Run away with the circus on New Year's Eve (and stay there for early morning on New Year's Day). If your new year celebrations are often filled with unrealised expectations and warm beer, this year could be the year you vow to make it different — and the perfect solution might be Sydney's Harbour Hoopla, a new event looking forward to shaking its sequins and twirling its hoops at you. Harbour Hoopla is 'vintage-circus themed', meaning there will be some highly sassy costumes as well as props popping up everywhere. Held at Tarpeian Way (inside the Botanic Garden Sydney), there will be games, a theatrical photo booth, circus performers a-plenty, and a DJ once the night gets into swing. It's the perfect location to watch the iconic New Year's Eve fireworks, the harbour bridge is right next door and it's sure to supply incredible views. You and your mates can come dressed in your circus best (or your stroke-of-midnight-best will do), or hit up the photo booth props at the venue for some snaps. Hungry after all that frolicking? You get a picnic hamper upon entry with a salad, poached chicken main, dessert and cheese plate, and there's a (cash only) bar on premises. BYO rug, that ridiculous dress at the back of your wardrobe, and cash (no ATMs on site). We also suggest you start practicing your cartwheels for when you decide that joining the circus is the best thing to do with your life this year. Tickets are selling fast — two out of four of the Royal Botanic Garden's events have already sold out. We've got six tickets to Harbour Hoopla to give away — enter your details below and you're in the running to head along and take five of your friends. [competition]599091[/competition]
Pinbone's great Kensington pop-up might be gone, but the good news is that fans of its fare won't be left hanging any longer. The pop-up pros are ready to launch their next culinary pop-up this week in an unlikely space within the Tennyson Hotel. In collaboration with Merivale – who acquired the Botany Road pub for $37.5 million last year — Pinbone chefs Mike Eggert and Jemma Whiteman have transformed the pub's drive-through bottle shop into Mr Liquor Dirty Italian Disco. In true bottle shop-style, guests will be able to select their own booze — including over 150 wines — out of the walk-in fridge. What's not so typical is that they'll then be able to order food at the counter and pull up a chair at one of the 90 seats set up in the driveway. The pop-up will kick off on Friday, October 20 and run for six months. For this venture, the duo have turned their focus to American-accented Italian fare. They've promised a food situation that's "fun and fast, simple and delicious", with a menu that centres around bruschetta, pasta and meats from the woodfired oven and grill. "We went with the classic trio of bread/pasta, cheese and meat," says Whiteman. "That's going to be the strong nucleus of how this restaurant's going to fall in line because, to us, that's what makes Italian food: simple, uncomplicated, rustic." But while that menu sounds basic, Pinbone's history promises anything but. Eggert and Whiteman are known for adding in a wild ingredient or two to classic dishes — if you visited 10 William Street during their takeover, you'll know what we're talking about. Dishes on the Dirty Disco menu will include meat loaf with dill pickle, pastas and bruschetta topped with raw veal, whipped tuna with bitter greens. "We've been really inspired by the red sauce joints of New York," says Eggert. "We'll be pushing ourselves to get to their quality, but it'll have our essence, our touches. There'll be a little bit of seaweed here and there, a little bit of soy sauce. It's our take on the red sauce joint." The venture is another new direction for the Pinbone trio, who, after running their much-loved Woollahra eatery and doing a takeover at 10 William Street, were most recently doing exceptional Chinese food in a no-frills restaurant space on Anzac Parade. The collaboration with Sydney hospo giant Merivale is their first. Mr Liquor Dirty Italian Disco by Pinbone and Merivale, will pop-up at the Tennyson Hotel, 952 Botany Road, Mascot on Friday, October 20 for six months. It'll be open Wednesday to Friday 6pm till midnight, Saturday noon till midnight and Sunday noon till 10pm. For more info, visit merivale.com.au/mrliquorsdirtyitaliandisco.
Bingo. Rave. Two ends of the spectrum of fine holiday fun finally came together in Australia last year. If you didn't make it along, Bongo's Bingo is a games night like you've never seen before. Part club, part rave, and, of course, part bingo night, this unlikely fusion event has been wildly popular in the UK since 2015. It's hardly surprising that taking the show on the road — that is, launching Bongo's Bingo Down Under — went well. And now, it's hardly surprising that is's coming back for yet another round either. What you mightn't expect is the event's new special guests: British boy band royalty, aka Westlife's Brian McFadden and Boyzone's Keith Duffy. Under the name Boyzlife, they'll perform their respective groups' biggest hits while all of the debauchery of the original British version of Bongo's Bingo gets underway. That includes rave intervals, dancing on tables and a loose kind of bingo that you definitely never played with your nan (well, maybe you have). The victorious players can win everything from big cash prizes to some absolutely ridiculous surprises, which is all part of the fun. Australia is the second international location for Bongo's Bingo, which recently launched in Dubai as well and, based on popularity, we imagine the event will continue to expand around the globe. BONGO'S BINGO DATES: Brisbane — Saturday, March 24 at The Tivoli Sydney — Saturday, March 31 at Big Top Melbourne — Thursday, April 5 at St Kilda Hall Doors from 6pm and shows kick off 7.30pm. Tickets are $40 per person and go on sale on Monday February 5 — the Brisbane show at 4pm AEST via Ticketmaster, and the Sydney and Melbourne shows at 6pm AEDT via Moshtix.
The Sydney Architecture Festival is back for its 11th incarnation and, this time, the event is focusing on the west. Between Friday, September 29 and Monday, October 2, you'll be treated to talks, tours, exhibitions and parties celebrating the city's most beautiful, unusual and controversial buildings — from Punchbowl's new contemporary mosque to The Rocks' Sirius, which was recently saved from demolition. To be among the first Sydneysiders to learn about the former, head to Punchbowl, on Saturday, September 30 at 11am. There, Harry Seidler Award-winning architect Angelo Candalepas, who designed the building, will be launching it to the public. He'll also be chatting about the "Aussie mosque" and the role of architecture in increasing cross-cultural understanding with a panel of commentators. Tickets, which include lunch, are free, but online bookings are essential. "We're inviting Sydneysiders to join the community of Sydney's newest mosque to experience this modern concrete masterpiece," said Tim Horton, festival director. "The festival is also embracing Sydney's love affair with concrete: not only as a brutalist material, but as one that is found in every building we make." It's difficult to imagine modern-day Sydney without the influence of brutalism, the concrete-driven movement that dominated architecture in the 1960s and '70s. To help you find out more about it, the festival is running brutalist history tours, starting at the festival hub — in the new Peter Shergold Building at Western Sydney University in Parramatta — and finishing at Millers Point. Along the way, you'll be led by architect Glenn Harper and comedian Tim Ross, as you take in Sirius, the Surry Hills Police Centre and the Masonic Centre, among other buildings. Tickets are $25 and can be booked online. Meanwhile, if you're wondering what Sydney might look like in another two decades, when another 1.7 million people have joined the multitude, then check out Missing Middle, an exhibition happening at the hub, where you'll see a bunch of solutions to population growth dreamed up by various architects. It's free and open every day during the festival. The festival's biggest party though, is the launch. Hosted in partnership with The Fifth Estate, it's a river cruise, departing King Street Wharf on Friday, September 29 at 430pm, and landing in Parramatta. Between drinks, you'll be invited to partake in a forum about sustainable and affordable development in Sydney's west, featuring experts in planning, government, community and design. Tix are available here. And closing proceedings on Monday, October 2 will be the World Architecture Day Oration, delivered by Kristien Ring, a Pittsburgh-born architect, curator and author now living in Berlin, who'll be discussing a citizen-led housing model, which has the potential to reduce Sydney's housing prices by 15-30 percent. If you're curious, tickets are $25 and include lunch provided by OzHarvest. Images: Steven Siewert.
National Reconciliation Week is an opportunity for all people of Australia to learn and acknowledge the nation's shared history, to celebrate the achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and reflect on how we can each contribute to reconciliation. Reconciliation requires more than listening, learning and reflecting, which is powerfully summarised in this year's theme: More than a word. Reconciliation takes action. As always, hundreds of events are occurring around the nation in schools, community centres, workplaces, cultural institutions and sporting clubs. All these events embrace the theme and recognise that for reconciliation to occur in Australia, more impactful action is required. Reconciliation also requires the active participation and involvement of wider Australia. So this year, you can also host an event as well as attending a suite of unique educational discussions and workshops. National Reconciliation Week is convened annually by Reconciliation Australia, the national body on reconciliation. Significantly, this year marks twenty years since Reconciliation Australia was established in 2001. The start and end dates of Reconciliation Week are the same each year— May 27 and June 3. These dates celebrate two significant achievements in the reconciliation journey: the successful 1967 referendum, and the High Court Mabo decision which saw the rightful recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the traditional owners of the land. [caption id="attachment_813142" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: City of Greater Geelong, City Hall[/caption]
After last Sunday's epic Keep Sydney Open rally saw 15,000 anti-lockouts protesters take to the Sydney streets, momentum is officially picking up. This Thursday, three Sydney establishments are holding fundraisers to collect sweet, sweet moolah to keep fighting the good fight against the State Government's lockout laws. This Thursday, Freda's in Chippendale is hosting a KSO fundraiser party, with a performance from Future Classic's World Champion. The Freda's House Band — lead by Josh Beagley (Personal Best) and featuring Michael Di Francesco (Touch Sensitive), Andrew Elston, Rich Sanford, Ross Ferraro and Bret Hunt — will be performing a greatest hits set. They'll be joined by some pretty big gun guest vocalists, from Isabella Manfredi (The Preatures), Jack Ladder, Rainbow Chan, Marcus Whale (Black Vanilla) and more. There'll also be DJ sets from Adi Toohey (FBi Radio), Marcus King and more. Vibe Positive is holding a 2.0 edition at The Chippendale Hotel in tandem with Freda's, so they can accommodate the hoards of people, and there'll also be the Late Night Edition at Tatler Sydney, with live techno and dance from Phile, Simon Caldwell, Kali, Paul Jextra and Grand Jeté. "We all want a safe city," says the KSO team. "We all want a vibrant city. We all want a city that elevates art, music and culture. And we want a city we can engage with as adults at any time of the night. This is only the beginning of a long fight, and Keep Sydney Open needs our help." Image: Kimberley Low.
The story goes that, in 1971, National Geographic's Loren McIntyre found the source of the great Amazon River. Earlier this year, author Petru Popescu published his version of the story, called Amazon Beaming, in which Popescu details how McIntyre found a tribal chief with whom he was able to communicate — telepathically. That is, with their brains. Yep. This instance of multimedia theatre, showing at the Opera House, really challenges the audience to approach the production holistically, in terms of their senses. Taking the idea of telepathic communication, legendary director Simon McBurney and theatre stalwart Richard Katz project all the sound from the piece straight into the ears of their audience through headphones. McBurney pushes the audience's imagination to immerse themselves into the humid and mysterious environment of the Amazon. This is one of 15 next-level events to see at Sydney Festival. Check out the whole list.
When the Vivid LIVE and Vivid Music (different things, it confuses us all) lineup was announced a good few weeks back, squeals were heard and hashtagged citywide. Since then there’s been time for the dust to settle and tickets to be snapped up, but you’re still sitting on your hands. Vivid kicks off on May 22 y'all, time to turn those circled program guides into reality. With kitsch '80s Japanese pop, brash Sydney garage punk, shoe-shufflin' soul and heartfelt indie folk on the bill, you can choose your own Vivid adventure through sound with our top picks. So grab a pre-drink at Vivid's Opera House pop-up bar, the Deep Purple Pool Hall, before Sufjan. Lock down your favourite Studio party. Take in some Italo beats and noms before Grace Jones. Or roll the dice on a Freda's party (highly recommended). Just don't watch it all happen on Instagram. By the Concrete Playground team. Image: Prudence Upton.
Beneath its glory and grandeur, Paris offers adventures a-plenty at ground level. For every 16th-century art gallery crowded with tourist snappers, there's a neglected street art masterpiece on a corner somewhere; for every ritzy hotel foregrounded with limousines, there's a quirky hideaway concealed behind a secret door; for every Michelin-starred restaurant, there's a laneway shopfront peddling regional produce. Thanks to the city's spiralling, snail-like arrangement, a diverse array of neighbourhoods is easily accessible from the centre. With only a week to dig up the picks of the Paris underground, I asked a few of the locals to show me around. DRINKING Unlike Australian wines, which are labelled according to grape variety, French ones are classified based on region. If you've been to neither Burgundy nor Bordeaux, ordering can be confusing and, occasionally, intimidating. One express way to get your head around this is at a tasting session. I found Alexis, a Parisian-born wine expert, through Localers, a company that organises left-of-field activities led by locals, from like-a-local crash courses, to macaroon classes, to games of petanque. His father started teaching him the difference between a decent drop and a dud when he was in his early teens. I met Alexis at Le Pharamond (24, Rue de la Grande Truanderie), one-time preferred eatery of Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald. Tucked away in a side street amid the cocktail bars of the first arrondissement, it's a direct link to the Belle Epoque, with its gilded mirrors, glazed tiles, high ceilings and hardcore traditional cuisine: offal, pigeon, escargot and tripe served up at boiling point. While these delicacies are available to anyone with a dinner reservation, Le Pharamond's shadowy, candle-lit wine cellar, dug out in the Middle Ages, is accessible only in the company of a guide – via secret hatch behind the bar and a series of steep staircases and ladders. This was where our class began. Filling our glasses with champagne, Alexis started explaining the rules of French wine, "Under no circumstances can champagne be referred to as champagne, unless it comes from Champagne." Then, whipping out a map, he pointed out which varieties grew where. Ask for a Burgundy red, and you'll be drinking a pinot noir; request a Chablis and you can expect a chardonnay. If you're in Bordeaux, don't even think about requesting a bottle from Burgundy, or anywhere else for that matter. Keeping things local is a pretty new trend in Australia, but the French have been fiercely defending their regionalism for centuries. After that we were ushered to a private dining room on the Pharamond's third floor, with a view to the street below. We sampled five more wines, representing a north to south journey through France, and matched with several premium cheeses and cured meats. "When you cut cheese in France," Alexis explained, "you must do it from the centre outwards, so that everyone ends up with an equal share of the rind." Armed with my new working knowledge of French wine and cheese etiquette, I was ready to brave Paris's culinary specialties. If not the tripe. EATING It's not difficult to find the city's renowned high-end restaurants, but scoping out the mid-range gems is tougher. The sheer volume of visitors has pushed up prices, especially on the major thoroughfares. So I enlisted the help of Lisa, a Canadian who's been living in Paris for two years. She runs her own small tour business, Flavors of Paris, which promises to take travellers "off the eaten path". We gathered at Les Deux Magots (6, Place Saint-Germain-des-Prés), where the likes of Simone de Beauvoir, Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus and Ernest Hemingway penned masterpieces in between coffees and cocktails. These days, Lisa told us, the Saint Germain area is quite "shi shi", but, despite the trendy stores, it's still bustling with students and writers. On a circuitous journey down cobbled alleyways and through courtyards, we visited independent boutiques where we sampled olives, olive oils, pastries, breads, cheeses, charcuterie, chocolates, jams, spreads and wines. On my own, I'd have had little chance of finding them. At chocolate concept store Un Dimanche à Paris (4, Cours du Commerce Saint-André) we indulged in the must-try creations of Pierre Cluizel, whose lifelong dedication to chocolate began when he was six; at Ma Collection Marchande de Saveurs (33, Rue Mazarine), we sampled a curated collection of local gourmet products; at the Marché Saint-Germain (14, Rue Lobineau), we bought direct from farmers; and at Bacchus et Ariane (4, Rue Lobineau), we tasted wine sourced from propriétaires récoltants (winemakers who grow their own grapes). ARTING Despite the crowds, the Louvre is always a magnificent experience. But if you prefer your art with some personal space, Paris's smaller galleries are worth a visit. Head to the Marais district, which is like Sydney's Paddington in its emphasis on independent design, but more intense. For new, challenging work, check out La Maison Rouge (10, Boulevard de la Bastille) a converted factory that's been exhibiting since 2004. Or for an element of surprise, step through the heavy, green doors of the Passage de Retz (9 Rue Charlot), whose maze of rooms started life in the 17th century as a hotel and now hosts temporary shows. Alternatively, take to the streets. Numerous corners, archways and parks act as canvases for street art, accessible 24 hours a day. Having spied various space invaders and OBEY references, I decided to get some context via a walking tour with Underground Paris. Beginning at the'70s-inspired Café Place Verte (105, Rue Oberkampf), the journey took us on a three-hour long saunter through the Oberkampf and Belleville, where low rents and warehouse spaces have been drawing Paris's art community since the '80s. We learned what inspired Space Invader's obsession, found out more about 'photograffeur' and TED-prize winner JR and discovered works by numerous lesser-known local artists. Using individual stories as a springboard, our guide carved out a broader history of street art, from graffiti tagging to multi-million dollar successes. We ended up in Parc de Belleville (47, Rue des Couronnes), one of the few places in Paris where you can picnic with panoramic city views minus the crowds. SLEEPING (ON THE RIGHT BANK) Wandering around the Madeleine district, on Paris's Right Bank, felt like walking through the set of a Baz Luhrmann film. Everything was grander, more beautiful and more decadent than real-life, from the golden Gucci dog collars, to the glittering macaroon sculptures, to the gilded statues atop the Palais Garnier. It's also a really visitor-friendly location, with the Champs Elysées within walking distance. The Hotel Chavanel (22 Rue Tronchet) is hidden behind an unobtrusive sliding door, just a few hundred metres from the spectacular Corinthian columns of the Madeleine Church. Sophie Charlet took over as hotelier in 2013, intent on turning the hotel into a bit of an artwork. Each of the 27 rooms has been designed individually, but they're linked by an aesthetic that combines traditional haute couture with bold, fun, contemporary concepts. It looks like what might have emerged out of a Christian Dior and Pierre Paulin collaboration. I stayed in the junior suite, on the sixth floor. It was furnished like the guest room of some cutting-edge interior designer: an enormous oval bed draped with cashmere, mushroom and tulip stools, a recliner shaped like a cloud, lamps made of silkworm cocoons from Thailand and lace-curtained windows affording district views. I wasn't surprised to learn that Sophie had overseen the placement of every single object and that she's big on ethical supply chains and supporting independent artists. The lobby's street-facing window is dedicated to exhibiting locally-made creations, from jewellery to sculptures, while breakfast comes in the form of a 100 per cent organic buffet. SLEEPING (ON THE LEFT BANK) Not far from where my Flavors of Paris tour started, and just around the corner from the Luxembourg Gardens, the Villa Madame (44, Rue Madame) inhabits a quiet street. On first impressions, it feels more like a welcoming private mansion owned by an arts philanthropist than a hotel. Sculptures and drawings dot the lobby-bar-restaurant, leading through to a secluded, leafy courtyard. Monthly live shows feature local artists, from musicians to storytellers to magicians. Owners Giles Delfau and Thérèse Tafanel employed specialist boutique hotel designer Michael Jounnat to create the Villa's artsy yet luxurious feel. His passion is restoring 'identity' and 'soul' to places, rather than following trends; some of his other projects include St Petersburg's Grand Hotel Europe, Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana Palace and Oran's Royal Hotel. The atmosphere established from the outset extends seamlessly into the rooms. I stayed in a suite, made up of a courtyard-facing ground-floor room, a loft-style lounge room and an oversized bathroom. It was a classically Parisian experience - and a warm, cosy hideaway at the end of the day. Jasmine travelled as a guest of Localers, Flavors of Paris, Underground Paris, Hotel Chavanel and Villa Madame.
Filipinos may drink the most gin in the world, but they're not simply lovers of this botanical libation. While San Miguel makes the region's most popular, easy-drinking beers, Manila's emerging craft beer market has swiftly become the talk of the town. When it comes to craft beer, Manila is way ahead of the pack and on the level of Hong Kong and Japan as a leader of the craft beer revolution in Asia. While the country's capital alone houses over ten microbreweries already, a few smaller breweries are also popping up in the southern islands, including Cebu and Palawan. Filipinos are going for the range, brewing everything from deep stouts and bold IPAs to tropical, fruity beers and highly alcoholic ginger beers. If you're a craft beer fanatic heading to Manila, we've got your back — here's which beers to drink and where to find them. [caption id="attachment_618703" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Katipunan Craft Ales.[/caption] WHERE TO DRINK You're spoilt for choice with Manila's nightlife, which rivals New York City in its love of late-night partying and all-hours dining. It seems there's always a new joint popping up, and this is especially true of the budding craft bar scene. It's always a party at Big Bad Wolf, with live acts a constant accompaniment to their craft brew offering. Beers to keep an eye out for here are Summer Sessions blonde ale by Craftpoint and 'Signal No.1', a stout made by Katipunan Craft. Both are Manila-based breweries so you know the brews will be fresh as. Another, simply called The Brewery at the Palace, serves up its own brews from gorgeous copper tanks visible from the restaurant floor. The rustic interior well matches the old-world-looking brewing equipment and the beers are as impressive as the place makes them look. They're brewing up some serious beers here, including an alcoholic ginger beer at a surprising seven percent ABV. The Perfect Pint is your go to for an ever-changing, extensive craft beer list and fusion Filipino-Western food that goes all too well. If you're lucky enough to find Pedro's Procrastination pale ale on tap, don't pass it by. These brewers were inspired by the craft beer scene in Hong Kong and turn out some of the most impressive brews in Manila. Out of all of the craft beer joints in the city though, Kabisera is not to be missed. They're serving up authentic Filipino pulutan, or drunk food, and craft beer in a relaxed, well-designed dining room playing some killer tunes. The menu of street food, including fish balls and kwek-kwek (deep fried quail egg) is a great drinking accompaniment, as is the sisig bangus (sizzling fish) and array of noodle dishes. Kabisera houses all of the usual craft beer suspects, along with speciality brews from the southern islands, including Cebu's Cebruery and Palaweño Brewery — Palawan's first and only craft brewery. [caption id="attachment_618701" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Nipa Brew.[/caption] WHAT TO DRINK When in Manila, keep an eye out for these locals in the craft brew scene: Pedro Brewcrafters Katipunan Craft Ales Craftpoint Brewing Co. The Brewery at the Palace Baguio Craft Brewery Palaweño Brewery Cebruery Turning Wheels NIPA Brew
Finding yourself smooshed between a shove-happy tween and a dirty ponytail-touting brick wall at the front of the mosh could be a thing of the past — virtual reality concerts are here, from Coldplay's Ghost Stories concert to Paul McCartney's VR concert app and a brand new Opera House VR experience, released today. If you didn't nab tickets to Future Classic's 10th anniversary concert at the Sydney Opera House this past May, you can now experience part of the sold-out Vivid concert through a cheeky new virtual reality experience. Samsung, principal partner of the Opera House, put their tech to work on the day, recording sets for virtual reality, specifically made for YouTube’s new 360° video service. The recently unveiled YouTube app allows you to watch VR videos, including Future Classic and Samsung's brand new recorded Opera House performance of Flight Facilities’ ‘Heart Attack’ performed with Melbourne’s Owl Eyes and Julian Hamilton of The Presets. Samsung created the video from more than 20 remote-controlled cameras, shot from three vantage points to capture this 360° x 180° immersive view — in Ultra High Definition, of course. The team-up was an experiment by the Opera House to let more than ticketholders experience Future Classic's sold-out show long after the date. This isn't the first time an Australian organisation has used virtual reality to create a new audience experience, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra put 3D goggles on audience members this July and let them watch an entire concert from the perspective of the musicians. The technology has also been used by the Sydney Opera House before, also at this year's Vivid, by UK drum and bass artist Squarepusher. Dubbed the Stor Eiglass Virtual Reality Experience, Squarepusher worked with artists, artistic studio Marshallow Laser Feast, BAFTA-winning animators Blue Zoo and illustrator Rob Pybus to create a a fully immersive 2D and 3D virtual reality experience in the Main Box Office Foyer. But this new Flight Facilities video, shot from three different vantage points, is the first time we've seen a virtual reality concert experience like this. Watch the video here (if you've got a VR viewer like Google Cardboard, it's even better): Then watch the behind the scenes making of here: Image: Daniel Boud.
Deck the halls and unpack the plastic tree — the festive season is well and truly upon us. And while that whole Christmas tradition stuff is nice, we're not going to deny what we're most excited about: a whole stocking-load of new films. Along with the cricket and stampeding through shopping centres, going to the movies is one of our favourite Boxing Day traditions. After all, what better place to recover from your post-Christmas food coma than in a nice, dark, air-conditioned cinema? Of course, not all of the end-of-year titles measure up. That's why we're reporting in with our annual Boxing Day Battle Royale, to ensure that you get maximum bang for your Kris Kringle gift voucher buck. Or you could just go see the new Star Wars movie for the third time. That's also a totally valid option. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDMf9m7FXd4 LA LA LAND We give it: 4 stars A surefire contender at this year's Academy Awards, Damien Chazelle's follow-up to the critically acclaimed Whiplash is a bittersweet love letter to music, movies and the old school sense of romance we associate with both. Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling are at their charming best as a pair of dreamers who fall madly in love against the backdrop of Los Angeles, only for their creative ambitions to get in the way. The film is beautifully shot, and its toe-tapping song and dance numbers will leave you with a gigantic smile on your face. Also: tears. Oh boy, will there be tears. – Tom Clift https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKFuXETZUsI MOANA We give it: 4 stars The latest film from the Disney animation juggernaut, Moana hits all the right marks. Indeed, it's a cocktail of all of the best elements of the Disney princess genre – a desperate quest, a charismatic supporting cast, catchy tunes and an animal sidekick – but with one subtle but important difference. Unlike most Disney princesses, Moana doesn't need a training montage to become a boss bitch, because she already is one. She's a beautiful role model, maybe the best Disney princess ever. And the score, written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Mark Mancina, and Opetaia Foa'i, is the music she deserves. Prepare your ears to hear the main refrain 'How Far I'll Go' more than that damn 'Let It Go' song from Frozen. We ain't mad, though, because it's the perfect summer jam. – Imogen Baker https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pX5vI4osR50 A UNITED KINGDOM We give it: 4 stars As far as rousing romances based on real-life stories go, Amma Asante's A United Kingdom hits the jackpot. Rosamund Pike and David Oyelowo star as typist Ruth Williams and future president of Botswana Seretse Khama, whose romance in the years following WWII challenged racial divisions and provoked widespread international attention. The film provides an example of solid emotional storytelling from start to finish. Complications keep forcing the star-crossed lovers in opposite directions, but they never lose sight of what's important. Nor does Asante or writer Guy Hibbert, who are at their best when swapping easy sentiment for quiet fortitude. – Sarah Ward https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tl3sTpmEKIs RED DOG: TRUE BLUE We give it: 3.5 stars Five years ago, a little local film with a lot of heart scampered its way into cinemas — and into the country's box office records. Given the tail-wagging success of Red Dog, a follow-up was all but inevitable. Still, while there's much that's familiar about Red Dog: True Blue, it still earns every bit of emotion that oozes from this second trip into family-friendly territory. This time around, the eponymous pooch gets an origin story starting in 1968, and a lonely boy (Pan's Levi Miller) gets a new best friend. For their part of the bargain, viewers get a broad, crowd-pleasing, affectionate effort that's certain to make everyone fall in love with the red-coloured canine all over again. – Sarah Ward https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qksQSt8K830 WHY HIM? We give it: 3 stars "Produced by Ben Stiller. Story by Jonah Hill. Starring James Franco." Put those things together and you already know what you'll get: fart jokes, dick jokes, poo jokes, semon jokes, stoners, swearing and sex. And yet, true to form, you also get laughs. Not as many as you might have hoped for given the involvement of Bryan Cranston, Megan Mullally and Keegan-Michael Key, but maybe just enough to keep you entertained. In this modern day riff on Guess Who's Coming To Dinner, Cranston's daughter invites her family out to Silicon Valley to meet her eccentric tech millionaire boyfriend Laird, whereupon daddy decides to go to war with the very idea of their relationship. Too often the film turns to the loud and the wacky for easy laughs, when all the best material comes in the gentler, well-directed barbs at San Fran startup culture. Franco steals the show, forging Laird into a genuinely endearing character whose vulnerabilities lie bare like the tattoos adorning his torso. – Tom Glasson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jlp94-C31cY ALLIED We give it: 3 stars Partially styled after and sharing its initial setting with classic World War II romance Casablanca, Allied poses an age-old question in a specific context: how well does anyone actually know each other, particularly married couples who've started a family together while the planet battles it out around them. Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard mightn't boast overwhelmingly convincing chemistry together, but each turn in fine performances as a Canadian intelligence officer and French resistance fighter, respectively, whose pairing on an undercover mission soon leads to a genuine connection. Obviously pitched at an older crowd, Allied is an elegant affair that seems like a response to the complaint that they just don't make them like they used to. – Sarah Ward https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrWjjOOYxhI SING We give it: 3 stars On paper, animal karaoke caper Sing sounds like reality television turned into a star-studded cartoon – albeit in a form that aims to make viewers feel warm and fuzzy rather than inducing a serious case of cringe. On screen, the latest film from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and Son of Rambow director Garth Jennings plays out just as you'd expect, though it thankfully remains fun enough despite its obvious formula. Think bright colours, a bouncy pace, recognisable songs a plenty, Matthew McConaughey voicing a theatre-owning koala, and the likes of Scarlett Johansson, Reese Witherspoon and Eddie the Eagle's Taron Egerton among the cast. If you're looking for a film to keep youngsters distracted, this animated effort should do nicely. – Sarah Ward https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_3CL12eNaE ROSALIE BUM We give it: 2.5 stars While Rosalie Blum bears the name of Noémie Lvovsky's protagonist— a middle-aged corner store-owner saddened by past pain – the intertwined fates of three individuals sit at the centre of this light and breezy effort. Adapted from a series of graphic novels, the film – a hit at this year's Alliance Francaise French Film Festival – explores the story not just of Rosalie, but also the hairdresser who starts following her every move, and the college student (and Rosalie's niece) who starts shadowing him in turn. Coincidence and contrivance rear their head, though so does a genuine understanding of the interplay between unhappiness and escapism. The result is a well-acted but often a tad too convenient movie about coping with life's ups and downs. – Sarah Ward If you're looking to steer well clear of cinemas on Boxing Day, why not check out one of our favourite films from throughout the year instead. Words by Imogen Baker, Tom Clift, Tom Glasson and Sarah Ward.
Obliterating your eardrums by throwing mad shapes too close to the speakers at Listen Out is one thing. Wearing a subwoofer on your own personal wrist so you can feel that bass is another. One of these things is much better for your body, and it's being funded on Kickstarter as we speak. Because 2016, the world's first wearable subwoofer is seeking crowdfunding, claiming "sound is meant to be felt, not just heard." Created by a Berlin-based startup founded by Daniel Büttner and Gwydion ap Dafydd from Ableton and Native Instruments, The Basslet is a watch-like gadget that sits on your wrist and delivers the beats directly to your body, letting you "experience powerful bass — anywhere you go." Best bit? It's 100 percent silent to the rest of the world. Y'hear that, beats-hungry commuters? SILENT. Intending to block out every other sound from the world around you, The Basslet works with music, gaming and VR, connecting to your smartphone, laptop, console, VR headset — even with your old Walkman. It doesn't need an app and promises a powerful, wholly immersive sound experience beyond headphones — with the full bass spectrum (10-250 Hz). Rather than being just a mere force to eat up hectic Hud-Mo drops, The Basslet could have some serious potential for people who are deaf or have limited hearing. Sound isn't the only way to enjoy music. Check out The Basslet's Kickstarter page. Via Protein.
If you're one to simultaneously munch a durrie and schnittie combo, we've got some bad news for you. Smoking in all outdoor dining areas in New South Wales is banned from today, thanks to the implementation of the Smoke-free Environment Act 2000. From July 6, 2015, all commercial outdoor dining areas in licensed venues (including clubs and hotels), restaurants and cafes must be smoke-free. Basically, if food is being served, there's no smoking. There's going to be some serious penalties (we're talking fines up to $5500) for venues who don't comply with the new smoking bans, enforced by NSW Health Authorised Inspectors — so you can rule out a cheeky smoke, even if you 'know the owner'. Plus, you could land yourself a $300 fine for gettin' y'puff on. It's not just courtyards and beer gardens that are about to clear the air; areas within four metres of a pedestrian entrance to or exit from a licensed venue, restaurant or cafe must be smoke-free (so on-street dining and footpath areas too). But venues are allowed to create designated smoking areas — so beer gardens are still allowed to section off glamorous shame corners or build blue-lit miscreant booths (lookin' at you Beach Road). From today, venues will have to put up 'no smoking' signs of approved size and staff will be trained to deal with the new laws. Let's be honest, this was always coming. The 2013 NSW Smoking and Health Survey showed 75 percent of surveyed folks approved banning smoking in all outdoor areas in hotels, restaurants and cafes. And really, trying to enjoy a burg with cigarette smoke in your face isn't the best. But we're pretty sure this one's going to stir up some furious pub debate. Via NSW Health.
Have you ever found yourself wondering, “How old is too old to use a ball pit? Will it be creepy if I dive right in?” Well, wonder no more (although for the record, the answer to both is 'never, if it's art'). NY studio Snarkitecture have created a massive, minimalist ball pit at in the National Building Museum in DC that will transport you to another dimension (one populated with opaque white balls and fulfilled childhood dreams). The project, titled The Beach, utilises 750,000 recyclable (thank god) plastic balls enclosed in the towering, Grecian columns of the National Museum to create a surreal beach scene; a bizarre juxtaposition of old and new. White deck chairs are lined up along the artificial shore and the mirrored wall at the back of the space makes Snarkitecture's beach seem to go on forever and ever. Like most high-fiveable things these days, the project was crowdfunded by the people of Washington DC who said definitively, “Yes, we do want a giant ball pit, kthnxbai,” and raised $12,155 in a month. The funding has gone towards building the beach and stocking it with deck chairs, pool toys and snack vendors to create the perfect beach experience for people who generally hate the outdoors. The interactive exhibit patriotically opened on July 4 and will run until September 7, which is still enough time to buy a plane ticket, escape winter and get away to the beach. Watch a nifty timelapse of the buiding of The Beach here: Via designboom. Images: Noah Kalina and snarkitecture.
Banaras Backs, the newest exhibition at Darlinghurst photography Black Eye Gallery, offers a unique glimpse into contemporary Indian life. The work of Aussie photographer Terry Burrows, this new show features photos of people sitting on the steps of the river Ganges. A riff on classic portraiture, each of the photos is taken from behind, with the viewer unable to see any of the subjects' faces. At once intimate and distant, this intriguing series invites you to spend long moments in front of each image, admiring the composition or, for more creative types, inventing stories about the photos' anonymous subjects. Copies of Burrows' publication, The Banaras Back Book — a whopping collection of 1008 photos from which the Black Eye Gallery exhibit is curated — will be available for sale during the exhibition. Black Eye Gallery is open Tuesday to Sunday, 10am–6pm. Images courtesy the artist/Black Eye Gallery.
While Australia is still a ways off legal weed yet, our friends in California appear to be living in a stoner's paradise. One of the more laissez-faire places when it comes to marijuana – it's legal for medicinal use, while possession will cop you a $100 fine at most – the state already caters to smokers with dispensaries and delivery services. So really, a cannabis social club was the next logical step. Located in downtown Los Angeles, Nexus Social Lounge is an endeavour of Nexus Glass, a company that specialises in pipes and other glassware, and provides a welcoming place for patrons to, uh, medicate. The bar is decked out with a full blown arcade, complete with retro games and pinball machines. Elite Daily went along to the venue earlier this week and caught a performance by Waka Flocka Flame – who also spent some time interacting with patrons from behind the bar. Who want some Flockaveli OG ???? Coming soon to dispensary near you. @wakaflocka A photo posted by Nexus Social lounge (@nexussociallounge) on Feb 5, 2016 at 9:48am PST @wakaflocka at the dab bar A photo posted by Nexus Glass (@nexusglass710) on Feb 4, 2016 at 6:34pm PST Recap | 2015 NYE Party A photo posted by Nexus Social lounge (@nexussociallounge) on Jan 13, 2016 at 11:23pm PST Recap | NYE Party @808mafiaboss @westcoastcure A photo posted by Nexus Social lounge (@nexussociallounge) on Jan 13, 2016 at 11:05pm PST Tag someone who you'd go head to head with. #highscore #110 #nexussociallounge A photo posted by Nexus Social lounge (@nexussociallounge) on Nov 26, 2015 at 6:26pm PST We offer exclusive parties in collaboration with some of the industries finest to provide a unique experience like no other, our private member-only lounge cannot be matched. #nexussociallounge @nexussociallounge A photo posted by Nexus Glass (@nexusglass710) on Nov 25, 2015 at 2:07pm PST On a semi-related note, Victoria recently became the first state in Australia to take steps towards legalising medicinal marijuana, with the Andrews government tabling a report in parliament by the Victorian Law Reform Commission that recommended legalising the drug for the treatment of serious illnesses. Baby steps, people. Via Elite Daily.
Myer and eBay have joined forces to take online shopping to the next level with their creation of the world's first Virtual Reality Department Store. Available today, their cardboard 'shoptical' device allows users to browse, personalise, and purchase over 12,500 Myer products just with your face. The best part — they're giving out 15,000 of them for free. For our sceptical readers who didn't automatically click away at the word free, here's the deal. The 'shoptical' device seems pretty simple — you download the eBay VR Department Store app on your smart phone and insert the phone into the cardboard shoptical — very, very similar to Google Cardboard's design. You can then browse, research and eventually purchase any item in the catalogue by holding your gaze on a product. The VR store is continually personalised while you use it and will suggest products based on what it knows about you. Creepy? Yes. Convenient? Also yes. While the new VR Store doesn't quite diminish the age old online shopping problem of ordering without trying on, the shopticals do give an unprecedented, up close and personal view of products – think 3D images that take you inside the jumper you're looking at. The product range, pricing and stock information will also be updated in real time, which is a brand new feat for virtual reality experiences. For those looking to try before they buy, you can trial the VR Department Store by booking your place at a special exhibition on Thursday, May 19 and Friday, May 20 at The Harbourside Room, Level 6, 140 George Street in Sydney. While this device may not be for the old school shoppers out there, it's definitely a huge leap forward for online converts. If you made it this far and still think this sounds bloody brilliant, we just want to repeat that they're really giving out 15,000 for free.
Perler beads aren't just for making and ironing into cat pendants any more. Swedish artist Pappas Parlor has teamed up with duo The Very Best to create an 8-bit video for the duo's newest single 'Let Go'. With all the nostalgic joy of a platform, 8-bit game, the video was actually created using tiny perler beads (yep, those beads you used to make gerberas, cats and unicorns out of as a kid and iron them into permanence). Unsurprisingly, Parlor's video took over a month to create; painstakingly arranging the perler beads as 'pixels' and editing the whole thing as stop motion. The clip follows The Very Best bandmates Johan Hugo and Esau Mwamwaya scurrying through different platform environments in a two-player set-up, and meeting Vampire Weekend’s Chris Baio and The Vaccines’ Freddie Cowan along the way. Mwamwaya and Hugo run through their homelands, hotfooting it away from 'enemies' specific to their locations — in Mwamwaya’s southeast African home of Malawi, they run from the local street dogs, in Hugo's Swedish homeland, they run from a fox, polar bears... and the ring-wing political party. "We tried to come up with funny things that could happen in the video as well as address some of our more serious concerns," Johan told Wired. Most importantly, how do they beat the bosses in each level? Dance-offs, naturally. Try that, Mario. The Very Best’s new album Makes a King drops April 7. Check out the video for 'Let Go' here. Via Wired.
In a year that saw Sydney's cultural ecosystem and the legislative shackling of certain elements of it become a more polarising subject than ever before, the city's most innovative, forward-thinking residents have made outstanding lemonade. More groundbreaking and imaginative than ever, Sydney bars have been reclaiming the night in the face of prevailing lockout laws, one glass of frosé at a time; from WWII-inspired salons to natural soda factory bars, hip hop and cheese-fuelled wine bars to Sydney's first dedicated vermouth bar. At Concrete Playground we encourage exploration and showcase innovation in our city every day, so we thought it fitting to reward those most talented whippersnappers pushing Sydney to be a better, braver city. And so, these six new bars, opened in 2016, have been nominated for Best New Bar in Concrete Playground's Best of 2016 Awards. Vote for your favourite.
Despite claims by the University of Technology Sydney that some people actually like the UTS Tower, it's known to haters citywide as one of the ugliest buildings in Sydney. But this serious eyesore is finally getting proper attention from the powers that be, with new multi-million dollar plans for an attached 'student hub' announced this morning — though not quite as much attention as we think it needs. Broadway's soulless tower of concrete will not be demolished — for reasons we still don't understand. Instead, Building 2 of the tower will get a complete makeover and act as a shiny new distraction from the structure allegedly designed so students couldn't meet each other, form groups and protest (it's a myth but we love it). The team from Tattoo Nightmares probably would have done a better cover up job, but unfortunately they don't do 1960s abominations. The 16-level, glass-sheathed student hub will replace Building 2 on the corner of Broadway and Jones Street. The project, titled UTS Central, is said to start this year and finish in 2019, costing a whopping $278 million. You'd think for that amount of dollarydoos they'd be able to get rid of the UTS Tower once and for all, but someone up at the top must really, really want to keep it around. The new development does sound pretty swank, though — there are plans to include a library with a twisting tri-level reading room, research areas, teaching spaces, a student centre, the student union, and a dining hall. Top it all off with an outdoor terrace and rooftop garden and the futuristic glass structure will at least be keeping students happy. UTS Central is the next in the campus revamps, following the recent $180 million Frank Gehry-designed business school that has also received mixed reviews. Via Sydney Morning Herald. Image: NSW Department of Planning.
Mead is making a comeback as of late, though most people still have no idea what the fuck it is. Stone Dog Meadery will give guests all of the answers (and tasters) of one of the world's oldest alcoholic beverages while Yulli's serves up their top-notch vegetarian dishes. Even the know-it-alls in the craft beer world will learn something, and love something, at this Sydney Craft Beer Week event.
Not going overseas this winter? Luckily, you'll still have the chance to take a bite out of some Big Apple arts and culture, as Melbourne's National Gallery of Victoria plays host to an exclusive exhibition showcasing works from New York's prestigious Museum of Modern Art. Debuting today and set to run until October 7, MoMA at NGV: 130 Years of Modern and Contemporary Art will feature over 200 modern and contemporary masterpieces, many on their first ever visit to Australia. Taking over the entire ground floor of NGV International, it's certifiably huge. The exhibition will present pieces from all six of MoMA's curatorial departments, meaning the works will span Photography, Film, Architecture and Design, Painting and Sculpture, Drawings and Prints, and Media and Performance Art. You'll catch works from all of the big names of the 19th and 20th century art world, including Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh, Henri Matisse, Frida Kahlo, Jackson Pollock, Georgia O'Keeffe, Diane Arbus and Andy Warhol. Capturing the spirit of more recent times, will be pieces from the likes of Jeff Koons, Cindy Sherman, Kara Walker, Olafur Eliasson, Rineke Dijkstra and Camille Henrot. Examining over 130 years of innovation, MoMA at NGV sets out to explore all the major art movements, with the exhibition spread across eight themed sections. Here are a few of the big-name works on display. [caption id="attachment_672010" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Roy Lichtenstein: Drowning girl (1963)[/caption] [caption id="attachment_672008" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Andy Warhol: Marilyn Munroe (1967)[/caption] [caption id="attachment_672011" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Frida Kahlo: Self portrait with cropped hair (1940)[/caption] [caption id="attachment_672012" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Salvador Dali: The persistence of memory (1931)[/caption] [caption id="attachment_672013" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kara Walker: Gone: An historical romance of a civil war as it occurred b'tween the dusky thighs of a one young negress and her heart (1994)[/caption] [caption id="attachment_672014" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Shigetaka Kurita et al.: Emoji (1998–99)[/caption] Needless to say, the partnership with MoMa is a pretty huge coup for both the NGV and Australian art lovers. "The collaboration with the National Gallery of Victoria provides a unique opportunity to see extremely important works from nearly every area of our collection in an exhibition that simultaneously explores The Museum of Modern Art's history as well as the history of modern and contemporary art in general," said MoMA Director Glenn D. Lowry. As an added bonus, NGV members who are hitting New York while the exhibition is running will score free admission to MoMA, and vice versa. MoMA at NGV runs from June 9 until October 7, at NGV International, St Kilda Road, Melbourne. Grab tickets here. Images: NGV/Tom Ross.
After taking a big chunk out of the hotel business, Airbnb are finally getting into… the hotel business. The online marketplace has just launched Samara, an urban planning and design studio that recently put the finishing touches on its inaugural design project — a cedar wood guest house soon to open in the small town of Yoshino, Japan. Designed in conjunction with local architect Go Hasegawa, the dwelling features multiple bedrooms, a communal living area and a 16-foot-long dining table. It's currently on display in Tokyo as part of the House Vision exhibition, but will be transported to Yoshino in October, where it will function as a community centre that doubles as visitor accommodation. "Imagine it's lunch time and you're eating and at the end of the table there's a community meeting taking place," Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia told Fast Company Design. "I picture Western guests walking up, stepping inside, and you're interacting with the community from the minute you arrive. If you want to tour the sake factory, or the chopstick factory, or take a hike, the locals are right there." Apparently the whole idea was inspired by an elderly woman in Tsuyama Okayama, who created a mini tourism boom in town after listing her home on Airbnb. The hope is that the Yoshino house generates similar interest. Of course, that's assuming that locals actually want an influx of Western visitors — although the town did donate the land for the project, so presumably they're on board. "If this works, there are a lot of villages in Japan that could benefit," said Gebbia. Indeed, the plan seems to be to expand the project globally, with Gebbia mentioning that the company had received calls from people in places such as the UK, China, Korea, Spain, France, and Italy. Via Fast Company Design.
If Cards Against Humanity's dark sense of humour appealed to the evil troll that lies dormant inside us all, you're going to flip your wicked lid over their new venture. OK Cookie Co. might sounds wholesome and sweet but the concept is devilish — send your friends (or your enemies) fortune cookies with brutal truths hidden inside. If there's anything more devastating than hopefully cracking a fortune cookie open only to have it tell you it's too late to stop climate change, we've never heard of it. OK Cookie taps into that market of assholes who love cruel jokes (which is frankly all of us). For US$10 plus shipping (or free shipping for two of more boxes), you can send a pack of 15 assorted misfortune cookies to anyone. Fortunes include gems such as "You will probably die of a heart attack or something" and "Your wildest dreams will come true, assuming those dreams are about the extinction of honeybees". It reminds us of the whole 'Send Your Enemies Glitter' win and the send your enemies a bag of gummy dicks thing of 2015 — people are apparently really on board with sending mean, anonymous gifts in the mail and we're delighted by it. May this be the first wave in a long, long line of novelty mail gifts.
All you need for a beautiful day on the beach is yourself, some togs and a few hours of unburdened, gloriously free time. But wouldn't it be an even better day if you had these movie-set perfect beach and pool accessories with you? Yes. Yes, it would. Read on and cast your mind forward to a time when your aqueous outing is framed by the style, ingenuity and inflatable Pegasus-ry here collected. THE BEACH MAT: BEACHILL SMART MATTRESS Barely out of development, the Beachill can be a tough product to get your hands on — at the moment, the company's Facebook page asks that you get in touch via email to order. Nevertheless, the bubblegum-bright beach mat is so good that it's already moderately internet-famous. That's because it actually solves three common beach trip dilemmas: how to support your back (i.e. the usual beach mat mandate), how to keep your drink cool and how to charge your dwindling phone battery. It accomplishes the latter by way of a 7 watt solar panel on the back of the cushion. High five, Beachill. Price on enquiry from the Beachill Facebook page. THE BEACH TOWEL: THE BEACH PEOPLE ROUNDIE Throw away your old rectangular towel (read: leave it in the linen cabinet for a bit), because this season everyone's drying off with a whole new shape. That shape? The circle. Luxe and oversize, this new breed of towel is an extravagance, but one you'll be thankful for when you're wrapped in its embrace from head to fringe-tickled toe. Byron Bay company The Beach People do them best, in bold, monotone prints inspired by beach cultures from all over the world. $110 from The Beach People. THE BEACH SUNGLASSES: KREWE DU OPTIC ST LOUIS What's going on on that nose bridge there? Well, that would be a brushed metal architectural detail inspired by New Orleans' French Quarter's iconic 1800s cast iron balconies. Swoon. Krewe Du Optic are a brand you want to get in on — started in 2013, they handcraft all their frames using premium acetate, lenses and hinges. The sunset-hued mirrored pair above is a 'Bengal', but the St Louis style alone comes in 11 different colourways, each more fetching than the last. Just look. US$195–255 ($270–354) from Krewe du Optic. THE BEACH BALL: SUNNYLIFE INFLATABLE WATERMELON BALL If you're anything less than impressed right now, it's only because the full significance of Sunnylife's inflatable watermelon ball is yet to hit you. This ball is not just a toy to be tossed; it is a trompe l'oeil that will turn heads in wonder at your ability to keep a half-watermelon aloft with a few blasé taps. Not only that, but have you played with any beach ball lately? The things run away from you at the slightest suggestion from the wind. Hours of active fun right there. $18.95 from Sunnylife. THE INFLATABLE: FUNBOY PEGASUS POOL FLOAT The game of inflatable animal one-upmanship has gone so far it's crossed into mythical creature territory. Following summer after summer of the swan, the flamingo and the toucan, we now have in our midst the Pegasus, from LA brand Funboy. You know you want it. Though it's definitely not for open ocean beaches, take along Peggy to a pool, harbour beach or lake as desired. US$99 ($137) from Funboy. THE BEACH GAME: MEN'S SOCIETY ALOHA PADDLE BEACH BALL GAME SET What's with all the dude-centric brand names in the beach toy industry? Remedy this, someone. But for now let's plough ahead and appreciate this neat paddle tennis set anyway. It's designy, but not too designy. You could probably leave it unattended while you went for a swim and nobody would steal it. Note the colour palette; it seems to invoke the Pacific islands, the Rene Lacoste days of tennis and your primary school athletics uniform all at once. A real achievement. £29 from Men's Society. THE BEACH BAG: THE SHAKE TOTE The Shake Tote is okay-looking, but where it wows is on its bottom. Open the flap and all the sand that's inevitably made it into your bag during a day at the beach will just fall straight through the mesh lining and out of your life. Whataworld. The Shake range also comes in a small backpack and clutch, in two different colourways. US$80–90 ($111–124) from Amazon. THE BEST SUN PROTECTION: INVISIBLE ZINC 4HR WATER RESISTANT SPF50+ What's this guy doing here? Well, if your best accessory is the skin you're in (and let's say it is), then you're going to want to take care of it. Invisible Zinc makes it into our beach bags year after year because it's super effective at reflecting UVAs and UVBs, low irritant, Australian owned and a real leader in the physical sunscreen game, with a natural Zinc Oxide formula that rubs in nearly as well as chemical sunscreens. The latest addition to their product line is 50+ and 4 hours water resistant. $21.99 from Priceline.
Vivid Sydney is really cranking it up this year. With a kaleidoscopic festival program of light, music and ideas, Vivid's 2016 will be taking over building facades, creative spaces and music venues throughout the city from May 27 through to June 18. Obviously, the lights are the main event here, the drawcard millions of visitors descend upon Sydney for. This year, Sydney Opera House features the absolutely stunning Songlines, with new and iconic contemporary Indigenous works from Karla Dickens, Djon Mundine, Gabriella Possum Nungurrayi, Reko Rennie, Donny Woolagoodja, and the late Gulumbu Yunupingu. The Light Walk is back, with Sydney's building facades lighting up with spectacular artistry — including Selena Griffith, Edison Chen, Nila Rezaei, Nathan Adler's I LOVE YOU, a giant heart that changes colour when you scream those exact words at it. Taronga Zoo is playing host to an illuminated animal trail, and The Royal Botanic Gardens is celebrating 200 years with its own highly Instagrammable installations — including Mandylights' Cathedral of Light. The Chatswood precinct lights up with WildLight, inspired by the animals of Gondwana, and Martin Place sees the technical debut from NIDA in Martin Place called Fountain, a giant installation of human birth rate data as 'water jets', and Simon Aitken's unmissable Geometrics. Have a flick through our gorgeous gallery from Concrete Playground's Bodhi Liggett, then rug up and get amongst the lights, music, parties and ideas. Want to have a bite while you're watching the lights? Here's ten spots with panoramic Vivid views.
A new prepaid initiative from Uber looks set to deal yet another blow to the rapidly dying taxi industry. You remember taxis don’t you? They were those cars that used to drive around the city not picking you up, which didn't show up when you called them and whose drivers didn't know how to operate a GPS. They were all the rage back in the day, before people had literally any other option. Rolling out in New York City over the next couple of weeks, UberEVENTS will allow event organisers to arrange prepaid Ubers for their guests. You simply log on to the Uber website and enter your information, including how many guest passes you'd like to prebook. Uber then sends those passes to you so you can forward them on to your guests. When the big day arrives, they enter their passcode into the Uber app, and before they know it they're being whisked away to your very exciting party. If you didn't follow all that, don't worry: this nifty little graphic helps lay it all out. "When planning a company happy hour, client appreciation dinner, or even upcoming nuptials, there is a lot that goes into ensuring that your event goes off without a hitch—including how your guests can safely get to and from without any fuss," wrote Uber Senior Marketing Manager Kimiko Ninomiya in a post on the Uber blog. "We want to make the experience of planning transportation logistics as seamless as ordering a ride at the touch of button [sic]." The service will only be available to select riders and Uber for Business users at first, although assuming it's a success, then presumably it won't be too long before it becomes a standard feature. In the meantime, Uber's legal status in Australia remains a point of contention. A Victorian state Magistrate yesterday rejected the company's attempts to have a legal case against one of its drivers thrown out of court. The taxi industry, for their part, continues to flail around feebly in the face of progress. A strike in Melbourne a couple of weeks back saw about 500 cabs taken off the roads – Uber retaliated by offering people free rides across the city. Yeah, it's pretty clear who's winning this fight. Via Tech Crunch.
Apple's first wearable computer, the Apple Watch, is almost here. After months of furious pub debates, Android-loving naysaying and know-it-all speculation, Apple finally announced the release date for its next 'must-have' device at its 'Spring Forward' event in San Francisco — and the price tag for its sold gold version. Starting at AU$499 and running all the way up to AU$14,000 for their ultra-hard 18-karat gold version, the shrunken, wearable computer fits into a watch body and runs a modified version of iOS — the system running your iPhone and iPad right now. Available in two sizes (38 and 42mm height) the Apple Watch comes in three different 'collections' including the Apple Watch Sport Collection — with 60 percent stronger anodised aluminium case, though not completely waterproof — and the pretty, pretty AppleWatch Edition made from 18-carat yellow or rose gold, sapphire crystal glass (and costing that cheeky $10K). Not as baller as these watches, but a good first model. Preorders for the Apple Watch start April 10, available in the US, UK, China, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, and Hong Kong. The watch will be available from April 24, but if you wander into a Genius bar you'll be able to try one on from the 10th. Analysts are predicting Apple could up to 60 million shipments within a year of its release — perhaps not if Pebble Time has anything to do with it. So, how does the Apple Watch work? Behold, the 'digital crown' controls all The primary joystick of the whole device, you can go all James Bond by using the rotating dial on the side of the watch to navigate (something many smartwatches leave out for aesthetics). Even so, the display is also used as a touch screen classic smartthing style. For all you constant screencrackers out there, that face is made from a super hard-as-nails single line sapphire material. Your watch can tell you to run faster Using four sapphire lenses on the back of the watch and the mighty, custom-designed S1 chip, the watch can detect your pulse rate (along with an epic amount of other info). Combine this with the accelerometer measuring body movement and the GPS tracking your distance, the watch can figure out how hard you're exercising and suggests fitness goals. What a beneficial jerk. 'Glance' at your most important info The Glances feature is where you make the watch all about you. Swipe up from the bottom of the screen and your custom-selected screen of notifications pops up. Weather, dirty messages, calendars of events you're avoiding; it's all on your wrist. You can charge wirelessly No winding here. To charge up, the Apple Watch fuses MagSafe and inductive charging — you just hold the back of the watch near the charging connector and let the magnets pull everything together. Apparently the battery lasts 'all day', which could be anywhere from a probably 18 hours to 72 hours in Power Reserve mode. Siri runs the show Because the Apple Watch is so mini in screen size, Siri comes into play for a significant amount of commands. Yep, you'll feel like a spy. An awesome, awesome spy. You can send doodles to your mates Using the newly revealed app Digital Touch, watch wearers can create little animated drawings and send them to other watcheroos. Cute. App developers will be able to create Apple Watch versions, we're thinking Snapchat is particularly made for this. You need an iPhone for it to work And there's the catch. The Apple Watch needs an iPhone 5 or 6 nearby in order to function, feeding from the web or GPS info to work. Music, photos and contacts come across, sure, but this makes the device one of Apple's most you-need-that-to-get-this products ever, even the iPad stood on its own little stand. The Apple Watch will be available for purchase in Australia from April 24, pre-orders open from April 10. Via Mashable, TIME and PC Advisor.
Ladies and gentlemen, turn off your engines. One of the world’s most outlandish racing events is headed to the harbour city later this year. The 2015 Red Bull Billy Cart Race will invite both amateur and professional teams to design, build and pilot their own gravity-powered racers along a downhill racetrack/obstacle course in Sydney’s Centennial Parklands. Entries are currently open, and you get bonus points for being funny. No, seriously. Scheduled to take place on Sunday, November 15, the race will see 60 of Australia’s strangest and most innovative vehicles battle it out for the chance to be crowned champion. Competitors will be judged on three separate criteria: performance, speed and creativity. Ludicrousness appears to be a pretty big factor as well, with memorable competitors in previous races built to resemble teacups, corncobs and even the Golden Gate Bridge. Red Bull has hosted more than 40 billy cart races since 2000, in locations ranging from England to South Africa to Helsinki. The Sydney event has already been given a distinctly Australian flavour thanks to the unveiling of a racer shaped like a pair of bright red budgie smugglers. Hey, they don’t call us the lucky country for nothing. Applications to race in the event are open until July 17. Entry is free, and successful teams will be notified by July 31. Vehicles must be powered by gravity only, although proper braking and steering facilities are a must. Costumes are encouraged, but should not obscure the driver’s eyesight. Here's a classic dress code for you: For the full list of rules and safety regulations, as well as general information about the event, head on over to the Red Bull Billy Cart website. Images: Red Bull.
Deck the halls and unpack the plastic tree — the festive season is well and truly upon us. And while that whole Christmas tradition stuff is nice, we're not going to deny what we're most excited about: a whole stocking-load of new films. Along with the cricket and stampeding through shopping centres, going to the movies is one of our favourite Boxing Day traditions. After all, what better place to recover from your post-Christmas food coma than in a nice, dark, air-conditioned cinema? Of course, not all of the end-of-year titles measure up. That’s why we’re reporting in with our annual Boxing Day Battle Royale, to ensure that you get maximum bang for your Kris Kringle gift voucher buck. Or you could just go see Star Wars for the sixth time. That's also a totally valid option. JOY See it if: you can't get enough J-Law in your life. We give it: 3.5 stars Jennifer Lawrence stars in the latest film by David O. Russell (American Hustle, Silver Linings Playbook), a fictionalised account of the rise of a real-life home shopping network star. Joy is a rags-to-riches tale of a battler trying to improve herself and her situation. Wrestling Russell's current patterns and preferences into a canny character study, the film watches on as a woman fights for agency and control, despite constantly being told that she should take care of others and rein in her go-getting ways. Weaving in surreal soap opera segments, it's an astute and engaging dissection of the power of selling a fantasy. Read our full review here. SUFFRAGETTE See it if: you want to be inspired. We give it: 3.5 stars Sarah Gavron's Suffragette may play out somewhat conventionally, but that doesn't make its impact any less resounding. Carey Mulligan is fantastic as Maud Watts, a downtrodden washerwoman in early 20th century London who becomes involved in the fight for women's suffrage. It's a timely tale that will no doubt strike a chord with many modern viewers, reminding us of how far we have come and how much further we still have to go. Just don't expect much Meryl Streep. Despite being a major part of the marketing campaign, she's in the film for less than five minutes. Read our full review here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9p0qnj4OC4 THE BELIER FAMILY See it if: you love a good coming of age tale. We give it: 3.5 stars A box office smash in its native France, The Belier Family is an immensely charming holiday crowd-pleaser. The film tells the story of 16-year-old Paula, who acts as an interpreter for her deaf parents and brother in the running of the family dairy farm. But her future becomes uncertain when her music teacher encourages her to apply to a prestigious singing school in Paris. The film is overlong, a tad melodramatic and gets bogged down at various points in underdeveloped side-plots. But the family drama remains compelling — and surprisingly poignant — throughout, as does the remarkable performance from singer-turned-actress Louane Emera. THE GOOD DINOSAUR See it if: you're hoping to get in touch with your inner child. We give it: 2.5 stars In their stories and themes, Pixar often play in the same territory over and over. And yet, when it comes to visuals, they rarely do the same thing twice; each new Pixar movie might feel somewhat similar, but they always look different. The Good Dinosaur, the animation studio's latest effort, demonstrates both extremes. The tale of a dinosaur and his primitive human friend trying to make their way back home, the film takes a routine narrative that pales in comparison to the animated splendour that surrounds it. It's not often that the background proves more engaging than the figures at the centre of the frame, yet that's frequently the case here. The photorealistic details evident in images of fields, mountains, waterfalls, trees and other natural features are the real stars of the show. Read our full review here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhVDSzj2Lrw YOUTH See it if: you want something pretty to look at. We give it: 2.5 stars Michael Caine and Harvey Keitel wonder about days gone by, while Rachel Weisz and Jane Fonda deliver verbal tirades designed to awaken the ageing men from their apathy. All four spend their time in an expensive Swiss spa, and in a film as visually luxurious as their lush surroundings, Paolo Sorrentino's Youth unravels — its seasoned cast and opulent images its obvious selling points. Musings about life, love and legacy have rarely looked as exquisite, even if the movie's charms remain somewhat surface level. It's a decadent picture about watching the world go by, rather than really experiencing it. Read our full review here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kqe1kFb0xTk PEGGY GUGGENHEIM: ART ADDICT See it if: you're an art addict yourself. We give it: 2 stars Audio snippets from the eponymous art addict are all that keep this unremarkable doco afloat. Director Lisa Immordino Vreeland struggles with tone, never quite knowing whether to interrogate the gossip that surrounded Guggenheim's personal affairs or to simply recount the rumours. It still makes for pleasant-enough viewing, particularly for art addicts themselves — but it just never manages to fully do Guggenheim justice. In fact, it's only her vocal presence that stops the movie from amounting to little more than an interesting video of a Wikipedia listing. Read our full review here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arhMMJx7tCU DADDY'S HOME See it if: you're a sucker for punishment. We give it: 1 star Apologies to fans of Will Ferrell, but watching Daddy's Home is one of the more agonising experiences we've had in a cinema all year. Ferrell stars as a dweebish music exec married to an improbably tolerant wife (Linda Cardellini), who is forced to compete for the love of his step-children when their cool but irresponsible biological father (Mark Wahlberg) rolls back into town. Cue a mind-numbing comedy that mixes kindergarten-level humour with weirdly adult sex gags and feels about three times as long as its 96-minute runtime. Stand-up comic Hannibal Buress manages to scrape a few laughs here and there, but otherwise it's slim pickings. Do yourself a favour and steer well clear. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNkSYE6HiOE ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: THE ROADCHIP See it if: ...yeah, we've got nothing. We give it: N/A Look, we're going to level with you here: we didn't actually see this. Life's too short. But if you want to go out and spend your hard earned money on a ticket for a film about a group of wise-cracking rodents, feel free to let us know what you thought. If you're looking to steer well clear of cinemas on Boxing Day, take a look at our list of the year's ten best films that hardly anyone saw here. Words by Tom Clift and Sarah Ward.
As any published author will tell you, settling on a cover design is tricky. But California-based designer Maria Mordvintseva-Keeler has come up with a novel approach. She's repackaged classics in cans — with labels that reveal their 'ingredients' without giving away their storylines. Titled Food for Thought, the design series features three classic books, each of which contains a foodie reference in its title — Truman Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's, William Burroughs' Naked Lunch and Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant. The label lets the reader know if the book suits his/her mood and literary diet. Breakfast at Tiffany’s, for example, reads: "[It] has the characters, serving size, with the number of pages, and emotions in the daily value sections," Mordvintseva-Keeler told Mashable. "I sometimes wish they featured something like that on the cover, since the right book at the right moment is better than any sort of therapy. Reading is certainly better than stress eating." Originally from Moscow and now based in San Diego, Mordvintseva-Keeler's previous projects include Packaged Pets, which promotes the adoption of animals from shelters; EcoBag, a biodegradable plastic-bag replacement containing seeds (and similar to these coffee cups); and Bold as a Rooster, a typographical study exploring the "potential of roosters’ combs, feathers and legs to become legible letters". Take a leaf out of this artist's book. Via Mashable. Images: Maria Mordvintseva-Keeler.
Want your Uber ride to be even cheaper? Don’t mind sharing a ride with strangers and making awkward small talk? UberPOOL might just be your perfect service. As reported by The Guardian, it’s rolling out in London today and allows Uber users to opt into a carpooling option with a very attractive 25 percent discount on the standard Uber fare. Sharing is caring. It’s not guaranteed there’ll be another user opting into UberPOOL in the vicinity, but if you don’t get matched you still keep that tasty discount. So basically, you get rewarded for being a chill and environmentally conscious Uber user, even if you don’t even right share (it’s the thought that counts). As well as making Uber even cheaper for anyone willing to share, UberPOOL also environmental benefits — more seats on bums and more cars making full use of their capacity means less cars on the road and less pollution. The option has been rolled out in a few cities and even accounts for half of all rides taken in San Francisco (half!), so it’s not exactly a new concept but it’s certainly taking off. We’re still waiting for word of when it will hit our shores but you can guarantee it's likely to. Gizmodo's Luke Hopewell wrote an interesting account of his experience in an UberPOOL and pointed out the one major flaw in the plan: as well as being hella awkward to ride with a complete stranger, if you hop our first, that complete stranger knows where you're going or where you live. The app doesn't give you the name of your riding buddy, but that's no guarantee you won't be Ubering home with a weirdo. While we wait to see how it all plays out, let’s just scroll through #yourtaxis and giggle gleefully over terrible PR ideas. Via The Guardian.
As much as we love catching a movie under the stars, outdoors cinemas are usually more of a summer activity. After all, it's sort of hard to focus on the story when your extremities are going numb. Enter Hot Tub Cinema Sydney. Coming to the Newmarket Hotel in July, this novelty nickelodeon works exactly the way you think it does: you and your mates strip down to your togs and enjoy a flick from the comfort of a bubbling tub. Melbourne has already dabbled with the concept, with retro films and cocktails aplenty. Spots will be sold on a first-come, first-serve basis. You can hire a full hot tub or purchase an individual hot tub seat (oh hey, intimate new friends).
Locked in to return to all three levels at Manning Bar in the University of Sydney, the boutique music festival cooked up by Sydney touring and management agency Astral People and record label Yes Please returns for its fourth instalment on Saturday, September 26. Forecast to sell out like its previous events, OutsideIn will spread its super solid lineup over three stages. Enough chatskies, who's on the bill? Headlining the bunch, Philadelphia's neo-soul gem and Common/Dilla/Kendrick Lamar collaborator Bilal will bring a full eight-piece band to the main stage. Then you'll be getting a big ol' dose of Southern rap with Big K.R.I.T and Devin The Dude, while Manchester producer Star Slinger brings new EP goodness to the table. Vancouver multi-instrumentalist producer Pomo will be there, alongside Mood Hut co-founders and progressive jazz soul beatsmiths Pender Street Steppers, while Sydney's own twin duo Cosmo's Midnight make their live set debut. The local love doesn't stop there, with dance-inducing crew Total Giovanni, Perth's electro-pop enigma KU KA and Melbourne's Harvey Sutherland cranking out an improvised show dubbed "equal parts 808 rattle and double disco". There's still over 20 international and local artists still to be announced, but just roll around in this first release for now. OUTSIDE IN 2015 LINEUP (FIRST ANNOUNCEMENT): Bilal Big K.R.I.T Devin The Dude Cosmo’s Midnight Star Slinger Pomo Total Giovanni Pender Street Steppers KU KA Harvey Sutherland OutsideIn 2015 will be held at Manning House, Sydney on Saturday, September 26, 2015. Early bird tickets have sold out. General admission tickets available from first announce at $85 +bf. Tickets over here.
The inner west's long-dreamed-about Greenway — a 5.8 kilometre, car-free path linking the Cooks River and Iron Cove, following the light rail's route — is finally set to become a reality. Last month, federal Labor promised $7.5 million to the project, in the event of being elected. And, it appears the NSW Government has responded to the pressure by pledging $7 million of its own. Convenient timing, before a federal election. Just sayin'. This money will be matched by another $7 million from the newly created (and highly controversial) Inner West Council — an amalgamation of Leichhardt, Ashfield and Marrickville Councils. Over three years, the $14 million will go towards mending the Greenway's eleven 'missing links' – spots where the path is broken by obstacles, like bridges and tunnels. "The great advantage of doing this is that it does get cyclists off roadways and onto the type of infrastructure that they deserve to have. The cycling community is only going to increasingly grow," said transport minister Andrew Constance. Honestly, this is pretty transparent timing. Local MPs, councillors and residents have been hassling the State Government for help for years. However, in 2011, then transport minister Gladys Berejiklian rejected the plans. Since then, local councils have built bits and pieces of the Greenway with their own money — its current length is now 2.6 kilometres. "It is very much a priority for this council. We have been seeking the finalisation of a funding commitment from the state government for some time so it will be well received," said Inner West Council administrator Richard Pearson. Via SMH.
Earlier this year, some of Australia's best bar teams went head-to-head to nab mad bragging rights, an epic photo shoot and a huge trip to Glasgow for Auchentoshan Whisky's national Distilled Different competition. Bar teams across Australia created an Auchentoshan American Oak cocktail for the competition, and twelve were then paired with an up-and-coming Australian photographer who worked with them to create a photographic masterpiece to reflect the team's personality. On Tuesday October 18, the winner of the cocktail competition was crowned. Sydney bar team Eau De Vie won for the originality of their cocktail and portrait, which was snapped by Brendan Fitzpatrick in a fully-styled photo shoot that judges agreed captured the essence of their bar. Eau De Vie and Fitzpatrick were chosen as the winning team by a panel of industry professionals, including our very own managing editor Shannon Connellan. The team from Eau De Vie will be jet-setting off to Glasgow as part of their prize. Glasgow is the home of Auchentoshan — the only triple distilled Scottish single malt whisky in the world. Triple distilled, people. The winners will of course get to visit the Auchentoshan distillery while they're there. The team at Ramblin' Rascal Tavern were also chosen on the night as the winners of the People's Choice Award. Take a look at what went down on the night.
They've made fireworks you can eat, cooked T-bone steaks with lava and served bespoke cocktails tailor made to match your DNA. But this past week in London, culinary wizards Sam Bompas and Harry Parr may have outdone themselves yet again. Hosted in a converted warehouse in partnership with deals website bespokeoffers.co.uk, The 200 Club can claim the title of the world's longest tasting menu, featuring 200 different dishes over 24 non-stop hours of service. Eight chefs toiled away in the kitchen creating the tasting plates, which ranged from truffle bubbles to coffee-compressed watermelon. A two hour sitting cost between £49 and £99 depending on the time of day, or you could attempt the entire gastronomic marathon for £2,000 per couple. Only four people have the stomach for the latter option, but we have to imagine they were happy with their decision. Of course it wouldn't be a Bompas & Parr affair without a little additional visual theatre. As such, each sitting was differentiated by the colour of the food, a move inspired by the monochromatic feasts of Emperor Nero. Check out the menu, as well as some photographic highlights, below. 200 CLUB MENU Yellow Breakfast: A morning repast that zings with citrus, caffeine and craft. This culinary explosion will hybridise flavours of the East and West in a high-energy, high-end display of homely food love. White Elevenses: A British tradition bejewelled in surreal sparkle. Expect custards, shortbread, quiches, clouds of confection sugar and a dreamy sweet vision of the classic treats. Green Lunch: This meal will be a rustic yet refined version of the garden snacking of yore. Look forward to leafy eating including the freshest greens, meats and cheeses, plus a procession of fluorescent jellies. Blue Afternoon Snack: A powerhouse of flavour for the lazy hours of the day. Taste an otherworldly array of vibrant and dusty turquoises in the form of naturally tinted roots and skilfully prepared fish. Purple Five O’Clock Tiffin: Rooted in the wild and rich darkness of summer, enjoy ingredients such as wild game and dark summer fruits. Dishes will speak to simple food traditions reinterpreted with modern culinary craft. Pink Dinner: Forget “trendy” food items like burgers or hot dogs. Your table will be buzzing with eye-popping fuchsia, cured meats, and smouldering wood smoke. Red Party Time: A sultry explosion of party vibes and hot weather flavours. You’ll see Australian and Asian influences, balancing classic spice and tropical tangs with modern style. Orange Drunchies: The extension of a great night out. Expect contradicting textures, bleeding edge techniques, and lashings of moreishness to tantalise the palate. Brown Blackout: Indulge in a meal of carnal urges – sweet, hot and savoury dishes. The chef will keep you on your toes with coffee, chocolate, black garlic, squid ink, soy sauce, and liquorice. Multicolour Final Countdown: A communal carousal of globally-inspired festival food. Mark the culmination of The 200 Club with a multinational flavour and colour explosion, using vibrant colours with grand presentations. Images by Adam Laycock via Bespoke Offers.
Newsflash: fashion isn't just about looking good. Sustainability is playing an ever-increasing role for many designers, and there's a new Australian magazine trying to to support and highlight their noble pursuits. With their first edition launching only a matter of months ago, Hessian is your new go-to publication for feel-good fashion. For those a little out of the loop, we spoke to editor-in-chief Siggi McCarthy to get the inside scoop. How are people embracing this new trend? Where can you get your hands on the good stuff? What does it all mean? So, what is Hessian? "Hessian was founded simply out of necessity," McCarthy says. "Violette Snow (founder) felt there needed to be a magazine that packaged sustainable fashion in a way that was accessible, exciting and fresh. Without sounding like a crazy hippy, the earth and the people living here are in trouble and we need to step up and do something about it." McCarthy first met Snow when she was working for Ethical Clothing Australia, manning their stall at the Sustainable Living Festival. The two got chatting and soon realised they were very much on the same page. "I was immediately drawn to the idea of Hessian and knew I wanted to be a part of it. Violette was putting onto paper what I'd been thinking about for a long time: Why can't sustainable fashion be aesthetically pleasing? Why don't we expect more from fashion labels? Can someone please stop using the word 'green'?" "There needs to be a greater dialogue when it comes to ethical issues in the fashion industry but we can't create real change if we alienate young consumers. This is why Hessian uses a concept called subtle sustainability." Sustainability is a bunch of small choices "Subtle sustainability is a stripped back easygoing concept that encourages us to think about leading a more conscious lifestyle," McCarthy says. Instead of shoving it in people's faces, Hessian focusses on making realistic and achievable lifestyle changes — people want to feel as though they're making a difference, but they also don't want to read about doom and gloom. "Put simply, we just want young people to make informed choices and realise that mindful living can actually be fucking cool." Focussing on the bigger picture, Hessian prefers to think of itself as a style magazine rather than a fashion rag. "We encourage people to embrace quality local production, independent design, good craftsmanship, and style that transcends seasonal fads." You don't have to look bad to feel good Good news do-gooders! These days you can buy sustainable products without compromising on quality or style. "While some brands unfortunately reinforce the stigma attached to sustainable fashion — that it's heinous — there are labels out there that are encouraging people to buy ethically through beautiful clothing," McCarthy says. "I think that's the key to a more sustainable fashion industry — blending ethics with aesthetics so seamlessly that sustainable clothing becomes the more desirable option." Bottom line: people want to buy clothing because they look good and that's never going to change. "They’re not going to settle for something that looks like crap just because it has a nice story behind it." There are lots of brands doing great things "I think us young folk get a bit of a kick out of knowing who is behind the clothing and wearing something that comes from a small run," McCarthy says. And, luckily for us, there are a bunch of local independent designers doing us proud in the sustainability stakes. In particular, Siggi recommends Kuwaii, Celeste Tesoriero, PER-TIM, Julie White, Thursday Sunday, YEVU, Kester Black, Nobody Denim and The Social Studio. Working at Ethical Clothing Australia, McCarthy also tries to support accredited labels. "R.M. Williams, for example, is ECA accredited and make the best boots locally in South Australia," she says. "I also dig NICO Underwear, which is made in Queensland using organic cotton and bamboo." Overseas favourites include Honest by, Everlane, Kowtow and Study. The good stuff can be hard to find The difficult thing about small independent labels is that they can be tricky to hunt down. In lack of an outlet store, McCarthy recommends hitting up Monk House Design, Dagmar Rousset, and trusty old op shops. But her hot tip is social media — there a bunch of great Facebook groups selling good quality, secondhand clothing. "When I meet girls to pick up items bought in these groups, it always feels like a drug deal," she says. "You generally don't know what the seller looks like, so you stand awkwardly on a corner hoping to make eye contact. When you suspect it's the right person, you walk up to them hesitantly, exchange pleasantries, inspect the garment, give them the money and then go about your day. Sometimes I think I buy clothing off these groups more for the experience than the clothing!" You can do it for cheap Of course, doing things right doesn't always come with a huge price tag — this isn't like the organic section at Coles. If you're doing this on a budget McCarthy suggests you stick to Facebook or Instagram and hit up online swaps like The Clothing Exchange. She also suggests you invest in quality over quantity. Buying one great item that lasts you saves you a bunch of money in the long term. You should also shoot for a well-curated wardrobe. This means thinking about what you already own and how your clothing can be worn with the garment you're considering buying. There's not much point having a wardrobe filled with pieces that don't work together. Last but not least, don't worry about wearing the same clothes often. If you look good — work it. For more on sustainable fashion pick up Hessian from their online store or Happy Valley, Brunswick Street Bookstore, Save Yourself Boutique, Dagmar Rousset, Greenhorse Boutique, Limedrop in Victoria. In NSW you can pick up a copy at Darley Collective. Images via Hessian Magazine, Dagmar Rousset, Kuwaii, Monk House Design.
Flume is teaming up with LA-based, Australian-born visual artist Jonathan Zawada for a blink and you'll miss it multimedia pop-up in Surry Hills this December. Named after the ARIA chart-topping musician's sophomore album Skin, for which Zawada created the cover art, live graphics, related videos and merchandise, the free exhibition will be open at Special Group Studios on Devonshire Street from Wednesday, December 7 through to Sunday, December 11, and will feature a series of new video works created exclusively for the show. "I've always been a huge fan of Jonathan's work so it's been a privilege to have him involved in the visual aesthetic around Skin, from the album art to the live show and merch," said Flume. "Visually I'm interested in the contrast of organic and synthetic, Jonathan's work so cleverly depicts this so it's been a natural fit for the music. I love the way he embraces technology to twist and contort things from the real world in alien ways." The pop-up will feature eight never-before-seen videos that combine fantastical animation by Zawada with ethereal sound design by Flume. Alongside these will be a series of large scale silk prints that further highlight the pair's unique creative partnership. You can check out Skin from December 7 to 11 at Special Group Studios, 270 Devonshire Street, Surry Hills. Keep your eyes on social media for more information closer to the opening date.
Get your ridin' boots, Texan hat and burger chops prepped for Americana Fiesta, happening this Sunday at the Bald Faced Stag. The Leichhardt hotel has teamed up with The Fatties Burgers Appreciation Society to bring you a celebration of all things Deep South. From midday in the carpark, you'll be able to sample creations from some of Sydney's smokin' experts, while getting into cracking drink specials. Leading the culinary lineup are Burgers By Josh, barbecue experts Bovine & Swine, Chicken & Sons and Grumpy Donuts. In between all this finger lickin' goodness, you'll be kicking back to live music and getting involved in other manifestations of Americana fun, including a stag riding machine. Image: Burgers by Josh.
First came Messina. Then came kittens. Now, finally, Uber has rolled the dice on the ultimate delivery treat, and will be bringing babies right to your office. That's right — we're talking UberBUBS. Like some sort of stork in an Audi with a 4.8 star rating, Uber drivers have teamed up with trusting mums and dads all around the country to unlock the clucky in all of us, but be warned: the waiting list is expected to be huge. "If there's one thing you hear time and time again from successful, white collar types in the CBD," explains Uber Australia CEO Pieter Rank, "it's the regret of having put career ahead of family. Today at least, even if only for 15 minutes, we're giving them the chance to have both — no strings attached." Naturally, parents will be present at all times, and if the younglings find themselves overwhelmed, the visit will be cut short and a 50 percent refund offered in return. So how can you grab your chance to experience all the adorableness of kittens with the added benefits of dribble and mumbling? 1. Download the Uber app. 2. Request the 'BUBS' option in the app TODAY between 12pm and 4pm within the Sydney/Melbourne/Brisbane CBD and surrounding suburbs. 3. If available, you'll get to enjoy 15 minutes of wide-eyed (or possibly stinky, wailing) cuteness delivered to your office, your home or even your reluctant partner to show them what they're missing. All funds raised will go to local not-for-profit nappiesandinsomnia.org.au to help raise funds for future Uber marketing activations.
The team at the Sydney Film Festival have revealed their full 2015 program, and it is seriously impressive. Once again headed by ace festival director Nashen Moodley, this year’s festival boasts more than 250 titles, including hotly anticipated works from some of the biggest name in international filmmaking as well as plenty of hidden gems just waiting to be uncovered. To help make your scheduling process a little bit easier, we’ve locked down ten of the most exciting titles that no self-respecting film lover can afford to miss. Whether you’re taking annual leave and pulling a five-film-a-day marathon, or just looking to catch the crème de la crème, make sure you leave room in your schedule for our selections. STRANGERLAND It speaks to the quality of domestic cinema in recent times that the festival will be opened and closed by Australian films, in the form of Ruben Guthrie and Holding the Man, respectively. Of all the local entries though, our pick would have to be Strangerland, a gritty outback thriller starring Nicole Kidman and Joseph Fiennes as the distraught parents of two missing teenagers, and Hugo Weaving as the local cop trying desperately to track the kids down. Alternatively: Other notable Australian titles in the program include Last Cab to Darwin, a film about a terminally ill taxi driver travelling to the Northern Territory to commit medically assisted suicide, as well as The Daughter, theatre director Simon Stone’s modern-day take on Henrik Ibsen’s play The Wild Duck, starring Geoffrey Rush, Ewen Leslie and Miranda Otto. TEHRAN TAXI The winner of the prestigious Golden Bear at this year’s Berlin Film Festival, and a competitor in this year’s SFF Official Competition, Tehran Taxi is the third film made in secret by acclaimed director Jafar Panahi after being struck with a 20-year ban on filmmaking by the Iranian regime. Shot entirely within a taxi with Panahi himself at the wheel, the film provides a humorous meta-commentary on the director’s legal troubles while addressing many of the broader problems facing Iranian society at large. Alternatively: Panahi’s dashboard camerawork isn’t the only formal boundary being broken in competition at the festival this year. Taking its cues from Rope and more recently Birdman, German heist film Victoria tells the story of a bank robbery gone wrong in a single elaborate take. American director Sean Baker, meanwhile, gets low-tech with Tangerine, a bawdy comedy about a pair of transgender sex workers shot entirely on an iPhone 5. A PIGEON SAT ON A BRANCH REFLECTING ON EXISTENCE With a name like that, you know it’s got to be funny. A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence marks the third and final part in a loose thematic trilogy from master Swedish filmmaker Roy Andersson. Made up of a series of strange, deadpan, tragicomic vignettes, this is a must-see film for anyone who likes their comedy a little left of centre. Alternatively: While some people tend to think of film festivals as being mostly dour affairs, there are plenty of laughs to be found in this year’s program. American coming-of-age film Me and Earl and the Dying Girl follows a pair of tragically nerdy movie buffs making parodies of classic films, while French comedy The Price of Fame recounts a bumbling criminal plot to kidnap Charlie Chaplin’s corpse. GOODNIGHT MOMMY With almost half the films in the Freak Me Out section screening at the Dendy Newtown rather than in the city, horror buffs could be forgiven for feeling a little bit marginalised by festival organisers. Still, there are a number of creepy gems in the program, including this stylish Austrian entry about two young boys who suspect something is terribly wrong with their mother. Alternatively: Kiwi horror flick Deathgasm got strong reviews out of SXSW, while anthology movie German Angst is three scary stories in one. There’s also a nice nod to retro horror, with a double feature screening of Them! and Invasion of the Body Snatchers at the Skyline Drive-In. AMY As always, this year’s festival has a number of must-see films for music lovers — and none more so than this hotly anticipated doco about the life of Amy Winehouse. Directed by Brazilian filmmaker Asif Kapadia, the man behind the absolutely masterful F1 documentary Senna, this new film makes extensive use of never-before-seen archival footage to paint a portrait of the pop star and her struggles with her unexpected fame. Alternatively: Paul Dano and John Cusack star in Love & Mercy, a biopic about Beach Boys frontman Brian Wilson, while Australian documentarian Marc Eberle chronicles the rise of a Cambodian rock band in The Cambodian Space Project. PHOENIX One of the best reviewed pictures at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival, Phoenix marks the latest collaboration between award-winning German director Christian Petzold and lead actress Nina Hoss, whose previous film together, the Cold War drama Barbara, was one of the highlights of SFF 2012. In Phoenix, Hoss plays a concentration camp survivor who undergoes facial reconstructive surgery, only to be caught up in a strange, Hitchcockian inheritance scheme when her own husband doesn’t recognise her face. Alternatively: Toronto isn’t the only major film festival represented at SFF this year. John Maclean’s Slow West, a western starring Michael Fassbender and Ben Mendelsohn, won the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, while Kore-eda Hirokazu’s Our Little Sister is one of a number of films that will arrive in Sydney directly after their premiering at Cannes. SONG OF THE SEA A surprise nominee in the Best Animated Film Category at the Academy Awards back in February, Song of the Sea is the new hand-drawn fantasy film from Irish animator Tomm Moore. Drawing from Celtic mythology, the film follows two children attempting to find their way home to their father with the aid of various mystical guides. Alternatively: Get the full picture of what's going in the independent animation scene by attending the International Animation Showcase (for ten diverse shorts) and the Animation After Dark Showcase (for just the weird stuff). Avoid these if you have an actual child in tow; instead, the Kids Animation Showcase will have you both smiling. THE TRIBE Meanwhile, no child should be allowed anywhere near Myroslav Slaboshpytskiy’s The Tribe, which is unquestionably one of the most shocking and unsettling films you’ll see at the festival this year. Set in a Kiev boarding school for deaf teenagers, the film is told entirely through Ukrainian sign language, with no spoken dialogue or subtitles. It’s a fascinating formal exercise, albeit one that’s made very hard to watch due to the film’s unflinching depiction of sexual exploitation and violence. Obviously, this one’s not for the faint of heart. Alternatively: Suckers for punishment can follow up The Tribe with South Korean people-smuggling drama Haemoo, or Kirby Dick’s rape-on-campus documentary The Hunting Ground. That said, we’d probably recommend getting something a little lighter in there as well, just to help break up the misery. THE LOOK OF SILENCE Sydney has had a remarkably strong slate of documentaries in recent times, and this year is certainly no exception. Of all the true-life stories on offer, it’s hard to go past Joshua Oppenheimer’s The Look of Silence, a companion piece to his masterful The Act of Killing, about the perpetrators of Indonesia’s violent anti-communist purges that left more than half a million people dead. Alternatively: Honestly, we could have almost made a list of ten must-see documentaries (and maybe we will), the lineup is just that strong. In addition to the already-mentioned films from Kapadia, Oppenheimer and Dick, Oscar-winner Alex Gibney has two films in the program: Going Clear tackles the murky world of Scientology, while Mr. Dynamite chronicles the life of musician James Brown. We’re also keen to see the Australian documentaries Sherpa, about disaster on Mt Everest, and Gayby Baby, which has been gathering goodwill since its 2012 crowdfunding campaign. JOE BULLET One of the festival sidebars this year focuses on the cinema of South Africa. Rather than single out a contemporary film, however, we're giving the nod to this recently rediscovered blaxploitation film from 1973. Like Shaft if it had been produced under apartheid, the film follows a martial arts expert named Joe Bullet who is hot on a tail of a vicious gangster after the murder of a local soccer team. Unsurprisingly, it was banned by the South African government after just two screenings, but has now been digitally restored. Alternatively: Necktie Youth paints a portrait of disaffected youth in modern-day Johannesburg, while award-winning documentary The Shore Break depicts a battle between local communities and developers on South Africa's Wild Coast. The Sydney Film Festival runs June 3–14. For the full program and to book tickets, visit the festival website. Top Image: The Look of Silence
From award-winning Australian novel to sold-out mainstage production, Jasper Jones is now getting the long-awaited big screen treatment it deserves. Madman Entertainment has today released the trailer for the anticipated film version of Craig Silvey's lauded novel, a revisualisation directed by Rachel Perkins (Bran Nue Dae, Radiance, One Night the Moon) and produced by Vincent Sheehan (Animal Kingdom, The Hunter) and David Jowsey (Mystery Road, Goldstone). Jasper Jones follows the classic story of 14-year-old Charlie Bucktin, a wide-eyed, book-loving kid living in small-town Western Australia in the summer of 1969. When local mixed-race outcast Jasper Jones wakes him up in the middle of the night, one heck of a mystery starts for the pair (and the town). Who's in the cast? Oh, just Australian royalty Toni Collette and Hugo Weaving, alongside Levi Miller (Pan, upcoming Red Dog: True Blue), Angourie Rice (These Final Hours, The Nice Guys), Dan Wyllie (Offspring, Muriel's Wedding), Matt Nable (Riddick, Son of a Gun) and Aaron McGrath (GLITCH). Get your eyes all over the trailer, it comes with a new song from Sydney lad Dustin Tebbutt, 'Atlas in Your Eyes'. Jasper Jones will be released in cinemas on March 2, 2017.
Yesterday, the world was rocked by the horrific events that took place in Paris. With information on the attacks still coming to light, it will take a long time for the global community to fully come to grips with the tragedy. In the meantime, however, the outpouring of international sympathy has already begun. World leaders, including Barrack Obama and Malcolm Turnbull, have been quick to condemn the attackers and offer their condolences. But perhaps more moving has been the site of many of the world's most famous landmarks lit up in the colours of the French flag. Below, we've compiled some photos of familiar Australian landmarks that took part in the spontaneous display of support for the people of France. Je suis Paris. Sydney Town Hall has been lit in the colours of the French flag #PrayforParis pic.twitter.com/dTy38ATiMS — City of Sydney (@cityofsydney) November 14, 2015 pic.twitter.com/4LFei1TAxl — NGV (@NGVMelbourne) November 14, 2015 Story Bridge lit up last night for #ParisAttacks victims. Photo by Craig Capper. #9News pic.twitter.com/hS7KJqR6es — Nine News Brisbane (@9NewsBrisbane) November 14, 2015 Well played, @MCG #Paris #PrayForParis ?? ?? pic.twitter.com/zJm8yxAE9P — Clint Stanaway (@cstanaway) November 14, 2015 We'll be lighting Adelaide Oval in blue, white and red from 6pm tonight to show our support #Pray4Paris pic.twitter.com/c5LoGJGffi — Adelaide Oval (@TheAdelaideOval) November 14, 2015 .@LisaScafPerthLM @CityofPerth Looks stunning. #JesuisunParisien pic.twitter.com/QR8ZfK8Mbp — Matt Rosich (@subjectmattr) November 14, 2015 #Brisbane City Hall has also been lit tonight to show our support for the people of France #ParisAttacks pic.twitter.com/bvKtLgqxB1 — Team Quirk (@Team_Quirk) November 14, 2015 Melbourne town hall. ???? @LordMayorMelb @cityofmelbourne pic.twitter.com/hduJyWhYz5 — Sharnelle Vella (@SharnelleVella) November 14, 2015 Header image: Prudence Upton.
What can you achieve in 5 minutes? Devise an uber-witty 'Gram caption? Shoot a spectacular Snapchat story? Consume an obscene quantity of tacos? Respondents with the latter, it's your time to shine. Redfern's local landmark The Norfolk is celebrating its fourth birthday by dishing up some killer Mexican delicacies, ready to be inhaled by the eager participants in this year's 'Annual World Famous Taco Eating Competition'. The night is set to include an array of mouth-watering options for competitors and spectators alike. Those brave enough to tackle the almighty taco challenge will have five minutes to gulp down as many of the spicy little suckers as they can manage. Everyone else can leisurely nibble on the special birthday burger on the menu for the event. Wash down the gluttonous feast with $10 Lageritas, coconuts slushies or any one of the beers from the Norfolk's impressive selection while recovering from your post-comp food coma in the pub's spacious outdoor courtyard. Get in quick if you want to compete, as spots are strictly limited. Email mark@thenorfolk.co to register.
If you're yet to catch Melbourne's Grammy-nominated future-soul outfit Hiatus Kaiyote, do yourself a favour and meet their leader. Few artists have the same wild, raw vocal control as the group's inimitable singer and guitarist, Naomi 'Nai Palm' Saalfield, and for Vivid Sydney, she's branching out on her own for a special solo performance. Set in the Drama Theatre, this Sydney Opera House show will see Nai Palm's solo debut, an intimate performance of Hiatus Kaiyote favourites and new solo material. Prepare to spend a few hours not realising your jaw's been on the floor.
After one humdinger of a debut year, Young Henrys are bringing back their highly successful celebrating of all things inner west Sydney: Small World Festival. Pairing their beloved craft beer with some of Sydney's best live bands and the inner west's most beloved food joints. Young Henrys have turned it to 11 this year, announcing the 2015 lineup this morning. Locked in for Saturday, September 19, at a new location at Sydney Park, Alexandria, Small Worlds will see Australian rock royalty The Church headline one heck of an Aussie bill. Formed in the inner west some 35 years ago, The Church will be burling out everything from 'Under the Milky Way' to new album gems. They'll be joined by Brisbane's face-melting lads DZ Deathrays, Sydney's long-labouring electronic barons PVT (celebrating ten years since releasing debut album Make Me Love You), Sydney supergroup Jack Ladder and the Dreamlanders (Jack Ladder, Kirin J. Callinan, Laurence Pike and Donny Benet), beloved wailers PALMS, haunting foursome All Our Exes Live In Texas, a SPOD-fronted Bon Scott era ACDC cover band called Bon Voyage and more. Plus, monthly artist showcasers VISIONS will kick things off with a mystery happening. Making sure you fill your belly between sets, the inner west's leading culinary crews are bringing their nosh to Small World: Mary’s, Bloodwood, Porteño and Black Betty. And of course, Young Henrys will keep punters well quenched on the day with their celebrated brews. SMALL WORLD FESTIVAL 2015 LINEUP: Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders All Our Exes Live In Texas The Church DZ Deathrays PVT PALMS Bon Voyage Summer Flake Green Buzzard The Lulu Raes Local Artist Showcase (presented by Visions) Young Henrys Small World Festival is happening on Saturday, September 19 at Sydney Park, off Euston Road, Alexandria. Tickets are $69+BF, on sale Thursday, July 9 at 9am from the Small World website.
Kicking off with a light-hearted caper, ending with happy tears — that's what we look for in an Italian jaunt. And even if you're not heading over to Europe anytime soon, sitting in a cinema this September might be the next best thing, in the form of the 2017 Italian Film Festival. Marking its 18th year, Australia's annual celebration of Italy's filmmaking finest will kick off with screwball effort Let Yourself Go!, which won the 2017 Italian Golden Globe for best comedy, stars The Great Beauty's Toni Servillo, and follows a tightly wound psychoanalyst's dalliance with an upbeat personal trainer. Bookending the festival is a 20th anniversary screening of Roberto Benigni's bittersweet Life Is Beautiful, an Academy Award winner for best foreign language film. One of the more popular film events in Australia, IFF's 28-film, six-week national tour features brand new highlights, excursions off the beaten track, jaunts all over the country and an ode to coffee. Yes, there really is a film called Coffee in the program, which intertwines three tales about everyone's favourite caffeinated brew, and was inspired by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's 2006 Oscar-winner Babel. As for the rest of the fest, highlights include the tender portrait of conjoined twin sisters that is Indivisible (the festival's centrepiece), to Sea Girls Dreaming, a documentary about carefree grandmothers living in the tiny Italian mountain village of Daone. Plus, Italian movie buffs can also enjoy romantic comedy Emma, which comes to Australia straight from the Venice Film Festival, and the based-on-a-true-tale Sicilian Ghost Story, about the disappeared teenage son of a Mafia informant. There's more where they came from, including Roman ex-cons attempting to start a new life, broad Christmas comedies and topical accounts of ex-terrorists fleeing extradition — and a special guest and a new initiative. This year's festival will welcome Australian-Italian actor Greta Scacchi, who'll attend screenings of her latest effort Tenderness, and sit on IFF's first jury. The Looking for Alibrandi star will help pick the festival's best from a six-film competition, with help from The Space Between's Ruth Borgobello, actor Daniela Farinacci, actor Damian Walshe-Howling and Radio National's Jason di Rosso. The 2017 Italian Film Festival tours Australia between September 12 and October 25, screening at Sydney's Palace Norton Street, Palace Verona and Chauvel Cinemas from September 12 to October 8; Melbourne's Palace Cinema Como, Palace Westgarth, Palace Balwyn, Palace Brighton Bay, Kino Cinemas and The Astor Theatre from September 14 to October 8; and Brisbane's Palace Barracks and Palace Centro from September 20 to October 8. For more information and to buy tickets, visit the festival website.
With all due respect to them, the cast of Patti Cake$ don't look your average movie stars. And they certainly don't look like your average rappers. There's Cathy Moriarty as a pack-a-day smoking grandma, Mamoudou Athie as an awkward would-be anarchist, Siddharth Dhananjay as a smooth-talking pharmacy worker and, finally, Sydney's own Danielle MacDonald as Patricia Dumbrowski, aka Patti Cake$ aka White Trish aka KILLA P, a downtrodden woman who dreams of becoming a hip hop sensation. Of course, it's precisely because the film focuses on such an unconventional set of protagonists that this inspiring indie drama works so well. Written and directed by first-time filmmaker Geremy Jasper, who workshopped the film with his cast at the Sundance Directors Lab, Patti Cake$ is a classic underdog story — one that will have audiences cheering for its misfit heroes at every turn. "I think we all want to be represented," says MacDonald, her Aussie accent sounding nothing like Patti's New Jersey drawl. "We see what normality is on screen, but that's not really true to real life. I don't know any one person who would say that they're normal, quite honestly. And I think now that we're seeing different stories and different people on screen, it's really cool." After screening at the Sydney Film and Melbourne International Film festivals, Patti Cake$ is now in Australian cinemas. We spoke to MacDonald about how she went from Sydney's northern beaches to suddenly being the talk of LA. That, as well as the importance of on screen diversity, and what it's like being cast as a rapper when you have literally no idea how to rap. A STAR ON THE RISE Since Patti Cake$ premiered to a standing ovation at Sundance in January (prompting a bidding war between five major production companies — Fox Searchlight came out on top), critics have been singing MacDonald's praises — and rightfully so. But while it might seem like she appeared out of nowhere, the actor has been putting in the hard yards for quite some time. "I grew up in Clareville [a small suburb in Sydney's northern beaches]," she tells us. "I did acting classes in Sydney at the Australian Institute for the Performing Arts. I did some tours to America, just to learn about the industry out there, and one of the casting directors I met introduced me to my managers. My managers got me an audition, I moved to the States, and I've been there for seven years, working my way up." It was MacDonald's small part in indie thriller The East that caught the attention of Patti Cake$ director Jasper, who invited her — along with Dhananjay and Bridgett Everett, who play's Patti's alcoholic mother Barb — to help develop the project at the Sundance Labs in 2014. "That was kind of my audition process," MacDonald says. "It was really cool, because Geremy hadn't finished the writing process yet, and I feel like his writing was influenced by myself and Sid and Bridget. We all workshopped with him and kind of figured out who these characters were, based off this time that we got." HIP HOP 101 MacDonald displays phenomenal talent in the film, but even she admits her casting was a bit of a gamble. After all, it's one thing to teach an Aussie girl a Jersey accent, but it's another thing entirely to teach her how to rap. "I was terrified," she admits. "And I could tell [Jasper] was terrified as well." "It was a lot of repetition," MacDonald says of her hip hop training. "I listened to a lot of different artists, a lot of different songs and styles of music. On top of that I worked with a rap coach for a month before we started shooting. He really helped me sit in the beat nicely, and just relax into it and not stress about it, which you do when it's not a natural skill. He helped me find that." "I feel like so much of rapping is just confidence, and I had no confidence. Trying to get over that was very mentally challenging." When asked if rapping is now a skill she'll possess forever, MacDonald laughs. "I only know how to rap as Patti — I learnt how to do these songs in her voice and in her head. I would never be able to do it as me. With my voice and my no swag, it would go very badly." CONNECTING ON A HUMAN LEVEL Of the all the elements in Patti Cake$, it's the diverse characters that make the film so gratifying. "[They] reflect society," MacDonald remarks. "These are people of all different shapes and sizes and ethnicities and religions and genders, that all come together and connect just on a human level. Connecting "through their weirdness", MacDonald observes they're all outcasts in a way. "It's special. They find their own way of doing things," she says. "My small town in the northern beaches is very different to this small town in Jersey," MacDonald continues. "It's cool to be see something different and be able to play something different, but something that I can still relate to. And that's the thing. I think when you see these films and you can go, 'Oh I can relate to that person, even though they're so different from me', I think it really helps bring people together."
