Film Works

Film Screening Invitation: ‘Technophilia’ Screens in Las Vegas on Aug. 25, 2011

The Philippine-Korean-Iraqi 16mm short film “Technophilia” will have a screening at “RAW: Las Vegas Presents Fusion” on Aug. 25, 2011 (Thursday) at Tommy Rocker’s in Las Vegas. If you’re in the Vegas area on the said date, you’re invited to come to the event and support local artists. You can buy tickets through this link. Buying ahead of time will only cost $10 for a night of film, music performances, photography, mixed media, and performance art exhibitions, and fashion show.

“Technophilia” will start the showcase at 8:30 p.m. For more information about the film, you can check out the: trailer, film stills, behind-the-scene photos, and film blog. This film is produced by Colorwheel Media Studios through the help of the Korean Film Council, Korean Academy of Film Arts, and Korea University.

Synopsis

Inside a hangout place, the game addict boyfriend gets boxed up by his techie lifestyle, which further alters his relationship with his already fed-up girlfriend. Things become more and more mechanical as they move on.

More About RAW Artists Events

You can also check out the video of last month’s “RAW: Las Vegas Presents Illuminare” for an idea of what’s to come for the next showcase. You can also view videos of other RAW Artists events: “RAW: Los Angeles Presents Incite” and “RAW: New York Presents Artcade.”

What is RAW?

RAW: natural born artists is an independent arts organization, for artists, by artists.

Our mission is to provide independent artists of all creative genres with the tools, resources, and exposure needed to inspire and cultivate creativity. RAW educates emerging artists through seminars, workshops, and insights to further knowledge of their industries.

RAW connects them with one another so that they may grow together, while also providing them with opportunities to give back to their own local youth communities through the arts.

We encourage the creative success of the many visionaries and storytellers of our generation.

Grassroots Showcase Events

RAW handpicks and spotlights local artistic talents in film, fashion, music, visual art, hair and makeup artistry, and performance art. With artists from all genres in each showcase, RAW events come together to form an amazing circus of creativity.

What Can You Expect when Attending the RAW Showcase?

We screen an independent film (usually a short, webisode, or music video), a fashion show from an up-and-coming local designer, a musical performance, an art gallery featuring several independent visual artists, and performance art (comedy/dance/fire dancers, you name it…). You’ll get a little taste of everything. Combine all this creativity with drinks, fun, and good company! To partake in the experience, RSVP ($10/ticket) in the “Showcases” section of the event.

Manila Bulletin and Sense&Style Feature Articles

A Pants Affair

This is fun. Due to my assigned work to write about fashion, I just realized now certain terms that made me laugh a bit… I wear these things for all these times and yet it’s only now that I get to know what they are exactly…

Gauchos - calf-length pants with flared legs; a style of very flowing and loose fitting, flared pants with an elastic waitband, commonly worm by young dancers, but also worn casually.

Culottes – also known as a split skirt or divided skirt; also been called a skort (a portmanteau for skirt and shorts); some culottes resemble short trousers, and they should look like a skirt to be true cullotes as they are much fuller at the bottom hem than at the waist; they were developed to provide more freedom to do more physical activities such as cleaning, bike riding, running around, etc. while still looking like the wearer is wearing a skirt.

Skort – shorts that have a front covering to resemble a skirt, or short pant legs with a same length or longer skirt sewn over the top; some are actually culottes that have parts sewn over only the front, while some are shorts with a skirt sewn over them.

Capri pants (or simply just capris) – a style of pants designed to end mid-calf or just below the calf. More recently, the length of the pants has been shortened to just below the knee in some designs; the name originates from the style being originally worn by bicyclists.

Pedal pushers are women’s calf-length trousers, often related in style to the the capri pants; they were popular during the 1950s

Trousers (sometimes called slacks or breeches) – item of clothing worn at the hips or waist, and may be held up by their own fastenings, a belt, or suspenders (braces); leggings are form-fitting trousers of a clingy material, often made of knitted cotton and lycra; in North America, pants is the general category term, and trousers refer, often more formally, to specifically tailored garments with a waistband and maybe some belt-loops and a fly-front; considerably, both the terms pants and trousers are synonymous with each other; short trousers, or shorts, stop anywhere from the upper thigh to the knee; capris are trousers that end mid-calf or just below the calf, while plus-fours (British) or knickers (US) end just below the knee.

Film Review: The Devil Wears Prada

Devilishly fluffy yet profound
By: Rianne Hill Soriano

Starring: Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, Stanley Tucci, Adrian Grenier
Directed by: David Frankel

‘The Devil Wears Prada’ is an ugly duckling-Cinderella tale set in the fashion industry where the princess is a bland fresh graduate and journalist wannabe who becomes a tortured assistant to a wicked, white-maned domineering fashion editor. The intersection of career and personal life explored in this story makes a filmic translation of a formulaic tale (from the novel by Lauren Weisberger) about a naive young woman who nearly loses her soul after being caught up in the world of fashion.

‘The Devil Wears Prada’ reflects a timid satire depicting a young woman’s introduction to the various complications relating to ethical, idealistic, blinding, political and principled choices in the real world of work and career and her relationship with her dictatorial magazine editor. More than its glossy look and the parody it presents, it strikes the hearts of career people – whether those youthful fashion-conscious femme viewers or those who are from any other profession – as the film relates to how absolute power, fame and success corrupt people. The story makes some salient points about the lengths on which a person shall allow herself/himself to be humiliated simply to hold on to a job and be willing to change one’s life as seen in this film by changing one’s dress size and lifestyle – presenting a slick yet refreshingly mature take on the ‘making a career in hell’ premise. The fairy tale treatment of the film presents the journey people take when getting that first job and discovering how the real world really works. In the case of Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway), the main conflict is consolidating her newly-found, outrageous fashion life with her heart that speaks for her own terms and sense of fulfillment.
The film impressively shows a privileged look inside the world of fashion journalism and the fashion capitals Paris and New York. One of the few effective conventional Hollywood films with a completely formulaic premise, ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ becomes more than a conventional Hollywood movie with conventional conflicts. Filled with impressively non-black-and-white characterizations, the film feels authentic with how the various characters are given specific and sometimes curious behaviors that form the film’s impressive ensemble. It remarkably amuses mainly with the force of nature of the character Meryl Streep plays. As the career-obsessed dragon lady Miranda Priestly, the pillar of New York fashion, she plays right on the edge with being comically mean and genuinely sad. From her sophisticatedly menacing minimal gestures that silently whisper roars (her lifted eyebrow, pursed lip, or even her stance while just having to remove her sunglasses or tilting her head with the white meringue of a hairstyle), she creates panic that tends to shake all of Runway, all the well-respected designers, celebrated supermodels and the rest of the famous fashionistas all over the world. Streep’s comic timing is absolutely bull’s eye in every take that she even manages to get a sizable laugh with the simplest line imaginable as ‘Go’ and ‘That’s all.’ Her silently menacing and comically witty character practically makes up the whole show. Miranda resembles a Cruella De Vil stance as a wolf in designer clothing. Her mere presence becomes nasty, terrifying, ruthless, cynical, mesmerizing, hilarious and fun. As the story progresses, she delivers with a deliciously mean and yet not totally heartless persona. More than her dramatic brilliance, Streep once again proves that she has incredible talent in her ability and expert timing to blend comedy and drama without forcing or faking them.

With the vicious wit of Streep leading the ensemble and Hathaway yielding to the redeeming embodiment of grace and humor, the film is very much carried over by bright supporting performances by Stanley Tucci (playing as the equally competent fashion editor Nigel) and Emily Blunt (playing as the impassioned fashionista Emily, Miranda’s first assistant striving to please and emulate her). They all work well in delivering clear character focuses.

The film makes a great appeal in turning fashion obsession into fun and profundity. Great mainstream production values and performances enliven the film’s mere couture and fluffiness. Cutting through the narcissistic confusions around, ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ makes ‘a high on fashion’ 109 minutes of moviehouse experience. It is quite predictable in between the glitzy glamour and bitchy stuff, but it does have a certain appealing cattiness and bite.

‘The Devil Wears Prada’ tells a familiar story elevated by complementing performances. Presented in the catty realm of fashion magazines, the film is lightweight but deep. It promotes such a killer cast, killer clothes and killer laughs. Andy’s journey with Miranda is universal in its theme about a young person finding her way. Any person can relate to the workplace politics as presented in the story. Its consistently whimsical touch supports its fashion layers to become a breezy and enjoyable piece of pop entertainment with its superficially shallow front that actually reflects something more profound.