For the second year in a row, movie buffs will need to get their Melbourne International Film Festival fix purely from their couches. After the 2020 fest jumped online due to the pandemic, the 2021 event was meant to go ahead as a hybrid of both in-cinema and digital sessions. But then not one but two lockdowns hit, venue restrictions were put in place when the city wasn't under stay-at-home conditions, and the COVID-19 situation in Melbourne in general has kept complicating plans, leading MIFF organisers to scrap its in-cinema screenings. Initially, in-person sessions were set to span the festival's first week or so, before the event closed up online; however, just days before this year's MIFF kicked off on Thursday, August 5, the fest flipped that order and expanded its virtual component. It was due to then add in-person sessions from Thursday, August 12, but that'll no longer be happening. "MIFF's heart was in a return to cinemas this year, and this is a goal that we have pursued with determination to this point," said Artistic Director Al Cossar. "It is with deep sadness and profound frustration that we must take the step of cancelling our Melbourne cinema-based screenings for 2021." This year's MIFF was designed to be able to adapt to changing conditions, given that it was always likely that the pandemic would continue to impact the festival's plans — and so it is well-positioned for the move online. "Despite the duress of this moment, we are proud that elements of our program can still continue," said Cossar. "Through our XR platform, global audiences anywhere can continue their season of MIFF's exciting range of immersive experiences; and, centrally, through MIFF Play we can continue to deliver the very best Australian and international films to audiences not just in Melbourne but right around the country, at a time that it's most needed." Via MIFF Play, the festival is screening more than 90 features, with its catalogue of titles growing in recent days. Exisiting highlights include college-set rom-com Freshman Year, Spanish influencer satire La Verónica, New Zealand thriller Coming Home in the Dark and Norwegian comedy Ninjababy, while the Mads Mikkelsen-starring Riders of Justice and psycho-thriller music mockumentary The Nowhere Inn — featuring Carrie Brownstein and St Vincent — sit among the just-added newcomers. More films are set to become available on Saturday, August 14, too, such as documentary Hopper/Welles, which sees Dennis Hopper and Orson Welles meet and chat back in 1970; Night of the Kings, a prison thriller set on the outskirts of Abidjan; and Stray, a doco about the 100,000-plus stray dogs that rove freely around Istanbul. And, other titles will drop later in the fest, like Australian drama Little Tornadoes, which is co-written by The Slap's Christos Tsiolkas; Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror, a documentary exploring the folk horror genre; and closing night's Language Lessons, which takes place via video calls. MIFF's digital platform is available Australia-wide, ensuring that cinephiles around the country — including those in lockdown elsewhere, like in Greater Sydney — can enjoy its lineup as well. That facet of the online program proved popular last year, unsurprisingly, with 2020's virtual festival resulting in MIFF's biggest fest yet, audience-wise. The 2021 Melbourne International Film Festival runs via MIFF's online platform MIFF Play until Sunday, August 22. For further details, visit the MIFF website.
Back when MySpace Tom was still a known person being we discovered that playing around with contrast and camera angles could remove pores, noses and any other unsightly facial features that made us look like normal humans. Then Instagram came along and retro-chic became the new high contrast, though this time the entire world was "enhanced": Skies were consistently a halcyon shade of blue, inner-city roads were somehow rife with beat-up Kombis and any annoying details, scenic or human, were happily obliterated. But if you ever find yourself frustrated that you find it hard to recognise your friends in real life because sometimes they have pimples and regular-sized eyes, the Normalize app might be of some assistance. Normalize was created by app developer Joe Macirowski after he became fed up of seeing already beautiful sights being distorted by the Valencia haze. The app, which costs $0.99, takes the Instagram picture and runs it through a series of complex algorithms to try to remove the effects and return the image to its original state. A shared picture manipulated with any of the effects on Instagram becomes stripped of its original information, making it otherwise impossible to view them normally without making tedious manual corrections. With Normalize you can upload a photo and use a simple sliding scale to clean up the colours, borders and brightness to see the image as it would have appeared to the naked eye. Apparently the app doesn’t always work perfectly, but it’s comforting to know that sunsets are sometimes pretty IRL too.
Now, more than ever, bees need friends too. Like Frankenstein’s monster, they might seem scary and potentially aggressive from the outside. But the truth is, wild bees are more concerned with keeping out of your way than with launching a mega sting attack. Plus, as you probably know by now, bee populations are on the down and down, which for us may well lead to diminished food supplies. So, Netherlands-based artist AnneMarie van Splunter has conjured up a public sculpture that’s all about helping humans and bees to get to know one another better. Dubbed the Buzzbench, the gorgeous artwork is a park bench, but not of your usual rectangular variety. Made of cane and bamboo stalks, placed between curved boards, it takes the shape of an enormous flower. For humans, the Buzzbench provides a dreamy place to sit, which looks like something straight out of Alice in Wonderland. For bees, it offers teeny-tiny, cosy crevices, where they can rest while taking a break from their busy pollinating activities. "Wild bees spend a large part of their lifespan looking for a suitable place to lay their eggs — providing a nesting opportunity really helps them," van Splunter explained to Co.EXIST. "We tend to keep our distance from bees because we are afraid to get stung. But actually, the chances you get attacked by wild bees are nil." The sculptor hopes to install the Buzzbench in a park in Amsterdam and has launched a crowdfunding campaign to help raise funds and build awareness. Van Splunter says that once it’s in place, she’ll be able to maintain it for at least a decade, by replacing the cane and bamboo whenever necessary. "It's important to maintain it to make it work," she says. "I would like it to be a place that many people feel involved with, for example as an educational tool, or as a place of research for experts, or just as a place for park visitors to rest." Via Fast Company.
Whichever Disney theme park sits on your must-visit list — the original Disneyland in California, Florida's Walt Disney World, or sites in Tokyo, Paris, Hong Kong and Shanghai — you won't be heading there while Australia's borders are closed to international travel. So, the Mouse House has brought some of its magic our way. Now open at Melbourne's newly revamped Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Disney: The Magic of Animation showcases the company's considerable animated prowess across the past century. Whether you've always been a fan of Mickey Mouse, can remember how it felt when you first watched Bambi, are able to sing all of Genie's lyrics in Aladdin or fell head over heels for Moana more recently, you'll find plenty worth looking at among ACMI's halls and walls. And in its doors, too, actually — because walking beneath mouse ear-shaped openings to move from one area to the next is all part of the experience. Of course it is. Displaying from Thursday, May 13–Sunday, October 17, marking ACMI's first big exhibition since it reopened after its $40 million transformation and making its only Aussie stop at the venue, Disney: The Magic of Animation explores everything from 1928's Steamboat Willie — the first talkie to feature Mickey Mouse — through to this year's Raya and the Last Dragon. Obviously, a wealth of other titles get the nod between those two bookending flicks. Fantasia, Alice in Wonderland, Lady and the Tramp, The Jungle Book and The Lion King also feature, as do Mulan, Frozen, Big Hero 6 and Zootopia. And yes, many of these movies have been remade in live-action or photo-realistic CGI; however, ACMI's showcase is only about the animated films. The big drawcard: art from the Mouse House's hefty back catalogue of titles, and heaps of it. More than 500 original artworks feature, spanning paintings, sketches, drawings and concept art. The entire lineup has been specially selected by the Walt Disney Animation Research Library, and will let you get a glimpse at just how the movie magic comes to life, how some of Disney's famous stories were developed, and which animation techniques brought them to the big screen. "The exhibition features behind-the-scenes production artworks which were created during the development of our Disney animated films," explains Walt Disney Animation Research Library Art Exhibitions and Conservation Manager Kristen McCormick. She notes that visitors will "see how the filmmakers and artists develop our stories, and work through different ideas and concepts along the way to creating the films we know so well". And if you think the 500-plus piece collection on display is sizeable — which is is — it was chosen from more than 65 million works in the Walt Disney Animation Research Library. Get ready to peer at hand-drawn dalmatians (which is timely, given that Cruella hits cinemas and Disney+ at the end of May), stare closely at Mickey Mouse's evolution, examine Wreck-It Ralph models and pose next to Snow White. Wall-sized artworks pay tribute to a number of movies, too — The Little Mermaid piece is particularly eye-catching — and feeling like you're stepping into a Disney movie is an unsurprising side effect. Arriving on our shores after past seasons in cities such as Paris, Tokyo, Seoul and Singapore, Disney: The Magic of Animation is clearly designed to appeal to Mouse House fans of all ages. You, your parents, today's primary school kids — you've all grown up watching Disney flicks. So, while you're pondering tales as old as time, being ACMI's guest, contemplating the animated circle of life and definitely not letting your nostalgia go, prepare to be accompanied by aficionados both young and young at heart. Disney: The Magic of Animation is on display at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Federation Square, Melbourne from Thursday, May 13–Sunday, October 17 — open 12–5pm Monday–Friday and 10am–6pm on weekend and during school holidays. For more information or to buy tickets, head to the ACMI website. Images: Phoebe Powell.
Every month at The Grand Richmond, yum cha hits the menu — though not as you know it. Sorry dumplings, spring rolls and pork buns, but this isn't your time to shine. Instead, this feast of bite-sized portions is going Italian. Yes, Italian Yum Cha is exactly what it sounds like. And yes, it sounds delicious. Munch your way through little steamer baskets filled with everything from handmade rabbit tortelli and crudo of kingfish to prawn risotto and suckling pig croquettes. Smoked duck bruschetta, char-grilled quail, veal meatballs, mini buffalo mozzarella, tomato and basil lasagne — the list goes on, and also includes desserts such as tiramisu, lemon tart, chocolate terrine and toffee ice cream. Taking place on the weekends of September 16 and 17, October 7 and 8, and November 4 and 5, there's two yum cha sittings daily: from midday to 2pm, and then from 2.15pm until 4.30pm. As is the custom, prices are tallied per dish, which come in multiple servings. Booking in advance is highly recommended.
You can never have too many rooftop bars — especially effortlessly stylish rooftop bars that soar 24 storeys above street level and boast uninterrupted 270-degree views across the city and beyond. Which is good, because that's exactly the kind of sky-high sipping spot that's just arrived on Chapel Street, with Beverly Rooftop gearing up to make its long-awaited debut this April. You might remember back in mid-2021 the talk of a towering new venue set to eventually grace South Yarra's new Goldfields development. The bar and eatery's name was yet to be chosen, as was the operator selected to bring it to life. Now, we know the score: Cameron Northway (founder of LOTI, Rocker Bondi and drinks company Sweet&Chilli) is teaming up with Goldfields' Marco Gattino and Lachlan Thompson to unveil his impressive all-day spot, Beverly Rooftop, in a matter of weeks. [caption id="attachment_891071" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Goldfields[/caption] Taking cues from the cool-kid rooftop haunts of LA, the indoor-outdoor space has been imagined by acclaimed Melbourne studio Mitchell & Eades (Grill Americano, Carlton Wine Room, Rock Sugar). Boasting a retractable glass roof, it's a vision of earthy sunset tones and foliage, set against a backdrop of sweeping panoramas. Seasonality and sustainability drive the menu by chef David Ball's (the UK's Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons, The Glass House in Hobart); a lineup that has swagger but that remains approachable. Expect to match after-work vinos with the likes of truffle-infused mac 'n cheese bites with mornay sauce, bluefin tartare tostadas finished with chilli yuzu mayo, and wood-grilled octopus paired with an 'nduja romesco. Deeper in, pasta might hero a pulled pork belly ragu finished with mojo de ají, while a slow-cooked beef rib is served on the bone, sided with onion rings. We're also foreseeing many an afternoon and evening up here, sipping while soaking up the view — and the drinks list is set to offer options for all those occasions. It's packed full of local goodies, including a cocktail lineup that reimagines the classics using Aussie spirits and native botanicals. [caption id="attachment_891069" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Cameron, Marco and Lachlan[/caption] Find Beverly Rooftop at Level 24, 627 Chapel Street, South Yarra, from April. It'll open from 4pm–late Tuesday, and from 12pm–late Wednesday to Sunday.
Whether your fridge-shaped DVD box set is looking a little worse for wear, or you've spent too much time streaming the series in your spare time, we could all use a little more Seinfeld in our lives — and one Australian indie game developer is hoping to help. If Jacob Janerka's side project comes to fruition, playing a game about nothing could be as simple as pointing and clicking your way around your computer screen. Janerka's Seinfeld game has been mooted for the past couple of years; however the Perth-based fan released an updated compilation of potential artwork just before Christmas. Familiar characters, settings and scenes all get the pixelated treatment, including Jerry greeting Newman and the potential to play as the Soup Nazi. Here's hoping that Elaine's distinctive dancing style is next. https://twitter.com/ParadigmGame/status/942847812059906049 Before Seinfeld lovers start getting excited about wandering around a parking garage, enjoying Festivus or shouting "yada, yada, yada" — or seeing anything else from the series' 180-episode run make the leap onto your computer screen — Janerka has been waiting until he has a decent premise before progressing further. Or, in other words, he wants to ensure that it isn't really about nothing. In the interim, he has had his hands full with the indie adventure game Paradigm, which takes players through a post-apocalyptic world inhabited by the titular mutant and a genetically engineered sloth that vomits candy. https://twitter.com/ParadigmGame/status/946449916800393216 Via IGN. Image: Jacob Janerka.
Last year was tough for Australia's hospitality industry, but hope is on the horizon thanks to the inspirational ideas submitted by talented bartenders, managers and venue teams in this year's Idea Lab competition. Beam Suntory's competition initiative awarded grants from $5000–20,000 to support hospo legends and their passion projects with a goal to improve the industry as a whole. And the result is a series of new projects that will revitalise the bars you visit week after week, as well as supporting the industry as a whole. Whittled down from 20 finalists, these six ideas were chosen from around the country as 2021's Idea Lab champions. Read on to find out what's coming — or relaunching — in a city near you. A BETTER SEXUAL HARASSMENT POLICY FOR HOSPO WORKERS Having spent decades in the Melbourne hospo scene, Nicola Keating (Welcome to Brunswick, Brunswick Mess Hall) is sick of pervasive sexual harassment in the industry. She's joined forces with psychologist Ishma Alvi to launch a sexual harassment and assault policy for Australia's hospitality industry. The duo has been awarded $20,000 to start the project, called The Consent Blueprints, which will create training modules and implement safeguarding tools for venues. The program will also promote risk assessments and risk management protocols for venues and events. The Consent Blueprints is positioned to truly make change in the industry, so watch this space. A MULTIUSE COCKTAIL LAB IN WOLLONGONG Wollongong's escape room bar Breakout Bar is set to expand this year thanks to bartenders Orion Leppan Taylor and Mitchell Bloomfield. The duo want to elevate the local cocktail scene by creating a space that's both a test kitchen for bartenders and a multipurpose event space. The Wollongong Cocktail Lab will include prep islands and high-end equipment, a research and development lab with cocktail-making equipment like centrifuges and rotary vacuums, and a small bar and masterclass section. And the pair has been awarded $20,000 to make it happen. It's not just for hospitality workers either, as on weekends you can expect masterclasses, cocktail-making courses, spirit tastings and other similar events for punters, too. A DEDICATED ICE LAB IN PERTH Western Australian Tom Kearney runs a company called Arctic Fox Ice Co, which supplies quality ice to bartenders and venues across Perth. Alongside providing ice for high quality drinks, Kearney's company aims to offer workshops, training and other cocktail- and ice-related activations. His idea to create a dedicated space for training sessions was awarded a whopping $20,000 from Beam Suntory. If you're a hospo worker in Perth, look out for upcoming details on the Arctic Fox Ice Lab in the near future. A HOSPO DEVELOPMENT NETWORK IN WA There is a lack of personal and professional development available to Australia's expansive hospo community, believes Perth bartender Kaden Pool, from Arcade Palace. Pool says this shortcoming is especially noticeable in WA, so his idea is to create a not-for-profit that provides professional development opportunities for the local hospitality scene. Good Causes will host workshops and training sessions for industry workers and Pool's been awarded $5,000 to make it happen. The not-for-profit will officially launch in 2021, so keep an eye on the Instagram page for more details. A THREE-WEEK CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION IN BRISBANE After a long, difficult year, we were all in need of a little extra Christmas cheer according to Queensland man Daniel Rodriguez. To finish 2020 off with a big ol' bang, Daniel's big idea was to go all out with a Christmas celebration in Brisbane that lasted three weeks. He was awarded $10,000 to bring together the city's live music scene in a series of Christmas-themed events geared toward bringing Brisbanites back into its city venues. A NETWORKING COLLECTIVE IN ADELAIDE Adelaide's hospo elite have bandied together for this one under the name The Pursuit of Hospitality. Maybe Mae's Michael Keogh, Cry Baby's Sean Howard, Bar Torino's Kayla Grigoriou and Jack Booker (Yiasou George, Anchovy Bandit) have joined forces to come up with a mentorship community that supports rookies in the early days of their hospitality careers. The Pursuit of Hospitality are at the top of their game as managers, owners and distillers, and so the group aims to provide industry expertise to the next gen. The team has been awarded $5,000 to provide training and networking opportunities to hospo workers, and it plans to bring together the Adelaide community like never before. Top image: Orion Leppan Taylor, Wollongong Cocktail Lab
In Groundhog Day, weatherman Phil Connors (Bill Murray) finds himself reliving the celebratory occasion over and over again. Since 1993, viewers have been able to enjoy their own looping experience, simply by watching and rewatching the movie. But later this year, there'll be another way to step into the beloved comedy's world — by jumping into the feature's virtual reality sequel. After being adapted into an award-winning stage musical back in 2016, Groundhog Day is now getting a follow-up. Coming to a VR headset rather than to the big screen, Groundhog Day: Like Father Like Son takes fans back to Punxsutawney, reunites with the Connors family, and lets players experience the joys — and stresses — of repeating the same events again and again. As the title suggests, however, it doesn't focus on Murray's misanthropic character. We all know that Phil Connors really spent the original flick not only waiting to see if a woodchuck sees a shadow, getting frustrated and dying repeatedly, but learning how to value life and his loved ones. This time around, his son Phil Connors Jr will follow in his footsteps, all while experiencing his own bad, endless day. If you've chosen your way through Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, you can now do the same thing with this VR game, playing as the younger Phil and trying to break the cycle. Here's hoping that Sonny and Cher's "I Got You Babe" features on the soundtrack — you know that you're going to have it stuck in your head anyway. The news comes with the best possible timing, given that Saturday, February 2 marked this year's actual Groundhog Day. At Gobbler's Knob, 'Seer of Seers, Sage of Sages, Prognosticator of Prognosticators' Punxsutawney Phil didn't see his shadow, meaning that spring is on the way in the US. As for the game that this marmot-inspired superstition has given rise to, audiences will be able to see it on PlayStation VR, Oculus Rift and HTC Vive at a yet-to-be-announced date later in 2019. Check out the trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rHHzQlqXdU Via Variety.
Put down your So Fresh CD. Crack open your teenage piggy bank. Keep practicing your Usher slide glide. Because a full-blown R&B frenzy is set to sweep the nation this November as live party tour RnB Fridays returns for five mammoth shows. Descending on Marvel Stadium on November 10 (not a Friday, mind you), the event has managed to pull a pretty serious lineup of international music legends straight from the 90s and early 2000s. Heading the bill is none other than singing, songwriting, dancing superstar Usher, in what will be his first Aussie shows since 2011. He'll be joined by hip hop queens Salt-N-Pepa, rappers T-Pain and Lil Jon, mononymous ladies Eve and Estelle, Grammy Award-winning trio Naughty By Nature, Fatman Scoop and 'Pony' Ginuwine. All of them. Together. In one show. Ticket prices are as momentous as the lineup, with each one starting at $109.90. If you fancy really splashing out, you can opt for $349.90 platinum package — it comes complete with a commemorative lanyard, express entry, front-row real estate and the chance to meet Usher himself. Image: Mushroom Creative House.
Yesterday LCD Soundsystem made a surprise appearance on this year's Coachella lineup, almost five years after the band called it quits. But guess what? That is only the start of it. And proving speculation to be true, frontman James Murphy has posted a lengthy (read: really long) note on the band's website confirming that, yes, the band has officially reunited, yes, they'll be doing an "all over" tour, and they'll be releasing a new album in 2016. Holy shit. We'd almost be angry if we weren't so insanely excited right now. It seems that Murphy has anticipated some backlash from fans who have already mourned the band, and are presumably (hopefully) already on the other side of their seven stages of grief. In his apologetic post, which was also shared on the band's Facebook early this morning Australian time, Murphy acknowledges the fans who "feel very attached to the band, and have put a lot of themselves into their care of us, who feel betrayed by us coming back and playing". These fans did, of course, shell out and possibly sold a limb and/or firstborn child for their last glimpse of LCD at their final Madison Square Garden show back in 2011 — a moment that may now, according to Murphy, may feel "cheapened" by their reunion and promise to do a wider tour. He writes: "to you i have to say: i’m seriously sorry. the only thing we can do now is get back into the studio and finish this record, and make it as fucking good as we can possibly make it." An expected album release date is currently unknown, as are the details of the proposed "all over tour" — but we expect the Internet will start wildly speculating on that too. As for an Australian tour? Well, we'll be sitting here quietly, crossing all our things. Image: Matt Biddulph via Wikimedia Commons
With winter a short steam-breath away, it's time to embrace life in the longer, cooler evenings. This is the season for cosy conversations in dark corners, wearing many layers and indulging in a good shot or two of gin, the spirit of old world glamour and new world glitz. Bombay Sapphire's Project Botanicals pop-up knows how to do it, with creations like the Angelica Negroni and Liquorice Pontefract. The botanical oils and floral scents of a great gin are loving partners to spicy winter flavours, giving your tastebuds a sophisticated toast as they warm your flesh. Here are five of our favourite gin cocktails, some classic, some new, that will take your tongue on a tour beyond the familiar martini. RANGOON GIN FIZZ Toby Maloney's variation on the gin fizz switches the traditional lemon juice for a spicier lime, and kicks the cold out with a ginger snap. The title bows to the old British name for Yangon, a former capital of Myanmar/Burma, so best serve this when you're ready for political debate. 60ml Bombay Sapphire 22ml ginger syrup 30ml lime juice 9 drops bitters 5 sprigs of mint 60ml tonic water (the less sweet, more quinine the better) Shake with ice and strain into a Collins glass. Top with the tonic, garnish with mint. Image: Smith & Ratliff. ROSEMARY GIMLET Contemporary gins come infused with many crisp flavours, with citrus being a prominent one. This recipe takes the classic gimlet, a mix of gin and lime (to ward off malnutrition, presumably) and thumps some complexity into its orange soul. The rosemary is a beautiful winter addition, harkening to roast lamb and crisp evening air, while possibly helping you remember the night afterwards. 45ml Bombay Sapphire 30ml simple syrup, strongly infused with rosemary 30ml tart lime juice 8ml orange liquer (blood orange is preferable for presentation) 1 sprig rosemary Shake liquid ingredients with ice, strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with rosemary sprig. Image: The Style Gathering. AVIATION This classic recipe was born on the streets of New York, around the time when the Wright brothers were first getting up off the ground. Excellent for the gin-shy, sipping this dainty number will warm your loins for some ragtime dancing, or boost your morale for the frosty dash towards the nearest vaudeville theatre. Add a splash of crème de violette for a sky-blue variation. 45ml Bombay Sapphire 22ml lemon juice 15ml cherry liqueur 1 maraschino cherry Shake with ice, strain into cocktail glass and garnish with the cherry. Image: Platings and Pairings. BIJOU Another gin classic that would like to have a few stern words with the martini, the bijou (bee-joo) is French for 'jewel' and takes its name from the three gemstone colours represented by its ingredients: the diamond gin, the emerald Chartreuse and the ruby vermouth. Knocking back a few of these will most likely end the night in a poetic swoon or a bloody duel. 20ml Bombay Sapphire 20ml green Chartreuse 20ml sweet vermouth 1 dash orange bitters 1 orange peel Stir in a mixing glass with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with orange peel. Image: Nightlife.ca. THE MONKEY GLAND So apparently people used to do whacky things for their health, such as surgically graft primate testicles onto their body. Possibly they were inspired by this heady concoction. Aside from hilarious tales of medical history, the monkey gland will hopefully provide you with effective protection against the common cold. 50ml Bombay Sapphire 30ml orange juice 2 drops absinthe 2 drops grenadine Shake well with ice, strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a monkey gland (optional).
You'll know Untitled Group best as the crew behind hit music events such as Beyond the Valley, Pitch Music & Arts and Grapevine Gathering. But as it turns out, these guys have some chops when it comes to making top-notch booze, too. They've gone and launched their own vodka brand, Ugly — a new Australian-made spirit crafted from imperfect apples that would otherwise be headed straight to landfill. Made in Melbourne in collaboration with the pre-batched cocktail experts at 80proof Liquor, the new drop is distilled five times to create an extra smooth sip without any residual apple flavour. It uses unwanted fruit sourced from the Goulburn Valley, with the apples containing a starch extract that works similarly to the potatoes in regular vodka. An innovative response to the issue of food wastage, Ugly gives new life to imperfect fruit that would otherwise be chucked out, having not made the cut to end up in the neat piles of good-looking apples at the supermarket. This preference for perfection contributes a huge amount of food waste to landfill, which leads to hefty CO2 emissions. After 80proof co-founder Danny Grant witnessed the impacts first-hand while on his research trips and talking to farmers, he was inspired to create a new drink that would help undo some of the damage. An initial limited-run batch of Ugly has hit shelves, having rescued an estimated 20 tonnes of unwanted apples from heading to landfill. Ugly Vodka clocks in at 40% ABV and is priced at $64.99 RRP. You can grab a bottle online. Images: Michael Woods
We all like ice cream, but sometimes, the occasion calls for something other than everyone's favourite sweet treat. Maybe it's too cold? Maybe you already have an ice cream headache? Maybe Gelato Messina is closed, or just not in the immediate vicinity? Enter the food mashup that had to happen, really — and a concoction straight out of every gelato and biscuit lover's dreams. If you're a fan of Tim Tams smashed, crushed or placed atop scoops of creamy goodness, then you're sure to be fond of their exact opposite: those iconic chocolate rectangles in Gelato Messina flavours. Due in stores around the country from February 6, the Gelato Messina Tim Tam range will come in four styles: choc mint, salted caramel and vanilla, coconut and lychee, and black forest. The collaboration came about after Arnotts, the folks behind the bikkies, got in touch with the ice cream makers. ""It was a new challenge for us — making a gelato is one thing — and making a biscuit that tastes like that gelato is another," said Gelato Messina co-founder Declan Lee. Making this tastebud-tempting news even better is the fact that, like all Tim Tams, they'll be sold in supermarkets everywhere. Yes, that means more Messina goodness more often. The biscuits are expected to set hungry shoppers back $3.65 per packed. Come on, you know you're going to buy more than one.
There's no denying that Melbourne's chilly winters test even the hardiest of us. But luckily, right in the heart of the city, the Duke of Wellington is giving us the perfect antidote to the cold weather blues. Set up on its rooftop is the pop-up Spiked Apple Cider Bar, running all winter long. From now until the end of August, enjoy a hot James Squire Orchard Crush apple cider, served as is for $7 or spiked with your choice of spirit for $18. For the added kick, take your pick between St Remy Brandy, the award-winning French drop; Fijian Bati Spiced Rum, which boasts spicy vanilla overtones; or the sweet and spicy whisky, Fireball. You won't leave hungry either. From the pub's kitchen, you can snack on a range of scrumptious treats, including grilled saganaki, Lygon Street-style lasagne croquettes and chargrilled tandoori chicken skewers. You'll also enjoy views of the Forum, Fed Square and Flinders Street from the Duke's weather-proof rooftop, protecting you from all the elements. Plus, there'll be chunky knits and plaid blankets to rug up under. Slot into a booth and get cosy. You'll probably be staying a while. The Spiked Apple Bar is located on The Duke of Wellington's rooftop and will run throughout winter. Bookings can be made here.
Renowned Aussie gin distillery Four Pillars is at it again, with a brand-new creation headed soon to our bottle shop shelves. You're familiar with the label's cult favourite Bloody Shiraz Gin, which sells out like fire with each new year's release, right? Well, the team's calling this newcomer their finest creation since that purple-hued icon first launched back in 2016. So, break out some martini glasses and let the excitement begin. The soon-to-launch Olive Leaf Gin has already earned itself some hype, having nabbed a gold medal from the 2020 World Spirits Competition held in San Francisco in March. Now, it's gearing up for a proper Aussie debut, with a fitting early September release date happening just in time for your spring cocktail quaffing sessions. This one's an all-natural savoury gin, crafted using cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil and three different varieties of olive leaf, all harvested from the legendary Cobram Estate. There are plenty of classic Australian botanicals in there to round out the fun, too, including lemon myrtle, macadamia, fresh lemon and grapefruit. [caption id="attachment_780046" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Benito Martin[/caption] Four Pillars' experts reckon the Olive Leaf Gin goes alright alongside some rosemary and lemon in a Spanish-style gin and tonic. But of course, with all that savoury, olive-infused goodness, this drop's true calling is in a nice, cold martini. Co-Founder and Distiller Cam Mackenzie recommends putting 60 millilitres of it to work in a gibson, stirred down with ten millilitres of both dry vermouth and dry sherry, and garnished with a couple of cocktail onions. Four Pillars Olive Leaf Gin will be available across Australia from early September. You can nab a 700-millilitre bottle for $85. Images: Benito Martin
If you've tried cycling around London, you'll understand why residents are celebrating Mayor Boris Johnson's intention to spend nearly 1 billion pounds on the city's bicycle routes. Double decker buses, cramped alleyways and teetering lorries have made for a 21st-century population explosion in spaces that Dickens described as crowded 150 years ago. The plan's backbone is a 24-kilometre (or 15-mile, as the Poms would say) bicycle highway, which will enable Londoners to cycle from west to east, in a lane (mostly) separated from motorised vehicles. This "bike Crossrail" will be the longest cycle path of its kind to be found in any European city. The aim is to decrease pressure on roads and public transport, improve air quality and increase faith that two wheels can be better than four. In the words of the ever-eloquent Johnson, "I want to de-Lycrafy cycling ... [to] give people the confidence to get in the saddle." Apart from the Crossrail, the vision includes a Central London Grid, which will create links in frenetic areas like the West End and the City; a series of 'Quietways', which are extended, signposted, suburban routes that guide cyclists along tranquil side streets; and a host of semi-segregated and fully segregated lanes. The Dutch commitment to the cultivation of a healthy cycling culture will be emulated through the development of what are being dubbed 'Little Hollands' in a minimum of one, and perhaps as many as three, boroughs. If these cyclist-friendly areas are a success, expansion throughout Outer London is likely. Furthermore, the Safer Intersection Review is about to receive a 500 percent increase in funding, from 19 million to 100 million, which means that some of London's most chaotic junctions — including Elephant and Castle, Blackfriars and Vauxhall — will be treated to improvements. Eight police will be employed to deal exclusively with accidents involving cyclists and heavy goods vehicles. At an April 2012 hustings concerned with cycling and road safety, Johnson lost support from some members of the cycling community after describing "stereotypical cyclists" as those who "charge around in lycra", "jump lights" and consider themselves "morally superior". His new plan is likely to go a long way in healing the damage done. London cycling image by Felix O and Ottawa cycling image by John Talbot.
If running a successful startup business is a feat, running 11 successful businesses is a modern-day miracle. But that's what Julien Moussi does. If you're a Melbourne food lover, you've probably eaten at one of Julien's establishments (including Temperance Society in Hughesdale, Penta in Elsternwick, Tinker in Northcote and most recently, Bentwood in Fitzroy) and enjoyed the fruits of his entrepreneurial labours without even realising it. We teamed up with MYOB to get to know the people who are doing business right and had a yarn with Julien to learn how his venues manage to thrive in a city so inundated with hospitality talent. Turns out, it's a healthy mix of hard work, trust and not sweating the small stuff. And, whether it's your first startup or your eleventh, it doesn't get easier, but you do learn a heck of a lot along the way. Julien gave us a rundown of his best tips for small business owners. RUNNING A BUSINESS IS LIKE RAISING A CHILD "You have to put all your time into it. Forget about your usual sleeping patterns, hobbies or routines," Julien says. The first few years can be tough as you learn the ropes of running a business. You'll make mistakes and more importantly, you'll have to make sacrifices (forget everything you knew about work/life balance — you're a business owner now). If you ever doubt yourself, remember it's not forever. When your little business baby ages out of the terrible toddler years, you'll both be stronger for it. "Those sacrifices have paid dividends," Julien says. "I get to travel a lot overseas and have a very flexible schedule. I can also catch up in the middle of the day with my mum, dad and friends for a coffee — things that just weren't possible in the first three years." YOUR PEOPLE ARE YOUR MOST VALUABLE ASSET If your business is a baby, then choosing who to co-parent with is the most important decision you'll make. It's scary but important — sharing the load is the only way to prevent burnout and actually have some fun with it. "Nothing can really prepare you for business. I had no social life for at least the first two or three years and did nothing but work," Julien says. "[My] mentality was 'if it is to be, it's up to me', but then finding fantastic people to work with is key. Staff are the most important part of any business. Now, I'm happy for us to make mistakes in order to give people experience and growth." BE DIFFERENT OR PERISH There's a lot of sameness and copy-cattery happening in the Melbourne cafe scene, but there's still always demand. It's crucially important, no matter what your business does, to put your own spin on things. Carve out a niche for yourself however you can and make sure that niche is incomparable. "[With Bentwood] our aim was to make a space that was very different to the typical Melbourne cafe scene," Julien explains. "We wanted an environment that was sophisticated but not over-designed, so the interior has grand but honest and raw finishes. The biggest statement is the steel boxed ceiling which was very challenging to get sign-off from structural engineers." The bottom line? Don't scrimp on standing out. DO YOUR HOMEWORK In the early years, many small business owners end up wearing a lot of hats. You become the accountant, the operations manager, the social media intern — you try to do it all, and it's a double-edged sword. Getting involved in every aspect of the business in the early days is a great way to understand what makes it tick, but it's probably not a sustainable reality. "Understand your model," Julien says. "Measuring benchmarks and reviewing your financials weekly is the reason we grew so quickly...MYOB helps us get a quick snapshot of where the business is at any given time, whether it be daily, weekly, monthly or quarterly...I knew what everything cost, how much profit we were making and what I needed to do to keep evolving and growing. I always looked ahead and wanted more." If trying to do it all sounds intimidating, Julien's final piece of advice might help: ask questions, no matter how dumb they sound; never stop questioning and learning. "That's what's helped me grow my skill set which has made our business more powerful." Planning to open your own business? Whether it's the first or eleventh, consider MYOB to help sort out all your accounting needs.
The hit rock musical based on Green Day's iconic album American Idiot returns to Australian shores in 2018 for a national tour, which will see it visit Melbourne and Sydney for the first time. Following a hit season in Brisbane earlier this year, this next run of Green Day's American Idiot will see Grinspoon frontman Phil Jamieson reprise his lead performance as St Jimmy — a role played internationally by the likes of Melissa Etheridge, Chris Cheney and Green Day's own Billie Joe Armstrong. The acclaimed Aussie musician will again be joined on stage by Phoebe Panaretos, whose performance as Whatsername during the show's Brisbane run scored her a Helpmann nomination. Hailed as a bold and explosive production, the Tony and Grammy award-winning show features every song from the band's eponymous album, along with a number of tunes from Green Day's follow-up record, 21st Century Breakdown. It's the tale of three lifelong mates, torn between remaining in their safe, aimless ruts, and challenging the status quo to embark on a journey of self-discovery. The American Idiot 2018 tour will begin with a brief season at the Sydney Opera House, before runs in Adelaide, Perth, Melbourne and Brisbane. AMERICAN IDIOT 2018 TOUR Sydney — Sydney Opera House, January 11–14 Adelaide — Adelaide Festival Centre's Her Majesty's Theatre, January 18–28 Perth — Crown Theatre, February 2–11 Melbourne — Comedy Theatre, February 23 – March 11 Brisbane — Playhouse Theatre, QPAC, April 13–21 Tickets to Green Day's 2018 American Idiot tour go on sale from next Monday, October 9. For more info visit americanidiotlive.com.au. Images: Dylan Evans.
It has only been a few months since the seventh season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine hit screens — which means you've either eagerly caught every second, or you've got some catch-up binging to do. Either way, if you've been watching and rewatching the hit sitcom since it first premiered back in 2013, then you also have something else to pop in your calendar: Isolation Trivia's upcoming B99-themed online quiz evening. How long did Charles Boyle spend dreaming of Jake Peralta and Amy Santiago's wedding? What did Rosa Diaz do before she was a cop? Who keeps swooping in and taking the Nine-Nine crew's cases? Which one is Scully and which is Hitchcock? And which one of the latter duo has a twin? If you can answer all of the above — and name Captain Holt's dog, Terry's kids, Gina's dance troupe and Jake's favourite movie — then you're set for this virtual trivia night. Live-streaming from 6.30pm on Sunday, September 6 this online trivia contest is completely devoted to the show that was cancelled and then resurrected in the space of 36 hours, then was renewed for an eighth season before its seventh one even aired, and features more Die Hard references than you'd think possible in one sitcom. We'd keep asking Brooklyn Nine-Nine questions and dropping tidbits, but we'll save some for the big night. If you're as keen to take part as Terry is about a tub of yoghurt, you just need to head to the Isolation Trivia Facebook page and clear out your Sunday night. That'll be your time to shine (and that can also be the title of your sex tape if you'd like). Isolation Trivia's 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' edition takes place from 6.30pm on Sunday, September 6. Images: SBS
2019 represents one giant milestone for humanity's space exploits, marking half a century since astronauts first walked on the moon. That's just one of the achievements that the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration, aka NASA, is known for — and it's just one of the events that'll feature in a new exhibition chronicling the organisation's jaunts beyond the earth's surface, which heads to Australia this year NASA – A Human Adventure will display at the Queensland Museum in not only its first trip to our shores, but its only Aussie season. It's set to be huge in a number of ways. The exclusive showcase will bring more than 250 historically significant items to Brisbane, and it'll run for a whopping seven months. It'll also be the largest exhibition ever hosted by the newly refurbished South Bank spot, taking over two levels. Gracing QM's walls and halls between March 15 and October 9, NASA – A Human Adventure will feature everything from objects that actually have flown through space, to high-fidelity models, to both small-size and full-scale replicas. Think real rocket engines, space food, space suits, lunar cameras and moon boots, plus miniature versions of NASA's Space Shuttle, Lunar Rover, and Mercury, Gemini and Apollo space crafts. Touching on the Soviet contribution to space travel as well, it'll also display a replica of the robotic lunar rover Lunokhod. Australia is the latest stop in the exhibition's tour, which aims to showcase the story of space travel, as well as the history of rocket science and space flight. It comes to Brisbane after previously venturing to Milan, Singapore, Taipei, Seoul, Bangkok, Tokyo, Istanbul, Madrid, Utrecht, and both Stockholm and Norrkoping in Sweden. NASA – A Human Adventure displays at the Queensland Museum, corner of Grey and Melbourne Streets, South Brisbane from March 15 to October 9, 2019, with tickets on sale now.
Attenzione! Fitzroy's beloved Italian sandwich bar Rocco's Bologna Discoteca has opened a new upstairs bar. Vince's Bar, named after the father of one of the owners, is a more relaxed and intimate space than downstairs, and boasts a focus on cocktails and snacks. Open since early September, the bar operates from 6pm till late every Friday and Saturday, and has a varied drinks menu featuring a selection of wines and cocktails. The cocktail menu features a mix of classic and modern, heroing Italian ingredients. Some of the highlights include the pandan negroni, made with gin, vermouth and pandan syrup; Vince's martini, which whips together vodka, grapefruit bitters and chamomile oil; and the Spaghetti Western No. 2, which uses mezcal, mango, rose vermouth, bitters and prosecco. The snack menu is also Italian-inspired, with small plates like oysters, mortadella mousse tartlets, and crescetina with Cantabrian anchovies and goat ricotta. As the weather only continues to get nicer (grazie Dio), Vince's Bar, with its cute patio, has timed its opening perfectly. Walk-ins are welcome, so if you find yourself strolling down Gertrude Street on a balmy Friday or Saturday evening, pop in and say ciao. Find Vince's Bar above Rocco's Bologna Discoteca at 15 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy — open from 6pm–late every Friday and Saturday.
In the past few weeks, a bunch of restrictions have come into place in a bid to contain COVID-19 in Australia. Bans of non-essential events of 500 people or larger became events of 100 people, restaurants, cafes and bars across the country have shut and all international and interstate travel has been indefinitely banned. Most recently, new restrictions on social distancing and two-person limits on public gatherings were introduced on Monday, March 30. While restrictions differ state-to-state, federal and state governments have said that Australians should only be leaving their homes for four key reasons: shopping for food and other essential supplies; for medical care or compassionate reasons; to exercise, in-line with the new two-person limit; and for work or education if you cannot work or learn remotely. Those who don't comply with these new social distancing and public gathering rules risk hefty penalties, too, with on-the-spot fines of $1652 in Victoria, $1000 in NSW (with maximum penalties of $11,000 and six months in jail) and $1334.50 in Queensland for individuals. And a heap of people across Australia have already been slapped with fines since these rules were introduced. In Queensland on the weekend, Saturday, April 5, police fined 58 people at a 150-car rally at a warehouse in Rochedale and five men were arrested for travelling to Palm Island, which is a designated remote community that can not be visited for non-essential reasons. Queensland Police also said they were disappointed with the number of people loitering at lookout points in parks and visiting large shopping centres for non-essential needs and would be increasing their presence at these locations. "If you are sitting at a lookout, having coffee in a park, loitering in a shopping centre outside the parameters of the directions, you may be fined," Acting Chief Superintendent Mel Adams of Logan Police District said. "Public safety comes first and we urged people to stay at home." [caption id="attachment_750943" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Destination NSW[/caption] Victoria Police issued 108 fines on Sunday, April 6, alone. While exact details of the fines have not been released, one 17-year-old L-plater was pulled over and fined $1652 while on a driving lesson with their mother, as driving lessons are deemed non-essential in Victoria. In NSW, however, driving lessons are allowed — with either an instructor or a family member — as they fall under 'education'. Last week, a Fitzroy restaurant was also fined almost $10,000 for operating, with the ABC reporting there were six staff working and customers eating and drinking on the premises. Eighteen on-the-spot fines were handed out in NSW on Sunday: one man was charged for ignoring "beach closed" signs at Bondi Beach — he also ignored directions from the police to move on and coughed at an officer; and a women was fined for accompanying a food delivery driver. While the driver was working, the women "was only there because she said she was bored being at home", according the NSW Police. Since the laws were introduced, other Sydneysiders who have been charged include two people in a vehicle who did not have "a reasonable excuse not to be at home", a man who had left his home in order to visit his drug dealer and a man who had ignored two warnings and was found a third time on a Market Street bench eating a kebab. Restrictions are changing every day, you can read more about the state-specific public gathering and social distancing laws in NSW, Victoria and Queensland. To find out more about the status of COVID-19 in Australia and how to protect yourself, head to the Australian Government Department of Health's website.
Award-winning theatrical producer Cameron Mackintosh's incredible adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera is headed to Melbourne this November. His staging of the legendary Andrew Lloyd Webber musical (produced in collaboration with Opera Australia) will see curtains raised at the State Theatre at 7:30pm on Wednesday, November 2 for the first of a strictly limited-time run. Given that the original musical has won over 70 major theatre awards and is so well-loved, it needs little introduction. However, for the unacquainted, it tells the story of a fictional masked figure who lurks in the catacombs below the Paris Opera House, terrorising all within. He quickly falls madly in love with a young soprano, Christine, and devotes himself to fostering her talents — by any means possible. [caption id="attachment_875744" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Phantom of the Opera Australia 2022 - Josh Piterman, Amy Manford by Daniel Boud[/caption] A seamless fusion of classic and contemporary, this new production features a thrilling combination of spectacular costumes, stagecraft and song (such as 'All I Ask of You' and 'Masquerade') brought to life by a few familiar Australian faces. Melbourne's own Josh Piterman plays the Phantom, Amy Manford stars as young talent Christine Daaé, and The Book of Mormon alum Blake Bowden brings to life the role of Raoul de Chagney, alongside an orchestra of 65 people — making The Phantom of the Opera one of the largest musical productions in Australian history. Opera Australia's The Phantom of the Opera is playing at Arts Centre Melbourne for a strictly limited time. With tickets on sale now, book them before you miss out. Images by Daniel Boud
The Gold Coast isn't known for its subtlety. Forget things like schoolies, bikini-wearing metre maids and theme parks — when you're a city that boasts a coastline that big, you're going to flaunt it. And why not? Perhaps that's the thinking behind the new beach club slated for The Spit. Seems playing host to Australia's first six-star hotel wasn't enough attention for the Gold Coast. Open to the public, measuring 6000 square metres in size and catering for up to 3000 people, the beach club features pretty much everything you're imagining a huge new hangout space by the water should: a rooftop lounge, nightclub, restaurants, cafes, VIP cabanas, gardens and lawns for a dash of greenery, and an outdoor pool and beach area, of course, and hosting DJs and live performances is part of the plan. The beach club will form part of a proposed new development, which has been given the rather bland moniker of the Gold Coast Integrated Resort. The project aims to give the Goldie "a new global waterfront destination and world-class coastal icon" — complete with five buildings ranging from 20 to 45 storeys in height, multiple hotels, a casino, eateries, shops, apartments and a waterfront piazza with walkways, gardens, parks, amphitheatres and an outdoor cinema, all taking over the space between Sea World and the Gold Coast Fisherman's Co-operative. Don't go making travel plans just yet, though, with construction not expected to start until after the 2018 Commonwealth Games. And don't expect such a big change to such a well-trodden area to happen quietly. With the Gold Coast Broadwater — or large shallow estuary — quite a natural feature, plenty of other proposals have been mooted for The Spit and have been met with considerable outcries. For more information, visit the Gold Coast Integrated Resort website. Via Brisbane Development / Gold Coast Bulletin. Images: Gold Coast Integrated Resort.
There's a new kind of passenger cruising around Melbourne's public transport network — and you might just find yourself taking one of them home with you. A new movement called Books on the Rail has seen a diverse collection of books set loose on the city's trains, trams and buses — kind of like a roving public transport library. The initiative was started back in April by two Melbourne ladies, Ali Berg and Michelle Kalus, as a local interpretation of London's Books on the Underground project. It's intended to reignite Melburnians' passion for reading and turn passengers' eyes from their iPhone to a page in a book. About 300 books have already infiltrated the transport system at the hands of local 'book ninjas', each tome bearing a Books on the Rail cover sticker and a flyer explaining the ins and outs of the initiative. Travellers who happen upon one of the books are invited to take it home and read it, and then return it to a service for the next lucky bookworm to do the same. If you find a page-turner the world (or, more specifically, Melbourne's commuters) simply needs to know about, you can become a book ninja yourself. Simply email hello@booksontherail.com to request a sticker, whack it on a book and set it free to be discovered by countless other local literary fiends. So next time you're battling it out with Melbourne's public transport system, you might want to put down that iPhone and keep your eyes peeled — who knows which well-worn tram seat your new favourite novel is hiding under? Via ABC News.
Eurovision might be known for synth, synth and more synth, but Australia isn't one to bust out the usual Europop tunes. When you're a country outside of Europe that competes in the huge song contest, you want to make a splash for something other than geography. 2023 saw Perth synth-metal band Voyager bust out a pop-metal tune, for instance. In 2024, Electric Fields are representing the nation with 'One Milkali (One Blood)', which features the language Yankunytjatjara from the Anangu peoples. Yes, May is here, which means that Eurovision is here. And, so are the latest batch of earworms that'll get a spin on the Eurovision Song Contest stage in Malmö, Sweden — the host for this year after Loreen's 2023 win for 'Tattoo'. This is Christmas for pop songs belted out competitively in a glitzy ceremony filled with eye-catching outfits. The 68th Eurovision Song Contest will kick off at 5am AEST on Wednesday, May 8, which is when Electric Fields will take to the stage in the hope of making it through to the grand final on Sunday, May 12 (which is again at 5am AEST). For newcomers, Eurovision started back in 1956 as a competition between a mere seven nations. Now, almos seven decades later, it's a glitter-strewn and spandex-fuelled global musical phenomenon. Thirty-seven countries not only in Europe but from elsewhere will compete in 2024 — hello Australia — and viewers tune in en masse to watch, sing along and add new pop tunes to their queues. Australians keen to tune in will be directing their eyeballs to SBS, with the broadcaster's usual annual celebration of all things Europop returning for another round. 2024 marks 41 years of the network showing Eurovision, in fact. When Electric Fields play their track, they'll be up against performers from 14 other countries — including Silia Kapsis, who was born and raised in Sydney, has Greek and Cypriot heritage, and is representing Cyprus with the song 'Liar'. Other competitors across both the contest actor and singer Olly Alexander (It's a Sin) for the UK; Austria's Kaleen, who has been Eurovision's stage director before and now gets her shot behind the microphone; Aiko, the first Czech artist to feature on Times Square's screens; and 5MIINUST x Puuluup, teaming up pop and zombie-folk for Estonia. There's also the 90s-style Finnish sounds of Windows95man; Germany's ISAAK, who started as a street musician; Hera Björk, who represented Iceland in 2010; and Belgian singer and actor Mustii — and the list goes on. If Electric Fields makes their way through to the grand final — with only 21 acts making the cut, and France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and Sweden automatically guaranteed spots — you'll also want to get up early on Sunday, May 12. Or, even if they don't, that's when this year's winner will be anointed. Of course, for those who can't tear themselves out of bed before it's light and can somehow manage to avoid the internet and social media, both semis and the grand final will also screen in primetime on the same dates. Electric Fields, aka vocalist Zaachariaha Fielding and keyboardist Michael Ross, are making history in their use of Yankunytjatjara, which will be heard at Eurovision for the first time. The pair are performing with guest vocalists Brendan Maclean, Alyson Joyce and Simi Vuata, and are accompanied by Fred Leone on the yidaki. When you're watching their performance, as well as the rest of the event, SBS' usual local hosts Myf Warhurst and Joel Creasey will once again be leading the Australian coverage. This year, Courtney Act joins in from behind the scenes at Eurovision. If you can't decide whether to beat the sun or wait and host a party at sensible hour, it's worth remembering that Australians can indeed vote for Eurovision, but only until around 15 minutes after the last song is performed in each live semi-final broadcast and about 25 minutes after the last track ends in the grand final. Voting is open to everyone in all finals — whether you're from a country participating in that final or not — and the artists who get through from the two semi finals to the grand final will be solely chosen by the audience at home. Still remaining the same: the rule that says Australians can't actually vote for Electric Fields, because no one can vote for the country they represent. Eurovision 2024 Broadcasts: LIVE BROADCASTS: Semi final one: 5am AEST on Wednesday, May 8 on SBS and SBS on Demand — featuring Electric Fields Semi final two: 5am AEST on Friday, May 10 on SBS and SBS on Demand Grand final: 5am AEST on Sunday, May 12 on SBS and SBS on Demand STREAMING REPLAYS: Semi final one: from 8.30am AEST on Wednesday, May 8 on SBS on Demand — featuring Electric Fields Semi final two: from 8.30am AEST on Friday, May 10 on SBS on Demand Grand final: from 10.30am AEST on Sunday, May 12 on SBS on Demand TV ACCESS ALL AREAS BROADCASTS: Semi final one: 7.30pm AEST on Friday, May 10 on SBS — featuring Electric Fields Semi final two: 7.30pm AEST on Saturday, May 11 on SBS Grand final: 7.30pm AEST on Sunday, May 12 on SBS SBS' Eurovision 2024 coverage runs from Wednesday, May 8–Sunday, May 12. For more information, head to the broadcaster's website — and for more information about Eurovision, head to the event's website. Images: Alma Bengtsson / Sara Louise Bennett.
Urban beekeeping will never be the same. A brand new Australian-designed beehive has raised over $1 million on Indiegogo in less than three hours. Why? The honey's on tap, straight from the hive. New South Wales beekeepers and Lords of the Bees Stuart Anderson and his son Cedar have devised a brand new means to collect honey without disturbing the bees, meaning the golden, sticky goodness flows out of a tap using a channel system. This means you can literally put your toast under a tap at the hive. Looking to the crowdfunding platform, the Andersons hoped to raise $70,000 to help their invention, Flow Hive. The pair have now raised a whopping $2,588,820 USD — that's $3,304,369 AUD. BOOM. So how does it work? Stuart Anderson talked the ABC through it. It all hinges around a plastic frame design, on which the bees get busy building their honeycomb. Twisting a lever allows the honeycomb to fracture, allowing that sweet, sweet honey to flow and drip down through special channels, all without breaking the honeycomb. Then, the good stuff makes its way to a pipe leading out of the hive and into your mouth. Then the whole process can start again by twisting that lever back into place and returning the cells back to their position. Just LOOK at that honey. Beekeepers will be losing their minds about now. No suits? "If you know your bees, you can sit there in shorts and a t-shirt and it's safe, because you're not opening the hive and you're not banging around disturbing the bees," Anderson told Radio National. This is huge news for novice urban beekeepers, unknowing noobs who think they can chuck a hive in the backyard and have fresh honey without getting stung. The whole kit (without bees) will set you back $600, but it's a honey tap. A honey tap. Via ABC.
The Mount Erica Hotel has seen some things. Back when it was established as the area's first licensed venue in 1853, the corner of Williams Road and High Street was considered a bush setting. After two decades of operation, it was then rebuilt after a bushfire (yes, a bushfire) tore through the building. In the 140 years that have followed, the site has been through many iterations — some more successful than others. But the old Prahran boozer has been a constant even while the suburb around it has changed. The team behind Fitzroy's Marquis of Lorne are the current custodians of Melbourne's oldest pub. The dining space has a theatrical, lobby lounge feel, clad in warm timber panelling and tailored tartan, while the lounge plays with dark blue and teal to create a laidback gathering place, complete with quirky art and a fireplace. The menu centres on simplicity and sophistication with Mediterranean and Middle Eastern touches. Chef Sean Donovan describes the offering as "modern, fresh, produce-driven food", with a twist: a charcoal rotisserie. Chicken, beef, lamb, seafood and vegetables get the smoky treatment, bringing out the best of the season's produce. Classic pub crowd-pleasers like sausages, fish and chips and chicken parmas are still core to the menu. The staples are joined by plenty of lighter seafood and vegetable dishes; you can snack on salt cod fritters and fresh oysters before moving on to the smoked trout and endive salad or the retro-inspired prawn cocktail. With a range of 12 beers across 30 taps, you'll never be short of something new to try in the booze department. In addition to Melbourne's standard brews, you'll find local pilsners, pales and golden ales from the likes of Sample, Stomping Ground, Balter and Wolf of the Willows, as well as some hop-heavy and sour varieties from Kiwi breweries Epic and Liberty. Likewise, the wine list pairs straightforward classics with quirkier drops, all at a price point that'll keep your bank balance happy. Keep an eye out for the four cocktail taps with mixes rotating seasonally. There's no single demographic — all are welcome here. Whether it's a Sunday spritz on the terrace, a roast dinner with the folks or a post-work pint, the Mount Erica Hotel is the place to go. Images: Frances Parker.
Is your dad all stocked up on socks and silly gadgets? That'll make figuring out a gift for Father's Day a challenge. Luckily, Ardbeg Whisky is here to your rescue. On the Father's Day Weekend (Saturday, August 31 and Sunday, September 1), you can get the premium scotch distillery to deliver a bottle of its smoky, peaty, complex whisky directly to your dad. And it'll arrive wrapped up in a gift pack and in the company of Shortie, the Ardbeg dog. He's travelling all the way from Scotland especially to celebrate Father's Day Down Under. For $99, this (adorable) gift includes a ten-year-old bottle of Ardbeg, packaged in a collectable tin, with a personalised card from you. Shortie will be making the rounds over the weekend. Your dad will also get some play time with Shortie to see his tricks in action and take a few pics. Yep, this is for real. The only problem is Shortie can't deliver to everyone. The service will be available on a first come, first serve basis via Dan Murphy's. So, when the offer opens on Monday, August 12, you'd better be quick. Before then, you can register your interest over here.
Revered for its sun-kissed beaches, iconic landmarks, and buzzing energy, Sydney is a melting pot of multiculturalism and creativity that's constantly evolving. While many flock to the Harbour City during the warmer seasons, Sydney doesn't rest on its summer laurels and hibernate in winter—it comes alive, and Vivid Sydney is the unmissable event that kicks it all off. From cutting-edge light installations and thought-provoking talks to genre-bending music and glorious gastronomy, Vivid Sydney transforms the city into a nocturnal playground of creativity. If you're making a weekend of it and staying in the city during the festivities, Marriott Bonvoy is offering 10% off your stay across six hotels—all you need to do is sign up to become a member (for free). It's also the perfect excuse to extend your stay. Get your itinerary notepad at the ready—here's where to eat, play and stay during Vivid Sydney 2025. Eat A crowd favourite during the festival, Fire Kitchen brings flame-fuelled theatrics and foodies to The Goods Line, Ultimo. Running across 23 nights, the event features live fire demonstrations and fire-cooked dishes by culinary heavyweights such as FOX's Next Level Chef co-host Nyesha Arrington, Firedoor's Lennox Hastie, and World Food Champion and veteran chef, John McFadden. Ready to roll back in time? Acclaimed plant-based chef and author Shannon Martinez is teaming up with Trolley'd for Neon Dream, a roller disco diner pop-up serving juicy American-style plant-based burgers, crunchy fries, creamy mac and cheese, and jelly doughnuts—before guests hit the rink and groove to vinyl beats by DJ Bob Gherkin. Hungry but not sure what for? Vivid Sydney's Food Parks at both Barangaroo and Tumbalong Park offer a rotating menu of food trucks and imaginative bites. Highlights include blacklight-reactive desserts and glow-in-the-dark ping pong at Blacklight Dessert Lab, savoury Asian street eats at Food Trap, crispy Korean fried chicken from Birdman, Mexican bites from Ash's Nachos, and Japanese doughnuts from Mochii Mochii. The Maybe Sammy mixology crew are taking over the W Sydney for a Vivid-inspired pop-up for one night only. Get there between 7–9.30pm on Thursday, June 5, to try a selection of unique, light-themed cocktails. The star of the show? The Monsoon Mirage: a dreamy blend of bourbon, vermouth and peach wine, topped with a Southeast Asian fusion of calamansi and tamarind, layered with Greek yoghurt, and spiced with chilli. Plus, it arrives at your table in a glowing LED box. Play In Circular Quay and The Rocks, some of Sydney's most iconic landmarks are hosting some appropriately spectacular installations and performances. Don't miss David McDiarmind's Lighting of The Sails — Kiss of Light at the Sydney Opera House; Vincent Namatjira's King Dingo lighting up the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, Eggpicnic's dreamy Bloom exhibition in the Argyle Cut tunnel, and This Is Loop's entrancing mirrored installation at First Fleet Park, made in collaboration with the NYX Electronic Drone Choir—crafted from 10,000 LED lights. Darling Harbour transforms its waterfront into a dreamscape of light shows and big-name talent. Catch an unfiltered chat with Emmy Award-winning actors and real-life partners Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation, The Last Of Us) and Megan Mullally (Will & Grace, 30 Rock), hosted by Zan Rowe. Snap pics under the glowing Cloud Swing, a Burning Man favourite, or explore Samsung Space To Dream—an installation of otherworldly waterfalls in Cockle Bay. After a six-year Vivid Sydney hiatus, Martin Place returns with a sensory-rich program of ideas, music, and visual art. Wander beneath giant cartoonish flowers sprouting from buildings in Flowers' Power, and get lost in the psychedelic projections of BioDream on the Commercial Traveller's Association Building. Other highlights include comedian, writer and architecture aficionado Tim Ross' take on 'The Australian Dream' at The State Library, After Hours: Dreams series at the Art Gallery of NSW, and a spooky and immersive screening of Edward Scissorhands by Haus of Horrors at Town Hall. The Good Lines—Sydney's repurposed urban walkway stretching from Central Station to Darling Harbour—is home to more than just Vivid Fire Kitchen, it's also becoming a corridor of light installations. Explore attractions like Starscape on Hay Street, a 40-metre tunnel illuminated by a galaxy of over 700 stars by Australian lighting design firm Mandylights; Eye of the Beholder, featuring larger-than-life blinking eyes on the Frank Gehry building by artist Sinclair Park; and QUASAR, a doughnut-shaped, hypnotic swirl of light by design duo UxU Studio. Over at Barangaroo, the cultural family-fun continues. Swing under a glowing full moon in Fly to the Moon, wander under a canopy of a thousand iridescent rods in SomniUs by UK-based design studio Illumaphonium, and bask in the glow of tear-shaped, meteorological sculptures in Lumina Dreams. At Barangaroo Reserve, don't miss An Act of Being, a stirring series of projections exploring the ongoing policies on First Nations communities, and marking the 25th anniversary of the People's Walk for Reconciliation across the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Stay Base yourself close to the Vivid Sydney action at W Sydney. With panoramic views of Darling Harbour, plush king beds, and a heated infinity pool, it's a sky-high sanctuary within walking distance of Darling Harbour, Barangaroo, The Goods Line, and Martin Place. Treat yourself to exclusive Vivid Sydney cocktails in the Living Room Bar before heading out to experience Sydney at its most illuminated. Or, elevate your Sydney stay and opt for the Sheraton Grand Sydney Hyde Park's spacious suites. Designed for guests seeking comfort and sophistication in equal measure, it boasts views of Hyde Park and is surrounded by some of Sydney's best attractions. Round out the night at Sydney Common for an exclusive Vivid Sydney dessert—an indulgent layered bowl of sake-infused plum, black sesame crumble, and coconut mousse, finished with a dramatic touch of liquid nitrogen. Prefer a front-row seat to the Sydney Opera House sails? The Sydney Harbour Marriott Hotel at Circular Quay offers unbeatable harbour views with a side of Vivid Sydney-themed cocktails from Small Mouth Spirits, light show sweets at Three Bottle Man, and a limited-edition craft beer—Let There Be Light—made in collaboration with Sydney's oldest pub, the Lord Nelson Brewery, paired with mouthwatering barbecue in the glowing beer garden. For a mix of luxury and heritage, pick Pier One Sydney Harbour and its rooms built on and over the water. Sip zesty Vivid Sydney-inspired cocktails at PIER BAR while soaking up unbeatable views of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Walsh Bay aside floor-to-ceiling windows. A popular spot for local and international Sydney visitors for good reason—this winter offers a rare opportunity to score 10% off your stay during Vivid Sydney and beyond. For something a little different, check into Four Points By Sheraton Sydney in Central Park. This stylish base is enveloped by greenery and ideal for those wanting to explore Vivid Sydney along with some of Sydney's food meccas, like Chippendale, Newtown, and Chinatown, while staying close to Central Station, Hyde Park and the ICC. Keen to skip the crowd but stay connected? Book Moxy Sydney Airport. Offering complimentary airport shuttles, five nights of free parking, and direct train access to Circular Quay from nearby Mascot Station, it's the perfect spot for an overnight Vivid Sydney escape that balances buzz with welcomed downtime. Book your Sydney escape before September 30 to access 10% off your stay and dining with Marriott Bonvoy. All you have to do is sign up as a member—and it's completely free. With access to exclusive member rates, your stay will also earn points towards free nights at over 30 hotel brands around the world. Find out more here. T&C's apply and vary by participating hotels including blackout dates, cancellation restrictions and more. Offer may not apply in properties not participating in the award and redemption of Marriott Bonvoy. By Elise Cullen
It has been four years since The Skywhale first floated across Australia's skies, soaring through the air with its bulbous body and hanging breasts, and making every other hot air balloon look boring in the process. Come 2018 at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, it'll get a sequel of sorts, with Aussie artist Patricia Piccinini creating a new, large-scale inflatable sculpture as part of her massive solo exhibition, Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection. The piece will be suspended in GOMA's atrium, but, just as The Skywhale is only one of Piccinini's pieces, it'll form just one part of her huge Brissie showcase. In an Australian exclusive, Curious Affection will boast more than 50 new and recent works when it takes over the ground floor of the gallery from 24 March to 5 August. With the Aussie artist known for blending science, surrealism and mythology to craft imaginative, life-like creatures, expect plenty here, including 2016's The Bond featuring a woman lovingly cradling an ambiguous creature. A multi-sensory environment called The Field will rank among Piccinini's new efforts, using 3000 genetically modified flower sculptures to create an immersive landscape. Other pieces will keep stepping into her strange yet realistic world, in an exhibition designed to "will deliberately challenge our conceptions about what it means to be human and the power of empathy," according to Queensland Art Gallery and GOMA director Chris Saines. In addition to sculpture and installation, Piccinini's photography, video and drawing work will also be on display, complete with never-before-seen commissions that continue to explore the relationship between nature and technology in scientific research, genetic engineering and more. Curious Affection will mark GOMA's largest-ever solo collection by an Australian artist, celebrating a creative force who has represented Australia at the 2003 Venice Biennale, exhibited everywhere from Tokyo to Berlin to New York, and attracted more than over a million visitors to a touring showcase in Brazil in 2016. Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection will display at GOMA from 24 March to 5 August 2018. For more information, head to the exhibition website. Image: Patricia Piccinini Australia VIC b.1965 The Bond 2016 Silicone, fibreglass, human hair, clothing 162 x 56 x 50cm Courtesy the artist, Tolarno Galleries, Melbourne; Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Sydney; and Hosfelt Gallery, San Francisco.
Flick through the pages of any issue of National Geographic and the planet comes to life in all of its natural glory, particularly the colour, movement and all-round splendour of the animal world. Indeed, the magazine has been taking eye-catching wildlife photographs since 1888, and first featured one such image — a snap of a reindeer — on its cover back in 1903. From that huge 130-year history, the publication has picked out the absolute best photos in its archive for a brand new exhibition, which will make its world premiere at the Melbourne Zoo from September 8 to November 30. 50 Greatest Wildlife Photographs will showcase exactly what it sounds like: 50 breathtaking snaps of the earth's animal inhabitants, as curated by famous nature picture editor Kathy Moran, and featuring the work of iconic National Geographic photographers such as Michael 'Nick' Nichols, Steve Winter, Paul Nicklen, Beverly Joubert and David Doubilet. If last year's Photo Ark exhibition has you staring in wonder, then this promises that and more as patrons not only view the stunning sights captured, but the way that photography has evolved over the course of more than a century. Displaying as an outdoor gallery in Melbourne Zoo's Carousel Park, 50 Greatest Wildlife Photographs will be accompanied by augmented reality experience Air, Land & Sea. The interactive installation transports viewers to a watering hole where animals — hailing from Africa, the Arctic and more — graze, drink and interact with the environment around them. As well as giving patrons a glimpse at wildlife photography at its finest, Melbourne Zoo hopes the exhibition will bring attention to the plight of animals around the world. To see the exhibition, you'll need to pay for entry into the zoo, which is $37 for adults. Image: Gray Whale Hands by Thomas P. Peschak, San Ignacio Lagoon, Mexico, April 2015.
Some weeks, that hump day hurdle is a real punish. When that happens, we spend most of the workday searching for solace to get us through the rest of the week — and it usually involves some combination of exercise, your best mates, and alcohol. Good news, Melburnians: we've found a place where you can combine all three. Richmond's adored old bank turned bar, Fargo and Co, is now offering relaxing group yoga sessions with wine. Yep, you read that correctly. Held regularly on Wednesdays, head to the Swan Street location at 6pm for a 45-minute vinyasa flow class. Yoga mats are provided, so you just need to bring a mate or two, stretchy pants and your best chaturanga. Then after you've said "namaste", you'll be given a glass of wine to enjoy as you cool down. You can pair your vino with some snacks (you've earned them). The best part is this yoga and wine combination is just $25 a spot. Spaces are limited, so make sure to book ASAP over here.
During winter, it's easy to fall into a rut of the 'work, home, Netflix, sleep and repeat' kind. Luckily, Melbourne is chockers with venues and events that are doing their best to tempt you out of the house. So, we've teamed up with Melbourne ridesharing app DiDi to inspire you to do more with your winter nights. These five activities are worth braving the cold for and promise to warm you up once you get there. Plus, DiDi offers super competitive fares for getting you around the city, which means you'll have more cash to splash once you arrive. Read on to discover an all-night arts festival, a European-style winter market, a new restaurant serving hearty bowls of pasta and all the cheese you can handle. Grab your mates, throw on a warm jacket and make a night (or weekend) of it. [caption id="attachment_650235" align="alignnone" width="1920"] White Night Melbourne[/caption] PARTY ALL-NIGHT AT WHITE NIGHT FESTIVAL Every summer, Melburnians look forward to the all-night arts spectacular that is the White Night. Now, for the first time in its six-year run, the free festival is shining during winter instead. Taking place over three nights from Thursday, August 22–Saturday, August 24, the massive new winter program will span the Carlton Gardens, Birrarung Marr and the Treasury Gardens. Expect even more live music, street projections and after-dark gallery openings, plus heaps of design, film, food, performance and street art events. It'll keep you hopping around the city all weekend long and help you forget all about that chill in the air. INDULGE YOUR WINTER APPETITE AT HIGH CHEESE Cheese fiends Maker & Monger have once again teamed up with Westin Melbourne to bring you its version of high tea, which is filled with tiers upon tiers of cheese. Both sweet and savoury cheese dishes will be on offer daily until Saturday, August 31 — think gouda scones, roquefort with Four Pillars marmalade and cheesy tiramisu with salted white chocolate. You'll also get to try ricotta-filled cannoli, gruyère-stuffed gougères and even an entire baked Normandy camembert. It'll cost you $70 all up, with unlimited coffee and tea also included (wine will cost you extra). To reserve your spot, head to the website. GO ICE SKATING AT THE WINTER VILLAGE You don't need to take a trip abroad to indulge in some European-vibes this winter. Melbourne's Federation Square has been transformed into The Winter Village — a European-style market that boasts an ice rink, private igloos for hire and fried cheese aplenty. Expect local DJs to keep you entertained while you sip espresso martinis from the tap. If you're keen to see some snow, head to the oversized igloo dining hall where it 'snows' inside every hour. The pop-up has been extended until the end of September, too — so you have plenty of time to take advantage of it. EAT YOUR WAY AROUND THE WORLD AT QUEEN VICTORIA WINTER NIGHT MARKET If variety is your thing, Queen Victoria Market is where you should head on Wednesday nights during winter. Each week, the Winter Night Market offers a lineup of 30 food stalls serving up cuisine from around the world — there's pasta tossed in a wheel of parmesan, Italian loaded flatbreads and churro bowls topped with vanilla ice cream and hazelnut sauce and much more. Apart from the food, you can stay warm by sipping mulled wine and steaming hot cider, then dance along to live music, roving entertainment or at the silent disco. Over 50 maker stalls are also on the docket. And, in July, the market will take on a Christmas theme each week, with snow machines, decorations and the requisite ugly sweaters. Entry is free each and every week, too. [caption id="attachment_725156" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Peter Dillon[/caption] TUCK INTO HEARTY BOWLS OF PASTA AT LUPO There's nothing better on a cold night than a steaming bowl of hearty pasta. This winter, highly lauded chef Scott Pickett (Saint Crispin, Estelle, Pickett's Deli, Matilda) is bringing you just that. He's recently transformed his 60-seat Smith Street digs into a classic Italian diner. Lupo offers up the likes of spanner crab lasagne, squid ink linguine and black truffle risotto. The extensive wine list will warm you up, too, with over 120 wines to choose from. And the barrel-aged negroni is the perfect pre- or post-dinner pick-me-up. If spending the night at one of Collingwood's hottest new restaurants doesn't entice you out of the house this winter, we don't know what will. Switch to DiDi and save heaps of cash that you'd rather spend on the fun stuff — like indulgent wintry adventures. To start riding, download the app here and use the code CONCRETE to score up to $50 in vouchers. Image: Queen Victoria Winter Night Market.
A month after becoming the first commercial airline to pilot a non-stop flight from New York to Sydney, Qantas has flown direct from London to Sydney in a trial run. The ongoing research tests are part of the company's efforts to assess the feasibility of the airline's Project Sunrise scheme, which aims to implement the routes by 2022. For the past five years, Qantas has been promising to eradicate one of the worst things about international long-haul air travel to and from Australia: the dreaded stopover. First, it announced and then implemented non-stop 17-hour flights from Perth to London; however if you live on the east coast, you still have to get to Western Australia. So, the airline revealed that it was exploring direct routes from Sydney, not only to London but to New York as well. Since then, Qantas has been pursuing the idea enthusiastically, widening its plan to also include departures to and from Melbourne and Brisbane. Last month, the Aussie carrier took the next step by starting test flights, which were initially announced a couple of months prior. The huge 19.5-hour journey New York–Sydney journey was just the first trip, with Qantas then flying a brand new Boeing 787 Dreamliner from London to Sydney between Thursday, November 14 and Friday, November 15. The UK–Australia trip took 19 hours and 19 minutes from Heathrow, cutting down the current travel time for east coast-dwellers by around two hours — not including the inevitable stopover time once you get from Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane to Perth. And, it travelled 17,800 kilometres, which is longer than the 16,200 kilometres from New York to Sydney. The two flights took around the same time, though, due to prevailing tail winds between London and Sydney. If you know your aviation history, you'll know that the London to Sydney trek has actually been made before; however the last time it happened was back in 1989, when Qantas made the journey on a Boeing 747-400 with just 23 people onboard. This time, around 50 passengers and crew made the journey, with the aircraft flying across 11 countries: England, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia, Kazakhstan, China, Philippines, Indonesia and, obviously, Australia. Like its New York to Sydney counterpart, the aim of the journey was to gather data about inflight health and wellbeing. Passengers and crew were fitted with wearable technology devices to monitor their monitor sleep patterns, food and beverage consumption, physical movement and use of the entertainment system during the flights. The results will then be assessed by scientists and medical experts from the Charles Perkins Centre, with minimising jetlag, and helping identify optimum crew rest and work patterns part of their research. Testing the impact on pilots is also part of the research. While spending nearly a day on one single plane to get to the USA or Europe is definitely better than jumping on and off different vessels multiple times, it's still a seriously long slog. Yes, you'll avoid the sometimes long, always painful stopovers, but the lengthy journey isn't without its physical, mental and emotional toll — as anyone who has made the Perth to London trip knows — which is what makes this testing so important. A third trial flight, repeating the New York-Sydney route, is planned in December. Qantas is expected to announce whether Project Sunrise will progress to making commercial flights, rather than just trial flights, by the end of the same month. If it proceeds, it'll eclipse the current record for the world's longest direct flight — which clocks in at over 19 hours on Singapore Airlines' 15,322-kilometre Singapore to New York route. Images: Qantas.
Bringing some of the world's greatest past and present artists to Australia, the Sydney International Art Series 2017-18 features two outstanding exhibitions — and a gleaming pop-up bar to match. First up, the MCA hosts Pipilotti Rist: Sip My Ocean, a kaleidoscopic exhibition exploring the much-acclaimed work of the Swiss video art pioneer. The most comprehensive showing of Rist's work in Australia to date, the exhibition considers the coming together of the natural world, technology and the human body through Rist's immersive installations and vast audiovisual compositions. Meanwhile, just across the Royal Botanical Garden at the Art Gallery of NSW, Rembrandt and the Dutch Golden Age: Masterpieces from the Rijksmuseum showcases 76 masterpieces of Dutch painting, created during an era of unmatched prosperity and artistic inspiration. Rembrandt and the Dutch Golden Age reveals the wealth, power and influence of an emerging Dutch society in the 17th century. As part of the exhibition, there will be an entire room dedicated to Rembrandt's vast range of work. Also, there will be a work by painter Johannes Vermeer — one of only 35 surviving paintings in the world. To celebrate this year's event, a Pipilotti Rist inspired pop-up bar has sprung up on the banks of Circular Quay. A vibrant and unconventional space, Colour Fields has lots going on, including Sunday sessions by Future Classic, snacks and cocktails by Culinary Edge, workshops and more. Art Gallery of NSW will also hold special events dedicated to the Rembrandt exhibition. Each Wednesday evening during the exhibition's run, the gallery's Art After Hours will feature special talks, tours, performances and a pop-up bar serving drinks and eats. Pipilotti Rist: Sip My Ocean runs until February 18, 2018; Colour Fields is open throughout the summer at the MCA and Rembrandt and the Dutch Golden Age runs until February 18, 2018.
Experience the lively festivities of Tamil New Year with a flavourful twist at this three-course Sri Lankan dinner hosted by social enterprise Welcome Merchant. Taking place on Tuesday, April 16, at Molly Rose Brewery in Collingwood, this event promises an evening of culture, cuisine, and community support. Former refugee chef Niro Vithyasekar, the culinary expert behind Tuka Tuka KothuRoti Man, will be crafting Sri Lankan milk rice with seeni sambol and vadai, followed by an array of curries, including chicken, coconut and carrot, eggplant and chickpea, and lentil. The menu, thoughtfully curated to cater to vegans and vegetarians, will include coconut payasam for dessert. Complementing the meal are the delicious brews from Molly Rose Brewing, ensuring a refreshing sip with each bite. To add to the festivities, guests can enjoy an exceptional dance performance and participate in an exclusive raffle draw. Prizes include books and luxury gifts from Hampers With Bite. All proceeds from the evening will support Welcome Merchant's mission of empowering refugee, migrant, and asylum-seeker entrepreneurs across Australia. Limited tickets are available, so secure yours now here.
You've played the video games, bought the toys, collected the trading cards, enjoyed the anime and watched Pokémon: Detective Pikachu. When Pokémon Go was the only reason that everyone was picking up their phones, you caught 'em all then, too. So, we're guessing that Netflix's upcoming Pokémon series will jump straight into your must-watch list — with the streaming service reportedly working on a new live-action take on everyone's favourite pocket monsters. Yes, Detective Pikachu also combined all things Pokémon with flesh-and-blood humans, and it proved a big box office hit to the tune of $433 million worldwide. So, it is far from surprising that Netflix wants to give the concept a spin. The platform already streams a few existing animated Pokémon titles, with Indigo League, Sun and Moon: Ultra Legends and Journeys currently available via the service Down Under. And, it is known to like padding out its catalogue with, well, pretty much everything it can get its hands on. As reported in Variety, the new live-action Pokémon series doesn't yet have a name — and if or how it might tie into Detective Pikachu is also unknown. That said, writer and executive producer Joe Henderson is expected to be behind the project, hopping over from Lucifer, which is set to end this year following its sixth and final season. When the inherently nostalgic new series might turn up, how many episodes it will span and who else could be involved also hasn't been revealed, because that's how early-stage the show is. But Netflix does love bringing back childhood favourites, as it has previously done with She-Ra and the Princesses of Power and the just-released Masters of the Universe: Revelation — not that Pokémon has gone anywhere since first debuting in the 90s. Obviously, there's no trailer yet for Netflix's potential live-action Pokémon show, but you can check out the trailer for Detective Pikachu below: Netflix's live-action Pokemon series doesn't yet have a release date — we'll update you when further details are announced. Via Variety.
First, you watch Rings. Then, your interest in the franchise quickly dies. That's what happens when someone unleashes a video no one really wants to see, right? If the Ring series has taught us anything, it's that unpleasant content always sparks a nasty end — and that's exactly what happens here. In a way, the saga's own rules explain why these movies keep coming, except for the fact that creating a copy is supposed to stop something bad from happening. In this case, it just makes things even worse. Odds are, you should already have some idea as to what this movie is about. Maybe you saw Naomi Watts in 2002's The Ring and its lacklustre 2005 sequel. Maybe you're familiar with the (superior) Japanese original from 1998, Ringu, and the numerous spinoffs that followed on from that. Perhaps you're even aware of the Korean remake The Ring Virus or the recent crossover with The Grudge franchise Sadako vs. Kayako. Point is, the premise remains much the same in every single one: unsuspecting folks press play on a creepy video tape, a phone call delivers a seven-day deadline, and the long-haired Samara (now played by Bonnie Morgan) starts wreaking havoc once time runs out. Finding a VCR at a flea market, college professor Gabriel (Johnny Galecki) and his student Skye (Aimee Teegarden) are the latest to let the unhinged ghost loose, turning it into a research project about the existence of the soul. Freshman Holt (Alex Roe) gets himself caught up in the mess, and is soon counting down the days as well. Enter his worried hometown girlfriend, Julia (Matilda Lutz), who decides to get to the bottom of the whole unsettling business. Wait, didn't the first two American Ring flicks involve a feisty female trying to thwart death by investigating Samara's background? Yes, yes they did. Doing the same thing over and over is what horror sequels are usually about, so the fact that this F. Javier Gutiérrez-directed effort retraces the same path is hardly a surprise. Indeed, there's basically nothing surprising about this film, other than Vincent D'Onofrio showing up to deliver some exposition. When you're trying to elicit scares, that's a problem. Cue the same tape and the same journey, shot in a style that makes the entire movie look like a digital copy of better material. A video-within-a-video of extra spooky visuals taunt Julia and company, and an expanded backstory tries to explain Samara's actions even further, but both just typify the filmmakers' underlying "more is better" line of thinking, and neither device manages to amp up the scares or the intrigue. Nor does updating the concept for the modern day. Seeing Samara on in-flight screens and smartphones, and watching people duplicate files rather than tapes, still ultimately smacks of more of the same. Even more infuriating is the fact that Rings is blatantly setting the scene for more unwanted chapters. That means that the 102-minute revisit isn't just a routine rehash — it's filler designed to work up a frenzy for something that might never actually get made. Keeping audiences hanging for future fare rather than bothering to really entertain them this time around might be common in an era of endless, interconnected superhero movies, but here, it's a bigger drag than Samara's limp locks.
Dropping all commitments, staying indoors and bingeing Netflix was just shorthand for being an introvert six months ago. Now, it's the reality of many of our lives. As Australia, along with the rest of the world, battles to contain COVID-19, many of us are spending more time indoors than ever before, and we're searching for new ways to fill the minutes of the day that seem to tick by at a glacial pace. Streaming marathons, virtual trivia nights, indoor exercises and completing many, many jigsaw puzzles are solid ways to pass the time. But it's unlikely you'll ever have these chunks of uninterrupted free time at your disposal again, so you may as well use them to learn a new trick or two. There are a bunch of courses, workshops and activities that'll help you upskill while you're bunkering down — here are eight of our picks. LEARN TO COOK WITH SOME OF THE WORLD'S BEST CHEFS Chances are you'll be getting quite familiar with your kitchen over the next couple of weeks. If up until now, you've mainly used the kitchen as a place to grab cutlery for your takeaway feast, then you're going to be looking for a little guidance. In a very real example of the 'we're all in this together' aspect of this crisis, many of the world's best chefs are also social distancing, self-isolating or in quarantine, and they're using that spare time to share some of their top tips. Michelin-starred chef Massimo Bottura is live streaming nightly tutorials on Instagram, while celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has launched the Keep Cooking and Carry On series, with easy-to-follow recipes and simple swaps (since some ingredients can be hard to come by), which you can catch on 10 Play. Meanwhile, if you're inspired by (almost) your entire Instagram feed making sourdough and want to have a crack at your own loaf, Bon Appetit's baking extraordinaire Claire Saffitz has a step-by-step tutorial saved on her Instagram highlights. A little closer to home, Aussie culinary legend Maggie Beer has started her own social media cooking series, as have chefs like Mitch Orr (Ciccia Bella), Neil Perry (Rockpool Bar & Grill) and Danielle Alvarez (Fred's). LEARN TO CODE FOR FREE Coding is going be such an important skill in the future it's now part of the curriculum for primary school students. But you haven't completely missed the boat just because you graduated (many) moons ago. There are hundreds of online courses you can take to learn to code, including General Assembly's. As well as Dash, its free online coding course, GA is also running free sessions on UX design and data analytics. If you want to have some fun with it, also check out Girls Who Code. The platform is releasing fun online and offline coding activities to download every week — like debugging tasks and a digital storytelling game — and each one also showcases a woman kicking goals in the tech world. [caption id="attachment_696381" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jean Malek[/caption] LEARN TO WRITE WITH LITERARY LEGENDS Have you always thought you were capable of writing the next great Australian novel, if only you weren't so busy? Now is the time to put your money where your mouth is. If you're not feeling quite so confident, Masterclass can help you get started. Like many other online education platforms, this San Francisco-based startup offers extensive courses on a range of topics, but what sets it apart is the truly astonishing lineup of instructors. For writing, that includes author Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid's Tale, The Testaments) leading a creative writing course, Dan Brown (The Da Vinci Code, Inferno) teaching on writing thrillers and essayist David Sedaris (Calypso, Me Talk Pretty One Day) on storytelling and humour. If words aren't your thing, Masterclass also has legendary photographer Annie Leibovitz teaching photography, Martin Scorsese teaching filmmaking, Doctor Jane Goodall explaining conservation and Hans Zimmer speaking on film scoring. Of course, the big names come at a price. There's an annual membership fee of AUD$280, but that grants access to every course on the platform. Plus, Masterclass is currently running a limited-time 'buy one, get one free' membership offer, so you can split that cost with a mate. LEARN PHOTOGRAPHY (AND LEVEL UP YOUR INSTAGRAM GAME) Photography as an art form has been muddled in recent years by way of us all documenting everything we do, eat, drink or see on social media. But there is a huge quality difference between pointing and shooting on your phone (and then promptly forgetting about it), and mastering manual mode on a DSLR camera. Once you get into it, you'll appreciate the value of a well-framed, well-lit HD photo so much more. Throughout April, Nikon is making its suite of online photography tutorials free to stream. Each video is hosted by a professional photographer covering topics like the fundamentals of photography and videography, understanding DSLR features, unlocking creativity and tips on shooting different subjects or environments. For now, you may be stuck practising on your pets, kids or housemates but, when the restrictions are lifted, you can reenter the world with your camera in hand, ready to capture all the beautiful things you missed. Just remember, nobody really cares what you ate for dinner — even in high definition. [caption id="attachment_662277" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Trent van der Jagt[/caption] LEARN TO MAKE WINE AND COCKTAILS We're not here to encourage excessive drinking, but we're also not going to skirt around the facts: you're probably consuming a bit of alcohol at home during this time. There are plenty of bars that have pivoted to delivering cocktails to your door, but you may also want to have a go shaking and stirring, too. If it's just recipes you're after, we've got plenty to get you started. Just pick your poison: vodka, gin, prosecco or spiced rum. Or you could go the whole hog and follow Ina Garten's (otherwise known as Barefoot Contessa) hilarious giant cosmopolitan recipe, which went viral on Instagram. If you want more of a guiding hand, check out Sydney Cocktails' Home Five O'Clock-tails video tutorials. Each day at 5pm, it'll share a new cocktail masterclass on Facebook, and it's getting Aussie bartenders who are out of work due to the current lockdown restrictions to host them. Or you could use this extra time to become the oenophile you've always wanted to be with The University of Adelaide's online course: World of Wine: From Grape to Glass. The free six-week course will teach you everything from the principles of grape growing and sustainable vineyard management to how to critique and describe a specific drop. You'll never need bluff your way through a restaurant wine list again (that is, once we're allowed back into restaurants). LEARN A NEW LANGUAGE IN PREPARATION FOR FUTURE TRAVEL Aussies have always been avid travellers, so it's safe to say there'll be plenty of itchy feet raring to set off on adventures as soon as the travel restrictions are lifted. You may not be able to make any solid plans right now, so use the spare time to add another language to your travel arsenal instead. The Open University has a number of introductory language courses available via its free Open Learn platform including German, Spanish, French, Welsh and ancient Greek and Latin. Each course takes between 5–20 hours to complete, so they should eat up a chunk of self-isolation time. After you've mastered your second, third or fourth language, take a look at some of the other courses available on the platform — there's everything from forensic psychology and art history to Egyptian mathematics. LEARN TO PLAY THE GUITAR OR MAKE MUSIC You've seen the Italians singing from their balconies, watched Lin-Manuel Miranda and the rest of the original Broadway cast of Hamilton singing 'Alexander Hamilton' via Zoom and danced up a storm to a virtual gig or two in your living room. And now it's time for you to create your own beats. Figure out which of your roommates has a neglected guitar hidden in the back of their wardrobe and jump onto Fender's website — it's offering three months of free online guitar, bass and ukulele lessons right now. Meanwhile, Apple is offering a 90-day trial on music production software system Logic Pro X, and Ableton is granting free access to a bunch of its music making resources, including the Ableton Live 10 Suite program, Spectral Textures presets pack and the Learning Music and Learning Synths tutorials. LEARN TO PAINT AND DRAW (WITH A GLASS OF WINE IN HAND) After spending so much time inside, you may get a little tired of staring at those same blank bedroom walls. Get those creative juices flowing and make something that you'll actually enjoy looking at via a virtual paint and sip class. All of the studios are currently shut down, so some of them, like Sydney's Cork and Canvas, have pivoted to offering online classes instead. For $25, you can access a step-by-step video tutorial to follow along whenever you like with a glass of wine in hand. And, if you need supplies, the studio is also delivering creative kits with paintbrushes, paint and canvases to your doorstep. There are single packs ($65), double packs ($120) and family packs ($230) available, and they all include a $20 voucher to Different Drop so the vino side of things is sorted, too. Or, you could check out the National Gallery of Victoria's Virtual Drop-By Drawing sessions, which are now happening online. Melbourne artists like Minna Gilligan and Kenny Pittock will guide you through a sketching session inspired by a piece from the gallery's collection, and all you'll need is a pencil, piece of paper and internet connection.
Films for grown-ups. They're regretfully rare (and I bemoaned this rarity just last week), but we have one in Performance. What could be construed merely as a music film is in fact a tightly wound, deliberate and sensitive depiction of creative, platonic and romantic relationships on the edge of destruction. Affairs, betrayals, sacrifice — together this list appears as standard soap opera material. But in the assured hands of former documentary-maker Yaron Zilberman, they are so much more. Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Christopher Walken and Mark Ivanir give astonishing performances as members of an esteemed Manhattan string quartet. As a creative family, the quartet's future is thrown into doubt when Walken's character develops Parkinson's — a particularly devastating diagnosis for a musician whose profession hinges on the dexterity of his hands. Here is a film that presents the complexities of regret, the price of compromise and the undoable consequences of the decisions you only realise in retrospect were, in fact, decisions. All these themes find their mirror in the intimacy and sacrifice of the quartet's musical collaboration and the intensity of their tenuous creative bonds. Performance is finely tuned and deeply moving. Its precise, dynamic dialogue gives the impression of being written by a master playwright. Its score rates a special mention — composer Angelo Badalamenti also wrote Twin Peaks''unforgettable theme. Its characters are fully fledged vessels of hurt, resentment and miscommunication, but they're not monsters — they're just actually human. And for a real, grown-up, mainstream film, that's not just unusual, that's something to treasure. https://youtube.com/watch?v=yaFTheo2v-E
Famed for its waterfront beer garden and sweeping bay views, the Portsea Hotel has had another makeover — its second in as many years. The sprawling Mornington Peninsula hot spot has scored a new chef, a new menu and multiple new bars. The upgrade isn't as dramatic as 2018's $7 million transformation, but it has given the interiors a refresh — making the pub's many spaces lighter, pared-back Hamptons-inspired vibe. The acclaimed beer garden remains, as does the dining room, and both maintain optimal enjoyment of the beach views and the sea breeze. Upstairs function space the Bertrand Bar offers some pretty special vistas of its own. The kitchen is now three times the size, with two wood-fired pizza ovens that turn out classic pies with toppings like sausage and potato ($25), and capricciosa ($26) (vegan cheese and gluten-free bases are available). Regular pub classics like fish and chips, steaks, burgers and parmas remain on the menu, too. Images: Samantha Schultz.
Plenty of Aussies have found themselves captivated by US TV drama The Handmaid's Tale, and the image of a dystopian society that is — even 30-odd years after the book was published — a little too close to home. And now, you'll have the chance to dive even deeper into that world, as Margaret Atwood, author of the original books that inspired the show, heads Down Under for an exclusive Australian appearance. Taking the stage at the Sydney Opera House in March 2019 in the lead-up to International Women's Day, the acclaimed Canadian writer will speak as part of the UNSW Centre for Ideas 2019 program. Atwood, celebrated for her storytelling prowess, prescient imagination and thought-provoking ideas, will share her insights into how present-day behaviours might be used to foretell any grim futures coming our way — just like those fictional worlds that hit so close to home in the likes of The Handmaid's Tale and Atwood's other works like The Blind Assassin, Alias Grace and, more recently, the MaddAddam Trilogy. The author's set to dish up her thoughts on the key issues of today and the future realities they might herald, from extremist politics, to climate change. It should be an interesting, if not eyebrow-raising, talk — as well as being an obvious advocate for women's rights, Atwood came under fire this year for her controversial take on the #MeToo movement and her reluctance to call The Handmaid's Tale feminist. Maybe she can visit Gliead while she's here. Margaret Atwood speaks at the Sydney Opera House's Concert Hall, on Sunday March 3, 2019. Tickets are from $39, available here from 9am, November 8.
There are very few faces as synonymous with Australian cinema as that of actor David Gulpilil. From his 1971 breakout in Nicolas Roeg's Walkabout to his recent collaborations with arthouse filmmaker Rolf de Heer, Gulpilil's career is full of unforgettable performances, many of which represent turning points for the depiction of Indigenous Australians on screen. His third and most recent film with de Heer marks the last part in a loose thematic trilogy — one that began with The Tracker in 2002 and continued with Ten Canoes four years later. But while those films dealt with Aboriginal history, Charlie's Country takes place in the present. It's also one of Gulpilil's first major film projects since his incarceration for assault in 2011; de Heer visited him in prison so they could work together on the script. It's perhaps for these two reasons in particular that the film feels so resoundingly authentic. Gulpilil's Charlie resides on an Indigenous settlement in Arnhem Land, the very same territory that his kinsmen have lived in for generations. But the truth is the land is no longer theirs. Charlie enjoys a genial relationship with the entirely white police force, yet differences in culture seem to make run-ins almost inevitable. When the cops confiscate his shotgun and destroy a lovingly made hunting spear, Charlie decides he's had enough. And so the ageing Charlie goes trekking into the bush, intent on living as his ancestors did before the first white settlers. For a time he's successful. He hunts, and paints, and sleeps in a makeshift hut. But then comes the rain and with it a sad realisation: the way of life he wants to return to is one that no longer exists. De Heer's slow narrative defies traditional arcing, the rewarding if occasionally directionless sense of realism enhanced by his naturalistic camerawork. The film's grim depiction of certain sections of the Indigenous community may put some viewers in mind of Warwick Thornton's Samson and Delilah. At times the film can be similarly difficult to watch, although on the whole it's much less unpleasant. Indeed, a warm sense of humour, particularly in the early scenes, puts harsher moments into relief. Gulpilil looks far older than his 61 years, but as Charlie he may never have been better — he's just taken home a best actor award at Cannes for it. It's a performance loaded with understated feeling, one that's obviously informed by a wealth of personal experience. His very face tells a story, about a country, its people, and its cultural and cinematic history. What a wonderful piece of acting in a likewise remarkable film. https://youtube.com/watch?v=Ly8_7Su4m4c
In 2017, one filmmaker had viewers around the world swooning. From the moment that Luca Guadagnino's big-screen adaptation of Andre Aciman's Call Me By Your Name premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and then the Berlinale, it wowed audiences, made a star out of Timothée Chalamet and had everyone talking about Armie Hammer's dancing skills. So the news that the acclaimed director is serving up another Italy-set coming-of-age drama is firmly — and understandably — cause for excitement. This time, Guadagnino is doing so on the small screen, courtesy of new HBO mini-series We Are Who We Are. It's set in 2016, and follows two American teenagers living on a US military base with their parents. Jack Dylan Grazer (IT: Chapter Two) stars as 14-year-old Fraser Wilson, a new arrival from New York with his mothers Sarah (Chloë Sevigny, Queen & Slim) and Maggie (Alice Braga, The New Mutants) — while first-timer Jordan Kristine Seamón plays Caitlin Poythress, a veteran of living on the base with her older brother Danny (Spence Moore II, AP Bio), father Richard (Scott Mescudi, aka Bill & Ted Face the Music's Kid Cudi) and mother Jenny (Faith Alabi, Cold Feet). Also featured in this eight-episode tale of friendship, teen angst, first love and finding one's identity are Francesca Scorsese (daughter of iconic filmmaker Martin Scorsese), Ben Taylor, Corey Knight, Tom Mercier (Synonyms) and Sebastiano Pigazzi — with the cast blending well-known names and faces with plenty of newcomers. We Are Who We Are started airing in the US back in September, which is when SBS revealed it would be screening it, too — via SBS Viceland and SBS On Demand. Now, the Aussie broadcaster has announced just when the show will make its local debut, screening weekly on TV from 9.30pm on Tuesday, November 3 and dropping the entire season online at the same time. If you're in the need of a virtual trip to Northern Italy, as directed by the filmmaker also behind I Am Love, A Bigger Splash and the 2018 Suspiria remake — and co-written by Guadagnino with Paolo Giordano (The Solitude of Prime Numbers) and Francesca Manieri (Daughter of Mine) — then add this to your future must-watch list. Check out the trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6VAQ6LdnKs&feature=emb_logo We Are Who We Are will screen on SBS Viceland and SBS On Demand from November, airing weekly on TV from 9.30pm on Tuesday, November 3 and dropping its entire season online at the same time. Top image: Yannis Drakoulidis/HBO.
Ethical and sustainable womens label Kowtow is popping up in Melbourne for one month this winter. Founded by art director Gosia Piatek, the New Zealand label's clothing is made entirely from certified fair trade, ethically-sourced organic cotton, making it a real champion among local boutique producers. The brand creates six collections per year and their newest collection, Dreamscape, focuses on figurative elements from folk tales and traditional fisherman workwear. The pieces feature quilting, textured knitwear and a natural colour palette that aims to accentuate the versatility of cotton without compromising on ethics or sustainability. All fabrics are also exclusively designed in-house and packaged with sustainable material — and, we must say, look incredibly comfy. Kowtow's international presence spans showrooms in New York, Copenhagen, Venice, Melbourne and Auckland, with Dreamscape available online and across 200 retailers worldwide. The pop-up will kick off with a launch party on Thursday, May 18 and, following that, will be open Monday to Saturday from 10am–6pm and Sunday from 11am–5pm until June 18.
It is often said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. However, there is considerable argument about who first said it. In this post modern era, it has been well argued that everything worth doing has probably already been done. And as anyone who has raided their grandparents' wardrobe for vintage classics will tell you, fashion and design are cyclical. Despite all this, as a culture we still value and believe in authenticity, innovation and originality. And we support the rights of artists and designers to sue the pants of anyone who wittingly rips their ideas off. But what if you unwittingly rip some off yourself? What if, by chance, two artists independently come up with the very same idea? Is that impossible? And where do you draw the line between being influenced by someone and blatantly copying their ideas? Where does referencing end and plagiarism begin? These are the questions which occupy retired professor of Graphic Design Bob Caruther, and are the theme behind his flickr page entitled, Similarities. In this extensive collection, Caruther pairs up two or more similar images without making either comment or judgement. In many pairs the similarities were well-intentioned, as for example in Rufus Wainwright's homage to Judy Garland and The Clash's homage to Elvis Presley. However, in other examples, intentions are not quite as clear, leaving the viewer to contemplate whether the later image is a coincidence, proof of an artistic collective unconsciousness, or grounds for a lawsuit. We'll let you decide.
Pack your overnight bag for a slumber party at Melbourne Central. Organised by STREAT, a local social enterprise that helps tackle youth homelessness by providing support networks and training in hospitality, Sleepless in Central is an all-night sleepover designed to help raise money and awareness for a truly important cause. The free event takes place in the Melbourne Central Level 2 Link Bridge, overlooking Lonsdale Street, from 7pm on Friday night. There'll be arts and craft workshops, group discussions and sets by local musicians, as well as a 'dream book' to which everyone will be invited to contribute. STREAT will provide the food and drink, including an early morning brekky, but you'll need to bring your own sleeping bag and pillow, as well as something warm to wear. To sign up, head over here. Sleepless in Central is the flagship event of STREAT's Sleepless in September initiative. For more information on how you can help, go here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59_S6yqZg10
Before Wolf Man let out any howls on-screen, it went into production with a roaringly great idea: Leigh Whannell, fresh from his 2020 hit The Invisible Man, again taking on one of horror cinema's iconic monsters. But this update of 1941 classic The Wolf Man almost didn't happen, at least not like this. In the past decade, rumours first circulated that Dwayne Johnson (Red One) was set to bay at the moon, then a reimagining with Ryan Gosling (The Fall Guy) was simmering — the latter of which Whannell was linked to, then dropped out with Blue Valentine and The Place Beyond the Pines director Derek Cianfrance set to step in instead, then returned to but with Christopher Abbott (Poor Things) starring. Initially, Whannell declined the Wolf Man opportunity. Why did he change his mind? "I think it was hitting upon my way into the character," he tells Concrete Playground. "They were very smart in their inception of me — they said 'well, just as an exercise, what would you do? How would you approach this character if you were to do it — not saying you are, but what if you were?'. And so I started thinking about it, and once I hit upon this idea of perspective and using the camera to shift perspective, that's when I was hooked. Once I have an idea that is keeping me awake at night and I can't stop thinking about it, it's almost like you have to make that film to get that idea out of your system. If something's obsessing you, then you've got to exorcise it. You've got to get it out. And that was it." Co-written by Whannell with his wife Corbett Tuck — an alum of the Whannell-co-created Insidious franchise as an actor, including featuring in his directorial debut Insidious: Chapter 3 — this Wolf Man delivers what it promises, of course. It's a werewolf film, with Abbott's character of Blake Lovell destined for an unwanted transformation. But as anyone that saw The Invisible Man and experienced how it found an inventive way into its well-known horror figure knows, and everyone who watched Whannell's body-horror Upgrade before that and spotted its riff on Frankenstein as well, the Australian filmmaker isn't interested in straightforward or obvious do-overs. He's modernising movie monsters and grounding them in resonant emotion. As The Invisible Man's lead, Elisabeth Moss (The Veil) wasn't in the titular role but rather played the transparent force's target, aka his ex-girlfriend, for instance, in a picture about domestic abuse, coercive control and gaslighting. This time, while again examining the loss of agency as he keeps doing cross his career, Whannell spins an exploration of trauma, plus the transformation and grief that it can spark — and of a marriage and a family tested by it, and also of the breakdown of communication in a relationship, and the mourning over losing someone slowly before your very eyes — around cinema's werewolf archetype. It's a hauntingly effective way in, and a shrewd and engaging one. Again, feeling the impact on those closest to the movie's namesake is essential. As Blake's wife Charlotte, enter Ozark Emmy-winner Julia Garner, starring with Abbott for the third time following Martha Marcy May Marlene (the feature debut for both) and an episode of Girls. She's also currently on a four-film streak where tension and unease is the prevailing mood. The latter and discomfort were equally crucial in her turn in quickly bingeable, ripped-from-the-headlines streaming series Inventing Anna. "There's not just one family member," Garner advises, explaining why it was so pivotal to her that what Charlotte goes through is just as key to the narrative as what Blake faces. Wolf Man uproots the couple and their eight-year-old daughter Ginger (Matilda Firth, Coma) from their San Francisco existence — where Charlotte is an investigative journalist and loving it, Blake is a doting dad but adrift in his surroundings otherwise, and strain already stresses the pair's marriage. While it takes some convincing, soon they're in rural Oregon, where Blake grew up and where the film opens. As a child (feature first-timer Zac Chandler) in the 90s in an area where a strange virus has been linked to wildlife, his survivalist father (Sam Jaeger, The Handmaid's Tale) isolated the family from the rest of the world. Blake has now inherited the property, sparking his comeback decades later, as well as the use of impressive practical effects by Whannell's team to make good on the movie's moniker. First coming to fame at home as the film critic on beloved 90s Saturday-morning TV show Recovery on the ABC, and with acting credits in The Matrix Reloaded, Death Sentence, Dying Breed, The Mule and more to his name, Whannell did indeed wish when he was starting out to be where he is now. His path that also spans bringing both the Saw and Insidious franchises, two of the biggest sagas in horror of the 21st century, to audiences with fellow Australian James Wan (Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom) — and starring in them. But he steadfastly appreciates his journey and, as he notes, "that luck plays a massive part in film-industry success". While he's been doing big things as Aussie filmmaker, Garner keeps working with Down Under talents. See also: Kitty Green's The Assistant and The Royal Hotel, plus Rosemary's Baby prequel Apartment 7A from Relic's Natalie Erika James. We chatted with Whannell and Garner about their routes to Wolf Man, how the film continues trends in each of their careers, casting and the movie's fresh interpretation of the Wolf Man story. The figure is no stranger to the screen, after all, with 2010's The Wolfman also going the remake route, and focusing on werewolves at the heart of films as varied as 1935's Werewolf of London; the 80s trio of An American Werewolf in London, The Howling and Teen Wolf; and Wolf in the 90s (and others). Part of our interview, too: Whannell's recurring themes, Garner's reunion with Abbott and more. On Whether Whannell Ever Dreamed That He'd Be Modernising Iconic Movie Monsters Back When He Was a Film Critic on 90s ABC Series Recovery Leigh: "I think I did dream. I mean, 'dream' is the right word, because they were very much daydreams. I don't think I took it past the daydreams. Once you start actualising a daydream, where you're drawing up plans and charts, and thinking about the chess moves that you're going to make to get there — I was just wishing for it. So I think that the fact that I actually am doing it is a literal dream come true, but it's also surprising to me. Because I think if I hadn't met the right people at the right time — and it's a very particular path I had to walk. One wrong move and this all goes in a different direction. On Garner Engaging with a New Way Into a Horror Classic in Wolf Man Immediately After Rosemary's Baby Prequel Apartment 7A — and If That's a Daunting Task Julia: "With this one, I feel like a lot of it is just that's what people want to see now. I feel like most of the movies that come out in this day and age are horror in a way, so I think that's what's popular now. And I'm just an actor that that needs to work — what can I say? No. But that's what's popular. The thing with Wolf Man that's interesting is that I actually didn't watch any — I've watched the previous Wolf Mans before, even before I was attached to this movie, but I didn't rewatch any of the previous Wolf Mans because I always felt like it felt very different and it wasn't connected to the previous Wolf Mans at all. So I wasn't going to take that as reference, movie reference. I found other places that were more beneficial for this Wolf Man than the previous Wolf Mans." On What Motivates Whannell to Make New Versions of All-Time Horror Greats Leigh: "I think they're iconic characters that people know. They're known around the world. The Wolf Man, Invisible Man, Dracula, Frankenstein — these characters are truly global, and people have a firm idea in their head. You say 'Frankenstein' to somebody and they have a picture in their head, probably the classic Boris Karloff image of the square green head with the bolts in the neck. There's that, but having said that, they're not locked in. People have done many things with these different characters. You can take the Wolf Man and plug it into a teen comedy. They did with Michael J Fox in the 80s. You can take a werewolf and plug it into a children's film. My kids watch animated movies with the Wolf Man running around, and Adam Sandler's doing the voice of Dracula. They're very malleable. They're so entrenched in pop culture that they don't even have to sit in one lane anymore. [caption id="attachment_788088" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Invisible Man[/caption] That's what's exciting to me, because getting people into movie theatres these days is difficult. If you can take a really known character like that and create essentially an original film inside of it — like with The Invisible Man, I was essentially creating my own story. I wasn't adapting a novel. I was creating this character of Cecilia, her inner world. So it's a way of having my cake and eating it. I get to write an original movie that's based on an iconic character, and the fact that it's so well-known means that studio has a way in. They can sell it to people. It's an equation you have to think about, I think, when making movies these days, because getting people into theatres is tough." On Why Whannell's Approach to Horror Monsters Appealed to Garner, and What She Was Excited to Dig Into Julia: "That it felt very real and very grounded. I thought that was a super-interesting combination, with the supernatural element of a monster movie, like Wolf Man. So, that contradiction — well, any contradiction always interests me. I think playing a mother, but not only playing a mother, playing a working mother — a mother that is struggling with what her identity is. I interviewed a lot of working mothers separately, and they all had similar responses, in a way. And the pressure of being a woman in this in this day and age — there was different pressure being a woman in the past, but there's now this different pressure of this day and age, and they all had similar responses. But then to add on top, something that was also just interesting was the sense of acting, how I approached it, too, was the seven stages of grief taking place in one night. And I think that was a really interesting challenge as an actor, because playing anything that takes place in one day is very challenging, let alone having the stages of grief — that's very challenging as well." On Wolf Man Combining Its Monster-Movie Setup with Musing on a Marriage Breakdown, a Family Strained by It, and Grief and Loss Leigh: "I think it is a balancing act, but it's one of the things I love about screenwriting is calibrating it. You're shaping something. You're making this sculpture. And to me, there's something very musical about writing a film, because there is a rhythm to it — and it's a rhythm that you just feel, you kind of feel it in your bones. You're just like 'okay, I need a chord change here. It's time for a big moment, and then I'll pull back'. I love doing that. I love being the god of my own little world. So much of life is out of our control — but when you write a screenplay, you create these people and you can treat them badly, you can treat them well, you can give them victories, you can rip the rug out from underneath them. There's something very cathartic about that, about controlling the fate of these imaginary people. And so I do enjoy that calibration. I do enjoy deciding — and so I'll give them a moment of connection, and I'll give them an emotional moment, and then I'll be vicious to them. You really are putting these characters through the wringer and you just have to use yourself as the barometer of 'when do I get emotional and when do I write things up a little bit?'. On Elements of Horror, Tension, Unease and Discomfort Simmering in Garner's Last Four Films in a Row — Including The Royal Hotel and The Assistant Julia: "I think it's funny. I look at those two movies, I don't look at them as horror movies so much, Royal and The Assistant. I look at them more as movies that have a lot of tension, and movies that have more of a grey area — and that's what feels like horror, a grey area is sometimes scarier because it feels more real. But this movie is different from anything that I've done, because this is actually the most of an action movie from out of anything that I've done, so that was one of the things that I also wanted to do. There was a lot of physical just running and all the things that I'm doing this movie. It was like an action horror movie it felt like, this film." On Why Whannell Keeps Telling On-Screen Tales About the Loss of Control and Agency Leigh: "That's interesting. A lot of times I treat interviews like free therapy, where I'm discovering in real time what the hell it is I do with my life. The old saying 'a fish cannot describe water' applies — I'm so inside of my films and so close to them that I'm not always the best person to tell you what they're about. Someone like you, who's coming in with a fresh set of eyes, you have a better Google Maps-view of this thing that I've done, and you maybe can pick up things. So I'm surprised a lot of times. Hearing you say that, I'm like 'okay' — and thinking about it, I'm like 'yeah, you're right'. There is this throughline through Upgrade and The Invisible Man and Wolf Man, and a lot of stuff I've done. I think that — just unpacking this in real-time here for you — I think that feeling like being out of control is something I'm afraid of in my own life. I'm somebody who wants to know what the plan is. I'm trying to keep a lid on the chaos of life. Some people are better at going with the flow. I definitely need that and I've always been like that. So maybe it's a fear of mine that's coming out. But also I think it just makes for good drama when you have someone who is being stripped of their agency and who they are. That's just great drama, especially when the person doesn't deserve it, when they're a sympathetic character. They say the key to screenwriting is to put your main character up a tree and throw rocks at them. I guess I enjoy torturing these fictional people because that makes for a good screenplay." On the Importance of Key Surroundings in Garner's Recent Films, Such as Wolf Man's Oregon Farm Setting Julia: "Surroundings in general, I think, is — and this is actually not on the actor, but I think if a director is not using the surroundings, that is not good for the film because it's a character on its own. So you're not getting to know another character in the film." On How Whannell Knew That Abbott and Garner Were His Wolf Man Leads Leigh: "I knew both of their work and knew how talented they both were. With Chris, the final straw was seeing him do a play in New York where he was just so great. And he was just ball of energy on stage, just raging — and then I went and saw him backstage and he's just chilling out with a glass of wine. And I was like 'okay, this guy, this guy is amazing that he could do that and then this'. I could see that he could switch it on and off. And with Julia, I already knew what she was capable of. So a lot of times with actors, unless you're a Christopher Nolan or Steven Spielberg, you really are just fishing for a yes. You don't always get that. I've written plenty of impassioned letters to different actors trying to sell them on a film I'm writing and gotten the rejection. Even directors can get rejected. Actors face a lot of rejection, but directors do too. So I'm just so happy that these particular two people responded. I was waiting for Julia. I was like 'uhhh, I haven't heard anything for a couple of days'. I'm reading into it. 'I guess she's going to pass'. And then she texted me a little wolf emoji. And I was like 'all right'. It was just one of those happy times when two people you know can do it both said yes." On Garner Working with Christopher Abbott for the Third Time — and How They Drew Energy From Each Other in Their Wolf Man Performances Julia: Well, it definitely didn't feel like the first time I met him. So that was easy. And Chris is such a great actor, so I was very excited to attach myself to this. Chris met me when I was 16 years old, which is crazy — there is history. Just being real, I think is so important. Being real and being open, because if you have just open behaviour, then that makes your scene partner hopefully more open. So that openness is contagious, and then you get a real response. On What Whannell Makes of His Journey From Australian TV to Co-Creating the Saw and Insidious Franchise, Then Upgrade, The Invisible Man and Wolf Man Leigh: "A lot of it's been surprising. So much of the movie industry is gambling, and you the old saying 'nobody knows anything' applies, I think. Certainly in Hollywood, where you've got these big studios spending lots of money and it's a profit-driven industry. Unlike Australia, it's not a a government-supported art form. It's a deluge of capitalism, and you stand or fall on that box office. And there are detours you can take, i.e. spend less — well, then you're not on the hook as much; the less money you spend, the less you're expected to make. So anyone who manages to scrape out a career, it's kind of a surprise — because when James Wan and I did that first Saw movie, we never expected that people would actually go to see it, and never expected to turn into this huge franchise. And it was a total bonus prize. So it's surprising more than anything. And I think when luck is involved, it can keep you humble — or it should. If you start believing that you're there because of destiny, that you were chosen by the hands of fate, that's when you're in trouble. That's when your ego's talking. But if you have a healthy awareness that luck plays a massive part in film-industry success, it does keep you god-fearing. It keeps you humble in the face of that luck. Here I am again talking to you, I'm rolling the dice again. I've made a film. I'm hoping it does well. But I have no idea how it's going to connect with audiences. That part isn't up to me. There's nothing I can do or say to make this film connect with people. It either will or it won't. So yeah, I'm just very well-aware of that." [caption id="attachment_927986" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Royal Hotel[/caption] On How Garner's Run of Working with Australian Directors Came to Be Julia: "I don't know. Well, Kitty is one of my closest friends, so I will do anything with her. I literally was just like 'I need to call her'. I love Australians. I think you guys are awesome. And you guys have great, great directors and art coming out of there, so I'm always intrigued by what an Australian has to say." Wolf Man opened in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, January 16, 2025. Leigh Whannell will chat about the film at the 2025 AACTA Festival, which runs from Wednesday, February 5–Sunday, February 9, 2025 at HOTA, Home of the Arts, 135 Bundall Road, Surfers Paradise, Gold Coast.
