sundance

10 best movie sex scenes of 2010

Okay, make that, the ten best movie sex scenes and/or kissing scenes of 2010. Things were a little prudish out there this year — you had to get your vicarious thrills where you could… and besides, we like to work with an all-inclusive definition of sex around these parts. Kissing counts too!

1. Get Him to the Greek: The awkward, let’s-not-do-this-again threeway. Low on chemistry, high on reality factor, unlike most on-screen threeways these days (yes, we’re talking to you, Gossip Girl). Oh yeah, and it’s an M-M-F threesome…meaning, Russell Brand and Jonah Hill totally French.
   
   
2. Date Night: The sweet, married, sitting-side-by-side-in-a-diner-booth kiss. The one on the doorstep in broad daylight (hi, neighbor!) is not bad either. Hey, cheesy goes a long way after a decade or two of marriage. Let’s hear it for monogamy!
   
   

Mom makes best paper snowflakes ever

This mom made Darth Vader and Boba Fett-Clone Trooper paper snowflakes for her son. Note that the center is also the Galactic Empire’s logo. The geekier corners of the Internet proclaimed “BEST MOM EVER.” Get instructions on folding and cutting your own here. [Via]

Indie Film and Bollywood mourn Manish Acharya’s passing

The  film world suffered a shock this week with the death of filmmaker Manish Acharya. His 2007 feature, LOINS OF PUNJAB PRESENTS (one of the best titles in recent memory) was a wild, comic mockumentary ride, and reflected Acharya’s sharply comic sense and wry wink-of-the-eye with a healthy dash of over-the-top. Acharya, 40, was also [...]

Cards of Change: inspiring business cards

In these tough economic times with depressingly high unrelenting unemployment, Cards of Change is a website that attempts to empower the unemployed and the laid-off and inspire them to engage their circumstances as an opportunity. This website, started by Tom Van Daele, a former creative director at TBWA/Chiat/Day before he was laid-off, attempts to do [...]

Sundance Institute announces films selected to screen as part of Sundance Film Festival USA on January 27, 2011

Official Festival Sponsors Chase SapphireSM and Southwest Airlines Help Bring Sundance Film Festival USA to Local Cities Across America

Seattle Joins List of Cities Hosting Filmmakers and Films Direct from Fest; Cedar Rapids to Screen Both Seattle and Ann Arbor

Initiative Continues Commitment to Audience Engagement, Support of Independent Theaters

Life in a Day Makes World Premiere in Park City

Park City, UT – Sundance Institute today announced the films from the 2011 Sundance Film Festival scheduled to screen in theaters in nine different cities, including the newly added Seattle, Washington Egyptian Theatre, on the evening of Thursday, January 27, 2011. The screenings are part of Sundance Film Festival USA, designed to introduce the Festival experience to film-loving audiences nationwide. The 2011 Sundance Film Festival opens January 20 and runs through January 30 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah.

Green tech finds (12/9/10)

Fuel cells, iPhone apps, and chicken coops… this week’s green tech finds.

• The fuel cell that does… everything: Think fuel cells are just for energy? Think again… researchers at the University of Colorado, Denver, are working on a microbial fuel cell that desalinates and cleans wastewater… in addition to producing electricity. (via Cleantechnica)
  
  
• Border checkpoint to feature Living Machine: The US General Services Administration has approved a Living Machine wastewater treatment system for the border crossing point at Otay Mesa, California. That’s an artist’s rendering above… (via Water and Waste Water)
  
  

Why Hillary is not running for President

There have been many a whisper in many a Democratic circle about the possibility of Hillary Clinton challenging Obama in the primary. While I find it doubtful, Lady Bunny, the hilarious drag icon, is assured Clinton is most certainly NOT running. Bunny writes on Facebook: Hillary is definitely not running for President in 2012. She’s [...]

Designs of the decade

In the last decade we’ve seen a serious maturation in design. It’s shifted from mostly consumer-based goods to products that have a positive environmental impact and a focus on global problems. Calling awareness to those designers that thrive at the intersection of good design and good business is IDSA’s Design of the Decade. Of the twenty award-winning designs, most solve a social or environmental problem, or a problem in the developing world.

NPR speaks with Glee’s silent piano man

NPR has this interesting interview with Brad Ellis, the resident pianist on Glee where his official title is “Accompanist,” although contrary to his silent on-show character, he’s quite the conversationalist in real life. I noticed him early on in the show. He stood out because unlike the rest of the cast, Berklee College of Music trained Brad actually looked like a high school music teacher.

You ended up working on Glee because you knew the casting director, right? But you didn’t know you’d actually be on the show.

Right. I’d worked with Robert Ulrich. He’s a casting director, but he’s also so much more. I knew he was extremely good at his job, quickly seeing inside actors to steer them towards the right parts. One of the things I’m good at is teaching people that singing is just one more way of using their voices. So I had been working with a lot of the cast members, especially Cory Monteith, who didn’t have a singing background. And one day (creator) Ryan Murphy said to me, “You better get used to wearing all black.” And I thought he was talking about my fashion sense.

Read More »

Comments: Posted by: Matthew Rodriguez

Culture

Share This! Tweet This! Email This!

Tags: Brad Ellis / Glee / Music / npr

Love & sex in YA lit: THE BAD

Our friends, Em & Nora (who we like to call “Em & No”), recently launched a site for grown-ups about young adult literature called LoveYALit.com*, since (according to the New York Times) more and more people 18-and-over are enjoying books originally intended for the 18-and-under set. Of course, books about teens, the most hormonal among us, often deal with issues of first romantic relationships and sexual awakenings — and reading them as adults can emotionally transport us back to our own teenage years, when those things were really new and exciting, dramatic and traumatic. So we asked Em & Nora to give us a sampling of the good, the bad and the complicated of YA love and sex. We published the good first, here’s the bad, tune in next Thursday for the complicated:

THE BAD:

Sometimes in YA, the darker, more depressing and horrifying side of sex is explored – molestation, incest, rape, STDs…. You name it, and you’ll likely find it in the YA section. These books are often challenged by would-be book banners but, fortunately, the freedom to read usually reigns supreme. Please note: just because the sex in these books is bad doesn’t mean we think the books themselves are.

1. Identical by Ellen Hopkins (2008) — This novel in verse is told from the perspective of twin sisters, one who is sexually molested by their father and the other who deals with their father’s “favoritism” by seeking out sex with drug dealers and random, scummy guys. Sex scenes in YA are not frequently written with much detail, but the sexual assault by “Daddy” is some of the more graphic sex we’ve come across in YA. Disturbing with a capital D. Check out our full review of Identical on LoveYALit.
   
   
   
   
2. Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott (2008) — When “Alice” was 10, she was kidnapped by Ray, a nondescript middle-aged man, and forced to be his sex slave. Now that she is 15 and going through puberty, he’s starving Alice to slow down this process while forcing her to look for her “replacement.” This means trolling the playgrounds and choosing a suitable target. It’s a chilling yet fascinating look at the vulnerability of children to power, control and violence — and the subsequent dehumanizing effects of such abuse.
   
   
   
   

What does biodiversity loss cost us?

The idea of the value of nature traditionally involves intangibles and aesthetics: beauty, vitality, inspiration, etc. But, of course, natural systems provide more concrete value, too. We almost always think of that economic value in terms of what we can get out of these systems: lumber, minerals, food, etc… but, when intact, they often provide even an even greater “bang for the buck.”

An opulent interpretation of the shoplifter’s worst enemy

The fashion statement of leaving label and brand stickers on hats to show off its freshness goes to another extravagant level with Justin Gignac’s 18k-gold-plated sterling silver version of store security tags or “an opulent interpretation of the shoplifter’s worst enemy.” It also comes in a version with diamonds. [Via]

Susan Philipsz wins the Turner Prize

On Monday night the Tate’s Turner Prize was awarded to sound installation artist Susan Philipsz. Philipsz records herself singing a cappella and projects it out over a PA system in either a gallery space or a specific environment. Her 1998 installation “Filter” included her a cappella versions of songs by Nirvana, Radiohead and the Velvet [...]

What women should know about furniture.

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love furniture. I’ve worked for several furniture brands throughout my career and I am an avid collector of all things mid-century. I’ve also blogged for over a decade. This, and Facebook, has allowed me to collect friends via the Internet from all over the globe.

Sometimes people I don’t know too well send me gifts. I do the same. This happened last week when a friend names Rob sent me a book called “What Every Woman Should Know About FURNITURE.” Written by Jeanne Judson in 1940, the book is mostly pictures of furniture styles of the day. And while half of the fun is the book’s camp title, there are some wonderful quotes I feel need to be shared like:

A house without books is a monstrosity. There should be at least one well-filled bookcase in the most lived-in room.

60 years later and I agree with Ms. Judson.

Art Basel Report

Carolina Miranda, one of my favorite art bloggers gives her recap over at WNYC of this year’s Miami Art Basel, which is an event I’m dying to attend. Maybe next year courtesy of Sundance? HELLO. WINK WINK. I especially like Tibi Tibi Neuspiel’s Charlie Rose-interviewing-Martin Amis sweatpants and Mounir Fatmi’s Carpeted skateboards.

All of Billy Joel’s greatest hits played at once

Apropos of nothing other than the fact that I predict this will be the start of a trend with other greatest hit albums, you can now check off listening to all of Billy Joel’s greatest hit songs played simultaneously. I am not responsible for any bleeding of the ear that may occur. When I was [...]

San Francisco State University adds sustainability to general education requirements

Freshman composition, world civilization, college algebra… and, now, intro to sustainability? Yep, the core curriculum at San Francisco State University will look something like that in a couple of years, as the university has approved the addition of three units of environmentally-themed coursework to its general education requirements.

Polli-Bricks, the stuff of miracles

I never thought I would get excited about a brick, but the Polli-Brick is a potentially life-changing building material that can’t be talked up enough. The Polli-Brick is, essentially, a 6-liter plastic bottle made of 100% post-consumer PET. The bottles have a gear-like structure that allows them to lock together into light-weight but insanely strong panels that can withstand earthquakes and hurricanes. Stack enough of these panels and voilà, you have a building.

Vimeo of the Week: Hajj.. A journey of purity

Hajj.. A journey of purity | الحج .. رحلة نقاء from KDMart on Vimeo.

This film, Hajj.. A journey of purity | الحج .. رحلة نقاء, is just over 3 minutes but the amount of time packed into the video is startling. The filmmaker, Almuhannad Alkadam, also known as KDMart, filmed from various vantage points the Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the largest pilgrimage in the world.

Mark Twain’s 70th birthday dinner menu

From their historical collection of menus (among the largest in the world), the New York Public Library, in honor of this beloved American author’s recent birthday, posted the dinner menu for Mark Twain’s 70th birthday celebration which was held in 1835 at Delmonico’s in NYC. Mark Twain is enjoying a resurgence as his recently published [...]

10 rules for surviving your in-laws this holiday season

You may tie each other up every Monday and feel completely comfortable exploring each other’s less traveled orifices, or you may consider doggie style to be “experimental” — but when it comes to the holidays, we’re all just a bunch of overgrown kids hoping to survive extended time with the in-laws (or potential future in-laws). We interviewed therapist Dr. Terri Orbuch, author of the book Five Simple Steps to Take Your Marriage from Good to Great, who says she has found, in her long-term study of married couples, that when a husband or wife fails to get along with the in-laws, it’s predictive of marital unhappiness down the road. “On the flip side,” she says, “in the happiest marriages from my study, both spouses reported that they felt close to, or at least got along with, their in-laws.” We distilled Orbuch’s advice into 10 rules for making sure your relationship survives the onslaught of questionable family members this holiday season.

1. Make your partner a priority — and stand up for them. You can affect your parents’ behaviors and how they treat your spouse by treating your spouse with respect, dignity, and validation. If your parents love you, they want what is best for you. And the best thing for you is a happy spouse who wants to spend time with your family.
2. Set a time limit. Short visits may be the happiest ones.
3. Manage expectations. Don’t expect praise, warmth, and approval from your partner’s family. Realistic expectations reduce frustration.

I heart Valerie Cherish

Upon graduating from Friends, the 6 cast mates went out into the world to find stardom without one another. Several of them succeeded and several have failed, but none took as big a risk as Lisa Kudrow, who became Valerie Cherish on THE COMEBACK.

THE COMEBACK is one of those cult classics. It never quite caught on in the mainstream. But, for many gays, it became a classic. Kudrow turns her back on everything fake and manufactured about Friends and created a character, and a show, complex, funny, and truly original. Like many things that fall under those three categories, it was misunderstood.

Do you see it?

It took me a minute of looking at this old picture of George Lucas talking with Greedo (the bounty hunter in Star Wars) before the “WHOA!” moment struck me.

2011 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL: Short Film Program

81 Short Films from 21 Countries Selected from a Record 6,467 Submissions. Festival Launches Indigenous Shorts Showcase

Park City, UT – Sundance Institute announced today the program of short films selected to screen at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. This year the Festival’s Short Film Program comprises 81 short films from U.S. and international filmmakers selected from 6,467 submissions up 6% over 2010. The 2011 Sundance Film Festival runs January 20-30 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah. The complete list of films is available at www.sundance.org/festival.

“It’s a marvel to discover the creativity in this year’s shorts program. These filmmakers are charged with telling compelling stories, nurturing breakout performances and engaging the audience, all in a fraction of the time allocated to features, and each one delivers,” said Trevor Groth, Sundance Film Festival Director of Programming. “For 2011, we are pleased to be able to shine a light on indigenous filmmakers working around the world in the short-form medium, and to provide festival goers with a window into native storytelling.”

“These directors have once again raised the bar to show us the endless possibilities in short filmmaking,” said Kim Yutani, Sundance Film Festival Programmer. “It’s especially rewarding to see shorts alums such as Andrew MacLean, Sean Durkin, Dee Rees, Rashaad Ernesto Green, Madeleine Olnek, Tiffany Shlain and others returning this year with feature films.”

Handcrafted Modern

The spiral staircase in Wharton Esherick’s home.

Leslie Williamson’s new book, “Handcrafted Modern,” takes a look at designers both well-known and not, but hers is not the oft-trodden approach of a few pages of slick photographs and a profile of famous buildings and homes. Instead, Williamson takes designers like Eames and Gropius as well as several lesser-knowns like J.B. Blunk and John Kapel and makes an informal visit to their own homes or the homes where they once lived, so long as the new residents have left them mostly unchanged. The result is not only an introduction to some new designers worth knowing as well as photographs that are much more intimate than those normally seen in interior design books (Ray Eames’ bobby pins left out on her nightstand or Walter Gropius’ name written on the labels of his towels), but Williamson makes the case that even those staunch icons of Modernism have elements of the handmade in their work.