Tag: Free

Racism and Cultural Appropriation in the Arts: Screening, Workshop, and Panel with Simone Blais

On March 24-25 2021, Vancouver Short Film Festival is partnering with the CineVic Society of Independent Filmmakers for our first event in the VSFF On The Road series:

Racism and Cultural Appropriation in the Arts: Screening, Workshop, and Panel with Simone Blais

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Wednesday March 24th / 6:30pm via ZOOM
Short Documentary Screening and Discussion with Simone Blais
In this workshop, watch the 30 minute film Dance Like Everybody’s Watching, which explores the lives of Black dancers in Victoria, BC (Songhees, Esquimalt, W̱SÁNEĆ territories). After this private viewing, participate in a facilitated discussion with the director and other participants. This is the perfect opportunity for people looking to work though themes of cultural appropriation and inclusion in the dance community and is ideal for artists and non-artists of any background. If you are interested in community-building and anti-racism, this workshop is for you!

REGISTER VIA GOOGLE FORMS: https://forms.gle/V89FDvUwyrxsR8cE9

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Thursday March 25th / 6:30pm via Facebook Live
Filmmaker Panel featuring Peruzzo, Andy Hodgson, Adhel Arop
Moderated by Simone Blais, this panel will further the conversation begun in the screening and workshop, and explore the intersection of these themes with the work and career of local filmmakers.

ACCESS ON MARCH 25TH VIA FACEBOOK LIVE: https://www.facebook.com/events/2632082723748643/

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Simone Blais is a dancer, doula, director and aspiring midwife. She is a recent UVic Gender Studies graduate whose work focuses on decolonizing the dance community and reproductive justice for marginalized communities. In the past 5 years, she has worked with the Nesting Doula Collective, and the Native Youth Sexual Health Network, delivering workshops about reproductive justice. She is also the director and producer of the documentary Dance Like Everybody’s Watching, which highlights the experiences of Black dancers in ‘Victoria’. Find about more at simone-blais.com About Dance Like Everybody’s Watching: Dance Like Everybody’s Watching follows three Black dancers in Victoria, BC as they expose their worlds of flamenco, hip hop, and dancehall. While the dancers grapple with racism, tokenism, and stereotypes, we are reminded that dance is always political. This short film deals with themes of cultural appropriation in dance and is uniquely a BC production. 100% of the production, cast and crew are based in Victoria, BC. Dance Like Everybody’s Watching is funded by Storyhive and Creative BC.

About VSFF On The Road: The Vancouver Short Film Festival is excited to announce VSFF ON THE ROAD: an online event series connecting filmmakers across the province while staying apart. Sponsored by Creative BC. VSFF is proud to partner with film organizations province-wide and connect with communities outside of Vancouver as we create unique educational and professional development opportunities for filmmaking in British Columbia.

Finding Nirvana Event

Hey Gen Z Students! Join us at our FREE happiness and learn the habits and tips for mindful awareness, positive thinking and happiness.

About this Event
JOIN OUR HAPPINESS PARTY!!! The pressures of online schooling, living in a pandemic environment and the pressures that surround our daily lives can definitely take away a lot of our positive energy. You will have the opportunity to participate and win PRIZES that we are giving away throughout our event! You can have the chance to win an APPLE WATCH, a GOOGLE HOME MINI and so much MORE!
You will be able to learn tools and tips that can help you create a positive mindset and help you find your “Nirvana”! Finding Nirvana will allow college and university students across Canada to not only expand their knowledge on positive psychology but adapt techniques that they can use for a lifetime!
Finding Nirvana presents a Canadian-wide, FREE virtual student event created by the business student at the University of Guelph-Humber. This is an event you don’t want to miss out on. Immerse on a journey of self-discovery where you can learn how to raise your levels of consciousness and gain insight into the science of happiness. JOIN US for this eye-opening and interactive experience with live special guests and professional seminars where you’ll discover techniques to become more aware of your feelings, emotions and thought patterns. Our free resources in neuroscience and positive psychology will equip you with the tools and strategies needed to maintain a healthy life balance. JOIN hundreds of students across Canada on this journey so we can help you find your happiness!

We would love to see you there so make sure you RSVP at http://www.findingnirvana.ca 🙂

*CHECK US OUT AT: http://www.findingnirvana.ca
FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM: findingnirvanaevent
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER: FindingNirvanaE

couchwalker on film by Jenny Banai

“couchwalker on film” is a short film experiment, imagined and created by Jenny Banai; a visual representation of her sophomore album “couchwalker”.

“couchwalker on film” premieres Monday, December 14 on Audiofemme. Read full conversation Jenny Banai had with them about the story behind the film here – https://www.audiofemme.com/jenny-bana…

Inspired, in part, and due to the limited ways live music can be shared in our current world environment, Banai envisioned a multi-medium digital concept performance to clarify “couchwalker” on another level, so as to invite viewers in as close as one can to the music and to her particular creative character.

Starring Banai, the film features long single-shot segments in a warehouse fashioned to look like a living room set, with a couch—and her interactions with said couch—as the centrepiece. She is accompanied by two dancers, who appear throughout the film and represent the emotional pulls within her humanity as she sorts through her convictions and feelings regarding relationship choices and her faith.

Pulling on her novice dance and theatre background, and audio editing skills, the creation of “couchwalker on film” both challenged and unveiled Banai’s abilities. She first edited her album down to twenty minutes of audio; a mix of full album production, lo-fi live takes and voice memos, to create an audio narrative. She then brought on film director, Matej Balaz of Colla Films and choreographers and dancers, Joanna Anderson and Kezia Rosen, as her collaborating partners on the project.

Over weeks of meetings, a handful of rehearsals and two postponements, couchwalker on film became the intricate and nuanced piece that it is. Expressing the wrestling match between the conscious and subconscious, reason and intuition, convictions and feelings, Banai invites the viewer into a world where moving through various emotions is both an invitation and a necessity, and how we move through them is the choice we are gifted with.

“The [Hebrew] word, the word timshel—’Thou mayest’—that gives choice. It might be the most important word in the world. That says the way is open”
– Lee (Character in John Steinbeck’s “East of Eden”).

Credits:

Concept and creation by Jenny Banai and her collabs: Matej Balaz, Joanna Noelle, and Kezia Rosen
Directed by Jenny Banai and Matej Balaz
Produced by Colla Films
Cinematography: Nate J Slaco
Editing: Daša Netíková and Matej Balaz
Choreography: Joanna Anderson and Kezia Rosen
Costume Design: Jenny Banai, Joanna Anderson and Kezia Rosen
Artistic Direction: Camille Candia
Music: Jenny Banai
Live Take Edits: Scott Currie
Production Assistant: Michal Slako

We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.
We thank Creative BC for their Showcase grant helping us out during the strangest of times for artists (and all people of course!).

website: https://jennybanai.com
spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3dUsj…
instagram: https://instagram.com/jennybanai
facebook: https://facebook.com/jenny.banai
bandcamp: https://jennybanai.bandcamp.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/BanaiJenny
soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/jennybanai

Lozen: Goal Digger (Album Release) Live Show

A Facebook Live stream from “Temple of Lozen” performing her Goal Digger album in it’s entirety. Listeners will be offered a hybrid musical experience blending both acoustic, unplugged, and electronic versions of the songs. Lozen will also be sharing in depth backstories behind the making of the record, followed by a Q&A period and a handcrafted Lozen Mandala Pendant Necklace giveaway.

Mxd Mssg Livestream

Vancouver artist Mxd Mssg will be livestreaming on Tuesday night on his Facebook page at @mxdmssg. Tune in to hear some originals performed in a fresh new way and for some surprise guests.

Special thanks. This livestream is supported by Creative and the Province of British Columbia.

Elysian Trio: To Ignite a Star

Join the Elysian Trio for an online concert inspired by nature and space, featuring works by Karim Al-Zand, Nicholas Ryan Kelly, Leslie Opatril, and Aidan Wong.

This concert is presented with the generous support of Creative BC and the Province of British Columbia

Infinitus Performance Presentation

You are invited to join the always-entertaining Infinitus, for a very special online presentation! Come along as the effervescent trio members share music from their Redemptio Suite. In between movements, the group will give a “backstage” peek at how the presentation is put together, explain life as a musician in a pandemic, and hold Q & A with the audience. Thanks to the support of Showcase BC, this concert is entirely free to the general public! With streaming on multiple platforms (Zoom/Facebook Live), we look forward to seeing you online!

Diemm: Run to the Trees

Living room concert livestream, from the Kootenay mountains. Singer-songwriter Diemm will dream aloud on folk harp, with vocals. And poetry.
Funded generously by Amplify BC.

Run to the Trees

When sorrow squeezes me into uncomfortable shapes,⁣
I run to the trees. ⁣
I push my face into leaves, into flowers,⁣
as close as close ⁣
so they fill the field of my vision. ⁣
⁣
“Show me me,” I whisper, “Show me me.”⁣
⁣
Tiny birds land on low branches,⁣
include me in their flock. ⁣
They lead me far into the woods. ⁣
We forage. We flit. ⁣
I blow a kiss to chickadee. ⁣
She sings as it lands on her chest. ⁣
Mourning cloak butterfly brushes black wingtip along my earlobe.
I listen. ⁣
⁣
“Magic is real,” I hear, “Sorrow comes to pass. It carries the unreal away, what is true is what stays.”⁣
⁣
I press my cheeks onto boulders,⁣
the cool jawline of mountain. ⁣
I wrap my arms around my stoic companions and ⁣
my roots twine with theirs. ⁣
My spine rises so high to the sky that ⁣
stars nest in my hair. ⁣
⁣
“I’ve got you I’m with you I am you are me,”⁣
Gravity sings as he fashions my wings. ⁣
He nibbles my shoulder blades when I roll over in my sleep. ⁣
⁣
Perspective allows ⁣
peace to reclaim what it is. ⁣
This is how I find me ⁣
new⁣
when sorrow presses me into uncomfortable shapes.
~ Diemm