Latent Space + Ocular Oscillation Sep 16 to Oct 24, 2020 - Satosphere

FRANÇAIS app de traduction à gauche

This week, for the first time in a long time, I visited SAT to experience the latest two immersive experiences LATENT SPACE by MONOCOLOR, a work that was awarded the New Face Award of the Japan Media Arts Festival, and OCULAR OSCILLATION by Diagraf, Jean-Sébastien Baillat and Alain Thibault.

It was the first time I truly experienced the structuring power of sound. A few years ago I attended the  IX Immersion 2016 : Sonic Perspectives where the top experts on sound, acoustics and  new media art revealed their expertise and gave us ample demonstrations of how it applies to a fully embodied experience. This latest show brought back all I had learned during that symposium.

The Satosphere has been set up with air blown seats that are wide apart so you will get a safe experience. You will need a mask during the entire experience and there is plenty of hand sanitizer all over the place.

We were blown away by the vibrations and hypnotic rhythms not sure if we are traveling through space or through extra dimensions. 

DOUBLE IMMERSIVE PROGRAM: LATENT SPACE + OCULAR OSCILLATION

Wednesday to Saturday - September 16 to October 24
Two performances per evening: 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.
Duration: 45 minutes
In the Satosphere (13 years old and over)
Regular ticket: $ 22 (+ web fees)
Student ticket: $ 16 (+ web fees )
"Show + Dinner at the Culinary Lab" package (details below): $ 51 (+ web fees and tip)

ONLINE TICKETS

ENJOY THE SHOW!!!

-LENA GHIO   

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WHO IS AG WILLIAM BARR? Here is what the stars reveal

 

Emerge Art revealing the corrupt nature of the bond between Donald Trump and William Barr. © Lena Ghio, 2019

FRANÇAIS app de traduction à gauche

The above Emerge Art is formed by the refraction of real images of Donald Trump and AG William Barr and the "emergence" is the very peculiar bird in the center of the image. What strikes me are the strangely warped left eye of both men. For me, the reaction of water reveals abysmal corruption from both men.

I explored the new horoscopes proposed by astro.com  by using the AG's birthday and it reveals fascinating facets to the man who has thrown away his honor to please a bizarrely corrupt and moronic president. I will simply paste the words of the astrologers and invite you to visit the site to explore astrology for yourself.

*From Liz Greene's Psychological Horoscope Analysis sample

You are one of life's true romantics, because your reality is the inner world of fantasy and imagination. The limitations of daily life can bore you, and you try at every available opportunity to inject into mundane situations a note of the mythic and the meaningful. However, your romanticism is constantly being challenged by another side of your personality: your fear of disruption to your material security. Although you dislike being tied to routines which seem inconsequential and stifling,...

* Stories from the Stars Text by B.Brady & D.Gunzburg, Copyright © Astrodienst AG 2020

Sadalmelek in the Water Bearer

Sadalmelek is a distinct orange star in the right shoulder of Aquarius the Water Bearer. Sadalmelek is one of a pair of stars in the constellation of Aquarius. Both stars are named as a form of luck, Sadalmelek being translated as Lucky One of the King, and Sadalsuud, its twin, meaning Luckiest of the Lucky. They form the shoulders, and thus the power and responsibility of the Water Carrier. Each star brings life and fertility - Sadalmelek in the right shoulder [...]

[..] When new doors open your first thought is about the benefits and you allow these to outweigh any negatives. This does not mean that you will not consider the pros and cons but your first answer to life's offerings is always agreement. Because of your positive attitude you are a good networker, as people [...]

Ras Alhague in Ophiuchus

Intertwined with your life, and adding a bias or tendency in you that grows over the years, is a constellation which speaks of healing. This healer in the sky is so brilliant and wise that legend has it he could restore life to those who had already died. His heavenly name is Ophiuchus and he stands on the ecliptic holding the head and tail of a serpent which is entwined around his waist. Rather than wrestling with the serpent, however, Ophiuchus is in relationship [...]

Integrating defeat

Yet not all battles can end in success and if you do not recognise this, then you can become frustrated and bitter about the world and angry with those people around you who do not engage in this fight. Such anger only makes you less effective in your work. You are gifted in helping [...]

*The Seven Sins Text by Liz Greene, Copyright © Astrodienst AG 2020

Other people's wings

[..] It may show itself not only to close personal and professional relationships, but also in your involvement with issues of public concern - political, environmental, social, religious - that provide the inspirational food that gives you a sense of purpose. If you can't discover your own source of meaning, you may find yourself drawn to people who are themselves driven by some form of Gluttony. Your craving to lose yourself in something deeper or higher can draw you to people who either need your compassion and help, or who can offer you this same compassion when you yourself feel helpless. But you [...]

Getting others to open the doors

Your greed tends to be expressed in your relationships, and it can be the kind of Gluttony that uses others as a means of expanding your own world. You aren't incapable of loving other people, or of maintaining close and enduring relationships. But you crave companions who can open doors and invigorate your life, and if you don't find what you want in one individual, you may begin to look longingly at another who might offer better opportunities. This might not [...]

Go tell it on the mountain

[..] But you can deceive yourself into believing that change is always a bad thing, especially when it involves pursuing new creative opportunities. Try not to get stuck in concrete thinking at the expense of your inner life. Your talents merit a position of responsibility and the respect of others. As long as you are willing to work to develop your mental abilities and use them with integrity, you can achieve a considerable degree of success, whatever your background. But be careful of behaving deviously because you feel deprived, insecure, or envious, and are determined to be successful even at others' [...]

Communicating on a big stage

Your communicative skills are bound up with your need to be appreciated by the larger community. You need a vocation that makes the best use of your ability to handle and convey knowledge. Although you can be ambitious, it may not be simply a desire for material wealth and status; you want an audience for the ideas and skills you seek to express. Make sure you don't become devious or manipulative as you pursue your goals. Whatever you wish to communicate, be as honest [...]

The Icarus dilemma

You love looking forward to exciting new possibilities, and you don't like feeling confined by material responsibilities or emotional demands. But sometimes the joy and exhilaration you experience in pursuing future potentials may suddenly evaporate, and you can find yourself in a depression that you cannot explain. Apathy may erode your enthusiasm and sap your faith in yourself. Pay attention if you experience these moods, for you may be ignoring emotional and instinctual [...]

Security alert

Even if you think of yourself as a rational person, your emotions are always on high alert, braced for the moment when life will turn dark. In early life you may have experienced an unsafe environment or deep depression in one of your parents. You assume the worst in people, rather than having faith in their good will. You have a tough, resilient core, but you are deeply suspicious of life and view relationships as power struggles in which someone dominates and someone submits. And you [...]

CONCLUSION

I chose to share the exact astrologer's text so you could see that although none of the astrologers could know the product of their work would be about AG William Barr, the text describes exactly what most of us see in this career man's current behavior and subservience to a moron. He is effectively destroying his reputation in exchange for a perceived meaning his current behavior provides for him. In his eyes he has at last achieved some relevance. That is why he is destroying democracy, betraying his own principles and his country.

The planetary configurations are benign for him at this time as he enjoys multiple powerful and helpful trines. However as soon as February 2021 whatever he is working on now for self-glorification will collapse.

Barr is doing all this subservient ass kissing to an autocrat because he wants to be relevant no matter what.

-LENA GHIO   

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FANTASIA 2020 * LE BILAN

ENGLISH translation app on the left

Une autre édition brilliante de Fantasia! Voici les lauréats de cette année:

► PRIX CHEVAL NOIR – Longs métrages

Le jury a été présidé par le réalisateur indonésien Jojo Anwar (SATAN’S SLAVE’S, IMPETIGORE) avec la participation de Mattie Do (DEAREST SISTER, THE LONG WALK), Steve Moore (of the band Zombi), Jongsuk Thomas Nam (Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival programmer, Directeur general du Network of Asian Fantastic Films), et Karen Walton (scénariste de GINGER SNAPS). Le jurya décerné les prix suivants : 

 

Prix Cheval Noir pour le Meilleur film :MARYGOROUND de Daria Wosjek

 

Meilleure réalisation : Daria Wosjek (MARYGOROUND)

 

Meilleur scénario :  Brea Grant (12 HOUR SHIFT)

 

Meilleure bande originale :ShirōSagisu (WOTAKOI: LOVE IS HARD FOR OTAKU)

 

Meilleur acteur : Jacky Heung (CHASING DREAM)

 

Meilleure actrice. : GrazynaMisiorowska (MARYGOROUND)

 

Mention spéciale du jury : ME AND ME de Cho Jin-Woong

 

► PRIX NEW FLESH – Premières œuvres

Le jury, présidé parle réalisateur, scénariste et producteur Darin Scott (Tales from the Hood) était composé de Mette-Marie Kongsved (productrice de COME TO DADDY, co-fondatrice de Nowhere), Miguel Llansó (JESUS SHOWS YOU THE WAY TO THE HIGHWAY), Shinji Sakoda (vendeur international), and April Wolfe (critique et auteure de BLACK CHRISTMAS 2019), et a remis les prix suivants :

 

Meilleur premier film : ROM de Tran Thanh Huy

 

Mentions spéciales du jury décernées à  ME AND ME de Jung Jin-young et GrazynaMisiorowska(MARYGOROUND)

 

► PRIX DU COURT MÉTRAGE INTERNATIONAL

Le jury, présidé par NosiphoDumisa (réalisateur de Number 37, co-fondateur de Gambit Films), était composé de Simon Barrett (You’renext, The Guest), Pierce Conran (producteur, journaliste, consultant, scénariste, critique de film), Natalie Erika James (Relic) et Jennifer Reeder (Knives and Skin), et a remis les prix suivants :

 

Meilleur film : F FOR FREAKS de Sabine Ehrl

 

Meilleure réalisation : Pei-Ju Hsieh (A COCKEREL'S TALE)

 

Meilleur scénario :Marc Martínez Jordán (YOUR LAST DAY ON EARTH)

 

Meilleur acteur : Aaron Bradshaw (MILK TEETH)

 

Meilleureactrice :Ursula Werner (F FOR FREAKS)

 

Mention spéciale du jury : SNOWFLAKES de Faye Jackson

 

► PRIX SATOSHI KON POUR L’EXCELLENCE EN ANIMATION

 

Le jury Axis, présidé par Marina Antunes (directrice de festival et critique de films), était composé de Han Han Li (professeur d’animation), Chad VanGaalan (animateur, artiste, musicien), et Emily Paige (Directrice Artistique et Associée chez E.D. Films), et a décerné les prix suivants :

 

Meilleur long-métrage : THE OLD MAN MOVIE de Oskar Lehemaa and MikkMäg

 

Meilleur court-métrage : WADE de KalpSanghvi and UpamanyuBhattacharyya

 

Mention spéciale du jury : GENIUS LOCI de Adrien Merigeau

 

► PRIX DES FANTASTIQUES WEEK-ENDS DU CINÉMA QUÉBÉCOIS

Le jury des Fantastiques week-ends du cinéma québécois, qui était composé de Alexa-Jeanne Dubé (comédienne et réalisatrice), Mathieu R. Grenier (réalisateur) et Ève Ringuette (comédienne et réalisatrice), a remis les prix suivants :

 

Prix MELS du meilleur film : LANDGRAVES de Jean-François Leblanc

Prix Peak Media du meilleur son : Maximilien Rolland (AUDIONOMIE)

Prix du Canadian Cinema Editors pour le meilleur montage :Travis Komarnisky(KITTY'S NAUGHTY KNICKERS de CaitlynSponheimer)

Prix MELS de la meilleure direction photo : Christian Bielz (BLOODSHED de Paolo Mancini et Daniel Watchorn)

Prix MaTV « créativité » : VIGILE de Xavier Beauchesne-Rondeau

Prix SPIRA (Vidéo Femmes) :BEST BITCHES FOREVER de Valérie Leclair

Prix coup de cœur SLA coop :FAÇADE - ADRIFT IN A SEA OF STRANGERS de Alexandre Richard

Prix EVS du meilleur producteur émergent : Julie Groleau et Charlotte Beaudoin Poisson de Couronne Nord(LANDGRAVES de Jean-François Leblanc)

Prix ARRQ de la meilleure mise en scène :JEEP BOYS de Alec Pronovost

Prix NAD des meilleurs effets visuels : Jimmy G. Pettigrew pour ses films POUPÉE, CINEPOD et PASTICHE

Prix NAD de la meilleure animation :MODO CRASTICOT de Jérémie Guy-Béland

 

► PRIX AQCC-CAMERA LUCIDA 

Le jury composé de Benjamin Pelletier (critique de film), Martin Gignac (critique, journaliste) et Marc-Antoine Lévesque a décerné les prix suivants :

 

Prix AQCC-CAMERA LUCIDA à MY PUNCH DRUNK LOVER de Jung Hyuk-ki.

 

Mention spéciale décernée à LABYRINTH OF CINEMA de NobuhikoObayashi

 

► PRIX MON PREMIER FANTASIA

Le jury Mon premier Fantasia, qui était composé de trois réalisateurs jumelés avec un de leurs jeunes enfants de moins de 12 ans, comprenait Robin Aubert (acteur, réalisateur, scénariste), Patrick Boivin (réalisateur, scénariste), and Carnior (réalisateur, acteur, scénariste, directeur artistique). Le jury a décerné les prix suivants :

 

Poulain Noir d’Or : COEUR FONDANT de Benoît Chieu

 

Poulain Noir d’Argent : ŒIL POUR ŒIL de Thomas Boileau, François Briantais, Robin Courtoise, Alan Guimont, Malcom Hunt, and Mathieu Lecroq

 

Poulain Noir de Bronze : LA PÊCHE MIRACULEUSE de Fabrice Luang-Vija

 

Mention spéciale du jury : ATTENTION AU LOUP! de Julie Rembauville and Nicolas Bianco

 

 Les lauréats de son Prix du public:

 

MEILLEUR FILM ASIATIQUE

Or – SPECIAL ACTORS (Japon, Réalisé par Shinichiro Ueda)

Argent – I WEIRDO (Taiwan, Réalisé par Liao Ming-Yi)

Bronze – BRING ME HOME (Corée du Sud, Réalisé par Kim Seung-woo)

 

MEILLEUR FILM EUROPÉEN, NORD OU SUD-AMÉRICAIN

Or – THE MORTUARY COLLECTION (États-Unis, Réalisé par Ryan Spindell)

Argent – THE COLUMNIST (Pays-Bas, Réalisé par Ivo Van Aart)

Bronze – THE DARK AND THE WICKED (États-Unis, Réalisé par Bryan Bertino)

 

MEILLEUR FILM CANADIEN

Or – Ex aequo– THE OAK ROOM (Réalisé par Cody Calahan) & SLAXX (Réalisé par Elza Kephart)

Argent – COME TRUE (Réalisé par Anthony Scott Burns)

 

MEILLEUR DOCUMENTAIRE

Or – FEELS GOOD MAN (États-Unis, Réalisé par Arthur Jones)

Argent – CLASS ACTION PARK (États-Unis, Réalisé par Seth Porges, Chris Charles Scott)

Bronze – HAIL TO THE DEADITES (Canada, Réalisé par Steve Villeneuve)

 

MEILLEUR FILM D’ANIMATION

Or – HOMO ERECTATTOOS (Corée du Sud, Réalisé par Kim Tae-woo)

Argent – THE OLD MAN MOVIE (Estonie, Réalisé par Oskar Lehemaa, Mikk Mägi)

Bronze – GON, THE LITTLE FOX (Japon, Réalisé par Takeshi Yashiro)

 

MEILLEUR COURT INTERNATIONAL

Or – DEAD BIRDS (Royaume-Uni, Réalisé par Johnny Kenton)

Argent – DOWNS OF THE DEAD (Norvège, Réalisé par Even Husby Grødahl)

Bronze – ABRACITOS (Espagne, Réalisé par Tony Morales)

 

MEILLEUR COURT CANADIEN

Or – DON’T TEXT BACK (Réalisé par Kaye Adelaide, Mariel Sharp)

Argent – NIGHT SHIFTS (Réalisé par Finn Wolfhard)

Bronze – REGRET (Réalisé par Santiago Menghini)

 

FILM LE PLUS INNOVANT

COME TRUE (Canada, Réalisé par Anthony Scott Burns)

 

-LENA GHIO   

 

Venice VR Expanded – Satellite Programme / Sept.2 - Sept.12

Venice VR  Expanded –  Satellite  Programme / Sept.2 - Sept.12

FRANÇAIS app de traduction à gauche

PHI CENTRE in Montreal is the only satellite location to experience the profound and magical programming presented in this year of COVID 19 limitations.

There are only 10 days to visit the exhibition and the places are limited. I URGE YOU TO RESERVE YOUR PLACE NOW! 

Here is why: IT IS MIND BLOWING!

Some of the artists that were present at the press tour: Katayoun Dibamehr and Avi Amar. The hangman at home - an immersive single user experience : Heidi Dussault Miller screenwriter for Once upon a sea : Francis Gélinas Au pays du cancre mou          Photo © Lena Ghio, 2020  

The fourth floor of PHI CENTRE is transformed into a well spaced and elegant virtual reality screening room. For the safety of the visitors there are many hand disinfecting islands. The viewing headsets are cleaned by ultraviolet light after each client experience. There are many attendants ready to assist you with any question or situation that may arise. 

There is a HUGE selection of virtual movies and games selected by curators for Venice VR  Expanded Michel Reilhac and Liz Rosenthal. The program is set up so that you will have 2 hours for your ticket price but unlimited choice within the programing. From this link you can get information about all the features, this will help you maximize on your available time in the headset.

Every part of the experience is covered with virtual magic. You will be in a waking dream from beginning to end.

I was enchanted with my two selections : QUEERSKINS : ARK and ONCE UPON A SEA.

Queerskins : Ark begins in a humble cluttered bedroom and takes us to the seashore in Malibu where two lovers meet. Their interactions evolve into a colorful fluid dance. I was looking at the sea and feeling so grateful because I haven't been by the seashore in a long time. I looked down and saw the grains of sand. I loved it! The dancers are presented in pointillé art style so their forms merge and explode with rich expressiveness.

Once Upon A Sea blew me away. I experienced awe and profound sadness. We go to the Dead Sea and experience both its glory and the catastrophe brought on by human greed and neglect. I spoke with screenwriter Heidi Dussault Miller and she informed me that if the destruction continues, this natural treasure will be destroyed and closed forever. She wrote me: " The Jordan River has been reduced to a trickle...and as the levels of the Dead Sea drop, it triggers the movement of subterranean water in the region...as the water moves, it then dissolves giant underground pockets of salt, and the ground above collapses. "

The movie is just wonderful to me. It felt as if I were in a privileged place where knowledge was imparted to me by wise people from another land. I hope to explore this subject more because I know we can do a lot to remedy the damages to our beautiful beloved planet!

There is a # to track the ongoing story of the Dead Sea: #OnceUponASea

Lena Ghio

FANTASIA - Week-end fantasy!

FANTASIA is a wonderful festival where your imagination can explore infinite possibilities! After the recent realities of COVID 19 and devastating racial unrest and injustice, I needed me some sugar!

I suggest you enjoy these gorgeous fantasies presented by Fantasia. 

The FIRST is A Mermaid in Paris. A disillusioned man, Gaspar played by Nicolas Duvauchelle, who works at Flowerburger, a magical secret cabaret that is family owned, finds a beautiful mermaid, Lula played by Marilyn Lima Lima, on his way home after work. In spite of the fact that the chant of a mermaid kills men he decides to bring her home to help her heal her tail fin. It is simply a beautiful beautiful film, not complicated and satisfying.

The above production will play again Sunday August 30 at 1:00 PM.

The SECOND, The Traveling Cat Chronicles is about a young man trying to find a home for his beloved cat Nana. We follow the duo through the gorgeous countryside as contender after contender are eliminated. As they travel, Satoru (Sôta Fukushi) relives his tragic life. It isn't until the end of the movie that we understand the journey the two companions have taken. Truly gorgeous esthetics amplify the deep friendship between Nana and Satoru.

This movie is On Demand, you have until September 2 to view it.

Enjoy the show!

-LENA GHIO   

FANTASIA: Let's talk about sex baby!

PVT Chat next screening 25 August 11:00 PM 

PVT CHAT

I was very curious about how the premise of this movie, "a film about the hyper-connectivity of contemporary life rooted in a verité New York City environment, PVT CHAT explores relationships and sex filtered through an online medium", would work as entertainment. Although the focus is on the evolving relationship between Jack (Peter Vack from 2017 Fantasia favourite ASSHOLES) and San-Francisco camgirl Scarlet (a magnetic Julia Fox) it reflects the claustrophobia and loneliness the COVID pandemic has forced us into. This makes the online relationship less odd since we have all been nurturing our relationships via the internet and social media. I was entertained in the same way Jack was by his voyeuristic obsession with Scarlet. The two actors bounce off each other successfully. It is not a deep movie or a cinematographic masterpiece but it is of its time.

Life: Untitled On Demand 

LIFE : Untitled

A Japanese movie that explores the daily lives of young people involved in the sex trade. We observe events through the eyes of  Kano (Sairi Ito from LOVE & OTHER CULTS, ASAKO I & II and THE NAKED DIRECTOR) who can't give in to performing sex acts with strangers but accepts being an employee of the escort agency. What stood out to me was the ongoing archetypes that women are trapped into. There are all kinds of women who join the escort service: quiet intellectuals, victims of child abuse, stupid and vicious girls. They all suffer from the same thing, how they are repressed by the ongoing misogyny that taints sex in general and prostitution in particular. 

The script comes from Kana Yamada who brilliantly weaves the excellent cast. On Demand

Morgana On Demand 

MORGANA

A classic journey of self-discovery by a mature woman who has been ignored by her husband and denied sex for many years. In spite of these years of loneliness and deprivation, Morgana Muses emerges as a porn star and filmmaker who gains recognition in the field winning accolades at Berlin Porn Film Festival for example. I was intrigued by the promotional image for the film where Morgana is wearing colorful ropes and feathers and looks quite alluring in spite of her age and weight. To me, Morgana is a performance artist. She expresses her inner states through elaborate imagery and performance. Isabel Peppard and Josie Hess form the directorial duo behind this visually colorful film. On Demand

-LENA GHIO 

FANTASIA - THE RECKONING - a revue

As I get ready to review THE RECKONING that I screened last night I have become aware that one of the writers, who is also the star of the movie, Charlotte Kirk, is embroiled in a second sex scandal 1 2 . Way to begin FANTASIA with a BANG! So last night's Q&A was cancelled.

I wont dwell on that. I prefer to talk about the movie per se. I was looking forward to this witchcraft movie based on 17th century witch hunts in England. A huge public was captivated by the success of Game of Thrones that brought wickedness and cruelty to a whole new level for prime time TV. I could not help but compare certain features for the visceral impact they had on me as I eagerly followed GOT. One was GOT's majestic soundtrack that immediately lit up my whole system with excited anticipation. This movie's soundtrack has no supporting beat to underline the tensions of the devastating events going on in the form of a plague. That would have enhanced the drama and the mood of the movie greatly. Instead the soundtrack and decor give the film a soap opera feel that is hard to shake.

Poire d'angoisse

Then there is the lack of logic in the sequencing of events. The heroine, Grace Haverstock played by Charlotte Kirk, is "tortured" for 3 days after her evil landlord accuses her of witchcraft because she wouldn't have sex with him ( incredibly ironic- ⇑ ). This information is made clear with inserts of the timeline on authentic reproductions of woodcuts depicting the witch hunts in England. The torture happens in an elegant foyer as opposed to a dingy dungeon as it occurred in history. For three days she is gently pocked with various tools including a vaginal torture with a   Poire d'angoisse that was widely used in Paris around the same time as the plot line is dated.

We are supposed to believe that a victim of so much horror, who has been bleeding for three days, without the benefit of antibiotics during a plague in the 17th century, then has the strength to wield a massive sword and successfully attack the men who have hurt her. AND don't get me started on the tiny baby doll that is totally distracting!

On the plus side there are a few well crafted death scenes.

I am sorry to say I was disappointed with this feature film BUT I would not have missed it!

-LENA GHIO