One film art director: “Over one hour, everything was cancelled. That’s £28,000 gone in an instant. My head started spinning. I realised the knock-on effect this would have in the industry and felt sick. It will be months before it’s gaining traction again, and once it does, it will be a feeding frenzy for us freelancers. I’ve never felt this hopeless and bleak in my life.” – The Guardian (UK)
Blog
How To Hunker Down And Actually Read Right Now
You can read an awful lot for free through libraries’ online services. Also, here are some tips on how to find reading community when your book group can’t meet in person. – The Washington Post
Even Disney Plus, Which Just Got To Europe, Will Reduce Its Streaming Load
Why? Because everyone’s at home – and everyone needs bandwidth. “European Commissioner Thierry Breton had asked streamers to take measures to prevent congestion on the internet. One of the suggestions he presented was switching to standard definition when high-definition was not necessary.” Amazon Prime, Apple TV+, Disney, and Netflix are among those answering the call to reduce streaming quality. – Los Angeles Times
Debbie Allen, Ben Platt, And Other Celebrities Host Instagram Dance Classes And Parties
Debbie Allen, star and choreographer of Fame, has been hosting dance lessons and classes since Wednesday. “‘While all of us are dealing with this uncertainty and darkness, we will bring the light right here on the dance floor,’ she told her class which amassed to over 89,000 students, as she blasted Fame‘s titular song.” (And don’t forget about #QuaranTunes.) – The Hollywood Reporter
Suzy Delair, Who Starred In Movies And Music Halls, Has Died At 102
Delair starred in Laurel and Hardy’s last movie, but she was best known for starring in 1940s thrillers directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot, some of which were made during the Nazi occupation of Paris. She had begun singing in cafés when she was 14, which is how she met the director and, eventually, became a movie star – but she never stopped singing. – The New York Times
The Art Of Culturally Relevant Crosswords
Crossword editors are strange arbiters of cultural relevance. Read tweets by Awkwafina or Olivia Wilde on learning that they’ve been immortalized in the black-and-white grid—it’s the bookish version of handprints on a slab outside Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. But any pub-trivia attendee—exposed to categories on craft beer or things that smell like sourdough or whatever the emcee is into—will tell you that personnel is policy. – The Atlantic
Do You Suffer From Imposter Syndrome?
This kind of reflexive self-doubt is not so much a ‘syndrome’ as it is a widespread state of psychological distortion, with roughly 70 per cent of people experiencing it at some point in their lives. – Aeon
Movie Box Office Falls 97 Percent As Theatres Shut
Box office revenue limped to a historic low of $300,000 or less on Wednesday as the vast majority of cinemas in North America closed their doors indefinitely due to the coronavirus crisis. That compares to $10.7 million in revenue on the same Wednesday a year ago, resulting in a year-over-year decline of 97 percent. – The Hollywood Reporter
Philanthropies Are Lining Up To Try To Help The Arts
Though the organizers of the fund wanted to start with New York because of the city’s importance as a cultural center, they know the need spans the country, extending to individuals as well as nonprofit groups. Elizabeth Alexander, president of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, another fund contributor, expects Mellon to partner with other advocacy organizations to develop additional granting programs soon. – Washington Post
“Sweet Land” Opera Was A Hit. Then It Had To Close For The Virus. So One Performance For Just The Cameras
“I think of it a little bit like if a house was burning, and you had the opportunity to run in and save a piece of humanity,” says Industry founder Yuval Sharon. “That’s what we’re doing.” – Los Angeles Times