Australian cinephiles are well and truly accustomed to seeing the rest of the world via the big screen but, after the past year, 2021's Spanish Film Festival really couldn't be more welcome. And, it won't just transport movie buffs to the country that gives the annual filmic showcase its name. Twenty features from Spain are definitely on the bill, but so are nine from Latin America. That gives Sydneysiders plenty of movie-watching options come Tuesday, April 20, when the fest kicks off its local season for this year. You'll have until Sunday, May 9 to head to Palace Norton Street, Palace Verona, Palace Central and Chauvel Cinema, tuck into some popcorn, enjoy everything from award-winning rom-coms to twisty thrillers, and pretend that you're somewhere other than your own city. Highlights include road movie Wishlist, starring Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!'s Victoria Abril; romantic comedies Rosa's Wedding and The Wedding Unplanner, because matrimony seems to be a theme; Goya Award-winner Schoolgirls, which took out the gong for Best Film; and While At War, the latest film from The Others director Alejandro Amenábar. Heroic Losers serves up a charming heist comedy starring the always engaging Ricardo Darín (Everybody Knows), while the 1950s–70s-set The Moneychanger delivers a satirical twist on crime epics. If you're only going to see one movie, though, make it Ema — not just because it stars Gael García Bernal and is directed by No, The Club, Neruda and Jackie filmmaker Pablo Larraín, but because this tale about a dancer (Mariana Di Girolamo) is a simply stunning piece of cinema. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bpt6Vffhtik&feature=emb_logo
When it comes to the world of action movies we’re now living in the year 9AB (After Bourne) – a dark and gritty reality characterised by nebulous morality, sympathetic villains and brooding heroes who’ll punch you in the face if you ever call them a hero. Championed by the likes of Paul Greengrass they’re films driven by complex plots and sweeping character arcs where the occasional shaky action sequence almost feels like a reluctant concession made by the director. Without a doubt they’ve helped revitalise a genre that had come perilously close to ridicule in the wake of such abominations as Die Another Day, however for all their positives the one thing they collectively lack is that indispensable sense of fun. That’s where Tom Cruise comes in. Say what you like about the man’s personal life, he rarely fails to deliver when it comes to movies and his latest offering is no exception. It’s almost paradoxically an old-school action flick filled with ultra-modern, hi-tech wizardry and the most refreshing part of all is how it refuses to take itself too seriously. The first clue comes with its choice of director, Brad Bird, whose previous works included Disney/Pixar’s exceptional The Incredibles, Ratatouille and even a few episodes of the Simpsons. Then there’s Simon Pegg reprising his role as the awkward but well-intentioned techy ‘Benji’; a fan favourite whose promotion to fulltime field agent provides the film with a constant stream of laughs. Lastly there’s Cruise himself: actor, producer, smiler — he does it all in Ghost Protocol and always with the kind of unbridled enthusiasm you’d expect reserved for a person appearing in their first ever film. As the fourth instalment in the now 16 year-old Mission Impossible franchise, Ghost Protocol doesn’t stray too far from the familiar. When a mission in Moscow is sabotaged and the Kremlin’s nuclear launch codes are stolen, super spy Ethan Hunt and his team once again find themselves disavowed by the US Government and forced to save the world on their own (a plot device used in all but one of the four films). Filmed in Russia, India and Dubai the stunts are spectacular, the action is thrilling and the technology is as mesmerising as it is terrifyingly believable. Ghost Protocol is a slick, exciting and terrifically entertaining movie that unashamedly pushes plausibility to the very extreme without straying into farce. Cruise and his team have served up a classic action movie here, not in the least because it is so damned fun to watch.
T Totaler is a light-filled, airy space stocked with teas playfully packaged in glass pharmaceutical bottles. Owner Amber Hudson has crafted a range of black, white, green and herbal teas that wherever possible use locally grown ingredients (including a range that is 100 percent Australian-grown), and she seeks to inspire others to be creative with how they harness the beneficial powers of brewable herbs. Fancy yourself of a delicate hand? Try one of her Alchemy of Tea and Blending workshops on the last Sunday of every month. If you're more into consuming, head on over on a Sunday for a tea and cake degustation, or on a Friday night for tea-themed cocktails. Chin chin.
As school kids, we're taught to think of art and science as two very different beasts. But neuroscience now shows this dichotomy to be false — when performing most complex tasks, we use both the logical and creative sides of our brain. And this July, at Carriageworks, Japanese artist Ryoji Ikeda will smash this division to smithereens by transforming science into art with two epic installations entitled micro | macro. The work — which Ikeda developed during a residency at the renowned science institution CERN in Switzerland — is divided into two sections. The first, the planck universe [micro], reveals atoms by blowing them up into visible proportions. This mind-bending installation will cover a whopping 172.8 square metres of space inside the Redfern multi-arts institution. The second, the planck universe [macro], is a ten-metre-high projection capturing the natural world in various scales — from the human perspective all the way to the cosmic one. "My work is created by reducing sound, light and the world into sine waves, pixels and data… so that the world can be viewed once more at a different resolution," said Ikeda of his new installations. As you wander through both installations, expect to feel very, very small, while finding yourself asking some big, big questions. What do we know? What can we know? Is what we see really all that it seems? This is Ikeda's third show at Carriageworks, previously presenting Superposition in 2015 and Test Pattern [No 5] in 2013, and it'll be as cutting-edge and immersive as ever. Images: Martin Wagenhan & Zan Wimberley
If there's one thing Sydneysiders like more than food (and that's a big 'if'), it's food with a view. A new rooftop bar opens nearly every week, but few could compete with this. To celebrate Chinese New Year, local favourite One Tea Lounge & Grill is opening a 'Sky High Bao Bar' in the Observation Deck of the Sydney Tower Eye. The Observation Deck, of course, is at the top of Sydney Tower — Sydney's tallest building by about 50 metres — and provides unparalleled views of the city. One Tea Lounge have become famous mostly for their ramen burgers, but the pop-up bar will be serving their (also popular) 'baogers' instead — specifically, matcha baogers with braised pork rib. Dessert will be cookie shots filled with creamy matcha white chocolate in both green tea and 'Red Fortune' flavours. On top of your standard Observation Deck views, the pop-up also includes a photobooth and a Wishing Wall for people to send well wishes to their loved ones. The pop-up will be open from 12–3pm Monday to Thursday and 12–5pm Friday and Saturday.
Two Door Cinema Club are bringing in a new season, Volcano Choir are erupting with musical brilliance and RAC want us to let it all go and just enjoy the weekend. 1. 'CHANGING OF THE SEASONS' - TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB August has been a near perfect month of music for this writer. HAIM released a contender for song of the year with 'The Wire' and announced their album release date, Lorde followed suit and will embark on an Australian tour in October and now the band that occupies all of my playlists (and my heart) have treated us all to their freshest serving of Irish indie rock, and boy is it a doozie. 'Changing of the Seasons' showcases the band's traditional dance-inducing sound just in time for the start of spring, when the band will hopefully announce the details of their upcoming untitled EP. 2. 'DADDY'S MONEY' - JOHNNY STIMSON Johnny Stimson is on a personal mission to make the world groove. His last single, 'Human Man', compelled us all to move, and his latest offering, 'Daddy's Money', gets everything dancing. He hits the vocal lows and highs to sonic perfection, which when combined with the song's bouncing bassline creates an infectious work of fun for your speakers. 3. 'COMRADE' - VOLCANO CHOIR Everything that Justin Vernon touches turns to musical gold. His brilliance transformed Bon Iver into arguably the indie band of the century so far and he is now returning his talents to the collaboration known as Volcano Choir. Whilst the band released their debut album Unmap in 2009 to little fanfare, the brilliant blend led to a blooming fan base eager to hear more. Now with the band set to drop sophomore release Repave next week on September 3, they have offered up 'Comrade', a beautiful harmony ready to be played over and over again until the sun comes up, at which point you'll let it lull you to sleep. A track for all occasions. 4. 'LET GO' - RAC FEAT. KELE & MNDR RAC are known largely for their remixing, but from time to time they take a break to create brand-new material of their own, and they should do it more often as it produces dance gems like this. With a little help from MNDR and Kele of Bloc Party fame, they have made something, well, perfect. I defy you to not feel impelled to dance to this song. 5. 'WE ARE THE CHILDREN' - NOVA & THE EXPERIENCE This song really only needs one word to describe it: happy. So go on, have a listen and be happy (and download it here for free).
Stake your claim on the sand at Shelly Beach by booking a couple of waterfront cabins at Blue Lagoon Beach Resort. These airy beach pads sleep four adults a piece, in a classic family holiday atmosphere — think bunk beds and no-fuss wicker furniture. So, pack your easy-breezy picnic attire, bodyboard and sandcastle-building kit to match the laidback vibe of this quiet corner of the Central Coast. To relive more childhood thrills, ascend to dizzying heights at Treetops Adventure and soar through the eucalyptus canopy of Ourimbah State Forest. There are a series of stomach-churning ziplines and aerial obstacle courses, which you can mellow out from over a cruisy paddle around Tuggerah Lake (kayaks can be hired at The Entrance Boat Shed). Or, for a more gastronomical exploration, head to a factory tour of Little Creek Cheese — with plenty of tasting opportunities — or learn how to make your own dairy dreams come true at a lesson. Find more Central Coast tips over here.
In the mood for some historical immersion? Feeling jealous of all your mates gallivanting around the ancient ruins in South America? Machu Picchu and the Golden Empires of Peru may be the perfect antidote. The Australian Museum will host this informative and immersive exhibition, which opens on Saturday, November 23 for a limited time. The exhibition will feature sensory displays, projections, video and artefacts showcasing the rich history of Peru, one of the world's most captivating ancient civilisations. Plus, there is even a Virtual Reality add-on option available that takes you on a virtual flythrough of Machu Picchu. Beyond getting an insight into the lives, spirituality and achievements of the Andean people, you'll come face to face with over 130 ancient artefacts. Yes, 130. Think jewellery, funerary objects from royal tombs and an impressive gold collection. Ancient Peru looks practically brand new. For a small extra fee, why not add on the Virtual Reality experience? Pop on a headset and immerse yourself in the wonders of Machu Picchu without even having to get on a plane. Now a popular tourist destination, Machu Picchu is also the pinnacle of Incan engineering. Basking in its incredible prowess (from the comfort of your 360-degree motion chair) is an easy way to immerse yourself in the peak of a civilisation gone by. And for those who don't mind a little bit of friskiness, there is a small section showcasing erotic ceramic artefacts that illustrate the Andean fascination with natural life cycles, birth and death. The exhibition is in Australia for a limited time only. Get in quick, tickets are on sale now. Machu Picchu and the Golden Empires of Peru is taking place at the Australian Museum, 1 William St, Sydney. For more information and to book, visit the website. Images: Supplied
The past couple of weeks haven't just been wet in New South Wales and Queensland. They've been catastrophically drenching, with the two states weathering not only torrential rain but also widespread flooding. And if you've been lucky enough to avoid the worst of it, you're probably eager to help out however you can — including with your next schooner, pint or several. At Australian Venue Co locations around Australia — all 180-plus pubs and bars around the country, including a heap in Sydney — your next beer will help flood-affected folks in need. In NSW specifically, the hospitality company is donating $1 per schooner and $2 per pint from every Furphy beer to the Red Cross Qld and NSW Floods Appeal. Yep, in a time that hasn't had much in the way of good news, that's something to say cheers to. The whole thing has been dubbed Beers for Mates, and it's running till the end of the month. So, to lend a hand by sinking a few brews, all you need to do is hit up your local AVC venue and order a Furphys between Wednesday, March 9–Thursday, March 31. Top image: Untied, by Daniele Massacci.
AMENDMENT: October 22, 2018 — This article previously stated that Crazy Rider Xpress would open to the public on November 4. This was incorrect, it will open to the public on Monday, November 5. Got the need for speed? Well, soon you'll be able to experience a rush similar to being launched into outer space (supposedly) when the world's fastest rollercoaster zip-line opens in Sydney next month. Latest addition to the adrenaline-packed activities at TreeTops Adventure Park, the Crazy Rider Xpress sends punters hurtling through the air, downhill, at speeds of up to 50kms per hour. Clocking in at around 2.3g-force, that's not too far from what an astronaut experiences being rocketed from earth. Open to (brave members of) the public from Monday, November 5, the new high-thrills ride weaves half a kilometre through the trees on a rollercoaster-style zip-line track, complete with a few cheeky 360-degree loop-the-loops along the way. That makes for some pretty stellar views and a top-notch Go-Pro shoot...if, of course, your nerves aren't too frazzled to take in those surroundings. While you're there, there are a heap of other sly-high activities you do, including wall climbs and rope courses through the trees The aerial adventure park — which also has outposts in Pennant Hills, Coffs Harbour, Central Coast and Newcastle — already has a Crazy Rider on the Central Coast, but it's longer (one kilometre) and not quite as fast. To give you some idea of what to expect, though, the Central Coast one goes for about an hour, has four 360-degree loops and costs $79. Crazy Rider Xpress will open on Monday, November 5, at TreeTops Adventure Park Western Sydney, 749 Elizabeth Drive, Abbotsbury. Images: TreeTops Crazy Rider, Central Coast
Film festivals love milestones. Queer Screen Film Fest notches up 12 years in 2025, which is no minor feat; however, it's celebrating a number of other anniversaries with one key screening. This year marks a decade since Holding the Man first reached cinemas, and also 30 years since Timothy Conigrave's memoir was initially published. A session of the Ryan Corr (Sting)- and Craig Stott (Barrier)-starring instant Australian classic is indeed on the event's lineup, then — at Sydney Opera House, and also to commemorate the 40th anniversary of New South Wales LGBTQ+ health organisation ACON. One of two film festivals run by Queer Screen, which also organises the Mardi Gras Film Festival during the first half of each year, Queer Screen Film Fest is otherwise taking over Event Cinemas George Street across Wednesday, August 27–Sunday, August 31 for its 2025 edition. The program is solely in cinemas this year, opening with romantic thriller Plainclothes. So, it's, starting with Russell Tovey (Suspect: The Shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes) and Tom Blyth (Billy the Kid) in a tale about a closeted undercover police officer. Plainclothes is also part of something brand-new for Queer Screen Film Fest: its own Emerging Narrative Feature Competition. Six titles on the bill are in contention for a jury-decided $2500 prize. While the competition is designed to recognise filmmakers directing either their first or second narrative feature, all of 2025's entrants are from first-timers. As well as Carmen Emmi's Plainclothes, Rohan Parashuram Kanawade's Sundance World Cinema Dramatic Jury Prize-winnering romance Cactus Pears, the Cannes Critics' Week-selected Love Letters from Alice Douard and South Korea's Lucky, Apartment by Kangyu Ga-ram are up for the inaugural gong, as are Elena Oxman's Outerlands with Billions' Asia Kate Dillon and Superman's Louisa Krause, plus Sauna, the first Danish feature with a trans actor and character in a lead role. Fellow highlights across the full Queer Screen Film Fest program — a lineup with 14 Australian premieres — include the Dylan O'Brien (Saturday Night)-led Twinless, a two-time Sundance award-winner, including for both its star and for writer/director James Sweeney (Straight Up); the Western Sydney-set From All Sides, the feature directorial debut of Bina Bhattacharya (a writer on Here Out West); and closing night's Really Happy Someday, which picked up the Best Canadian Feature Award at 2025's Inside Out Toronto 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival. "It is an exciting new chapter for Queer Screen. This new team has worked tirelessly to bring this festival to life in a short timeframe, and we are proud of the strength, diversity and heart that this year's program delivers. We look forward to welcoming audiences back into cinemas to share in the joy of queer storytelling," said Queer Screen CEO Benson Wu, announcing the 2025 program. "At a time when people around the world aim to silence and divide the LGBTIQ+ community, Queer Screen continues to offer a vital opportunity to come together and support each other," added Programming & Industry Manager Andrew Wilkie. "And all the films in this program share that ethos. Stories of people who feel isolated or unseen finding community, friendship and love. Of perseverance and joy. Every film is a chance to not only see ourselves onscreen, but step into someone else's shoes and gain new perspectives." Queer Screen Film Fest 2025 runs from Wednesday, August 27–Sunday, August 31 at Event Cinemas George Street in Sydney. For more information, visit the festival's website.
A strange thing happens when you're an Australian visiting Japan: at least a couple of times during your trip, whether you're in a shop, izakaya or ramen joint — or walking across Shibuya's scramble crossing, scoping out the Studio Ghibli museum, wandering through a kaleidoscopic maze of digital art or singing karaoke in a ferris wheel — you'll hear a familiar accent echoing nearby. Before the pandemic, Japan had cemented itself as a favourite holiday destination for Aussies, making it highly likely that you'd encounter a fellow Australian or several in your travels. But making the journey has been impossible for the past few years, thanks to both local and Japanese border restrictions. If a Tokyo trip has been at the top of your post-restrictions bucket list, good news has finally arrived: Japan has announced that Australian tourists can again visit, kicking off sometime later in May. That said, if you're already packing your suitcase, there's one huge caveat, with the country only allowing in tourists travelling as part of strictly controlled package tours. The Japanese Tourism Agency advised that it'll begin letting small group tours to enter the country from later this month, to test reopening the border in full sometime in the future. To make the trip, you'll need to be triple-vaccinated, and be visiting as part of a planned tour in conjunction with travel agencies that's accompanied at all times by a tour conductor, and has a fixed itinerary. As well as Aussie tourists, triple-vaccinated travellers from the US, Thailand and Singapore will also be able to head to Japan as part of the trial. Designed to help the Japanese government assess health and safety protocols, and work how to manage any COVID-19 cases among visitors, the test was initially slated to take place earlier; however, due to the Omicron variant and its impact in Japan, it was pushed back. Exactly how long the testing phase will last for, and when Japan might completely reopen its borders to international holidaymakers, hasn't yet been revealed. Earlier this month, though, in a speech given in London, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said that the next phase of reopening might occur in June — albeit without any further specifics. "At the end of last year, Japan strengthened its border control measures in response to the global spread of the Omicron variant. It was an essential public health step to delay the variant's entry into the country. This allowed us to fortify our healthcare system and promote vaccinations. I hope it is not too boastful to say that Japan's response to COVID-19 has been one of the most successful in the world," the Prime Minister advised. "We have now eased border control measures significantly, with the next easing taking place in June, when Japan will introduce a smoother entry process similar to that of other G7 members." For further details about visiting Japan and its border restrictions, head to the Japan Tourism Agency website. Via Reuters.
American singer-songwriter Tom Krell (aka How to Dress Well) once described his sound as a convergence of Mariah Carey and Elliott Smith. It's that juncture of emo-acoustic and twinkly sentimental balladry that's led to Krell's music being labelled as 'lo-fi R&B'. Certainly in his older records, that came through. But with 2014 album "What is This Heart?" Krell's moving away from those early roots, towards something more musically diverse. (That said, the chorus of 'Precious Love' is decisively reminiscent of an early '00s R&B ballad, and it's great.) Krell picked his stage name semi-randomly from the spine of an old book he bought from a used bookstore ten years ago — justifying it by pointing out that we don't generally choose our names. True. That preoccupation with the uber real is reflected in his music. His lyrics are at times so personal they're almost uncomfortable, but then he turns it all weirdly in on itself with alien synth sounds and a falsetto that's painfully otherworldly — like, as one YouTube commenter put it so aptly, the ghosts of dead R&B singers come back to sing in empty bathroom stalls. Take this cover of Janet Jackson's 'Again'. Without a ukulele in sight, it's a refreshing antidote to the tired trend of white singers doing twee covers of the work of black musicians. We caught up with the super well-articulated, notoriously candid Krell ahead of his appearance at Sydney Festival, Melbourne's Sugar Mountain Festival and Brisbane's Australia Day Eve at the Brightside to chat about his newest album, the nature of quotation, embracing your influences, and creating intense, muscular live shows that are all about presence. Earlier this year you released your newest album, "What is This Heart?" which you recorded in Berlin with Rodaidh McDonald. What was the recording process like? It was cool. I came in with what could have been a finished record and then Rodaidh really helped me go through it. I'd have a guitar recorded and he would ask me, "What do you want this guitar to sound like?" and I'd say, "I want it to sound really close to the strings, and really raw-sounding." We'd re-record it and he'd help me dial in the details of the details. He's a really helpful engineer. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwRr2YyQD80[/embed] Making this album, were you influenced by anything in particular? How do you deal with your influences? A million things. For every song there's a whole handful of influences. I really do live through my influences. A lot of people I know write, and then listen to music separately. When they're writing they want to have this control, they worry that what they're making sounds too much like something else. I kind of have the opposite approach. While I'm working, if I hit on something that sounds like something else, I'll go listen to the song and try to figure out what it was in that song that so moved me that it snuck its way into my creative process. A lot of people have anxiety over influence, but I just really find it super inspiring. Let's talk about the title, "What is This Heart?". It's in quotation marks — what effect do they have for you? Quotation is a weird thing. On the one hand, it's about attributing something to someone. It's illegal to misquote someone because we really care, for some reason, about the things we say when they're in quotes. I started thinking a lot about that. An album is sort of like a long quote from me: this is what I want to say, and what I'm willing to have said in my name. Quotes also put things in scenes. Suddenly it's not just text on a piece of cardboard, but maybe it came out of someone's mouth. These things were stirring for me when I was writing. When I look back, what kinds of things do I want to have attributed to me? What kinds of things do I want people to say that I said? When I was writing lyrics for the record I also constantly found that I would think of something that someone said to me. A lot of the lyrics are made up of different kinds of quotes — things that I said that I wish I hadn't said, things that I overheard, things that I said that I didn't know the full consequences of. There's a lot going on with quotation in general. Talking about your lyrics, a lot of them seem deeply personal, or like they're really heavy with emotion. Does something compel you to write that kind of music? I suppose so. I don't think that they're personal in the sense of the coffee shop confessional. There are people who write much more directly personal things than I do. I would say that if they're personal, they're indirectly personal. The way I write, it is quite emotional. I guess I'm interested in the emotional life of people in general, which is another way of saying I'm interested in the way people live. Not in what people say when you ask them, "Hey, how was your day?" They'll tell they went to the library, they went to work, they went to the coffee shop, or whatever. But what I'm interested in in people and the self is not that story, but more the way it feels to actually live a life, the actual experience of life. That's the emotional part of life. So you went to the grocery store? Why, when you were walking down the aisle of the grocery store, did you think of your mother ageing and feel an intense pang of guilt? That's the kind of stuff that I'm interested in. Actual life. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTkGTfsMRYE[/embed] How would you explain the progression to this album from your previous albums? Especially because Love Remains, your first album, was very raw and stripped back — how did you move towards something more produced? Weirdly, I think of this newest record as the least produced. On Love Remains every single sound is filtered and changed to the point of being something really weird. It's full of little weird, suspended-in-time sound sculpture things. But for some of the stuff on this new record I just opened the microphone and sang right into it. There's acoustic guitar on Love Remains, but there's no way anybody other than me could ever pick it out because it just sounds like a weird wash indistinguishable from some of the other sounds. That's something I was actively trying to do because I wanted to make a specific record. Each record is a different response to a different time in my life. I don't really know what's next in terms of how to produce the next record, but it felt important for me on this record to do something with that real life thing I was just talking about. I wanted the music to have a realistic quality to it. So you're coming to Australia for Sydney Festival. In the past you've said that, rather than being like dance parties, you think of your shows as being more like a theatre performances. What's a How to Dress Well show like? I still don't think of what we do as a dance party, because it just isn't. But there are moments like that. The thing for me with the live show now is that I want it to be extremely physical and really obvious that there's a person present in front of you, doing this quite demanding performance. Another thing I was motivated by on this record was having really intense dynamic shifts. Having one moment be really quiet so you can sort of hear yourself breathing while you're listening and then another moment being so loud and muscular and intense that it knocks you back on your heels. That's a tough thing to do on a record. It's a much easier thing to do live because you can literally blast someone's head off and then very quickly go to something really quiet and subtle. I really do think we have the best show I've seen right now. I don’t think I know anybody else who plays a better concert than us, right now, which is cool. I really am super extremely proud of what we're doing live. It's super musical, really funny and fun, and really sad and touching. There are tender moments, and aggressive moments. It covers all the ground I really love in music and live music and live art. We have a really beautiful visual presentation as well that's weirdly connected with my motions. When I move quickly the visuals move. It's really cool. We've worked really hard on it. It's kind of the shit. See How to Dress Well as part of Sydney Festival's FBi Radio series at The Aurora on January 23, at Sugar Mountain Festival on January 24, or at The Brightside's Australia Day Eve on January 25. "What is This Heart?" is out now via Domino.
Fancy yourself a bit of an art aficionado but don't quite have the budget to put together your own private collection? You're in luck. French gallery chain and worldwide phenomenon YellowKorner are about to launch their first Australian store in Bondi Junction Westfield. YellowKorner was lauched in France in 2006 by friends and photography lovers Alexandre de Metz and Paul-Antoine Brian, before opening in locations throughout Europe and the United States. The concept is simple: to make well-known photographic prints accessible to people on a smaller budget. Instead of offering 10 prints at £5,000, the gallery chooses to publish 500 at £100, making art available to a wider group of budding collectors. YellowKorner presents a wide panorama of contemporary photography worldwide. The initiative makes it possible to buy works by some of the world's best: Yann Arthus-Bertrand, Dorothea Lange, Man Ray, Jean Dieuzaide and Bert Stern YellowKorner is set to launch in Bondi Junction on Monday 4 November, with special guest artist, France's Oliver Lavielle rumoured to be making an appearance. de Metz and Briat are certainly succeeding in their aim to offer more affordable prices, making it easier for anyone to build a terrific print collection. Image: Gainsbourg Chez Ses Parents, 1968 by Jacques Auber
Last year, the Fever-Tree Gin & Tonic Festival was an in-person affair, with the huge gin and tonic festival descending upon Sydney's Centennial Park. That was then, though. For 2020, lovers of the classic tipple can look forward to the Fever-Tree Online Gin & Tonic Festival instead. Yes, as the extra word in its title makes plain, it's going virtual. Here, you'll have the chance to sample eight different gins, as matched with top tonics from Fever-Tree's range of mixers. For $55, they'll be sent to your house — in a festival kit that also includes homemade dehydrated garnishes, two glasses, a tasting mat, snacks and a pairing guide, as well as access to the digital festival. Then, all you need to do is hop online from 5.30–7pm on Saturday, June 13, when the fest will unleash a heap of juniper-themed boozy fun. Think guided tastings and gin masterclasses, with bartenders and gin experts on hand. Gins from Adelaide Hills, Bombay Sapphire and Hendrick's will also be on offer — and if you already have enough gin at home, you can join in for free on the night without needing to buy a festival kit. A link to the virtual fest will be made available on Fever-Tree's social media on the date.
This article is sponsored by our partner The City of Sydney. If Sydney and Melbourne were sisters, Sydney might sometimes feel like the Jan of the family; often looked upon as Melbourne's less-fashionable younger sibling — the kind that tries hard but will never be as effortlessly hip, nor as popular, as Marcia. But during August and September, Sydney will prove her worth plus some, with celebrations of style happening throughout the CBD and within a select group of Sydney's hippest, most eclectic villages — Newtown, Paddington and the famously trendy Surry Hills — for the Sydney is Fashion festival. It's undeniable that Surry Hills has a distinct fashion flavour. Unconventional style has blossomed there over recent years, with a tilt towards the artisanal rather than brand labels. Saturday, 31 August, will showcase this uniqueness, with many of Surry Hills' most popular fashion boutiques such as The Standard Store, Grandma Takes a Trip, Paris Texas, Cota Gallery and Somedays offering a range of in-store events, designer appearances and deals set to welcome fashion-hungry visitors from all over Sydney as well as reward devoted locals. Then on Saturday, 7 September, visit Surry Hills Markets for a day of VIP events and discount offers on a range of vintage, handmade, pre-loved and recycled goods. Check out the Surry Hills is Fashion website for further details. I always liked Jan better anyway. Image: Lyndal Irons
If you missed out on the JD Set birthday bash, we commiserate - it was an epic night. Don't worry too much though, as you have another chance to attend a party thrown by these guys, who seem to be pretty damn good at it. This time around, you will be entertained by the tattooed punksters Good Charlotte, who brought you the angst-ridden head-bangers 'The Anthem', 'Little Things' and 'I Just Wanna Live'. In line with the JD set tradition, Good Charlotte will play a cover set of a band that has been a major influence on them, and this time it's none other than Weezer, whose 1994 album The Blue Album was one of the most important released in the nineties. If this band is only ringing a very faint bell through the haze of the nineties, the songs 'Undone - The Sweater Song' or 'Buddy Holly' might take you back. Good Charlotte will also be playing some of their own songs, so get your eyeliner and fingerless gloves ready for a Jack Daniels-fuelled night of music. To go in the running for one of two double passes to the JD Set, just make sure you're subscribed to Concrete Playground then email us with your preference of Sydney, Brisbane or Melbourne shows. Entries close Monday, November 7 at 5pm. https://youtube.com/watch?v=lPHRJc73Jqg Sponsored post
The West's love affair with Chinese artists is rolling on. White Rabbit Gallery’s new show was only recently unveiled, and now Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation are following with a sample of Swiss businessman Uli Sigg’s stockpile of contemporary Chinese portraiture. Go Figure! takes an enlarged view of the idea of portraiture — the face and the body are not thematic concerns but vessels for broader comments about Chinese politics. There are works by Yu Youhan and Ai Weiwei, but the exhibition’s centrepiece is Old People’s Home by Sun Yuan and Peng Yu, an installation of motorised wheelchairs listlessly propelling ancient feeble men around the room. It's hyper-real and life-sized and downright creepy. There are no direct models of world leaders, but there are weird and deliberate resemblances — one is an Arab leader, one could be Fidel Castro, one is a Greek Orthodox priest. One holds an empty beer can, another reads the Moscow Times, one is sleeping, but he could be dead. The guts is in the details — traces of delicate white hair on the back of a hand, a hearing aid, an ominous melanoma spot. The overall effect is a kind of old people's dodgem car rink — the wheelchairs have censors to stop them from bumping into you, but you almost feel like they might. You're left with the gentle, eerie whirs of wheels and the stopping and starting of motors. Old People’s Home is a meditation on the transient nature of power, and perhaps best read as a psychological take on the depths of denial dictators plumb. Their self-mythologising is, to a point, futile, as their bodies and minds must eventually hurtle towards oblivion like the rest of us. However, leaders die but their systems and legacies live on — China is surely proof of this — so the analogy of Old People’s Home can only be drawn so far. But there’s an odd satisfaction in seeing once fearsome rulers caught in their own unstoppable senility. It's natural justice, a type of inbuilt obsolescence. The great contradiction of a country undergoing massive economic transformation without real political change, of a wide open free market with fierce authoritarian rule, remains the potent inspiration for generations of new Chinese artists. Go Figure! offers us one more glimpse of this strange new world. Image: Yu Youhan - Untitled (Mao Marilyn), 2005
A co-production with ILBIJERRI Theatre Company, Coranderrk will come to the Belvoir stage in December. The year is 1881. The scene is set at a Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry. Indigenous men and women gather, taking on the Aboriginal Protection Board. Their aim? Simple: to be allowed to continue their personal experiment in self-determination. Coranderrk features an all-Indigenous cast, recreating this inquiry for stage. In what is set to be a wonderful piece of theatre and an effective history lesson for all Australians, Coranderrk is an indication of the power of the written word, reviving the voices of those past, those fighting for a better future for Australia.
Opera has been badged as an art form only accessible to a certain group of people. However, plenty of opera fans and makers are determined to introduce it a broader audience — think Sydney's recent production of Carmen, set on the harbour, or Sydney Chamber Opera's smaller scale, surprising shows. This same drive is behind Opera at the Vanguard, the latest contemporary operatic offering in Sydney. The intimate Vanguard provides its audience with an up-close perspective of the emotional power inherent in opera. Audiences can expect to hear classics such as 'Nessun Dorma' and 'E la solita storia del pastore' from experienced Opera Australia performers Warren Fisher, Katie Stenzel, Agnes Sarkis and Simon Halligan. All costumes in the performance are inspired by the late Alexander McQueen, adding to the grandeur and spectacle of the event. Crucially, Opera at the Vanguard is making opera affordable, with GA tickets just $33.80. It is only on for five nights though, so whether you are an operatic newcomer or a lifelong fan, get in quick.
On Wednesday, January 15, New South Wales was hammered by massive thunderstorms that stretched from Glen Innes in the state's north down to Eden, 1000 kilometres away on the Sapphire Coast near the Victorian border. In Sydney's CBD, 40 millimetres of rain fell between 8-30pm–11.30pm, flooding Town Hall station. Elsewhere in NSW, even heavier downpours inundated places like Eurobodalla on the South Coast, where more than 63 millimetres of rain fell in just one hour. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Places to Roam Australia (@places_to_roam) Damaging winds were also recorded across the state, with gusts as strong as 107 kilometres per hour destroying property and crops in places like Wagga Wagga. Power outages impacted as many as 150,000 homes in Sydney's satellite suburbs and north of the city near Newcastle, with some areas still without power at the time of publishing this report. Sydney airport, where 100 kilometres-per-hour winds were recorded, also suspended flights temporarily. Sydneysiders flocked to social media to share hundreds of dramatic images of lightning strikes in the heart of the city. Some of the most striking captures depict multiple lightning forks striking the CBD simultaneously. View this post on Instagram A post shared by ᴘʜɪʟɪᴘᴘ (@philipps.world.of.photography) The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) has warned that yet more storms are likely to roll across NSW on Thursday, 16 January and Friday, 17 January, with strong winds and heavy rains forecast. The State of Emergency Service has called for people on the Sapphire Coast in the state's far south to remain indoors until further tempests have passed. The BOM also issued a warning for surfers to be aware of "large and powerful" conditions up and down the eastern seaboard as high winds continue to lash the NSW coast. However, it also lifted its extreme weather warning on Sydney, stating that the worst of the storms have now passed the city. View this post on Instagram A post shared by My Life Experience (@herlifeexperience) View this post on Instagram A post shared by Rebecca Frost (@msrebeccafrost) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ᴘʜɪʟɪᴘᴘ (@philipps.world.of.photography) View this post on Instagram A post shared by Nicole McInnes (@wideeyedgirl) View this post on Instagram A post shared by ᴘʜɪʟɪᴘᴘ (@philipps.world.of.photography) For further details of Sydney's weather forecast, visit the BOM website. Top image: Charles Miller
Stay tuned. More info coming soon.
A lot of doco makers rely on the adage that 'truth is stranger than fiction'. A few supremely lucky ones find a story that is so mind-bogglingly strange that they could sit back and let the film make itself. The Imposter is just such a story, at every stage revealing another layer of the bizarreness of which human beings are capable. British director Bart Layton is no slouch, either; the film is slickly made, metring out its tantalising information and almost single-handedly reviving the use of re-creation as a respected documentary tool. The subject is an incident in 1997 in which a 17-year-old Texan boy, Nicholas Barclay, was returned to his family after having been missing for three years. Except he turned up in Spain, had no physical resemblance to the missing blue-eyed boy, was noticeably older, and spoke with a French accent. He was accepted back into the family regardless. His sister thought she could recognise that smile anywhere. From the relatives to the authorities, everyone around him seemed ready to excuse the differences, taking the 'he's not the little boy you knew' trope to extreme and literal levels. In reality, the boy was French con man Frederic Bourdin, a 23-year-old obsessively seeking the comfort of childhood. At first, it seems the documentary reveals his identity prematurely, almost right from the beginning — but that's just because you don't know, at that point, of all the twists that remain for the story to take. The supremely tense Imposter features sensitive, in-depth interviews with almost all of the major characters in the incident, including Bourdin, the FBI agent who handled his repatriation, the PI whose suspicions uncovered the truth and Nicholas's mother and sister. Without them, no number of re-creations could have carried the story so far or got you close to understanding any of these people's motivations. And as for the re-creations, they're filmed with a keen cinematographer's eye and a sense of enigma, putting them at a long distance from those we're used to on made-for-TV specials. https://youtube.com/watch?v=mENui3UdMOY
As the Macrodata Refinement division has learned over two seasons so far, alongside a few other Lumon Industries staff as well, a company that literally messes with your brain as a condition of employment is hardly a great place to work. The shady organisation at the heart of Severance sure does love throwing parties for its hired hands, though — and whether you're keen on a music dance experience, a melon bar, an egg bar social, a waffle party, a coffee cozy, pineapple bobbing, a hall of funhouse mirrors or some choreography and merriment, you'll want to celebrate the Apple TV+ hit officially being renewed for season three. The news comes fresh from Severance's second season dropping its unforgettable final episode, and after a phenomenal sophomore run for the show in general — after it returned in January 2025 almost three years after its first season debuted. So, if you watched season two wrap up and instantly wondered if there'd be more to Mark S (Adam Scott, The Monkey) and Helly R's (Britt Lower, Darkest Miriam) tale, and everyone else's, you didn't have to wait long for an answer. "Making Severance has been one of the most-creatively exciting experiences I've ever been a part of," said Ben Stiller (Nutcrackers), one of the guiding forces behind the series — directing 11 episodes across two seasons to-date, including season two finale 'Cold Harbour', and also executive producing — announcing the show's renewal. "While I have no memory of this, I'm told making season three will be equally enjoyable, though any recollection of these future events will be forever and irrevocably wiped from my memory as well." Added Scott, who not only stars but is also among Severance's executive producers: "I couldn't be more excited to get back to work with Ben, Dan, the incredible cast and crew, Apple and the whole Severance team. Oh hey also — not a huge deal — but if you see my innie, please don't mention any of this to him. Thanks." There's no word yet as to when Severance season three will arrive, after Hollywood's strikes played a part in the extended wait for season two. The show's creator, writer and executive producer Dan Erickson noted that he "can't wait to continue spreading woe, frolic, dread and malice with these truly incredible people". Locking in Severance's return comes just a week after Apple TV+ also confirmed more episodes of another of its huge successes, Ted Lasso, which will be back for its fourth season sometime in the future. In season two of Severance, a few queries earned the show's attention. The first: what happens when a group of employees attempts to raise issues about their workplace? Mark S, Helly R and their colleagues Dylan (Zach Cherry, Fallout) and Irving (John Turturro, Mr & Mrs Smith) all found out, but also started asking more questions about their existence as innies, their forced subservience not only to Lumon but to their outies, and their hopes of releasing their own dreams and desires. Both within and beyond the company's walls, Mark's outie's quest to find his wife Gemma (Dichen Lachman, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes) also drives season two's narrative. Christopher Walken (Dune: Part Two), Patricia Arquette (High Desert), Tramell Tillman (Hunters), Jen Tullock (Perry Mason) and Michael Chernus (Carol & the End of the World) returned among the cast for season two, joined by new cast members Sarah Bock (Bruiser), Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (La Palma), Gwendoline Christie (Wednesday), Bob Balaban (Asteroid City), Merritt Wever (Memory), Alia Shawkat (The Old Man) and John Noble (Twilight of the Gods). There's obviously no trailer for season three as yet, but check out the trailer for Severance season two below: Severance streams via Apple TV+ — and we'll update you with a release date for season three when one is announced. Read our review of season one and our season-two interview with Christopher Walken.
The streaming television market is a helluva place to be in 2023. So many platforms are competing for our attention, time and money to deliver content to our eyeballs. It has its perks, though. Never before has there been so many great choices available. If the competition is too much for you, and you can't remember which service costs $14 a month and which costs $10, there is a free solution on hand. Enter SBS On Demand. The Australian channel doesn't just broadcast — it streams as well. But what you might not know about its on-demand service is that it's completely free, and comes with a perfect blend of homegrown Aussie and internationally sourced content. If the costs of streaming are getting you down, maybe it's time to trim your subscriptions and take a tour of the SBS On Demand catalogue. Let's start with drama — here are eight shows to watch. EROTIC STORIES: EIGHT STORIES OF LOVE AND INTIMACY IN MODERN AUSTRALIA Brand-new in 2023, Erotic Stories joins the ever-growing SBS On Demand catalogue as a fresh, original title. Told in an anthology form, this series shines a light on the intricacies of modern relationships: from middle-aged mates experimenting with remotely controlled sex toys to breaking a sexual drought by trying out dating apps. The series doesn't shy away from getting spicy, wondering how spicy each episode is? Read our ranking. Erotic Stories has a star-studded cast that any Australian drama fan will recognise: talents like Frances O'Connor (The End), Kate Box (Deadloch), Rärriwuy Hick (Wentworth), Zahra Newman (Thirteen Lives), Catherine McClements (The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart) and Danielle Cormack (Rake) and Alex Fitzalan (The Twelve). FARGO: THE CRIME CAPER RETURNS FOR SEASON FIVE No, this isn't the legendary 1996 film directed by the Coen brothers. If this is your first time hearing about the small-screen adaptation, you've been missing out. Since its premiere in 2014, Fargo has returned four more times with twisted tales of murder in the American midwest. In the latest instalment, an unexpected series of events lands a seemingly innocent housewife in hot water and under potentially lethal scrutiny. Fargo season five stars Juno Temple (Ted Lasso) as Dorothy 'Dot' Lyon, Jon Hamm (Good Omens) as Roy Tillman, Jennifer Jason Leigh (Hunters) as Lorraine Lyon, Joe Keery (Stranger Things) as Gator Tillman, David Rysdahl (Oppenheimer) as Wayne Lyon, Richa Moorjani (Never Have I Ever) as Minnesota deputy Indira Olmstead and Lamorne Morris (New Girl) as North Dakota trooper Witt Farr. THE DOLL FACTORY: A PERIOD DRAMA ABOUT LOVE, ARTISTRY AND OBSESSION Coming to Australia through SBS On Demand, The Doll Factory is a six-part historical thriller that adapts the bestselling novel by Elizabeth Macneal. Take a trip to London in 1850, where protagonist Iris paints dolls for a living and dreams of a career as an artist when she meets a taxidermist and a painter, who will take her down a path of dark obsession that she might not return from. The Doll Factory stars Esme Creed-Miles (Hanna) as Iris, Éanna Hardwicke (Smother) as Silas, Mirren Mack (The Witcher: Blood Origin) as Rose, George Webster (Wedding Season) as Louis and Sharlene Whyte (Sanditon) as Madame. SAFE HOME: A BOLD STORY TACKLING AUSTRALIA'S DOMESTIC VIOLENCE EPIDEMIC The gripping limited series Safe Home from SBS On Demand is only four episodes in length, but wastes no time and pulls no punches in telling a series of captivating and nerve-wracking stories centred around a family violence legal centre. Protagonist Phoebe has just moved into a new communications role at the centre after leaving a major law firm, but the situations in which she finds herself in this tense new environment are as confronting as they can be. Safe Home stars Aisha Dee (The Bold Type) as Phoebe Rook, Mabel Li (Erotic Stories) as Jenny Lee, Thomas Cocquerel (The Gilded Age) as Julian MacDonald, Antonio Prebble (Double Parked) as Grace MacDonald and Chenoa Deemal (Troppo) as Layla Morris. ROGUE HEROES: THE ORIGIN STORY OF THE INFAMOUS BRITISH SAS Based on the bestselling book by Ben Macintyre, Rogue Heroes tells a World War II tale of how three young and daring British officers created the original unit of the British SAS. The modern elite special forces team had to start somewhere, and its beginnings involved a small team of cheeky soldiers disobeying orders, parachuting behind enemy lines and quickly becoming the worst nightmare of Axis forces in 1940s North Africa. Rogue Heroes stars Connor Swindells (Sex Education) as David Stirling, Alfie Allen (Game of Thrones) as Jock Lewes, Jack O'Connell (Lady Chatterley's Lover) as Paddy Mayne, Sofia Boutella (Guillermo Del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities) as Eve Mansour and Jacob Ifan (A Discovery of Witches) as Pat Riley. WHY WOMEN KILL: A DARK DRAMEDY OF FASHION, LEADING LADIES AND MURDER Hailing from creator Marc Cherry (Desperate Housewives), this comedic drama features two seasons that stand apart. Season one stars Lucy Liu (Shazam! Fury of the Gods) as Simone Grove, Ginnifer Goodwin (Zootopia) as Beth Ann Stanton and Kirby (Scott Pilgrim Takes Off) as Taylor Harding. The season follows three women from different decades who are connected by living in the same Californian mansion, all experiencing infidelity in their marriages and dealing with it with a touch of violence. Season two delivers a new story and cast with the same glamour, humour and even more murder. This time the focus is what it means to be beautiful, and also what it means to hide one's true face from the world — with Allison Tolman (Fargo), Lana Parrilla (Once Upon a Time), Nick Frost (The Nevers), BK Cannon (Switched at Birth), Jordane Christie (The Haunting of Hill House), Matthew Daddario (Shadowhunters) and Veronica Falcón (Queen of the South) starring. DARK WINDS: NAVAJO TRIBAL POLICE INVESTIGATE A SERIES OF STRANGE MURDERS Based on the Leaphorn and Chee novels by Tony Hillerman, Dark Winds combines elements of a psychological thriller, cultural history piece and compelling crime drama. Set in the Navajo Nation in 1971, the series follows tribal police lieutenant Joe Leaphorn and his deputy Jim Chee as they investigate a series of unusual murders that tell a much darker tale than either of them can imagine. Dark Winds stars Zahn McClarnon (Reservation Dogs) as Joe Leaphorn, Kiowa Gordon (Roswell, New Mexico) as Jim Chee, Jessica Matten (Tribal) as Bernadette Manuelito, Elva Guerra (Reservation Dogs) as Sally Growing Thunder and Noah Emmerich (Space Force) as Leland Whitover. VIGIL: A DETECTIVE WORKS A MURDER CASE ONBOARD A NUCLEAR SUBMARINE In its first season, Vigil has all the trimmings of your favourite UK police thrillers: a skilled detective, a mysterious death, and a clash between politics and justice. What makes Vigil unique? The death is onboard a nuclear submarine, and the Scottish police Detective Chief Inspector looking into the case must remain there as the vessel patrols the Atlantic while she investigates. Vigil stars Suranne Jones (Gentleman Jack) as Amy Silva, Rose Leslie (The Time Traveller's Wife) as Kirsten Longacre, Shaun Evans (Endeavour) as Glover, Paterson Joseph (Boat Story) as Newsome, Anjli Mohindra (The Lazarus Project) as Tiffany Docherty and Connor Swindells (Rogue Heroes) as Hadlow. All of these titles and more are streaming for free on SBS On Demand. To find more information or other great shows, visit the website.
If your design tastes run towards the unique, the locally made and the sustainable, you should make a swift beeline towards Darlinghurst's Foley Street. An all-too-easy to miss laneway off Crown Street, this small pocket of Sydney is a veritable promised land of gorgeous homewares, fashion and accessories. Whether you're hunting for the perfect porcelain ceramic vase, in the market for a pair of handmade shoes or craving some artful cushions to festoon your sofa (and prop you up during your Netflix binging), odds are you'll find it in on Foley. We spoke to the passionate artisans and creative minds currently occupying the curated spaces about their origins, what makes their brand tick, and what they do to ensure their business is as ethical as it is aesthetically appealing. Have a read, and then go check it out for yourself. CLARA HO: FINE FELLOW For Clara Ho, the ebullient founder of men's lifestyle store Fine Fellow, it's all about "buying less, but buying better". Stocking a luxurious array of carefully curated, exclusively Australian designs, style-savvy blokes — or anyone whose sense of style favours the sleek and masculine — can find everything here from accessories to fashion to homewares to grooming (fancy beard oil alert!). Whether she's discovered their wares at a market, spied them on Instagram or been introduced through mutual friends in the industry, Ho works closely with the designers she stocks, actively seeking those that share her values and aesthetic, which revolve around high quality design and sustainability. "The styles we stock are timeless and the quality is really impeccable. It's not going to fall apart after one summer," she says. Her favourite recent addition to the store? Handmade, gold-rimmed whiskey glasses and decanters from KAH, aka Sydney-trained, Adelaide-based glass artist Katie Ann Houghton. Fine Fellow is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday 12–5.30pm, Thursday 12–7pm, Saturday 10am–4pm and Sunday 12–4pm. MARINA ROORDA: BERMUDA BLACK Founded in 2016 by former graphic designer Marina Roorda, Bermuda Black is a label that seduces fans of refined, minimalist fashion incorporating subtle detailing and an avant-garde twist. Think elegant black leather brogues with hot pink lining (they exist here). From shoes to clothing to handbags, Roorda's aesthetic manages to strike a balance "between rawness and precision", combining her love of the conceptual with the practicalities inherent to hand-made design. Which, FYI, requires stamina: a single pair of shoes takes a minimum of 15 hours. The brand takes care to source ethically produced materials, and minimises scraps by refashioning or donating smaller pieces — if you drop by, you'll most likely be able to catch a glimpse of Marina at work at the in-store atelier. Self-described "behind-the-scenes guy" Adrian Roorda says their inspiration to position the atelier in the rear of the store came from wanting people to "be able to experience first-hand what goes into making a pair of shoes, as well as the design process — that's not something you see very often". Bermuda Black is open Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday 11am–6pm, Saturday 11am–5pm and Sunday 12–4pm. [caption id="attachment_682841" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Supplied.[/caption] NAOMI TAPLIN: STUDIO ENTI Ceramicist Naomi Taplin grew up with clay. Her mother was a potter, and after studying fine arts, she made an instinctive journey towards ceramics. Since moving into her first shared studio space five years ago to her recent move into the spacious store on Foley Street, Taplin's elegant porcelain tableware, lighting and accessories have garnered a loyal following. Studio Enti's designs are beautiful, but they're also sturdy. They last. And like her neighbours, Taplin is diligent about working with local materials (Australian porcelain, to be exact) and embracing sustainability via a classic design aesthetic. "Once something's fired, it's permanent," she says. "If it's something faddy, it's a waste of material." Moving into Foley St was a thrill for the designer, who relishes the interaction it permits. "Ceramics are something people want to touch, pick up and hold in their hands before they invest in it. I feel really lucky to get to talk to people and have a real conversation about the process." Studio Enti is open Tuesday to Friday 10am–6pm and Saturday 10am–4pm. BEX FROST AND CHRISTIAN OLEA: SPUNKY BRUISER For those not already familiar with fashion and accessories moniker Spunky Bruiser, its founders Bex Frost and Christian Olea sum up the brand's aesthetic as "distinctive, lusciously gritty and unapologetic". Celebrating sustainable design, the duo use recycled and reclaimed materials to hand-make one-off garments for men, women and kids, taking a firm anti-mass production stance and proudly turning the usual shopping experience on its head. Trends are ignored ("Our designs are made to be eternally relevant," say the couple), as is standard sizing (garments come in "you size"). Instead, the pair specialises in custom making pieces to suit not only a person's frame, but their personality too. This often means incorporating sentimental materials belonging to the client into the work — they're particularly known for re-working tapestries into eclectic, eye-catching jackets. They even offer to patch up any wear and tear for the lifetime of the garment! As Bex and Christian say, there's nothing quite like it out there. Spunky Bruiser is open daily 11am–6pm. Images: Steven Woodburn.
With over 1,400 pieces on display, Capella Sydney has one of the finest art collections of any hotel in the country. If you'd like to get more acquainted with it, you're invited to take part in a new monthly series, The Art of Dining at Capella. Fusing this extraordinary art collection with tantalising cuisine from the hotel's renowned restaurant, Brasserie 1930, this fascinating encounter makes the property even more of a must-visit destination. Curated by international art and design consultancy, The Artling, leading art advisor Fiona McIntosh will guide this exclusive art tour, offering guests incredible insight into the art that adorns the hotel's storied walls. Plus, the tour includes a complimentary glass of champagne and a double pass to the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (MCA), encouraging visitors to immerse themselves further in the city's art scene. There's enough artwork spread throughout Capella Sydney's expansive space to satisfy your cultural cravings. Focused on Australian artists across numerous mediums, you'll discover Otis Carey's GAAGAL mural in the McRae Bar, while Max Berry's Landscape Effect is a suitably peaceful complement to the divine pool area. Elsewhere, pieces by Nadia Culph, Nick Psomiadis, Belinda Yee and George Hall bring even more sophistication to the suites. Each tour begins in the hotel's Farrer Place lobby, which is home to a pair of site-specific fabric wall hangings by Elise Cakebread, Flotsam and Jetsam. Ready to check them out? Starting from Thursday, May 29, guests who make a booking for Brasserie 1930 will have an exclusive opportunity to book this private guided art tour for $40. Images: Ethan Smart.
Everybody loves a hero. It's why we grant them such leeway when it comes to movies. Even cinema's antiheroes and vigilantes find a way into our hearts. We forgive them their tragic flaws, their moral failings and their chequered pasts because ultimately we know they'll perform that final and almighty act of heroism capable of securing their absolution and restoring our faith in humanity. Except, that is, in the case of Attack The Block. Here our 'heroes' are a gang of juvenile thugs menacing the dark streets of a South-London housing estate. Led by the imposing Moses (John Boyega), their introduction comes by way of the callous mugging of Sam, a quiet, unassuming young nurse on her way home from work (played by the delightful Jodie Whittaker). As they coldly relieve her of her belongings they're suddenly interrupted by the explosive crash-landing of an alien visitor. Sam runs one way, the alien the other way, and the gang quickly gives chase to despatch it, thereby unwittingly sparking an alien invasion hell-bent on revenge. From that point on there's a lot to like about this film by first-time director Joe Cornish. The aliens themselves are a captivating and innovative creation, with their rotoscoped frames and fluorescent teeth providing an excellent example of what can be achieved when imagination trumps budget. The setting of an alien invasion within the confines of a housing estate is also as crafty from a budgeting perspective as it is a refreshing break from the traditionally global scope of these sorts of tales. The problem, though, is that one never really feels any affection or sympathy for the hoodlum-come-defender protagonists. While their performances are strong and their banter consistently amusing, they never once apologise to Sam after their paths recross and it's that absence of remorse that robs the characters of any meaningful development. They end the film as they began: cynical, disenfranchised rebels for whom physical strength is everything and whose criminality is justified because society has seemingly abandoned the working class. Kids defending earth from alien invaders is a terrific premise, but only if you want the kids to survive in the end, and in this film that's not necessarily the case. Attack The Block is undeniably fun and even scary on more than a few occasions, but it ultimately feels too much like a movie you want to like more than you actually do. https://youtube.com/watch?v=cD0gm7dHKKc
To some she was a caregiver. To others, a recluse. Now, the world knows her as an artist. Vivian Maier had a lot of faces, all of which are revealed in a problematic new documentary releasing in cinemas this week. Directed by John Maloof and Charlie Siskel, the film pulls back the curtain on the life of its titular subject, a woman who, in the years since her death, has gone from a total unknown to one of the most acclaimed street photographers in history. That's the premise of Finding Vivian Maier. The problem is that it appears she never wanted to be found. The documentary begins in 2007, when Maloof, an author and amateur historian, was doing research for a book about Chicago. On a whim, he purchased a box of old, undeveloped photographs at an auction — photographs that just so happened to have been taken by Vivian Maier. Blown away by her talent, Maloof stuck her name into Google, only for his search to turn up a blank. So over the next few years, he continued to look, slowly uncovering more about the artist while shining an ever brighter spotlight on her work. As it turns out, Maier spent most of her life working as a nanny. Interviews with the children she cared for, now adults, paint an eccentric portrait of a bold, opinionated woman with combat boots and a phoney French accent, who would take them on outings to the rough side of town just so she could get an interesting picture. She was also a prolific hoarder, collecting not just photographs, but letters, receipts and stacks and stacks of newspapers. She never married, never had kids and, despite her remarkable body of work, appears to have died penniless and alone. It's certainly an intriguing story, one that Maloof and Siskel milk for everything it's worth. But, as the documentary goes on, it also becomes increasingly clear that Maier herself would have been uncomfortable with the attention she's being given. She never made any significant attempts to showcase her work while she was alive, and appears to have gone to great lengths to keep her private life hidden. Throughout the film, various people speculate, often rather tastelessly, about her feelings and state of mind. Ultimately, without the participation of Maier herself, it's simply impossible to know. Maloof, meanwhile, comes across as extremely unlikable; a self-congratulatory little hipster poking his nose where it doesn't belong. There are obviously a whole stack of moral issues at play here, but whether or not you can justify viewing Maier's work without her consent, it's pretty clearly not okay to rummage through her personal life just to satisfy a tawdry curiosity. Finding Vivian Maier smacks of gossip and exploitation. Let the poor woman rest in peace. https://youtube.com/watch?v=2o2nBhQ67Zc
If Uluru's stunning Field of Light installation doesn't already have you planning a trip to the centre of the country, then the latest news out of the Northern Territory might — Litchfield Adventure Park, the NT's most popular national park, is getting a $12.1 million makeover. As part of the facelift announced by the NT Government, new areas of the 1500 square kilometre park will be opened up to visitors, including five new swimming spots and waterfalls, 40 kilometres of new four-wheel drive tracks and three new campgrounds. Established as a national park in 1986, Litchfield is located 120 kilometres south-east from Darwin, and is a particularly popular spot for day-trippers. Indeed, it's the Top End's most popular national park, attracting almost 370,000 visitors a year. The new addition — in the park's north, as reported by the ABC — expected to increase that number by 60,000 annually. At present, there's plenty at Litchfield to entice visitors anyway, including existing swimming holes, camping spots, picnic grounds, bushwalking tracks, scenic lookouts and more. A highlight for adventurous trekkers is the 39-kilometre Tabletop Track, which takes up to five days to complete, with camp sites along the way. For more information about Litchfield Adventure Park, visit the park's website.
A Sydney institution, White Rabbit Gallery has been running free exhibitions showcasing contemporary Chinese art for over a decade. From exhibitions focusing on all things luminous to deep dives into the art of storytelling, the White Rabbit team continues to wow Sydneysiders with thought-provoking collections. The Chippendale favourite's latest, I Am the People, is running until November, and examines the relationship between class and modern China. The vibrant exhibition prods at the current social dynamics of the global superpower, providing perspectives on topics like the relationship between urban and rural communities, the history of the working class and the future of the country. While these may seem like some rather big topics to be examining, the power of White Rabbit's curation is its fondness for pieces that are visually striking while getting attendees pondering. Colourful LED collages, otherworldly paintings, wool rug portraits, Xinjiang cowboys and intricate steel sculptures: you'll run into all of them as you venture around I Am the People. If you want to soak in some free art, White Rabbit Gallery is open 10am–5pm Wednesday–Sunday. You can also turn the trip into a real double-header by placing your name into the ballot to score tickets to Phoenix Central Park, the gallery's neighbouring concert venue. The upcoming free season at this intimate hall features a range of experimental performances including an appearance from acclaimed UK producer Actress. Images: Hamish McIntosh.
Just because The Boys loves satirising pop culture's superhero obsession, that doesn't mean that it can't spark its own franchise. So, when the series quickly proved a hit, of course a whole Vought Cinematic Universe started springing up around it. First came the animated The Boys Presents: Diabolical. Then, Gen V arrived to take on the 'We Gotta Go Now' storyline. Get ready for more of the latter — because Prime Video has just renewed it for a second season. Gen V's freshman outing debuted back in September and won't wrap up until November; however, the streaming platform behind it has already re-enrolled. "We couldn't be happier to make a second season of Gen V. These are characters and stories we've grown to love, and we are thrilled to know people feel the same! The writers are already working on the new season — sophomore year is gonna be wild, with all the twists, heart, satire and exploding genitalia you've come to expect from the show," said showrunner Michele Fazekas (Agent Carter) and executive producer Eric Kripke (The Boys) about the second season. There's no return date for Gen V as yet, just as The Boys' fourth season doesn't yet have a release date either. But when the former does get a second spin, it'll dive back into the chaos at Godolkin University, the college for superheroes that's meant to help prepare the best of the best for caped-crusader life — until exploding classmates, creepy secret facilities and untrustworthy professors complicate matters. Season one spends time with the blood-bending Marie Moreau (Jaz Sinclair, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina), who knows that attending God U is a pivotal opportunity. After a traumatic experience when her powers kicked in, this is her chance to completely change her life — and achieve her dream of becoming the first Black woman in The Seven. Then, nothing turns out as planned. Also, things on campus (and underneath it) get shady, fast. Also starring in season one: Lizze Broadway (Based on a True Story) as Marie's roomate Emma Meyer, who can change her size; Patrick Schwarzenegger (The Staircase) as Luke 'Golden Boy' Riordan, the school's literally hot number one-ranked pupil; Maddie Phillips (Teenage Bounty Hunters) as his persuasive girlfriend Cate Dunlap; Chance Perdomo (also Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) as the magnetic Andre Anderson; and London Thor (Never Have I Ever) and Derek Luh (Shining Vale) as the gender-shifting Jordan Li. Check out the trailer for Gen V's first season below: Gen V streams via Prime Video, with a release date for season two not yet announced. Read our review of season one.
Among the many gifts that 80s cinema gave the world, Glenn Close's (Tehran) turn as a bunny-boiling jilted lover in Fatal Attraction is one of them. There's committed performances and then there's her Oscar-nominated effort as Alex Forrest, the book editor who embarks upon an affair with Michael Douglas' (Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania) married Manhattan lawyer Dan Gallagher, then doesn't appreciate being seen as a mere fling. How does another version of Fatal Attraction follow that up? Why would one bother? How can the film's erotic-thriller storyline leap to TV, find a way forward decades beyond the genre's heyday, and update its plot and long-outdated sexual politics to today? Streaming from Monday, May 1, Paramount+'s eight-part series endeavours to answer those questions — engagingly and intriguingly, and with an excellent cast. There's an air of inevitability to the new Fatal Attraction before its first episode even begins; in this peak time for turning movie classics into television shows, of course the rabbit-stewing hit is getting that treatment. From A League of Their Own and Interview with the Vampire to Dead Ringers and American Gigolo, streaming platforms can't stop remaking the past, a trend that also sees a Cruel Intentions show in the works, plus Harry Potter and Twilight series. Fatal Attraction circa 2023 doesn't just jump on that bandwagon. In finding a way to flesh out the OG film's 119-minute narrative to almost eight hours and give itself a point of difference, it's also a murder-mystery. That's a calculating but involving move, steeping the show in another current favourite approach — see: fellow recent whodunnits Poker Face, Bad Sisters, The Afterparty, The Undoing and The Flight Attendant — and putting far more than a scorned woman in focus. Brought to the small screen by Alexandra Cunningham (Physical) and Kevin J Hynes (The Offer), with the feature's screenwriter James Dearden (Christmas Survival) co-penning several episodes — the 1987 script adapted his own 1979 short Diversion, too — the latest Fatal Attraction starts with its adulterous lawyer in prison. Formerly an assistant Los Angeles district attorney and head of major crimes on the way to a judgeship, this Dan (Joshua Jackson, Dr Death) has spent 15 years in incarceration. Petitioning for his freedom, he tells the parole board that he's thought about Alex Forrest's (Lizzy Caplan, Fleishman Is in Trouble) death every day across that decade and a half. But there's another side to his words — because, once out, he's back to protesting his innocence. More than that, he's determined to track down the killer, with help from his ex-colleague and ex-detective Mike Gerard (Toby Huss, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story). Listening in on that hearing is college student Ellen (Alyssa Jirrels, Saved by the Bell), Dan's now-grown daughter, who hasn't had any contact with her father at his request during his time inside. In Fatal Attraction's present-day thread, she's handily a psychology student specialising in Carl Jung and his collaborator Toni Wolff, and calls her mother Beth's (Amanda Peet, Brockmire) second husband Arthur (Brian Goodman, I Know This Much Is True) dad. Dan wants to reconnect, a quest that unfurls in parallel to his search for the truth, as well as the show's flashbacks to the late 00s. In the latter, he's reaching 40 and flying high until his move behind the bench doesn't pan out, which coincides with new LA arrival Alex crossing his professional path as a victim's advocate. It's telling that Cunningham also has Dirty John on her resume, while Hynes has the new TV version of Perry Mason; combine the first's romance-gone-murderous stories with the second's legal dramas and that's where their spin on Fatal Attraction largely lands. In the process, there's noticeably little eroticism beyond a tumble or two in Alex's window-filled loft, but there is a vital look at the narrative from more than just Dan's viewpoint. His privilege is called out — he's the son of a judge, even making him a nepo baby — as the show also steps through his liaison with Alex from her perspective, and then from Beth's. There's no doubting that revisiting the same events through multiple characters' eyes helps fill the series' running time; however, it also helps reinforce that all tales are shaped by whoever is telling them. Indeed, when Fatal Attraction dives into Alex's history, including the lifetime of terrible treatment from her always-philandering dad and lack of affection from her mum, it puts her mental health in the spotlight, plus her thoughts, feelings and motivations. This iteration is never just about a man who strays from his nuptials and ends up with unwanted attention, prison time and his life upended, but equally about how Alex's time with Dan appears to her, and why. Playing out across both of the series' periods, Fatal Attraction is similarly concerned with how the past forever shapes our futures, a notion it unpacks in layers. That said, it also throws in a ridiculous and questionable late development to underscore that line of thinking, which blatantly and needlessly tries to set up a second season. When the show isn't making wild swerves and delivering cliffhanger twists, it benefits from having Caplan and Jackson at its centre. Sliding into Close and Douglas' shoes is no simple task, so neither attempts to imitate their predecessors, instead capitalising upon their own patent chemistry and respective strengths as performers. Caplan has always excelled at exuding intelligence and vulnerability in tandem — amid acerbic quips, it's what helped make her part in Party Down such a gem — and Jackson has been making charming but flawed his niche since Dawson's Creek, then Fringe, then The Affair. He can't sell being 55 in Fatal Attraction's later timeline, though, and visibly isn't treated well in the hair department. The series' smart casting extends to perennial scene-stealer Huss, who could turn Mike into another show's slippery lead; the ever-reliable Peet, who is never asked to play Beth as just the betrayed spouse; and Jirrels, including while saddled with talking through much of Fatal Attraction's psychological musings. With perspective such a key part of this retelling, strong supporting performances couldn't be more essential. In fact, that too is a crucial reason that returning to this tale proves impossible to ignore, like Alex: it's still a portrait of obsession, but it spies more than just one type of fixation and one basis for it. Check out the trailer for Fatal Attraction below: Fatal Attraction streams via Paramount+ from Monday, May 1. Images: Monty Brinton / Michael Moriati, Paramount+.
Next month, acclaimed chef Neil Perry will be heading back in time. He's heading back to Bondi in the 80s to revive his first restaurant, Blue Water Grill. The Bondi original has been closed for thirty years, but it'll be revived for a six-day pop-up in the CBD. This Mini-Me version of the OG will be dishing up lunch and dinner from Monday, November 19, through to Saturday, November 24, at the Rockpool Group's new event space on Bridge Street — formally home to Jade Temple (Eleven Bridge and Rockpool Est 1989). It's revisiting the same flavours, stylings and, even, service that had people flocking in during Blue Water's hey-day, as Perry himself hits the kitchen to deliver his (then) signature, Asian-accented seafood-centric fare. You might recognise another familiar face, too, as original Blue Water Grill Manager — now seafood expert and author — John Susman returns to work the front-of-house. On the menu, you can expect standout seafood, including stir-fried king prawns with tamarind dressing ($24), chargrilled swordfish with mango chilli salsa ($29), leather jacket curry ($25) and pan-friend red emperor with coconut sambal ($29) and a mussel and garam masala noodle soup ($19). To finish, you'll find the 80s' answer to espresso martinis — a frozen espresso cake to finish. Alongside the food, there'll be an Aussie-led wine selection and a retro cocktail list brimming with 80s nostalgia. Blue Water Grill is open from Tuesday–Friday 12–3pm and Monday–Saturday from 6–10pm. To book your spot, call (02) 8099 7081.
Before 2020, being airborne was nothing to write home about. Now, it seems there's little else we long for. With air travel back on the cards, let's not forget about another surefire way to break gravity's shackles this winter — having an acrobat toss you off a trapeze. Get yourself to Sydney's home of aerial and circus performance training, Aerialize, to have an acrobatic expert teach you the ropes. You don't have to sign your life away to get involved. If you want to keep things casual, book into a drop-in class during its winter training series starting July 4. With classes ranging across multiple apparatus, disciplines (tissu, corde lisse, cloud swings, handstands, dance trapeze) and heights, this is your chance to remember how it feels to take flight. And, if you've still got your Discover NSW Voucher, you can even use that to cover some of the cost. Aerialize winter series will be running from Monday, July 4 till Thursday, July 14. For more information and to book, visit the website.
Next time you head up to the Kings Cross Hotel's rooftop, you'll find something a little different to normal. The sixth-level space has transformed into Tupu's Tiki Rooftop Rumshack complete with flaming cocktails and poke bowls for two months. Running from Friday, October 16 till Saturday, November 28, the island-inspired space provides Sydneysiders with an inner city island getaway as we head into the warmer seasons. To drink, you'll find mai tais ($20), pandan coladas ($19), tonka old fashioneds ($22) and a smoking cocktail titled Tūtū Pele ($35), which is made with passion fruit sorbet and can be shared. You can pair these with the likes of salmon ($22) and vegan ($19) poke bowls, and traditional bar goodies like chicken drumsticks ($16) made with Bacardi spiced rum and pork cubano sandwiches ($20). DJs will also be spinning vinyls on weekends. The pop-up comes at time when the City of Sydney is pushing to rebuild Kings Cross's nightlife, which was dealt a hefty blow by the lockout laws. Tiki bars, however, are not without controversy. The concept has been often scrutinised in the past for leaning on cultural appropriation and colonial nostalgia. Critics of the tiki bar have labelled it exploitative and offensive as it reduces the Tiki, a deity in many Pacific Islander communities, to a kitschy drinking vessel. Tupu's Tiki is open 5pm–12am Thursday, 5pm–1am Friday–Saturday and 12pm–12am Sunday.
Wellington is heaven for gourmands, combining all the ingredients that make for a brilliant culinary getaway. There are laneways crammed with cool, little artisanal producers; clandestine cocktail bars behind unmarked doorways; quiet suburbs hiding excellent, casual and international restaurants; centre-city breweries in abundance and a pack of wineries just over the hills. And then there's the fact that the city is wedged between a picturesque harbour and sprawling farmland, so the produce scene is very, very local. Wellington is a physically small city, so it's best explored on foot. This not only helps mitigate some of the effects of a food-filled holiday, but means there's also no stress about arranging transport or planning too far in advance. Just follow your nose and tastebuds. It's often said that Wellington has more bars and restaurants per capita than New York City. Whether or not there's any truth in this, it'll surely feel like it as you explore the many beaut spots, tasting your way through the city's unique culinary ethos. SHEPHERD Tucked away down Hannahs Laneway, Shepherd features framed botanical posters, taxidermy draped with fairy lights and jars of preserves used as decoration. And this unexpected and playful, yet refined decor is mirrored in its food. This is fine dining-quality fare in a wonderfully fun atmosphere where the staff know the origins of every ingredient. Expect plenty of local seafood, Asian condiments, fermented and pickled ingredients and some of the most creative desserts you'll ever taste. The pumpkin cardamom doughnut with peanut butter popcorn and whiskey anglaise is a favourite, but the menu is seasonal and changes almost daily so expect to find a new favourite each time you stop in. [caption id="attachment_635862" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Facebook / Fix & Fogg.[/caption] FIX & FOGG What started as a hobby for then-lawyers Roman and Andrea Jewell has turned into a bit of a peanut butter empire. Fix & Fogg was born from the couple's desire to learn new skills, and it quickly became one of the most delicious products coming out of Wellington. Swing by Hannahs Laneway, and if the peanut butter flag is out — you'll know it when you see it — then the PB will be flowing. The adorable shop window is literally tucked under a staircase and offers tastings, gourmet toast and the occasional peanut butter donut. [caption id="attachment_635860" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Facebook / Husk.[/caption] HUSK Another spot hidden down an alley, another spot that's the result of a collaboration between Wellington hospo stalwarts — HUSK is a lot of things: a cafe, a bar, a brewery, a coffee roastery and a restaurant. With true dedication, the coffee and beer venture is open from 8 or 9am till late every day. Swing by for a breakfast of sardines on toast and a Karamu Coffee flat white (with beans roasted onsite), lunch featuring pork shoulder tacos and a pint of Reet Petite, a stem ginger red IPA by Choice Bros (brewed onsite) and for cheeseburger spring rolls and a barrel-aged negroni for dinner. LAMASON BREW BAR Wellington runs on strong coffee, and Lamason is where you can try the best of it in a safe environment. You won't be mocked here if you're not really sure what the difference is between V60 and Swiss Gold. Lamason does do traditional espresso and they do serve a small selection of food, but what you really want to visit for is the specialty coffee. If you're a newbie, don't be afraid to ask the staff what they recommend. Their single origin beans each have their own unique flavour profiles, and they're beautifully profiled by siphon brewing — which is basically vacuum coffee extraction, otherwise known as magic. [caption id="attachment_635861" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Facebook / Harbourside Market.[/caption] HARBOURSIDE MARKET In Wellington, you bend the knee and swear allegiance to one of the weekend produce markets. There are a handful to choose from, but Harbourside Market is the true ruler of this realm. Every Sunday from sunrise to early arvo, locals and visitors flock to the market to get their week's fruit and veg, as well as bread, cheese, meat, fish, tofu, honey, eggs, peanut butter and so on. The markets also feature a bunch of food trucks and buskers. The roti wraps and cold brew coffee are a perfect cure to a foggy Sunday head, the waterfront vista is stunning and the people watching is excellent. Maybe you've been to Auckland, maybe you've gone to the snow in Queensland, but now it's time to set your sights on Wellington. The harbourside city may be compact, but that only makes for excellent walkability from its excellent restaurants, cafes and bars to its cultural hot spots and around the great outdoors. Use our planning guide to book your trip, then sort out your Wellington hit list with our food and drink, culture and outdoor guides.
It's summer, or close enough to it. The temperature is warm, hot or scorching, or somewhere in-between. You can hear the sounds of someone splashing around in a cool, refreshing pool — but those noises aren't coming from your own swimming spot, because you don't have one. Many Australians can relate to this scenario each and every year (and, depending on where you live, maybe even most of the year round). Thankfully, it's a situation that Swimply is designed to counter. Even better: the pool-sharing service is relaunching Down Under at exactly the right time of year. Swimply first debuted locally in 2019, after getting up and running in the US and Canada before that; however, we all know what's happened in the world since then. Now, with Australians facing a summer without restrictions, the service is here to help you out if you don't have a mate with a pool, don't know your neighbours well enough to just pop by for a dip or live too far away from your local waterhole is too far away — and you're stuck trying to chill out in the bath or under the fan in the sweltering heat. Operating in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Perth, Adelaide and select regional areas, Swimply is a fairly typical sharing economy-style platform. One person rents out something they have and don't use all the time, while another person with a short-term need reaps the benefits. In this case, the service lets folks with pools lease out their backyard swimming spots when they're not in use, and helps people without pools find a place for a splash, all via an iOS and Android app. If you fall into the latter category, you can hire a spot by the hour. You can also look for pools with specific facilities and inclusions — such as chairs, lounges, towels, wifi, a changing area, access to a bathroom, a barbecue, a shady spot to sit under, night lighting, pool toys and heated waters. Some allow pets, while others are fine with parties and alcohol. Before booking, you can also scope out just how many guests you can bring (and whether kids are allowed), as well as how private the pool is from the neighbours. That said, it proves most cost-effective if you're splashing around with mates, with the cost set by the owner. Prices start at $25 per hour, but those fees vary. Some hit $100, and there's plenty around the $50–70 mark. Still, if you're keen to hop in a pool — and a private one, rather than your local public spot — Swimply gives you options. Swimply is now available to download on iOS and Android.
There's a gallery in Sydney's eastern suburbs whose artists and curators never pack up and go home. They are home. Welcome to Le Petit Bateau, an eastern suburbs art community with a backyard that's a grown-up culture playground. Without knowing the location of this little art haven, you could easily assume it was nestled in the streets of Kreuzberg in Berlin or Montmartre in Paris, rather than tucked away in the sunny streets of Bondi Beach. Just around the corner from the main road is a little sign welcoming you to Le Petit Bateau. Blink and you'll miss it. Le Petit Bateau celebrates local creatives, housing art, dance and cooking classes. Home to 25 people residing in six flats, it functions as both a communal living and art space. Anne-Sophie Ridelaire is the curator behind this venture. Six months after coming across the space in Sydney and settling into the life of the complex, she and her boyfriend, Gaetano Russo, decided to convert an old garage into a multipurpose art studio and gallery, open to everyone in the community who wants to view and participate in art, with an emphasis on combining the cultural and social. "When I was in Paris, I was working for an art gallery, [and] my dream was to open a space like this where people can come and feel free to see the artwork," she says. Everything you see is recycled, from the couches to the decorations — all bits and bobs collected from the street. Fitting in perfectly with the community's nautical name, an old boat donated by the Pyrmont Heritage Boating Club stands prominently at the entrance. "All this we found stuff on the street, so we don't spend much," she says. "[We wanted] to show people that you can build something with nothing." Art being accessible is at the heart of Le Petit Bateau, evidenced by the open door policy. The classes, the jam sessions, the art — it's all for free. Anne-Sophie sees it as important to overcome the dissonant idea that art is reserved for the upper classes. She sees Le Petit Bateau as an important opportunity to reach out to people through art and to encourage dialogue across cultures. In keeping with that, the current exhibition is The Big Picture, an international photography exchange as part of the Month of Photography in Denver, Colorado. The Big Picture involves photographers from all around the world displaying their prints inside galleries and on the streets. Anne-Sophie has been working on this project for a year now. Along with five talented local photographers, she has recently returned from six weeks in Europe, in which she and her team pasted their photographs all around the streets of Lyon, Strasbourg, Rome, Sicily and Milan. Sydney is among many other cities participating in the project, alongside Perth, Paris, Vienna, Portland, Denver, Berlin, London, Mexico City and Buenos Aires. "It is an exchange of culture through photography, and the idea is to go around cities and to pass these pictures along," she says. Working with a gallery in Sicily, the team pasted a photo of a shark at the local fish market, which attracted a crowd of observers. "The fishermen were like, 'What is that? Is it a shark? Is it real?'" she recalls. "This kind of conversation starts, and this is exactly what the project is about." At the moment, the photos are pasted around the gallery. Her next step is to post some of these attention-grabbing works around the streets of Sydney. The success of Sydney's Le Petit Bateau has inspired a similar projects in Anne-Sophie's hometown of Lyon in France, as well as in Sicily in Italy. Despite that, she is not sure if the current Bondi Beach site will remain the home of Le Petit Bateau; she views its current form as a trial. Mindful that Bondi is a residential neighbourhood, she hopes to expand somewhere where there are fewer limitations. Watching Le Petit Bateau inject a bit of Paris into the streets of Sydney has been very welcome. And it would appear that the admiration is mutual. "Sydney is a sharing place, and there's so many different cultures in Sydney, it's beautiful," she says. "It's a cosmopolitan city, and it's important to create connection between each culture, to not have gates." To keep up to date with all their events, check out their Facebook page. Images: Bodhi Liggett.
The awkwardness and clumsiness when two incongruous elements come together — that's The Danish Girl in a nutshell. The film tells the true tale of Lili Elbe, previously Einar Wegener, the transgender woman who became one of the first identified recipients of gender reassignment surgery, and is brought to the screen by The King's Speech and Les Misérables director Tom Hooper. Unfortunately, the importance of the former is overpowered by the prestige film sensibilities of the latter. That's not to say that Hooper doesn't realise the weight of the tale he's telling, nor that writer Lucinda Coxon's screenplay — based upon David Ebershoff's fictionalised novel of the same name — doesn't endeavour to do justice to Lili's story. The tone is always earnest, with the film looking lovingly and acceptingly at its central figure. Alas, any good intentions come across as laboured and overdone, packaged up a little too nicely and neatly in order to fit the Hollywood mould. The Danish Girl opts for a restrained approach, designed to carefully bring rarely seen subject matter into mainstream cinema. That's immediately apparent in the slow and stately narrative that charts Lili's (Eddie Redmayne) journey, beginning in Copenhagen in 1926. A raft of childhood feelings are reawakened when renowned landscape artist Einar Wegener dons women's stockings to pose for his portrait painter wife Gerda (Alicia Vikander). Soon after, Lili emerges. As Lili struggles with her identity, Gerda tries to remain supportive, even as their marriage is tested. Both find solace in the friendship of others, with Lili courted by the kindly Henrik (Ben Whishaw), and Gerda seeking out Einar's hometown pal Hans Axgil (Matthias Schoenaerts). He might've won an Oscar just last year for his work in The Theory of Everything, but here Redmayne proves as problematic as Hooper. The fragility he brought to his award-winning role is on display again — and indeed, that's what his performance leans heaviest upon. Yet for all his furtive looks and heavy breathing, he never really delves beneath the surface of an obviously complicated character. Thankfully, where Redmayne grates, Vikander soars, continuing her stellar run of roles and her ascent to certain stardom. There's no mistaking that her character is as much the woman of the film's title as Lili is, just as there's no mistaking that her nuanced yet open portrayal leaves the far greater impression. Vikander isn't The Danish Girl's only strength, courtesy of elegant, handsome imagery filled with intricate costumes and picturesque scenery. In fact, from the painted scenes that start the film to the many shots of Lili trying to find her femininity while looking in a mirror, Hooper crafts the feature to resemble a painting. At the same time, that mindset is also arguably the movie's biggest issue. While The Danish Girl might tell a tale that's vital, and touch upon a topic that's timely, it always does so from a distance, like it's glancing at something that's just too delicate to examine up close.
Vivid is back for its tenth birthday, and there's more to see and do this year than ever. With so much to fit in, it's often hard to know where to start and how to get off the well-beaten track. As always, there are the big lights dotting the harbour, but there are also heaps of hidden gems worth seeking out — down alleyways, against the water and even up in the air. With the help of our mates at Samsung, we've pulled together a list of some of the best works tucked away in and around The Rocks and Circular Quay. And once you find them, it'd be remiss not to snap a shot or two so you can take them home with you — especially if you have Samsung's new Galaxy S9 and S9+ phone, which allows you to take beautiful photos in the dark with its Super Low Light camera. Check out our Galaxy S9+ snaps taken by photographer Cole Bennetts, take note of his tips and make tracks to these hidden Vivid gems. CHRYSALIS — REIBY PLACE Just as a caterpillar in a cocoon needs the right conditions to emerge, so too does the butterfly within each of the illuminated shells in Chrysalis. The sound of the audience approaching causes the butterflies to stir, and as people get closer and their collective noise grows louder, the butterflies awaken. Finally, they spread their wings within their five neon homes and flit and flutter with the crowd's presence. Cole's tip: Avoid contributing to a newsfeed clogged with identical Vivid snaps by changing your perspective. Get down low or shoot from up high to make the picture more interesting. OASIS — ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN Oasis is a shimmering, bioluminescent-inspired sea of light. Set in a corner of the Botanic Garden devoted to "lonely, frightened, lost and abused children who never knew the joy of a loving family", the work is dedicated to Australia's forgotten children — those raised in orphanages, children's homes and institutions. Playing on the relationship between light and water, courage and vulnerability, the seemingly floating lights move with nature but are always steadied by their underlying strength, returning them to their upright position. PARROT PARTY — ROYAL BOTANIC GARDEN Is it a flock of birds in the gardens? Or a clandestine party among the flora? Well, it's a bit of both, actually. The festive Parrot Party in the Botanic Garden bursts with colour and sound, that grows brighter and more jovial as people join in. Perched in a pavilion, the birds' song is modulated by the crowds who come and go. Made up of Kiwi kea parrots and Australian rainbow lorikeets — a nod to the close relationship between our two countries — the flock's song grows louder as the crowd draws in, bursting with a display of sweet calls and chatter. Cole's tip: Vivid has excitement at every turn. You don't want to miss the money shot, so keep your S9 at the ready. When you stumble across a hidden gem worth snapping, double-tap the power button to bring up the camera quickly. 555 NANOMETERS — KENDALL LANE Hanging above a historic laneway in The Rocks, 555 Nanometers' sheets of green light and integrated soundscape also draw people in with the sound and sights of Australian flora and fauna. Follow the noise of cicadas calling into the night, pulling you toward this canopy of light. The name of the installation is a reference to its yellow-green hue that specifically sits at colour spectrum 555 nanometers. The human eye is most sensitive to the colour and feels most at ease when looking at it. As you look up at the illuminated perforated sheets, you'll find yourself reminded of looking at light streaming through leaves on a bright summer's day. FUGU — THE ROCKS If watching David Attenborough's Blue Planet has taught us anything, it is that the goings-on in our oceans are both compelling and crucially important. Artists Amigo and Amigo depict this in their installation Fugu. It's a kinetic light sculpture in the form of a pufferfish, a peculiar critter that changes form for protection against predators. As audiences surround the spiky creature it comes to life, expanding, contracting and pulsating in glowing multi-colour. The piece represents the fragility of life under the surface and highlights the importance of conservation. As you explore and uncover the hidden gems of Vivid, get the best snap on the new Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+, designed especially for low light. Images: Cole Bennetts.
Open the cinema doors, HAL, because one of Sydney's cinemas is serving up a special film feast. July is Stanley Kubrick's birthday month, so there's no better time to start a season of six of the director's standout features. No, you won't have to navigate a hedge maze or don a hooded robe while you're there. Golden Age Cinema and Bar in Surry Hills turning its attention to celebrating the movie master on select dates between Monday, July 21–Thursday, August 7, 2025. At The Birthday Stare: Celebrating Kubrick, the picture palace is heading to space, plunging into war, and discovering that all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy — and more. Sure, 2001: A Space Odyssey pops up in retro programs around the city quite often, but there's never a bad time to see this classic the way that it was meant to be seen — and it's kicking off the lineup. Next comes Stephen King adaptation The Shining for a trip to room 237, then the grand 18th century-set Barry Lyndon on Saturday, July 26, the filmmaker's big day. No one does dark satire like this director, as Dr Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb demonstrates. Also, no one dives into the Vietnam War's nightmares as Kubrick did with Full Metal Jacket, either. His final completed effort, aka the Nicole Kidman (Nine Perfect Strangers)- and Tom Cruise- (Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning) starring erotic thriller Eyes Wide Shut, rounds out the series.
Celebrate the Year of the Snake with a prosperity-inducing feast at Song Bird – Neil Perry's recently launched three-level Chinese restaurant. Guided by head chef Mark Lee, a sprawling Chinese New Year banquet is being served up for lunch and dinner until February 10. Priced at $149pp, the menu features a curated 8-course feast spanning traditional ingredients said to bring good luck heading into the New Year. Of course, each dish will also showcase Song Bird's appreciation for high-end ingredients and tantalising flavours. For instance, raw bigeye tuna served with iceberg lettuce and Sichuan dressing reflects the colour red for good fortune. Then, crisp lobster and scallop money bag dumplings signify prosperity, while poached Sun Farms heritage chicken and tea eggs symbolise renewal or fertility. "Food plays a central role in Chinese New Year celebrations, and we've crafted a menu that honours tradition while offering a distinct Song Bird twist," says Perry. "It's the perfect way to ring in the new year with a feast of flavours and good fortune." Image credits: Petrina Tinslay
It's about time for her arrival: Christina Aguilera's, that is, with the 'Dirrty', 'Genie in a Bottle', 'What a Girl Wants', 'Lady Marmalade' and 'Beautiful' singer heading Down Under in November for a one-night-only gig. Hitting Australia for the first time since 2007, the singer headlines Victoria's statewide music celebration Always Live, which is returning in 2023 for its second year after a successful debut run in 2022. Aguilera plays Melbourne's Flemington Racecourse on Saturday, November 25, in a show that'll also mark 20 years since her album Stripped. Not in Melbourne? This is a getaway-worthy show, given that it's the only concert she's playing on this Aussie trip. One of pop music's former Mouseketeers, the six-time Grammy-winner leads a bill that spans more than 165 artists at 60-plus events — all in Victoria. In other words, she spearheads a lineup that's designed to get the state's residents hitting up live gigs, and to entice tourists from the rest of the country to make music-filled holiday plans.
Guzman y Gomez has no shortage of venues in NSW, but it's continuing its expansion and opening one more in the Inner West on Wednesday, June 14. And to celebrate, it's offering up $5 burritos and burrito bowls, plus free coffee all day. Taking place in-store at the new Marrickville shop, the $5 eats and free coffee will be available from 7am–10pm. So, you can pop by on your lunch break, swing past after work or, even start your day with a burrito and a coffee for less than you might pay for your daily almond cappuccino from your local cafe. The new GYG location is 223–225 Marrickville Road, a few doors down from Lazybones Lounge and just around the corner from another cheap eats specialist Marrickville Pork Roll. If you can't make it down on the day, you can claim one free burrito at any time by signing up for GYG's rewards system GOMEX on its app.
Thanks to his Oscar-nominated work co-penning The Worst Person in the World's screenplay, Eskil Vogt has already helped give the world one devastatingly accurate slice-of-life portrait in the past year. That applauded film is so insightful and relatable about being in your twenties, and also about weathering quarter-life malaise, uncertainty and crisis, that it feels inescapably lifted from reality — and it's sublime. The Innocents, the Norwegian filmmaker's latest movie, couldn't be more different in tone and narrative; however, it too bears the fingerprints of achingly perceptive and deep-seated truth. Perhaps that should be mindprints, though. Making his second feature as a director after 2014's exceptional Blind, Vogt hones in on childhood, and on the way that kids behave with each other when adults are absent or oblivious — and on tykes and preteens who can wreak havoc solely using their mental faculties. Another riff on Firestarter, this thankfully isn't. The Innocents hasn't simply jumped on the Stranger Things bandwagon, either. Thanks to the latter, on-screen tales about young 'uns battling with the supernatural are one of Hollywood's current favourite trends — see also: the awful Ghostbusters: Afterlife — but all that this Nordic horror movie's group of kids are tussling with is themselves. Their fight starts when nine-year-old Ida (debutant Rakel Lenora Fløttum) and her 11-year-old sister Anna (fellow first-timer Alva Brynsmo Ramstad), who is on the autism spectrum, move to an apartment block in Romsås, Oslo with their mother (Blind's Ellen Dorrit Petersen) and father (Morten Svartveit, Ninjababy). It's summer, the days are long, and the two girls are largely left to their own devices outside in the complex's communal spaces. That's where Ida befriends Aisha (Mina Yasmin Bremseth Asheim) and Ben (Sam Ashraf), albeit not together, and starts to learn about their abilities. One of The Innocents' most astonishing scenes — in a film with many — springs from Ida discovering what the sullen, bullied Ben can do solely with his brain. Indeed, one of Vogt's masterstrokes is focusing on how she reacts to the boy's telekinesis, as demonstrated by flinging around a bottle cap. Ida is almost preternaturally excited, and she's lured in by the thrall of what Ben might be able to do next, even though she can visibly sense that something isn't quite right. Another series of unforgettable moments arises shortly afterward when her new pal, lapping up the attention from his only friend, cruelly and sickeningly shows off without even deploying his superpowers. It's a deeply disturbing turn in a movie that repeatedly isn't afraid to find evident terrors in ordinary, everyday, banal surroundings, and Ida's response — horrified, alarmed, yet unwilling to completely cut ties — again says everything. Vogt doesn't shy away from intimating something that society often doesn't, won't or both: that childhood and innocence don't always go hand in hand. En route to their new home in the film's opening sequence, Ida is already spied pinching the non-verbal Anna just to glean what she'll do. Later, as conveyed in economical imagery lensed by stellar cinematographer Sturla Brandth Grøvlen — who already has Another Round, Last and First Men, Shirley, Rams and Victoria to his name, and uses blood here with haunting precision — she's seen escalating that pain-fulled experimentation in a gutwrenching fashion. This side to the girl's personality isn't played as a twist or shock, and neither are Ben's skills and proclivities, or the friendly Aisha's telepathic powers (including the ability to communicate with Anna). Instead, The Innocents is positively matter of fact about what its pint-sized characters are capable of, and also steadfastly avoids trading in simplistic ideas of good and evil, or offering up neat rationales. It's one thing to bake such complexity into the script, which Vogt does with ease. When it comes to working with children, it's another entirely to have those layers and that eagerness to reside in shades of grey radiate from the cast. All newcomers to the screen, Fløttum, Ramstad, Ashraf and Asheim each manage to possess both relaxed naturalism and heaving texture — like they're not being recorded at all, but also as if they've always belonged in front of the camera, playing out their intricate games. Fløttum's expressive face is particularly striking in capturing The Innocents' eerie yet probing mood, whether Ida is flirting with darkness herself, frightened by what may come, or doing whatever she can to protect her sister and her family. But she's definitely not alone in making chatting without saying a thing, throwing about frying pans without moving a muscle and twisting childhood larks in otherworldly ways feel as commonplace as hitting the sandpit or swing set. They're little alike in vibe and atmosphere — a sense of fairy tale-esque dreaminess aside, although deployed in vastly dissimilar manners — but in stepping into the realms inhabited only by young hearts and minds, The Innocents slides in nicely alongside recent French delight Petite Maman. Both movies let their youthful characters exist in worlds defined only by themselves and their own rules, rather than by ideas and norms outlined by grown-ups. Neither of the two features would ever dare suggest that how its central figures experience life isn't worthy of attention or respect, or comes second to adult routines and woes. And, the pair of flicks also dive into how kids cope with everything that's constantly thrown in their direction, including by each other, with the utmost of seriousness. Here, that includes unpacking the morals they enforce among themselves, and also come to by themselves, but never explaining away something so complicated. In The Innocents, that detailed and disarming portrait of youth sits within a daylight nightmare, too — one that's not quite on the also Scandinavian-set Midsommar's level of chills, but always festers with unease nonetheless. Parallels also lurk with the superb Let the Right One In and its account of an undead tween, with the mental scares inflicted in Carrie and The Shining, and, unsurprisingly, with Thelma, the 2017 film about a university student grappling with inexplicable powers that Vogt wrote with The Worst Person in the World's Joachim Trier. The Innocents stands boldly beside its thematic peers, however, rather than in their shadows. Its various bits and pieces have their predecessors, but its blend of uncanny candour, creepiness, empathy and intelligence is all its own. While an English-language remake is bound to follow, frolicking in this smart and savvy playground again — and making something that doesn't just play like a cookie-cutter superhero origin flick at best (yes, the recent Firestarter comes to mind once more) — won't be an easy feat.
There hasn't been much to get excited about during the pandemic, but seeing fantastic film festivals jump online and offer their usually city-limited programs to Australians everywhere is definitely a rare silver lining in these difficult times. One such fest doing just that is the Sydney Underground Film Festival, which went completely virtual in 2020 and is repeating the feat in 2021. As Sydney's go-to event for all flicks weird, wonderful, out-there and anarchic, SUFF will keep doing what it's been doing well for 15 years now — but by beaming an impressive heap of movies into homes around the country. From Thursday, September 9–Sunday, September 26, cinephiles looking for something other than the usual streaming options can binge their way through the fest's 30 features and documentaries. If you like your strange and surreal movies in bite-sized servings, there'll also be nine short film programs featuring more than 100 titles. From the full-length selection, highlights include opening night's road trip comedy Sweetie, You Won't Believe It from Kazakhstan-based director Yernar Nurgaliyev; documentary Alien on Stage, about a group of UK bus drivers who decided to create their own amateur stage production based on Ridley Scott's famous sci-fi/horror classic; and Poly Styrene: I Am a Cliché, which explores X-Ray Spex frontwoman Poly Styrene's story from her daughter's viewpoint. Other standouts span Cannon Arm and the Arcade Quest, which follows an attempt to become the first in the world to play an arcade machine from the early 80s for 100 hours in a row; absurdist Japanese comedy Wonderful Paradise, as based around an eviction street party in the Tokyo suburbs; and coming-of-age comedy-thriller First Date. Or, there's Fanny: The Right To Rock, about the first all-woman band to release an album with a major record label; Ukranian effort Stranger, which sees people start to disappear from bodies of water; and Lorelai, starring familiar faces Pablo Schreiber and Jena Malone in thoughtful drama about working class life in America. SUFF will also celebrate the 40th anniversary of The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Miss Osbourne, which stars the inimitable Udo Kier and isn't your usual take on the famous tale — because, just like attending ace film fests, celebrating big cinematic milestones is also something you can do at home. The digital-only 2021 Sydney Underground Film Festival will run from Thursday, September 9–Sunday, September 26. For further information, or to buy tickets, head to SUFF's website.
One year on from launching its first Sydney store, Melbourne restaurant group DOC will be bringing another of its much-loved menus north to Sydney, but this time for a limited time only. Earlier in 2021, DOC launched Bio, a new outpost dedicated to plant-based, vegan and gluten free creations. After a successful few months down in Melbourne, Bio is getting a run in Sydney as a pop-up menu full of all vegan treats. Running from Monday, March 22 until Saturday, April 10 out of DOC's Surry Hills spot, the pop-up features a menu created by Bio head chef Tommaso Bartoli. You'll find three popular Bio mains on the lineup: vegan lasagne made with spinach pasta sheets, bechamel and lentil ragu; grilled vegetable tartare with capers and truffle paste; and chilli and garlic broccolini scottati served on top of macadamia mousse. And for dessert, you can order vegan tiramisu made with crumbled savoiardi, cashew cream and dark chocolate. DOC is open for lunch Thursday–Saturday and for dinner every night except Sunday. Book online to ensure you nab a spot.
