Author: Matthew Westphal

Elena Ferrante Might Be More Than One Person — And Here’s Why That Would Matter

In the form of “An Open Letter to Elena Ferrante, Whoever You Are,” Rachel Donadio does a dive into the writings of the two people (who happen to be married to each other) most often suggested as the actual writer of the mysterious Italian author’s novels, essays, and e-mail interviews — and Donadio considers why so many of the readers who love Ferrante’s work are invested in her identity, particularly her identity as a woman. — The Atlantic

Justin Peck Explains How He Used Everyday Movement To Choreograph The Actors In His New Short Films

“For as long as I can remember, I’ve always been interested in how people move in everyday life. The way someone leaps over a puddle in the gutter to hail a cab or the way one person holds a door for another. Or even the way cooks in a restaurant kitchen work with synchronicity in their confined quarters. … That instinct became the jumping-off point for this series of Great Performers films simple gestures drawn from the everyday.” — New York Times Magazine

Watch Justin Peck’s Dance Films Choreographed On Some Of The Year’s Best Movie Actors

“Justin Peck, the New York City Ballet’s resident choreographer, created a series of dance films for the year’s best actors. The scenarios put everyday characters in familiar situations: packed into a subway car, stuck in a doctor’s office, caught in downpour. But once they start moving, the actors” — Julia Roberts, Toni Collette, Lakeith Stanfield, Glenn Close, Regina Hall, Yoo Ah-In, Ethan Hawke, Elsie Fisher, Yalitza Aparicio, and (together) Emma Stone, Olivia Colman, And Rachel Weisz — “turn our common experiences into welcome moments of enchantment.” — New York Times Magazine

MoviePass Tries To Get Itself Back Together With An Overhauled Pricing Model

“Despite becoming a trending topic for all the wrong reasons, the company that once planned to be the Netflix of moviegoing believes it can win back the trust of its customers after a bumpy year that’s led to a wave of articles predicting its imminent demise. … As part of that effort a chastened MoviePass is unveiling a new series of monthly plans, the prices of which will vary depending on geography.” — Variety

While The Smithsonian’s Popular Museums Get The Cash, The Poor Old Castle Desperately Needs A Renovation

“The Castle was a jewel in its heyday, but it has been falling into disrepair for years and is now mainly an office building, providing space for about 200 employees. … Last year, there was an electrical fire; the year before that, stones fell off its exterior. And this fall, an outbreak of mold — not the first — forced the evacuation of more than 30 employees. … Meanwhile, the institution has focused on dozens of other projects at its 19 museums, research centers and zoo,” including several renovations and the building of two museums from scratch. — Washington Post

Science Fiction Isn’t Just A Western Genre Anymore

“The new movement is wide-ranging, including everything from Russian science fiction – with a history reaching back into the 19th Century – to Afrofuturism, a movement rooted in experiences of black oppression. It covers Chinese books dealing with revolutionary history and aliens, to futurist Mexican movies about migration and free trade.” Tom Cassauwers has a look at the sci-fi coming from these countries and what it says about them. — BBC

Big Companies Are Now Paying For Custom-Created Science Fiction

With an eye to the surprisingly large amount of present-day consumer technology that was predicted and inspired by Philip K. Dick’s Minority Report, a constellation of companies and independent designers and consultants has formed to “help clients create forward-looking fiction to generate ideas and IP for progress or profit. … And corporations like Ford, Nike, Intel, and Hershey’s, it turns out, are willing to pay hefty sums for their own in-house Minority Reports.” — Medium

Musicians’ Union’s Largest Local Votes To Throw Out Old Leadership

“It was the first contested election in nine years at Local 802 of the American Federation of Musicians, and it could cause national ripples. Adam Krauthamer was elected president with 67 percent of the vote, beating Tino Gagliardi … in a stunning upset, amid concerns over the underfunded musicians pension plan and broader changes facing music, the original gig economy.” — New York Times