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Artizine: zine kit review
Artizine is an online community space, led by Ioana in London. Through their Sunday zine club and zine making workshops, they make zine making accessible, fun, and welcoming to all. Just as it should be! Artizine currently makes and sells zine kits, which are conveniently posted to you. They include a range of materials, from…
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The digital rebirth of post-modern retrofuturism
Retrofuturism is the fantastical dream of our past. It refers to how people of bygone eras envisioned the future, and its distinctive aesthetic has breathed renewed life in fashion, furniture and, naturally, across social media. Here’s a very basic analogy of retrofuturism: In Steven Spielberg’s Back to the Future II (1989), all the skater boys are armed with…
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Baby Done: balancing the sweet and sour of life
Hilarious, heartwarming and honest, Baby Done exceeds expectations of the parenthood/pregnancy comedy, which can often feel overdone and cliche. Executive producer Taika Waititi brings his classic wit and unique sentimentality, cementing it as a triumph in indie cinema. Clawing at her remaining youth, Zoe is keen to avoid becoming like all her surrounding friends; burdened…
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Reimagining tradition: Dolls (2002)
Ethereal cinematography, perfectly wistful, and heartbreaking story telling. Dolls takes the tender stories of traditional Japanese bunraku puppet theatre, and transforms them into something just as emotive for a modern audience. Director Takeshi Kitano preserves the theatrical, but translates the tales into visually stunning cinema, allowing a wider audience to appreciate the lore of Japan.…
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Book review: The Mystery of Henri Pick
A fresh take on the whodunnit, The Mystery of Henri Pick is a humorous literary conundrum. As the title suggests, the story centres on the mystery of Henri Pick, a pizzeria owner who never read a book in his life, yet somehow is the writer of a sensational literary tour de force found in a…
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Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton star in this 1966 classic, based on the stage play of the same name. The film is a dark battlefield of mind-games and contradictions, constantly leaving you unsure in a suspended state of distress and uncontrollable laughter. We are introduced to the volatile marriage of Martha, and George, and their…
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Kate Bush: Lessons in empathy
Singer songwriter Kate Bush has mystified, and inspired for decades now. Whilst her unique sound, both vocally and musically is what makes her so instantly identifiable, just as notable is her story telling. Each song is a beautiful tale: of a widow attempting to contact her dead husband; a grieving mother who’s son is killed…
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Introducing… Funeral Lakes
Multi-instrumental, delicate yet exigent; a triad of songs telling you to listen. Remember that era of indie rock and folk music dominating teen films, creating the manic pixie dream girl and being so cathartic at the same time? Well, the Toronto-based Funeral Lakes are nostalgic of this time in teen history but they are doing…
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Akira: shattering the status quo frame by frame
The revolutionary 1988 film Akira is a cult classic for a reason. It introduced the West to the true potential of Japan’s animation, and undoubtedly influenced film for years to come. Based on the Akira series by Katsuhiro Otomo, Akira is a cyberpunk teen fantasy set in the post apocalyptic Neo Tokyo, 31 years after…