The short and the festive short of it: Believe in Christmas and No one Should be Alone at Christmas

(courtesy Stream Wars (c) Kurzfilm | Weihnachten Werbeclip der Erste Group Bank AG) Animated short films, especially those without dialogue, can really tell a powerfully impactful festive story with the most elegantly simple of ingredients. These two short films, which are, yes, ads in their own way, convey so much Continue Reading

Songs, songs and more birthday songs #99: Retro favourites including “Pop Muzik”, “Born to Be Alive”, “I Eat Cannibals”, “Video Killed the Radio Star” and “Elaine” by ABBA

In my early years of discovering music in the 1970s, all I really listened to were the bands/artists my parents liked like The Seekers and Nana Mouskouri, and of course ABBA who were HUGE in Australia at the time. But then somewhere around disco bursting onto the scene, all kinds Continue Reading

Time to face your fears with Orion and the Dark

(courtesy IMP Awards) SNAPSHOTOrion (Jacob Tremblay) seems a lot like your average elementary school kid – shy, unassuming, harboring a secret crush. But underneath his seemingly normal exterior, Orion is a ball of adolescent anxiety, completely consumed by irrational fears of bees, dogs, the ocean, cell phone waves, murderous gutter Continue Reading

Graphic novel review: Peculiar Woods (Vol. 1) – The Ancient Underwater City by Andrés J. Colmenares

(courtesy Simon & Schuster) Losing your sense of place in the world can be a hugely debilitating experience. Thais applies regardless of whether the replacement for your status quo is good or bad since any change, even if you can adapt quickly to it, leaves you feeling unmoored and uncertain Continue Reading