most of the scenes "within the movie" were shot at his house. Shooting till the early morning and then we hit the movie theater the next day with little to no sleep at all. It really was like one big summer camp adventure with everyone I loved. but the difference was, we were counting down the days together because we were all seniors and high school and knew that this would be the last thing we could all make together in a very long time.

QFC:

What inspired the character of the man on the moon? What did he represent to you and the writer, Jack Fossett?

Christina:

Jack actually wrote a play that was about the man on the moon (i.e the film inside the movie that they were making was Jack's original movie concept) but then I told him about my unrequitted love experiences and he ended up writing a beautiful story about growing up gay in the middle of nowhere. For me the man on the moon represents someone who will one day love you for you. Someone who will see you and you won't have to compromise yourself for. There's someone out there for everyone, even if it seems like they're on the moon.

QFC:

That's really sweet! As a member of the upcoming generation of filmmakers, what quality do you admire most among your peers? What do you see for the future of cinema?

Christina:

I think my class of filmmakers is fixed on telling authentic stories from their different background and cultures. We aren't striving to fit any old traditional hollywood boxes any more. We're building our own round table of filmmakers, whether hollywood likes it or not. We aren't taking no for an answer. I see a bright future for cinema. I know we have so much more progress to make but the fact that I'm able to grow up in the era of THE FAREWELL and MOONLIGHT even existing is pretty cool.

QFC:

What was the initial spark that lit the flame for you to want to become a filmmaker? What were some of your early influences?

Christina:

I think honestly, I grew up in alabama as one of the only asian girls in my school. I was always obsessed with movies like JUNO and 500 DAYS OF SUMMER. Growing up and no one near me was interested in the same things. I loved the soundtracks and the honest sensibilities those films had. I had always wanted to make coming of age movies from my experiences, I just only recently realized I could make them from an Asian American perspective without shame. But I think like most young filmmakers, I really latched on to Wes Anderson's work and my older films had a lot of his style and quirks. I grew out of that eventually, thankfully.

QFC:

What do you like to do when you’re not making movies?

Christina:

I'm a big fan of music! I feel like I'm listening to music 24/7. when I'm not making films, I'm almost always hanging out with my friends or chatting on the phone with them. I love spending quality time with people I love and the few days where I'm not swamped with work I love making them count.

QFC:

Finally, I checked out your latest short, THIS OLD DOG, and it brought me to tears. Do you have any exciting projects on your horizon that we can look forward to? What areas or topics would you like to explore as you continue your filmmaking journey? Do you have anything you would like to plug?

Christina:

Thank you for these lovely questions. I absolutely had a blast filling these out. They were great questions! Thank you for also watching THIS OLD DOG, I feel like that has been my most mature film I've made and I'm excited to explore more of that within myself as a creator. I have a new film called HAVE YOU EATEN YET coming out during the winter time. It's like a part II to THIS OLD DOG, as it's about my mother. I'd love to explore a coming of age feature next about my experiences growing up in Alabama. I've been working on it for a while now and would like to start securing funding for it this winter! If you guys like my narrative work, take a look at some of my music videos and things I think ya'll will also enjoy them. Thank so much again

QFC:

Thank you so much for being here, I'll be looking forward to your upcoming short!

Christina Xing's short films THIS OLD DOG (2020) and HOW THE MOON FELL FROM THE SKY AND NO ONE EVEN NOTICED (2018) are available on YouTube.

You can view Christina's music videos and commercial work at christinaxing.com.

Here is a list of all the films mentioned in this Q&A

Read reviews of HOW THE MOON FELL FROM THE SKY AND NO ONE EVEN NOTICED written by members of the Queer Film Club

[sinetheta]

Conversation with Sad Asian Girls (formerly Esther Fan & Olivia Park)

As Fan and Park, known collectively as Sad Asian Girls, announced the dissolution of their partnership about two months ago, we decided to post the interview that Sine Theta magazine’s art director Elisabeth Siegel conducted with the duo last November in full as a fun retrospective and tribute to their amazing work. The interview is available in print form in Sine Theta Issue 3: “LIGHT 阴.” We at Sine Theta are excited for what’s to come for Fan and Park!

Esther Fan and Olivia Park, current seniors at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) in the U.S., founded Sad Asian Girls (SAG) as a duo, in order to carve out a creative space for Asian femmes, and to encourage them to create content and break out of the stereotypical mold prescribed by other non-Asians or non-femmes.

I met Esther and Olivia in person for the first time deep in Yale’s underground library, where they gave a casual graphic design workshop. While at Yale, they also participated in a conversation about being Asian femme creators at the Asian American Cultural Center (AACC). The way they shared their expertise along with the constructive criticism they gave attendees was reminiscent of the SAG brand and style: they’d package their thoughts into seemingly simplistic bundles or iconography, yet the underlying messages contained within were fresh, completely accessible, and totally effective.

I had the chance to chat with them over Skype and pick their brain about Asian femme identity, as well as their current and future plans as a collective.

Elisabeth Siegel: So just to start out, how did you two meet? How did SAG get started?

Olivia Park: We met essentially through classes, and then while working together on non-SAG related projects, we noticed similarities regarding our identities, and through that we decided to make work related to the Asian femme experience.

Esther Fan: We both realized that we both seemed to be the few students in our department interested in social issues or making work about it, and also the first time we collaborated it was about millennial culture, and then we moved on to things more specific to ourselves.

ES: So, the “Asian femme experience” — could you talk more about what you define that as, and what you find unique to the Asian femme identity versus Asians in general?

EF: I think at the moment there is a lot of talk about feminism and the various experiences that women have in a mostly male dominated society. Once you add Asian to that label, the experience is narrowed down, yet the experience is still so common.

OP: One thing that is unique is invisibility of Asian presence, especially in media, and healthcare in general, specifically mental health awareness — almost everything. We’re kind of just not regarded. On the one hand, I understand, because we’re only 5% or 6% of the population [in America], but we still are part of the population, and we’re the fastest growing, so America just really needs to be aware at this point.

EF: I think the experience of an Asian femme is so specific because the expectations put on women in Asian culture is quite different from the western expectations of women. It’s still similar in the fact that we need to be secondary to men and things like that, and also it depends on each family. But for us, both of our parents were or are still Christian and conservative, and the kind of things that they try to teach us in how to be a perfect woman and be the perfect “wife-y package” contributed a lot to us trying to tell our stories about Asian femmes.

ES: I definitely know what you mean. When it comes to western versus eastern as a binary — even though I think calling it an absolute binary can be quite harmful — in general, the experience for women is very different.

As you know, Sine Theta is specifically by and for those experiencing the Sino diaspora. How does the more unique experience of being part of a diaspora shaped or informed your art, on an individual level or in your collaborated projects?

OP: There are so many moments where we have identity crises. It just becomes more and more important to find something to hold onto and identify with, and so things like food become a cultural recognition and almost an awakening, and conversations happen through those moments. The “Have You Eaten?” video was a lot about the conversations we would have [with our families], and a way to have that initiated was by eating the food of our motherland.

ES: I wanted to ask you guys about specifically the name “Sad Asian Girls.” I get the asian girls part, that’s pretty obvious. I was wondering if you could talk about the inspiration behind “sad” and why you settled on SAG.

EF: It really started off just as having to think of a name really quickly so we could make a YouTube account to upload the [“Have You Eaten?”] video. It was a parody of the “sad girls club” that happens on Tumblr, and it seemed natural. Over time, when we gained a following, it started to take on a meaning of its own. In a later video, we mentioned that the term “Sad” could refer to the frustrations of having to live with both our parents’ cultures and western cultures, and the type of identity crisis that usually comes with that. Now, we just kind of kept the term sad and Asian, for consistency, and it’s kind of created an identity of its own.

ES: What sort of identity would that be? Also, as for the “identity crisis,” do you think sadness is a part of what causes the crisis, or a result of it?

EF: Maybe both, but probably more so a result of it. We’re born into having to juggle between two different identities. I think when people hear SAG, it sounds something they can resonate with, usually more ironically than seriously.

OP: I also think the name has done a lot for us. You almost immediately get an idea of what we’re about. If we were called the “Asian Student Art Collective” that might just sound like we’re trying to foster a community of neutral art that could be even purely aesthetic. But SAG says something that signals oppression, something that signals hurt, and I think that’s where the root of our work comes from. It’s from the hurt. At the same time, if you look at our work, it’s about being proactive and storing that sadness into something positive.

ES: Sometimes within activism against oppression, it can be difficult to maintain a certain level of sadness or anger, because it gets tiring...I’ve experienced this in some activist circles, that as you move forward it can be harder and harder to maintain emotional momentum.

OP: So you’re asking, how do we feel motivated to do things despite sadness?

ES: That’s definitely part of it. And with “Sad” in your name, how is “sadness” maintained in your art? Does that ever get tiring?

OP: I think also that our visuals matter a lot. If we were to use a grungy filter with blue and green it might appear to be a little more soft, mellow, kind of like “Flickr-artsy.” But we intentionally use high contrast. We blow up our typography, we use bold reds. Our site is like 255 RGB red. We always use 255 because that’s the brightest red the computer’s got so we’re going to use it. We also changed our typeface to Noto, which is Google’s free typeface that can be translated into every language. These are all very intentional design choices that we’ve made and it’s loud and it’s clear and it’s sad. Some people have said that our visual language comes off as more angry than sad, but anger to me is a more intensified form of sadness. Anger is what results when you experience sadness with no resolution. I think it’s fitting.

EF: The thing is, being a marginalized group, and this goes for any marginalized group, things aren’t ever wholly resolved. We can make progress little by little, but there is always going to be something else that is making us “sad.” In terms of a resolution for sadness, simply use that sadness as a tool or a motivation for making, a fuel for making activist art. It sounds kind of pessimistic, but without sadness and without frustration and things like that, there wouldn’t be powerful art. The strongest pieces that work come from hardships. So to answer your question as best as I can, every project that we make is based on an existing issue in the world that makes us “sad.”

ES: This issue’s theme is “Light,” and we’re going with that as also talking about the Chinese concepts yin and yang, and the tons of meaning imbued in both yin and yang. Yin has various meanings, but some of the ones that we’re looking at also have to do with femininity, as well as passivity. You mentioned “Sad Asian Girls” was an ironic title you were giving yourselves — how do you go about subverting that title within self-application?

OP: First of all, I think no matter what people are going to interpret it wrong. Some people will. So it’s all about clarity. After repeating ourselves so many times in interviews, we only solidified our stance. At first, I don’t think we explained it well enough or enforced the idea. It’s good to start out strong and confidently and go with that and stand up for it, instead of starting weak and having to explain yourself and have to apologize over and over again, going back to changing your idea or your message. Know what you’re doing. Make it strong, make it unapologetic.

EF: I think transparency is also important. Most people who start out activist work are really excited or really angry and they want to make their content as fast as they can, sometimes without thinking how that’s going to happen or how that’s going to be successful. And I think that’s okay, you need to keep that fire going, but if you do make a mistake or decide that you want to go in a different direction, that has to be clear in your work too, and so that’s why in our presentations and things we’ve kind of discussed our successes and our failures, and why we took a break, things like that. Somebody in my class last night was talking about how a lot of the time when people want to be activists or go to protests or do something, they are really excited and they do too much and they go overboard and there ends up being consequences or it fails or their project doesn’t work, and then that discourages them from doing anything else ever again. But I think after you’re excited it’s important to step back and really think critically about how you’re going to move forward and how to make whatever impact you make last and not be impulsive.

ES: To step back and look more at SAG’s presence as a collective — your site in November said you were in the process of re-branding. What is that process like?

OP: Mostly using accessible typefaces, things that people can get for free. We were using Futura before, and a lot of that typeface some people won’t have, so we thought that everybody should be able to mimic Sad Asian Girls’ vernacular. So we’re basically making it easier for people to copy us and to share the same visuals.

EF: Also making it more legible. We cut down on a lot of text on the website and different sections where everything was displayed out on one page.

OP: We don’t want to look like you have to be an angry tattooed girl.

EF: And that’s why we added that dinky little sad face. It’s a cheeky way of holding onto the sad sentiment but in a way that is still bold. It implies that there’s more that you can do with it. [Rebranding] is more about making projects in the future with the same language. I think once we generate more content with the visual language as the same as our website, with our new logo, the new brand will be more solidified.

ES: What has been your favorite work that you worked on together for SAG?

OP: It’s definitely the next project. We always get super excited about the next project, because every time, we improve. Every project gives us more experience on what we like and what we don’t like, and how to work better or narrow down our process, or things like that. It’s kind of like how your favorite song is the last song you’ve heard.

EF: Nice analogy. Wow.

ES: You guys probably don’t want to spoil what it’s going to be…

OP: It’s probably going to be about the lack of visibility in galleries, which are white spaces. It’s a commentary more specific to the art field and scene. Since we’re both graphic designers and we’re both graduating soon, it’s kind of expected that we immerse into that field. Just seeing the lack of example, and also lack of invitation of femme identities makes us worried or concerned and so we’re kind of making a statement about that.

EF: Being in art school you definitely learn a lot about the art world, and how it’s programmed to benefit white male artists. Our entire curriculum is based on white male artists. The few times that there are female artists, it’s almost in a tokenizing way. Like how the Guerilla Girls did their thing about more women in museums, and last weekend we went to the MOMA just to look around, and they were selling Guerilla Girls’ merch for profit, but we aren’t seeing any more women in museums. Their work was there just for show, basically. I think this upcoming project focuses more on actually trying to inject the Asian femme identity into these faces that are mostly predominantly white, male and old.

ES: Right! One of the topics that I heard come out of the discussion at the Asian American Cultural Center while you were at Yale was the room full of silence whenever an artist makes a work concerning race. Could you elaborate on that?

EF: We talked about how another group in our school, called Black Artists and Designers, made a project called the Room of Silence, which is what happens when a student of color decides to make a project about their race, and the different dynamics that come with that. The room full of silence occurs because nobody else who isn’t a person of color knows how to critique it, out of fear of seeming racist or they’re just indifferent, or they just don’t think it applies to them.

OP: This was a video of several interviews of mostly black students, there was asian and latinx students in their too.

EF: It kind of went viral in our school, and some professors showed it to their students. Our professor showed it to us, and I feel like it was again just to show that they know that it exists, and to show that “I’m not like other professors.” They also attempted to have a conversation and at Yale we also talked about how when our class was shown the video, nobody still knew how to talk about it. Some people were falling asleep, some people didn’t watch the whole thing, and the professor said, “Are we done talking about it? Do you want to move on? Okay…,” and then Olivia got mad about it, and she said, “No, I think you need to force the students to talk about it. It’s such an important thing that’s happening in our school, and you can’t brush it off like a snazzy project.”

OP: And even Esther added on to that conversation, but that was kind of the end, though.

EF: The last thing I said about that was that I called out one white male student in our class who consistently makes average work, but the professors would always be into it, because his being a white male makes it seem like his work is conceptual and more than it really is. Other students whose English isn’t that great, or who have accents, the professors tend to skip over them because they subconsciously feel like people who have accents are less intelligent, and that’s what I talked about. Even though that video happened, and we also had a protest last year, the school has kind of gone back to the way it was, it kind of seen as those students of color just being angry again.

OP: I think that people do want to make change, but it’s an institution after all, and for an institution to work well while pleasing everyone that is in power right now, there’s not much change that can be done, except for maybe cultural attitudes. That’s what activists and artists are doing right now, to give a voice to who we are and what we want versus what is actually happening.

ES: Could each of you talk about what your favorite thing is when working with the other person?

OP: That’s a good question. Why don’t you go first? [Laughs.]

EF: There’s a lot of things I love, there’s a lot of things I hate. Let’s do that thing from Kindergarten where you say two compliments and one criticism. When we work together, we generate ideas in conversations at the same time, but usually Olivia comes up with better ideas for execution, or places we can go, or like forms that we can use. And then I’m the person who’s doing the tweaks and how to make things say something more clearly. I’m really picky about language, like I need every sentence to say exactly what it needs to say. But I think that’s fine. I think we make a good pair in that sense, where I have things I want to talk about, and sometimes I introduce them to Olivia, and then we sit down and we discuss ideas. We have really different aesthetic tastes, and sometimes we argue over that—

OP: And that’s over stupid stuff, like over whether to make one thing twenty percent desaturated or not. We will fight for a day and I’ll be like, Okay, I don’t really care about this project anyway. And I’ll be super petty. So I think [Esther] summed it up pretty well, like I’ll come up with a weird idea, and Esther will come up with how to make it more practical, more economical. So I guess Esther really puts it together.

EF: Awww.

OP: I also spend so much fucking time on the internet that I feel like a lot of things that come up in Internet culture or social media, the different things that people talk about I like to inject in our projects sometimes.

ES: As seniors are your plans for graduation, post-graduation? Do you plan on still working together as a collective?

OP: I think that’s a really good question actually. I think we both know that we can’t undo being activist-artists anymore. At first, I really cared about food packaging or whatnot, and I couldn’t give less of a shit right now. So I think we’ll be working closely with the Asian community no matter what we do, or where we end up.

EF: Because we don’t know where we’re going to end up, as in we’re probably going to be in different states or different countries, even if we aren’t able to continue managing this Sad Asian label, I think we still will continue to make work that is relevant to our identities, or at least some type of activist work. When I’ve said this to other friends, that Sad Asian Girls probably isn’t going to be forever, they saw it as this tragic thing. But people don’t need a snazzy name to make activist work. And I think what we’ve been doing so far is encouraging other Asian femmes to continue making work, knowing that we might not continue doing it together. Ideally, people will still make work and not really need a group like us to do it.

OP: What’s more important is that young people — we’re millennials, but what about gen z? — need to get it together and make work and that’s what we’re trying to do, have some type of presence so that they know it’s an option to make work, and that’s important to me. It’s also so easy. Executing a project or thinking up ideas is so simple, and I feel like based on what I’ve read about your generation, you guys are so much more active, and you guys care so much more about social issues than previous generations, and that kind of excites me, because I wonder where you guys are going to go with that. Hopefully it’s not the new high school phase, hopefully you all bring that to college with you.

EF: You’re born on the internet. Everyone’s on the internet, so you have a bigger audience. It’s better for you. You can get your stuff out. That’s why design matters more and more. You can only get more publicity and more circulation if you have a strong voice and what you say matters to a lot of people.

ES: I’ve noticed very recently [during November] on your Instagram there’s been a lot of posts styled after what you’ve just talked about. What was that project?

OP: We went to New York a couple days ago, and there was an event called “Scamming the Patriarchy,” at the New Museum, and a ton of small art collectives got together and made art installations and also talks. Our assignment was to do some kind of instagram takeover, so we posted one video on the main museum page, and on our Instagram we got submissions from femme creatives in general to send encouraging words to other femmes. We got 90 submissions or so, and we had a lot of positive feedback.

EF: That project again came from an issue that has frustrated a lot of marginalized groups in America. We planned that project as a result of the election. During that time, what people really wanted to hear was not more facts about Trump. They wanted to hear from other people, who were in similar situations, about how to move forward, and also how to take care of yourself and where we can look to at this time. Having so many statements and just bombarding everybody who follows us with those posts also had an effect.

ES: In the same style as the Instagram posts, what sort of advice would you give to other sad Asian femmes right now?

OP: If you have a good idea, try to find the people that would love your idea, and do something with them. Even if it’s just one random small thing that you don’t even know will make a difference, if it reaches out to at least one person, I think it’s so worth it. Just make work, and generate content, and think about the way that you’re going to publish it. The web is an amazing place, and you should take advantage of it.

EF: I probably have less of a place to say anything [post-election], because I’m Canadian, but I do think that in times of turmoil, or in the event of tragic occurrences, it is important to grieve and process what is happening and be around people if that’s what you need (or be alone if that’s what you need). But also keep in mind that staying in that state of depression, not that it doesn’t change anything, but it also will hurt you in the long run. While it is trying to process things and maybe isolate yourself, I think self-care also includes doing something about it, or expressing your thoughts in a productive way that other people can resonate with. And creating community is a really crucial part of self-care.

OP: You are not alone! Don’t forget that. •

Interview & Illustrations by Elisabeth Siegel

sinθ is an international print-based creative arts magazine made by and for the sino diaspora. Values include creative expression, connection, and empowerment. Find out more here. 

Follow our Sino arts blog for daily posts featuring Sino creatives and their works.

Issue 5 will be released in August 2017.

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[tripstations]

How the black travel movement is gaining momentum

(CNN) — Fed up of constant job rejections, 29-year-old Craig Kingston decided he need to do something drastic.

So the South Florida native quit the nine to five role he hated, booked a one way ticket to Vietnam and sold all his stuff.

But he wasn’t quite prepared for the attention he’d receive once he made the move to the Southeast Asian country.

“One of the biggest things I face being black and abroad, especially in Vietnam, is the staring,” he tells CNN Travel.

“There aren’t a lot of black people in Vietnam compared to Thailand and Malaysia, so people stare at you to a point where it becomes uncomfortable.

“I literally saw someone almost get into an accident on their bike staring at me.”

Challenging stereotypes

Travel Noire provides access to resources that cater to the needs of travelers of color.

Courtesy Travel Noire

In some respects, the reactions he got weren’t surprising. The assumption — for some anyway — is that black people don’t travel.

According to Mandala Research Firm, 17% of African Americans take one or more international trips and travel locally more than six times per year.

However, travel publications often paint a picture of a stereotyped Western tourist usually gazing at the horizon from the edge an infinity pool.

“If you look at major campaigns or advertisements for travel — especially luxury travel — you don’t see brown faces,” says Marissa Wilson, general manager of Travel Noire, a media company founded in 2014.

“That causes an issue because, psychologically, it makes those people feel like this isn’t made for them.

“Like they’re not supposed to be traveling. We wanted to infiltrate that narrative and flip it on its head.”

Besides addressing the under representation of travelers of color, Travel Noire aims to to challenge limiting beliefs around the accessibility of travel while providing access to resources that cater to their needs.

This means a big part of its work involves curating imagery of black people traveling across the globe.

“We were amazed at how hard it was to find a community of travelers who looked like us, much less find high quality images or stories about them online,” Wilson says.

“Travel Noire created a space for people of color to see themselves in the travel industry; by curating beautiful images, by placing people all over the world, and by making the travel industry a space that was for us.”

Burgeoning market

The brand’s main aim is to make travel more accessible for people of color.

Courtesy Travel Noire

But this is about a lot more than just images.

With nearly five million black millennial travelers in the US (this group spent at least $63 billion there in 2018), there’s a huge business opportunity for brands that successfully cater to this market.

“There’s a lot of disposable income being spent on international travel but also a lot of people that aren’t being catered to in the travel industry,” says Simone Ashley White, associate director of business development for Blavity, Inc. (the parent company of Travel Noire).

“The goal is to push people to travel even more and also to work with the countries they’re traveling to.

“We’re partnering with tourism boards to think about how we tell that story, how we bring more dollars to different countries, and how we reach black travelers where they are.”

Travel Noire has invested heavily in its online presence in order to reflect the digital world we live in.

The brand reaches over a million people on social media, and also produces a newsletter that goes out to more than 150,000 people every day.

“We often work with influencers for marketing campaigns as well as curating our own city guides,” White says of its custom itineraries, which provide actionable content for over a hundred destinations worldwide.

“We want people on the ground experiencing these things. That’s important, because we know we can’t tell you what’s happening in other countries day to day from the US.”

Cultural insight

Black millennial travelers in the US spent at least $63 billion in the country in 2018.

Courtesy Travel Noire

The goal is to work with local tour companies and businesses, while also partnering with content creators and online influencers as major players in the travel movement.

Given that the most popular destinations span all parts of the planet, from Cape Town to Colombia, Bali to Barbados, and Ghana to Greece, this can be challenging at times.

“For destinations throughout Africa and the Caribbean, there’s a keen interest in landing in a place that has a significant population of black natives,” says Wilson.

“Apart from these spaces being absolutely beautiful, there’s a sense of connection, comfort, and excitement in traveling to places where a huge part of the population looks like you.

“And for destinations throughout Asia and Central/South America, I think there’s a huge curiosity for what life is like for locals.”

Kingston made his move to Vietnam over a year ago and says he has no plans of returning to the United States.

“There’s nothing there for me,” he admits. “Why go back to work another dead job because I don’t have eight years of experience with my degree for most high paying positions, when I can live life, be happy, and travel the world?”

Making connections

Travel Noire curates imagery of black people traveling across the globe in order to address under representation.

Courtesy Travel Noire

Travel Noire helps to share stories like Kingston’s by inviting its audience to write about their travel experiences, whether it’s about becoming fearless in Thailand or finding peace in Japan.

“Overall, black travelers are interested in going to destinations they are curious about; where they feel a sense of connection, an opportunity to be challenged, and have the chance to step outside their comfort zone and be transformed,” Wilson says.

“And, just like every other group that travels, they want an opportunity to get away from everyday life and enjoy everything the world has to offer.”

Travel Noire is building on its digital success — it regularly offers live webinars that reach up to 10,000 people at a time — by organizing in-person meet-ups. These act as opportunities for people to come together in the real world.

“People are building a life around exploration and it helps to give others actionable steps on how they can achieve this,” Wilson says.

“That’s important, especially for folks who might just be starting their travel journey from the beginning.”

While Travel Noire has organized its own curated trips in the past, this isn’t an area of focus at present.

Its main mission is to make travel more accessible for people of color.

“To sum it all up, what we’re doing is changing the face of travel,” White says.

“I think that being able to see someone that looks like you say ‘this is a great experience’ both inspires and encourages you to go for yourself.”

The post How the black travel movement is gaining momentum appeared first on Tripstations.

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[cryptodictation]

Spoiler Alert: Grey's Anatomy, Big Little Lies, The Morning Show and more news …

Gray’s Anatomy, Big Little Lies spoilers and more…

After a few weeks off, thank you very much to my editor for the wonderful work he does as always, I am back with several new features. We have information about the possible continuation of Big Little Lies and Watchmen, but also series that already have a guaranteed future, such as Gray’s Anatomy, The Morning Show, Motherland: Fort Salem and the miniseries Little Fires Everywhere.

In the quickies, Chicago Med, Sabrina's Dark World and even the missing Altered Carbon arrive with news.

So I count on your reading of Spoiler Alert this week, as well as your comments, criticisms and suggestions for news.

Continues after advertising

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Maybe one day we'll meet again

As soon as Big Little Lies concluded its first season, there were several questions about the possibility of a continuation. Will there be history? HBO hesitated but soon succumbed to pressure and ordered new episodes. With the second year of the drama over, the question remains: will more episodes be around? During a conversation about The Undoing, the channel's new miniseries, Nicole Kidman talked about this possibility. “I don't believe we could get Laura (Dern) back!” said the actress laughing. Then she remembers that Zoe Kravitz will have a busy schedule due to the new movie from Batman. “Everyone is working,” he continued. “I hope that at some point we can meet again,” he concluded.

I will wait seated, then

After an extremely successful first season in terms of criticism and audience, the question for HBO executives is: Watchmen will there be continuation? If it depends on the channel executive, for sure. “Right now everything depends on Damon (Lindelof). He's thinking about what he wants to do, ”said HBO president of programming Casey Bloys. “Really, at this point I don't know if it's a series or a miniseries. I believe that one of the most brilliant things that Damon did was to discover this new world, ”he said.

“So, perhaps, there is the possibility of having another version with a new round of characters. I don't know why Damon doesn't know, so I'm going to wait and see what he decides, ”he added. In addition, the executive reiterated his willingness to continue working with Lindelof. “If there is a second season – great, but if it's a new look at the world – great. But if it is something completely different, I will expect your leadership in this matter, ”he concluded.

The future of Gray’s Anatomy

One of the couples Gray’s Anatomy will undergo a major change, on the return of the series in the United States on January 23. This change will come from the decision of one of the couple's members, and it will probably haunt him for the rest of his life, reported columnist Michael Ausiello of TVLine. The public can also prepare, as there will be tears to flow. Does this have anything to do with Alex Karev's departure from the series? In addition, it has been confirmed that Alex's whereabouts will be given in the next episode, but that it probably won't be a closure for the character.

So, when will you be back?

Hours before win one Screen Actors Guild for his (exceptional) work in The Morning Show, Jennifer Aniston was with the cast and crew of the series on the winter tour of Television Critics Association. Reese Witherspoon, who is also an executive producer, said that “we are just getting started” when asked about the future of the drama series.

“I feel that at the end of the ten episodes, there is a completely new world order. It's chaos. Nobody knows what command is and knows who is in control at that point. I think what we are exploring in society at the moment is a question about what the new normal is. I am very excited to know what remains to be explored, ”added Witherspoon.

Another doubt that hovered during the conversation with journalists was the possibility of Steve Carrell returning for the second season since the actor signed with Apple for only one year. “We are going to see about Mitch. We are exploring. There is still no update on this, ”said showrunner Kerry Ehrin.

It doesn't have to be easy

In the process of attracting a new generation of viewers, or rather, viewers, Freeform will launch in the coming months Motherland: Fort Salem, a very bold project and unlike anything that has been shown on the channel. The creator, Eliot Laurence, said in an interview with journalists that one of the main themes that was dealt with in the scriptwriters room was how to present female sexuality in a world that is not patriarchal, but matriarchal. “We didn't want the fellowship to be easy. We wanted it to be difficult. But without losing the mood, ”added Laurence. “It's a story less about individual success and more about teamwork,” concluded Taylor Hickson, one of the actresses who complete the cast.

We will have a lot of work

Little Fires Everywhere is one of the most awaited productions by this one who writes to you. No wonder, the book that inspires the miniseries (Fires Everywhere), is one of my favorites. But how similar will the limited series be to your original work? According to Kerry Washington, who spoke to journalists on the Hulu panel at TCA, “There is a lot to deal with”. “From the beginning of the book, it is possible to notice a dip in the cultural, social and class differences in the United States,” said the actress. “The work does a great job of moving away from this binary view of race that we have in this country, which is white and black, because we also have an Asian, migratory and class identity. There is a lot to deal with, ”he concluded.

Quickies

In Chicago Med, April is going to confess the kiss to Crockett to Ethan, and that will cause a huge mess. The episode is scheduled to air this week.

There is no crossover planned for The Dark World of Sabrina and Riverdale, but the town of Archie will have an interesting role in one of the episodes of the third part of the witch.

Buck and Christopher will have a “very nice” scene at the end of episode 12 of the current season 9-1-1. After much darkness, these characters will soon smile again.

Altered Carbon should return soon on Netflix, highlighting Anthony Mackie acting in the character that was Joel Kinnaman. In addition, a big reveal is expected at the end of the first episode.

Fans of Supernatural, at least one face we should not see in the final episodes: Alastair. Showrunner Andrew Dabb that the character will be left out of the final.

See you next week!

Gray’s Anatomy. However, spoiler. However, spoiler. Therefore, spoiler. In addition, Gray’s ANATOMY.

The post Spoiler Alert: Grey's Anatomy, Big Little Lies, The Morning Show and more news … appeared first on Cryptodictation.

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[criticsofcolour]

‘The Canary and the Crow’s Daniel Ward: “There’s a lot of gig theatre out there now but Middle Child were one of the first companies that championed it”’ by Lizzie Akita

Hull-based theatre company Middle Child are making a name for themselves as creators of gig theatre. Theatre that combines original live music with new writing; it’s an immersive experience that many may not have seen before. Their latest offering is ‘The Canary and the Crow’ which made its debut at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this year. Before one of its evening performances, I met with writer and lead performer, Daniel Ward, to discuss the show and the exciting space that gig theatre currently occupies.

In many theatres that you enter, the stage is concealed by a curtain; it’s a decorative barrier which keeps the audience at a distance. But when you take your seat at the Roundabout @ Summerhall to see ‘The Canary and the Crow’, there’s a different kind of atmosphere. Prez 96 who plays ‘The Cage’, hypes up the crowd in the in-the-round theatre, dancing and getting the audience to chant along just as an act would do ahead of a gig. It’s inviting, liberating and charges you up for the evening ahead.

“Gig theatre is quite an exciting space to work in because nobody really understands what it is. I think people understand if you’re going to go and see musical theatre what it is. If you go see a traditional play, or a comedy gig or a music gig, people kind of inherently understand what it is. It’s an exciting space to work in because no one has the answers.”

In Ward’s semi-autobiographical piece, directed by Paul Smith, a black ten-year-old boy secures a scholarship to a prestigious private school. The boy, known as ‘The Bird’ and played by Ward, is thrust into a world where the majority of the students and teachers are white and he is seen as an ‘other’.

“I started writing to music with the idea of two conflicting [types of] music in mind. The classical cultural music verses the grime, jungle hip hop that we used to listen to.” Ward explains. The conflicting music styles described captures this tension where The Bird is at odds and out of step with the majority. As he attempts to adjust, there is a cost as he starts to lose touch with those he grew up with. “In the play, there are the lessons which make up the piece and there are the tracks. Every time I wrote a lesson, I wrote it to a musical track.”

When Middle Child agreed to take on the show, shaping the production and the music was a collaborative process. “Sometimes I could play the music or give an impression of what kind of feel the track should have and then James Brewer [co-composer], would go okay and make something based on that feel or Laurie [actor-musician] may pick up a cello and Nigel [co-composer aka Prez 96] would say I think I get this beat. It was a real ensemble effort where we kept trying things out. It was a lot of fun and trial and error. I’m not trained in music, I can only say it feels like this and then they understood it, that’s all they needed.”

Ward’s first experience of gig theatre was four years ago at the Edinburgh Fringe when he saw ‘Weekend Rockstars’ created by Luke Barnes and Middle Child. “It was on at midnight and it was rock music. They were playing their guitars and were angry, talking about how there was nothing to do in their town. But at the weekend, they’d grab a pint and be able to go out and be rockstars. It wasn’t my experience, but I knew this was how I wanted to tell my story.”

“There’s a lot of gig theatre out there now but Middle Child were one of the first companies that championed it. A music gig appeals to broader audiences while theatre doesn’t. Middle Child’s goal is to look at the elements of a comedy or a music gig and see how we can incorporate this to bring new audiences and younger audiences into the theatre.”

In the opening of the show, Ward takes us back to the experience which inspired its creation. A black guest speaker specifically requests to talk to the BAME (black, asian and minority ethnic) students at Ward’s drama school. A friend of the speaker, also a black actor, had suffered a breakdown and an identity crisis which stemmed from his experience at drama school years before. The speaker was worried that the students in the room were at risk of having something similar happen to them.

The person in question is British actor David Harewood. Originally from Birmingham, Harewood trained at RADA in London where he was one of the very few students from a minority background. He has spoken publicly about his identity crisis and mental health breakdown, most recently in the BBC documentary ‘Psychosis and Me’. This experience planted the seed for ‘The Canary and The Crow’. “When that conversation happened, I was thinking about it and I wanted to write something that acknowledged this weird feeling that I couldn’t quite articulate about my educational experience, both at drama school and at Wilson’s [Ward’s secondary school]. But I didn’t know what it was.”

This weird feeling which is explored in the play is the idea of becoming an ‘acceptable black’. This is the notion that when in the minority, you leave your cultural identity behind to become tolerable to the majority. This feeling of not belonging is one which Ward is more than familiar with. Ward comes from a working-class background and a single parent family household and went to a grammar school where he was surrounded by people who were different to him. “I was always aware that people were very affluent. Wallington is a catchment area of private schools and grammar schools, all in really close proximity to each other. It’s a really nice area and I guess there’s just a lot of wealth around.”

This experience is not just unique to Harewood or Ward, but can be said of anyone who finds themselves in a setting where a certain characteristic or feature places them in the minority. Do you talk a certain way? Is your hair ‘neat’? This all determines whether the majority will warm to you or not. Through the lens of a young boy, Ward touches on the daily confrontations you are likely to face when you don’t quite belong with painful accuracy.

At various points in the play, Ward returns to this analogy where a comparison is drawn between the canary and the crow. The canary sings a pleasing melody, representing that which is ‘acceptable’ and the screeching crow irritates and has a harder time fitting in. This idea originates from fables and can be found in French and Turkish literature, Hebrew texts and even in native American folk tales. “Fables are magical and exist for a reason. Dehumanising the story allows people to have their own interpretations of what it means to them. I didn’t want it to be preachy and I didn’t want it to be definitive. But people should be able to come away and form their own ideas and opinions.”

Since Ward first finished writing the show, it has travelled a long road before eventually being picked up. “It was a long process of getting rejected, being told that it didn’t have an audience and that it would need to broaden its target demographic. And I thought nahh don’t think so.” The flood of positive responses that the show has already received from people from various backgrounds being able to connect with Ward’s story suggests that he was right to stick to his guns. Do you have any advice for aspiring writers out there? “I would say just get to the end of your play and send it out, get some feedback and just persevere. All it takes is one, one person to say that this is good and I believe in it, to become something and for it do well. Then all the other rejections don’t matter. It’s an industry of rejection and people have to be prepared to deal with that”.

Following its run at the Paines Plough Roundabout @ Summerhall, The Canary and The Crow will embark on a UK tour starting on 7 Sep 2019 at the time of writing.

Photo Credits: © The Other Richard

Lizzie Akita 

Website: https://myfairtheatregoer.com/ , Theatre Reviews and Why We Tell The Story interviews // Twitter: @myfairtheatre // Instagram: @myfairtheatregoer

[canadastartupblog]

How to Turn a Passion Project Into a National Business

What started out as a batch of greeting cards on Etsy is now a stationery brand available at Michael’s craft stores across the U.S.

The characters featured in Cynthia Koo’s Wonton In A Million product line, which are based on dim sum foods like shu mai and dumplings, have attracted an enthusiastic fanbase.

Koo’s mission is to use her brand’s platform to promote Asian culture and encourage other women to become entrepreneurs.

Even though she studied East Asian languages and culture with a minor in computer science at Columbia University, Cynthia Koo says she’s always been a designer at heart. Growing up in New York City’s Chinatown, she enjoyed making custom greeting cards for her family, carefully rearranging stickers in her sticker books and emblazoning her planners with Hello Kitty characters.

Now, Koo is a 31-year-old entrepreneur that shares her heritage through Wonton In A Million, a unique stationery business that makes dim-sum-inspired washi tape, stickers and stationery.

“I think this company is a way to introduce Chinese culture and food to people who may not know what it is yet,” said Koo. “Wonton In A Million is a way for me to promote cultural understanding during a time when immigrants are kind of vilified.”

Turning a passion project into a small business

Koo’s journey with Wonton In A Million began in 2015 when she was waiting for dim sum takeout at the Oriental Garden where her father has worked for the last 30 years. As she waited for her order, she took in the sights and smells of the restaurant and wondered if her love of Chinese culture and cuisine would lend itself to “punny dim sum greeting cards” as a project for a 365 Days of Design challenge she was participating in.

At the time, Koo was a full-time designer at a financial technology startup. The design challenge was a “passion project” that originally only served as a way to check things off on a to-do list. “I’ve always had ideas for businesses and art project ideas. I started [doing the design challenge] to get some of those things done, because I was always starting things and then stopping,” she said.

“I set about designing 20 cards. That was my goal for the month, and once I put them up on Etsy, I would move on to the next design project,” she said. “The reception I got was incredible and surprising.”

Shortly after posting her initial designs on Etsy, Koo said her friends and family began sharing them online. Soon, sales grew, and people started making product suggestions. “Before I knew it, I had been working on this project for six months and hadn’t moved on to my next project.”

Other businesses began reaching out about collaborating, and Koo said it wasn’t long until she worked with Chinatown Ice Cream Factory.

For the first two years, Wonton In A Million was Koo’s side gig while she worked at her full-time design job. Though she’d occasionally considered devoting all of her time to her fledgling online business, she had reservations. “I hadn’t intended to do that because I was worried that it would stop being fun and stop being a source of joy … if it became my main source of income,” she said.

However, those concerns went out the window when her weekly sales numbers exceeded the weekly paycheck from her full-time gig. “That gave me confidence to start thinking about [making it full time], and it still took me six months to disengage from my job,” she said. She ultimately left her job in April 2017.

Transitioning from an Etsy shop to an e-commerce business

Wonton In A Million began as an Etsy shop. For the uninitiated, Etsy is an online storefront that allows people to sell handmade, vintage and custom items, as well as craft supplies like the stationery items Koo sold. “The phenomenon of being able to be a sticker shop is a new option made possible by marketplaces like Etsy,” she said.

Without Etsy, Koo firmly believes Wonton In A Million wouldn’t have gotten off the ground. Koo says its “platform, audience and instruction on how to get yourself found [by customers]” were instrumental in starting her business. “Etsy is a great platform, especially if you’re not technical, to get started and see if your ideas have traction,” Koo said. “The fees are a little bit higher once you start doing a lot of volume, but starting off there is a good idea, because you at least have one built-in source of traffic to bolster your sales.”

When Koo outgrew Etsy, she used her coding and design knowledge to create an online store using Shopify’s e-commerce platform to better serve Wonton In A Million’s customers.

While she’s proud of where Wonton In A Million is today, she said there were some things she wishes she knew as a new entrepreneur. “I wish I had asked for help more often and earlier. I have always been the kind of person to want to figure things out for myself,” she said. “If I had extra help earlier, I would have grown faster and struggled less.”

As a creative entrepreneur, she said the business’s operational needs often got less attention than the need to create new designs. Given the chance to start over, she said she would swap those priorities. “I’d get that side of the business buttoned up properly from the beginning, and I’d ask for help for that stuff earlier,” she said. “I’m having to deal with that now as I’m preparing to scale up. Having that figured out allows you to grow faster and make better decisions.”

Finding a community in stickers and paper

From the beginning, Koo said her designs took on a life of their own online. Her cute dim-sum-based characters resonated with consumers, and Wonton In A Million’s products became an easily shareable product via social media. The company now has more than 7,500 members on its Facebook page and nearly 30,000 followers on the accompanying Instagram account.

Since its inception, Wonton In A Million has steadily cultivated a following in the stationery and planning communities that share designs and planner layouts online. Koo said she was initially unaware that the hobby had such a huge following online. “We have a very specific, nerdy hobby, and there probably aren’t a lot of people in our life that understand, so to meet other people who are similarly obsessed with this hobby is amazing,” she said. “I’ve built lifelong friendships in this community.”

The online planning and stationery community also serves as a unique platform for sellers to collaborate with each other. Rather than fostering a feeling of competition, Koo said Facebook groups and Instagram posts are used to create a stronger bond between creators.

“We collaborate with each other to help with giveaways, and I think that’s something that sets our businesses apart – we have potential competitors supporting each other. What’s amazing in this community is that shop owners are themselves customers, so they’re excited to discover and work with new shops,” she said. “The overarching mindset of collaboration over competition within this community has been incredible for me.”

Scaling up a small business

After years of collaborating and partnering with small local retailers, Koo signed a nationwide partnership with Michaels Arts and Crafts stores to sell an exclusive line of products. Koo said this opportunity has opened her eyes to “the world of licensing and having bigger distribution partners,” though she still struggles with where she wants to see Wonton In A Million go and just how big it will get.

“I love working from home and determining my schedule, but to reach the heights of where I want to take the brand and the business, it will need to take on a bigger organizational structure,” she said. “I think my impulse is to keep this small as long as I can while working with partners to help spread the characters.”

Now that her products are available across the country, Koo says her business has seen an influx of new customers. “People saw my items in-store, thought they were incredibly cute and wanted more. I’m also hearing from Asians who see their own culture reflected in a mainstream store and were excited to have found me,” she said.

Today, Wonton In A Million has four full-time workers, including Koo, her boyfriend and two employees. While such a small team can handle the company’s current business, with all the newfound attention, the company will need new ways to meet customer demand. The only way to keep up, Koo said, may be to find larger manufacturing and distribution partners. For now, Koo said she’s considering hiring more designers, licensing experts and other possible hires.

Regardless of where the business ultimately lands, Koo hopes the Wonton In A Million brand will help make people curious, empathetic and happy. “It’s still to be determined where this opportunity leads, because I think it might open more doors that I haven’t walked through yet,” she said. “I’m excited to see where this goes.”

Sharing culture and fostering entrepreneurship for women and Asians

When a group of customers reached out on Facebook asking fellow community members what dim sum was, Koo realized how much cultural outreach her brand could do. She estimates that about 60% of her customers don’t know what Chinese cuisine is. As a result, Koo said she’s been drawing on the cute factor of her characters to help people learn about dim sum and Chinese culture. She thinks one of the reasons Michaels was interested in Wonton In A Million was because of her brand’s mission to share Chinese culture and “having the ‘why’ be front-and-center in all of my branding and packaging.”

Koo is also passionate about fostering entrepreneurship among Asians and women. Growing up, Koo said she doesn’t remember a time where her parents weren’t working. Whether her father was at the restaurant or her mother was working as a seamstress, she says her parents always struggled to make sure things were fine for the family.

It wasn’t until she got older, Koo said, that she realized how hard so many Asian immigrants worked to give their families a better life. Despite how hard her parents worked, Koo said she was never pressured to pursue a career just for the salary. It was a luxury that she understands not many children of immigrant parents get. “As a child of immigrants, I understand that is rare and not every immigrant child has that freedom … I was lucky that my parents always told me to do what [made me] happy,” she said.

Koo has written numerous blog posts on her Medium account aimed at helping Asians and women become entrepreneurs themselves. “It occurred to me that I know so many kind and generous women. If they were able to fulfill their potential and take the leadership positions that they deserve, the world would be much kinder and better off,” she said. “I think I’m uniquely positioned to work on that cause on behalf of Asian women.”

She’s also conducted a “How to Design Your Own Design 365 Project” class on Skillshare and taught workshops at planner community conferences. “I’m still figuring out a more systematic way to do it, but doing things like partnering with The Cosmos … helps address unique challenges for Asian women, both socially and internally,” she said. “As a business that has resources, I love figuring out how to tie that into specific social causes to support them.”

Koo said the most important thing a new entrepreneur can do is to “find your tribe.” For her, a tribe consists of an audience and other shops to collaborate with. “For every idea, for every product, there are people who are going to love what you do,” she said. “The trick is to find those people and serve them.”

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[ajuliasomethingworld]

Berlin after the Wall fell, Berlin is being established as a Cultural Centre. After the West won, we can now see where it got them. In this diversity of today’s Berlin, is something for every one of us. Street art, culture, history, and many history lessons to remember for generations to come. This is a self-guided walking tour (with some U-Bahn in between) to discover Berlin Before and After the Wall regarding Berlin’s Culture.

When I say everyone, I literally mean it. I talked to many people from all around the world, who have moved to Berlin. Because they simply love it. The creative vibes, the liberation and the artistic opportunities are hard to resist to, especially if you are a creator of art. And somehow, we all are.

1. Berlin Before and After the Wall: How the West Won (and Where It Got Them) 2. Berlin Before and After the Wall: Central Berlin  3. Berlin Before and After the Wall: Berlin’s Culture (this post)

It is hard to explain how Berlin’s Culture feels like and how much of it is there, but I will try my best.

Today’s Berlin’s Culture: How it all started?

Politically, artistic and any other way. We all remember the famous moment when East got reunited with the West. If now, here it is:

Self-guided tour “Berlin Before and After the Wall: Berlin’s Culture”

Notice this is a tour of different culture interest points in Berlin. To squeeze it all in one day, I recommend buying a 1-day transport ticket (7 Euros). If you plan to do to visit some museums, you should consider also the Berlin Welcome Card, which has many discounts included and the transport pass.

Woke up in my beautiful hostel room, at the Wombat’s City Hostel, enjoyed my balcony view and the breakfast view (one of the best in the entire city). Also, I have discovered the cute wall murals of wombats all around the hostel. Aren’t they cute?

I thought it is hilarious. Also, the lonely wombats sitting alone on the stairs were so cute.

So had a quick breakfast, and headed towards the U-Bahn station U Weinmeisterstraße. Going to explore a famous neighbourhood of Berlin.

Kreuzberg

Start your morning in Kreuzberg. From the Wombat’s Berlin, you have to take the U-Bahn (U Weinmeisterstraße to U-Bhf Schönleinstraße (6 stops) ). There I met up with Kash from Budget Traveller (who lived in Berlin for 1 year, and shared with me some of his favourite spots). This was the second amazing day we spend together in Berlin, exploring Kreuzberg. On the first day, we explored Central Berlin. And loved that one too. Also because it was close to my hostel, The Wombat’s Berlin.

From there you can wander around those streets, feel how the locals live. Wak towards the Landwehr Canal, and walk along the canal. Every Tuesday and Friday, from 11 am until 6 30 pm, there is an exciting Turkish flea market along the Canal. restaurants, coffee shops, and Instagram worthy scenery are all around.

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Kreuzberg, also know as X-berg (Kreuz (ger) stands for cross) used to know as an isolated and poor area of the West Berlin. Today it represents a cultural centre, which is famous worldwide for its alternative urban scenery.

Expect to find a lot of cultural diversity here, as the neighbourhood has many Turkish residents, but not only. Also, it is known as a hot spot for LGBTQ life and arts in Berlin.

Concierge Coffee

Very hipster. Good coffee. Intimate location. People drinking their coffee in a very relaxed way.

SO 36

This is a music club, near Heinrichplatz, which takes its name from the area postal code. SO stands for Südost (South East). The Kreuzberg district has historically been home to the Berlin punk rock movement, as well as other alternative subcultures in Germany. Why is it so famous? During the 70s, SO36 was a favourite place of musicians such as Iggy Pop and David Bowie.

The club runs to this day.

  Voo Store

A place of modern design and visual culture. This concept store, enhances the heart of Kreuzberg, with amazing pieces of contemporary fashion. What can you find in the Voo Store? Magazines, books, art pieces and innovative fashion.

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  Markthalle Neun

What more shouts unity than a market of international cuisine? Asian, African, European and more. All vendors under the same roof. This marketplace is recommended by locals, to get the real beat of Berlin, the same way locals do. They host many culinary events all year round, and every Thursday afternoon until late evening, they have the Street Food Thursday event.

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Sahara Imbiss Sudanesische Spezialitäten

Right before the entrance to the marketplace, a small, but tasty falafel place you need to visit. If you are a vegan and falafel addict, like I am, this could be the best falafel you’ve ever had. With only 3 tables outside, it gets crowded and people eat on the sidewalk.

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Görlitzer Park

After walking a bit in Kreuzberg, I’ve discovered this park. Not big, not small. But nice and cosy. Street art is all over this former train station. Some bars were opening around noon, and people relaxing on the grass. It is considered to be a popular green space, by the locals. Some recreational stuff going on.

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  Oberbaum Bridge

This is an iconic place to see, visit, to take photos of, walk on and admire when you are in Berlin. No worries, probably you will not miss if, especially if you are going to see the East Side Gallery, which is a must. Especially for your first time in town.

  This bridge connects the two very different parts of Berlin, both physical and cultural. It was a very special place for me, and it gave me a feeling of inspiration and gratefulness. Go, and visit it. You will know why.

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East Side Gallery

This is a standing stip of the Berlin Wall, which stands today as a symbol of unity and love. Artists from all over the world came to paint the wall, to delight visitors with their murals. It creates a huge contrast between what is used to mean and the symbol it is today.

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The entire stip is a bit longer than 1 km and it’s between the river Spree and the street. It is a touristic hotspot, and that’s why street artists and other people roam around. Watch your stuff. As always, touristic places can be a bit dangerous.

  The Bowl

I am always hungry. The thing is I don’t eat much. So after visiting the East Side Gallery, I came back towards the U-Bahn station, and across the street is a nice, vegan place. Lovely decorations. They have many bowls of yummy food. The prices are above average, for a budget traveller, but the bowl was huge. I wasn’t able to eat more than half.

The view is lovely, the staff are friendly, and the food is delicious.

  Urban Spree

After you had a bowl of vegan goodies and a coffee, cross the street to discover your next favourite place in Berlin. Urban Spree is a garden, art studio, tattoo studio (I saw someone getting a tattoo while I was around the garden, taking pics). The alternative spirit of the entire place will get you creative. Visit the nice, small gallery of contemporary arts.

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  RAW-Gelände

After you had also a beer, you are in the mood to spend more time immersed in this alternative world of Berlin. Exit the Urban Spree and continue your way on that artistic area. Discover the many murals, small bars and restaurants. If you see a yellow telephone cabin, go inside it. It is a karaoke cabin. Crazy. Fun. Alternative. Creative.

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Tempelhof Field

This field used to be an airport field. Since it was closed, in 2008, it became frequented by locals. Since there are no restrictions to walk around, except the building, which is closed, people come here to relax. Drink a beer, go biking, play with kites or go for a run around the field.

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Klunkerkranich rooftop bar

I love to discover new rooftops, where ever I go. And Berlin has plenty. Although so far, I found only one place you can stay at and have a beautiful rooftop (The Wombat’s Berlin), the Klunkerranich is a relaxed place, full of culture and green plants. A band was getting ready to play, while I was ordering a beer. And they have ice cream. You will love it if you consider yourself an indie-hipster.

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Azzam restaurant Turkish

One of my favourite foods in the world is Turkish food. Also because I lived in Turkey and got to experience plenty of their culture, which is truly amazing. And different from anything else. So food. This is a small restaurant, cheap, in the heart of Kreuzberg.

Because many residents of Kreuzberg are Turkish (you know Germany has the biggest Turkish community, outside of the country’s borders), walking on these streets will seem like you teleported and arrived somewhere in Turkey. Fresh produce markets, street food, kebap and people talking in Turkish everywhere. I tried to tell you Berlin is a multicultural city and its diversity might be more than you expected.

Head over to Hermannplatz, admire the fresh vegetable market, and then go to the metro station. (U Hermannplatz)

  Teufelsberg

The final stop is Teufelsberg, which literally translates into The Devil’s Mountain. If you want to know how big is Berlin, this is where you will find the answer.

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How to reach Teufelsberg on foot? You can take the U-Bahn until U Theodor-Heuss-Platz and then take the bus M49 for 2 more stops, or you can take the S-Bahn until S Heerstraße. From there you have to walk, for a while. The area is really quiet, and green. after 10 minutes of walking, you will leave the residential area behind, and there will be just you and the woods. And some people on the bikes. But don’t be scared, others do walk there too.

I was there when this was painted

A post shared by Canion Berlin | The Yard Brand (@canion.berlin) on Jun 16, 2018 at 5:07am PDT

  From the main street until the entrance to Teufelsberg, it took me around 40 minutes. There is an entrance fee, which was 5 Euros in June 2018. It used to be more, but the tower is closed for the public and you cannot go inside. Which is a pity, because that is where you can get the best panoramic view of the entire city. And the galleries in the tower are fantastic. This is a hot spot for street artists, and everything there is used to display a message or an idea.

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Interesting facts about Teufelsberg:

It is an artificially build mountain. After the WW2 they used this place to put all the debris from the city, which was looking like a ruin. And they also wanted to bury the Nazi military-technical college which was under construction, in this very place.

The construction from the top of the mountain are radomes of the former NSA listening station on the top of Teufelsberg. (As in secret service stuff)

Because I am lucky and sociable and nice, I ran into two local street artists who were working on a mural there. They helped me discover more about Berlin’s culture.

Don’t forget to check first self-guided walking tours of Berlin Before and After the Wall: 1. How the west won and 2. Central Berlin. 

Berlin Before and After the Wall: Berlin’s Culture Berlin after the Wall fell, Berlin is being established as a Cultural Centre. After the West won, we can now see where it got them.

[latestnews2018-blog]

The turmoil of Stan Lee: What’s going on?

New Post has been published on https://latestnews2018.com/the-turmoil-of-stan-lee-whats-going-on/

The turmoil of Stan Lee: What’s going on?

After the death his wife, the 95-year-old Marvel icon has found himself in the middle of a fight over his finances and legacy

Stan Lee, the Marvel Comics maestro and co-creator of Spider-Man, X-Men and Black Panther, lives in a world of heroes and villains. But these days, it can be hard to tell which is which.

Few creators have left as profound a mark on popular culture. According to The-Numbers, a box office data site, films featuring Lee’s superheroes have grossed more than $24 billion worldwide. He has a huge Twitter following, and admirers have included Federico Fellini, Ronald Reagan and George R.R. Martin, the author of Game of Thrones.

“Stan is right up there with Walt Disney as one of the great creators of not just one character, but a whole galaxy of characters that have become part of our lives,” Martin said. “Right now, I think he’s probably bigger than Disney.”

Yet at the summit of Lee’s career, storm clouds have gathered. The last year has brought an unsettling mix of tragedy and scandal, including the death in July of Joan Lee, his wife of almost 70 years; suspicions that millions of dollars have been siphoned from his accounts; even gossip reports that a former business associate stole his blood to sell to fans.

Last month, The Hollywood Reporter published an investigation that said Lee, 95, is the victim of “elder abuse,” partly at the hands of his 67-year-old daughter, Joan Celia Lee. The Daily Beast reported that Lee, who is said to be worth around $50 million (Dh183.64 million), was “surrounded by a panoply of Hollywood charlatans and mountebanks” and being “picked apart by vultures.”

A radio talk show in Orlando, Florida, even aired a rumour that he is being “held captive” by handlers who “have him basically locked up in the house.”

But on a recent visit to Lee’s home in the Bird Streets, a celebrity enclave high in the hills of West Hollywood, California, the man himself said otherwise. “I’m the luckiest guy in the world,” Lee said, chuckling and sounding like a 95-year-old teenager. “Nobody has more freedom.”

He also defended his daughter, known as JC, against claims that she has been physically abusive and a financial drain. “My daughter has been a great help to me,” he said. “Life is pretty good.”

A HOUSE IN DISARRAY

For four decades, Lee has lived in a relatively modest two-story house in the middle of what has become some of Los Angeles’ most valuable real estate. Dr. Dre is a neighbour, and Leonardo DiCaprio lives down the block, on a street where houses can list for north of $30 million.

The house is a time capsule of late 1970s Hollywood. “My wife, she’s the only person in the world that I would know of who would put a big mirror on top of a big mirror,” Lee said. “And when she was here, she had so many paintings, all over. Most of them have left now. My daughter took a lot of them, and a lot of them have gone elsewhere.”

It’s the vagueness about what has “gone elsewhere” that has some of Lee’s friends so worried. Since Lee’s wife died last year, his household has been thrown into disarray, with three factions of once-trusted aides vying for control. Lee’s current gatekeeper is Keya Morgan, who has ousted former staff. A former memorabilia dealer from New York, Morgan moved to Los Angeles as the executive producer of the mobster biopic Gotti and now describes himself as a “producing partner of John Travolta.”

Sitting at Lee’s side, he was dressed in a black suit and tie, black bowler hat and dark sunglasses, which he lowered on his nose to see indoors.

In February, Morgan called police to the house to physically remove Lee’s longtime road manager, Mac Anderson, known as Max. Anderson was accused of, among other things, attempting to bribe a nurse to make statements that Lee was being held hostage. “He got into a big fight with Stan and Stan’s daughter” and was fired soon afterward, Morgan said.

Reached by phone, Anderson declined to comment.

Also out was Jerry Olivarez, a Hollywood publicist who briefly obtained power of attorney over Lee’s affairs last year, during which time more than $1 million left the Marvel creator’s accounts. That included a $300,000 check made out to Hands of Respect, a novelty company owned by Olivarez and Lee that makes a $10 lapel pin advocating racial harmony.

In unrelated matters, $1.4 million may have vanished in a series of wire transfers, and a Chanel handbag full of cash may be missing from the house, according to Morgan. Also, a trove of Marvel memorabilia, including character sketches and figurines, is the subject of disputed ownership between Anderson and Lee, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

Lee may be a creative genius, but he isn’t a financial one. “I’ve been very careless with money,” he said. “I had a partner or two who, since I’m not a money counter — I let them take care of keeping track of the money we made,” Lee said, as he sipped a bottle of mineral water to soothe his raspy voice. “Lately, I have found out that a lot of the money we made is no longer available for me. I don’t know where it is, but a guy, and maybe one or two others, have found a way to take it.

“So, I feel bad about it, and of course we have a lawyer trying to get it back again,” he said. “But money isn’t worth losing your cool about, you know?”

SUPERHERO FACTORY

The child of Romanian Jewish immigrants, Stanley Lieber was born in New York City in 1922. He was hired in 1939 as an assistant at Timely Comics, the not-especially-promising division of a pulp magazine publisher that would eventually be renamed Marvel. Following a staff exodus the next year, the newly rechristened Lee (an alias he adopted to save his real name for the great novels he aspired to write) was appointed its editor.

His greatest streak of inspiration began in 1961, when Lee was almost 40 and thoroughly disenchanted with his career. With artist Jack Kirby, he created the Fantastic Four, a hit he bested the next year by inventing Spider-Man with artist Steve Ditko. Among the enduring characters he created over the next decade with those artists, and others, are the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Thor, Doctor Strange and, in 1966, Black Panther: an African warrior-king whose recent film adventure has grossed more than $1.3 billion.

“I’m sorry I didn’t introduce black characters a little sooner,” Lee said. “I tried to create an Asian superhero, I tried to create a South American superhero. And at that point I also was thinking it’s ridiculous that we don’t have a black superhero.”

Asked if contemporary comics and films could be doing a better job of representing women and superheroes of colour, he replied, “yes,” but expanded: “You can’t force anything on the public. But if you do a black hero or heroine and you see that it’s well-received at the newsstand, then you’d be an idiot not to come up with more stories like that. Everything depends on the marketplace.”

Yet Lee may have underestimated his own value in the marketplace. While he has made exponentially more money than any of his Marvel co-creators, he only ever collected a paycheck, and does not receive any continuing royalties from the films based on his characters.

In 2005, he received a one-time payment of $10 million from Marvel, to settle a provision in his contract that had entitled him to 10 per cent of the profits from television and film adaptations. Four years later, Disney bought Marvel for $4 billion; it is unclear whether Lee was able to reap any benefit. (As Marvel’s chairman emeritus, he still receives a salary, reported to be $1 million.)

And while his personal appearances (including charging fans $120 for an autograph) are a lucrative source of income, later-life attempts to create wholly owned superhero properties have foundered. Stan Lee Media, a digital content start-up, crashed in 2000 and landed his business partner, Peter F. Paul, in prison for securities fraud. And Lee is embroiled in disputes with POW! Entertainment, the company he started in 2001 to create new shows, including “Stripperella,” a cartoon starring Pamela Anderson.

POW! was sold last year to Camsing International, a Hong Kong-based company seeking to clone Marvel for the Asian market. Lee says he has not been paid, which the company denies. “Mr. Lee has been paid and continues to be paid by the company,” said Shane Duffy, the chief executive of POW! “Statements like this only heighten our concern for Stan’s well-being.”

As part of the escalating fight, Morgan and Lee’s daughter entered the POW! offices on Santa Monica Boulevard on the night of March 14 and removed items they say belong to Lee. They triggered a silent alarm, prompting POW! to file a police report.

The Beverly Hills police subsequently dropped the burglary investigation, but the fighting continues. “They’re acting as if they bought the company and everything on the four walls belong to them,” said Lee, sounding downcast. “So, another lawsuit.”

AN OSCAR FOR STAN LEE?

Outside the bubble of legal drama and personal strife, however, Lee’s creative influence remains at an all-time high. “There’s no doubt that Stan, in terms of American popular culture, he’s one of the giants of the 20th century,” Martin said. “Spider-Man and Iron Man; the X-Men — they’re still as viable as ever.”

From the floral sofa in his sitting room, Lee is a font of highly entertaining stories from the glory days, even if some of them sound taller than his 1962 creation Giant-Man. Like the time Picasso was so taken by Joan Lee’s beauty that he approached the couple in a New York restaurant and sketched her on their tablecloth. “We ran home to tell my father about what happened,” Lee said. But, “in our excitement, we had left the drawing in the restaurant. We never found it!”

Or the time when DiCaprio told Lee that he had written the president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, lobbying for Lee to receive an honorary Oscar for his numerous cameos over the years. (Lee appears in nearly every Marvel movie, including Black Panther, in which he plays a gambler in a South Korean casino.)

DiCaprio also wants to portray Lee in a film about the Marvel creator, according to Morgan, who accompanied Lee on a recent visit to DiCaprio’s house. (A spokesman for DiCaprio would not confirm this account of their conversation.) The thought of a biopic starring DiCaprio gave Lee pause. He looked out over the pool, to the canyon beyond, and pondered being portrayed by an Oscar-winning actor.

“I don’t know if he could capture the essence of me,” he said, after a moment. “We have to talk about that.”

[mi5016natalielam]

Analysis

The purpose of this reflective essay is to discuss the skills and attributes I have for the animation industry and what I need to do in order to pursue my goal in the industry. I will also explain how the module helped me to explore the study of ethics and health and safety.

Firstly, I would like to talk about my skills and attributes. I have developed my own art style. I have tried to make the style to project the feeling of something childish and pure. I think that having a personal style makes me more competitive with other people. The style can help me build a reputation by being more memorable due to its uniqueness. I like using warm colours in my artworks, such as orange and coral pink. I believed that using warm colours can express a happy and energetic feeling to the audience. I created a character called Strange nose in 2014, which was used as inspiration for my logo. Strange nose is a boy who has orange hair, black eyes, and always a wide smile on his face. I have created a Facebook page for “Strange nose”, and attracted a good a number of people who showed appreciation towards my work. The vivid colours, whimsical art style and the patterns in my artwork create an interesting visual to the audiences and makes the work appear more dynamic.

Through this course, I have also found that I am a flexible person. I am willing to make changes to work in response to constructive criticism. I understood that working in the industry is completely different from studying in the university, and that I will be working with different teams and individuals. Customers ideas might change every day, I believe that I am able to take direction and have good communication with the customers. I have worked for Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department last year, and created an opening video for their opening ceremony. At the beginning of the project I introduced them to a storyboard with cute characters in it, and at the beginning, the clients seemed happy with the idea. However, midway through making the animation they have changed their minds, And I had to restart the animation. The final work was a lot simpler than what I originally planned, but the clients were satisfied. This was a precious opportunity for me to prove that I am able to respond to customers based on their opinions.

I always had passion for drawing since I was little. The very first animated movie I watched was One Hundred and One Dalmatians. I really loved the plot and the characters. I had always wondered how animation was created, and as I was getting older I got to research a bit on the process and was very amazed. I was impressed by how traditional hand-drawn animation was made frame by frame. 2D animation was what attracted me to study animation at Northumbria University. In my 1st year, I have created a 2D animation called Papillon for the module 'Introduction for motion graphic'. I was not interested in 3D animation until the second semester, I needed to create a 3D animation for the module 'Introduction for 3D animation'. I realised that creating 3D animation can be very enjoyable too. It felt really magical to be able to model a character or an object from scratch. I also found creating materials and textures interesting. I can adjust the brightness or roughness of the object, and make it look realistic. Which was very useful in another module, ‘Compositing for animation’. I gained knowledge on how to composite 2D and 3D objects with real-life footage. I was also given an opportunity to further develop my personal art style in this module. My career goal in the animation industry is to work on character design, concept art, advertising, and illustration. In order to become a concept artist, I would be required to create designs of characters, environment, and different assets in order to visualise the idea, which is very interesting to me. Darek Zabrocki is one of my favorite concept artist. He works for different companies like DreamWorks, FOX, and Sega. I admire how his works are able to capture the essence of the past, and also build a believable futuristic scene.

In addition, I have a passion for drawing illustrations. My continuous interest in illustrating helped me to develop my drawing skills, design skills and taught me about various things, including colour theory and how to project well my ideas into drawings. I think it is crucial for an illustrator to have an ability to tell a story with their artwork. In order to improve myself in illustrating, I thought of starting to draw comics. I love reading comic books, and I have a preference for physical copies of comics over the online versions. However, the usage of online comic books has been increasing in this decades due to environmental issues and the improvement of technology. Webtoon is a global digital comics service platform. It provides a space for artists all over the world to share their work, and has attracted a lot of readers as well as creators. I think I could start writing comics throughout my summer holiday, as it would help me improve my skills in scriptwriting, storytelling, and narrative writing. One of the advantages of online comics book is that it allows us to put sound effects and animation in it. As I have gotten more knowledgeable and experienced in creating animations and sound effects, I am excited to add some animation into the comics I create. I believe it would allow me to attract more followers and readers that will gain an appreciation for my work.

This module taught me that having followers and links within the industry will help me in finding a job after graduating. We were also encouraged to create an online presence, which is why I have created accounts on Linked in, Instagram, Vimeo, and Facebook. The pages should help me to create connections with people in our field and attract potential clients or employers. These create a great opportunity for me to promote myself for employment in the animation industry. This course also allowed us to meet people from the industry. I got a chance to listen and interact to different speakers every week sharing their experiences and the difficulties they faced in their journey. This allowed me to know better how the animation industry works. James Taylor was one of the guests who came. He is the co-founder of the Arcus studio and when he shared about how their studio works and I grew interested in working for them. Their studio focuses on 2D and motion design. Their works are mainly, really cute and I think that my art style would suit their studio. It would be easier for me to adjust and blend in. It would be great to have an opportunity at working in this company.

Unfortunately, I have found that it is hard for an international student like me to work in the United Kingdom due to the visa problems. A tier 4 visa, would only allow me to work for 20 hours maximum per week. I would need to earn at least thirty thousand pounds per year in order to work in the United Kingdom. There is a very small chance for new graduates to get that high of a salary. That is the reason why I would prefer working in Asian countries rather than European countries. I would not need to face the visa problems and any language barriers.

This module also has made me more aware of the health, ethics and safety in the workplace. Carpal tunnel syndrome is a very common illness among animators and illustrators. I got serious neck and back pain recently because I always sitting in front of the computer. I learnt that it is important to have time to exercise and avoid overtime work to prevent myself from getting ill. Mental health is really important too, artists usually express themselves only by art, and they get limited social interactions with people, and this is very unhealthy. To prevent from getting depressed, it is nice to have time to communicate with friends and family.

Furthermore, It is very important to understand ethics such as equality of gender, race, and sexuality. I have seen animations with bad character design which have made me feel uncomfortable. For example, ‘Scrub Me Mama With A Boogie Beat’, the black people in the animation got big thick lips and were

made to look like monkeys, which is wrongful stereotyping of African-American people . I think that as an animation producer, we have got responsibilities to respect every person’s culture, beliefs, skin colour, and sexuality. ‘Class of 3000’ is a good example of how culture and race and current society could healthily intermingle together. There are different races and genders involved, characters are each talented in their own way and play an important role within their school band.

In conclusion, this module has taught me how to prepare my portfolio, showreel, and Cvs in order to get into a company in the future. It also made me realise and think about what I want to become in the animation industry. This let me focus on the content of my future work, so that I could better prepare more for the job. My awareness on health and ethics and safety also improved because of this module. I now definitely think more about ethical problems before making the animation and designing the character. Lastly, I learned to prevent myself from overworking, and allow some time to communicate more with friends in order to have a healthy lifestyle.

[fashiontrendin-blog]

Who won big at the Fashion Awards 2017?

http://fashion-trendin.com/who-won-big-at-the-fashion-awards-2017/

Who won big at the Fashion Awards 2017?

Which of his ‘babies’ does double winner JWA love more? Where does Virgil Abloh go to party? and why couldn’t Adwaoh Aboah speak? Find out all this and more in our insiders’ report on fashion’s biggest night of the year…

Last night’s annual Fashion Awards, housed in the iconic Royal Albert Hall, honoured the glitterati of the fashion industry in an emotionally charged ceremony that combined major international glamour with poignancy – and unusual star turns galore. During the Fashion Awards 2017, there was a tribute to the late, great Azzedine Alaia (who died recently) from his tearful protegee Naomi Campbell, and a rendition of George Michael’s Freedom by Rita Ora, backed by a gay mens’ chorus – of course. There were major A-listers in attendance, from red carpet attendees like Selena Gomez to industry heavyweights including Anna Wintour.

What used to be a mainly Brit-focused affair is fast turning into a global event to rival the Met Ball for international clout – last night’s ceremony saw Dior’s Maria Grazia Chiuri make the trip over from Paris HQ to receive the first ever award for Positive Change, in recognition of her feminist-focused designs. Her predecessor at Dior, Raf Simons – now making headlines over at Calvin Klein – was also at the Albert Hall to receive the night’s biggest nod, Designer of the Year.

Marie Claire’s Jess Wood was backstage to chat to some of the winners – and to see major moments like John Galliano dancing down a corridor hand in hand with Donatella Versace (honoured with a special Fashion Icon award), while make-up queen Pat McGrath giggled from the sidelines.

Here’s what some of our favourites had to say…

Adwoah Aboah

Winner – Model of the Year

Shimmying backstage in her turban, Christian Louboutin plaforms and head-to-toe sequins by hot young London designer Michael Halpern (another of the night’s winners), girls’ mental health advocate and Gurls Talk founder Adwoah was speechless for a full minute when asked what winning meant to her.

‘It means so so much. London is home and I’ve watched a lot of my close friends pick up this award – I’ve also really looked up to their careers so to be following after them means a lot. To be sitting next to my mum and dad, and next to everyone from Professor Green to Stormzy to Maria Grazia, who have all been massive supports to me…I’m really really grateful.’ She’s got more than the award to be excited about, too – she’s just been announced as a newly-minted BFC (British Fashion Council) ambassador. She’ll no doubt be rolling up her sleeves and tackling taboo issues like models’ rights with typical guts.

    Michael Halpern

Winner, British Emerging Talent – Womenswear (for Halpern)

You might not be that familiar with his name – yet – but that’s about to change, big time. Young London-based designer Halpern is fast becoming known as the new ‘king of cool glamour’ with his Studio 54-inspired sequins and glitz. But as he told us, sequins need to be taken seriously…

‘I’m a magpie in every regard. But what’s important is not just to focus on the disco era but the attitude that those people had – it was rebellion and trying to stand up for something. Using this idea of glitter and sequins as rebellion, that’s where I’m coming from.’ he told us with one arm round Pamela Anderson, his idol (and everyone else’s, as it turns out – who knew?), who was dressed in black floor-length Halpern sequins to present him with his award. So, um, what is it about Pammie, Michael?

‘Pamela was my OMG moment this evening! When I heard she was presenting the category tonight, I just wanted to meet her, I didn’t care if I won or not. She’s super authentic, she’s not trying to be anyone else. Nowadays, so many people are involved with their personas on Instagram and how they present themselves, and she’s just very honest in that way.’ Fashion fans, now you know…

Virgil Abloh

Winner, Urban Luxe award for Off/White

The coolest – and nicest – man in fashion, wearing trainers with his tux (obvs),  stopped for a good old chinwag about his many talents and plans. He’s an architect by training, a longtime collaborator of Kanye West’s, and has pretty much been responsible for turning streetwear into a luxury fashion category with his label Off/White. But did you know he likes to spin a tune too? Read on…

‘With me, youthfulness is at the heart of it all – whenever I’m putting together my own look, it’s about ‘what’s red carpet for a 17 year old kid?’ and I guarantee he’s more comfortable in Nikes than dress shoes,’ Abloh told us about his Fashion Awards look. As for his award?

‘I love winning awards but I can’t place too much value on it. It’s super cool that they’re acknowledging this category now.  British fashion has been integral to my career – Kim Jones has been my mentor for over 10 years. Louise Wilson [late legendary St Martin’s tutor] was my supporter and advisor, without going to St Martin’s – but she was someone who believed in today. Half my family is in London, and I’ve always felt an affinity for it as a melting pot. From Carnival, to grime, to skateboarding, club music…Music and streetwear has been here forever – music, rhyme, club dance have all influenced why sneakers are in trend. I come from that kind of back door of culture – I just gave myself the task of making it ‘high fashion”.

So, Virgil, what will you be doing to celebrate?

‘I’m going to celebrate by DJing at my own Off/White nightclub at Somerset House – at 180 Strand. I’m an architect by training. I’ve built this as a one off, one-night-only project. I’m playing at midnight – it goes on till 3am, playing house and techno. This is fun, but my whole sphere is like 4am on the dancefloor, DJing…’ Our names are on the door, yeah, Virgil?

  JW Anderson

Winner, Accessories Designer of the Year (for Loewe) AND Womenswear Designer of the Year (for JW Anderson)

Yikes, the JDubz has done a double! Fashion’s most talented young whippersnapper scooped a major prize for each of his labels, a rarity in fashion awards history. So, which is he most excited about?

‘I can’t pick sides – it’s like having two babies. I love both brands!’ He confessed to us. ‘Actually, it’s kind of difficult to accept this  – I feel like we’re in a very challenging moment in general and it’s difficult to feel you can accept something like this when things are very complicated. But I love my work. Sometimes I feel guilty and a bit like ‘am I going to be hated (or double hated) for my success? But who cares?’ Did he have a sneaking suspicion he might win? ‘Last year I came and I lost 4 awards! So I come with no expectations! As long as I’m drinking and having a good time then I’m fine.’ Cheers, JWA…

Scroll down for the full list of winners and some of the night’s best red-carpet looks…

Selena Gomez in Coach, below

  Kaia Gerber in Ralph & Russo, below

Adwoah Aboah in Michael Halpern, below

FKATwigs in Versace, below

  Host Karlie Kloss in Vivienne Westwood Couture, below

Here’s who won at the Fashion Awards 2017

Model of the Year: Adwoa Aboah

Outstanding Contribution to British Fashion Award: Christopher Bailey

British Designer of the Year- Menswear: Craig Green for Craig Green

British Designer of the Year- Womenswear: Jonathan Anderson for JW Anderson

Accessories Designer of the Year: Jonathan Anderson for Loewe

Swarovski Award For Positive Change: Maria Grazia Chiuri for Dior

Urban Luxe Brand: Off-White

Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator: Pat McGrath

British Emerging Talent – Womenswear: Michael Halpern for Hapern

British Emerging Talent – Menswear: Charles Jeffrey for Charles Jeffery Loverboy

Business Leader: Marco Bizzarri for Gucci

Special Recognition Award For Innovation: Stella McCartney

Style Icon: Donatella Versace

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Insight: Marbella (Alvaro Tobar - Third Culture)

The city of Marbella, nestled halfway down Spain’s Costa del Sol, is famous for being one of Europe’s most popular resort destinations, providing sun, sea, sand and cerveza to a large seasonal flow of wealthy foreign visitors. What it hasn’t generally been famous for is its music scene. Fortunately, Marbella’s Third Culture collective is flipping that impression on its head.

Comprised of producers, performers, promoters, DJs and a range of other creatives, Third Culture’s aim is to nurture a distinct, organic music scene that can make its mark beyond Marbella and compete with the big foreign acts that tour the region. By supporting some of Spain’s most exciting emerging artists, it seems they are starting to succeed. We got in touch with Alvaro Tobar, Third Culture’s ‘cultural agitator’, to find out why the Spanish hip-hop scene is finally fulfilling its potential, and how Marbella’s artists are providing alternative routes for itexpansion…

In ten words or less, how would you describe where you live?

A melting pot of international cultures with a unique lifestyle.

What got you involved in the local music scene, and what is your role within it?

What got me involved in the ‘scene’ was pretty much wanting to create one, a real one. We’ve had amazing venues & international superstars performing here for years – singers, DJs, rappers, etc – but that only happens in summer with the inflow of tourists. Other than that there’s no actual scene in the foundations. The venues, promoters, audience, they all just follow and copy each other based on what makes money. Nobody really cares about the actual music, its culture or what it’s spawning in the younger generations that soak it all up, in my eyes there’s a lot of raw talent here that keeps getting bypassed.

People just need inspiration, a sense of belonging to something bigger, let them know what they do is appreciated because it’s contagious, it spreads a message, it allows people to drop their fears, judgements, etc and to go for it, whatever it may be. It will push the next person to go out and do what they love, when you have a lot of people doing that, you have a healthy scene, a community and that’s when amazing things begin to happen.

I recently found out that the city of Atlanta (without the metropolitan area) has a smaller population than the city of Málaga which is the closest capital to Marbella. Now think about trap and all the music that has come out of the city of Atlanta in the past years that has shaped the sound of hip-hop and even pop music in the entire world: Outkast, T.I., Gucci Mane, Migos, Young Thug, 21 Savage, the list is endless. That is all because of the scene they had there, it’s been thriving for decades, people push one another to create and support each other, that’s when things flourish.

I started Third Culture as a monthly event that allowed all the creators here to gather in a relaxed atmosphere and experience something new; music (DJs and concerts), art, fashion, etc. A place to praise open-mindedness and creativity, something they couldn’t experience anywhere else locally and that actually made them feel like they were somewhere else, in an underground venue of a big city or metropolis for example. I’ve been told by people at our events that they feel like they’re in Shoreditch in London, or in Soho in NY, etc, anything but Marbella and that’s the biggest compliment.

My role within it is always through Third Culture. There I’m an MC, DJ, promoter, booking agent, designer, I do it all, so I wouldn’t really know what to call it. Recently in an interview with a local TV [station] they called me a ‘cultural agitator’ for the city, and I’m not mad at that, I’m here to shake the shit up until people realise, or at least until the right people do.

What are the dominant music styles in both Marbella and Spain as a whole, are there any exciting new music trends currently emerging?

In Spain the explosion in the modern hip-hop/trap scene has been insane, we’ve had hip-hop here for decades but it has always been marginalised and pushed aside, I think because it was never daring enough, it was just there to fulfil the ‘rap in Spain’ category. It never went mainstream aside from 2 or 3 acts unlike the UK or France that had a full scene with their own distinctive sound, but what’s happened here in the past 3-5 years is crazy. The level of artistry has gone through the roof, not only the acts and their music, but also visuals, merchandise, even marketing strategies, you see some very unique proposals that are already giving American & foreign artists huge competition, a lot of these Spanish acts have better numbers than established acts in the US (sales, YouTube views, followers, etc). This is mostly because Spanish acts are finally tapping majorly into Central and South America which are HUGE markets for them.

Marbella is different because this place is a bubble that is always ruled by international influence before Spanish influence. The ‘scene’ here is always looking at the international charts, but it’s better than ever in my opinion because every single venue now has at least one night a week dedicated to hip-hop, trap & urban beats, most of them with huge live performances. It’s definitely exciting to see how this is all developing considering there are more venues every year which allow for many more opportunities for the scene to grow and keep establishing itself.

Who are the key local acts we should be listening to right now?

Sandro Jeeawock: local producer who has collaborated with big names in Spain like Pimp Flaco, Kinder Malo and Dellafuente. Imagine if Atlanta’s 808 culture got all loved up and had a night of debauchery with the early Neptunes’ sound… His debut album Golden Boy was released early this summer via Ocean Club which he presented in a set at this year’s Sonar Festival. He will be back in BCN on the 26th of August playing in TRILL. Don’t miss it.

GXNZX: Picture a mysterious bearded cavalier majestically riding a Roland SP-404. Now you can listen to him. Lo-fi expert, dope sample choppa, if he gets on some pads, keep an extinguisher close. Shit will burn.

Olarte: A staple in the local scene, he has one of the most ample ’90s hip-hop libraries I’ve come across and you can tell on his production, the man is dipped in jazz (literally he has portraits of jazz greats tattooed all over his body) and his drums will make your neck snap, a deadly combo.

Rjay: In my opinion, the best male vocalist round these ends, London bred, Marbella based, with a great knack for songwriting. From trap to R&B, give him any beat and hell have a solid track in no time.

K:Miss: Powerful female vocalist, lead singer of soul band ‘Soulbelle’, she hasn’t left any genre untouched: house, jazz, rock & roll, and she keeps going. Her upcoming material with a modern hip-hop twist to it will definitely make heads turn.

Space Hammu: The out of town homies, hailing from the east-side of Malaga, this collective of MCs & producers is about to shake the scene in spain: Delaossa, Raggio & Carrion are 3 of the livest spitters I’ve heard come out the south, JMoods could flip a tank with his beats and Kas.Rules keeps it all sounding tight & crisp. Its a rap dream team and we can only help them push further, although they don’t need it.

What’s the live music scene/nightlife like in Marbella?

The majority of it is based in upmarket clubs, VIP bottles, etc, so whatever genre it’s always going to be somewhat commercial, but the appearances get bigger every year. So far the biggest acts we’ve had this year are: Lil Wayne, Tory Lanez, Tyga, Trey Songz, French Montana, Ja Rule, Fat Joe, etc. There’s also a very solid UK sounds scene, grime, garage, DnB, etc: Craig David, Tinie Tempah, J Hus, Giggs, Krept & Konan, Kano, So Solid Crew, DJ Luck & MC Neat, DJ EZ, etc, they’ve all been here this season. Now because of a sudden inflow of French tourism you also see huge names from the French scene stop by like Booba or Maitre Gims.

Other than that you can see full concerts in places like Starlite (Elton John, Ben Harper, etc.), Puente Romano Hotel for most of the oldies (George Benson, Billy Ocean, Chaka Khan, etc) or the brew pub La Catarina, the home of all the Third Culture events for the past two years where we’ve had the biggest names from the Spanish scene, like Bejo, BNMP, Nathy Peluso, Fanso, Jesse Baez & the list goes on.

For anyone visiting, what should they see and what should they eat and drink?

Marbella’s Old Town is beautiful with loads of tapas bars and great restaurants. If you want high end restaurants the square in Puente Romano has pretty much anything you could ask for. If you’re looking for something cheap & cheerful with a good vibe, I would definitely recommend Bao Garden, a relaxed hang-out spot with awesome Asian street food. Seafood here is a must, there’s plenty chiringuitos with espetos de sardinas, boquerones, pil-pil and all that good stuff.

The whole summer lifestyle here is what beomes the biggest sight if you ask me, but if you like the outdoors, the Paseo Maritimo that joins Marbella centre with Puerto Banus is an amazing walk by the beach, especially during sunset. Hike up La Concha mountain whenever it’s not too hot for the best views of the whole coast. El Chorro, Tarifa, El Palmar are also beautiful nature spots that are very close by.

What one song, past or present, sums up Marbella best?

If I had to chose a present track it would probably be Travis Scott’s ‘Butterfly Effect’ because the ambience of the track matches the setting, plus people here love to stunt. A lot of people come here JUST to stunt. You see them on Facebook working their butts off the rest of the year, looking all focused and then they come here to wile out & have fun, ‘for this life they cannot change’.

What are the biggest challenges faced by musicians in Marbella right now?

Without a doubt having work all year round, it becomes very alive in the holiday season, and some opportunities and openings arise, but after there’s simply not enough audience, so it’s down to the artists to move around and try find gigs. Other than that, during the holiday season most big venues have very very limited availability if any at all as they have most of their resident acts, DJs, etc, closed months in advance, there it’s simply a matter of having good connections and a good product.

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Remembering Khadija Saye, the artist who died in the Grenfell Tower fire

A series of self-portraits by Khadija Saye (1992-2017) are now on show in the Diaspora Pavilion, a collateral event in this years Venice Biennale, the opening of which the artist attended in May. Saye and her Gambian-born mother, Mary Mendy, died in the Grenfell Tower fire in west London on 14 June. As a memorial to the artist and all the victims of the disaster, which claimed at least 80 lives, Tate Britain is displaying a print from Sayes final series, Dwelling: in this space we breathe (2017). 

Remembering Khadija, by Ingrid Swenson and Andrew Wilson Khadija Saye completed her photography degree in 2013 and, as an aspiring artist, did a variety of paid work, which fed into her growing knowledge of art and broadened her networks. As part of this she joined up to Creative Access, a London-based charity that promotes diversity within the creative industries by providing work experience for young people from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds through a range of paid internship programme partnerships. Both the Tate and PEER, a small arts charity on Hoxton Street, east London, are part of this programme. At her interview, Khadija was the outstanding candidate for the exhibition assistant role at PEER, and she started work in July 2015.

Joining a staff of just two, Khadija played a key role in a range of the charitys activities. It had recently embarked on a project to improve the gallery and the public space outside, and she was involved with raising support from local and arts communities to attract funding from the Mayor of Londons High Street Fund.

She was also very engaged with the planning and planting of a community garden outside PEER which, along with other landscaping work, began in September 2015. The charity and the local tenant management organisation are organising a memorial and naming ceremony in July to call this Khadijas Garden. She continued to work on plans for the second phase of capital works to the gallery, including a fundraising auction with Sothebys, as well as the reopening exhibition and events.

Over the past two years Khadija has became a dear friend to us both. Her upbringing and her part-time work as a carer (like her mother) are a reflection of her relationship to the world. Quiet, calm and calming, generous, sympathetic, warm, giving, gentleshe was comfortable talking to anyone and would always put people at their ease.

In a way she cared for us all; the idea of community meant a lot to her. Early on we heard how she suffered racist abuse and on one occasion gently turned the tables so that such hate was shown to be irrational. Most importantly, in her photography she had a caring eye that was fitting for her chosen subject of portraiture. After her internship she was employed to interview and photograph visitors to PEERs reopening exhibition by Angela de la Cruz. The resulting pictures, produced as a poster, are evidence of her sensitive 

and compassionate eye, and as she said later, breaking down barrierswhich is something I strive to pursue within my career.

Blossoming of an artist

It was only with the approach of the Venice Biennale that we saw her latest work. A few weeks beforehand she came and laid out a large group of these photographs in our kitchen at home for us to look at and talk with her about. We were both excited and overwhelmed by what we saw. We were witnessing the further blossoming of an artist. With this group of tintype photographs Khadija had found a material, a subject and a way of working through artistic traditions and cultural languages that was unique to her and lay realised in this group of photographs, to which she gave the title Dwelling: in this space we breathe.

There was something utterly instinctive in these photographs, which were in part a working through of a trauma that she had recently suffered. In doing so she was making a new and enriching space for herself and her work. To then see her work in the Diaspora Pavilion in Venice, to meet her there with her mentor, the artist Dave Lewis, and witness her experiencing the positive reaction to her work at the opening was a really special moment.

She wrote that the blessings are abundant and we were excited for her future. She had gone from being a mostly unknown artist to someone who had made work people were talking about. We discussed with her about perhaps doing an MA and how this could be made to happen. We are left with images and memories of her work, the powerful force of her being, and Khadijas Garden.

Ingrid Swenson is the director of PEER; Andrew Wilson is the senior curator, Modern and contemporary British art and archives, at Tate Britain

Remembering Khadija, by Nicola Green During this time of tragedy, anger, disquiet and fear, Khadija Saye remains a source of light. Her warmth has been widely written about and, like so many others, I found her unusual in her gracious, kind and determined beauty, which is reflected so powerfully in her work.

I met Khadija when she had just finished her photography BA at the University for the Creative Arts in Farnham. I was a judge on a panel of the Discerning Eye exhibition in 2014 and selected her series, Crowned. She came to the opening night so excitedit was her first exhibition after her degree show.

She stood with her mother Mary next to her art work brimming with enthusiasm. This genuine joy at any one of her successes was a trait that continued. Exploring the identity and power of black women through images of the hair of women close to her, Khadijas Crowned series left a lasting impression and moved me deeply. She said recently that she made this series with zero money, just some black velvet with beautiful friends and family.

As I got to know Khadija more in the following years her interest in identity, activism, heritage and faith steadily grew and informed her practice in deeper ways. During her time assisting me she was working on her series Eid. Khadija spoke often about her multifaith heritage, which was a source of constant inspiration in both her work and her search for self-understanding.

Khadija travelled to Gambia and made a series of portrait and landscape photographs entitled Home. Cominga powerfully personal and generous window into her discovery and understanding of the heritage that meant so much to her.

Spiritual grounding

Her work, made with the help of the artist Almudena Romero, exhibited in the Diaspora Pavilion in Venice, is titled Dwelling: in this space we breathe. In the photographs she took that she used as source images for Dwelling, she combined relics from her heritage with elements of pop culture including Beyonc and RuPaul. The final work is a series of wet-plate collodion tintype self-portraits. Khadija always focused intently on channelling her experiences into her art. I think the inherent strength that is seen in this series mirrors that of Khadija herself.

She wrote herself about this work that this series was created from a personal need for spiritual grounding after experiencing trauma. The search for what gives meaning to our lives and what we hold on to in times of despair and life changing challenges. We exist in the marriage of physical and spiritual remembrance. Its in these spaces that we identify with our physical and imagined bodies. Using myself as the subject, I felt it necessary to physically explore how trauma is embodied in the black experience.

While exploring the notions of spirituality and rituals, the process of image making became a ritual in itself. The journey of making wet-plate collodion tintypes is unique in the sense that no image can be replicated and the final outcome is out of the creators control. Within this process, you surrender yourself to the unknown, similar to what is required by all spiritual higher powers: surrender and sacrifice.

In 2015 Khadija was part of a group of artists and curators who went to Venice as part of the Diaspora Platform. At the opening week Khadija tweeted a photo of herself in front of Lorna Simpsons work. Two years later in Venice during the opening week Simpson saw and admired Khadijas series Dwelling so much that she invited Khadija to come and spend time at her studio in New York. When I called Khadija recently to tell her this, she made a squeaking sound and said: Im so sorry, I actually dont know what that sound is. She paused, and before laughing with uncontrollable joy, said: I can only respond with noises from my soul.

Like so many others touched by Khadija, I had the privilege of watching her rise from a shining light of emerging talent, who was struggling to get her work into the world, to a star at the crest of a wave of international success.

It is impossible to believe that such a positive force of energy and power is gone from this world.

Nicola Green is an artist

Appeals launched

Two complementary memorial appeals have been launched to remember Khadija Saye. The appeal target for Creative Access internships for young people from the black, Asian or minority ethnic (BAME) community is around 10,000. The general memorial fund aims to raise around 50,000 to support young artists like Saye to realise their potential.

To support paid internships in Khadija Sayes name, visit www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/khadijasayeinternshipfund

To support the Khadija Saye Memorial Fund, visit www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/khadija-saye-memorial-fund

There will also be a Grenfell Tower Benefit auction (18 July-1 August) of works donated by 25 artists, which has been organised by the art advisor Lucy Meakin and Artsy. For more information, visit www.artsy.net

View Full Article Here: Remembering Khadija Saye, the artist who died in the Grenfell Tower fire

Remembering Khadija Saye, the artist who died in the Grenfell Tower fire was originally published on CALM | We Drive The Calmest, Strive Regardless