Happy New Year!

Soon, we will end 2012 in the Gregorian calendar.
It's been another action-packed year, and I expect 2013 to be more of the same. I suppose I wouldn't want it any other way.
For all you gents heading out for a nice soiree tonight, here's a fun little video to help you keep things cool. =)

Completely drained

My goodness. There's just so much going on right now. Lots of mundane stuff. Lots of awesome stuff. Lots of tragic stuff. Personally, professionally, and within the community. I'm surviving, and I know my stresses are nothing compared to what some other folks are going through, so although I try to keep a perspective on things, it's me, so I am going through my stress patterns.
Anyway, hopefully at some point I will tend to this blog a little bit more regularly.

For now, I just want to post two things that helped get me through today.
1. Damn You Auto Correct! (Some of these elicited uncontrollable laughter. I was definitely needed.)
2. City Rising (I love my city, and watching this video was timed perfectly because I needed a little zen.)

CeeLo Green "All I Need Is Love (ft. The Muppets)"

I've got the shakes

I'm not sure if my hands are shaky because I haven't eaten anything substantial in over 12 hours or because I just finished a pseudo-draft of my thesis.
I wish I had a Meredith so that I could have a much needed 30 second dance party.
(Current thesis page count: 412 - uh oh.)

Ain't no SBB, but it's still A-OK

See, if you say SBB properly, it'll actually rhyme. =) I'm blogging as I sit on the train. I've only taken the train once before in Canada.
You know what, it's not that bad. The seats are comfy, you get free internet, there's a refreshments trolley that goes by. It would be better if it ran more frequently, but the price isn't atrocious. Oh and of course there isn't that lovely welcome announcement. I can still hear it in my head.
I mean, I don't really need to go anywhere that taking the train would make sense, but for the times that it does, I think I might consider it more often in the future.

If only I had twitter (and an iGadget)

Leaving work at 11pm. Fall air hitting my face. This song would’ve been the cherry on top: tinyurl.com/ybjgxj8 #GameOn #It'sThesisTime

Last skating video post for the day...

Yeah, so word on the street is that Kurt's going to reprise his Singing in the Rain program for his comeback competition. Awesome.

Another goodie...

I just can't resist posting another classic...

Still awesome

Need a break from whatever it is that you're doing? Watch either/both of these programs by Kurt Browning. Truly amazing.
Apparently he's going to be making a comeback as there's a Pro competition scheduled to happen where they've got some big names competing. Kurt's thrown his name into the ring and since I don't follow the Stars on Ice circuit, I don't really know what he's been up to. Not since the glory days when all of those shows of Champions on Ice, Stars on Ice, _____ on Ice, etc. and then all of those Pro competitions ruled the air waves have I really known what all of these pro skaters were doing, how active they are, and the calibre of their programs.
Anyway, these two programs are quite awesome, so I hope you enjoy them.

TIFF'12 roundup

It's taken me awhile, but I've finally posted about all of the films that I saw during TIFF'12.

I ended up watching nine films in total. Here they are in the order that I saw them:
1. The We and the I
2. How to Make Money Selling Drugs
3. Argo
4. The Central Park Five
5. Liverpool
6. The Thieves
7. Venus and Serena
8. 7 Boxes
9. 9.79*

None of my films were award winners. In fact, none of the films that made my short list won an award. Of the films that I saw, I'd say my favorite was The Thieves. 7 Boxes was also quite entertaining as was Argo.
As per usual, I had a great time at the festival. It was nice to see a couple celebs, watch some great films, see more people out and about, feel like part of the action, and all that good stuff. It's kind of funny that I barely watch any movies during the year, and then within the span of a week I'll see so many.

9.79*

The final film of my TIFF'12 experience was 9.79* (official website here, trailer here).
I like documentaries, so this was an easy pick for me. I also seem to like documentaries about sports and people, so I guess that further explains this pick. I guess over time, it's becoming a little bit more predictable to me which types of films I'll gravitate towards.
This film is about drug testing, the 100-metre sprint event form the 1988 Seoul Olympics, and the athletes (and other stakeholders) involved in the race. Filmmaker, Daniel Gordon, was able to get in contact with every single man who ran that race and find out their perspective of things.
Since I didn't follow the whole story from that event and I definitely don't know much about track and field and substances used to support these athletes, I think I went into this film with a pretty open mind and of course, you could argue that the filmmaker's story is biased, but I definitely left the film thinking about so many issues that were brought up in the film. The film is skewed in sympathy towards Ben Johnson and leaves you quite skeptical of Carl Lewis.
Those who are interested in what's currently happening with Lance Armstrong, may also be interested in this film. And also with the allegations of the Chinese swimmer from the 2012 London Olympics too.
The film itself was good. It didn't blow me away, but it was a solid, yet run of the mill documentary. I don't think I would pay to see it on the big screen, but it's perfect for a TV special. In fact, since ESPN is behind it, I'm sure it will appear on TV at some point.
Watch it if you get a chance. 

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

7 Boxes

I had this movie on my list of films to see, but by the time I went online to make my package selections, the screening was sold out. It was actually the first time I wasn't able to get a film that I'd selected as part of my 10-pack. Anyway, I decided to take the risk and get a voucher, hoping that I would be able to rush the film. I hadn't been unsuccessful with TIFF rush lines, but I guess this movie broke the streak. I was just a couple people back from the front of the line when they cut off the rush line and was really bummed. I tend to get relatively sulky when things don't go my way. In the end, it was probably good that I had the evening off because I remember being so tired that day. I had a screening in the morning. And then I went home and took a power nap which lasted too long and then I was groggy. And then I had another commitment I had to attend to early in the evening which I ran late for, and then I had to leave earlier than I wanted to try to catch the film...and then I didn't even get in. And that was annoying, but then I went home and went to bed early. Definitely needed.
Anyway, luckily, that wasn't the last screening of the film, so I still had one more chance to watch the film. Clearly, I wouldn't be writing this post if I didn't get in, and I'm glad I did because it was a great film. Unfortunately, there wasn't anyone representing the film in attendance, so there wasn't a Q&A, but it was still a packed theatre. Obviously, the screening was rush and people were scrambling to find seats when they entered the theatre.
7 Boxes (trailer here) is a film from Paraguay about a teenage delivery boy getting caught in the middle of something. Suspense, mystery and a lot of chase scenes ensue. I think there was some funny moments too, but I'm sure they would have been even funnier if I understood Spanish and/or knew Paraguayan culture. I think there were a lot of layers to this film. I wanted to see it because I think heist/suspense/thriller kinds of films, but this also had a little bit of a whimsical quality to it too.
Anyway, I'm also writing this post so far after the fact that I don't have it in me to write with any more detail. All I can say is that it's a great film and a classic TIFF movie in that it's a film that I probably would never get a chance to watch otherwise. If you manage to get an opportunity to see this film, I would highly recommend it.

 - picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

Venus and Serena

I like learning about athletes and I like learning about celebrities, so Venus and Serena was an obvious pick for me.
I watched the final screening of this film and was quite disappointed with the turnout. The attendance was sparse at best. I wonder what the attendance was like at the previous screenings. The first screening was Premium, after all, so I think they expected a good turnout.
The film followed Venus and Serena Williams during 2011 while providing history about the childhood of the girls and their careers leading up until present day (in fact, there was mention of her recent win at the US Open, so I wonder when they actually officially finished this film).
I don't follow tennis very carefully nor do I know much about the Williams sisters, but I do know that they are successful players and entrepreneurs and come from a tight-knit family. I remember hearing something about their parents being very active members of their careers, but I didn't know much more than that.
I liked the film. After a tiring week, I needed a light movie, and this was perfect. We got to see Serena and Venus as people. We saw them in good times and in bad. And as a whole, I have very positive feelings towards the sisters and their family. I think this film would be perfect for TV and hope that it does get picked up.
Unfortunately, there was no one in attendance representing the film, so I couldn't learn more about the film, but I didn't really feel the need to. I thought this film, while not mindblowing, was a nice, neat package. And it looked well produced as well. There must have been some serious backing behind this film. I mean, obviously, they would need the support of Venus and Serena and their family, but this in itself is probably a big deal based on how strong the sisters and their team is. And in having their support, they probably were able to get others involved as well. For example, the fact that Wyclef Jean was in charge of the music probably as something. And he composed original songs for the film too.
So, good film. Nothing crazy, but worth watching if you happen to come across it. It's always interesting to find out about successful individuals and the dedication and conscious decision-making that goes into such success.

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

The Thieves

After reading TIFF's description of The Theives (official website here, trailer here), I knew I wanted to see this film. I basically walked into the theatre thinking that I was going to watch an Asian version of Ocean's Eleven and that was an awesome thought to me.
And it was an awesome movie!!!
Here's part of the TIFF description:
"Although he’s still smarting from when Macao took off with almost seventy kilos of stolen gold after their last job, Popie is ready to let bygones be bygones. He assembles his gang of usual suspects: a "wire team" consisting of the sexy and hilariously self-absorbed Yenicall and her hopelessly infatuated partner Zampano; con artist Chewingum; and lock-picking expert (and Macao’s former flame) Pepsee. Macao meanwhile brings his own motley crew into the mix: the crude and volatile Andrew, seasoned pro Chen, safe-cracker Julie, and point man Jonny. The job: to steal a $20-million yellow diamond called the "Tear of the Sun" from a high-security casino. The elaborate plan requires each member of the team to play a crucial role. But as the stakes rise ever higher and everyone tries to work their own angle —everything that can go wrong will go wrong."
Though stuck to reading subtitles (my one complaint, well two, is that 1. I don't understand Korean as I KNOW that I missed out on some humour as a result and 2. there was some atrocious Chinese being spoken in the film which really made me cringe) I still laughed out loud many times, I love "mission impossible"-type films and this one had plenty of twists and turns to it. I had no idea how the film was going to end and part of the way through I started getting confused who was doing what and who was on who's side. Oh yeah, and action scenes to add to my excitement too!
This was the director, Choi Dong-hoon's, first time at TIFF and I knew even before the screening started that it would be good. There were tons of Koreans attending and they were buzzing. We were told that the film has been number one at the box office in Korean for the past little while, so that's always encouraging. I attended the first screening of the film which happened to be at the Ryerson theatre and although it's a large theatre, it was rush. Like, seriously rush. As a ticket holder, I got there with time to spare and when I joined the line it had wrapped around to bloody Gould and Victoria. That's bananas! The director seemed pretty excited to be there and had a great enthusiasm and humour as he addressed the audience.
My oh my, this film is awesome. So incredibly awesome. People, you need to watch this film.

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

Liverpool

I knew I had to watch Liverpool (official website here, bande-announce ici, trailer here). A French film, a TIFF description that references Amelie, a shy romance, elements of a suspense/thriller...c'mon!
The beginning was promising. Cute, quirky, and catchy. And the heroine was just as how I imagined she would be. But I think that's what led to the film's somewhat demise for me, personally. Right from the word go, I was comparing the film to my most favorite film, Amelie. And keep in mind, that I never go out on a limb to claim that something is my favorite, so if I am willing to stake claim to Amelie, it must mean that I like it a lot.
You know what? Now, a couple days after the fact and watching the trailer one more time, I have to say, it probably was a great film. I think it just moved too quickly. Reflecting on the characters, the story, the music, the mood and everything else, it can only sum up to a great film. But I think, at the time, I had such high expectations, that it just couldn't compete. At the time, I felt that things in the film happened too quickly. Basically there were too many leaps in the story and that I felt like many scenes were left out. The film was too perfect. I mean, films are supposed to be unrealistic at times, but this one made a couple too many leaps too quickly. I wanted more lead up to certain events. I wanted more tension and back story. things just unfolded too quickly and too effortlessly.
I guess this is a film that I'd like to watch again to find out if maybe it's better than I remember it being because as I watch the trailer, I feel bad that I walked out of that theatre wanting more. I mean, even if you don't understand French perfectly well (because dialogue is never the same in subtitles), you can get a sense from the trailer that there's a certain whimsy to this film.
There were so many elements to the film that make it interesting. The inclusion of social media, a moral and global message...and all those other things I said before. And some good one-liners and jokes too! Sigh, it's almost like I'm disappointed in myself for not having thoroughly enjoyed it.
Director, Manon Briand, was so enthusiastic and gave off such a joyful energy as she introduced the film and answered questions during the Q&A. It wasn't really a Q&A where I got deeper insight into the film, but I always give bonus points for Q&As.
Darn it. I want to watch it again.

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

The Central Park Five

From the TIFF description:
"In 1989, five black and Latino teenagers from New York City were arrested and charged for brutally attacking and raping a white female jogger in Central Park. News media swarmed the case, calling it "the crime of the century." Journalists popularized the term "wilding" to describe a gang activity of randomly assaulting victims. Politicians, pundits and the public rushed to a judgment that carried a barely veiled undertone of racial and class prejudice. Convicted of the crime, the five teenagers spent between five to thirteen years in prison until, in 2002, the shocking news broke: they were innocent. Another man confessed to the crime, with DNA evidence to support his claim."
The story of The Central Park Five (trailer here) was new to me but how can you not be intrigued? I thought this documentary did a great job of discussing an event that happened in the past using stock footage, narrative recounts of people who were part of the story and other elements to bring this story to life. Hearing The Central Park Five retell their versions of what happened that night, the events that happened immediately afterwards and of the years following was quite powerful. It's such an unfortunate thing that happened to them and not really knowing anything about police protocol and how they're been trained and the tactics they employ to try to get at the truth of the matter, I found myself wondering what I would have done if I was in their shoes? Why did some pieces of evidence seem to not weigh into the outcome of the case? What kind of pressures were the police under? What was the media's role?
The film did provide a good overview of what happened and how the five men were impacted by it. And I think that was the point of the film. But I did wonder why the rape victim wasn't involved involved in the film (because it seemed that the filmmakers attempted to include everyone else that was a stakeholder in the case), and why wasn't the role of the media examined more closely (because the description and the filmmakers seemed to elude to the fact that the media did have a big role in the outcome).
So here's why I like films that have a Q&A. Ken Burns (whom I know nothing about), Sarah Burns and David McMahon (the three directors) were in attendance and shared that indeed, this film is about the five gentlemen and really getting at their stories. Additionally, they decided not to include the voice of Trisha Meili (the victim) in this film because she, in fact, has no memory of the events that happened that night. And her understanding of the case is what she can constructed based on the information that was available to her. And keep in mind, this is information that until 2002 was quite faulty. And although, Ms. Meili has written a book about her experiences, the filmmakers still felt uncomfortable asking her to go back to those events again. So that's issue one covered. The second issue about the media wasn't answered to my satisfaction. I'm not sure that the filmmakers intentionally skirted the question about why it wasn't featured more, they just didn't seem to answer the question as it was intended. They merely emphasized that the media did have a significant role to play. Perhaps, they wanted to pick just one are of focus in this film, and that was the lives and perspectives of the five men.
One of the Central Park Five, Raymond Santana, was at the screening, and received a standing ovation from the audience. It sounds like he is doing well, but I wonder (as they do) what life would have been like had these events not happened. In the film, many of the men spoke of the transition that they faced after getting out of prison. Of course, I can't really compare it to anything in my life, but my experience of moving back to Toronto after living, working, and breathing my life in Switzerland was an adjustment of sorts. Of course, the shock and challenges that I faced were minuscule in comparison, so I just think, if something as small as what I went through made enough of an impact on me to affect some of the things that I did and felt and experienced and how I went about my life soon after returning to Toronto, it must have been quite, I don't know what, for them. Yes, I know that they are completely different situations and as I type, I'm thinking that my experience is so meaningless that I should go back and delete it, but I'm the type of person who like to connect things together and attempt to relate experiences to each other and this post really is just a free write, so that's that. But the point is, a sudden change of someone reality is something interesting to consider. And I guess it happens all the time and and people learn to adjust, but often people get support beforehand or after the change (for example, I think of folks having a baby for the first time, and everyone I know went to some sort of parenting class beforehand and even had support groups once they became parents). I just wonder how much support these gentlemen had.
Anyway, I thought the film was quite good because it gave me a lot of issues to think about. Immediately after the screening, I remember thinking that I enjoyed this film, but didn't love it. But I think it's one of those things that if you got back to it, or just think about it a little bit more, you just start thinking about a lot of different things. I know some educators in the audience were talking about including this in their teaching, and of course I can see it being done in so many ways. If you do get a chance to watch the film, I would definitely recommend it.

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

Argo

There are some folks who try to attend big blockbuster films at TIFF so that they might be able to see celebrities. There are others who stay far away because they know that they will be able to see them in theatres soon thereafter. I just pick films that sound good. If I can't narrow down my picks to the top 10 or whatever magic number of films that I end up seeing that year, I might get rid of the ones that will get wide-release, but it's worked out that I haven't had to in the past couple of years.
I really don't stay up to date on films getting wide release. I might watch ~10 movies within the span of 10 days, twice a year (TIFF and Hot Docs), but I probably average 1 or 2 a year otherwise. I did see a movie in the theatres this summer and saw the trailer for Argo (official website here, trailer here) at that time. I thought it looked intriguing, and obviously one of the most intriguing to me in this year's festival.
Based on a true story, here is part of the description from the TIFF website:
"On November 4, 1979, a group of Islamist militants took control of the U.S. embassy in Tehran and held fifty-two embassy personnel hostage. Six members of the embassy staff managed to escape and secretly took refuge in the Canadian embassy, where they remain in constant danger from the militants’ door-to-door searches. Enter CIA "exfiltration" specialist Tony Mendez, who cooks up a scheme to get the imperilled Americans out of the country. Mendez proposes to enter Iran posing as the producer of a fake Canadian science-fiction film entitled Argo, on the pretense that Iran’s arid rural landscape would make convincing (and cut-rate) extraterrestrial terrain; following the "location scouting," the six Americans will accompany him out of Iran posing as members of the film crew. To put his plan into action, Mendez will need expert advice, which leads him to befriend and recruit veteran Hollywood producer Lester Siegel to the cause. A script is cranked out and the plan is put into action — and once he lands in Iran, Mendez is going to have to play the role of a lifetime."
I thought the film was great. I don't know how true to the real story it was, but that wasn't a priority for me. This could have been a completely fictional story, and I would have been fine with it. I just through the idea of it was really cool and anything to do with hostages or spies is neat-o for me. I liked the characters in the film, I like the action, and I liked the suspense. In fact, I was on the edge of my seat at the climax of the film even though I knew the overall outcome of this story (I'd actually never knew about this incident before seeing the trailer, but thanks to media sources, darn it, I found out more about it.) There were some fantastic one-liners in the film that provided some good comedy relief. As I said the characters were great, and John Goodman and Alan Arkin's characters were especially entertaining.
Ben Affleck, who was the director and played Mendez, was on hand to introduce the film. Shame he didn't stay to do a Q&A. There was another celebrity at the screening. Dustin Hoffman snuck in as Affleck was making his introductions and sat just in front of me. For the first little while, I was a little distracted by this as I was interested in watching Mr. Hoffman's reactions to the film and wondering if he laughed at the same one-liners that I did. I had to control my urge to people-watch because I started missing what was actually happening on the big screen.
Anyway, I thought it was a great film. Very Hollywood, and entertaining. You should watch it. I also thought that it was sweet that in the closing credits, Affleck dedicated the film to his wife and kids.

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

How to Make Money Selling Drugs

Half of my picks for the festival this year were feature films and the other have were documentaries. How to Make Money Selling Drugs (official website here, trailer here) was one of those documentaries.
My memory of the write-up about the film by the team at TIFF is pretty much that the film will reflect its name. I thought I would learn about drug dealing and there would be some cameos by some Hollywood celebrities. And who doesn't love celebrities in a film?
So the beginning of the film was exactly what I expected. It was slick and very entertaining. And I really did learn about drug dealing. In fact, it was so convincing, that for a brief moment, as I was watching the film, I considered the feasibility of getting into the game myself. I thought about the people that I knew who are/were involved with drugs, and I thought about my networks and how suitable they are to this 'industry'. And then I forced myself to remember that all of these thoughts were ridiculous. That I should just keep going on the path that I'm currently on. But it does show that the film was compelling.
And then, the film took an unexpected turn. Suddenly, I was learning about the drug wars in the US and how the government is a puppet master of sorts. Full disclosure: I saw this film at the end of a long day and immediately after seeing another film, so I was pretty tired during the screening. In fact, I'm pretty sure that I dozed off for a brief moment, and as a result, I'm not entirely confident about how the transition between themes happened. I think it had to do with the fact that although there's a financial/power ladder in the drug dealing game, there's a secret additional rung to that ladder and that's where the politicians come in. But again, I don't know for sure...errr, I was kinda tired.
The production team (Matthew Cooke, Bert Marcus and Adrian Grenier) and a couple key people in the film were in attendance and participated in a Q&A. During the Q&A, I realized that this film was really more about educating the viewer and encouraging them to take action and be activists for rethinking current drug policies. I also wondered what's going on with this issue here in Canada. This film was very much American but maybe some of the message is applicable to Canada as well. I'm just not educated enough to know for sure.
I enjoyed this film and would recommend it to others, but it wasn't the best film that I've ever seen. It definitely was entertaining and made you think about interesting issues, but I admit I'm not blown away. So, I'd say it's a great film, but not awesome.

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

The We and the I

And TIFF'12 is well underway!
The first film that I saw this year was The We and the I (trailer here). The synopsis of the movie seemed to be interesting because of the subject matter, but the actual description of way the movie would be presented wasn't that compelling to me. From the synopsis, I wasn't completely sure if it would be a documentary or feature film. Nonetheless, I decided to give the movie a chance. The fact that Michael Gondry was the big name associated to the film didn't really make a difference to me. I didn't see any of his previous films.
The movie basically takes place on a public transit bus departing from a high school on the last day of school before the summer holiday and ends as the last couple of students get off and start their break. During the bus ride, we meet different students who all attend the same school and have been on the same bus line for the entire year. We see their interactions and their stories that seem very much 'high school'.
My review of the film...well, I found it okay, but nothing too special. It seemed like I was just watching real life unfold, but since I can witness real life on a daily basis and have lived through adolescence and see adolescence often in my life, the film didn't seem to enrich anything for me. The 'actors' did seem sort of amateur at times and that didn't help matters. I don't usually notice inconsistencies in films, but the fact that I noticed that the time of day and weather around the bus changed randomly from scene to scene might be an indication that I wasn't completely invested in the story. And although each of the storylines were independently interesting, at times I felt it a little jarring how the filmmaker(s) transitioned between them.
Now here's the thing that wants me give the film the benefit of the doubt. This film spawned from a project between Gondry and the 'actors' as an afterschool program. In fact, the 'actors' are students, and from a final piece in the closing credits, we get a sense that the film is inspired by the students and that Gondry was really invested in these students and made a big impact on their lives. I imagine that the students were asked to share topics that were important to them and they helped developed the screenplay. However, I did notice that in the opening and closing credits, Gondry was credited a lot and the students just (?) seemed to be listed as the actors and there was just (?) a small mention of the project.
I was very disappointed that no one from the film attended the screening. I would have been interested to learn a little bit more about the project and what the main message of the film was. I really left this screening wanting to know a little bit more. It was the first screening of the film at the festival, so I had thought there would be folks from the film in attendance, but it didn't work out that way. There wasn't even a message passed along to the programmers to pass along to us. What a disappointment.
So, not quite a rave review, but I like the idea that this film started from a project with students. I just wish the film could have been a wee bit more, I don't know. Something.

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

TIFF is coming!

I was thinking about TIFF today. And thinking about what to include in my survival kit. You know, the basic necessities to keep you going when you've been busy with non-TIFF things all day and then you have to go to two screenings at night and then after a short night's sleep you have to go to more screenings without having a chance to cook and you don't really want to eat cinema food but need to wait in hour-long lines to get a rush ticket or a good seat (as a ticket holder) only to need something to do while sitting in the theatre for 30 minutes waiting for the big show to start and then freezing your bum off because they've cranked the AC? You know, all that kind of good stuff.
Oh man, TIFF is awesome. I can't wait for it to start!

Whoosh!!!

Here. We. Go!
This is going to be a big year. I've felt like I've been on a roller coaster for the past couple of years and this year will be no different.
In student-land, this is THE year.
In teacher-land, although I don't start teaching my classes until next week, this week is jam packed with leading workshops for folks teaching for the first time so the race has started.
Seeing the froshies running around reinforces the fact that it's go-time.
I'm nervous and amped about this year all at the same time.

Empire State of Pen

Empire State of Pen from BigAnimal on Vimeo.

Planning ahead

Next year, if I'm in the city, I'll try to be better prepared for the start of the year so that I can head west on the waterfront and watch the Canadian International Air Show front and center instead of watching it from my balcony.
I watched part of it yesterday as I was going back and forth between my computer and the balcony and the Snowbirds looked like they were having a grand 'ole time out there. It really does look like birds playing in the sky. I'm sure the pilots are very conscientious as they work, but I wonder if they're whooping and hollering just like the spectators are.
Anyway, back to work: it's back-to-school crunch time!

Interesting!

The restaurant we went to last night gave me a black dinner napkin because I was wearing dark clothing. I'm trying to figure out if it was a stylistic decision to continue to use white cotton napkins (and providing an alternative) even though they knew that they were leaving lint on the patrons as opposed to just going with linen napkins. What was it about the cotton napkins that they wanted to keep? And the black napkins weren't cotton so the fabric couldn't have been that important.
Anyway, it was the first time that I'd been to a restaurant with napkin options.

TIFF 2012

I'm trying to figure out my ticket selection for this year's festival. The process is a little different in that we don't have to fill out a booklet and keep our fingers crossed that our 'box' is drawn first. Instead, I was randomly assigned a timeslot to make my selection and it's first come first serve from that point.
I don't remember what my first round of cuts from going through the list of films resulted in, but I've narrowed it down to my final 28 films. I'd usually want to cut it down to about 15-20 before making a spreadsheet of the films to see what overlaps (thereby cutting out some possibilities), but I'm having trouble cutting down from where I am. I usually have a couple films that are on my 'must see' list, but this year, either nothing's blowing me away, or everything on my shortlist sounds awesome.
I will be seeing at least 8 films this year.

High Speed Video of Flipping Cats

Cats are awesome. Well actually, all animals are awesome. I used to do similar 'experiments' with my cat, but I don't have the science knowledge to explain all of the cool things that she could do. I didn't have to have any special knowledge to know that my cat was a princess. An awesome princess.

Huh?

Was I supposed to be flattered when the saleslady asked me if the shoes that I wanted to try on were for my school uniform? Or was it some sort of dig at my taste in footwear?

wallpaper.com and blah

I'm not sure why I didn't have website for Wallpaper* Magazine bookmarked prior to last week. I'm really enjoying what it has to offer.

And vaguely related, why am I posting so much today? Procrastinating on the thesis? Eek. The past two weeks have been good. I'm getting into a groove but my fingers aren't going as fast as I would like them to. Or maybe I should be concerned that's I'm only a third through the themes for my Findings chapter and I'm at about 100 pages. I'm in for a bumpy ride. My thesis is going to be a great doorstopper.

Camping

I've never been camping before. I mean, in the woods. Prior to the age of 22, I don't think I'd slept in a tent. Actually, I might have once when I was a kid. I remember crayons melting in the front pocket of my red backpack from sitting in the sun too long while I was at a day-camp. But I'm not entirely sure if we had a special event where we'd stayed over. Maybe not.
I've been to two cottages in my life. One involved sleeping in a tent in the yard (it was for an initiation), and the other, I slept in a king-sized bed. I think that cottage was nicer than a lot of houses.
The sleepover camps that I've been to (all school-related) involved me sleeping in a bed in cabins. Not terribly rustic.
Growing up, camping just wasn't something that our family did. I don't think that my parents had anything against camping, it just wasn't part of their repertoire of things to do.
I imagined camping to be something where you're in the middle of nowhere, with no electricity nor running water. And you definitely don't have a toilet. Especially not a porcelain kind. I've since learned that there are different types of campgrounds and ways to camp, but I'm not chomping at the bit to go. That's not entirely true, I do want to give it a go, but I just don't know how I feel about having the first time I go be really, I don't know, authentic?
I'm not a total princess. Seriously, I'm not. In fact, I guess I have gone camping before. I slept in a tent (although I did not put it up) in the deserts of Tunisia. And the toilet facilities were "behind that sand dune over there". We did have a roll of toilet paper, but that's it. Actually, I've camped a couple times on my extravagant adventures abroad. I camped in Kenya too.
But camping in Northern Ontario or anywhere else in Canada, I have yet to do. I'd like to!
Oh right, the reason why I wrote this post in the first place - I read this article. I found it amusing, entertaining and brought up some interesting issues about society.

Hotel --> condo = auction

I had wanted to go to the Four Seasons Hotel auction a couple month ago, but I didn't end up having time to check it out. Now, yet another 'famous' hotel in the city is closing to make way for condos and they're going through the same process. The Sutton Place Hotel is auctioning off many of their items for charity and is currently ongoing.
I'm not sure if I would buy anything, but I think it would be interesting to see what kinds of things that a hotel needs to get rid of and the prices that they are going for. Maybe I'll be able to find some time in the next couple of days to take a look.

Just a guess

I'm thinking that the lady that I saw on the bus this morning wearing all-black might work at Burberry. I mean, I was also wearing an all-black outfit (shocker!), but my outfit didn't consist of Burberry wellies, a Burberry blazer, a Burberry purse, and a Burberry coin purse. I mean, I can't be entirely sure because she wasn't carrying a Burberry umbrella and her black sequined scrunchie (that's right, I said scrunchie) most definitely wasn't from Burberry, but the rest of her outfit looked very Burberry boutique salesperson-esque (I wonder what word they use to refer to themselves in Burberry-land).

Olympic 2012 Doodles

The doodles for the 2012 Olympics have been great. I mean, the doodles are always great, but I've enjoyed the interactive ones from these past couple of days. They remind me of the Olympic Decathlon game that my brother and I used to play on the Apple 2E. Classic.

Fruits and veg garden

I'm a city girl. I've visited a couple farms and gardens on field trips, and I've stayed with a couple people who grow fruits/veg in their gardens. I have seen some fruit/veg on my travels in their natural habitat too, but for the most part, my conception of where fruits and veg come from is the (super)market. Obviously, I know that they were grown somewhere first, but I can't imagine how most of them grow.

Recently, my dad's taken up a hobby of growing random fruits and veg in their backyard. I know that my parents grew some things in the first home that I lived in, but I don't have many memories of it. A couple years ago, my dad started growing tomatoes (cherry and heirloom) and it was pretty awesome. Two years ago he added some winter melon to the mix and that was cool because I had never seen a vegetable that grows on a vine go from seedling to harvest.
Last year, my dad went even more intense. There were tomatoes, bitter melon (testing out a new vine veg), snow peas, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and grapes. The tomatoes, bitter melon and snow peas were successful. The strawberries less so, but I've heard that they take a little bit more expertise. The other berries and the grapes - nada. But it was an experiment and fun for my dad to tinker around, so it was worth it.

This year, my dad moves some of the plants around, being strategic and hoping that the new placement would help (especially with the strawberries). The tomatoes are starting to do their thing. The snow peas are duds this year but the duds from last year returned from a vengeance! All of the pictures from this post are from this year. The raspberries were small, but there were a good number and the blackberries have really come to life!

It's, again, been really interesting to watch them grow and to hear from my dad about how he's tinkered around with them. I'm looking forward to seeing how the grapes are going to develop because, as you can see from the picture, it looks promising. The new 'melon' of choice is actually cucumbers and zucchini...along with bitter melon again (blech). My dad had planted them pretty late in the season so he wasn't sure if anything would come of them. When I was there snapping pictures, I saw this wee thing (below), but I didn't know what it would become. Now, a couple weeks later, I've found out that they're pickling cucumbers. And just like the winter melon, the prickles on the outside come right off when they're ripe. Plants are awesome, aren't they?
Way to protect themselves from predators! Anyway, I think the zucchini are trying to grow as well, but they probably weren't planted in the best location. They're shaded by the leaves and vines of the cucumbers and bitter melon that are growing up the lattice in front of them. I think my dad assumed that zucchini would grow a similar way. Oops.
But that's the thing, although it's great that my parents can eat the fruit and veg that my dad's growing, it's more
of a fun hobby and learning activity. My dad and his gardens are proof that there is such thing as lifelong learners and that you can always pick and choose something new to learn about.
Also amazing is the fact that my dad has built planters and various structures in their backyard for all of these 'experiments'. And they look incredible! I'm lucky enough to have a custom-made deck and planters at my place too!

10 Videos To Get You Fired Up for the Olympics

I feel like I'm missing the Olympics. I don't have a TV and I've made a conscious decision not to have a live stream going on my computer. I don't even know what happened in the opening ceremonies other than the fact that the Queen made a cameo in a 007 thing and Mr. Bean did something with an orchestra (factoid: Mr. Bean is completely lost on folks who are visually impaired. Think about it, everything he does is physical. He hardly ever talks and for the most part no one does in his sketches. There's a ton a laugh tracks in there, but that's not what the visually impaired need.).
Anyway, I will linger by a TV when I walk by somewhere showing the Olympics, but I do not watch it at work nor at home. I'm hoping that as a result, I'm probably a lot more productive, but I do feel like I'm missing out on some great things.
But I guess you're always missing out on great things in life. I'm just consciously aware of the fact that I'm missing the Olympics.
Ramble over.
Here's a nice series of video related to the Games and/or sports.

Bloody sponsors

I get that without them, the Olympics might not even happen, but it irks me to no end that these companies are letting prime seats go to waste when there are avid fans who pay big bucks for worse seats and/or can't even get tickets. I saw it first hand in Torino. Before than, I really was naive enough to not realize that that's how the world worked. My earlier post from those games and even notes from that post actually showed that I thought that people just didn't buy tickets. Little did I know. Sigh. It was quite upsetting to me and it seems as though things won't be changing anytime soon.

Sherry Turkle: Connected, but alone?

Sherry Turkle says everything that I've been thinking these past couple of years as technology innovations have become mainstream. Sure, I deeply respect the benefits of these technologies, but the issues that Ms. Turkle shares really concern me. As someone who is actively bucking these technologies, I thought I was alone in my thoughts. And as someone in a field that is really advocating for pushing forward with these advances (although, I would think that most fields engage in these innovations), I feel conflicted. By no means do I think these advances should be banished from our existence, but I'm uneasy about how it will change our society. As an individual who is sentimental and appreciative of our past and certain values and norms, maybe I'm flawed to not just accept an inevitable shift. I know I can be resistant to change, and I can't help but be reminded of the words of educational theorist Paulo Freire, "Change is difficult, but possible", but these words were written to refer to a positive change. Do the benefits of these advances outweigh the drawbacks? I'm not sure.
Having watched the video, my tension with the matter has not been resolved, but I am glad that the debate is out there. I didn't think it was.

(Thanks b, for passing this along.)
A related post.

Oh wow...

"Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana." 

I came across this saying today.
It just clicked. I kid you not.
Boy am I slow. To give me a little bit of credit, I haven't heard someone say this (or read it somewhere) in years. Decades, even.
Ha ha ha ha ha...I'm so glad that I can laugh at myself. Sometimes I take myself way too seriously. Luckily, this was a LOL moment.
And for that grand breakthrough in understanding, I deserve a weekend. If only I could finish this assignment and those conference proposals...I give myself 2 hours before I call it quits for the week.

Play Me, I'm Yours

I've seen a couple around the city...have you?
What a wonderful idea!

A nice find

I'm a snob. I can admit it.
So, after being spoiled in Europe with yummy crepes (mostly, courtesy of Bach & Buck) I came back to Toronto, not really wanting to 'risk' eating crepes here. I just figure that my standards are so ridiculously high, that nothing here in the city will compare. And I don't want to ruin the awesomeness that I know crepes are.
Today, I needed to grab something quick to eat and the most convenient thing in the area was a crepe place. I thought, well, I can't be a snob forever (or more importantly, starve...I was really hungry), so I gave it a go.
While I was looking at the menu and waiting for the person in front of me to complete his order, I realized that they were speaking French to one another. Real French. Super French, French. I figured this guy must be a regular, or a friend, or a tourist. The menu was in English, the drink menu that was written on the mirror was in English. Every other customer eating and chatting with their friends, seated in the restaurant were speaking in English. I did notice, however, Frenchie items on the shelf as part of the decor (e.g., a macaron box from Laduree, a shopper from Hermes, a canister from Mariage Freres, un petit pot de la Fleur de Sel). I was intrigued. How would the serveuse address me?
"Bonjour!"
"Ah, oui? Vraiment? On parle en Francais?"
"Uh..."
Quickly, I realise that this is the real deal. I am absolutely giddy but try to remain cool (as if our initial exchange didn't blow my cover!). I place my order, and wait, gobsmacked. I think this can be my happy place when I need a little 'home away from home'.
I'm flattered that the serveuse continues to carry on speaking to me in French. Honoured, actually.
I'm already dreaming about coming back to make this place a regular haunt. It's small, and the menu's not that extensive, but I could make it work. I will make it work.
The only problem is...the crepe wasn't that great...

A woman's woes

I'm not really sure how to process these two articles from The Atlantic. Separately, and in relation to one another.

The Mini-Golf Open

As per usual, this is all kind of awesome.

Spoiled Rotten - Why do kids rule the roost?

This article was mentioned in class last week. It raises a lot of issues to ponder and reflect upon our experiences and practices based on our society, culture, and generation.
One idea that I enjoy is that we should set high expectations for our students (I know the article is about children and focusing on parenting behaviours, but actually, you can apply it to almost any context you want). I haven't, however, read anything about when it gets taken too far and too much pressure is put on the student to achieve at a level that may not be realistic. Now, is that because I have an (incorrect) impression that individuals have a pre-determined potential? Or at what point can the teacher say, "Don't worry, you tried your best", without turning into a "spoiling" behaviour?
That's what I love about teaching (and parenting and coaching and mentoring and managing and..). It's so complex.

Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity

I watch this video a couple times each year and every time I watch it, I feel like I get something that I didn't previously get. It's an awesome talk on so many levels.

Celebrating an anniversary with a flashmob

"On the 130th anniversary of the founding of Banco Sabadell we wanted to pay homage to our city by means of the campaign 'Som Sabadell' (We are Sabadell). This is the flashmob that we arranged as a final culmination with the participation of 100 people from the Vallès Symphony Orchestra, the Lieder, Amics de l'Òpera and Coral Belles Arts choirs."

I love me a flashmob. And Beethoven's 9th, well, you can't go wrong with that. It wouldn't encourage me to open an account at their bank, but it's a nice way to celebrate an occassion...and bring a smile to many people's faces.

Art of Packing

I've been seeing this everywhere on the internet in the last little while. Some interesting little tips and tricks, even if you don't own any LV.

Hmm...

"Many men admire strong women, but they do not love them..."
- Elsa Schiaparelli

Livingstones

I've been eying these for a couple years now. Gimme gimme gimme. I wonder if it's even possible to get them in the city?

These streets will make you feel brand new...Big lights will inspire you

Day one in New York and it's nice to be in a different city for a little while.
Just two things before I get ready to head out into the city once again:
1. ABT FTW! $25 front orchestra level seating for students. I was prepared to pay top dollar for a ticket to tonight's performance, but pleasantly surprised once I arrived to the box office.
2. Lemon slices in the water for doggies that the shops have by their front door for their four legged friends.
It's hot hot hot, here in the city. I feel bad for all of the lads in their long sleeved shirts and jackets. I will save Central Park for another day.

"Researching"

Can you tell I'm preparing for a trip? My list is coming along nicely.

New York (November 17-22, 2011)

Wow. I was just sorting through my pictures and realized that I'm slacking in the blogging department.
I've been to New York a couple times now, and I think it's my equivalent to Paris or London from 5-8 years ago. It's close enough that it doesn't take too long to get there and it's the big city/shopping getaway that I crave every so often. I still have lots to explore in the city (as I always will in any city that I go to), but it's starting to feel familiar enough that
I do have a couple things that I always like do when I'm there. In Paris, I always have to visit the Tour Eiffel. I take one evening during my trip to just sit there and take a moment. In New York, I tend to do that at Times Square. You'd think that at each of these touristy and crowded areas, I wouldn't be able to take a moment to get a quiet moment for myself, but I always can.
When I lived in Europe, London was my place that I would catch a couple shows. I would line up at the tkts booth in Leicester Square for something playing in the West End. I would splurge on tickets for the Royal Opera. I never seemed to go at a time when I could get tickets to the Royal Ballet. I used to go to London twice a year and pretty much the same time of year each time. Anyway, I try to catch a couple shows in New York each time I go as well. I'm not entirely sure why I don't take advantage of more touring shows that come through Toronto (actually, I do, I have some sort of complex that they might not be as good as if I were to see them in London or New York - which I know is a ridiculous thing to think) but I really should get over myself and take advantage of some of some more of the great things that Toronto has to offer.
Anyway, this past time in New York, I went to an opera at the Met Opera. It was quite lovely. The production was great and of course the venue is spectacular. I really like theatres/concert halls/opera houses. I always try to visit them when I travel, and if there is a tour of the building, I take it. They're so lovely. Lincoln Center is no exception. I mean a place with massive Chagalls on display for people passing by to see...c'mon. Gorgeous during the day. Gorgeous at night. The steps leading up to it even light up and tell you important things.
I usually see a musical on Broadway, and this past trip, I went to see The Book of Mormon. I scored a great seat the day of (this is when there was still a lot of buzz about the show because it did so well at last year's Tony's) after waiting in the standby line for quite some time. It was a show that I laughed through, but I wondered if people would
be offended at it. I could see how it goes over the line, but in my opinion, it's clearly poking fun at things (which may be based on truth - I don't know for sure, but I don't know enough about the things discussed) so I was ready to laugh about it. Mind you, I wonder if others would have a different opinion of the show. Oh well, I enjoyed it. Even if you didn't like the content, you had to appreciate other parts of the show. I'm actually going back to New York this week and I'm still trying to decide which show(s) I want to see. I did take a look at who won what at the Tony's, so that might help me decide. We'll see what happens.
As I've said, I like to visit theatres and during this trip, I finally went to Radio City Music Hall. Wow, that place is amazing. I always like seeing things in person that I've seen on TV (there's that 'wow, it's really real!' factor) but it really is spectacular. I would like to see a Christmas Spectacular at some point. It's such a big production that I would like to see it for myself. And the Rockettes. It would be neat to see them. This week, I do have plans to see something there...I'm stoked about it.
I do have a couple other things that I want to do on this upcoming trip. The High Line is impressive each time I see it, so hopefully there will be some great weather while I'm there and I can enjoy it once again. I also want to enjoy Central Park. For someone who usually beelines for all of the tourist spots the first time I'm in a city, can you believe that I've never actually explored the park? I've zipped into one area to see the Alice in Wonderland statue, but that's it. How depressing. I really hope the weather cooperates this time. I have plans to have a nice lunch and read a book!
There's just so much to do in New York. Each time I go, there's more things that I want to do and things to discover. And there seem to be special events or seasonal
things that pop up too. I loved the ice rink that was in Bryant Park. I was desperate to go skating (I haven't skated in over a year, I think. Maybe two? It's quite upsetting.) but just standing and watching the folks on the ice, having a great time was nice. They'd set up a Christmas Market surrounding it, and I felt like I was back in Europe again. The 'log' huts that they'd put there and the kinds of trinkets they were selling. All that was missing was the stall with the candied nuts and gingerbread. And the glühwein. Oh, to smell that glühwein
Anyway, those were just some of the highlights of my trip to New York last year. I'm excited to be going back again and can't wait to discover more about the city. I was considering bringing work with me to do and I will be trying to get some work done on the way there and back, but I'm not sure if I will get anything done while I'm there.
Part of me thinks that it might be nice for me to get some work done in a different place and space, a fresh way to work on things, but another part of me says, 'take a break'. I probably need one. But who wouldn't be motivated to get some work down if you were sitting in a gorgeous library such as this one? I'm going to start with working on the way there and seeing how much I can accomplish during that amount of time. I'll see how motivated I am to continue working after that beginning on the journey over and then decide. The problem is that there's just so many things that I want to do in the city, that why would I 'waste' my time there working, when I could be enjoying everything else that the city has to offer?
What a great city.

Outdoor movie screenings

Soon, K-12 summer is going to start (you know, versus post-secondary summer and, well, I don't know what non-academic folks call summer) and that means even more events in the city than there are now!

Here's the list of outdoor film series that happen in my area:
Dancing in the Dark @ Younge-Dundas Square
Free Flicks @ Harbourfront Centre
TIFF in the Park @ David Pecaut Square

Last summer, I ended up going to a couple screenings at David Pecaut. The Muppets Movie (during which there was a massive thunderstorm - boo) and Mary Poppins (hence the picture). We'll see what I end up going to see this year!

MapAttack!

This event by Newmindspace for North by Northeast sounds like fun. Shame that I don't have an i-phone nor Android. My accessibility radar is having a field day. It's funny how it's just kind of assumed that most people will have one or the other. Way to phase out those Blackberry users and luddites.
I'm really not THAT annoyed, but it's something I think about every so often.

The Little Black Jacket

Behold, the iconic little black jacket from Chanel. When I attended the traveling 2.55 exhibition that was in the city a couple years ago, I was amazed at the details and craftmanship of the bag. I was also impressed at the care that the company took at putting together the exhibition and the representation that they sent along with it from France. I'm sure The Little Black Jacket exhibition would be just as fun. It would be great if it came to the city. I doubt it would, though. Sigh.

No no no no no!

A very well followed blogger recently did a collaboration with a company whom I've been lusting over their products for quite some time. And I think the company isn't in the mainstream yet (it might never get there because of their price point, but I would argue that Hermes, for example, is in the mainstream even though they are at a price point that isn't attainable to the mainstream market) but because I'm selfish, I want as few people to think that they're the next "it" company, or "cool" brand to own or whatever. I mean, their stuff is gorgeous and of course people will fall in love with the company, but when I eventually own something from there myself (trust me, I've tried...it's been a crazy adventure) I don't want to be "yet another girl with a ____ bag". If I stay in Canada, it'll be a little easier for me as they don't really have any retailers in the country and, well, ummm, Canadians take a lot longer to jump on bandwagons, but the point is, I don't want there to be a bandwagon. I'm a snob! I don't want to be one of the masses!
 I care way too much about these things. Essentially, I'm convinced that their stuff is gorgeous and I will own something from the fashion house in the future, and I will be intrinsically satisfied with what I own, but I believe that many people pass judgement (I'm not being hypocritical here, I know that I do the same!) based on visible things and I don't want this brand to get to the point where people can pass judgement with a different lense. Oh gosh, I really read into these things way too much.

Louis Vuitton - Larger than Life

This is a pretty cute series by the folks at Louis Vuitton.

Skewed view

The first thing I thought when I looked browsed a website that was passed along to me by a friend was, "How can I use this in my teaching?"
Earlier today, I was telling a colleague about how much I love teaching. That it's the best job. That I can't wait to teach for the rest of my life.
Sometimes I have difficulty falling asleep because my mind is racing with ideas for my teaching. Once I'm asleep, I sometimes dream about teaching. I've missed my train/subway/streetcar/bus stop a couple times due to being lost in my thoughts coming up with activities to use in classes.
When I first started writing this post, I thought that maybe it's a bad thing that I see things from this skewed point of view. Or that I can't appreciate things through any other lense. But I don't think that's true. I recently saw things through an equity point of view (something that I felt I was lacking), and well, I think it's awesome that I have found something that I'm so passionate about. If only everyone could be so lucky.

Have to start somewhere. Had to start sometime.

Today was the day. Pen to paper (well, fingers to keyboard). Game on, thesis. Game on.

Doors Open

This is the first year since I've moved back to Canada that I've been in town for Doors Open. I went to a couple different venues today, and enjoyed being a tourist in my own city. Lots of walking, lots of going here and there, picking up maps, following self-guided tours - true *L*-tourist mode. Of course, I wasn't the only one who was enjoying the event. I was so happy to see how many people were out and about. The gorgeous weather helps too! It was an awesome day and I plan to head back out again tomorrow!

Summer's here!

Or, at least, good weather is here! I have my first Greg's for the year. I actually stayed away from Greg's entirely last year. Amazing, I know. But it's as delicious as I remember. I tried a couple different flavours before settling on my choices. Trail Mix is exactly what it should taste like, just in ice cream form, and Bombay Chocolate (or something like that), which is coconut milk, curry, and chocolate, is also exactly what it should taste like. The former = tasty. The latter = unique.
Anyway, I was starting to feel bad that I kept asking for samples, but there were enough flavours that I didn't recognize that it was making my decision difficult. I need to be an informed buyer! Yet, in the end, I still took a leap of faith (because, as I said, I was getting a little embarrassed at taking so long). I got Star Anise (actually, quite tasty, so the risk paid off in the end), and of course, my Greg's go-to and must-have flavour, Roasted Marshmallow.
Now, I guess it had been so long since my last visit that I couldn't recall how I would be able to get two different flavours without getting too much ice cream. In the end, I got a scoop of each (which was too much ice cream, even for me!) and then realized that I probably got a 1/2 scoop of each previously. Now that my memory is jogged, I can move forward from here.
Also, there's a second location of Greg's for even more awesomeness. So if you're in the Distillery District, enjoy!

Hot Docs 2012

I ended up seeing 8 films during this year's edition of Hot Docs. Thanks to Scotiabank, I watched all of them for free.

Here are the films that I saw, in the order that I saw them:
1. The Imposter
2. One Fine Day
3. Bones Brigade: An Autobiography
4. Big Boys Gone Bananas!*
5. The Revisionaries
6. Legend of a Warrior
7. Brooklyn Castle
8. Radioman

I did quite well in the movies that I watched. I had planned to see a couple more on the final day of the festival, but I was exhausted. Shame, because two of the films that I was going to see turned out to be award winners: The World Before Her and The Boxing Girls of Kabul. I'm a little disappointed that my body and brain can't keep up with everything that I want to do, but I'm glad that I (for once) didn't push it. Taking the Sunday off was wonderful.
The film that I enjoyed the most out of the 8 that I saw was definitely the first. Hopefully it's not because I was just too exhausted by the end to really enjoy the films and that it was just really that good. But turns out that others in the industry also liked the film too, as it won the Filmmakers Award.
Actually, I liked all of the films that I saw. I could have gone without the second and maybe the third one, but 6 out of 8 is good. I need to get better at guessing which screenings will have Q&As. At 5 out of 8, I'm not happy with my outcome. Actually, I do think that watching the premiere of a film at the festival would give me a better shot at a Q&A, and although I do take that into consideration when creating my schedule during festivals, the jigsaw of maximizing the number of screenings that I can attend based on my schedule means that I just go to the screenings that I have time to go to.
Most likely, the next festival that I will be attending is TIFF, although I'll try to get some outdoor films in during the summer months. I haven't been to a screening of a blockbuster movie on any old average day in a long time. Actually, I can't remember the last time I went to see a movie like that. I don't even know what movies are out right now. I'm such a snob.

Radioman

Radioman (official website here) was the final film that I saw at this year's Hot Docs. By the end of the week, I was pretty tired from everything that was going on in life that I needed something light. I had actually had planned to see a couple more films the next day (Sunday), but in the end, I took the day off. I needed it.
I had never heard of Radioman before. I must have seen him in different films and/or shows but clearly I never made the connection or I didn't realize that it was more than just a character on the screen.
Radioman is man who lives in New York and is a regular on TV show and movie sets. He loves the industry and has gotten to know some of the people in it. He's gotten cameos, is allowed at Craft Service and has attended the Oscars.
Radioman is quite the individual. His story is interesting, and is personality is entertaining. I laughed out loud during the screening, and A-list celebrities have some nice things to say about him, but in the end, I did have an overwhelming sense of sadness.
Apparently, Radioman attended the first two screenings of the film, but the filmmakers who stayed for the Q&A were able to get him on the phone. His personality shone through even through that little cell phone. The filmmakers talked about how they wanted to make a positive film. To show the personality of Radioman, that they didn't want it to be depressing, but as i said before, I felt sad. I wasn't sure if Radioman is a happy person. Sure we all get sad from time to time, but overall, I think I'm doing pretty well. I wonder if he feels like he's getting let down time and time again. I wonder if he's lonely. I wonder what will happen to him after the fact? I don't judge, I just wonder.
Well, rest assured, I will start to look for Radioman as I watch TV and films in the future.
It's kind of a neat movie to see. Radioman does seem like an interested person. But it wasn't quite as happy-go-lucky of a film as I thought it would be. Not that it should be based on the subject matter, but that's just what I was expecting from the write-up.
Finally, at the screening, I realized that it would be my last time watching a movie at the Cumberland Theatres. They would be closing the theatre after Hot Docs and it would be turned into some sort of fancy retail space. Sigh, it's a great location and cute set of theatres. I wonder how it will be redone on the inside? It's amazing how architects can just gut everything and see it as a blank slate. Or build around features that are already there. Tae the best of both worlds. I wonder if they'll keep anything of the cinemas in tact?

- picture courtesy of www.hotdocs.ca