A New Year - reflections and observations

Farewell 2018!  It's been weird... and stressful... and heavy... and a little creepy.

My wish for 2019:  We open ourselves to brighter, slower days filled with something new and real - with our eyes open, minds alive, actions forward, and resistant as necessary.  With love is not without action, and so we move on with hope, but not without realism, ration and experience to direct us.

Courtney Barnett & Kurt Vile - 'Over Everything' - Song for the Day

Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile
Published on Aug 30, 2017

'Over Everything' is taken from Courtney Barnett & Kurt Vile's album 'Lotta Sea Lice'

See the Link Above

Drive By Truckers - 'The Perilous Night' - Song for the Day

Just a little something to remind us before election day.

Images of Interest - 'Visionary, Not Reactionary': Artists Take Political Commentary To Streets And Skies

Since targeting the current administration in his art, 74-year-old Robbie Conal has never been more prolific.

Listen to the NPR story above, or follow the link to the article and more images.

Link:  NPR: 'Visionary, Not Reactionary': Artists Take Political Commentary To Streets And Skies

2018 Virginia Film Festival - Program Announced and Tickets Available Now

The 31st Annual Virginia Film Festival

November 1-4, 2018

150 Films in four days

VAFF two years back - I was privileged enough to be in attendance.

A taste of this year's program:

The Favourite

Green Book

Rafiki

That should be about enough to get some energy brewing for the film lovers out there.  I'm getting down right giddy after finally figuring out my four day schedule.  Well, mostly - still some tough debates on unfortunate overlaps for me.  Not a terrible problem to have.

I will be writing more about the 31st Annual Virginia Film Festival, 2018 as a featured festival in upcoming posts.  It is held in my city of residence, Charlottesville, VA, much of it walking distance from my home.  No surprise, it's my favorite time of the year to be a local.

The films have been announced and tickets went on sale yesterday - Monday, 10/08 at noon.  Some films have sold out, but most screenings still have tickets available.  The program looks dense with quality and intrigue, and there is more than enough for any film lover, cinephile or film student alike to fill a full festival experience.  There are also plenty of good choices for those that want to dip in for just a film or two.

Yaaaaay!  It's film festival time in my home town.

Links:  VAFF Homepage and 2018 Program Announcement

Politics Meets Humanity - Sen. Jeff Flake Confronted by Protesters Ahead of Kavanaugh Vote - Media with Purpose

The strength, courage and conviction of the women protesters confronting Flake is nothing short of inspiring to action, and endless admiration and appreciation.

Now, I also want to note the truth seeking ability of the camera's eye, and the infinite strength of media when driven by noble forces.  The camera offers the peoples' voice amplification like nothing else can, if we use it.

Nothing really needed be said.  Just watch.




Link:  NPR - WATCH: Assault Victims Confront Jeff Flake After He Says He Will Vote For Kavanaugh

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep.19A - Virginia Film Festival 2017 Special Pt.1

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep.19A - VAFF 2017 Special Pt. 1

Tod and Cullen make their triumphant return to podcasting with the first half of their 2017 Virginia Film Festival coverage!

Part 1 includes general comments on the festival, plus discussion of the following screenings:
Bonnie and Clyde (Penn, 1967)
Magnum Opus (Elliott, 2017)
Lighthouse Studio Shorts
Shadowman (Jacoby, 2017)
Downsizing (Payne, 2017)
Shelter (Riklis, 2017)
Tonsler Park (Everson, 2017)
Birth of a Movement (Gray & Cram, 2017)
Word is Bond (Jenkins, 2017)
Krystal (Macy, 2017)
Ismael's Ghosts (Desplechin, 2017)
The Lodger (Hitchcock, 1927)

Stay tuned for episode 19B, featuring discussion of the second half of the festival.
Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or iTunes and leave us a review!

Link to listen to Ep.19A: 
https://archive.org/download/ArtsCrassEp.19AVFF2017SpecialPt.1/Arts%26Crass%20Ep.%2019A%20-%20VFF%202017%20Special%20Pt.%201.mp3


Link to:  Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast

That's right, we're back!  Visit the Links above to listen to the new episode as well as episodes 12-15 (not posted on this blog).  Episodes 16-18 are recorded and simply sitting in editing backlog, and Episode 19B - VAFF 2017 Pt. 2 will be released very soon, so keep an eye out.

We are also making plans to record more new episodes as we speak, including extensive coverage of the 2018 VAFF.  Hooray!

"Believe in Something..." - Colin Kaepernick's Nike Ad Campaign, 2018 - Media with Purpose

"Don't ask if your dreams are crazy.  Ask if they're crazy enough."

Note from biab:  Sometimes it takes a Goliath to bring down Goliath.  The world we created is more complex and unjust than i typically care to imagine.  Strange times bring strange allies.

Childish Gambino - "Feels Like Summer" - Song for the Day

“Feels Like Summer” by Childish Gambino http://smarturl.it/n3g9db8 tour tickets and merchandise available at http://www.childishgambino.com/ Directed by Donald Glover, Ivan Dixon & Greg Sharp

First the video for "This is America," and now this...  Looks like we may have one of those rare savvy but honest artist types that realizes the medium of music and video can be so much more than a promotional ad or MTV rag (i think that channel still exists?).  Bravo, Mr. Glover.  I hope you keep going with it - challenging the status quo.

And, of course, he is a legit A-town artist.  I have to show some special love for the artists of Atlanta, one of the most formidable stomping grounds of my young adulthood.

Collective Humanity - reflections/observations

It's better to be lost together.

Amanda Palmer - Do You Swear to Tell the Truth... - Song for the Day

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep. 6 - Ebola Syndrome and Stan Brakhage

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep. 6 - Ebola Syndrome and Stan Brakhage: In Episode 6, Tod and Cullen discuss Hong Kong exploitation with The Ebola Syndrome (Yau, 1996), American avant-garde with the films of Stan Brakhage, the disease of colonialism, and personal grooming standards of the 1950s!

Subscribe on iTunes and leave us a review!

Link to listen to Ep. 6: https://ia601307.us.archive.org/15/items/ArtsCrassEp.6EbolaSyndromeAndStanBrakhage/Arts&Crass%20Ep.%206%20-%20Ebola%20Syndrome%20and%20Stan%20Brakhage.mp3

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep. 5: In My Skin and The Woman

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep. 5: In My Skin and The Woman: Two surprisingly similar films are on the docket in Episode 5! Tod and Cullen tackle In My Skin (de Van, 2002), The Woman (McKee, 2011), subtleties of genre, and what it will take to dismantle the patriarchy.

Subscribe on iTunes and leave us a review!

      

Link to listen to Ep. 5: https://ia801307.us.archive.org/17/items/ArtsCrassEp.5InMySkinAndTheWoman/Arts&Crass%20Ep.%205%20-%20In%20My%20Skin%20and%20The%20Woman.mp3

Radiohead - Daydreaming (official video) - directed by PT Anderson

Taken from the new album:  A Moon Shaped Pool (linked here)

Speaking of...

Cigarettes & Red Vines - Featured Blog of Interest

I'm not quite sure how i am just now discovering PT Anderson's gem of a blog, but here it is.

Link:  Cigarettes and Red Vines - The Definitive Paul Thomas Anderson Resource since 1998

Stephin Merritt - I Don't Want To Get Over You - Song for the Day

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep. 4: Brain Damage and The Son

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep. 4: Brain Damage and The Son: In Episode 4, Tod and Cullen talk about Brain Damage (Henenlotter, 1988), The Son (Dardenne & Dardenne, 2002), the horror host tradition, and the ethics of addressing juvenile delinquency.

Subscribe on iTunes and leave us a review!



Link to listen to Ep. 4: https://ia800507.us.archive.org/19/items/ArtsCrassEp.4BrainDamageAndTheSon/Arts&Crass%20Ep.%204%20-%20Brain%20Damage%20and%20The%20Son.mp3

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep. 3: Cannibal Holocaust and The 400 Blows

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep. 3: Cannibal Holocaust and The 400 Blows: In Episode 3, Tod and Cullen discuss Cannibal Holocaust (Deodato, 1980), The 400 Blows (Truffaut, 1959), European fascism, and Truffaut's obsession with Hitchcock.

Subscribe on iTunes and leave us a review!

Link to listen to Ep. 3: https://archive.org/download/ArtsCrassEp.2CannibalHolocaustAndThe400Blows/Arts&Crass%20Ep.%202%20-%20Cannibal%20Holocaust%20and%20The%20400%20Blows.mp3

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep. 2: La Strada & Return of the Living Dead

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast: Ep. 2: La Strada & Return of the Living Dead: Tod and Cullen discuss La Strada (Fellini, 1954) and Return of the Living Dead (O'Bannon, 1985)

Link to listen to Ep. 2:
https://archive.org/details/ArtsCrassEp.2LaStradaAndReturnOfTheLivingDead

Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast - with Cullen and Tod

The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast with Cullen Wade and Tod Gorman

Tod (arthouse film-school rebel) and Cullen (cultured gorehound) subject each other to films they wouldn't watch otherwise.
WARNING: All films are spoiled!

It's about this simple:  Tod loves arthouse films. 
                                   Cullen loves horror films. 
                                   Tod hasn't seen many horror films. 

                                   Cullen hasn't seen many arthouse films. 

                                   Cultural exchange ensues.

That's right, yours truly and Cullen Wade, good friend/fellow cinephile (aka film nerd) and biab contributor, have been recording and broadcasting a BRILLIANTLY UNIQUE (ummm?) film podcast for nearly a year now.  Yes, I am just now getting it posted to the blog.

It has been engaging, educational, cinematically challenging and an all around positive experience. Actually, to ruin any cool I may have about personal projects, I'm  having a blast with this one.  What better forum could a hopeless film nerd ask for? - especially counter to one of my elite favorite film-banter partners.  And now I can at least fake some level of savvy dirty knowledge of cult horror/gore with the best of them - well, at least not sound like a complete dumdum for about five minutes of passionate horror-film chat.
You actually could have heard us discuss all of this and much more in the episode 10 anniversary round-up, had we not so very sadly lost episodes 7-11 in the ever fatal mac hard-drive crash (unedited and not backed up - that's right, kids).  So, there are technically 13 episodes, one of which is a two-part special edition, and two more soon to be posted (however, 6 episodes shall remain a mystery, at least for the time being - there is an unpublished pilot/Ep.1).  So, that's 16 episodes minus 6 for a soon to be grand total of 10 released episodes.  Wow, that was probably unnecessary.

I will continue to embed each episode as a running series on boy in a box, but you can find all episodes streaming or as downloads at Arts & Crass: The Highbrow Lowbrow Film Podcast blog, on iTunes, Facebook and a handful of other places.  As with any venture, I'm sure we got off to a rocky start, being relatively new to voice radio, but we hit our stride relatively quickly and naturally (i think).  We have quite a few less "ums" and "uhs" than early on, and ever evolving dialogue and cinematic analysis - with heart.  Hope you enjoy - at least a little.