She should be - but she's spoken out against the Chinese government. Still, Western film companies could do something. "Yan’s campaign, and the muted response, highlights how an apparent censorship decision in China can quietly ripple through the art-house film world." - The New York Times
Sidewalk Labs had big plans for Toronto's Quay, to "transform the neighborhood with everything built on top of the tech. It would be robotaxis, autonomous trash pickup and an extensive system of data monitoring." Then "all hell broke loose." (Transcript here.) - Slate
The ballroom competition was also for dancers with prosthetic limbs, and was the first adapted competition in the U.S. One dancer's parent: "It's nice to see the U.S. catching up to what the rest of the world is doing." - NPR
Kersey "founded the Hollywood Black Film Festival in 1998, with the goal of spotlighting independent films and filmmakers from the African diaspora." The festival was often called "The Black Sundance." - Los Angeles Times
Panah Panahi, a filmmaker whose filmmaker father Jafar was arrested recently, says, "Who are you doing this for? ... What’s the point of this kind of resistance? From our family’s perspective, you sometimes think that, well, maybe it wasn’t worth it.” - The Guardian (UK)
How did Julie Doucet become canonical? Part of the reason: "French comics, too, had its #MeToo moment, or #BalanceTonPorc (#DitchYourPig) as the French say." - Los Angeles Review of Books
Knowledge (including arts administration) workers might improve the world when they work from home. Why? Knowledge workers say they use their phones to make calls, plan events, and read - and reply to - emails ... while driving. - Fast Company
The pandemic "significantly damaged San Diego’s arts and culture organizations last year, costing them more than $77 million in revenue and donations, shrinking their economic impact by 47 percent and prompting nearly 700 layoffs and lost freelance contracts." And that's better than 2020. - San Diego Union-Tribune
Actually, just Frida, the Musical, coming soon to regionals, with Broadway in mind for 2024. "The musical’s creators hope the show will offer a new look at Kahlo’s life — illuminating previously untold details and personal stories about the beloved artist." - Washington Post
That is, our earbuds, Air Pods, headphones, etc. - Julia Whelan is an extremely popular audiobook narrator who's writing (and narrating) her own story too. - The New York Times
The government of Wales is under fire for helping the supposedly environmentally concerned music festival buy a farm for the festival to use "as a base for its expansion." - The Guardian (UK)
That is, comics that read from top to bottom, on smart phones - and whose audience is mostly young women. One author: "We have these opportunities to share these romance stories as American creators — as American women authors and comic artists." - The New York Times
Luke Murphy's Volcano is "performed for an audience of eight, with each audience member in an individual booth." Sure, "it looked like 'financial madness,' but with Covid restrictions it 'actually became feasible' (because of support from the Arts Council, the festival and others)." - Irish Times
"Those ushers who once carried proud armfuls of programs now wander the lobbies, outfitted (sometimes literally) with oversize QR codes, waiting to be scanned by passing patrons like a can of soup at the self-checkout." - Washington Post
