Andrei Zvyagintsev “is being described as a seer of the social and spiritual divides in Vladimir V. Putin’s Russia. … And the sense that he views life – and the Russian condition – as a series of moral challenges is apparent in his films and in conversation.”
Month: May 2012
Leading Australian Aboriginal Actress Says She’ll Play No More Aboriginals
“Actress Ursula Yovich has quit playing indigenous roles, saying she has been typecast because of her race and that a career spent portraying the ‘tragic reality’ of Aboriginal characters has left her emotionally drained.”
After 11 Years, Weinstein Brothers’ Publishing House Releases Its First Books
The concern, launched in 2001 as Miramax Books (and the publisher of Tina Brown’s ill-fated Talk magazine), “has remained open throughout the brothers’ tumultuous last decade, persists. Now with a full-time staff of two, the latest iteration of Weinstein Books is about to release its first spate of titles.”
Syria’s Embattled Artists Hang On
Political artists, abstract artists – all artists who aren’t strictly supportive of Bashar al-Assad’s government are under tremendous pressure in Syria these days. Yet a group of them has managed to smuggle their work to a gallery in Beirut – where it sold.
Roll Over For Beethoven: Detroit Symphony’s Kid Rock Concert Breaks A Few Barriers
“You can’t witness thousands of rabid Kid Rock fans rewarding the first movement of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony with a roaring standing ovation and breaking into chants of ‘DSO! DSO!’ without recognizing elitist stereotypes about classical music being put out to pasture.”
Former English National Ballet Star Charged With Fraud
“35-year-old former English National Ballet dancer Stephen Moonesamy has been arrested and charged with fraud after allegedly falsely convincing some 75 children from a dance company … that they would get to take part in the closing ceremony of the forthcoming Olympics in London.”
Logic Is Not Neutral (Contrary To Popular Belief)
Many laypeople, and more than a few logicians, consider logic “an umpire, a neutral arbitrator between opposing theories, imposing some basic rules on all sides in a dispute. The picture is that logic has no substantive content, for otherwise the correctness of that content could itself be debated, which would impugn the neutrality of logic.” Oxford philosopher Timothy Williamson explains why this is – illogical.
Australian Art Fraud Expert Has No Sense Of Humour
“The leader of the University of Melbourne’s art fraud unit has cancelled her attendance at an art forgery forum organised by Melbourne’s Art Series Hotels following hotel management’s decision to offer guests prizes of fake Andy Warhol pictures.”
In A Social-Networked World, Fans Lobby To Save Their Favorite TV Shows
“Fans have become more creative (or maybe desperate) over time, sending symbols as well as letters to networks.”
Are We Completely Ruled By Our Body Chemistry?
“The choices we make in day-to-day life are prompted by impulses lodged deep within the nervous system. Not only are we not masters of our fate; we are captives of biological determinism. Once we enter the portals of the strange neuronal world known as the brain, we discover that — to put the matter plainly — we have no idea what we’re doing.”