MUMBAI: A special screening of the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer “Dunki” will be held on December 28 here for representatives of several countries, including the US, the UK, France, South Korea and Australia.
“Dunki”, based on an illegal immigration technique ‘donkey flight’, is directed by Rajkumar Hirani.
The comedy-drama has grossed Rs 157. 22 crore at the global box office since its release on Thursday.
“Dunki has arrived on the big screens and in no time has started to rule the hearts of the audience…With its compelling story, the film has brought a significant subject to the masses that speaks about the illegal immigrants who take the donkey route to go abroad. Amid its successful run in the theatres, a special screening will be held for the consulates of various nations on 28th December,” a member of Hirani’s team said in a statement.
The representatives of Belgium, Germany, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Spain, Turkey, and the Netherlands are also expected to attend the event, the member further said.
“Dunki” also stars Boman Irani, Taapsee Pannu, Vicky Kaushal, Vikram Kochhar, and Anil Grover.
A JIO Studios, Red Chillies Entertainment, and Rajkumar Hirani Films presentation, the film is produced by Hirani and Gauri Khan.
It is written by Abhijat Joshi, Hirani and Kanika Dhillon.
Euphoria, a band that has created many classics and keeps the crowd grooving, is set to make a big comeback to celebrate 25 years of its journey. Palash Sen, the founder and the lead vocalist of the band, has always been an icon for every ’90s kid, especially from Delhi. The band’s hits like ‘Maeri’, ‘Dhoom Pichuk’, ‘Aana Meri Gully’ have instant recall, even for today’s youth. Euphoria, initially rooted in English rock, gradually found its calling in fusion rock. With the release of their debut album, ‘Dhoom’, in 1998, Euphoria was the first indigenous band that became a household name. They are on a tour to celebrate the whirlwind journey of an independent band and is ready to set the stage on fire with their performance on December 24 in Imperfecto Patio, Gurugram.
Excerpts from a conversation with Palash Sen:
Euphoria has completed 25 years in the music industry. How do you make sure that your music connects with the youth today? We are right now celebrating our 25th year as the band started off in 1998. I just do my job with honesty. People do go after trends. However, music listeners will always listen to a song or music that sounds honest to them and which is close to their heart and that is why every generation accepts our music.
Pradeep Sarkar
Your debut album, ‘Dhoom’, has been a hit and it still is today. When I made the album, I thought nobody was going to listen to it. I told the band members to just take out the album. But I also had a feeling that we were creating history as the music sounded like nobody else’s. The whole vibe of an indigenous band, coming and performing a song was a brand new idea for TV. You know, till then, bands were always associated with British or American bands or folk bands. But when we did it, suddenly they had their own band that they could own. I believe that the connection is still there. Those who have listened to it then, have passed on the fact they had loved it to others.
You have worked with various music labels like Archies Music and T-Series. But now, Euphoria has been releasing music independently. What were the challenges of going indie? It has been a struggle from day one with music labels. It’s always been a struggle because things never happened the way we wanted them to. I had to sign deals which were one-sided and I never got royalties for most of the stuff. Even a song like ‘Bhim Pooja Ka Mahari’ or ‘Ana Meri Kaliye’ never paid me anything. Even today, most of the music that I’ve made, I don’t own the rights. We are re-recording our first album for all our fans. It puts back the rights into the band’s hands. We are one of the very few bands or artists who are doing everything ourselves.
How do you keep the audience grooving? What are your tactics and how do you choose your song list for an event? We keep changing the list according to the crowd. It’s the audience that makes the song list. It is a very symbiotic relationship between me and the crowd. The more energetic they are, the more so I am. It comes naturally to me. I’m a very spontaneous guy.
You and Shah Rukh Khan go back to school days. Tell us about your memories with him. Shah Rukh and I were good friends in school and we used to do musicals together. He could not sing so whenever his part would come I would go to the wings and sing on the microphone and he would lip-sync. I was sure that he was going to be a movie star and he was very clear in his head about that as well. I am really proud of him.
Your latest song, ‘Jaane Khuda’, is dedicated to KK. What has been your fondest memory of him? It is a short film of eight and a half minutes and I dedicated the film to two of my closest friends, KK and Pradeep Sarkar. They both were the greatest creators this country had ever seen and I was blessed to learn from both of them. This song was my tribute to them both. My fondest memory of KK was a competition that both of us took part in way back in the ’80s. I was in University College of Medical Sciences in Delhi and he was at the Kerala College in Delhi and we were both competing in the Western Jiu-Jitsu section of IIT Rojo, which is a festival that happens in Delhi. I used to come first in most of the competitions, but that was one competition in which he beat me. I was happy to have lost to him because he is one of the nicest guys I have ever met. I’ll always have that affection and respect for KK.
Pradeep Sarkar, in fact, had directed many music videos for Euphoria, be it ‘Maeri’ or ‘Mehfooz’. How was the understanding between the two of you? Me being a songwriter, I always used to have a basic story in front of me. Usually, when I write a song, I visualise it, but I always used to discuss it with him. His vision was very much in tandem with mine. I’ve learnt a lot from him and all that he taught me, I applied in my vision and songs.
Maasai Mara, a wildlife conservation and wilderness reserve spread over a wide area (1,510 square kilometres) in south-western Kenya, is the stomping ground for lions, leopards, cheetahs, zebras, wildebeest, gazelle and herds of elephants. “It is a dream come true for anyone looking for an adventure-filled trip into the wild. It has pristine riverine forests, dramatic towering escarpments, stunning savannahs, parched scrubs, big cats and, of course, the Maasai warriors,” says actor and TV host Samir Kochhar, who has just launched a travel show, ‘Travel Unusual’; Maasai Mara is the first episode.
The five-part series, with each of its episodes being 13 minutes long, is currently streaming on the actor’s YouTube channel. “It’s easy consumption. Today, things have to be quick and fast. People don’t have time; therefore, the videos are of short duration,” the actor says.
‘Travel Unusual’ is a tribute to Kochhar’s love for travel. His idea is to create offbeat travel videos and make nature a primary character in this journey. Nowadays, people have become “footprint travelers”, he says, while admitting he has been one of them. “With social media, visiting places has come down to posting photographs and ticking destinations off the bucket list. I want to change this. Travelling should be more about soaking in the current moment,” he says.
Kochhar, a big fan of American travel and food documentarian Anthony Bourdain, says: “India doesn’t have a presence in international travel and unknown destinations. The objective is also to carve a niche for an Indian voice in the world of travelogue.”
Travel has different emotions and moods. A getaway with the partner or family differs significantly from a trip with friends. However, the aspect Kochhar explores in Maasai Mara is travel for oneself. “The city structure we live in today, the work we do and what surrounds us – everything consumes us. It is necessary for the brain and the body to detox,” he says. “Before COVID-19 struck, I visited Maasai Mara with my wife and friends. Its beauty blew my mind. I made a pact with myself that I have to come back to soak in the beauty of this place,” recalls Kochhar.
After catching a six-and-a-half-hour flight from Mumbai to Nairobi and a car drive of over five hours, he arrived at the beautiful grasslands, where he was warmly welcomed by locals. “Gently diffident and impeccably polite, the Maasai Mara warriors sport vibrantly coloured layers as they perform their traditional dance,” he adds. Instead of putting up in a fancy hotel, Kochhar opted for a campsite nestled in the middle of the reserve to stay closer to nature. In the five-part series, the actor summarises the essence of the national reserve, unveiling tribal tales, capturing the quick-changing natural beauty, and spotting wildlife wonders, including the big five —the African elephant, lion, leopard, Cape buffalo, and rhinoceros; and, of course, the beauty of the surrounding environment.
As Kochhar puts it, “Maasai Mara is a beautiful example of how man and wild nature can co-exist.” The Maasai people, once known as hunters, are now called the protectors of the wild. They live on the outskirts of the reserve where wild animals come and go. “The Maasai have to daily protect their cattle and themselves. And, they have their own ways of dealing with this madness, which to them is an everyday affair,” he adds.
Kochhar says this series is a trailer of the travel show he plans to take across India and the world. Japan’s Hokkaido, South America’s Patagonia and the Antarctic region are other destinations on the actor’s list.
LAS VEGAS: The Nevada Supreme Court has denied Nathan Chasing Horse’s request to toss a sprawling indictment that accuses the former “Dances With Wolves” actor of leading a cult, taking underage wives and sexually abusing Indigenous women and girls for decades.
The court’s decision means prosecutors can proceed with their 18-count criminal case after months of delayed proceedings while Chasing Horse challenged it. The 47-year-old has been in custody since his arrest in January near the North Las Vegas home he is said to have shared with five wives.
Chasing Horse pleaded not guilty to the charges, which include sexual assault of a minor, kidnapping and child abuse.
His lawyers argued that the case should be dismissed because, the former actor said, the sexual encounters were consensual. One of his accusers was younger than 16, the age of consent in Nevada, when the alleged abuse began, authorities said.
Public defender Kristy Holston also argued that the indictment was an overreach by the Clark County district attorney’s office. She said some of the evidence presented to the grand jury, including a definition of grooming, had tainted the state’s case.
Holston didn’t immediately respond to a Tuesday request for comment on the state Supreme Court’s decision.
Chasing Horse is known for his portrayal of Smiles a Lot in the 1990 film “Dances with Wolves.”
Law enforcement authorities say in the decades since starring in the Oscar-winning movie, Chasing Horse built a name for himself among tribes as a self-proclaimed medicine man while traveling around North America to perform healing ceremonies. They say he used his position to gain access to vulnerable girls and women starting in the early 2000s.
The abuse allegations cross multiple U.S. states, including Nevada, where he was living at the time of his arrest, as well as Montana and South Dakota, according to the indictment.
One of the victims identified in the Nevada case was 14 when Chasing Horse told her that the spirits of their ancestors had instructed him to have sex with her, according to court documents and prosecutors.
It is well known that actor Vijay is working with director Venkat Prabhu for his next, tentatively titled Thalapathy 68. When Vijay does a film, fans and netizens find it hard to keep it to themselves, as they end up bombarding social media platforms with speculations and updates, which sometimes end up becoming rumours.
In a similar light, reports have been making rounds that Thalapathy’s upcoming film is titled Boss or Puzzle. Some media houses have also reported that the film will have an English title. Additionally, a few X accounts have posed to be Kichcha Sudeep, and have tweeted that the actor has joined the film’s cast. However, none of these have come from official sources, and are mere speculations.
Giving clarity on the same, the film’s producer Archana Kalpathi took to her official X handle on Wednesday. She wrote, “Just saw all the updates. Thank you for the love. Keep calm and wait for the real one very soon. Venkat Prabhu is cooking something special. It is definitely not Boss or Puzzle. Happy Morning everyone (sic),” she wrote, putting an end to all rumours.
While we await further updates about the film’s plot, title and genre, the makers have already announced the ensemble cast of the film. Prashanth, Sneha, Laila, Meenakshi Chaudhary, Prabhudheva, Mohan, and Jayaram will be joining Vijay in Thalapathy 68. Apart from these actors, the film will also star Venkat’s regulars, Vaibhav, Premgi, Ajai Raj, and Aravind Akash.
With music by Yuvan Shankar Raja, Thalapathy 68 is set to have cinematography by Siddharth Nuni, art direction by Rajeevan, and stunt direction by Dileep Subbarayan. Archana Kalpathi is backing the film under the AGS Entertainment banner.
Just saw all the updates. Thank you for the love Keep calm and wait for the real one very soon @vp_offl is cooking something special. It is definitely not Boss or Puzzle Happy Morning everyone #Thalapathy68
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA: Australian rockers AC/DC are mourning the band’s original drummer Colin Burgess, who has died aged 77, the group said on social media.
“Very sad to hear of the passing of Colin Burgess,” AC/DC wrote on Instagram, X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook late Saturday.
Very sad to hear of the passing of Colin Burgess. He was our first drummer and a very respected musician. Happy memories, rock in peace Colin. pic.twitter.com/8jWLXq8TPJ
“He was our first drummer and a very respected musician. Happy memories, rock in peace Colin.”
The posts did not disclose the cause of death.
Burgess was a founding member of the group, best known for the 1979 hit “Highway to Hell” and 1980 album “Back in Black”, alongside original singer Dave Evans, bass player Larry Van Kriedt plus guitar-playing brothers Angus and Malcolm Young.
AC/DC formed in 1973, but Burgess left the following year, and was eventually replaced by the band’s present drummer Phil Rudd.
Burgess also founded the rock band The Masters Apprentices, who were inducted into the Australian music industry’s Hall of Fame in 1998.
“Friends” actor Matthew Perry died from an accidental ketamine overdose, medical examiners said Friday, concluding their investigation into the death of the beloved but troubled TV star.
Perry, who played Chandler Bing on the hit TV sitcom from 1994-2004, died at the age of 54, having been found unconscious in a swimming pool at his house in Los Angeles in October.
He had struggled for decades with addiction to drugs, including ketamine, and related serious health issues, but had reportedly been clean for 19 months prior to his passing.
“Matthew Perry’s cause of death is determined to be from the acute effects of ketamine,” the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s office said in a statement.
“Contributory factors in his death include drowning, coronary artery disease and buprenorphine effects. The manner of death is accident. ”
Ketamine is illegally used as a recreational drug for its numbing and hallucinogenic effects.
The drug can also be used by doctors as an anesthetic, and researchers are exploring its use as a mental health treatment.
Perry wrote in his memoirs of how he had relied on using ketamine daily at points during his battles with addiction. He said the drug eased his pain and helped with depression.
“Has my name written all over it — they might as well have called it ‘Matty,'” he wrote, of ketamine.
“Taking K is like being hit in the head with a giant happy shovel. But the hangover was rough and outweighed the shovel,” explained Perry.
‘The Big Terrible Thing’
“Friends,” which followed the lives of six New Yorkers navigating adulthood, dating and careers, drew a massive global following.
But even as he delivered on-air gag after gag — and earned a fortune — Perry was struggling.
He attended multiple rehabilitation clinics to combat addiction to painkillers and alcohol. In 2018 he suffered a burst colon, related to drug usage, and underwent multiple surgeries.
In his memoir “Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing,” published last year, Perry described going through detox dozens of times. He dedicated the book to “all of the sufferers out there,” and wrote in the prologue: “I should be dead.”
ALSO READ: Matthew Perry death: Family thanks well-wishers for ‘tremendous outpouring of love’
“I have mostly been sober since 2001,” he wrote, “save for about sixty or seventy little mishaps over the years.”
The examiner’s report does not specify how or when Perry had consumed the fatal dose of ketamine.
But it found that trace amounts were detected in his stomach, and that prescription medications and loose pills were present at his home.
Perry was undergoing medical treatment involving ketamine — but his most recent known infusion was more than a week before his death, meaning that dose would no longer have been in his system.
The examiner’s report says the levels of ketamine in Perry’s blood were comparable to higher-range levels used as general anesthetic in surgeries, and would cause overstimulation of the heart and problems breathing.
This could have caused Perry to lapse into unconsciousness, with drowning then becoming a contributory cause of death.
Perry’s coronary artery disease, and his use of buprenorphine to treat severe pain, would have made him more vulnerable to the effects of ketamine, the report finds.
No alcohol was detected in his system by the autopsy report. Nor were there any traces of other drugs such as cocaine, heroin or fentanyl.
‘The 6 of us’
Perry’s sudden passing in October drew shocked reactions from Hollywood A-listers, his co-stars, and “Friends” fans worldwide.
“Oh boy this one has cut deep,” said Jennifer Aniston, who played Rachel on the show about six close-knit friends navigating adult life in New York.
READ MORE: Matthew Perry’s ‘Friends’ cast mates mourn their friend, say they are ‘all so utterly devastated’
“He was such a part of our DNA. We were always the 6 of us. This was a chosen family that forever changed the course of who we were and what our path was going to be,” she wrote on Instagram.
“The times we had together are honestly among the favorite times of my life,” wrote Matt LeBlanc, who played Perry’s roommate and best friend on the show.
LOS ANGELES: Acclaimed South Korean director Park Chan-wook, known for films such as “Oldboy” and “The Handmaiden”, is headed to Netflix for his maiden project with the streamer titled “War and Revolt”.
The award-winning filmmaker will co-write and produce “War and Revolt”, a period thriller following the lives of two childhood friends-turned-adversaries during Korea’s Joseon dynasty.
According to entertainment website The Hollywood Reporter, Kim Sang-man of “Midnight FM” fame will direct the upcoming movie.
The Korean-language feature film stars Gang Dong-won (“Broker”, “Peninsula”) and Park Jeong-min (“Deliver Us from Evil”, “Bleak Night”) in the lead.
Gang will play the enigmatic Cheon-young, a character whose remarkable martial prowess defies his humble origins as a slave, and Park Jeong-min will essay the role of Jong-ryeo, Cheon-young’s former master and scion of Joseon’s most influential military family.
After passing the military service exam, Jong-ryeo becomes King Seonjo’s personal guard, leading to a heart-wrenching reunion with his former friend.
“Struggling to break free from the chains of servitude, Cheon-young will be brought to life by Gang’s extraordinary talent, exuding charm and delivering breathtaking action sequences that will leave audiences in awe…”Park’s portrayal is expected to be nothing short of mesmerizing, as he delves deep into the complex psyche of a man torn between friendship and duty, ultimately facing his own downfall,” Netflix said in a press release.
“War and Revolt” also stars Cha Seung-won (Korean drama “Our Blues”) as King Seonjo, a monarch who abandons his people at the onset of the Japanese invasion, only to seek redemption by restoring his royal authority after the war; “Hellbound” actor Kim Shin-rok as the resolute Bumdong, a member of the civilian militia; Jin Seon-kyu of “The Outlaws” fame as Kim Ja-ryeong, a civilian militia leader; and “The Glory” star Jung Sung-il as the intimidating Japanese warlord Genshin, a mentor to Gang’s Cheon-young.
The film is produced by Moho Film, the Korean banner behind Park Chan-wook’s last release “Decision to Leave” and “The Handmaiden”, in collaboration with Semicolon Studio.
Park Chan-wook’s next project as a director is the HBO miniseries “The Sympathizer”, starring Robert Downey Jr in multiple roles.
We had earlier reported that Zack Snyder is working on an epic space opera film titled Rebel Moon. Netflix has now released the first look poster of the film which is slated to release on December 22.
The film is based on a screenplay that Snyder co-wrote with Shay Hatten and Kurt Johnstad. It is inspired by Akira Kurosawa’s film Seven Samurai, and is scheduled to release in two parts.
Netflix has produced the film in collaboration with Grand Electric along with Zack Snyder and his wife Deborah Snyder’s production house The Stone Quarry. The film features an ensemble cast that includes Sofia Boutella, Charlie Hunnam, Ray Fisher, Djimon Hounsou, Jena Malone, Corey Stoll, Ed Skrein, Cleopatra Coleman, Fra Fee, Cary Elwes, and Anthony Hopkins.
The official synopsis of Rebel Moon says, “A peaceful colony on the edge of the galaxy is threatened by the armies of a tyrannical regent named Balisarius. The desperate civilians dispatch Kora, a young woman who has a mysterious past to seek out warriors from nearby planets to help them challenge the regent.”
NEW DELHI: “Adipurush”, a lavish multilingual retelling of the Ramayana, was at the centre of protests in several cities on Monday and led to a ban on all Hindi films in Nepal with Union minister Anurag Thakur stepping in to say that nobody has the right to hurt the sentiments of people.
As the row over the film escalated and audiences in various parts of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Delhi took to the streets, Mumbai Police agreed to give security to dialogue writer Manoj Muntashir Shukla on his request.
The film, directed by Om Raut and fronted by Prabhas and Kriti Sanon, has come under attack for its dialogue, colloquial language and representation of some characters from the much-loved mythological epic.
In Nepal as well, “Adipurush” provoked ire over its dialogues, particularly for its mention of Sita as “India’s daughter”.
Screening of “Adipurush” and all other Hindi films has been banned in the country until the film’s team makes desired changes.
ALSO READ | Adipurush makers to rework dialogues of the film
In Mumbai, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Thakur said the film’s writer and director have agreed to make some changes after the nationwide uproar.
“Nobody has the right to hurt the sentiments of others. The CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification) has taken a decision on the issue. It is their job,” Thakur told reporters when asked about his views and the central government’s stand over the controversial film.
“Adipurush”, which was released across the country in Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Tamil on Friday, stars Prabhas as Raghav (Ram), Kriti Sanon as Janaki (Sita) and Saif Ali Khan as Lankesh (Raavan).
According to production banner T-Series, it has grossed Rs 340 crore in three days at the global box office.
Different parts of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and the national capital witnessed protests against the film on Monday.
While seers in Ayodhya demanded an immediate ban on the film saying its dialogues made their “blood boil”, in Varanasi, a group of people staged a protest and tore posters of the Om Raut-directed film.
ALSO READ | ‘Adipurush’ movie review: Fumbles in search of spectacle, forfeits soul
A Hindu outfit also staged a protest outside a theatre in the temple town of Mathura.
A police complaint was lodged by the Hindu Mahasabha with the Lucknow police against the film’s makers and actors.
A case is yet to be registered in this connection, police said.
Acharya Satyendra Das, the chief priest of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, said, “The film’s dialogues make our blood boil. The film should be banned immediately. The government should ensure that this does not happen again.”
In Mathura, Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha activists staged a protest outside a cinema in the Govind Nagar police station area and raised slogans against the film.
Meanwhile, the Samajwadi Party joined the chorus against the film and said the faithful are hurt by its “cheap and superficial dialogues”.
Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav said the censor board should check the “political character certificate” of those who play with the faith of people by making films with an agenda using the money of their political masters.
“Has the Censor Board become Dhritarashtra?” he asked in a tweet.
Dhritarashtra, the father of the Kauravas, was a blind king in the epic Mahabharata.
Another Samajwadi Party leader, Shivpal Yadav, alleged that efforts are being made to belittle the great and inspiring character of Lord Ram and his story through cinema with “cheap and superficial dialogues”.
A group of people disrupted the film’s screening in a mall in Nalasopara in Maharashtra’s Palghar district.
According to a police official, the protesters claimed they belong to a group called Rashtra Pratham.
The protesters shouted ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogans and asked people to boycott the film, he said.
In Delhi’s Shahdara area, some people were seen raising slogans outside a movie theatre, a senior police official said.
“There were some people raising slogans outside a movie theatre in east Delhi’s Shahdara area. However, the show is underway without any interruption,” the official said.
As protests intensified, the film’s writer has been provided security by the Mumbai Police after he cited a threat to his life, an official said on Monday.
“We have received an application from Manoj Shukla and we are considering providing him security following a threat to his life,” the official said.
On Sunday, Shukla announced that the makers have decided to “revise some of the dialogues” in the Hindi version and the amended lines will be added to the movie by this week.
Later, T-Series said the team has decided to make alterations to the dialogues of “Adipurush” in order to value “the input of the public”.
MUMBAI: ‘Killer Soup’, starring Manoj Bajpayee and Konkona Sensharma, will be released on January 11 on Netflix, the streaming platform announced Thursday.
Directed by Abhishek Chaubey of “Udta Punjab” and “Sonchiriya” fame, the comedy crime-drama is loosely inspired by a news headline and serves up a “tantalising blend of intrigue and dark humour”.
It follows Swathi Shetty (Konkana), an aspiring yet talentless home chef, who cooks up a bizarre plan to replace her husband, Prabhakar (Bajpayee), with her lover, Umesh (also played by Bajpayee).
But when a bumbling local inspector and amateur villains stir the pot, things don’t go as planned and a recipe for chaos ensues, the official synopsis read.
Chaubey, who also serves as a co-writer and showrunner on the series, said his goal was to offer an “exceptional” crime thriller show that is laced with humour.
“With ‘Killer Soup’, we wanted to give the audience permission to laugh and also be shocked with a crime thriller that blends in humour and quirkiness. It is a pot-boiler sent completely over the top with an exceptional cast including Manoj Bajpayee, Konkona Sensharma, Nasser, Sayaji Shinde and Lal. Through this series, I wanted to serve up something exceptional with Netflix and it has been a creatively fulfilling experience with them,” the director said in a statement.
The show was announced in 2022 and was previously titled ‘Soup’.
Tanya Bami, director of series at Netflix India, said she is thrilled to kickstart 2024 with a bizarre series like ‘Killer Soup’.
“Abhishek Chaubey’s ‘Killer Soup’ is a great way for us to start the new year. It’s a genre audiences love, a crime thriller, like no other. Crazy, quirky and bizarre. Told to perfection by Abhishek and team and performed to excellence by Manoj and Konkona,” Bami said.
‘Killer Soup’ is produced by Honey Trehan and Chetana Kowshik.
Voice actors around the globe are mobilizing against the unregulated use of artificial intelligence (AI) to generate and clone human voices that they fear poses a threat to their livelihoods.
“We’re fighting a very big monster,” said Mario Filio, a Mexican artist who has done voiceovers for Hollywood star Will Smith, the Obi-Wan Kenobi character in Star Wars and the party-loving lemur King Julien in the animated movie “Madagascar.”
Campaigning under the slogan “Don’t steal our voices,” more than 20 voice acting guilds, associations and unions from Europe, the United States and Latin America have created the United Voice Artists coalition.
It represents the faceless voiceover artists and narrators of commercials, movies, audiobooks and video games who fear that their voices will be replaced by machines, or even cloned by artificial intelligence without their consent.
“The undiscriminating and unregulated use of artificial intelligence is a risk that could lead to the extinction of an artistic heritage of creativity and wonder, an asset that machines cannot generate,” according to the group, which says its members include the US National Association of Voice Actors (NAVA) and Latin America’s Organization of United Voices.
“Our voices are our livelihood,” NAVA vice president Carin Gilfry said in a statement last month.
“And if we don’t have control over how those voices are used, we can’t make a living,” she added.
Voice artists were already competing with text-to-speech technology that turns written words into synthetic voice. Now artificial intelligence has brought a new threat. Thanks to machine learning, software can compare a voice sample with millions of existing ones, identifying patterns that generate a clone.
“It’s fed by voices that we’ve been providing for years,” said Dessiree Hernandez, president of the Mexican Association of Commercial Announcers.
“We’re talking about the right to use your voice without your consent,” she added.
‘Adapt or disappear’
Platforms offer human sounding text-to-speech services for a fraction of what professionals would charge.
One, revoicer.com, says that it does not intend to replace human voiceovers, but to offer a quicker and cheaper alternative.
Although they continued to be hired, voice actors suspect that companies are using their voices to build up their archives.
The artists are seeking tools to track their voices in the face of sophisticated piracy.
They want laws to prevent recordings of their voices being used to develop AI without their consent, and also support setting quotas for human voiceovers, said Colombian voice artist Daniel Soler de la Prada.
In the future, audiences could hear a famous actor’s voice in several languages but with the intonation of a dubbing artist, Filio said.
While that could generate employment and benefits for the public, voice artists “need to charge what’s fair,” he added.
Mexican voice artist Maclovia Gonzalez said that she would only sign a contract with an AI company if it provided enough information about how the content would be used.
“I want to be part of this revolution, but not at any price,” she said.
Art Dubbing, a company that has received several requests from clients to use synthetic voices, faces a dilemma: “adapt or disappear,” said its Mexican founder, Anuar Lopez de la Pena.
Filio for his part said that he stopped recording for many clients for fear of hurting his colleagues’ livelihoods.
But he is skeptical that artificial intelligence will replace voice actors completely because the machines have “no soul,” he added.
PARIS: For more than a year after rape allegations against French actor Gerard Depardieu, the film industry shrugged its shoulders and the cinematic legend with more than 200 titles to his name continued working.
But the tide appears to be slowly turning.
Mounting accusations of sexual harassment, as well as newly released footage of him making obscene comments, are finally forcing a debate about sexism and sexual violence in French cinema.
In October the 74-year-old actor, known outside France for 1990 comedy “Green Card” and Netflix series “Marseille”, had to put his career on hold.
Six years after the start of the #MeToo movement in Hollywood that brought down producer Harvey Weinstein, the campaign has picked up momentum in France.
“There will be an after-Depardieu, that much is clear,” activist Laura Pertuy said.
“At all levels, in all generations, people are starting to speak up, to say enough is enough, the system can’t continue like this,” said the secretary-general of Collectif 50/50, an association promoting gender equality in film.
Depardieu had long made headlines for antics such as visiting Russia and Belarus, obtaining a Russian passport to protest a planned tax hike in France, or even delaying a 2011 flight after peeing into a bottle that overflowed.
But accusations of sexual harassment or assault, all of which the actor has denied, have also crept into the news.
‘Allowed to be a monster’
French actress Charlotte Arnould in late 2021 publicly accused the actor, a family friend, of raping her twice in 2018 when she was 22 and anorexic. She said she weighed 37 kilos at the time.
He was placed under formal investigation in December 2020 but not jailed.
In April, French investigative website Mediapart published a report in which 13 other women accused him of molesting them between 2004 and 2022.
One of them, actress Helene Darras, in September filed a sexual assault complaint against Depardieu over an incident during a film shoot in 2007.
And a documentary titled “The Fall of the Ogre” aired on Thursday on France 2 showed the actor on a 2018 trip to North Korea repeatedly making explicit sexual comments in the presence of a female interpreter and sexualising a small girl riding a horse.
The latest images have triggered some self-reflection.
“We are all a little guilty,” Marc Missonnier, the head of the syndicate of French cinema producers, told France 2.
“There was a certain tolerance, which was a mistake.”
Actress Anouk Grinberg, who has known Depardieu for decades, spoke out for the first time in October.
“Anyone who has ever worked with him knows he assaults women,” the 60-year-old told Elle magazine, but people did not denounce him for fear it would damage their careers.
“Everybody allowed him to be a monster,” she told France Inter radio on Monday.
She called for an end to “the other monstrosity… people in cinema who are indifferent to the harm done to women, to the humiliation they are subjected to.”
Progress?
Depardieu in October denied any wrongdoing. “Never ever have I abused a woman,” he wrote in Le Figaro newspaper.
After the Mediapart article in April, the distributor and producer of “Umami”, a film starring Depardieu as a chef, dropped him from promotional events. The movie tanked at the box office.
Feminist protests disrupted several of his concerts of songs by late singer Barbara.
“We should not celebrate… Depardieu,” a spokesman for France Televisions, the organisation of public broadcasters, told France 2.
But the group told AFP on Monday that “films with… Depardieu will continue to be bought and broadcast” as they included “masterpieces”. One, Xavier Giannoli’s award-winning “Lost Illusions” (2021), is to be shown on France 2 on Sunday.
Depardieu is not the only figure of French cinema to have been accused of misconduct, but he is the most prominent.
Under pressure from activists and the authorities, several initiatives have popped up to prevent sexual violence.
Film sets are increasingly employing intimacy coaches to ensure actors are comfortable during sex scenes.
And since 2021 the National Cinema Centre (CNC) has conditioned financial aid on sexual harassment prevention courses.
But all is not won.
French actor Adele Haenel in May said she was quitting movie acting to “denounce the general complacency in our industry towards sexual abusers,” several years after accusing a director of assaulting her.
And feminists point out that Dominique Boutonnat, the director of the CNC supposed to be steering the industry onto a better course, has himself been accused of sexually assaulting his 21-year-old godson in 2020, an allegation he denies.
MUMBAI: Popular South Korean band Tomorrow x Together (TXT) and American trio Jonas Brothers are set to release “Do It Like That”, their collaborative digital single, on July 7.
According to a press release, the makers said the song “promises to be the ultimate summer anthem of the year”.
After teasing fans for a few days, the two music groups confirmed their collaboration on social media on Wednesday night.
“Tomorrow x Together and Jonas Brothers will release the digital single, ‘Do It Like That’, on Friday, July 7, 2023,” BigHit Music, the agency behind TXT, posted an update on the global fan community forum Weverse.
Nick Jonas, one of three members of the Jonas Brothers, took to Twitter to update fans and followers about the new song.
“This is gonna be fun.
Let’s get it @txt_bighit! #DoItLikeThat drops July 7th! #TOMORROW_X_TOGETHER,” the vocalist wrote.
While TXT is a quintet comprising members of Soobin, Yeonjun, Beomgyu, Taehyun and HueningKai, Kevin Jonas and Joe Jonas are the other two members of the American band.
When actor Barun Sobti was offered Asur, he thought the script was too cerebral. Nevertheless, he followed his gut and said yes. It turned out to be one of his best career decisions. The 2020 thriller series by Oni Sen has been called one of the finest Indian shows by critics and audiences alike. Its recently released second season too has been received well.
A few days before the second season hit JioCinema on June 1, Sobti recalls being asked if he thought it was at par with its predecessor. He had said, “It’s much better.” The confidence meter, however, wasn’t this high when Season 1 dropped three years ago. As much as the actor, who plays a CBI officer on the hunt for a serial killer, loved the script, he thought the show was “too niche”. “I was sceptical about its popularity,” he says. The series also stars Arshad Warsi, Ridhi Dogra and Anupriya Goenka in lead roles.
a poster of Asur 2
The latest season notched up the excitement levels, both for the cast and the audience, thanks to the introduction of a “highly evolved and intelligent antagonist”, played by model-turned-actor Gaurav Arora. “That meant the protagonists (Warsi and Sobti) had to keep pace with him. If the first season was slightly more emotional, I think this one is more dialled-up on the intellectual front,” he adds.
The 38-year-old, who was also seen recently in the OTT series Badtameez Dil, rose to fame in 2011 with the romantic drama Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon on television. He played a brooding businessman, a role that made him a household name. When he made the switch to the big screen, however, things didn’t pan out the way he wanted. “My films didn’t work,” he states simply. Main Aur Mr Right (2014) and Tu Hai Mera Sunday (2016) bombed at the box office, although the actor’s performance in the latter was appreciated. “I was a little discouraged, but the OTT revolution came as a godsend for me. I think I manifested it in India,” says the actor, who made the shift to OTT in 2017 with the web series Tanhaiyan, followed by The Great Indian Dysfunctional Family (2018).
Asur, in a way, reaffirmed his capability as an actor who can play complex characters and give nuanced performances. But, why did he leave TV, a space that gave him his early taste of stardom? Sobti admits he got bored. “I was clinically diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) five years ago, but even before that, I knew I couldn’t keep doing the same thing for too long,” he says, adding, “I want to do work––whether in films or the OTT space––that is good art; stories that resonate with the audience for their originality. Some of the projects I have done so far and some in the pipeline are the kinds I have always wanted to do. So far, I seem to be making the right choices most of the time.” Next on the horizon for the actor is the Netflix murder mystery Kohrra, a period drama titled Donali and a coming-of-age drama, Bawandar.
Ask him if he ever sees himself returning to his old stomping grounds of television, and the actor says, “Probably, if the programming goes from daily to weekly. That’s when the writing will get better. Without good writing, there is no scope for better direction or acting.”
Lana Del Rey’s highly-anticipated Glastonbury set hit the headlines before she even travelled to Worthy Farm.
And, after her gig last night, the 38-year-old’s performance has continued to dominate the Twitter-sphere and those visiting Glastonbury this weekend as she arrived on stage 30-minutes late and was cut off midway through her set, according to The Mirror UK.
The American singer-songwriter had a war of words with the popular festival’s organisers in the lead-up to the big weekend.
Lana appeared to be angered when she spotted a ‘mix-up’ with the line-up announcement. The original line-up post listed Arctic Monkeys, Guns N’ Roses, Elton John and Lizzo before listing the remaining acts in alphabetical order. Lana’s name was below more than 20 other acts and the singer complained the poster failed to recognise she was headlining the Other Stage.
Blue Jeans singer Lana was due to take to The Other Stage and perform her headline set at 10.30 pm.
Eager crowds began to gather around the performance area to watch the singer – but festival-goers began to grow impatient when he didn’t show up on time. Fans even threatened to leave if she didn’t show up within good time – but she made her audience wait and appeared on stage after a whopping 30 minutes which resulted in the crowd greeting her with boos.
Lana grovelled to festival-goers as she appeared on stage: “I’m so f**king late that I am about to rush this set today.
Midway through the set Lana was filmed having her hair done as a stylist came onto the stage to change her locks as she continued to perform.
According to The Guardian, Del Rey’s microphone and video screens were then suddenly switched off as she fell to her knees and removed her in-ear monitors.
The abrupt end came just an hour after she walked on stage for one of the most highly anticipated performances of the weekend before a crowd of tens of thousands.
Del Rey then climbed down from the stage barefoot to sing an impromptu a cappella version of Summertime Sadness to fans close enough to be able to hear her.
However, the curtailed set left many fans disappointed.
LOS ANGELES: Angela Bassett may have gone home empty-handed at the Oscars in March, but the two-time nominee will be getting a golden statuette this year after all and in very good company too.
In November, Bassett, Mel Brooks and film editor Carol Littleton will receive honorary Oscars at the Governors Awards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Monday.
Michelle Satter, the founding senior director of the Sundance Institute’s Artist Programs, will also be given the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the untelevised event.
“The Academy’s Board of Governors is thrilled to honour four trailblazers who have transformed the film industry and inspired generations of filmmakers and movie fans,” Janet Yang, the academy’s president, said in a statement.
Most recipients of the Academy’s honorary awards have not won competitive Oscars.
Brooks, is an exception, however, having won an original screenplay Oscar for ‘The Producers’. At the ceremony, in 1969, he said he wanted to thank the Academy of arts sciences and money for this wonderful award.
In his speech, which had the audience in stitches, he also thanked Gene Wilder three times.
The 96-year-old, who began his career writing for Sid Caesar’s ‘Your Show of Shows’, and over the next 70 years would write, direct, act, produce for film, television and Broadway and write books, including a recent memoir, is among the rare breed of EGOT-winners.
“Mel Brooks lights up our hearts with his humour, and his legacy has made a lasting impact on every facet of entertainment,” Yang said.
Bassett, whose credits include ‘Boyz N the Hood’, ‘Malcolm X’, ‘Waiting to Exhale’ and ‘How Stella Got Her Groove Back’, received her first Oscar nomination for her portrayal of Tina Turner in ‘What’s Love Got to Do With It’ and her second earlier this year for playing the grieving queen in ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’.
The 64-year-old told the AP earlier this year that this moment has been so special, it’s been a highlight of his career.
Yang said in a statement,” Across her decades-long career, Angela Bassett has continued to deliver transcendent performances that set new standards in acting.”
Littleton’s name might not be as immediately recognisable as the celebrities being honoured alongside but has been working behind the scenes with top filmmakers for nearly five decades.
The 81-year-old Oklahoma native worked frequently with both Lawrence Kasdan and Jonathan Demme, editing films like ‘Body Heat’, ‘The Big Chill’, ‘Swimming to Cambodia’ and ‘The Manchurian Candidate’.
She received her first and only Oscar nomination for ‘E.T.The Extra-Terrestrial’, the only film she’s edited for Steven Spielberg.
The honorary awards are given,” to honour extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the Academy.”
Satter, meanwhile, has led the Sundance Institute’s famed artist programs for more than 40 years, helping filmmakers at the earliest stages of their careers, from Paul Thomas Anderson to Ryan Coogler.
The Governors Awards will be held on November 18 at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles.
LOS ANGELES: What’s a World Cup without an anthem, a rallying song for fans around the world?
In advance of the Women’s World Cup, running July 20 through Aug. 20, New Zealand alt-pop artist BENEE and Australian musician Mallrat have released “Do It Again,” the official song of this year’s tournament, which is hosted by their respective countries.
They will perform the song at the opening ceremony at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, before the first match between New Zealand and Norway.
“Do It Again” recalls the energetic, eclectic pop of both performers like a marriage between BENEE’s 2020 viral hit, “Supalonely,” and Mallrat’s accessible experimentalism, found in the song “Groceries.”
“Wake up / This is the start of it,” the women sing in the song’s ascendant chorus. “Head’s up / We’re coming home again.”
Earlier this month, FIFA announced it will pay each player at the Women’s World Cup at least $30,000, and the 23 players on the title-winning team will each get $270,000, following a promise made in March to better compensate the 732 players taking part in the tournament.
ALSO READ | FIFA Women’s World Cup guide: US aiming to win third title in a row but it won’t be easy
NEW DELHI: Netflix on Thursday announced eight new names, including Lee Jin-uk, Park Gyu-young and Won Ji-an, joining the cast of the highly-anticipated season two of the Korean series ‘Squid Game’.
The streamer gave a glimpse into the follow-up chapter to the hit Korean-language fictional series at ‘Tudum: A Global Fan Event’, held earlier this month in Brazil.
Netflix shared the casting details of the second season of the multiple Emmy-winning series on its official Twitter page.
“Patiently waiting at the station to meet the cast of #SquidGame2. Please welcome Park Gyu-young, Jo Yu-ri, Kang Ae-sim, Lee David, Lee Jin-uk, Choi Seung-Hyun, Roh Jae-won, and Won Ji-an to the game!” the streaming platform said in the tweet.
Squid Game rounds out the cast for Season 2:
Please welcome Park Gyu-young, Jo Yu-ri, Kang Ae-sim, Lee David, Lee Jin-uk, Choi Seung-hyun, Roh Jae-won, and Won Ji-an to the game! pic.twitter.com/wV7WErYKpM
Lee Jin-uk is known to Indian fans for K-dramas such as “I Need Romance 2012”, Park’s credits include “Dali & Cocky Prince”.
Won currently stars in the Prime Video series “HeartBeat” and Jo has worked in “Work Later, Drink Now”.
“Extraordinary Attorney Woo” actor Kang, Lee David of “Itaewon Class” fame, rapper Choi (better known by his stage name TOP) and Roh, known for “Once Upon a Small Town”, also round out the cast of “Squid Game 2”.
Series leads Lee Jung-Jae, Lee Byung-Hun, Wi Ha-jun, and Gong Yoo will reprise their roles in the upcoming installment of the show.
Popular Korean actors Yim Si-wan (“Run On”), Kang Ha-neul (“Misaeng”), Park Sung-hoon (“The Glory), and Yang Dong-Geun (“Cheer Up”) were previously announced as the new additions to the cast of “Squid Game 2”, directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk.
MUMBAI: The Screenwriters Association (SWA) on Saturday said it will be holding talks with leading Indian studios, producers and OTT platforms next month to discuss the grievances of writers in Bollywood and regional film industries.
While writers in Hollywood had to go on a strike to press their demands earlier this year, the writer community here hopes it would not have to resort to such a step.
In a press statement, SWA — which has about 65,000 members — said more than 100 writers from Bollywood attended a meeting called by it on December 7.
Among those present were acclaimed writer-filmmakers Sriram Raghavan, Sujoy Ghosh and Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari.
Veteran screenwriter Anjum Rajabali, best known for Ghulam, The Legend of Bhagat Singh and Raajneeti, said they will leave no stone unturned to fight for the rights of writers in Bollywood and other film industries.
”The agenda of the meeting was to share our complaints about one-sided contracts, and to work out a way to bring about a change because frustration is building up across the writers’ community. Every writer who was present at the meeting complained about how contracts are unfair,” Rajabali, who is also the chairperson of the contracts committee of SWA, told PTI.
Sumit Aroraa, best known for the recent blockbuster Jawaan, Harshvardhan Kulkarni of Badhaai Do fame, Sudeep Sharma of Pataal Lok fame, Abbas Tyrewala and Shridhar Raghavan, well-known for Pathaan, and many others spoke at the meeting.
According to SWA, complaints centred around how average remuneration is shrinking, credit is given at the discretion of producers, termination can be arbitrary, and how writers are forced to indemnify producers if there is a socio-political backlash to the film.
Besides, stringent agreements force writers to waive their moral rights as well as their right to receive royalty, both of which are guaranteed by the Indian copyright law, it said.
It was decided that SWA will hold meetings with the studios, producers and streaming platforms to resolve the issues.
SWA will represent the writing community and we will begin negotiations with the studios, platforms and producers to bring about a change, to make contracts more balanced and fair.
The negotiations will begin next month, Rajabali said.
Our work deserves its due commercial value, and the writers their dignity.
To get that, we have to break the existing mindset towards our profession, he added.
The Writers Guild of America (WGA) was in news recently for its 148-day strike that brought Hollywood to a standstill, winning the writers an important victory.
When asked if SWA will go on strike like the WGA, Rajabali said, “We are confident that it will never come to that.
However, we are not going to step back, because the determination within the writing community about the need for change is solid.
LOS ANGELES: Last month, the Recording Academy announced a series of changes to the Grammy Awards to better reflect an evolving music industry.
Of those newly instituted guidelines, protocols involving technological advancements in machine learning sparked headlines: “Only human creators” could win the music industry’s highest honour in a decision aimed at the use of artificial intelligence in popular music.
“A work that contains no human authorship is not eligible in any category,” the rules read in part.
As the music industry continues to come to terms with this new technology, so too will the Grammys, says Recording Academy CEO and President Harvey Mason Jr.
“Here’s the super easy, headline statement: AI, or music that contains AI-created elements is absolutely eligible for entry and for consideration for Grammy nomination. Period,” Mason told the Associated Press.
He said, “What’s not going to happen is we are not going to give a Grammy or Grammy nomination to the AI portion.”
If an AI or voice modelling program performs the lead vocal on a song, the track would be eligible in a songwriting category, for example, but not a performance category, because “what is performing is not a human creation,” he explains.
“Conversely, if a song was sung by an actual human in the studio, and they did all the performing, but AI wrote the lyric or the track, the song would not be eligible in a composition or a songwriting category,” he continued.
“As long as the human is contributing in a more than de minimis amount, which to us means a meaningful way, they are and will always be considered for a nomination or a win,” he added.
He said, “We don’t want to see technology replace human creativity. We want to make sure technology is enhancing, embellishing, or additive to human creativity. So that’s why we took this particular stand in this award cycle.”
The Recording Academy has long considered setting rules related to AI following the popularity of new songs created alongside AI technology: David Guetta’s “Emin-AI-em”, the AI -compositions of TikTok user @ghostwriter977, Grimes’ voice modelling AI software.
In order to establish its AI guidelines, the Recording Academy engaged in extensive research, including holding tech summits.
“I’ve met with the copyright office. We’ve talked about the future and what that looks like on a federal level and the legislative level,” Mason said, adding that AI conversations “really came to a head in the last six months.”
The new Grammy AI protocols were announced three days after Paul McCartney shared that “the last Beatles Record” had been composed using artificial intelligence to extract John Lennon’s voice from an old demo. Without knowing the extent of the technology, Mason couldn’t confirm or deny whether the song would be eligible for a Grammy nomination.
“We’ll see what it turns out to be,” he said. “But I would imagine from the early descriptions that I’ve heard there would be components of the creation that would be absolutely eligible.”
So, can Grammy viewers expect to see work at least partially created with AI nominated for an award as early as next year?
It’s impossible to predict what is submitted. But as Mason affirms, “People are using the technology. I’m imagining it’s going to be involved in a lot of records a lot of songs this year, so we’ll see if some of them get nominated or not, but I’m sure there’ll be some that will be submitted.”
The 2024 Grammy Awards will return to Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena on Sunday, Feb. 4, 2024, airing live on CBS and live-streamed on Paramount+.
MUMBAI: Get well soon wishes for Shah Rukh Khan flooded social media platforms on Tuesday after reports emerged saying that the star was injured and underwent surgery in Los Angeles where he was shooting for a project.
Though there was no official confirmation from Khan’s office, sources close to him were quoted as saying that he received a minor nose injury and now was back home in Mumbai.
According to ETimes, Shah Rukh began bleeding and was immediately rushed to the hospital.
His team was informed by the doctors that there was nothing to worry about. There was no response from his team despite several attempts.
There is no update on when the actor got injured or the project he was shooting for.
Worried fans took to social media to wish the 57-year-old actor a speedy recovery.
“Get well soon my King, Allah is with you all the time,” a fan wrote on Twitter.
“I wish for ur speedy recovery sir! Get well soon. sending lots of love and positivity your way,” a fan tweeted.
A R Rahman’s compositions become vessels of emotional intensity, igniting a fire within the depths of the hearts and minds of all who encounter them. Themes of love, unity, and justice become the bedrock upon which his compositions are built, intertwining art and activism in a symphonic tapestry of sonorous pieces and mind-bending lyrics. The new song Raasa Kannu from Maamannan (that was released recently) forges an astounding sonic collage that transcends the boundaries of creativity. Excerpts…
How did your composition Raasa Kaanu come about? As an artiste, I have always believed in the power of growth and evolution. To me, it’s essential to venture beyond my comfort zone. These emerging talents bring a fresh perspective to the table. They possess a striking vision and an innovative approach to storytelling that invigorates me. By working with them, I am able to shed any old judgments or preconceived notions I may have and genuinely embrace the unknown.
It’s a liberating feeling, to let go of the familiar and open myself up to new ideas. I find that the energy and creativity of these young directors push me to explore uncharted territories in my music. They compel me to break free from any creative limitations and think outside the box.
AR Rahman
You embrace music technology while mixing it with classical instruments… Indeed, music technology plays a significant role in my creative process, serving as an invaluable tool to enhance and augment my musical ideas. It acts as an extension of my thought process, allowing me to explore and experiment with a wide range of sounds and textures.
One of the key advantages of music technology is the convenience it offers. In the past, sharing music involved recording on cassettes or CDs and physically delivering them. Now, with the advent of digital platforms and communication tools, I can effortlessly transmit my musical ideas through email or text messages.
This seamless exchange of ideas accelerates the creative process, enabling me to collaborate with artistes across the globe. Furthermore, the internet has revolutionised the music industry, making our work more efficient and accessible.
But it can never replace the essence of human artistry. It is merely a tool, a means to an end. The depth of emotions, the nuances of expression, and the authenticity of live performances are elements that technology cannot replicate. It is the fusion of technology and the human touch that creates the most captivating musical experiences.
How have your music compositions transitioned with technology? One significant change is the portability and accessibility of music production tools. In the past, I would have to carry bulky equipment weighing over 100 kilograms on flights, which was not only cumbersome but also limited my creative freedom.
However, with the evolution of technology, the powerful tools and equipment I need for music composition are now condensed into a laptop and a hard drive. This newfound convenience allows me to work efficiently from anywhere, whether it’s in the studio, on the road, or even while travelling.
Another advantage is the availability of multiple setups. With the use of virtual instruments, software plugins, and digital workstations, I can create multiple musical arrangements and experiment with different sounds and textures. Also, the kids are fast learners now and as a team, we can work better without compromising on quality.
As a composer, how has Sufism, your spiritual path, fuelled your creativity? Sufism, at its core, is a path of spiritual awakening and union with the divine. It has instilled in me a deep sense of intentionality in everything I do. It prompts me to ask myself why I create certain melodies, harmonies, and rhythms, and how they contribute to the overall unity and message of my work.
Each composition becomes a reflection of my journey towards connecting with the infinite. Music, in its essence, is a powerful medium that attempts to bridge the gap between the smaller light within us and the bigger light of the universe. It allows us to express our yearning for transcendence and to touch the sublime.
Through the language of music, we strive to reach a higher level of consciousness, both in our creative process and in our lives as a whole. In the chaos and noise of our daily lives, music serves as a means to find inner peace and tranquillity. It provides us with the tools to navigate through the clutter and distractions, enabling us to find our way to a place of harmony and unity.
It empowers us to control our thoughts and emotions, allowing us to channel our intentionality into the pure expression of music. It is a constant practice of compartmentalising our minds, blocking out distractions and disturbances, and focusing solely on the intention of creating pure and meaningful music. Like they say, can you be at a sublime level in a chaotic place? Can you train your mind to do that?
LOS ANGELES: The combined strike by Hollywood actors and screenwriters is entering its second week with no sign that a swift ending will be achieved.
For a week, actors including household names like Tina Fey, Kevin Bacon and wife Kyra Sedgwick, Rosario Dawson, David Duchovny and other stars have joined working class performers and writers on picket lines outside studios and corporate offices of streaming giants Amazon, MAX and Netflix.
The actors’ regular appearance on picket lines has provided additional starpower and voices on issues that are key to both groups — better pay and preserving established practices like residual payments, as well as protection from the use of artificial intelligence. Roughly 65,000 actors — the vast majority of whom don’t make enough from acting to qualify for health benefits through their guild — along with 11,500 screenwriters, are on strike.
While many of the picket lines are in Los Angeles and New York, film and television production happens throughout the country. Boston, Philadelphia and Chicago were among the the major cities with strike events Tuesday and Wednesday. Later Friday, actors in London are scheduled to hold an event in solidarity with their Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists brethren.
There’s no indication when negotiations with studios and streaming companies, which are represented by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, will resume. The group has said they’ve offered both writers and actors substantial pay increases and have tried to meet other demands.
Many on the picket lines have seized upon comments by their corporate bosses like Disney CEO Bob Iger, who last week called the unions’ demands “not realistic.”
During an earnings event Wednesday, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said grew up in a union household and knew the strike was painful on workers and their families. “We’re super committed to getting to an agreement as soon as possible. One that’s equitable and one that enables the unions, the industry and everybody in it to move forward into the future,” he said.
Actor-writer Seth Green said streaming, which became a dominant entertainment outlet during the pandemic, has upended the livelihoods of those striking.
“It all got broken. I mean, it sounds silly to say, but it’s really as simple as that,” Green said speaking outside Paramount Studios in Hollywood Thursday. Traditional entertainment contracts used to compensate actors and writers throughout the long lifespan of successful shows and movies. But no longer, he said.
“If the company that owned the thing made a billion dollars, you’d get like a little bit of money from that. All of that is gone,” Green said.
Shooting for director M Rajesh’s web series My 3, took actor Ashna Zaveri to the scenic Kothagiri and Kodaikanal. Her maiden visit to these hill stations left a lasting impression on her.“I just love mountains and I feel nature speaks to me. So I was quite excited to shoot in Kothagiri. Waking up every morning to a view of the mountains and tea estates from my hotel room was just wonderful. In fact, with no gym in the hotel, I started going for a run and did yoga on the terrace. The tranquil surroundings, fresh mountain air and nature in all her glory, was a blissful mental detox for me.” says Ashna.
The filming involved several long night shoots from 9 pm to 4 am. “That gave me no time to explore the area. But I was so enchanted by the hills, that after my portions were completed, I extended my stay for 2 more days, to visit Ooty nearby. As I explored the place, I picked up locally made chocolates and biscuits and for my parents, visited the botanical gardens and had a great time in a famous Europe-themed cafe there.” Later, during another schedule at Kodaikanal, Ashna was thrilled to visit the other major hill stations in Tamil Nadu. She also had fun bonding with the large ensemble cast of Hansika, Janani, Shanthnu, Mugen Rao and Narayan Lucky. “Between the shots, we would all chat and make Insta reels. Hansika would crack jokes and we would all pull each other’s legs. It led to a lasting friendship amongst all of us.”
She also got to learn a lot from them. “Shooting with such a talent pool gave us the opportunity to observe and learn from each other. I picked up tips on how my co-stars performed under stress.” Ashna says she was in awe of the vision of director Rajesh, “He had full clarity about what he wanted and the shoot went on smoothly. Even when things were out of his control, like disruptions due to rains, he would remain super calm.” Shooting at night in the cold weather was not easy.
“One time, we were shooting a party scene outdoors. The temperature dropped at night. The guys were well-protected in suits and blazers. But I had to wear a party dress and was shivering due to the cold. As soon as a cut was announced, I would run to the bonfire nearby to warm myself. My team was ready with a coat, muffler and gloves along with hot soup or tea.” Thankfully, her prep for the shoot came in handy, “Before any outdoor shoot, I always enquire about weather conditions by calling up the crew beforehand. So, anticipating temperature changes, I had packed in some warm clothes for this shoot.”
During another night shoot, the friendly bonding the actors shared helped them through a delay. “Due to technical reasons like lighting and camera, Hansika, Mugen, Nararayan and I had to keep doing several retakes. By 3 am, we were exhausted and just waiting for the pack-up. It was only our camaraderie and sense of humour that kept us refreshed. The My 3 shoot, will always be special to me. I got to work with director Rajesh for the first time, made my web-series debut, got new friends and spent some glorious days in the lap of mother nature,” shares Ashna with a wide smile.
Ever since the 28-year-old author Anirudh Kanisetti wrote his debut book Lords of the Deccan: Southern India from Chalukyas to Cholas, he has been on a roll: from the book’s rising popularity to receiving many coveted awards like the Yuva Puraskar by Sahitya Akademi. Recently, Kanisetti added yet another feather to his already heavily-quilled cap after the popular actor and producer Rana Daggubati announced the OTT adaptation of Lords of the Deccan. The upcoming historical drama series will be produced in association with Daggubati’s Spirit Media and Sony LIV.
Kanisetti was absolutely elated when he got the news. “This has been an absolute dream. Rana was actually the chief guest at my 10th-grade farewell many years ago. So when my editor called me up and said that he was interested, it felt like things were coming full circle,” he shares.
Rana Daggubati
The OTT production has been announced in Telugu. Kanisetti adds, “Considering that it is going to be made by South Indians about South India’s history, I really hope that we will be able to do some justice to the lives of our ancestors. But I also hope that more languages can be incorporated as I firmly believe that all parts of India belong to all of us, and we should all seek to understand India’s past.”
Daggubati is a household name in the Indian film fraternity and to the popular public historian, the whole affair was a bit intimidating in the beginning. “My mother has always been a big fan of Rana. So, it was a bit intimidating, but when the project started, it ran at such an exciting pace that I didn’t have the time to sink in the fact that I was working with someone I had watched on the big screen. On top of that, Rana was also very humble throughout the process and was always open to hearing my ideas,” he says. Daggubati made the first announcement of the show at the San Diego Comic-Con.
Usually, when a book is adapted to a show or a film, the script takes some radical changes because of the need to adjust to a more visual medium. But Kanisetti feels that it didn’t happen in this case as he has already written the book in a visual manner. “When my editor and I were editing the book, we understood that our competition was not just other history books but also OTT services. We were in the business of competing for people’s attention. So I wrote the book in a very visual manner. I don’t believe that history should be boiled to only facts and figures but should instead give readers a sense of the vivid, colourful and dynamic times the world was during then,” he concludes.
Recently, with films like Ponniyin Selvan, much-needed mainstream light has been put on the history of southern India. Kanisetti hopes Lords of the Deccan’s adaptation further contributes to that. “I really hope it brings more light to the history of South India, but I also hope people take notice of the histories of other regions, especially the largely-neglected ones like the northeast and Odisha, for example. I’m really hoping that there is much curiosity about different regions and histories, which peaks the curiosity of not just publishers and writers, but also producers, filmmakers and artists,” he concludes, mentioning that he is presently working on a book, a new history of the Chola world, which he hopes will be out next year.
KOCHI: Renowned Malayalam filmmaker, scriptwriter, and producer Siddique, who is known for several hit comedy films in the 1990s and early 2000s, passed away in Kochi on Tuesday night.
The veteran filmmaker was 67. Siddique had been receiving treatment from Kochi Amrita Hospital since July 10 due to non-alcoholic liver cirrhosis.
Despite his ongoing treatment for the aforementioned ailments, the filmmaker suffered a heart attack on Sunday, following which his condition deteriorated. He was surviving with the support of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), and he breathed his last by around 9:10 pm.
Siddique is survived by his wife Shajida, daughters Sumaiyya, Sara, and son Sukoon.
FEFKA Chairman B Unnikrishnan and Actor Lal declared the demise of the director to the media outside the hospital in Kochi on Tuesday. (Photo | A Sanesh)
Siddique Ismail, considered one of the most celebrated Malayalam film directors of all time, gained entry into Mollywood by assisting the legendary filmmaker Fazil in his runaway hit ‘Nokkathadoorathu Kannumnattu’ (1984). Siddique also played a small role in the film. He and his friend Lal were spotted by Fazil during their performances with the Cochin Kalabhavan’s mimicry troupe, which played a big role in helping the duo gain entry into Mollywood.
At the Cochin Kalabhavan, where a group of artists performs mimicry, the combination of Siddique and actor Lal was a hit, and the duo came to be known as Siddique-Lal. The two longtime friends directed a slew of movies together, almost all of them becoming big hits at the box office. The story of another cult classic, Nadodikkattu (1987), directed by Sathyan Anthikkad and written by Sreenivasan, was provided by the duo. Lal later focused on acting and built his career as an actor, while Siddique continued to direct comedy hits.
An artiste who used to make the audience laugh through his performances on stage did not fail to make the viewers laugh through his movies in theatres. He focused on the comedy genre as he started his career as a director.
How can Malayalees forget the ‘Keri Vaada Makkale’ of Anjooran and the ‘Ithum Chaadi Kadannavan Aani K T Joseph of Joseph in Vietnam Colony, and Thomaskutty Vittoda of Mahadevan?
With continuous hits in the 1990s and early 2000s, he proved his talent in direction as well. His directorial debut, ‘Ramji Rao Speaking’ (1989), which he directed with Lal, is still an audience favourite in the comedy genre. The characters Mathai Chettan, Balakrishnan, and Gopalakrishnan won the hearts of Malayalees and continue to make us laugh.
The big commercial hit GodFather, which ran over 400 days, won him a state award for the best film with popular appeal and aesthetic value in 1991. He made blockbusters like In Harihar Nagar (1990), Vietnam Colony (1992), Kabooliwala (1993), Mannar Mathai Speaking (1995), Hitler (1996), Ayal Kadha Ezhuthukayanu (1998), Friends (1999), Chronic Bachelor (2003), Bodyguard (2010), and finally Big Brother starring Mohanlal in 2020.
The hit filmmaker later tried his hands at other languages by directing Tamil and Telugu movies. Bodyguard starring Dileep and Nayanthara was remade in Hindi. He also played guest roles in various movies, like Nokkethadhoorathu Kannum Nattu (1984), Manathe Kottaram (1995), Gulumaal (2009), Cinema Company (2012), Masterpiece (2017), and Innale Vare (2022).
Siddique’s mortal remains will be kept for the public to pay respects at the Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium, Kadavanthura, from 9 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. on Wednesday, and later at his residence in Pallikkara, Kakkanad. The funeral will be held at the Ernakulam Central Juma Masjid at 6 p.m.
NEW DELHI: In a hat tip to mainstream cinema in the north and the south, Hindi film “Rocketry: The Nambi Effect” was named the best feature film at the 69th National Awards announced on Thursday while Allu Arjun, Alia Bhatt and Kriti Sanon won the top acting honours.
Bollywood stars Bhatt and Sanon shared the best actress prize for their roles in “Gangubai Kathiawadi” and “Mimi”, respectively.
Southern cinema sensation bagged the best actor award for the Telugu blockbuster “Pushpa: The Rise (Part I)”.
It is the first National Film Award for all three stars.
The National Film Award for best director went to Nikhil Mahajan for Marathi film “Godavari”.
The National Awards for 2021 were announced by filmmaker Ketan Mehta who headed the 11-member jury.
Pankaj Tripathi was named best supporting actor for “Mimi” and Pallavi Joshi the best supporting actress for “The Kashmir Files”.
“The Kashmir Files”, directed by Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri, also won the Nargis Dutt award for best film on national integration.
“RRR” won six awards.
Its music director MM Keeravani shared the best music direction award with “Pushpa (The Rise Part I)” music director Devi Prasad.
The SS Rajamouli-directed film also bagged awards for best popular film providing wholesome entertainment, best male playback singer to Kalabhairava, best special effects, best action director and best choreography.
In his Instagram stories, actor-director R Madhavan dedicated the award for “Rocketry” to his parents and Nambi Narayan, a former ISRO scientist whose life story inspired the film.
Sanon said it was a big moment for her to be recognised by the National Film Award jury.
“This film will now hold a special place in my filmography for life,” Sanon said.
Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s lavishly mounted biopic “Gangubai Kathiawadi”, on the powerful and much respected Kamathipura courtesan, won five awards.
Besides best actress for Bhatt, Bhansali won two awards — for best screenplay writer (adapted) along with Utkarshini Vashishtha and best editing for the film.
The film’s other awards were for best dialogue writer for Vashishtha and Prakash Kapadia and best make-up artist for Preetisheel Singh D’souza.
“I’m happy for everybody who has won. Good cinema gets acknowledged and a pat on the back from the government, and nationally and from a respectful jury, it always brings you joy,” an elated Bhansali said.
While Arjun is yet to share a reaction, an overwhelmed actor was seen celebrating the moment with the team of the film.
Shreya Ghoshal won the best female playback award for her song “Mayava Chaayavaa” for the film “Iravin Ninzhal”.
The original screenplay honour went to Malayalam film “Nayattu” and its writer Shahi Kabir.
The Indira Gandhi Award for best debut film of a director went to Malayalam film “Meppadiyan” while the prize for best film on social issues was given to Assamese film “Anunaad-the Resonance”.
Malayalam film “Aavasavyuham” won the award for best film on environment conservation/preservation.
Shoojit Sircar’s biopic “Sardar Udham Singh” won the award for best Hindi film as well as honours for best cinematography (re-recording final mixing), best production design and costume design.
“I’m thankful that the National Award jury has acknowledged it (film), they have given so much respect and love to the film. A film on this kind of revolutionary, Sardar Udham, which includes Bhagat Singh, and the Jallianwala (Bagh massacre) incident, and it somehow gets this recognition and respect. We remember films because of National Awards, and we also remember these films for a long time. I’m proud and honoured,” Sircar said.
Tripathi dedicated the award to his father, who passed away recently.
“This is unfortunately a period of loss and grieving for me. If Babuji was around, he would have been really happy for me. When I first got the National award mention, he was very proud and pleased. I dedicate this National Award to him and his spirit. Kriti also has won the Best Actress, so a huge congratulations to her,” Tripathi said.
Agnihotri, who is in the US, said he dedicates his award to victims of terrorism, especially Kashmiri Hindus.
Best director winner Mahajan said winning a national award for the film was “a surreal feeling” as “Godavari” is closest to his heart.
Gujarati film “Gandhi & Co.” was named the best children film and Bhavin Rabari the best child actor for his role in “Chhello Show”, which also won the award for best Gujarati film.
Malayalam film “Chavittu” was recognised for best production sound recordist and Bengali film “Jhilli” for sound design.
Lyricist Chandrabose’s song “Dham Dham Dham” from Telugu film “Konda Polam” won best lyrics award.
“Shershaah” director Vishnu Vardhan won the special jury awrd for the biopic on Kargil war hero Vikram Batra.
The jury received 280 feature films in 28 languages were as entries.
The National Film Awards also announced winners for 24 non-feature film category with the top prize going to producer-director Shrishti Lkhera for “Ek Tha Gaon”.
Asked about films releasing theatrically in 2022 winning the awards for 2021, Neerja Sekhar, Information and Broadcasting additional secretary, said, “As per the regulations, the eligible films were certified and released from 1st January 2021 to December 31, 2021.”
Anushka Shetty is set to make her Malayalam debut with Kathanar, The Wild Sorcerer, which stars Jayasurya in the titular role. # Home fame Rojin Thomas is directing this ambitious film, which is based on the tales of Kadamattathu Kathanar, a Kerala priest who was believed to possess supernatural powers.
On Friday, as Jayasurya celebrated his 45th birthday, the makers shared a two-minute-long video, which gave a glimpse of the world in which the film is set. It has a netherworld setting, and the visuals promise a thrilling journey to a world of sorcery and supernatural elements.
Kathanar is being shot using virtual production technology, which, according to the makers, is the first of its kind in Indian cinema. Major portions of the film have been planned to be shot on a massive 45,000 square feet modular shooting floor. The makers have completed almost 50% of the shoot.
Kathanar, scripted by R Ramanand, has Neil D Cunha as the cinematographer, Jungjin Park as the action choreographer, and Rahul Subrahmanian Unni as the music director. Sree Gokulam Movies is backing the film, which is aiming for release in several Indian and foreign languages.
Meanwhile, Anushka, who has been on a hiatus, has her comeback film Miss. Shetty Mr. Polishetty releasing next week (September 7). She is expected to join the sets of Kathanar soon.
The rapid proliferation of streaming apps like Netflix was supposed to hit the theatre business, but going by recent events, there seems to be no cause for worry for lovers of traditional cinemas.
The latest proof for this came in the form of collection data from India’s leading multiplex chain PVR INOX.
The month of August has been a blockbuster for PVR, with two big releases – the Rajnikanth starrer Jailer produced by Sun TV and the much-awaited sequel Gaddar 2 produced by Zee. Jailer has done extremely well on the regional level.
“PVR INOX achieved the feat of highest ever monthly admissions and box office in the month of August 2023 after a robust June,” pointed out analysts from Nuvama Institutional Equities.
India’s largest multiplex chain set a new record on Independence Day this year by selling 13 lakh tickets worth Rs 40 crore. No wonder, then, that analysts are looking for a ‘record-breaking’ second quarter this time.
Recent releases such as Satyaprem ki Katha collected Rs Rs 80 crore, while Rocky aur Rani ki Prem Kahani saw collections of Rs 115 crore, the report said.
Among Hollywood movies, Oppenheimer, Barbie and Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One have done quite well, noted the report by the broker.
Multiplexes are holding customised early morning shows for Bollywood movies at 5/6 AM.
This, said the analysts, “shows that Bollywood is back.”
The strong footfalls are not just setting the box office bells ringing, but also bringing in loads of ad money. Though it is yet to reach pre-Covid margins, the progress is promising, Nuvama said.
For now, the analysts pointed out, multiplexes seem to be immune to the slowdown in discretionary spending that seems to have hit other areas like quick service restaurants and apparel.
Future Perfect
The fun is not showing any signs of stopping, the analysts pointed out.
“September is beginning on a very positive note for PVR INOX due to Jawan…Jawan’s advance bookings have surpassed Pathaan’s to create an all-time record in presales.”, the broker said.
According to the latest box office collection data, the Shahrukh Khan-starrer has set a new record by becoming the biggest Hindi film opener ever with a collection of Rs 75 crores.
The upcoming months also look promising with movies like Ganpath, Tejas, Leo, Tiger 3, The Marvels and Fukrey 3 lined up for release.
The broker expects an increase in the earnings of shareholders in PVR INOX by 5.2% towards the end of the year. The company plans to open 150-165 new screens in 2024.
The company also plans to focus on expanding its food and beverage offerings. It has recently introduced food and beverage items beginning at Rs 99 which has worked well with the moviegoers.
However, the coming Cricket World Cup is expected to pose a small risk to the multiplex chains which could be overcome with the impressive content pipeline for the coming months.
LOS ANGELES: Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis apologized Saturday for character letters the celebrity couple wrote on behalf of fellow “That ’70s Show” actor Danny Masterson before he was sentenced for rape this week.
A judge in Los Angeles on Thursday sentenced Masterson to 30 years to life in prison for raping two women in 2003.
In a video posted on Instagram, Kutcher and Kunis said they were sorry for the pain they may have caused with the letters, which were made public Friday.
Kutcher said the letters that asked for leniency “were intended for the judge to read and not to undermine the testimony of the victims or retraumatize them in any way. We would never want to do that and we’re sorry if that has taken place.”
Kutcher said Masterson’s family approached them after the actor was convicted in the rapes in May and asked them to write character letters describing “the person that we knew for 25 years.” The letters were posted online by The Hollywood Reporter and other digital publications.
ALSO READ | ‘That ’70s Show’ actor Danny Masterson gets 30 years in prison for raping two women
Masterson starred with Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis and Topher Grace in “That ’70s Show” from 1998 until 2006.
He had reunited with Kutcher on the 2016 Netflix comedy “The Ranch,” but was written off the show when the Los Angeles Police Department investigation was revealed the following year.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo handed down the sentence to Masterson, 47, after hearing statements from the women, and pleas for fairness from defence attorneys.
Kutcher described Masterson as a man who treated people “with decency, equality, and generosity,” he wrote in his letter dated July 27, 2023.
Kunis in her letter to Olmedo called Masterson “an outstanding role model and friend” and an “exceptional older brother figure.”
Both rapes took place in Masterson’s Hollywood-area home in 2003 when he was at the height of his fame on the Fox network sitcom “That ’70s Show.” The victims testified that Masterson drugged them before violently raping them.
Kunis said in the apology video that their letters did not mean to undermine the testimony of victims.
“Our heart goes out to every single person who’s ever been a victim of sexual assault, sexual abuse, or rape,” she said.
LOS ANGELES: Contract talks that could end Hollywood’s writers strike are set to resume next week, studios said Thursday.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents the industry’s studios, streaming services and production companies in union negotiations, said in a statement that they had reached out to the Writers Guild of America on Wednesday and the two sides agreed to resume negotiations next week.
Leaders are still working out the details, the statement said, and no further specifics were provided.
“Every member company of the AMPTP is committed and eager to reach a fair deal, and to working together with the WGA to end the strike,” the statement said.
There are no talks yet planned to settle the actors strike.
Writers have been on strike for 4 1/2 months over issues including pay, job security and regulating the use of artificial intelligence.
A previous attempt to restart talks fell flat. The two sides had a handful of meetings in mid-August, including one that included the heads of Disney, Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery.
But writers said that after exchanging contract proposals, “they were met with a lecture about how good their single and only counteroffer was,” and the talks trailed off.
California lawmakers on Thursday voted to allow striking workers to claim unemployment benefits.
If signed by Newsom, the bill would benefit Southern California hotel workers along with the striking actors and screenwriters.
But it’s not clear if Newsom will sign it. The fund California uses to pay unemployment benefits is insolvent. Business groups have said making more people eligible for benefits will only make it worse.
NEW YORK: Hugh Jackman and Deborra-lee Jackman have decided to end their marriage after 27 years and two children.
“We have been blessed to share almost 3 decades together as husband and wife in a wonderful, loving marriage. Our journey now is shifting and we have decided to separate to pursue our individual growth,” they said in the joint statement. Their separation was first reported by People magazine.
They said the statement would be their only one on their breakup. They added that their family is their highest priority and that they’ll undertake “this next chapter with gratitude, love, and kindness.”
A representative for the couple confirmed the statement to The Associated Press Friday.
The couple met in 1995 on the set of an Australian television show where both were actors. Deborra-lee Furness at the time was the more established of the two. They married in 1996 and had two children: Oscar, now 23, and Ava, now 18. Jackman also ascended to major stardom in Hollywood and on Broadway.
The couple have been red carpet mainstays for years, posing together at the Oscars, at Broadway events and at the Met Gala, including the most recent edition in May. They attended Wimbledon together in July.
In April, Jackman celebrated their 27th anniversary with a tribute on Instagram.
“I love you so much. Together we have created a beautiful family. And life,” he wrote. “Your laughter, your spirit, generosity, humor, cheekiness, courage and loyalty is an incredible gift to me.”
Furness, 67, is an advocate for orphans and adoption, especially in her native Australia, and one of the founding members of National Adoption Awareness Week.
Jackman, 54, who played the superhero Wolverine in several movies, is reprising the role in “Deadpool 3,” which is on hold due to the actors strike.
LOS ANGELES: Rapper Jeezy has filed for divorce from TV personality Jeannie Mai after two years of marriage.
The 45-year-old rapper, whose birth name is Jay Wayne Jenkins, filed to end his marriage on Thursday in Georgia’s Superior Court of Fulton County.
The filing says “the marriage of the parties is irretrievably broken” and “there is no hope for reconciliation.”
The pair welcomed their first child together, a daughter, in January 2022. Jeezy and Mai began dating in 2018 and were married in March 2021.
Jeezy is seeking joint legal custody of their daughter, according to the divorce documents. The two had a prenuptial agreement that Jeezy expects will be enforced, according to the filing.
Representatives for Jeezy and Jeannie Mai did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Grammy Award-nominated rapper Jeezy exploded on the music scene in the mid-’00s and is widely considered a trailblazer of Atlanta trap. He has released 10 studio albums.
Mai, 44, is a California native and stalwart figure of daytime television best-known for her work as a host on such programs as “The Real” and “How Do I Look?”
With just ten more days before September ends, an exciting line of shows and movies from a range of genres are making their way to OTT and theatres.
Ranging from the adventure/comedy film ‘Spy Kids: Armageddon’ to Kareena Kapoor Khan’s OTT debut and Dulquer Salman starrer ‘King of Kotha’, here is a curated list for you to binge on.
Sex Education Season 4: The fourth installment of the runaway hit series centring around the teenage son of a sex therapist in the UK is all set to hit Netflix on Thursday. Seasons 1-3 explored themes around sexuality, disabilities, assault, and the latest season promises to be no less exciting. The trailer shows the protagonist Otis Milburn (Asa Butterfield) and his buddy Eric Effiong (Ncuti Gatwa) who are all set to explore their new life at Cavendish Sixth Form College while Maeve (Emma Mackey) is living her new life at a different school. While juggling his long-distance relationship with Maeve, Otis also has a new problem at hand. The school has a new sex therapist, eating up his job.
Love Again: The story revolves around Mira Ray played by Priyanka Chopra Jonas, who is coping with grief over her fiance’s death by sending romantic messages to his old phone number. The number, however, has been reassigned to journalist Rob Burns played by Sam Heughan. What happens next forms the crux of the story. Canadian icon Celine Dion also features in this film.
PLATFORM/RELEASE DATE: NETFLIX / 20th Sept
Cassandro: Starring Gael Garcia Bernal in and as ‘Cassandro’, the film is set in the early 1980s in El Paso, Texas. The plot revolves around a gay wrestler named Saúl Armendáriz who travels to Ciudad Juárez in Mexico to participate in lucha libre wrestling matches. While he fights under the name of El Topo, things change when he meets his new trainer, Sabrina. She encourages him to compete as an exótico, which gives birth to his new identity and advancing success as ‘Cassandro.’
PLATFORM/RELEASE DATE: PRIME VIDEO / 22nd Sept
No One Will Save You: Another science fiction horror-thriller releasing this week is Brian Duffield’s ‘No One Will Save You.’ The film revolves around Brynn (Kaitlyn Dever) as she fights off an alien invasion and confronts her own troubled past while struggling to save the world from the aliens that threaten her future.
PLATFORM/RELEASE DATE: HULU / 22nd Sept
Spy Kids: Armageddon: When the world’s greatest secret agents’ kids accidentally help a powerful game developer unleash a computer virus that gives him control of all technology, they must become spies themselves to save their parents and the world. Directed by Robert Rodriguez, the movie stars Gina Rodriguez (Jane the Virgin) and Zachary Levi (Shazam!).
PLATFORM/RELEASE DATE: NETFLIX / 22nd Sept
Jaane Jaan: Directed by Sujoy Ghosh, this mystery thriller stars Bollywood’s one and only Kareena Kapoor Khan. Set in Kalimpong, the film revolves around a single mother and her daughter. The mother tries to cover up the murder of her estranged husband while a police investigation is going on with help from her neighbour. The movie also features Jaideep Ahlawat and Vijay Varma among others.
PLATFORM/RELEASE DATE: NETFLIX / 21st Sept
King of Kotha: A Malayalam gangster drama that marks the directorial debut of Abhilash Joshiy, son of veteran Malayalam filmmaker Joshiy. The plot synopsis reads, “In a crime-infested town, Kannan bhai and his gang are the reigning powers. To combat this reign and seek revenge, Inspector Shahul tactfully plots the return of the ‘King’, leading to a transformative turn of events.” The film stars an ensemble cast of Dulquer Salmaan, Shabeer Kallarakkal, Prasanna, Gokul Suresh, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Nyla Usha, Chemban Vinod Jose, Shammi Thilakan, Saran, Shanthi Krishna and Anikha Surendran.
PLATFORM/RELEASE DATE: DISNEY+HOTSTAR / 22nd Sept
The Great Indian Family: Directed by Vijay Krishna Acharya, this upcoming Hindi comedy-drama features Vicky Kaushal, Manushi Chhillar, Kumud Mishra, and Bhuvan Arora. In an interview with The Indian Express, Vicky Kaushal said that this film is “totally a family entertainer”. From the trailer, we see a devout Hindu man (Vicky Kaushal) who realizes late in life that he is actually Muslim by birth.
PLATFORM/RELEASE DATE: THEATRES / 22nd Sept
Sukhee: Starring Shilpa Shetty Kundra, ‘Sukhee’ narrates the story of Sukhpreet ‘Sukhee’ Kalra. The trailer offers a glimpse into her mundane life as a housewife which takes an unexpected turn when she receives an invitation to her school reunion. Despite everyone taunting her for leaving her duties at home, Sukee feels at peace when she meets her friends. On her small trip to Delhi, she realises what she has been missing all this while and decides to make changes to her life. The film is scheduled for its theatre release this Friday 22nd September. Shilpa had promoted the film as “a story for every woman”.
PLATFORM/RELEASE DATE: THEATRES / 22nd Sept
Athidhi: A Telugu horror series created by Praveen Sattaru that follows the eerie incidents that ensue on a rainy night as a strange woman the door of a lonely man’s mansion. The series marks the debut of Venu Thottempudi into the realm of online streaming.
When 24-year-old Delhiite, Prachi Sharma, got on stage to sing You Are My Everything, a Gummy song from a Korean hit drama, she gave it all she had. It won her the All India K-Pop Contest 2023 in vocals, organised recently by the Korean Cultural Centre in Delhi in partnership with LG Electronics to celebrate 50 years of diplomatic relations between India and Korea.
Sharma’s introduction to K-pop started with the uber-popular band BTS. Currently, a Masters’s student of Sociology, she was in her first year of college when the boyband captured her attention. “V (Kim Taehyung) is my bias,” she says.
K-pop is quite a craze among young Indians and is the starting point for their general interest in Korean culture because of the similarities, they say, it has with their own culture. “Both countries fought a fraught struggle for independence and encouraged staying together as a family and giving respect to elders. Both countries also have a unique sense of dressing. We love bright colours and so do they,” she says.
Sharma is trained in Indian classical music. In college, she shifted gears and started exploring Western music. She took part in competitions and sang songs in the Spanish and Gaelic languages before taking to Korean music. For the K-Pop finale, her pick of pop singer Park Ji-yeon’s song, (popularly known as Gummy) was actually on Hyunsu’s suggestion. The Korean singer from Voice of Korea had trained the finalists before the finale. “I found it to be perfect for me. It has all the emotional variations that I want in a song. I am glad that the audience enjoyed it too,” she says with a touch of pride.
However, her interest in K-culture is not just restricted to K-Pop. “I must say that I am a bigger fan of K-Drama than K-Pop,” she reveals. Who is her favourite actor? “Ji Chang Wook, Ahn Hyo Seop, Song Joong Ki are all my favourites,” she says. The last K-Drama she binged on was Moving. She is also a fan of Korean skincare products and swears by prep ampoules and moisturisers, which she buys from a Korean beauty products website.
India’s K-Pop Stars
Hong Ju Jeon, the managing director of LG Electronics India, says the September 16 event was part of a campaign to show that a positive outlook in life and music can uplift the human spirit. “The K-Pop contest gave us an avenue to appreciate some of the rising K-Pop stars in India,” he says.
Jeon’s words will find resonance with Srija Paul, 19, whose mind is set on becoming a K-pop star—in Korea. “I dream of becoming a singer in South Korea and sharing the stage with some brilliant artists,” says the 19-year-old who was the first runner-up at the contest.
While she is more focused on Korean ballads now, BTS’ Blood, Sweat and Tears was what sparked her interest in Korean culture. She credits the English band One Direction for helping her “find BTS”. The hype around One Direction was at its peak when it got disbanded. “After they disbanded, I shifted to BTS,” she says. Her favourite singers are Paul Kim, Jung Seunghwan and Melomance’s Kim Minseok, “at the moment”.
Paul belongs to a family of musicians – her father is a singer by profession and her mother is a music teacher. But she always knew her passion lay somewhere else. “Somehow, I could never feel that connection to Indian music as I feel towards Korean music. Now my focus is completely on that,” she says with a determined air.
‘When I go to Korea…’
For the K-Pop contest, she performed the song My Sea by Lee Ji-eun, popularly known as IU. She says that the singer-composer resonates with her. “I have won other K-Pop competitions with her songs. She is my lucky charm. Not only do the lyrics of My Sea touch my heart, its music challenges me too. It has quite a few high notes, which was a bit difficult for me,” she explains. An avid language enthusiast, she is a student of English at Amity University, Noida, and is also studying Korean from the Korean Cultural Centre India.
Apart from the All India K-Pop Contest, she also won the Korean Speech Contest 2023 organised by King Sejong Institute and will be going to South Korea to represent India for the final round in 2023. And she is ready with a list of things she wants to buy. “I have always wondered about the secret behind their beautiful ‘glass skin’. When I go to Korea, I plan on buying a lot of skincare products for myself and my family,” she says. Both finalists are aware that it is difficult to break into the Korean entertainment industry, owing to the tough standards and the huge number of talent present in the country. But they still plan to try.
Theatre chain PVR INOX launched its luxury boutique theatre Maison INOX, the second Maison cinema in Mumbai, at the JIO World Centre in Bandra-Kurla Complex on Thursday. The new theatre boasts of a six-screen setup, which includes three regular screens, two Insignia screens (premium halls offering recliner seats and concierge service) and an IMAX screen with laser technology. This will be the first theatre in Mumbai which will have a bar (Gatsby’s) offering alcoholic drinks. The six screens at the theatre have a total capacity of 790.On the sidelines of the launch, we spoke to Alok Tandon, Co-CEO, PVR INOX, on increasing cost of going to the theatres, competition from OTT and if small or medium-budget films are getting their due on the big screen.
Excerpts:
Can you expand upon the vision behind the latest Maison INOX? Our priority is to give the best experience to our guests. From the day we started the company (PVR INOX), that has been our vision. Be it in terms of service, luxury, technology, ambience or food, we have always tried to ensure that the cinemagoer gets quality as well as variety. We want the audience to watch movies as the director intended it to be shown. Any cinema hall that we conjure, these are the pillars that we work on. The new Maison INOX is situated in the heart of the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) and I don’t think the location could have been any better.
There has been a lot of discussion on the high ticket and refreshments prices in theatres. What is your take on it? Is PVR INOX addressing this issue? Let me clarify by saying it’s not expensive. Only at some PVR properties, I would say that the prices that you consider to be “high” are actually as per the paying propensity of the people, the cost structure of that particular cinema hall and are also affected by the day when you purchase the refreshments. We have a pricing of Rs 99 on food from Monday to Thursday. From Friday to Sunday, we offer unlimited refills on a large tub of popcorn and a large soft drink. When it comes to pricing, why don’t we ever question five-star hotels or restaurants? Everything comes at a price. We have the best food service in the country, master chefs who curate the menu, we have changed the way people consume food while watching a film and we offer the best of hygiene and cleanliness to our guests.
With every film ultimately landing up on OTT, how do you ensure people still come to theatres? OTT platforms and cinemas will co-exist. It’s not ‘either, or’ but ‘and’. You can’t get the larger-than-life experience of watching a film on the big screen at home. You can’t get uncompressed sound quality or a crystal-clear image. Going to cinemas is an outing. We are giving people an experience. And let me tell you, be it the director, the actor or the producer, nothing gives them more thrill than the audience enjoying their creation on the big screen. People watch streaming platforms mostly for web series, docudramas or a film that they have missed out in theatres. For a new release, they still want to go to theatres.
This year, most films that have worked at the box office have been these big-budget star vehicles. In this scenario, is there any way theatre owners can ensure small or mid-budget films also get their theatrical due? We show every movie. We don’t differentiate between a big film and a small film. It’s the quality of content which takes a film to the next week after its opening. We are doing our level best to ensure that people come into the theatres.
In your opinion, what kind of films are working in theatres? I am not one to answer that, it is the viewer who determines whether a film would work or not. This year both Shah Rukh Khan films (Jawan and Pathaan) have done well. Gadar 2 nobody knew would perform as such. People flocked to the theatres in hordes to catch it. Movies like Dream Girl 2, Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, Oppenheimer, Barbie, all of them did very well. Across genres, across languages, if the content is good, people will come to watch it in theatres.
What are your expectations from Animal? Like any other Indian, I think the film will do very well. We are actually excited about the entire line-up for December, there is Sam Bahadur, Dunki, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, Salaar: Part 1-Ceasefire. The coming days for theatres look promising.
TOKYO: Japan’s national broadcaster NHK on Wednesday said it was cutting ties with the nation’s most successful boyband agency Johnny & Associates after it admitted its late founder sexually abused young recruits over decades.
A host of brands have already dropped the company’s stars in recent weeks over the abuse committed by Johnny Kitagawa, who engineered the birth of J-pop mega-groups that amassed adoring fans across Asia before his death aged 87 in 2019.
“We will suspend making new offers until we make sure that it is taking concrete steps to compensate the victims and taking prevention measures,” NHK’s president Nobuo Inaba said at a regular press conference
It means the agency’s top stars may not appear in NHK’s enormously popular annual music show on December 31, “Kohaku Uta Gassen”, watched by around a third of Japanese households.
Earlier this month, the agency admitted that Kitagawa had sexually assaulted teenage boys and young men seeking stardom over decades, some allegedly as young as 12.
Allegations about Kitagawa had circulated for decades but it took a BBC documentary this year to prompt soul-searching and a probe by an external panel which issued a damning report in August.
Brands including McDonald’s Japan, automaker Nissan and beer giant Kirin dissociated themselves from the agency and its stable of performers following the report.
LAS VEGAS: It looked like a typical U2 outdoor concert: Two helicopters zoomed through the starlit sky before producing spotlights over a Las Vegas desert and frontman Bono, who kneeled to the ground while singing the band’s 2004 hit “Vertigo.”
This scene may seem customary, but the visuals were created by floor-to-ceiling graphics inside the immersive Sphere. It was one of the several impressive moments during U2’s “UV Achtung Baby” residency launch show at the high-tech, globe-shaped venue, which opened for the first time Friday night.
The legendary rock band, which has won 22 Grammys, performed for two hours inside the massive, state-of-the-art spherical venue with crystal-clear audio. Throughout the night, there were a plethora of attractive visuals — including kaleidoscope images, a burning flag and Las Vegas’ skyline, taking the more than 18,000 attendees on U2’s epic musical journey.
“What a fancy pad,” said Bono, who was accompanied onstage with guitarists The Edge and Adam Clayton along with drummer Bram van den Berg. He then stared at the high-resolution LED screen that projected a larger version of himself along with a few praying hands and bells.
Bono then paid homage to the late Elvis Presley, who was a Las Vegas entertainment staple. The band has rocked in the city as far back as 1987 when they filmed the music video for “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” on the Strip during a tour in 1987.
“Look at all this stuff. … Elvis has definitely not left this building,” he continued. “It’s an Elvis chapel. It’s an Elvis cathedral. Tonight, the entry into this cathedral is a password: flirtation.”
U2 made their presence felt at the $2.3 billion Sphere, which stands 366-feet (111 meters) high and 516-feet (157 meters) wide. With superb visual effects, the band’s 25-show residency opened with a splash performing a slew of hits including “Mysterious Ways,” “Zoo Station,” “All I Want is You,” “Desire” and new single “Atomic City.”
On many occasions, the U2 band members were so large on screen that it felt like Bono intimately sang to the audience on one side while The Edge strummed his guitar to others on a different side.
The crowd included many entertainers and athletes: Oprah, LeBron James, Matt Damon, Andre Agassi, Ava DuVernay, Josh Duhamel, Jason Bateman, Jon Hamm, Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, Oscar de la Hoya, Henrik Lundqvist, Flava Flav, Diplo, Dakota Fanning, Orlando Bloom and Mario Lopez.
After wrapping up The Beatles’ jam “Love Me Do,” Bono recognized Paul McCartney, who was in attendance, saying “Macca is in the house tonight.” He acknowledged Sphere owner James Dolan’s efforts for spearheading a venue that’s pushing forward the live concert audio landscape with 160,000 high-quality speakers and 260 million video pixels.
The Sphere is the brainchild of Dolan, the executive chair of Madison Square Garden and owner of the New York Knicks and Rangers. He sketched the first drawing of the venue on notebook paper.
“I’m thinking the that the Sphere may have come into existence because of Jim Dolan trying to solve the problem that The Beatles started when they played Shea Stadium,” Bono said. “Nobody could hear you. You couldn’t hear yourselves. Well, the Sphere’s here. … Can you hear us?”
The U2 frontman pointed into the crowd and shouted out Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and Jimmy Iovine. At one point he became emotional when he dedicated a song to the late Jimmy Buffett’s family, who were also in attendance.
Afterward Bono spoke about performing onstage for the first time without drummer Larry Mullen Jr., who is recovering from back surgery. He acknowledged Dutch drummer Bram van den Berg’s birthday and him filling in for Mullen.
“I would like to introduce you to the only man who could stand, well, sit in his shoes,” said Bono, who walked toward Berg as some in the crowd began to sing “Happy Birthday.” He handed the microphone to Berg, who offered a few words.
“Let there be no mistake, there is only one Larry Mullen Jr,” Berg said.
As U2 wrapped up the show, a bright light shined from the ceiling and the massive screen began to fill with images of birds, insects and reptiles above a lake. The band closed its first Sphere concert with “Beautiful Day,” which won three Grammys in 2001.
LOS ANGELES: Late-night talk shows are returning after a five-month absence brought on by the Hollywood writers strike, while actors will begin talks that could end their own long work walk-off.
CBS’s “ The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” ABC’s “ Jimmy Kimmel Live! ” and NBC’s “ The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” were the first shows to leave the air when the writers strike began on May 2, and now will be among the first to return on Monday night.
Comedian John Oliver got his first take on the strike out, exuberantly returning Sunday night to his “Last Week Tonight” show on HBO and delivering full-throated support for the strike.
Oliver cheerily delivered a recap of stories from the last five months before turning serious, calling the strike “an immensely difficult time” for all those in the industry.
“To be clear, this strike happened for good reasons. Our industry has seen its workers severely squeezed in recent years,” Oliver said. “So, the writers guild went to strike and thankfully won. But, it took a lot of sacrifices from a lot of people to achieve that.”
“I am also furious that it took the studios 148 days to achieve a deal they could have offered on day (expletive) one,” Oliver said. He added that he hope the writers contract would give leverage to other entertainment industry guilds – as well as striking auto workers and employees in other industries – to negotiate better deals.
Warner Bros. Discovery, which owns HBO, is among the studios on the other side of the table in the writers and actors strikes.
Network late-night hosts will have their returns later Monday.
Colbert will have Astrophysicist and author Neil deGrasse Tyson on his first show back. Kimmel will host Arnold Schwarzenegger. Matthew McConaughey will be on Fallon’s couch.
All the hosts will surely address the strike in their monologues.
“I’ll see you Monday, and every day after that!” an ebullient Colbert said in an Instagram video last week from the Ed Sullivan Theater, which was full of his writers and other staffers for their first meeting since spring.
The hosts haven’t been entirely idle. They teamed up for a podcast, “ Strike Force Five,” during the strike.
The writers were allowed to return to work last week after the Writers Guild of America reached an agreement on a three-year contract with an alliance of the industry’s biggest studios, streaming services and production companies.
Union leaders touted the deal as a clear win on issues including pay, size of staffs and the use of artificial intelligence that made the months off worth it. The writers themselves will vote on the contract in a week of balloting that begins Monday.
Meanwhile, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists will begin negotiations with the same group, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, for the first time since they joined writers in a historic dual strike on July 14.
Actors walked off the job over many of the same issues as writers, and SAG-AFTRA leaders said they would look closely at the gains and compromises of the WGA’s deal, but emphasized that their demands would remain the same as they were when the strike began.
It was just five days after writers and studios resumed talks that a deal was reach and that strike ended, though an attempt to restart negotiations a month earlier broke off after a few meetings.
The late-night shows will have significant limits on their guest lists. Their bread and butter, actors appearing to promote projects, will not be allowed to appear if the movies and shows are for studios that are the subject of the strikes.
But exceptions abound. McConaughey, for example, is appearing with Fallon to promote his children’s book, “Just Because.”
And SAG-AFTRA has granted interim agreements allowing actors to work on many productions, and with that comes the right of actors to publicly promote them.
MUMBAI: Superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s daughter Suhana Khan is all set to make her acting debut with Zoya Akhtar’s upcoming film ‘The Archies’.
On Monday, Suhana surprised all her fans as she announced that she has also made her singing debut with the song ‘Jab Tum Na Theen’ from ‘The Archies’.
Taking to Instagram, Suhana shared a post, which she captioned, “I sang my first song!! Thank you @zoieakhtar & @shankar.mahadevan for being so patient with me please listen with kindness.”
Soon after she shared the post, her friends and fans swamped down the comment section with red hearts and fire emoticons.
Suhana’s close friend and actor Ananya Panday commented, “Suzie you’re sooooo good.” Director Zoya Akhtar commented, “Suhana Shine On.” Shanaya Kapoor commented, “too good.”
Helmed by Zoya Akhtar, the film marks the acting debut of Amitabh Bachchan’s grandson Agastya Nanda, Shah Rukh Khan’s daughter Suhana Khan and producer Boney Kapoor’s daughter Khushi Kapoor.
‘The Archies’, a coming-of-age musical, follows the lives of Archie, Betty, Veronica, Jughead, Reggie, Ethel and Dilton who will take audiences to the fictional hilly town of Riverdale. The film explores friendship, freedom love, heartbreak and rebellion.
The trailer unfolds a musical narrative led by seven charming characters from the beloved Archie comics, steering through the retro alleys of love, friendship, and youthful aspirations.
The trailer of the movie, which was released recently, signs off with a profound message – ‘You are never too young to change the world’.The film is all set to stream on the OTT platform Netflix from December 7.
PANAJI:Cinema is one of the few mediums with the power to unite people, Hollywood star Michael Douglas said after receiving the Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award at the closing ceremony of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) here on Tuesday.
The 10-day film gala concluded with ‘Endless Borders’ from Germany winning the coveted Golden Peacock Award for the best film, while Deepak Kumar Mishra-directed show “Panchayat” season two bagged the best OTT series award, which was introduced for the first time.
Goa chief minister Dr Pramod Sawant felicitated Douglas with the Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award at the ceremony.
The veteran actor, known for movies Wall Street, Fatal Attraction, The War of the Roses, Basic Instinct and The American President, highlighted cinema’s role in promoting “our shared humanity”.
“With everything going on in our world today this festival is a reminder of the magic of movie making. Cinema is one of the few mediums that has the power to unite and transform us,” Douglas said as he thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Minister for Information and Broadcast Anurag Singh Thakur for the honour.
“Cinema can make people laugh, cry or rejoice and reveal our shared humanity and today our global language of cinema is more meaningful than ever,” he added.
The 79-year-old actor said Satyajit Ray was a world class filmmaker who represented not only the triumphs of the Indian film industry, but also the “cross-cultural artistic expression”.
“It’s an honour to stand before all of you tonight and receive this. I am humbled to join a prestigious group of past award recipients,” he said.
He also acknowledged people who laid the foundation for his career, including his late father, Hollywood legend Kirk Douglas.
“The achievements are as much theirs as mine. First to my earliest mentors, the talented filmmakers, countless crew members and technicians,” he said.
“Second to my father Kirk who set a huge high bar with his hard work, his strength and his incredible stamina. I wouldn’t be here but not for his passion and dedication. And to the public he was an icon. But to me he was dad and he provided me with a blueprint that led me to be here today,” he added.
Douglas thanked all the audiences all over the world for pushing storytellers to explore new filmmaking frontiers.
During the function, his actor-wife, Catherine Zeta Jones, was also felicitated by the Goa Chief Minister.
“I would like to just say, thank you to India for welcoming us. We thought we are going to eat different food. It’s going to be a different culture that we all enjoy, but the one thing that is steadfast is the generosity and welcoming nature and the hospitality of all Indians, whether it’s in Goa, Mumbai, New Delhi or Jaipur,” she said.
The ceremony also saw Rishab Shetty winning the special jury award for his Kannada movie Kantara, while Bulgarian film director Stephan Komandarev won the best director award for his film Blaga’s Lessons.
The best actor (female) award went to French actress Melanie Thierry for her film Party of Fools.
Iranian actor Pouria Rahimi Sam bagged the award for best actor (Male) for his performance in the movie Endless Borders.
Regar Azad Kaya won the award for best debutant director for his Syrian-Arab Republic film When the Seedlings Grow.
The jury for the international competition was headed by filmmaker Shekhar Kapoor and also included Spanish cinematographer Jose Luis Alcaine, French film producers Jerome Paillard and Catherine Dussart, and Australian film producer Helen Leake.
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MUMBAI: A new study has revealed a nominal growth in women’s representation in various facets of content production, marketing and corporate leadership within the entertainment industry, leading various film personalities, including actor Alia Bhatt, filmmakers Vikramaditya Motwane and Shakun Batra, to make a pledge to push for more diversity in their projects.
The report, titled ‘O Womaniya!’, has been researched and curated by media consulting ? Ormax Media in collaboration with media outlet Film Companion and streaming service Prime Video.
The study analysed 156 films and series, which were released in 2022, either on streaming and through theatrical route, in eight languages — Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Punjabi, Bengali and Gujarati.
It revealed that only 12 per cent of the 780 head of department positions in various fields like direction, cinematography, editing, writing, and production design were held by women, as compared to 10 per cent in 2021.
The study further noted a marginal jump of 5 per cent in the share of female HODs in content greenlit by commissioning in-charges.
It was 22 per cent in 2022, up from 17 per cent in 2021.
“The share of female HODs in Hindi content has remained stagnant at 17 per cent. While other languages have shown some positive movement from near-zero levels, Hindi remains the only language with double-digit female HOD representation,” it added.
The study also shared its Bechdel Test numbers, the globally accepted parameter for measuring female representation in cinema.
It noted a dip, from 55 per cent in 2021 to 47 per cent in 2022, in the number of projects that aced the test.
In order to pass the Bechdel test, a film must have at least one scene where two named women are talking to each other about something other than a man.
For streaming series, given their longer runtime, the criterion was modified to ‘at least three scenes’.
Series and films like “Guilty Minds”, “Four More Shots Please!”, “Delhi Crime”, “Maja Ma”, “Gangubai Kathiawadi”, emerged as the titles with maximum scenes to pass the Bechdel Test.
The report highlighted the less footage given to women characters in the trailers of shows and movies.
Female characters have only 27 per cent talk time in trailers in 2022, a marginal increase from 2021.
“Interestingly, streaming films noted the highest increase of 5 per cent in female trailer talk time, surpassing streaming series to be the best-rated category at 33 per cent.
Like HOD representation and Bechdel Test, the streaming category remains well ahead of theatrical on this metric too,” it added.
Lastly, the study revealed that in 25 top media and entertainment firms, having 135 Director and CXO positions, only 13 per cent were held by women, as compared to 10 per cent in 2021.
In light of the report’s findings, actors and filmmakers have voiced their support and took pledges to improve female representation in entertainment.
“I pledge to continue to promote diversity in my production projects,” said National Award-winning actor Alia Bhatt, who turned producer with her 2022 movie “Darlings”.
Shakun Batra, the director of hits “Kapoor and Sons” and “Gehraiyaan”, said, “I pledge to promote diversity in my projects, to continue collaborating with and supporting intimacy professionals to ensure sets are a safe space for all.”
Aparna Purohit, head of Originals, India & Southeast Asia, Prime Video pledged, “I pledge to include women in writer’s room and to work towards at least 30% women HOD’s in all of our productions.
Similar pledges were made by Tahira Kashyap Khurrana, director duo Gayatri & Pushkar, Supriya Yarlagadda, Nikkhil Advani, Siddharth Roy Kapur, Juhi Chaturvedi, Apoorva Mehta, Sudha Kongara and Hansal Mehta.
The report has been supported by major production banners including Clean Slate Filmz, Emmay Entertainment, Excel Entertainment, Jio Studio, Producers Guild India, RSVP, SonyLiv, Tiger Baby, and Zee5.
Indian cinema has been through massive changes, perhaps the most defining one being the growing participation of women. From being seen mainly as actors, they can now be found across the board as directors, producers, editors, scriptwriters and technicians. However, as we pass through the third decade of the 21st century, does the film industry in our country finally offer a level playing field in terms of gender equity?
An In-Conversation session held on Monday at the 54th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) on the topic ‘Women Power in Indian Cinema’ tried to find answers to this poignant question.
Director Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari, known for Bareilly Ki Barfi (2017), Tarla (2023) and other works, emphasised the need to eliminate labels such as ‘female film director’ or ‘female film editor’ as women are now at the forefront, which means the narrative has also shifted.
She reflected upon the film industry’s progress, saying the participation of women has increased substantially due to the advent of more schools teaching about cinema, editing and script writing. “There is a need for more women in decision-making bodies within the film industry. We need more men who encourage the participation of women in film decision-making platforms,” she stressed.
While discussing the opportunities that have been opened up to women by OTT platforms, Ashwiny expressed the hope that both theatres and OTT platforms will coexist.
Since cinema’s inception, women have played a key role in its development. In this session, @ashwinyiyer, Shweta Venkat Mathew, and @talwar_puja discuss “Women power in Indian Cinema”. Catch glimpses from this dazzling all women panel in Kala Academy at #IFFI54 ! pic.twitter.com/6lrUqtBtEf
The director also offered advice to many of the young aspiring women who have just stepped into the industry by encouraging them to not overthink their roles. She also highlighted the significance of understanding real-life stories by travelling and engaging with diverse social structures.
The spotlight then turned to Shweta Venkat Mathew, a seasoned film editor known for Gangs of Wasseypur (2012), Newton (2017) and Haseen Dillruba (2021) who accentuated the unique perspective women bring to storytelling. “Women’s eyes catch nuances lost in translation from script to screen,” she remarked, underlining the importance of increased female representation in the industry.
Shweta also stressed the fact that one must focus on the quality of work rather than gender-centric considerations.
With regard to the issue of pay disparity, both women expressed differing points of view. Ashwiny mentioned that she didn’t face the issue of inequitable pay in her professional career and went on to thank her producers. Meanwhile, Shweta shared how there was always a marked difference in what was being offered to her and her male counterparts at the start of any project.
Ashwiny also added that most women film professionals don’t usually acknowledge their own talent and ought to negotiate better for fair compensation based on their contributions.
It’s been a memorable second half of the year for Bollywood, with a string of blockbuster hits that broke some records recently. Not only has the industry got back on its feet, it is now galloping at a pace never seen before. Now, going by the movie pipeline for the upcoming months, the year seems set to end with a bang. Here’s a look at what’s set to rock your world from Bollywood in the remainder of this year
Tiger 3
The much-awaited sequel to Salman Khan starrer Ek-Tha Tiger and Tiger Zinda Hai is here! The trailer of the movie released on the 16th of October had the internet in a frenzy. Fans have termed it the “massiest film ever” with electrifying stunt sequences from Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif. Khan reprises his role as Avinash Singh Rathore aka Tiger, a suave and daring RAW agent who falls in love with Zoya (Katrina Kaif), an ISI agent from Pakistan. In this instalment, Tiger’s nemesis, an ISI agent played by Emraan Hashmi, kidnaps Zoya and creates mayhem. This pits Tiger against his namesake in a thrilling, high-octane drama. Katrina Kaif and Khan recreate their scintillating chemistry after 5 years in this action entertainer slated for release on November 12th. Directed by Maneesh Sharma and produced by Yash Raj Films, Tiger 3 is expected to be a paisa vasool entertainment with its slick action, exotic locales and the popular lead pair’s romance.
Dunki
Directed by Rajkumar Hirani and starring Shah Rukh Khan, Dunki is slated for a Christmas 2023 release. Billed as a comedy-drama about immigration, it explores the illegal backdoor immigration from India to countries like the USA, UK and Canada, popularly known as “Donkey Flight”. Shah Rukh Khan plays the role of a Punjabi, aspiring to immigrate to London along with his family by any means for a better life, only to get embroiled in a series of complex twists.
Speaking at the second edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival, the actor – who again broke all records with his recent films Jawan and Pathan, said that Dunki is “the story of people who want to come back home.” This seems to indicate that the film discusses the pains and struggles that Indian immigrants go through as they set off looking for better living standards in foreign countries. As for the name, says Khan, ‘Dunki is the Punjabi way of saying Donkey’.
Alongside SRK, Taapsee Pannu and Vicky Kaushal play important roles in the film. Under Hirani’s skilled direction, SRK’s crowd-pleasing presence and a subject with social relevance, Dunki promises to deliver an entertaining yet thought-provoking film on a serious real-world topic. Written by Abhijat Joshi and produced by Gauri Khan, Jyoti Deshpande and Rajkumar Hirani, the movie is set to release on 22 December 2023.
A scene from the teaser of the movie released on November 2.
Animal
Slated for release on the 1st of December 2023, Ranbir Kapoor has a lot riding on Animal, given that his last film, Brahmastra, did not do very well at the box office. Touted to be a crime drama, it is directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga who earlier made the controversial Hindi film Kabir Singh.
‘Animal’ explores the dark sides of human nature through the story of a violent man who goes to extreme lengths due to his troubled relationship with his father. Ranbir Kapoor is cast as the lead, while Anil Kapoor aces the role of his toxic, control-freak father. The film also has Bobby Deol and Rashmika Mandanna in key roles.
With a raw, gritty exploration of psychology and violence by director Vanga, and Ranbir Kapoor playing an intense, brooding role, Animal promises to be an edgy, unrestrained crime thriller for mature audiences when it hits screens. The film is produced by Bhushan Kumar and Krishan Kumar.
Sam Bahadur
Based on the life of India’s first Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, Sam Bahadur is a biopic starring Vicky Kaushal in the titular role. Directed by Meghna Gulzar, who earlier helmed the much acclaimed Raazi, the film focuses on Manekshaw’s military career and leadership as Chief of the Indian Army during the India-Pakistan 1971 war.
As a war drama, Sam Bahadur brings on screen a crucial chapter in India’s military history under Manekshaw’s command. Vicky Kaushal had to physically transform himself and go through military training to play this important historical figure with authenticity. With Gulzar’s skilled direction and Kaushal’s acting chops, the film promises to be an intriguing biopic that honours the achievements of Manekshaw when it releases. The film is set to release on the 1st of December, 2023.
Vicky Kaushal as Sam Bahadur, a scene from the trailer of the movie.
Yodha
Directed by Pushkar Ojha and Sagar Ambre, this high-octane action film features Sidharth Malhotra as the leading character. Yodha boasts of intense, hard-hitting action sequences with Malhotra performing daring stunts. After Shershaah, Sidharth Malhotra will showcase his action chops once again in this stylish, commercial film bankrolled by Dharma Productions. Written by Muhammad Asif Ali, the film also stars Disha Patani and Rashi Khanna in key roles. Set to release on the 8th of December, Yodha promises entertainment through raw stunts, powerful visuals and Malhotra’s unrestrained action-hero avatar.
The Diplomat
The stunt man John Abraham is back, but this time with a masterful combination of drama and thrills in his new movie – The Diplomat. Directed by Shivam Nair who helmed Naam Shabana, the movie narrates the story of an Indian diplomat who tries to repatriate an Indian woman trapped in Pakistan. The movie promises to keep viewers on the edge of their seats as it navigates through a thrilling story loaded with suspense and surprising twists. Apart from John Abraham, the film also stars Kumud Mishra, Sharib Hashmi and Sadia Khateeb in important roles. After some not-so-memorable performances from John Abraham, this movie is expected to be another comeback of the actor after he pulled off the villain role in Shahrukh Khan starrer Pathan. The Diplomat will hit the theatres on January 11, next year.
Aankh Micholi
Aankh Micholi is an upcoming comedy film directed by OMG: Oh My God fame Umesh Shukla. Led by Abhimanyu Dassani, who won hearts with his performance in Meenakshi Sundareshwar, and the new sensation Mrunal Thakur, this family entertainer follows the story of a girl with night blindness and her family members all with different disabilities. When they decide to get the girl married without revealing her condition to the groom’s family, chaos ensues, unfolding hilarious situations. Packed with quirky characters and lots of madness, Aankh Micholi promises a complete laugh riot. The movie also stars Sharman Joshi, Divya Dutta and Abhishek Banerjee. With Shukla’s experience directing entertainers like Oh My God and a vibrant ensemble cast, Aankh Micholi hopes to recreate the magic of family comedies from the Hrishikesh Mukherjee era. The movie was initially set to release on October 27 but it has been postponed to November 3rd, 2023.
Khichdi 2
Khichdi is getting another sequel in the form of Khichdi 2, bringing back the beloved characters and antics of the eccentric Parekh family. Spearheaded by producer JD Majethia, the film has original cast members like Supriya Pathak, Rajeev Mehta, Anang Desai, and Jamnadas Majethia reprising their iconic roles along with new additions. Set 15 years later, Khichdi 2 follows Praful’s desperate attempts to find a groom for his niece Himani which causes customary confusion and laughter in the madcap Parekh household.
Khichdi was a popular stage play on Star Plus that aired during the early 2000s and went on for two years with 98 episodes. The sitcom was later made into a feature movie by Aatish Kapadia in 2010. It is the only Indian sitcom to have been made into a full-length movie.
With seasoned actors, nostalgia, and situational humour around arranged marriages, Khichdi 2 will recreate the madcap world of the cult comedy show for fans. Releasing in 2023, Khichdi 2 aspires to serve nostalgia and laughs once again.
INCHEON: K-pop star G-Dragon, of wildly successful but problem-plagued band BIGBANG, denied any wrongdoing as he appeared for police questioning Monday over alleged drug use.
South Korea has extremely tough legislation on illegal drugs and even Koreans who take drugs like marijuana legally overseas risk prosecution upon returning to their home country.
G-Dragon, whose real name is Kwon Ji-Yong, arrived at the Incheon Nonhyeon police station in a black sedan, dressed in a dark suit and wearing black-rimmed glasses.
“I have not committed drug-related crimes and I’m actually here to reveal that,” he told reporters outside.
This year, President Yoon Suk Yeol called for more stringent measures to eliminate drug traffickers, saying the country was no longer “drug-free”.
The police plan to drug test G-Dragon and send a sample of his urine and hair to the National Forensic Service for a more detailed examination, according to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency.
When asked to send a message to his fans, the artist said: “Don’t worry too much. I’ll be back after I get investigated.”
G-Dragon is the latest in a string of South Korean entertainers to be probed for alleged drug use.
ALSO READ | K-pop star G-Dragon under police probe for alleged drug use
Police have launched an investigation into “Parasite” actor Lee Sun-kyun, who stands accused of using marijuana and other psychoactive drugs.
Lee was previously celebrated for his wholesome image, but local news outlets have reported that he is being dropped from television and commercial projects.
Last month, another high-profile actor, Yoo Ah-in, was indicted for alleged drug use.
G-Dragon’s group BIGBANG is one of South Korea’s most successful boy bands, having sold at least 140 million records worldwide since its debut in 2006.
But its members have often been in the limelight for misconduct.
Group member Seungri retired from show business in 2019 amid mounting criminal investigations, and was later sentenced to 18 months in prison for offering women to potential investors for sexual services, among other charges.
Rapper T.O.P, who in May revealed he had “withdrawn” from BIGBANG, received a suspended jail sentence in 2017 for using marijuana.
G-Dragon himself was investigated for marijuana use in 2011, but he was released without indictment.
NEW DELHI: One of the highlights of this year’s International Film Festival of India (IFFI) starting November 20 will be the world premiere of seven recently restored Indian classics including Dev Anand’s Guide released in 1965 and a biopic in Bengali — Vidyapati (1937) — directed by Debaki Bose.
Restoration and digitisation of old films is the biggest programme initiated across the globe as nearly 6,000 films including documentaries are being preserved under the National Film Heritage Mission (NFHM), said Union minister for information and broadcasting Anurag Thakur on Monday while briefing about the 54th edition of the festival to be held in Goa.
“India is not only the biggest film producer in the world; growth of OTT platforms is rapid in the country. Average growth of our entertainment and media industry is 20 percent per annum. It is becoming a million dollar industry and generating lakhs of employment opportunities. The country is turning into a hub of film shooting and post production; India is soon going to become a content hub of India,” added the minister.
The other restored films which are to be screened during the festival are Shyamchi Aai (Marathi/1953), Patala Bhairavi (Telugu/ 1951), Haqeeqat (Hindi/1964), Chorus (Bengali/1974) and Bees Saal Baad (Hindi/1962).
Also, three internationally restored films will be showcased including The Exorcist Extended Director’s cut (1973) and the 1965 melodrama Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors. The government announced a budget of Rs 363 crores for the Mission in May 2022.
“The reels (of films) have not just been digitised but scratch marks and other damages have been restored… Nearly 2,500 films of various languages have been carefully restored so far,” said Prithul Kumar, director of the film festival.
As part of the Indian Panorama, 25 feature films and 20 non-feature films from India will be exhibited at IFFI. The opening film in the feature section is a Malayalam film ‘Aattam’ and in the non-feature section is ‘Andro Dreams’ from Manipur.
In the ‘international section’, there will be 198 films. The festival will see 13 world and 18 international premieres. Besides, 62 productions will make their Asian debut during the nine-day event and it also has 89 premieres of Indian films. “This year, IFFI received a record number of 2,926 entries from 105 countries, which is three times more international submissions than last year,” the minister said.
There will be facilities to ensure that specially-abled festival delegates can access all the screening and other venues, he added.
ALSO READ | Shekhar Kapur to serve as international competition jury head for IFFI 2023
LOS ANGELES: ‘Oppenheimer’ star Cillian Murphy will be honoured with the Desert Palm Achievement Award at the 2023 Palm Springs International Film Awards.
Murphy will receive the honour for his portrayal of physicist J Robert Oppenheimer in Christopher Nolan’s critically acclaimed film at the Film Awards on January 4 at the Palm Springs Convention Centre, a press release said.
“After working together on five previous films, including ‘The Dark Knight’ trilogy, ‘Inception’, and ‘Dunkirk’, Cillian Murphy and writer-director Christopher Nolan reunite for one of the most ambitious and epic films of the year.
“Murphy gives a stunning portrayal of J. Robert Oppenheimer as a conflicted scientist leading the Manhattan Project to produce the world’s first atomic bomb. For this career-best performance, we are honoured to present the Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actor, to Cillian Murphy,” said festival chairman Nachhattar Singh Chandi.
Previous recipients of the actor award include Riz Ahmed, Jeff Bridges, Bradley Cooper, Daniel Day-Lewis and Adam Driver.
Besides Murphy, the Palm Springs International Film Awards will honour Emma Stone with the Desert Palm Achievement Award for her role in ‘Poor Things’, directed by Yorgos Lanthimos.
Stone will also receive the honour at the January 4 awards.
The organisers earlier announced that the award gala will present veteran filmmaker Martin Scorsese with the Vanguard Award for his latest film ‘The Killers of the Flower Moon’.
The award aims to honour a film’s cast and director for their collective work on an exceptional project.
BARCELONA: After having maintained her innocence for nearly five years, pop star Shakira struck a last-minute deal to avoid the risk of going to prison on the opening day of her tax fraud trial in Barcelona on Monday.
Shakira told the presiding magistrate, José Manuel del Amo, that she accepted the agreement reached with prosecutors. She answered “yes” to confirm her acknowledgement of six counts of failing to pay the Spanish government 14.5 million euros (about $15.8 million) in taxes between 2012 and 2014.
Under the deal, Shakira is to receive a suspended three-year sentence and a fine of 7 million euros ($7.6 million).
The trial, which would have included more than 100 witnesses over the following weeks, was instead called off after just eight minutes.
Prosecutors said in July that they would seek a prison sentence of eight years and two months and a fine of 24 million euros ($26 million) for the singer, who has won over fans worldwide for her hits in Spanish and English in different musical genres.
Shakira said in a statement provided by her public relations firm that she had wanted to fight on but put her family, career and peace of mind first.
“I have made the decision to finally resolve this matter with the best interest of my kids at heart who do not want to see their mom sacrifice her personal well-being in this fight,” she said. “I need to move past the stress and emotional toll of the last several years and focus on the things I love, my kids and all the opportunities to come in my career.”
The case hinged on where Shakira, now 46, lived during that period. Prosecutors in Barcelona have alleged that the Colombian singer spent more than half of that period in Spain and therefore should have paid taxes on her worldwide income in the country even though her official residence was still in the Bahamas. Tax rates are much lower in the Bahamas than in Spain.
The multiple Grammy and Latin Grammy winner waved and blew a kiss to a small crowd of bystanders before entering the courthouse. She briefly sat in front of the panel of judges, flanked by teams of prosecutors on one side and the defense on the other.
“This has been a difficult decision that took time to reach,” defense lawyer Miriam Company told reporters. “Her legal team had prepared the trial and were convinced we could demonstrate her innocence, but the circumstances changed and (Shakira) opted to accept the deal.”
Shakira turned down a deal offered to her by prosecutors to settle her case in July 2022, saying, via her Spanish public relations firm Llorente y Cuenca, that she “believes in her innocence and chooses to leave the issue in the hands of the law.” The details of that potential deal were not made public.
Shakira was named in the “Paradise Papers” leaks that detailed the offshore tax arrangements of numerous high-profile individuals, including musical celebrities such as Madonna and U2’s Bono.
Shakira’s public relations firm had previously said that she had already paid all that she owed and an additional 3 million euros (about $3.2 million) in interest.
The defense team for Shakira, the Barcelona firm Molins Defensa Penal, said in November 2022 that she had not spent more than 60 days a year inside the country during the period in question, adding she would have needed to have spent half the year in Spain to be considered a fiscal resident. Her defense argued that she was away from Barcelona for long stretches on a world tour in 2011 and then spent a lot of time in the United States as part of a jury for the NBC television music talent show The Voice.
Spanish prosecutors disagreed, and the investigating judge, Marco Juberías, wrote in 2021 on the conclusion of a three-year probe into the charges that he found there existed “sufficient evidence of criminality” for the case to go to trial. Shakira defended her innocence when she was questioned by Juberías in 2019.
She lost an appeal to have the case thrown out last year.
Shakira established her fiscal residency in Spain in 2014 at the same time her oldest child was enrolled in school in Barcelona, according to her defense team, as she was going to spend more time in the country with her family.
In Spain, an investigative judge carries out an initial probe and decides either to throw the case out or send it to trial. A court can waive prison time for first-time offenders if they are sentenced to less than two years behind bars.
In a separate investigation, Spanish state prosecutors charged Shakira in September with alleged evasion of 6.7 million euros in tax on her 2018 income. They accused her of using an offshore company based in a tax haven to avoid paying the tax.
Spain has cracked down on soccer stars such as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo over the past decade for not paying their full taxes. The former Barcelona and Real Madrid stars were found guilty of evasion but both avoided prison time after their sentences were suspended.
Shakira, whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, has two children, Milan and Sasha, with Barcelona soccer star Gerard Piqué. The couple lived together in Barcelona before ending their 11-year relationship last year. Since then, she has resided in Miami.
After triumphing at the Latin Grammy Awards gala in Seville on Thursday, Shakira thanked her fans in Spain for “being with me in the good times and the bad.”
“We all are Birds of Migration. Some With Feathers, Some Without” (2023). All photos by Brian Tallman, shared with permission
A mouse-costumed girl sitting on a duffel bag, a bird balancing on a unicycle, and bright blue narwhals swimming along the train line in Stavanger, Norway, are a few characters in Hera’s new murals considering the nuances of immigration and movement. “We all are Birds of Migration. Some With Feathers, Some Without” is a collection of works that ask viewers to recognize that mobility and resettling have been essential to human survival for millennia. The artist (previously) says:
We all exist today because our ancestors at some point either freely migrated to greener pastures, more fertile grounds, greater resources, and safer living conditions, or were forcibly moved from one place to another at some point at some point in history. Not even the most nationalist nationalist can deny the factual reality: humans still exist today because they migrated, they moved themselves, their families, their genes across lands, seas, continents.
Commissioned by Nuart—check out the 2023 edition of its annual festival in Aberdeen—the gestural murals are part of the Planes, Trains & Automobiles project bringing public artworks to high-visibility spots like airports and transit centers. The location also dovetails with Hera’s interest in migration, particularly as it relates to daily commutes. She says, “Some could argue that this does not count as an act of migration. But doesn’t it? Do students not leave their home, travel for miles and miles, to make more of themselves? Do commuters not leave their homes and families in order to make a living, and provide for their existence?”
The figures feature Hera’s signature wide, glassy eyes and costumes that transform them into scavenger-like creatures. Imbued with a sense of resilience, the characters emphasize the innate, animal impulse to travel and migrate that proliferates throughout the natural world.
See some of the works take shape on the artist’s Instagram.
#Hera
#murals
#public art
#street art
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Jack Pokoj, a lizardfish’s open mouth reveals its last meal, Philippines. All images courtesy of Ocean Photographer of the Year, shared with permission
The waters surrounding the Philippines were fruitful for photographers this year, producing several winning images of the 2023 Ocean Photographer of the Year contest. From a boastful lizardfish to a tiny paper nautilus floating among volcanic debris, the lauded shots document marine life above and below the surface, glimpsing not only the stunning beauty of land and sea creatures but also the threats many face given a warming planet and rampant pollution. Some of our favorite photos are shown here, and if you’re in Sydney, you can see the full collection through May 26, 2024, at the National Maritime Museum.
Jialing Cai, a Paper Nautilus drifts on a piece of ocean debris at night, surrounded by heavy sediment, Philippines
Michael Haluwana, illuminated by the Arctic sun, a polar bear walks across a glacier that is adorned by a waterfall, Arctic
Andrei Savin, a crab sits in the centre of a sea anemone as it sways in ocean current, Philippines
Craig Parry, a gentoo penguin, the fastest penguin species in the world, charges across the water, Antarctica
Sylvie Ayer, a manatee enjoys the crystal-clear waters of the Homosassa River, Florida
Renee Cappozzola, a female paper nautilus with egg case rides a small jellyfish, taken on a blackwater dive, Anilao, Philippines
Florian Ledoux, a polar bear cub contends with the fragility of melting ice, Svalbard, Norway
#climate crisis
#contests
#fish
#oceans
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Ten Lebanese designers have collaborated with artisans from the Beit Chabab Hospital Workshop to create a unique, limited-edition collection of sculptural candles. The initiative of the nonprofit House of Today, The Candle Project features ten carved, wax works in varying colors and styles, ranging from Aline Asmar d’Amman’s architectural “Aspiration” with winding staircases to LimbObject’s surreal entanglement of hands and arms. Each piece is available from House of Today, with proceeds benefiting the hospital and the nonprofit’s mentorship program. (via designboom)
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“Retour à la Caverne – Acte I” (2023), Palais Garnier, Opéra de Paris. All images courtesy of Opéra de Paris
“Our role as artists is always to search for the light,” says French artist JR (previously) about the second act of his Retour à la Caverne project. “We know this much: You don’t chase away the darkness with more darkness. You chase it away with light, however tiny.”
The work he’s referring to, though, is far from tiny. Cloaking Paris’s Palais Garnier while the building is under construction, Retour à la Caverne is an enormous trompe l’oeil facade, the first part of which depicts a cave carved into the grand structure that houses the opera. Illuminated at the center, the temporary piece highlights the physical and metaphorical interactions between light and dark. Broken into two acts like an opera libretto, the work references Plato’s allegory that emerging from the depths of the cave, and from darkness, brings knowledge.
“Act I” debuted earlier this fall with four nights of projected works, while the second part was held on November 12. “Back in September, we invited you to step out of the cave to go and explore. This time, we’re inviting you back inside the cave,” JR said while introducing the work. Whereas “Act I” portrays the cavern gouged into the center of the building, “Act II” switches perspectives, placing the viewers entirely inside the space.
Titled “Chiroptera,” the performance featured choreography by Damien Jalet and music by Thomas Bangalter. More than 150 dancers appeared through an elevated seven-story scaffolding after an eerie introduction by ballerina Amandine Albisson, who appeared to open the cave, causing a plummet into darkness. As with many of JR’s works, the artist asked the crowd to participate by using headlamps and their phones to illuminate the remainder of the performance, revealing the ways light can emerge from collective action.
Watch the full performance below, and find more from JR on Instagram.
“Retour à la Caverne – Acte II” (2023), Palais Garnier, Opéra de Paris
“Retour à la Caverne – Acte II” (2023), Palais Garnier, Opéra de Paris
#JR
#public art
#trompe l’oeil
#video
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Danielle Clough. All images courtesy of Paradigm Gallery + Studio, shared with permission
What lies beyond the stars we see when we look up at the night sky? A group exhibition opening next week at Paradigm Gallery + Studio brings together the works of 18 artists who each capture the wonder of the unknown.
Curated by Colossal’s founder and publisher Christopher Jobson, Lone Splendor draws its name from John Keats’ poem “Bright star, would I were stedfast as thou art” and conjures our enduring fascination with the cosmos and imagined worlds. The exhibition features works in a variety of mediums and styles, including the dense, thread portraits of Danielle Clough, Hari & Deepti’s illuminated sculptures, and Lorraine Loots’ tiny recreation of the enormous Pillars of Creation.
Lone Splendor will be on view through January 7, 2024, in Philadelphia. Join us on December 1 for an opening reception, and get a sneak peek of the available works on Paradigm.
Lorraine Loots
Duy Huynh
Eli McMullen
Graham Franciose
Jeremy Miranda
Andrew McIntosh
Allison May Kiphuth
#astronomy
#embroidery
#light
#painting
#stars
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All photos by Joe Michael, courtesy of the Mystic Seaport Museum, shared with permission
From the mid-1800s to the 1930s, father-and-son artist duo Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka crafted thousands of glass models of flora and fauna (previously) in exquisite, scientific detail. Sea creatures were an area of particular fascination, as delicate spines, tentacles, and frills rendered in lifelike color extend from the bodies of squid and sea anemones. And at the Mystic Seaport Museum, a major exhibition of more than 40 of the remarkable specimens come to life in Spineless: A Glass Menagerie of Blaschka Marine Invertebrates.
Spineless dives into the history of the Blaschkas’ extraordinary contributions to scientific education, starting with the elder artist’s fascination with ocean life. Leopold was inspired to recreate specimens he saw in the wild and successfully completed a commission for a nearby natural history museum in the 1850s. He realized there was a demand for lifelike versions of creatures that scientists found challenging to preserve and document, and the glass variety required no special jars or chemical treatments to keep them looking as good as new.
Leopold found his audience in universities and museums around the world, establishing a mail-order business to ship the fragile pieces to institutions where they were used for teaching or put on display. Eventually joined by his son, the two “relied on their relationships with scientists, along with observations of live specimens held in aquariums, wet specimens, books, and scientific journals,” the Mystic Seaport Museum says in a statement.
The Blaschkas are also known for their fifty-year endeavor to make 4,300 models that represent 780 plant species, comprising the Ware Collection of Blaschka Glass Models of Plants, which you can visit at Harvard Museum. Spineless continues in Mystic, Connecticut, through September 2024. Plan your visit and discover more on the museum’s website.
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Artist and architect Ulf Mejergren (previously) continues his interest in cozy, outdoor constructions with a new series titled Farm Art. Collaborating with farmer Robert Pettersson, Mejergren built several site-specific structures from materials found around Pettersson’s property in Grödinge, Sweden.
For “Pine Bark Hut,” the pair layered thick, gnarly wood into a slender cabin camouflaged between two trees, a space first used for hunting and then storing tools. Similarly, “Root Hut” entwines gathered branches with the existing roots to create a small, sand pit enclosure nestled beneath the forest, while the circular “Moss Hut” stands 4.5 meters tall among the trees. The latter work “stems from the farmers’ hunting interest,” Mejergren writes. “For many years, he has put food at certain points in the forests so wild boars come to feed there. The problem is they are like bulldozers in the forests, looking for insects and roots in the soil, so they have dug up moss from the forest floor and left them scattered in big droves.” Cloaked in the remaining lichen, the structure is a disguised refuge among the wild landscape.
Other works in Farm Art are more aesthetically driven, like the vivid “Sunset.” Made of dandelion heads at full bloom, the spherical form appears to glow in a field of weeds and wildflowers. Find the full series on Mejergren’s site and Instagram.
“Pine Bark Hut”
“Sunset”
Detail of “Moss Hut”
“Sunset”
“Root Hut”
“Hay House”
#land art
#nature
#plants
#site-specific
#Ulf Mejergren
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Tim Flach, “Flamingo Reflections.” All images courtesy of Vital Impacts, shared with permission
Since launching a few years ago, Vital Impacts (previously) has raised more than $2 million for conservation and humanitarian efforts. The nonprofit hosts annual print sales to raise funds for various causes, bringing together hundreds of photographers from around the globe who document the beauty and unexpected moments of the natural world. This year’s initiative encompasses images of both the minuscule and the vast, from a close-up of the tiny, bulbous tentacles of a blue button jellyfish to a stunning composite of a star being born.
Proceeds from the sale will go toward Retei Elephant Sanctuary, Africa’s first Indigenous-owned and-run group seeking to return 13 orphaned elephants to the wild. Shop the collection on Vital Impacts.
Michael Nichols, Jou Jou and Dr. Jane Goodall, Brazzaville Zoo, Republic of Congo (1990)
Mitch Dobrowner, “Lightning Strikes”
Ami Vitale, “Mary and Lodokejek”
Jody MacDonald, “Rajan Morning Walk”
James Webb Telescope, “Birth of Sun-like Stars”
Jim Naughten, “Muledeer”
Javier Aznar, “Two Owls”
David Liittschwager, “Blue Button”
Michelle Valberg, “Mid-Air Flurry”
#animals
#astronomy
#Vital Impacts
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Creating pieces that are part artwork and part fashion, Oklahoma City-based artist Kendall Ross of I’d Knit That imbues her knitwear with plenty of personality. “My I’d Knit That project got started because I thought the name was funny, and I was convinced I needed to claim the Instagram handle before someone else did back in 2019,” she tells Colossal. “Originally, it was a very casual way for me to share photos of what I was making and to organize knitting meet-ups with my friends from college. Still, I started taking it very seriously, and it ended up being a very important way for me to share my art and connect with other artists.”
Ross emphasizes bright hues in her pieces, using stitching methods like intarsia or Fair Isle colorwork—also known as stranded colorwork—to illustrate playful graphics and incorporate original texts. In a statement on her site, she writes that she is “drawn to telling unapologetically intimate, complicated stories of feminine, overlooked moments…putting private emotions on display for people to wear on their chest in their public lives.”
All of Ross’ vests and cardigans are hand-knit from either acrylic or wool yarn, the latter of which the artist hand-dyes herself whenever she is able. “I have done a lot of hand-dyeing in the past, and I really love the process of it,” she says, sharing that space is limited in her home studio, so she isn’t able to add color to all of her materials. This winter, she’s looking forward to a residency at Penland School of Craft in January, where she’ll focus on the hand-dyeing process.
Ross is currently working toward shows in 2024 in Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and the Pacific Northwest, and she also teaches at the Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center, where this winter, she is offering a class on how to knit sweaters for dogs. “I think they only agreed to let me do it because I talk about my basset hound Frankie so much, but I’m very excited about it!”
Find more in the artist’s shop, and follow updates on Instagram. (via Kottke)
“Girl Talk” (2021), hand-knit acrylic
Left: “Stress Knit” (2022), hand-knit wool. Right: “Bad Driver” (2022), hand-knit with wool the artist hand-dyed
“Product Placement” (2023), hand-knit wool
“Fake Vest” (2023), hand-knit wool
Left: “Storyteller 2” (2023), hand-knit with wool for La Colombe Coffee. Right: “Company” (2022), hand-knit with wool the artist hand-dyed
“Everyone will forget about this” (2023), hand-knit with wool the artist hand-dyed
“Boring” (2023), hand-knit wool
#fashion
#humor
#Kendall Ross
#knitting
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Photos by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Manar Abu Dhabi, shared with permission
For artist Jim Denevan, a paramount element of his creative practice centers on building experiences within landscapes through art and temporary events. Known for his large-scale land works that shape expanses of sand into precise geometries (previously), he allows time, weather, and changing tides to gradually reform the compositions back into natural terrain. Opening today in the capital of the U.A.E., Denevan’s expansive “Self Similar” is part of Manar Abu Dhabi, a new initiative celebrating public art and illuminating the city’s landmarks and vistas with light.
Bordered by the Arabian Sea on Abu Dhabi’s Fahid Island, visitors can reach the installation via a bridge that aligns with its geometry. “As I draw and shape these forms, an invitation is made; it emerges. An ‘entering into’ takes place,” he says of the creative process, mirroring the experience of wandering through the composition. The piece’s 19 rings and 448 pyramids span nearly a square kilometer, and at the work’s highest point, it reaches 27 meters tall.
Denevan, who is also a chef, founded Outstanding in the Field in 1999, inviting people to meet and dine at temporary tables in stunning locations before packing up and leaving the location just as it was. “In the tables he sets and the land artworks he creates, there is an element of organic impermanence at play,” says a statement on his site. The size and scale of his installations range from small compositions on beaches to city-size interventions that stretch miles, each in response to a specific site.
Manar Abu Dhabi continues through January 30, 2024, and you can explore more on Denevan’s website. You might also enjoy this music video from earlier this year, directed by Owen Brown of CNTRL5 and featuring the band ARIZONA, which centers around a 90,000-square-foot installation by Denevan in a dry riverbed in the American Southwest.
Manar Abu Dhabi continues through January 30, 2024, and you can explore more on the artist’s website.
#geometric
#Jim Denevan
#land art
#landscapes
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#Amy Sherald
#art history
#Kehinde Wiley
#painting
#portraits
#video
November 20, 2023
Kate Mothes
In 2018, when their portraits of former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama were unveiled at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald were thrust into the spotlight. The portraits were formally installed in the White House in 2022, when filmmaker Christine Turner’s documentary short, “Paint & Pitchfork,” also debuted on The New Yorker.
Turner was approached by LACMA to profile the renowned American artists, giving them “the same reverence, dignity, and respect” that they afford their own sitters. In the short film, Sherald and Wiley discuss their first interactions with art and what compelled them to paint people.
Both artists have dedicated their practices to reframing Western European portraiture traditions that have historically excluded representations of Black people. For Sherald, this is a matter of portraying Black figures during pastimes and everyday scenes, expressing comfort, leisure, and joy (previously).
In the film, Sherald says, “A question that I’ve been asked often is, will you ever paint anybody other than Black people? And my answer is, no, I won’t. Because the image of whiteness has been perpetuated beautifully throughout history, so you don’t really need my help. Like I’m here to paint my own ideal and to represent that in the world. And if I can’t do that, then something is deeply wrong.”
For Wiley, painting involves examining the symbolism of power and prestige of Grand Manner portraiture (previously), positioning Black figures on horseback, wielding staffs, and standing in front of ornate decor. “Portraiture is about the resistance of death. But painting is also about the style of living that you want to live,” he says. In a later segment, he shares that his approach to painting is two things at the same time: “There’s the desire for acceptability. And then there’s the desire for revolution. I’m carrying both paint and pitchfork.”
Learn more about Christine Turner’s work on her website. And if you haven’t yet, check out our interview with Amy Sherald from earlier this year.
#Amy Sherald
#art history
#Kehinde Wiley
#painting
#portraits
#video
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Rhode Island School of Design has opened registration for its residential summer Pre-College program and year-round online intensive Advanced Program Online.
At Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) Pre-College, rising high school juniors and seniors can experience life as a RISD undergrad and work alongside hundreds of other creative, highly motivated students who will inspire them to push their limits and produce their best work. Students will follow a college-level curriculum inspired by the RISD first-year experience with day-long studio classes, visits to the Nature Lab and RISD Museum, critiques, and projects that will forever shape how they approach art and design. Outside of the studio, students can participate in trips and events throughout Providence and beyond. Summer 2024 runs from June 29 through August 3.
RISD’s Advanced Program Online is a year-round online intensive designed for high school students interested in pursuing art and design in college who want to learn best practices in developing their work. This series of college-level courses for students in grades 10 to 12 calls on creative young people to access a more ‘flexible mindset’—applying art and design methods to chart new territories of creation and problem-solving. The Spring 2024 term runs from March 2 to May 12, and the Summer 2024 term runs from June 22 through August 18.
Whether on-campus or online, students will participate in courses led by reputable teaching artists, learn to manage time and self-motivate, and develop concepts, sketches, and finished pieces that can be included in or inform their college applications. Both programs are designed to not only help students build portfolios but also develop as artists and individuals.
Galaxy cluster MACS0416. Image courtesy of NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, J. Diego (Instituto de Física de Cantabria, Spain), J. D’Silva (U. Western Australia), A. Koekemoer (STScI), J. Summers & R. Windhorst (ASU), and H. Yan (U. Missouri)
The groundbreaking James Webb Space Telescope and its predecessor the Hubble Space Telescope have collaborated on a new cosmic composite teeming with colorful galaxies. Using infrared observations from Webb and visible-light details from Hubble, astronomers stitched together an astonishing, panchromatic image of the MACS0416 cluster located approximately “4.3 billion light-years from Earth, meaning that the light from it that we see now left the cluster shortly after the formation of our solar system,” a release from the European Space Agency says. Our solar system is nearly 4.6 billion years old.
Both telescopes register wavelengths in black and white and in a manner that’s different from the way humans see light, so researchers assigned colors to galaxies to mimic our eyesight. “The bluest galaxies are relatively nearby and often show intense star formation, as best detected by Hubble, while the redder galaxies tend to be more distant, or else contain copious amounts of dust, as best detected by Webb,” the team says, noting that the image captures an exceptional range of wavelengths, from 0.4 to 5 microns. Intermediate galaxies are shown in green.
Because of gravitational lensing—this happens when an enormous celestial body, like the cluster shown, bends the path of light into a curved shape—this image of MACS0416 also magnifies light from additional galaxies even farther away, along with supernovae and individual stars. With its vivid, illuminating colors, the image is thought to be one of the most colorful depictions of the cosmos in existence. (via PetaPixel)
#astronomy
#James Webb Space Telescope
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“Gravity and Grace” (2023), installation view at National Art Center. Photo by Keizo Kioku. All images courtesy of National Art Center
In “Gravity and Grace,” Japanese artist Shinji Ohmaki poses a broad, if not daunting, question: what does it mean to exist? The installation, which features an imposing vessel carved with flora and fauna, radiates from the center and casts shadows in varied sizes and opacities around the gallery. Bulbous near the base with a slimmer neck that reaches toward the ceiling, the work’s shape evokes the tower of a nuclear power plant and spills light in every direction.
This iteration of “Gravity and Grace,” which is part of a series ongoing since 2016, is included in Ohmaki’s exhibition Interface of Being on view now at Tokyo’s National Art Center. The solo show features works made in response to the devastating 2011 earthquake and tsunami that killed nearly 20,000 people and caused the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant to melt down and release radioactive water.
Reaching up to a whopping 840,000 lumens, “Gravity and Grace” harnesses the interplay of light and shadow to critique modern society’s dependence on energy, literally mapping illuminated patterns onto the viewers who pass by. The contrast also draws attention to nature’s cycles and the artist’s enduring interest in time and space, particularly the reminder that we all inhabit this planet for a relatively brief moment.
If you’re in Tokyo, you can see Interface of Being, which also includes a gossamer sculpture that undulates across the gallery like billowing fabric, through December 25. Otherwise, find more from Ohmaki on his site and Instagram.
Detail of “Gravity and Grace” (2023). Image courtesy of A4 Art Museum
“Gravity and Grace” (2023), installation view at National Art Center. Photo by Keizo Kioku
Detail of “Gravity and Grace” (2023)
“Liminal Air Space—Time Vacuum Fluctuations,” installation view National Art Center. Photo by Keizo Kioku
#installation
#light
#sculpture
#Shinji Ohmaki
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“Glue-hardening process,” Book 9, Folio 64v, Artist K. All images courtesy of The Getty
In 1577, Franciscan friar Bernardino de Sahagún finished a monumental encyclopedia of Mesoamerican culture. Working in collaboration with Nahua writers, artists, and elders, Sahagún documented life in the Aztec empire around the time of the Spanish conquest, together creating nearly 2,500 illustrations and 12 books recording the daily practices and culture of 16th-century Mexico. The text is widely regarded as one of the most important resources of Indigenous knowledge, especially considering most history is derived from colonial perspectives.
The Getty Research Institute recently released a digitized version of La Historia General de las Cosas de Nueva España, which is best known as the Florentine Codex—this name comes from the text’s mysterious storage in the Medici family libraries for centuries. Although the Library of Congres and UNESCO’s Memory of the World have offered scanned iterations of the books since 2012 and 2015, respectively, this edition is the most widely accessible because of its searchable interface and additional context.
Organized by topic, text, and images, the new platform contains both the original Nahuatl and Spanish writings alongside English translations. In a conversation with Hyperallergic, Kim Richter, a researcher leading the project, described the dual texts as complementary and offering unique perspectives on the same events. Although the manuscript was originally thought to lack “aesthetic value…Today, we see them as an important testament of a tumultuous period in Mexico in the early decades following the conquest of Mexico,” Richter says.
The books, which begin with gods and rituals and end with conquest, are available to view page-by-page, with special sections devoted to deities, animals, and other aspects of everyday life from tamales and cacao to coyotes and chapulin, or grasshoppers. Included are Nahua ritual calendars, depictions of midwives attempting to heal those suffering from a grim smallpox outbreak, and the omens and horrors that accompanied the Spanish invasion.
Since launching earlier this month, the Florentine Codex has already inspired a video game set amid the aftermath of the 1520 Toxcatl massacre. The Getty also plans to release additional resources in conjunction with the digital archive, which provides a necessary addendum to colonial history.
“Metztli icualoca: lunar eclipse,” Book 7, Folio 7r, Artist N
“Disguised merchants in Tzinacantlan,” Book 9, Folio 18v, Artist N
“Papalomichin and Ocelomichin,” Book 11, Folio 62v
“Xicalpapalotl,” Book 11, Folio 100r
“Macuilocelotl,” Book 9, Folio 58r
#art history
#Indigenous culture
#Mexico
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Working together from about 1941 to 1969 in Gloucester, Massachusetts, and almost entirely comprised of women block printers, the artists of the Folly Cove Designers comprised one of America’s longest-running collectives. The pioneering group produced hundreds of unique designs, and a new book by Elena M. Sarni from Princeton Architectural Press titled Trailblazing Women Printmakers: Virginia Lee Burton Demetrios and the The Folly Cove Designersdetails the group’s prolific history and extensive works.
Led by acclaimed children’s book author Virginia Lee Burton Demetrios, the collective functioned similarly to a medieval craft guild. Artists would convene regularly for classes on design and technique and also hone their skills individually, either at home or in the studio. Afterwards, jurors assessed their designs, and upon approval, the works proceeded to the printing stage.
Cut from linoleum and block-printed onto mainly fabric, each design tells a story. Members were constantly urged to draw inspiration from their surroundings, whether depicting a musical performance, the local college campus, or kitchen utensils and ingredients. Each artist shared personal narratives and familiar scenes. According to the Cape Ann Museum, which houses the largest collection of work by the Folly Cove Designers, Demetrios encouraged artists to “draw ‘what they knew’ and to sketch their subjects over and over again until they made them their own.” Each intricate print documented daily life, giving voice to women’s stories.
Find your copy of Trailblazing Women Printmakers on Bookshop.
Eino Natti, “Polyphemus.” Photo by Gary Lowell, courtesy of Sandy Bay Historical Society
Louise Kenyon, “Head of the Cove.” Photo by Peter Morse, courtesy of Peter and Bobbi Kovner
Virginia Lee Burton Demetrios, “Robin Hood.” Hood. Photo by Gary Lowell, courtesy of Sandy Bay Historical Society
Aino Clarke, “Atomic Age.” Courtesy of Cape Ann Museum
Louise Kenyon, “Smith College.” Photo by Peter Morse, courtesy of Peter and Bobbi Kovner
Virginia Lee Burton Demetrios, “Finnish Hop.” Photo by Gary Lowell, courtesy of Sandy Bay Historical Society
Lee Natti, “Old Sturbridge Country Store.” Photo by Gary Lowell, courtesy of Kathryn Soucy
Group portrait of the Folly Cove Designers, courtesy of Cape Ann Museum
#art history
#books
#printmaking
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Stories come to life on the page and introspective figures explore inner worlds in the dreamlike illustrations of Simón Prades (previously). His surreal scenes often feature silhouettes of people peering into the unknown, whether toward a distant memory, the wilderness, or the future. Rendered in deep hues with an emphasis on the effects of light and contrast, he draws attention to human nature and universal, emotional experiences of hope, nostalgia, and wonder.
Prades has worked as a freelance illustrator for more than ten years, finding visual language to express ideas in editorial and book publishing, film, music, and advertising. His clients have included The New York Times, Penguin Random House, Scientific American, and many more. “While I still love solving problems for clients, I must say that the urge to work on more personal projects has been growing and might manifest in a book or something like that soon,” he tells Colossal.
Prades is looking forward to a project next year that merges illustration with his other passion, cycling. During a 10-day tour through the Pyrenees, he plans to capture the experience in his sketchbook. Explore more of his work on his website and Behance, and follow updates on Instagram.
#narrative
#plants
#surreal
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Since 2017, Danish photographer Søren Solkær has traveled Europe in search of the mesmerizing phenomenon of starling murmurations. Occurring before dusk during spring and autumn, cool weather and an instinct for safety gathers thousands of the black songbirds into enormous, undulating clouds. Solkær captures these enigmatic evening shows in his ongoing series Black Sun (previously), and a survey of these works opens at the National Nordic Museum in Seattle, Washington, next month.
The term “murmuration” is derived from starlings’ fluttering wings and flight calls, providing a distinct soundtrack to meadows and marshlands. Solkær remembers being fascinated by the birds as a child growing up in southern Denmark, where he would watch the creatures swoop through the sky near his home. The title Black Sun is derived from the Danish phrase “sort sol,” describing the way the aerial masses obscure the sun.
Coinciding with the exhibition, Solkær has just released a new monograph in the series titled Starling, documenting their movements in Ireland, Italy, Denmark, and The Netherlands. Starling is available for purchase now on Solkær’s website, and Black Sun will open December 9 and continue through March 10, 2024, in Seattle. Follow the photographer’s Instagram for more updates.
“Black Sun #183, Aventoft, Denmark”
“Black Sun #145, Rome, Italy”
“Black Sun #230, Sardinia, Italy”
“Black Sun #237, Sardinia, Italy”
“Black Sun #75, Aiguamolls de l’Empordá, Catalonia, Spain”
“Black Sun #128, Houtwiel, Friesland, The Netherlands”
“Black Sun #149, Rome, Italy”
#birds
#landscapes
#Søren Solkær
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“Nimbus Kunstmuseum Hal” (2021). Photo by Cassander Eeftinck Schattenkerk. All images courtesy of the artist and Ronchini Gallery, shared with permission
For less than ten seconds, Berndnaut Smilde’s floating sculptures transform galleries, halls, and warehouses into uncanny spaces where indoors meets out. Puffy clouds made of smoke and water hang inside tiled interiors or industrial workshops for a brief time when they’re photographed by the artist’s collaborators. The ephemeral works are part of Smilde’s Nimbus series, ongoing for more than a decade. “I’m still fascinated by capturing a cloud. I never get bored by the process of how the appearance forms into a physical cloud, taking up space, reflecting light, and a specific moment,” he shares.
In recent years, the sculptures have become denser and larger, more imposing elements that haunt quiet spaces from Dubai to Paris to Washington, D.C. Depending on their location, the pieces take on varied meanings to explore questions of time, boundaries, and perception. Smilde explains:
The cloud is a great metaphor and it changes its context, its interpretation, with each space. The old chapel at the Hotel Maria Kapel art space in the Dutch town of Hoorn, where I made my first cloud, for example, emphasized the divine connotations, but in other environments, it could appear as an element escaped from a landscape painting, a thought, a heavenly place, a concealing element, or simply an in-between state. This fleeting aspect of the work is something I’ve embraced in my other artworks, as well. I’ve also learned not to always need to have full control over it and to accept change. A cloud isn’t durable, it changes, grows, and breaks apart.
Smilde’s work is included in a group show on view through March 17, 2024, at Museum Gegenstandsfreier Kunst in Otterndorf, Germany, and he’s currently creating a piece for a hotel in Amsterdam, where he’s based. Find more of his short-lived weather works on Instagram. (via Aesthetica Magazine)
“Nimbus De.Groen” (2017). Photo by Cassander Eeftinck Schattenkerk
“Nimbus Museum De Lakenhal” (2022). Photo by Cassander Eeftinck Schattenkerk
“Nimbus MdbK” (2021). Photo by Cassander Eeftinck Schattenkerk
“Nimbus Atlas” (2017), exhibition view at De.Groen fine art collection
#architecture
#clouds
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In the 250 years since its fabrication in the studio of jeweler and entrepreneur James Cox, the Silver Swan automaton has beguiled viewers. The mechanical sculpture continues to live up to its original purpose, designed as a crowd-puller to the artist’s workshop in 18th-century London, which also served as a small museum. Today, it is an iconic resident of the The Bowes Museum at Barnard Castle in County Durham, U.K.
Cox modeled the life-size creature on a female swan, incorporating 2,000 moving parts, including 139 crystal rods and 113 neck rings. A slew of delicate pieces are encased in chased, repoussé silver, operated by three clockwork mechanisms that control a music box, a pool of glass with swimming silver fish, and the complex movements of the swan’s head and neck. At the 1867 Paris International Exhibition, its large scale and hefty price tag of 50,000 francs—today that would be well over $200,000—created a sensation. Five years later, the museum’s namesake, John Bowes, bought it in Paris for a tenth of that price and brought it home to the U.K.
In a video produced in 2021, a specialist team of conservators and curators painstakingly dismantled the sculpture to examine the condition of its mechanisms and create a plan for its preservation. This year, the swan is undergoing meticulous repairs and cleaning, and the museum anticipates that the work will be completed by the end of the year.
Cox also designed the well-known Peacock Clock for Catherine the Great, a treasure of the State Hermitage Museum’s collection in Russia. Learn more about the Silver Swan on The Bowes Museum’s website. (via The Kid Should See This)
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A cascading bamboo lattice shelters diners at the new Keeng Seafood Restaurant in Long Thành, Vietnam, with a nod to the local ecology. Architecture studio BambuBuild designed an elegant hall with a thatched roof evocative of a ship’s prow, supported by columns reminiscent of nipa palms, a riverside plant common in south Vietnam.
The firm was tasked with designing a structure that would be both strong and built quickly. Thanks to a tensile strength comparable to steel and a compressive strength twice as high as concrete, the medium is sometimes called “iron bamboo.” Traditionally, a pole is used as a post, beam, or truss, but BambuBuild saw potential in a shape called a hyperbolic paraboloid, also known as a hypar or “saddle”—think of the shape of a Pringle chip. Not only does this produce graceful arches and curves, but it can carry a huge load, perfect for supporting a show-stopping canopy.
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Austin-based gallery Sebastian Foster just announced its 2023 Fall Print Set, marking the 11th anniversary of the collection since it launched in 2012. The new release features 30 works by well-established illustrators, printmakers, and painters from across the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Japan, and Europe. Half of the artists have worked with the gallery for years, while the other half are guests who joined just for this collection.
This set features 30 works all published as relatively small editions, hand-signed and numbered by the artists. Encompassing an eclectic array of mediums and themes, the collection showcases work from artists previously featured on Colossal, including Graham Franciose’s dreamlike watercolor works, Diana Sudyka’s fanciful storybook scenes, and Grant Haffner’s vibrant, flat landscapes bisected by his signature utility poles.
Now online-only, Sebastian Foster focuses on original works and prints, publishing over 1,000 editions since opening in the late 2000s. Whether you’re looking for the next piece to add to your collection or for meaningful holiday gifts, head to the gallery’s site to shop the Fall Print Set today.
As the warmer months came to a close in İncesu, Keyseri, Turkey, archaeologists currently at work in a sprawling ancient complex announced that the Roman-era mosaics they uncovered—already recognized as the largest ever found in the region—just keep getting bigger.
İncesu sits atop the ancient town of Sadogora, or Sadacora, a late Roman and early Byzantine municipality, remnants of which were originally encountered in 2010. Initial excavations brought a series of beautiful mosaic floors to light, some bearing Latin and Greek inscriptions. Legal reasons prevented any further work until 2020, but when archaeologists resumed digging, it wasn’t long before they realized they were unearthing a site of epic proportions.
By the end of the 2021 season, ten rooms of what archaeologists are tentatively designating a 4th-century Roman villa of great significance, boasted more than 3,000 square feet of mosaic floors in excellent condition. This year, the excavation more than doubled its surface area, exposing 6,500 square feet of mosaics out of a total 43,000 square feet that has been excavated across the entire site.
Can Erpek, a professor of Byzantine art and archaeology at Nevsehir Haci Bektas Veli University, posits that the site may have been an imperial structure, perhaps belonging to rulers or administrators of the region. He says, “We are talking about a high-end residence spread over a very large area; a residence with 33 rooms, (and) we have not reached the limits of this residence. We foresee that the current residence will expand even further with our excavations that will continue next year.” (via The History Blog)
#archaeology
#mosaics
#Turkey
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A young greenfinch gets scolded, human legs propel a batfish forward, and a kangaroo shreds on an air guitar in this year’s Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards. Created in 2015, the annual contest (previously) is an effort to empathize with the wildlife around us while calling to attention the threats they face. With thousands of entries from around the world every year, the deluge of delightful images serves as a reminder that animals and humans have plenty in common, from idiosyncratic personas and comical clumsiness to the Earth we share.
A gallery showcasing the 2023 finalists is available on the competition’s website, where there is still time to vote for the People’s Choice Award.
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Whether working on a wall or canvas, artist Stelios Pupet begins with a grid. What starts as uniform blocks slowly morph into varied, angular shapes as he works, adding depth and structure to his largely figurative compositions. Viewed through the subtle distortion of the grid, his subjects are often crouching amid cacti and potted plants or curled into themselves in moments of contemplation. He describes his process:
I am focusing on creating a nice image, different or contemporary and easy on the eye. Sometimes, there is a personal story behind a canvas or a painting on a wall that makes the artwork more powerful or important (to me at least)…I believe that if you give everything in the creation of an artwork, somehow a part of you is captured and in this way, feelings are being created (for) the viewer.
Following a busy few months of working on murals across Europe, Pupet is currently creating a small piece in a park near his home in Athens. Follow his progress on Instagram.
“Amongst Greenery,” oil on canvas, 120 x 120 centimeters
Detail of “Les murmures du jardin,” oil on canvas, 200 x 200 centimeters
“Amidst the Cacti,” Zaragoza, Spain. Photo by Marcos Cebrián
Remake of the Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres painting, “Portrait of Madamme Gaudry” (1864), acrylic and crayons on canvas , 40 x 40 centimeters
“Solitude of Contemplation,” Antonis Tritsis Metropolitan Park, Athens
Study for the canvas “They keep coming,” gouache on paper, 25 x 18 centimeters
#murals
#painting
#plants
#public art
#Stelios Pupet
#street art
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In 1990, the desert tortoise landed on the federal endangered species list following decades of decline. Expanding human populations in the western U.S. encroached on wild habitats and brought more ravens to the Mojave Desert—the large, black birds are known to scavenge for food and have a particular taste for young reptiles. Coupled with the effects of the climate crisis, these changes rapidly propelled the species toward extinction.
Conservation biologist Tim Shields has studied desert tortoises for decades and recently decided to intervene in this lopsided predator-prey relationship. In a short documentary for The New Yorker titled “Eco-Hack!,” Shields explains the innovative and non-lethal tactics his team uses for “educating” ravens and deterring them from attacking the reptiles. Green lasers, 3D-printed decoy shells, and explosive sprays all come into play in an effort to train the birds to find alternative food sources.
The strategies are more irritating than harmful to the ravens but already have had significant payoffs: more babies are now roaming the arid landscape, meaning their intervention is working to protect the slow-moving creatures that are particularly vulnerable in the first three years of life. “If we don’t want a really lonely planet that’s just us and ravens and rats and cockroaches, we have a whole ton of work to do,” he adds.
Josh Izenberg and Brett Marty produced “Eco-Hack!,” and you can find the full story behind the film in The New Yorker.
#animals
#conservation
#video
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#activism
#books
#hair
#portraits
#sculpture
#Sonya Clark
#textiles
November 13, 2023
Grace Ebert
“The Hair Craft Project: Hairstyles on Canvas” (2014), silk threads, beads, shells, and yarn on canvas, nine at 29 × 29 inches and two at 33 × 33 inches. All images courtesy of High Museum, shared with permission
In a poem devoted to the singer and activist Paul Robeson, Gwendolyn Brooks writes, “We are each other’s harvest, we are each other’s business, we are each other’s magnitude and bond.” Sonya Clark draws on Brooks’ words in her mid-career retrospective at the High Museum as she wields the power of collaborative making to illuminate issues of racism, sexism, and capitalist imperatives.
Titled We Are Each Other, the exhibition encompasses 25 years of the artist’s participatory works that highlight the inextricable links between craft and community. Fiber becomes both a connective tissue and transmitter in Clark’s oeuvre, which uses materials like books, hair, found fabrics, and flags to untangle the narratives and structural inequities of American life. “How do we address and challenge our shared colonial past, and how do we hold ourselves accountable for and claim agency in what happens next in the future of our society?” she asks.
Detail of “Solidarity Book Project” (2020–present)
Included in We Are Each Other are several works created in collaboration. “The Hair Craft Project,” for example, photographs stylists’ elaborate braided designs done on Clark’s head to both celebrate their artistry and connect contemporary hairdressing with broader textile traditions. Similarly, a large-scale portrait uses more than 3,000 plastic combs to portray Madame C.J. Walker, the first woman to become a self-made millionaire in the U.S. by establishing an immensely successful hair-care business. Walker then used much of her wealth to advocate against lynching and race-based violence, and Clark’s depiction honors this impulse toward activism and unity.
Other pieces on view are “Unraveling,” a performance-based work that asks volunteers to deconstruct symbolic objects like the Confederate flag, and a portion of the ongoing “Solidarity Book Project.” Emphasizing the importance of reading and knowledge sharing, this project offers instructions for carving a raised fist, the symbol of Black liberation, from the pages of a book.
We Are Each Other is on view through February 18, 2024, in Atlanta. Dive deeper into Clark’s works by picking up the exhibition catalog and checking out her Instagram.
“The Hair Craft Project: Hairstylists with Sonya: Sonya Clark with Jamilah Williams” (2013), inkjet photograph, 28 × 28 inches. Photo by Naoko Wowsugi
“Madam C. J. Walker” (2008), combs, 122 × 87 inches
“The Hair Craft Project: Sonya with Kamala Bhagat, Dionne James Eggleston, Marsha Johnson, Chaunda King, Anita Hill Moses, Nasirah Muhammad, Jameika and Jasmine Pollard, Ingrid Riley, Ife Robinson, Natasha Superville, and Jamilah Williams” (2014), pigment prints on archival paper, eleven framed, 30 × 30 inches each
Detail of “Madam C. J. Walker” (2008), combs, 122 × 87 inches
“Solidarity Book Project” (2023), installation view. Photo by Alphonso Whitfield
#activism
#books
#hair
#portraits
#sculpture
#Sonya Clark
#textiles
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Elegant, richly textured garments cloak artist Carlos Cabo’s enchanting ceramic figures (previously), showcasing the endless possibilities of clay. Tall and slender, the figures sport a wide variety of styles, donning button-down tunics, dresses, neck ties, and hats. While each one is unique, they are drawn together by a synchronic gesture: mouths open wide, they sing toward the sky.
Cabo gathers his material from the countryside around his home in Salinas, Spain, then works it into column-like figures and geometric forms. He considers the texture to be “the skin of the piece,” differentiating each from its companions while also emphasizing their similarities and a sense of unity.
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Sheep wander through the morning mist in Rhinebeck and storm clouds ebb over a waterway in dreamlike photographs by Andrew Moore. Known for his in-depth, long-term series that document natural places and the built environment, Moore’s work has focused on the evolution of places like Bosnia, the American South, or Cuba as they evolve over time. In his forthcoming solo exhibition Whiskey Point and Other Tales at Yancey Richardson, Moore delves into the Hudson Valley region of Upstate New York in a group of large-scale, atmospheric landscapes.
Nodding to the legacy of the Hudson River School painters, Moore hones in on the natural beauty of the region while also considering its historical significance. Whiskey Point, for example, which inspired the show’s title, is a strip of land that obtrudes into the Hudson River, formed when its surrounding soil was removed for brick production in the latter half of the 19th century. The spot is encompassed by Sojourner Truth State Park, designated in 2019 and named for the African American abolitionist and suffragette who was born nearby into slavery nearby, in 1797.
Moore examines the myriad histories and lore of the area from the perspective of an omniscient wanderer, capturing various times of day, landmarks, and weather from a range of vantage points. He emphasizes the constancy of change and the sense of anticipation spurred by a new day or a bend in the road, revealing what an exhibition statement calls “different kinds of lineages” that connect the present to the past.
Whiskey Point and Other Tales opens November 16 and continues through January 4, 2024. See more on the artist’s website and Instagram.
“Platte Kill Clove” (2021)
“Trap Cliff, Barrytown” (2023)
“Rain Sprites, Clinton” (2021)
“Rhinecliff Station” (2021)
“Little Vlei, Rhinebeck” (2022)
“Ferry Road” (2023)
“Empire in Fog, Rhinebeck”
“Burger Hill” (2021)
#Andrew Moore
#landscapes
#New York
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A companion to Tau Lewis’s 2022 exhibition Vox Populi, Vox Dei, a monograph by the same name contextualizes and celebrates the artist’s enigmatic, post-apocalyptic vision. Lewis (previously) is known for repurposing textiles into bold works evocative of Yoruban masks and Greek and Roman theatrical traditions. The title translates to “the voice of the people is the voice of god,” a phrase the artist uses to invoke a sense of community and spirituality, two tenets of her imagined world.
Along with the totemic, wall-based works included in the Vox Populi, Vox Dei exhibition at 52 Walker, the book also features the freestanding forms shown here. Similarly constructed with patchworks and layers of textiles, the works reference the “material DNA” Lewis is drawn to, as she connects the previous uses of the fabrics themselves to the figures that inhabit her universe. Paired with writings by Ebony L. Haynes, Tiana Reid, and Yves B. Golden, the volume contains images, preliminary sketches, and groups of color swatches that offer insight into the origins and ancestries of Lewis’ salvaged future.
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#murals
#public art
#street art
#Tbilisi Mural Fest
November 8, 2023
Grace Ebert
Milu Correch. All images courtesy of Tbilisi Mural Fest, shared with permission
Since launching five years ago, Tbilisi Mural Fest has transformed the streets of Georgia’s capital into a vivid, outdoor gallery featuring dozens of large-scale works in myriad styles. The 2023 event—which expanded to the city of Kurasisi, as well— wrapped up this month with a similarly eclectic collection of works, including Thiago Mazza’s vividly painted botanicals (previously), a realistic rendering of a grandmother pressing dough by Sasha Korban, and Milu Correch’s touching portrait of a mother grasping her two young children. Find a selection of the 2023 murals below and check out the festival’s Instagram for more.
Giorgi Kalandarishvili
“Grandma” by Sasha Korban
Thiago Mazza
Telmo & Miel
Chertova Tina
“Mokhevian” by Gera 1
#murals
#public art
#street art
#Tbilisi Mural Fest
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Artist Toon Joosen (previously) continues his retro mashups, splicing two distinct images into ironic and amusing juxtapositions. Having amassed an enormous archive of magazines and newspapers from the 1960s, Joosen tends to identify a pair of clippings “that together strengthen or alienate the whole,” he says. Through warped perspectives and exaggerated scales, the resulting collages reveal the artist’s signature wit as they depict people lounging on massive lilypads, a young boy spraying whipped cream on a beach, and a fisherman reeling in love.
Joosen sells his collages as prints, cards, and more on Etsy, and you can follow his latest creations on Instagram.
“Let’s take the stairs”
“Let’s make a story of our own!”
“It’s the same boy who puts snow on mountaintops”
“True love that’s a wonder these days …”
“Hold on, I’m coming …”
“I still haven’t found what i’m looking for…”
#collage
#humor
#paper
#Toon Joosen
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Climate science has a communication problem. Abstract data, figures, and projections into the distant future can be tough to comprehend. Without effective storytelling tools to convey the severity of the crisis and what’s at stake if we don’t act, it can be difficult to motivate the broader public to advocate for change.
The team at Open Planet wants to bridge that gap. A collaboration between Studio Silverback and Carnegie Mellon’s CREATE Lab, the new digital library contains a growing collection of climate and nature footage available for free use. Open Planet currently boasts some 4,500 clips that travel around the globe, from Bird Island off the Georgian coast to Brazil’s Jamari River to Pangti Village in western India. Documenting animals, plants, landscapes, and more, the footage is diverse in subject matter and captures visual evidence of some of the most pressing issues facing the world today. Director Colin Butfield shares:
As filmmakers, we know stories can be powerful agents of change, and with the window for action rapidly closing to address the planetary emergency, there’s never been a greater need for compelling, authentic storytelling. Open Planet will not only present the causes and impacts of climate change and nature loss but also the incredible ingenuity of those driving innovation to keep crucial sustainability targets within reach.
While some videos were created specifically for the platform, others are submitted by filmmakers, broadcasters, and production companies, and new footage is added daily. “Our immediate focus is to significantly grow the Open Planet footage library to cover a wider range of issues and regions globally so that more stories can be told to more audiences,” says Bethany Hutchings, who leads communications and content. “Crucially, our content needs to then reach changemakers around the world to deliver impact on a greater scale.”
Open Planet recently released its first collection focused on India, which has already reached more than 400 million viewers, and the full library is set to launch early next year.
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Using a vibrant array of real flowers and foliage, North Yorkshire-based artist Olga Prinku (previously) designs intricate embroideries that explode with natural colors and textures. The artist embraces experimentation at a large scale, challenging the traditionally more intimate surfaces of embroidery.
In addition to blooms and leaves, Prinku has recently focused on branches in a new series called Graft. Using primarily silver birch, she describes the works as “a reference to the horticultural process of transferring twigs from one setting to another but also a nod to the slang meaning of ‘hard work’—it takes a lot of time and patience!”
Prinku’s embroideries are currently on view in a group exhibition at Contemporary Applied Arts in London through November 18, and a piece selected for the SCAF Emerging Artist Award is on view until January at Lawrence Batley Theatre Gallery. She is currently working toward a major exhibition for Hidcote in the Cotswolds next year. Find more on her website, and follow her on Instagram for updates.
#embroidery
#flowers
#Olga Prinku
#plants
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The days are getting shorter here in the Northern Hemisphere, but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the cheery colors of a summertime rainbow. From the studio of artist Ken Kelleher, a trio of rugs weaves bright, bold hues into organically shaped floor coverings. Hand-dyed, carved, and tufted, the vibrant designs are made with New Zealand wool and evoke rain, drips, and puffy clouds, all rich with kaleidoscopic color.
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For millennia, cultures across the globe have venerated mother goddesses who embody maternal roles and symbolize fertility and cosmological creation. For the Inuit, Nerrivik is known as the sea mother and provider, and another deity associated with the sky, Pinga, watches over the hunt. In the Odinani tradition of the Igbo people in southeast Nigeria, Ala presides over the underworld and observes morality, fertility, and creativity. And in Greek mythology, Gaia is poetically portrayed as the personification of the Earth and the ancestor of all living beings.
For artist Yulia Brodskaya, the unequivocal power of Mother Earth encompasses a vibrant series of quilled paper portraits (previously) that celebrate cultural diversity and women around the world. She says:
I create from the place of honoring history and the past—drawing lots of inspiration from various cultures existing on the planet, but at the same time, making a conscious choice to bring forward a new vision of the future: a future when we, as a collective, have healed our past, released the pain, and integrated all the lessons that brought us all here to this moment in time: unified humanity—people of Gaia.
In her new pieces, Brodskaya continues to explore resilience and hope through dreamlike portraiture. She meticulously cuts, creases, and curls thin pieces of paper to build up a relief one strip at a time, adding mystical elements like swirls and geometric shapes. In “Envisage,” a human profile merges with that of a horse, while in “Mother Energy,” leaping dolphins reflect the strength, connection, and joy of motherhood.
Brodskaya portrays a future she desires, one of brightness, openness, and compassion. She says that “this is a personal exploration of how this new reality would feel like. How would it feel to interact with a human being from this version of the future?”
Find more on the artist’s website, and follow on Instagram and TikTok, where she often shares insights into her process.Yulia
“Mother Energy,” inspired by the work of Julia Watkins and Franck Layover
Detail of “Mother Energy”
“Envisage”
Detail of “Envisage”
“Light as a Feather”
Detail of “Light as a Feather”
Detail of “Light as a Feather”
“Starseed”
Detail of “Starseed”
#paper
#portraits
#quilling
#yulia brodskaya
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2022 NOT REAL ART Grant winner Joan Cox, “In the Garden of Autumn”
Let your art shine: Calling all creative minds working in the realm of visual art! The NOT REAL ART 2024 Grant Program is now accepting submissions. If you’re ready, so are we. Submit your work today for a chance to win an unrestricted cash award of $2,000, and more in PR and marketing support. There is no application fee.
Founded in 2019, the NOT REAL ART Grant for Artists is a biannual award designed to empower the practice of six contemporary artists, each of whom receives $2,000 and more in media exposure. To date, 36 lucky artists have won this grant!
NOT REAL ART Grant recipients get more than money. Each winner gets to share their story and promote their work with exclusive, in-depth featured interviews on the NOT REAL ART podcast and blog. What’s more, win or lose, every applicant automatically qualifies to be included in future blog stories, newsletters, and our artist marketing database.
It’s free to enter, and the deadline is January 1, 2024.
In 2006, Pam Longobardi traveled to Ka Lae, the southernmost tip of Hawaii’s Big Island, for a residency. Cradled by a rugged coastline and high cliffs towering over the Pacific Ocean, the point marks a confluence of currents where marine life and debris gather on shore, making it a popular fishing spot and unintentional waste collection site. “There I saw an immense multitude of colors and forms of plastic that was being vomited out of the ocean, piled so deep it was beyond my arm’s reach to the bottom,” Longobardi tells Colossal. “The shock was so profound that it completely reoriented my art practice and my life.”
While determined to address the issue, Longobardi quickly understood she couldn’t work by herself. “As an artist, still going on my research missions to Hawai’i as frequently as I could but still often alone, it began to be overwhelming, exhausting, depressing to the point of self-doubt,” she says. Instead, she wanted to create something collaborative and community-based, linking activists, environmentalists, and artists with people living in the region and directly witnessing the impacts. These experiences spurred a now two-decade endeavor known as the Drifters Project, a practice of creating installations and sculptures that help visualize the catastrophic amount of plastic ruining the world’s ecosystems.
“Ocean Archaeology of Our Time” (2023), global ocean plastics from Maldives, Hawaii, Costa Rica, Indonesia, Alaska, California, and Georgia coasts, mounted on painted marine plywood, 9 x 5 feet
Most works begin with Longobardi and a team cleaning specific areas and preventing plastic from embarking “on the wild journey that ends at sea and negatively impacts many, many life forms along the way.” Once the area is scoured and cleared, the artist arranges the findings by color or material into works that convey the immensity and breadth of over-consumption and the inadequacy of our waste systems.
Recent installations include “Endless (zombie Brancusi),” a series of nine totem-like sculptures made of nets and styrofoam, and an algae-shaped work titled “Ocean Archaeology of Our Time.” Although created in the Maldives, an island nation at the forefront of sea level rise and currently grappling with the effects of luxury tourism, the latter piece exhibits more than 1,000 components gathered both locally and in locations like Costa Rica, Indonesia, and Alaska. “It’s important in my works that I remix, as the ocean does, plastics from all over because it is not one place’s issue,” Longobardi says. “It’s (an) all-places problem.” This global vision grounds the Drifters Project, which calls attention to the way cigarette butts, bottle caps, and packaging from one part of the world can wash up on shores thousands of miles away.
One of Longobardi’s largest endeavors is “Plastic Free Island,” an ongoing initiative to keep waste from the beaches of Kefalonia, Greece. Launched in 2011, the project initially paired an international team of students with hundreds of the island’s citizens. Together, they harvested refuse from the shores and created a 44-foot installation and performance. “Plastic Free Island” can provide a sustainable template for reimagining island communities directly facing the impacts of the climate crisis, she says, noting, “Last summer when I went back, we found that all the cafes had switched to paper straws. It was a most rewarding moment to see the results of direct art/science/activism take shape.”
That the Drifters Project can foster community and spark real-world change is also evident in Longobardi’s 2022 book Ocean Gleaning, which documents her works and collaborations over the years along with contributions from about 75 people with similar interests. This crowd-sourced section records evidence of plastics gathered around the world with commentary on the findings. The book also documents waste materials animals often mistake for food, further implicating humanity in causing environmental harm. As Sarah Rose Sharp writes in a review, “The forensic examination of plastics in Longobardi’s work has particular resonance in the context of popular interest in true crime. Stories of horrific murders can always find a voracious audience, but an environmental threat which could ultimately be history’s greatest serial killer is somehow less sensational or interesting.”
“The Crime of Willful Neglect”
Ultimately, though, Longobardi is hopeful. She describes visiting a waterway and beginning to clean even when she hadn’t planned to. “Typically, if there are other people about, someone will ask me what I am doing and then begin to help me,” she shares. “These kinds of spontaneous actions with strangers are the basis of Drifters Project:that anyone, anywhere, can train their eyes to (search for plastic), and you will see it everywhere.”
With an estimated 1.15 to 2.41 million tons of plastic leaching into the oceans every year, tackling pollution needs to be a truly collaborative and global effort, and initiatives like the Drifters Project are one way to make such a staggering problem accessible to people wanting to get involved. Part of Longobardi’s goal is to direct our attention to the magnitude of the problem, instigate movements to refuse single-use and disposable items, and use art to tangibly mitigate some of the consequences already in effect. She explains:
I believe the ocean to be the consciousness of the planet. It is where all life on Earth began. By paying attention to the greater interconnected network outside of our immediate lives, we witness the effects of our actions on all other life forms in this world…It’s really powerful, and the best part of my project, to broadcast the emergence of a collective transformation in understanding our presence on Earth.
Ocean Gleaning is available from Fall Line Press, and you can find more about the Drifters Project on its site and Instagram.
“Anxiety of Appetites” (2020), recovered and assembled ocean-made driftnet balls, floats, feathers, barnacles, and bryozoa, 122 x 60 x 60 inches
“Swerve” (2019), over 500 ocean plastic objects from Alaska, Greece, California, Hawaii, the Gulf of Mexico, and Costa Rica, steel specimen pins, 96 x 54 x 8 inches
“Endless (zombie Brancusi)” (2020), vagrant polystyrene, sea turtle bites, wood, steel, magnets, seven elements ranging from 3 to 6 feet
Detail “Archeology of Desire” (2021), over 1,000 pieces of ocean plastic from Indonesia, Hawaii, California, and Costa Rica, 144 x 96 x 9 inches
“Archeology of Desire” (2021), over 1,000 pieces of ocean plastic from Indonesia, Hawaii, California, and Costa Rica, 144 x 96 x 9 inches
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Kate Van Vliet’s Fault Lines series began with a neighborly gesture. “While sequestered at home during the pandemic with twin infants, our neighbors started giving us fresh eggs from their backyard flock,” she says. “The colors of the eggs were so beautiful, and as the shells accumulated on our kitchen counter each day, I knew I wanted to use them in my artwork.”
As Van Vliet began to reassemble the eggs, each shell catalogued a passing day. “When I became a mother, I found myself in this ritualistic madness, each day repeating the day before and hoping for a different result,” she says. “As the leftovers of those actions accumulated on my kitchen counter, I saw that my life had become an open edition of the same but different days.”
In a solo exhibition at Paradigm Gallery + Studio, Van Vliet examines her roles as mother and artist, exploring the idea of becoming an “heirloom machine,” a concept which lends itself to the title of the show. Creating small objects infused with both routine and memories, she examines the relationship between the meticulous repair of everyday objects and the historically invisible labor of women.
Van Vliet meticulously applied archival tissues and adhesives combined with mica to strengthen each piece. “Lots of research was involved in the physical repairing of the eggs,” she says, continuing:
They aren’t ceramics, but I wanted to celebrate imperfections by adapting the kintsugi method to repair the eggshells. I also researched ways that Ukrainian Pysanki eggs are conserved by museums. I combined what I learned with my sensibilities as a printmaker to make a repeatable method of repair that would be stable over time and work with the hairline fractures that occur in the eggs.
If you’re in Philadelphia, you can stop by Heirloom Machine through November 26. Van Vliet also co-founded the community printshop BYO Print, which is relocating to the Paradigm Arts Building building this winter. Visit the artist’s website and Instagram to see more of her work.
“Peck”
“Candy Everybody Wants”
“Donut (Chocolate)”
“Egg Canoes: Duck #12-15”
“Donut (Mint)”
“Roly-poly”
“The Blob”
“The Kiss (Pretzel)”
“The Tickler”
“Tripod”
#eggs
#Kate Van Vliet
#kintsugi
#sculpture
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William Darrell describes his kinetic sculptures as “mechanically abstracted organisms,” animated forms that pulse, shimmy, and spin with lifelike motion. The London-based artist is inspired by the relationship between the organic and the mechanical along with the enticing, mesmerizing qualities of movement that can coax “fear or fascination” from the viewer. “There are cuttlefish that hypnotise their prey in order to catch them,” he says. “As an artist, I follow a similar method.”
Darrell 3D-prints each work to achieve the necessary level of precision. Every component needs to align perfectly to create such methodical, entrancing motions, powered by a single motor and a mix of gears, belts, magnets, cams, and elastic bands. Darrell shares:
I engage in kinaesthetic play with my prototypes, discovering new ways they can revolve and move together. I’m a self-taught engineer, and I always try to do something new that I haven’t seen before. Steadily, they get more complex over time, and sometimes something completely unexpected jumps out at me, bringing on a new wave of development.
The result is a diverse collection of sculptures that meld the form of botanicals with restless animal movements. Reactions “(vary) from viewer to viewer. For some, it’s a purely pleasurable experience, for others too stimulating and even perverse,” he shares.
Watch more of Darrell’s uncanny mechanics on Instagram.
“Optimism Bloom”
“Oneiros”
Detail of “Optimism Bloom”
“The Institute of Sex and Consumption”
“Ostara”
“Oneiros”
#kinetic sculpture
#sculpture
#William Darrell
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A vivacious troupe of colorful paint blobs dance across a stage of oil and soap liquid in Thomas Blanchard’s latest video. Sliding around to the sounds of Chopin’s “Nocturne Op. 9 No. 2 (E Flat Major),” glittering spheres roll mesmerizingly across shimmering fields of color, which Blanchard (previously) captures in high-definition, slow-motion elegance.
Watch “Colorful Liquids in Motion” above, and find more on the artist’s website and Vimeo.
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Roy Scholten is wrapping up a years-long printing project with dozens of playfully rendered fowl. 50 Birds is an ongoing series that uses LEGO in place of lead type to create curved beaks, long tails, and rounded bellies. With only three species—hawfinch, reed bunting, and kingfisher—remaining, The Netherlands-based artist and designer has nearly a full flock of the letterpress creatures, all nested inside 6 x 6-inch paper.
“It’s been interesting to see how the experience from earlier prints feeds back into the following ones,” he tells Colossal. “In a way, because I got better at it, the more difficult it has become. More subtle color schemes and patterns resulted in a more painterly approach to printing.”
Scholten began working with the unconventional material about a decade ago in collaboration with artist Martijn van der Blom, and the pair recently released a bi-lingual book, Print & Play, the Art of LEGO Letterpress, documenting their process and projects during the last ten years. Their practice of inking and printing with the plastic blocks is known in printmaking circles as the “Hilversum method,” named for their studios’ location in the city of Hilversum. Included in the book’s pages are some early works from the 50 Birds collection, along with van der Blom’s architectural typography, stylized dinosaurs, landscapes, and more.
Keep an eye on Scholten’s Instagram for the final avian pieces, along with larger species like owls, falcons, and hawks, which are next on his docket. You can also purchase prints on his site.
Crested tit
Pied flycatcher
Sanderling
Skylark
Treecreeper
A spread from ‘Print & Play, the Art of LEGO Letterpress’
#birds
#Lego
#printmaking
#Roy Scholten
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“With Wings of Infinity” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 72 x 60 inches. All images courtesy of the artist and Lehmann Maupin, New York, Hong Kong, Seoul, and London, shared with permission
Tufts of a pink skirt, a soaked evening gown clinging to a knee, and a few fingers and toes gently breach the water’s surface in Calida Rawles’ A Certain Oblivion. On view this month at Lehmann Maupin, the new body of work is transcendent and monumental, with canvases scaling nine feet of rippling blues and blacks. The paintings return to the artist’s interest in water memory theory and the idea that the life-giving liquid preserves moments of time.
In A Certain Oblivion, Rawles renders two of her daughters who gracefully float together and apart, their heads just above the surface. Placing the next generation in such vulnerable, precarious positions alludes to the resilience and determination needed to rise above “the riptides of contemporary American life,” a statement says. Despite facing the threat of being consumed by the current, the figures remain calm and graceful, carrying on and resting at the surface.
While exploring similar themes to earlier series, A Certain Oblivion is darker. Palettes of navy, gray, and black obscure the figures, who are already distorted by the undulating nature of water. These deep, saturated tones reflect the current political and cultural moment that seems to consistently plunge the world into darkness and despair. For Rawles, though, the paintings are hopeful. She explains:
There is always darkness before the light. I thought of that often when making the work and hope this may inspire others during these very trying times. Much of the work in this show is dark, for sure, but I do have a few pieces that are in the light. A cool blue water. I thought of those pieces as my day and the dark ones as part of my night waters. Our light cycle was definitely on the top of my mind when thinking of this show. I want to believe this is a moment in a larger path.
There’s an uncertainty and illegibility that the artist gravitates toward as she reminds us that predicting outcomes isn’t always possible. She even likens the process of painting in acrylics to that of floating, two physical acts that both require a release of control. “All of the dark colors look alike when they are wet,” she says. “You have to trust yourself and (your) ability. The experience was really fun, to put it simply. I was excited to wait for the outcome when it dried.”
A Certain Oblivion is on view from November 9 to December 16 in New York.
“Untethered, Twice Bold” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 84 x 72 inches
“Beyond the Certain Oblivion” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 108 x 84 x 3 inches
“Above Yesterday, Beyond Tomorrow” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 96 x 78 x 3 inches
“Like Other Gods With Ancient Rage” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 84 x 84 x 3 inches
“And So It Be” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 60 x 72 x 3 inches
Calida Rawles in her studio (2023). Photo by Marten Elder
#acrylic painting
#Calida Rawles
#painting
#water
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All images courtesy of the Bargello Museums, Florence
In 1530, Michelangelo went into hiding after receiving a death sentence from Pope Clement VII. The iconic Renaissance artist had been caught in the political strife of his patrons, the Medici family, who had just returned to Florence after being overthrown by a populist revolt in 1527. During their exile, Michelangelo worked with the short-lived republican government to help secure the city’s defense walls and so became an enemy of his powerful supporters.
It is believed he spent two months stowed away in a tiny vault stretching just 32 feet long and 6.5 feet wide, with 8-foot ceilings at their highest points and a single window to the street, before the pope rescinded the sentence. Tucked into the Medici Chapels in the Basilica of San Lorenzo, the claustrophobic room also became a canvas for the artist, who’s thought to have sketched dozens of drawings on the walls. Using carbonized wood and red chalk, the artist rendered several figurative works, including the head of the ancient Laocoön sculpture and iterations of his own masterpieces, including his Leda and the Swan painting and iterations of his David statue.
The drawings were hidden until 1975 when the then-director of the Medici Chapels, Paolo Dal Poggetto, was trying to find a new space for the museum exit. A trapdoor under a cabinet led to the room, which was filthy from housing slack coal for two decades. When the walls were finally stripped of two layers of plaster, the museum discovered the artworks.
Given its small dimensions, the space has previously been restricted to visitors for fear of damaging the drawings, although on November 15, it will open to the public for the first time. The decision comes after security renovations that will allow four visitors inside at a time, with only 100 tickets available per week through March 30, 2024. (via The History Blog)
#art history
#drawing
#Michelangelo
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In southeast Ohio, toxic drainage from abandoned coal mines has devastated streams and rivers. The acidic sludge, which is filled with heavy metals, leaches into waterways, destroying ecosystems and turning what should be clear, bluish waters into murky, rust-colored runs. In Athens, home of Ohio University, a Hocking River tributary known as Sunday Creek is a prime example of mining’s harmful effects, with more than two million pounds of iron oxide pouring into the stream each year A new documentary directed by Jason Whalen visits the area and the team vowing to clean it up.
“Toxic Art” follows an unconventional pairing of two Ohio University professors who have teamed up on a project that turns sludge from the stream into pigments for oil paint. A project of the global conservation organization Rivers are Life, the short film shares the story of artist John Sabraw and Guy Riefler, the chair of the Civil Engineering department, who have spent six years developing pigments using iron oxide they collected from the creek.
Riefler explains that conventional treatments are often cost-prohibitive, and so the pair decided that if they could create and sell a commercial product, they could fund clean-up efforts on their own. From there, they helped develop True Pigments, a collaborative project with Gamblin Artist Colors that uses proprietary technology to create vibrant pigments from the toxic material.
“We’ve been refining a process that can continuously treat acid mine drainage, restore a stream for aquatic life, and collect sustainably sourced iron pigment that can be sold offsetting operational costs,” Sabraw told Hyperallergic. “Based on our best estimates, we should be able to create jobs and produce a small profit, while eliminating a perpetual pollution source.”
While primarily comprised of volunteers manually harvesting and processing the materials, the multi-pronged project has now secured $3.5 million in funding to construct a True Pigments facility on the Appalachian site. Once that plant is running, Sabraw estimates that his team will be able to completely restore Sunday Creek, “remove over 6,000 lbs of iron… and theoretically produce 75,000 tubes of paint,” every day. Because that’s a staggering amount of material that would overwhelm the consumer market, the team plans to sell much of their future stock to industrial sources.
Watch “Toxic Art” above to see the innovative pollution-to-pigment pipeline in action, and purchase your own set of reclaimed materials from True Pigments.
#mining
#paint
#short film
#video
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All images courtesy of Terri Cappucci, shared with permission
It’s estimated that people around the world will take a whopping 1.6 trillion photographs this year. With lenses built into our digital devices, a quick snap has never been easier. In the second half of the 19th century, though, before film was even invented, taking a picture required technical skill and access to expensive equipment and supplies. Some of the earliest large- and medium-format cameras used delicate glass plates to capture black-and-white portraits and landscapes in fine detail.
In 2019, Terri Cappucci, a photographer and preservationist based in Massachusetts, stumbled upon a veritable treasure trove. A collection of 4,000 glass plates spanning the 1860s to the 1930s had been destined for the trash before Cappucci, who has experience shooting wet plates and tintypes, noticed the negatives’ high quality. She also recognized a few Massachusetts landmarks and knew she held an abundance of local history in her hands.
Cappucci set out on the long and painstaking process of preserving the slides, consulting with conservation experts and enrolling in a course that taught the fundamentals of cleaning and archiving the fragile pieces. “I would clean them individually only on the glass side; I wouldn’t touch the emulsion side,” she told PetaPixel. “Definitely don’t clean them with Windex or anything you would use to clean windows, just distilled water.” Cappucci digitized each slide using scanning guidelines provided by the National Archives, then slipped each one into an acid-free envelope for storage.
And if you can’t get enough of the discovery of old photos, you might also enjoy exploring the Museum of Lost Memories.
#black and white
#portraits
#preservation
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Enormous blooms crafted from thousands of sheets of creased, textured, and twisted paper explode in Marianne Eriksen Scott-Hansen’s vibrant installations. The Copenhagen-based artist (previously) draws inspiration from real blossoms like peonies or dahlias, adding fantastical, patterned embellishments to the pistils and stamens. The artist emphasizes larger-than-life sculptures, often creating painstakingly detailed displays that radiate from floor to ceiling.
If you’re in Copenhagen this winter, you can see Scott-Hansen’s Christmas installation at Illum department store. She is currently working with The Spaceless Gallery to make some of her pieces available for purchase and is collaborating with HAGD Contemporary to take the botanical theme a step further in a series of masks. You can explore more work on Instagram.
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