castles in the sky is the title of this movie. i’m not going to provide a description about it because the trailer speaks for itself. i just need to get my hands on this dvd. it makes me wanna travel, experience new cultures, talk to strangers, listen to the stories they bring with them, see the skies from different parts of the world, breath fresh air, be shocked, be inspired and just really, to see what the world has in store beyond my own shores. and i love the accompanying track of the movie’s trailer, really beautiful. anyone knows what the song is called and who the musician/band is?
(Apologies for the video to be lacking in quality but it is the best vid I could find. Does not in any way belong to me.)
Paraboles 2.0 by Compagnie Off (France) & Victor Thng (Singapore) at the facade of the National Art Museum, Singapore.
Paraboles 2.0 was the major live art performance that headlined the Night Festival 2010 which took place over the weekend in sunny Singapore. It does not seem as amazing viewing this on the computer screen, but believe me, there were times I felt like I was elsewhere with their beautiful combination of dreamy + hypnotising visuals, colors and the live orchestra to set the mood right. If you look closely, as part of this grand installation is the hottest conductress i’ve ever seen (grungey/gothic chick decked out in leather pants) guiding the orchestra as well as a pretty ballet dancer to help elevate the mystery of the satellite dishes. My friends and I were coming up with varied explanations/stories as the performance progressed. There was so much going on, there were so many stories we could tell. Why don’t you watch it for yourself and see what comes up in your mind?
The official description of the performance:
“Six giant satellite dishes spring from the urban ground right in front the National Museum of Singapore. At the core of the satellite dishes, stroboscopic light flashes quietly, signalling activity. Under each satellite, we hear faint abstract sounds. It is the music of the stars, solar winds, and radio waves, all mixed together in a surreal, random composition.“
“I live in Los Angeles. I drive in Los Angeles. I think about traffic a lot in Los Angeles. A few months ago, I discovered Matt Logue’s Empty LA photographs. I didn’t think much about it at the time, but every time I was stuck in rush hour all-hour traffic, I found myself thinking – What if tomorrow everyone’s car disappeared.” – Ross Ching, Film Maker
Absolutely love the music, and the usage of such beautiful live music as opposed to the conventional hiphop beats. Spectacular and very inspiring. I am in awe.
“So I saw all of these mediocre pictures of that volcano in Iceland nobody can pronounce the name of, so I figured I should go and do better. But the flights to get over took forever as expected (somewhat). 4 days after leaving I finally made it, but the weather was terrible for another 4. Just before leaving it got pretty good for about a day and a half and this is what I managed to get.” – Sean Stiegemeier, Cinematographer/Director
“For me it was always a question… If we have such a fast life, we have to have long art… I always believe the artist’s function is to connect disconnected society and give some kind of awareness, not just spiritual but where they live…”
“Its so important in life of the artists to know a few things: to know when to stop the work and how to die.”
Marina Abramović’s
‘The Artist is Present’ is a performance retrospective at MoMA, New York, from March 14-May 31, 2010.
I love how the interlocking of the two family members’ fingers not only successfully communicates the key message of the importance of a seatbelt, but it serves as a reminder that anyone who ever gets involved in such tragedies, hurts not only themselves, but those they share a close bond with. I’m starting to sound like I work with the traffic police, I’m sorry!
I also love how the pre-accident bit is in slow motion, coupled with soothing music that may be representative of how we take life for granted, and then followed by the sudden thrust of a driver, a father, a husband, a best friend, a bread winner, a son.
The ad is further dramatised with the flying of the coins/bits/pieces, representative of a car crash, perhaps also to display how brittle life can be, and that it can all break apart into the tiniest little pieces, fly away and disappear in an instance.
Employing the soft approach, lovely to see that all this was done without the conventional employment of blood, dead bodies, mourning family members, screaming eyewitnesses, crashed cars, ambulances and the likes.
Mostly considered an anti-drug film, it was made for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The film follows its protagonist, Donny B, a young black man who appears to be a heroin addict, as he makes his way through the cruel ghettos of New York City… Through the run time of 14 minutes, a blues-like tune plays over the footage and voice-overs, with vocals that come in and out during the film, narrating Donny B as he does wrong.
