"The ruling shows how ingrained emojis are in modern culture, also that so much of our daily communication happens via text. The playful symbols and faces are an accepted way of expressing emotion, but they’re also used so commonly, they even show up regularly in straightforward business deals." - Fast Company
"The film set pub lay for a year-and-a-half in a yard on Achill Island - and when Luke offered to buy it from his brother-in-law, he was told he could have it for nothing. ... He already had a pub licence - ideal." - BBC
Pratt, originally from Alabama, "moved between the worlds of literature, scholarship and activism over nearly five decades as the LGBTQ+ community achieved gains such as legalization of same-sex marriage and greater recognition of trans and nonbinary identities. But Ms. Pratt rarely adopted a celebratory tone." - Washington Post
The deal gives the streamer access to upcoming films "involving Jella Haase, Peter Saarsgard, Ben Chaplin, John Magaro, Leonie Benesch, Mads Mikkelsen, Vanessa Hudgens, and many others, Constantin Film announced." - Variety
Shall it be the will in the cupboard, or the will from the sofa cushions? "I think they all wish this had been settled a week after she passed away. ... But they’re not blaming anyone — it is what it is." - The New York Times
Just what we need: More joyless, foolish bureaucrats quashing theatrical productions. "The interactive show is set at an Italian-American wedding, with a three-course meal, live music and dancing." - BBC
To watch If You Were There, director Lindsay Anderson's cut of a documentary about Wham! in China, you have to go to a university library in Scotland. But it might be worth the trip for Anderson's artistry - and this record of his clash with George Michael. - The Guardian (UK)
"In the early 1960s, the Jewish American soul was tied in knots. On the one hand, Jews knew they were outsiders. ... On the other hand, Jews were finally starting to get what their immigrant grandparents had worked so hard in sweatshops to achieve." Then came Fiddler. - Salon
"Composing for movies, often mischaracterized as auxiliary to the primary work of filmmaking, is an art form in its own right. At its best, it stands equally with not just the feats of directing and cinematography but also the greatest classical compositions." - The New York Times
With (far) more than 350 dialects of indigenous languages spoken across the United States, and few interpreters, vital information can fall away. "When you convey an idea from an indigenous language to Spanish and then to English, there’s a big risk of losing crucial details." - El PaÃs
The second word in the three Rs of environmentalism is reuse for a reason, writes Rowan Moore of planned London construction. "The most sustainable building is the one that is already there, as the now-fashionable saying goes." - The Observer (UK)
"Biermann was born under Nazism, in 1936, and raised in West Germany. As a teenager, he defected to the East and made a career as a singer of witty, folk-inspired songs — until an anti-authoritarian streak in his music began to trouble the Communist authorities." - The New York Times
All right, recent events are alarming for actual musicians. But "even a more radical artists-rights activist like Kevin Erickson, director of the Future of Music Coalition, is skeptical that AI could outright replace artists, or will inevitably learn on the backs of protected work." - Los Angeles Times
Come for the scoop about people getting conceived on a Garfield ride in Pittsburgh, stay for the philosophy: "Perhaps if we better understand amusement parks, he argues, we can better understand America itself." - Slate
That is to say that Japanese director Yasuzo Masumura, who died 37 years ago, is enjoying a renaissance thanks to the festival. "There is a classic film fan born every minute, but in Karlovy Vary this year, you could feel it happen in real time" during screenings. - Variety
