Four of Wales’ best-loved festivals have joined forces in lockdown to create Gŵyl 2021, a free, online festival of music and comedy. The best of Festival of Voice, FOCUS Wales, Other Voices Cardigan, and Aberystwyth Comedy Festival have been captured over recent months in Wales and internationally within coronavirus guidelines, to create an event which will be available across the UK at http://www.bbc.co.uk/gwyl2021 … Continue reading
Category Archives: Film
Mytus ‘gets back’ in her video debut
Mytus, an exciting new R&B talent from New Jersey, has released her first video. Get Back was released (or ‘dropped’, as they say nowadays!) last week [February 5th 2021]. Queen Mytus, to use her full title, a rising singer-songwriter, based in Camden, NJ, said: “My intention in creating music is to always uplift, inspire, bring … Continue reading
Interacting with horror: ‘I Saw Black Clouds’
The idea of ‘interacting’ with a horror film isn’t new – famous examples include the ‘punishment poll’ in William Castle’s Mr Sardonicus (1961) and the ‘werewolf break’ in The Beast Must Die (1974). But these days, things are much, much more sophisticated, as the forthcoming British horror I Saw Black Clouds shows. This latest offering … Continue reading
Over the forest and into adventure – Annalium goes online
An intriguing series of short, dialogue-free screenplays, has now gone online. Annalium is the work of Cardiff-based writer (and my pal) Robert Lancey, who has created a website to showcase the screenplays and their potential to be realised on screen. Each opens with a flight over a forest, and then a descent through the treetops … Continue reading
Arrr! Long John Silver and Dracula’s innkeeper went to my old school
I was delighted to discover recently that two great West Country actors went to my old school. Robert Newton, who played the archetypal Long John Silver (and arguably originated the ‘pirate accent’) and George Woodbridge, the classic Hammer horror innkeeper and comedy policeman, were both students of Exeter School in Devon. Newton, born in Dorset … Continue reading
Creating a vibe with a cool sunset video
The superb video for the latest song by talented New Jersey R&B artist Jo Rivers was launched (or ‘dropped‘ as the cool kids say) this week [September 15, 2020] – reflecting a late summer vibe and all the potential that a new relationship offers. The video for Create A Vibe was made by my namesake … Continue reading
When Daniel met Isla – a clever and engaging short film ‘One Another’
A boring and bored man, unhappily married and hating his job, unexpectedly encounters a beautiful woman. He’s captivated, and she leads him on an exciting adventure. It’s a familiar male fantasy, which has formed the basis for some memorable films – Edward G Robinson and Joan Bennett in Fritz Lang’s Scarlet Street (1945) and Gene … Continue reading
Under fire – three dragon films you may have missed
Dragons are perhaps the most feared, and almost certainly the most spectacular, of mythical creatures. So it’s no surprise they’ve often featured in movies. Recent incarnations include the awe-inspiring dragons in TV’s Game of Thrones and cinema’s Hobbit films, and Starburst listed 10 of the best in this 2019 feature. Impressive as those blockbusters are, … Continue reading
‘One Paycheck Away’ – film will explore the precarious existence of ordinary Americans
It’s claimed that in 2019, 80% of Americans were living from one pay cheque to the next. A year on [I write this during the 2020 coronavirus crisis], the pandemic has caused economic devastation, with more than 40 million filing for unemployment. Many who were relying on the next pay cheque to pay the rent, … Continue reading
How Talking Pictures found the perfect nostalgic formula
The idea of a channel devoted to classic films isn’t new, but in the UK Talking Pictures TV has found what seems to be the perfect nostalgic formula. While TCM (Turner Classic Movies) has been around since the 1990s and more recently Sony Movies has launched a dedicated ‘Classic’ channel, these and others tend to … Continue reading