Sónar 2006 - Special Report

Sónar 2006 - Special Report
Written, directed and produced by Sabrina Fidalgo
With: Señor Coconut, Groove Armada, Argenis Brito
and Gustavo Soriano (Arttodestruction).
Executive Producer: Massimo Mazzoleni.
Photography: Hernán Vilchez.
Edition: Norbert "Nobit" Küpper.
Production: Clubbity.com

Sónar 2006 - Special Report was an internet short documentary project that just came out a bit before Youtube's blast. It was produced by British webzine Clubbity, which used to be a very nice site for Nujazz and electronic music lovers. It was pretty fun spending this time around in Barcelona shooting Sónar, interviewing great musicians and artists, meeting new people and (re)meeting old friends from one of my favorite cities in the world. After a long time off line here it is again and now through VIMEO. Hope you, my three readers, enjoy it. (-;

Sonar 2006 - Special Report from Sabrina Fidalgo on Vimeo.

Michael Jackson - The King of Pop (1958 -2009)

Michael Jackson was many in one. From the super cute little black kid from Jackson Five until the lovely, polemic, excentric and recluse light skinned King of Pop and the biggest music icon from nowadays. But my favorite Michael Jackson was the one from the very beginning of 1980s (post-"Off The Wall" and very early "Thriller" start). Altough I was a baby at that time Michael Jackson was my first love. Serious. I thought I would marry him when I would become an adult. I had a big crush on him indeed, which lasts years (I guess until the "Bad" era). For that reason I have posted pictures of him from this period only, which at least for me, eternalized himself in his best moment in life; such musicaly as well physically speaking. Thriller was so popular back then that the album was on the top ten for at least four consecutive years.

A Night at the Nazi Mansion? - ADIDAS Originals Party in Rio

It seems german label Adidas has hosted a very strange party which took part last Friday night, 23th May, at a mansion decorated with "Nazis works of art" in... Rio de Janeiro! It could be a bad taste joke but unfortunately it isn't. Local producers seems to have rented the "wrong" place to promote an international Adidas Originals Party action (for V.I.Ps only). According to the blog of Brazilian writer João Paulo Cuenca, who was one of the party guests, the house had a swimming pool with tiles decorated with swastikas, as you can see in the pictures - the pics were made by himself and by poet and author Michel Melamed. Moreover, he says, one of the bars of the house had a poster with the inscription "Kriegsmarine Hamburg", which was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime. To complete, in one of the rooms, there was a table designed with the image, probably of a Nazi military. After realized the "horror" of the mansion's decoration the two upset guests leave the place. But before they have photographed those "strange objects" and immediately published the images in their own blogs. But it seems other guests did not care so much for the presence of Nazi objects at the mansion and continued having fun.

The most bizarre fact of this scary history was the neglect of the production to rent a "haunted house" just to organize a party of a German brand. By the way: Adidas already apologized and put the blame on the party producers/promoters and also gave the name of the owner of the mansion.

And even worst is the fact that some guests have accused Cuenca and Melamed of being "troublemakers" by spreading the pictures of the objects from the mansion out. Some of them even wondered at Cuenca's blog: "What's so wrong with swastikas designed tiles in a swimming pool? Who cares?"


Shame, shame, shame, shame on you!

Updating: German newspaper Die Tageszeitung, from Berlin, has published a comprehensive article about the case, namely Feiern zwischen Hakenkreuzen.

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La Concejela Antropófoga

Short film La Concejela Antropófoga by Pedro Almodóvar

First post of the year! It's been a long time since I've written something here, but I definitively didn't give up (yet) of this (post?) modern habit, I mean blogging. During the last months I've been working hard, among troubles, delays and (of course) some joy but my mind was somehow aways turned to the subject of what I'm going to write on my blog next. Finally I find some little time and the right inspiration to sit down and share some worthy deluxe garbage with my three readers. But in this case the topic hasn't nothing to do with "garbage". I'm going to talk about a little treasure I've just found today (thanks to João Carvalho, one of my most almodovarians friends in all senses). During a phone call between us I've described my currently state of mind like a laberinto de pasiones (labiryth of passions) in allusion to Pedro Almodóvar's second lenght film. And of course it turned into a very nice conversation about the Spaniard director and his marvelous filmography. Then João told me about a short film produced by El Deseo (Almodóvar's film company) and we exchange some nice Youtube links. I've sent him one of my favorites Laberinto de Pasiones scenes and I was absolutely sure that nothing could overcome the acid humor of those old and anthological scenes back in the 80's (during that great times of the Movida Madrileña). But then I was wrong. When I've checked "La Concejela Antropófoga" (The Cannibalistic Councilwoman) I had to agree with João that our favorite director had overcome even himself. First of all "La Concejela Antropófoga" was made just after Almodóvar finished the last shootings of his forthcoming film Los Abrazos Rotos starred by Penélope Cruz. He had the insight to write a monologue for great spanish actress Carmen Machi who just had a small role in "Abrazos". In the last shooting night Almodóvar took advantage of the set and crew from "Abrazos" to film a short film starred by Carmen Machi (as the same character in " Los Abrazos Rotos") in a totally other history . Genius! Then "La Concejela Antropófoga" was born as a little whim of one of the greatest filmmakers of all times, who signed that little masterpiece with the pseudonym of Mateo Blanco (one of the male characters of "Los Abrazos Rotos"). And as I said before the short is a monologue of a councilor of a right party from Madrid who conducts for a friend (who sleeps almost all the time in her colorful kitchen) a passionate defense of sexual "promiscuity", while eats pudding and smells cocaine. Hilarious! Acid , provocative and perverted humor just like Almodóvar's very beginning. It brings us back to the great times of Pepe, Luci, Bom y Otras Chicas del Montón, Laberinto de Pasiones, ¿ Que He Hecho Yo para Merecer Eso? and Entre Tinieblas. Pure ecstasy for the fans of the old and good Patty Diphusa. After all Carmen Machi deserves a lenght film just made for her.

And here an interview with Pedro Almodóvar for Canal + where he talks about "La Concejela Antropófoga".

CIDADE DO FUNK

Working in progress...

BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA - The first black president of the United States of America

He won!

THAT OBSCURE OBJECT OF DESIRE: The New Mac Book PRO

I seriously need the new Mac Book Pro right now! This cute little thing has got 1.86GHz plus memory SSD: Price? US$ 2.499.

A Madonna to call mine: FILTH AND WISDOM

Madonna and her Filth and Wisdom's crew at the film premiere during the last Berlinale

The Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival is gone and me plus hundred of others "hungry" film fans of this town are again back to the normal routine. Among some few surprises of this year's festival I've found Filth and Wisdom an independent film written, directed and produced by... Madonna! Yes, Madonna Ciccone. Of course I firstly thought: " God damn! It might be a flop!". But fortunately I was wrong. I must confess I am a really big Madonna's fan, but her blond ambition can sometimes cause a kind of rejection since people aren't use to face with so much high levels of self-confidence. And obviously it can bothered most of frustrated guys around even whether they secretly liked the film. Madonna is the antipode of frustration. Losers, bitters and frustrated at all should keep distance from her and specially from this film since it must be hard to them to conclude that:

1 . She is highly talented in many ways.
2. She knows how to tell a history.
3. She knows direct actors very well.
4. She made a very good film.
5. She is corageous.
6. The woman is in fact a genius.

I'm not saying 'Filth and Wisdom' is a masterpiece or so. It isn't indeed. But it is a kind of film I would watch over and over again with a little smile in my face. And that's enough for me.



Someone who puts a band like Gogol Bordello in a film knows it all, right?

P.S: If you happen to be in Rio in October don't miss Gogol Bordello's performance at the next Tim Festival!

My new fav cult-movie: SHORTBUS

John Cameron Mitchell's second feature film: Shortbus

I know I am one year later but the point is that only yesterday I went to the movie theater to watch Shortbus. My friend Marcelo told me a lot about this movie and had explained me about the explicit sex scenes on it. Well in fact this is nothing new since Catherine Breillat's Romance came out late in the 90's. Mrs. Breillat put an innocent alike French actress to performer hardcore scenes with pornstar Rocco Siffredi and all I know is that I hated this film from the very beginning til the end when I first saw that. Besides that Lars Von Trier has also put real actors "doing" each other in Dogme 95's film The Idiots . Sounds like if anyone intends to be the newest provocateur filmmaker just need to include some professional actors doing some hardcore sex scenes in front of the camera plus a nonsense storyline, right? No. John Cameron Mitchell went further in Shortbus; he's put some actors together with non professionals new faces , created the most unbelievable and creative sex scenes ever imagined, mixed it all with some great dialogues, lot's of astonish music, a vaudeville atmosphere with lot's of seriously interesting characters, a beautiful photography and a huge and tolerant heart on it. And the explicit sex? I would say they work as (art?) pictures. All in all it is an impressive and amazing picture of an era. I still wonder how could I have missed this little masterpiece for one year...

Pre-Paid Love : Cinderelas, Lobos e Um Principe Encantado

Poster of Joel Zito Araújo's newest documentary

Yesterday I've been at Cine Odeon to watch the first national screening of Joel Zito Araújo's newest documentary "Cinderelas, Lobos e Um Principe Encantado" ("Cinderellas, Wolves, and One Prince Charmed") at Festival do Rio, whose theme is the huge and scary Brazilian sex industry, which also involves pedophilia and traffic of human beings. Joel Zito Araújo is nowadays one of the greatest Brazilian directors and also an amazing thinker. Professor at the Universidade de São Paulo his works aways have got a social and politic glance to controversial subjects, specially those related to racism and poverty. This time hasn't been different. "Cinderelas" is a kind of film which should be watched without prejudice and at same time with distancing. By talking about sex tourism and its exploration such in Brazil (Northeastern cities like Salvador and Recife, two of the biggest nerve centres of sex tourism in Brazil) and as well in Europe (Rome and Berlin), Joel Zito got to get sincere, sad, tragic and funny testimonials such of some lost low class European tourists serching for the perfect "bitch", as well of poor young Brazilian girls trying to find some immediate solution for their own (financial/moral) whole life misery, among others. But he's been crossing borders as well; right there, where some got to get beyond the sunny sex market of Brazilian Northeastern beaches. In Berlin he talked to some "characters" like: couples whom met at such circumstances, a young and pretty lady from Bahia totally disappointed with the lack of "sexual interest" of her husband and a German guy who claims to be a "big fan" of Brazilian women, and whose big apartment is fulfilled with young and "sexy" Brazilian ladies he calls as "friends". "Cinderela" is a very interesting study about sexuality, poverty, degradation, illusions and make us wonder, in many ways, about the difference between interest and necessity. It is also about the (still) very post-colonial view of latin women as a sexual object, who suppost to be aways sexually available in a very cheap way. This very stereotiped view embodies the stigma of the "civilized" and the "savage". Joel Zito's documentary shows us that those roles - "civilized" and "savage" - are in many situations completely and wrongly reversed.

Rio de Janeiro International Filmfestival
"Cinderelas, Lobos & Um Principe Encantado"
Last Screening
Thusday, 30th September
Estação Vivo Gávea (Shopping da Gávea)
1:30 PM - 10:30 PM