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https://blackgirlnerds.com/fantastic-fest-2022-in-review-what-did-you-miss/

This past week, Fantastic Fest returned once again and took the film community in Austin, Texas by storm. 

Moviegoers and industry leaders from far and attended America’s wackiest and largest genre film festival.

Fantastic Fest was critically acclaimed as the wildest film festival in America’ by The Guardian. It was also noted as “the coolest film festival in the world” by IGN. Fantastic Fest 2022 didn’t disappoint and gave attendees promising first looks at some of the season’s most anticipated films, including The Menu, Piggy, Hellraiser, and more.

Another notable mention and well-received film is Luca Guadagnino’s Bones and All, starring Timothee Chalamet and Taylor Russell. Bones and All is set to premiere on November 23, 2022, and the festival screening had one industry lead tweeting:

“I knew I’d love it but #BonesandAll just became my favorite movie of the year. What a beautifully heartbreaking cinematic experience. Both Taylor Russell & Timothée Chalamet are exquisite & Luca Guadagnino is a true master storyteller. #FantasticFest”

So, what did you miss?

Luckily for you, BGN got the inside scoop. Check out some of our film reviews below:

Visitor from the Future (premiered September 7, 2022) 

Piggy (premieres October 14, 2022)

The Menu (premieres November 18, 2022)

Fantastic Fest officially kicked off on Thursday, September 22, 2022, and yesterday marked the end of the legendary film festival. The quirky, fun event was perfectly suited for Austin’s renowned love of all things weird.

If you’re new to Fantastic Fest, you’re not alone. It was my first time, too!

Historically, Fantastic Fest has always been a genre festival. The event typically caters to cult-classic crowds and hosts films from all over the world. Whether it’s action, fantasy, science fiction, or horror, Fantastic Fest has advocated for productions big and small. In fact, the festival has even been the host of world premieres for huge fan faves such as John Wick, Zombieland, Bone Tomahawk, and Frankenweenie.

Q&A with Hong Chau from The Menu (Photo Credit: Jack Plunkett)

How do films get selected for screenings at Fantastic Fest?

In their own words: 

“The festival is dedicated to championing challenging and thought-provoking cinema, celebrating new voices and new stories from around the world, and supporting new filmmakers. We work with various other festivals, archives, cinematheques, and individuals to spotlight lesser-known film regions, luminaries, and more in an ongoing effort to expand the general knowledge and appreciation of cinema.”

“We’re committed to supporting film in its most provocative, ground-breaking, and underseen forms, and giving the audience a chance to find new favorites and future genre classics. Each year we bring together fans, guests, industry, press, and others in an inclusive and fun environment for a weeklong celebration of film in all its forms through carefully curated screenings and events, both in and outside of the theaters.”

Although Fantastic Fest has been held for almost 20 years, it sometimes goes under the radar even amongst the most avid movie fanatics. I was surprised that it has historically been hosted at the Alamo Drafthouse since 2005.

Why the Alamo Drafthouse?

Well, it turns out that one of the founders of Fantastic Fest is none other than entrepreneur Tim League. Tim is the founder of the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema chain and Drafthouse films. As an Austin native and local film producer, it’s no surprise to see why Fantastic Fest calls Austin its home.

Also, can I just say that if you haven’t had the herb parmesan popcorn at Alamo Drafthouse…you are SERIOUSLY MISSING OUT! I mean, was nobody going to say anything until I went??! My gosh!

Who is Fantastic Fest for, and is it worth attending?

If you love movies, ABSOLUTELY!

If you desire the opportunity to be one of the first to see specially curated indie films and big-time productions, YES!

If you want to support up-and-coming directors, artists, writers, and creatives, HECK YEAH!

If you want to connect with super down-to-earth industry professionals and fellow movie fans, THIS IS FOR YOU!

If you’re a horror or sci-fi fanatic who wants variety, NEED I SAY MORE?

If you’ve been waiting to explore diverse international films and documentaries without the added expense of flying internationally to attend large-scale festivals, COME ON OVER! 

If you couldn’t tell, Fantastic Fest 2022 was a major success. This first-timer had an absolute blast! It was quirky, humble, fun, and full of wonderful surprises. My favorite film was The Visitor from the Future – HANDS DOWN! I hate to admit it, but it was actually the movie I had the lowest expectations for when I walked into the theater to take my seat. However, within three minutes of the movie starting, I was immediately enthralled and laughing in tears. 

Goodness, even writing about it at this very moment brings a fond smile to my face! It’s safe to say I am obsessed with this hilarious French comedy and it was my personal standout winner of the event!

Till next time, y’all!

https://blacknerdproblems.com/dont-worry-darling-youll-be-alright/

Don’t Worry Darling is a well-acted dystopian reality whose press tour drama really sells something the movie doesn’t quite have.  

We’re getting to a point in movies where the outrage of inequality is no longer just wearing black to the Oscars. The fruits of the labor are making their way to the big and little screens, and films are becoming the change they want to see in the world. Or the change the world has been demanding it makes. Unfortunately, some of the TV shows and films have you feeling…to quote The Matrix, “not like this…” The trailer of Don’t Worry Darling was giving very Midsommar, very Devil’s Advocate. It showcased a little bit of horror, a little bit of the avant-garde, and a STACKED cast. You may have heard about the film from its slew of rumors. You might not remember it by name, but you’ve heard about the mysterious tensions and speculations revealed during the press tour.

So, let’s get to the elephant in the room; what is with all the drama!? Did Harry Styles really spit on Chris Pine? Was Shia Lebouf really fired, does Florence Pugh hate Olivia Wilde? This isn’t a gossip column so I can’t say that I have all of the answers, but this Vice article runs down exactly what the drama is really about. While it sounds like Pugh wants to focus on her performance and Harry Styles probably didn’t spit on Chris Pine on stage, the real-life drama surrounding this film is more intriguing and mysterious than the film itself. Is the drama real or a publicity stunt? Since no one really knows any horror stories from set or any real beef, it could all just be a way to get people in the seats.

Before I get into the peaks and pits of the film – there will be light spoilers ahead so if that really concerns you for this film, you’ve been warned. 

Flip Your Lid

Truth be told, Don’t Worry Darling is a Stepford Wives tale retold at an age when we don’t need 1950s suburbia to tell a feminist story. The movie could have flipped the idea on its head in a provocative and forward-thinking way but in the end, it’s almost exactly what you think it is. The film looks at what happens when men are fed up living in a woman’s shadow. Contrary to what many believe, I am always rooting for movies to be beyond amazing. So, I even chalked this movie up to a commentary on the reversal of Roe v. Wade and women no longer having agency or control over their bodies. But that is me projecting and giving something to the film that most likely was not the intention. The problem is the movie uses a cast that has more talent than the story can hold and brings yet another white-centric feminist POV. If you’ve read my She-Hulk article co-written with my fellow nerd Frantz Jerome, you know this is an issue that I’ve recently explored. 

Let’s ease you into it all and start with the facts. The Stepford Wives in all of its re-tellings has always had stellar casting. Peter Masterson in the original with Kathrine Moss (The Graduate) to Nicole Kidman, Christopher Walken, and Bette Midler in the 2004 remake. This film is no different. Florence Pugh has proved time and time again that we will never know to what bounds her range has. Harry Styles, who is better known as the heartthrob boy band member of One Direction, has been really making a name for himself in the movie world. As we know, he even joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Eros in the Eternals film. 

Pugh plays Alice Chambers wife to Styles as Jack Chambers. They are living in this 1950s experimental community of Victory California where the men are working on a very important project for the government. Every morning the women make them breakfast and all the men leave at the same time to their wives waving as they drive off into the distance. While the men are at work doing…whatever – because the women actually don’t know and can’t ask questions, the women stay at home cleaning or going shopping or taking care of the kids. Yea, it’s all laid on pretty thick. Now, this community is created and run by Chris Pine’s character Frank. The style, roles, and responsibilities, their status, and their entire way of life is manufactured by this man. That right there is a little straightforward on the message. Frank runs the place with a cult-like energy. People fiend to be near him, they fawn over him.

In all of this, there is one rule in the community…you don’t go beyond the community bounds. The desert location makes it very undesirable anyways. But in all this something is off. Like all of it, the whole damn thing. Why are we here? Why did we agree to this?

Ain’t That a Bite

As we learn more about the characters, Alice (Pugh) is best friends with Bunny, Olivia Wilde’s character. She’s like a den mother for some reason. She knows everything and really keeps the ladies in line. When they sound like they’re getting curious, she shuts them down. But in the midst of this, there is Margaret played by Kiki Layne. The only Black character and what seems to be the only Black family in the community. She becomes quickly “unhinged.” Margaret knows something is up and becomes the catalyst for the unfolding of Alice and the road the the ‘big’ reveal. 

As the story progresses, Alice begins to see things we don’t quite understand but are visually intriguing: images of synchronized swimming, Frank’s voice repeating his ideals or mantras ringing in her head, and visions of being suffocated. Yes, the metaphor of the world closing in around her personified – and quite literally being suffocated. As Margaret unravels so does Alice. Again, we see the commentary of women being so easily dismissed as crazy and needing ‘fixing’ throughout the film. 

Herein lies my Black Nerd Problem. Margaret doesn’t get to be a person. She is truly a mechanism to drive the main character to her imminent ‘madness.’ We see her in moments and at the precipice of what we are to believe is insanity. While I’m all for having Black characters present, having them exist solely to go “crazy” and be the crux of the white character’s arc feels a bit ick. If we think about the time. It’s the 50s and in an intentional community they probably don’t even welcome the ‘Blacks’ so.. accurate I guess.

The film is not without its representation. The cast also consists of characters of Indian background and Chinese background with Asif Ali playing one of the husbands and Gemma Chan as Frank’s wife. There are Black and brown people present. Execution is a big factor for me and if I were to switch some roles around, I would have cast Kiki Layne as Bunny and Olivia Wilde as Margaret. This would have alleviated some of the trauma connected to Black bodies in film and given her a more prominent role. Still would have played into the ‘Black best friend’ trope (who definitely drank the Kool-Aid), but not the crazy outlier who is made an example of. 

Got it Made in the Shade

As bad films go, I wouldn’t say this is completely one of them. Where this movie excels is the performance. The cast out acts the script at every beat. Which makes you feel the intensity, but unfortunately it does not match up with the film as a whole. I found myself feeling moved by Pugh and Styles’ fights and then quickly feeling like why am I feeling so intense? It was like watching A Marriage Story, very dramatic and very well acted but for an average story. That aside, every actor gave this feature their all. Chris Pine was seductively creepy, and we’re surprised to see actors like Nick Kroll (Big Mouth) and Kate Berlant (Sorry to Bother You) all of whom really immerse themselves in the world. The visuals strike you and pull you into wanting to know more, wanting to understand really what is behind the curtain. 

Once the truth is all revealed, it all feels very meh, and you find yourself saying ohh ok – that’s a decision. The editing confused the watcher at times, and it may have been on purpose so the audience feels like they are trapped in some weird nightmare right along with the main character. Sadly, the end was a high-octane car chase with not a very big payoff. The twist does not diverge enough from the Stepford Wives to make you really buy into the experience at a deep level. All of this is fine. It makes it a fine film. 

For me, the story is written, it seems, with whyte feminism in mind: The male domination narrative and the idea of perceived control and the woman prevailing and escaping the nightmare of someone else’s paradise. This is yes, a story that is not extraordinary and women should have the ability to just create. We can make films that tell the story that moves us and have a message that doesn’t have to break a mold or live up to some higher expectation. This is all true. For whyte women, that is much easier to accomplish and to get a cast of their dreams. The advancements in the world are happening, and I’m excited to keep moving the needle. This time around if you want a feminist story that goes beyond, makes you feel seen, and have you feeling powerful, head to The Woman King. You’ll wanna watch Don’t Worry Darling for just an interesting take on a classic feminist story. 

Cover image via The Union Journal

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The post ‘Don’t Worry Darling:’ You’ll be Alright appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.

https://nerdist.com/article/the-rings-of-powers-new-realm-mount-doom-formation-origins-first-age-mordor-orcs-morgoth-sauron/

Orcs on The Rings of Power have a new home in the Southlands. But it was a man, acting on the orders of an elf, who opened the door to one of the most notorious locales in all of Middle-earth: Mount Doom. However, none of them will claim it as their own. All of Mordor will soon belong to Sauron, who will forge the One Ring in the fires of the infamous volcano. Mordor was not even a location on Middle-earth’s map when The Rings of Power began, but soon it will be a bane to all the forces of good. Why was that land of darkness lying in wait underground, though? And why was Theo’s sword hilt the key to creating Mount Doom and unlocking Mordor’s power in The Rings of Power? Those answers date back to the First Age of Middle-earth and the original Dark Lord, who made a secret plan to ensure his fight would never end.

Morgoth and His Volcanic Kingdom of Evil, Angband

Morgoth was Sauron’s master and Middle-earth’s first Dark Lord. But he did not begin his reign of terror from the now familiar Mordor and Mount Doom. Instead, one of the places he ruled from was his kingdom of Angband. The kingdom sat beneath the Iron Mountains of Middle-earth, which protected Angband, in the far north. After Morgoth’s first defeat and imprisonment by the Valar, the ruins of Angband became home to orcs—whom Morgoth created. There they multiplied in great numbers.

When Morgoth eventually returned to reclaim and restore Angband, he raised three giant active volcanoes over the land. Known as Thangorodrim, these The Lord of the Rings volcanoes were taller than any other peak in Middle-earth. They served as a testament and warning of Morgoth’s growing power.

All of Angband and Thangordrim fell after Morgoth’s ultimate defeat during the War of Wrath. But they were not the only places the Dark Lord prepared as a base for evil, enter Mordor and Mount Doom.

The Origins of Mordor and Mount Doom in The Lord of the Rings Lore

Mordor sits in Middle-earth’s southeast lands, far from where Angband stood. Yet Mordor and Angband both owe their creation to Morgoth. In J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Peoples of Middle-earth (curated by his son Christopher), the author wrote the Dark Lord created Mount Doom. (Also known as Orodruin—“fire mountain”—in Sindarin elvish.)

Tolkien also wrote the lands surrounding the volcano were already known as Mordor before Sauron claimed the realm as his own. (It has not been named as such on the show, yet. Nor has Sauron even identified himself.) In Sindarin, Mordor means “Black Land.” The Rings of Power made clear why it earned that name. Mount Doom’s creation blotted out the sun.

Like Angband before it, mountain ranges protect and insulate Mordor from enemies. But The Rings of Power has shown why Morgoth and Sauron designed Mordor and Mount Doom to be more than just a home for evil.

Morgoth’s Secret Plan of Succession

In The Rings of Power‘s third episode, inside Númenor’s Hall of Law, Galadriel discovered Morgoth had a backup plan in the event of his defeat. Sauron would succeed Morgoth and continue their cause in Middle-earth. That old dark parchment also said Morgoth also made sure his loyal servant would have a new place to rule from, a land we, of course, know as Mordor.

This land would be a realm “where evil would not only endure but thrive.” But since Sauron would need time to gather strength and forces, Morgoth kept this land secret. He put the power of Sauron’s future kingdom underneath a mountain, just as he had hid Angband. Only instead of the north, where elves knew Morgoth to be located, in The Rings of Power Mount Doom was lying in wait in the Southlands where Sauron could find willing allies.

The Southlands are the lands of men who fought for Morgoth. And many of their descendants wish to continue serving evil. Locating the yet unnamed Mordor in the land of his followers was a smart move on Morgoth’s part. On The Rings of Power, that, along with Mount Doom’s strength, may give Sauron the advantage he needs.

Sauron’s Sword Hilt as the Key to Mount Doom’s Creation on The Rings of Power

To give his children a new home, Adar gave Waldreg the key to unleashing Mount Doom from the depths of the earth. Theo’s sword hilt did everything Adar wanted. It brought darkness to the surrounding lands so orcs can live safe from the sun’s light. But, whether Adar knew it or not, he unlocked a door Sauron helped lock and wanted to open.

Sauron made the key—Theo’s sword hilt—that freed Mount Doom and created Mordor, a land first revealed in Sauron’s symbol-map. It’s where orcs and other devotees of evil will serve the new Dark Lord, not Adar. It will be home to the Second Age’s evil lord, who has waited patiently for many years to claim his kingdom he helped hide. Perhaps, now that Mount Doom has been created on The Rings of Power, Sauron might finally show his face to claim Mordor.

Most importantly, though, is that Mount Doom will be more than Angband ever was. It will do exactly as Morgoth wished; it will be a place where evil not only survives, but thrives. For Mount Doom is where Sauron will forge the One Ring to rule them all.

And that darkness will spread throughout all of Middle-earth, just as it did long ago.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow him on Twitter at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

The post The Creation of THE RINGS OF POWER’s New Realm appeared first on Nerdist.

https://blacknerdproblems.com/the-resume-as-a-character-minmaxing-without-numerical-stats/

This is an image of one of the many generic resume templates that is currently available on Microsoft Word. It’s about as helpful as any other template, although not how I’d tailor my own.

This is an image of the standard Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition character sheet. Classic, no notes.

So earlier this year, a new position opened up within my company that my current manager thought I was uniquely qualified for; which, on one hand, was an exciting thing on several fronts, but it also meant that I had to go through the arduous process of updating my resume. I hadn’t updated my single page resume in ages, although I had made it a biannual habit to update both my professional website and my LinkedIn, so at the very least I didn’t have to think of too much verbiage and recall every facet of my professional career up until that point.

That summer I was working on developing a one-shot D&D 5E module with a friend, and as we were sorting through the character sheets and the source books, I got stuck on this idea of the resume as a character. In essence, these two different documents serve an identical function: act as a reference document that marks several key pieces of information that can be reviewed easily, for both the benefit of the person who made it and the benefit of the person using it. As such, a lot of the core principles of creating a TTRPG character and writing a resume overlap. And while it’s probably a little wild to call the resume version of you a “fantasy character,” it’s probably not that wild in hindsight. The resume is intended as a way to create a heightened version of yourself: one whose exact abilities and skills may not necessarily meet the intended obstacles and tribulations ahead but may still be able to conquer them with a little creativity.

As such, let’s approach the resume with a TTRPG lens.

1. A CV is Basically a Source Book on the Self

Many, many years ago, it was impression-ed upon a younger version of me that a CV, or Curriculum Vitae, and a resume were complimentary documents. The curriculum vitae was a long running, expansive living document that detailed every important achievement, work experience, volunteering expertise, and education. The resume was a single page document tailored in such a way that a potential employer would know that you understand what they are looking for with the job and that you have highlighted the pertinent skills necessary. The idea of a one-page resume is so ingrained in my consciousness at this point that I’m not entirely sure if that’s still the case; the constraint also forces you to be cognizant of how you structure your “character.”

Much like Point Buy systems or Standard Arrays ask you to make trade-offs in the six major attributes in D&D, the single page requires you to think about the most important parts of your history as they relate to the job that you are applying to. Not every experience you had in the past is pertinent, so being able to look through your own “source book,” as it were, and curate is helpful.

If you don’t have one already, take the time to write a version of your CV. It doesn’t need to be maintained constantly, but it is always nice to have.

2. Letterheads and Identifiable Information

Now, I know you’re probably thinking “what commentary could this person have on the letterhead of a resume or a TTRPG,” and the answer is enough to share an anecdote on both ends.

Depending on your DM and your party, you may be responsible for your character sheet or your DM holds the collective identities of your characters in a binder just as precaution, but that top portion of the character sheet with the names, key identifiers, and experience is something to be proud of. It’s part of the document that’s probably the most static and you take care to put the right information as it is who are. During my first campaign, I went through three characters in rapid succession, trying to find the right combination before eventually landing on the Chaotic Neutral Air Goblin Swashbuckler Nym Nyk. I had terrible handwriting at the time, but you can bet that the penmanship on that third character was pristine.

Now, this ties back to the working world through direct experience. Back in 2014, I was working with a contractor to find a new position. I was living in Wisconsin at the time, and the company I was applying to was in St. Louis. I was fortunate enough that the company was looking to hire someone immediately, but I was very much surprised when the contractor said that the company wanted me to drive 6 hours for an in-person interview. I really did not like my situation in Wisconsin, so I made the arrangements on a two-day notice. On the day of the interview, my hiring (and now current) manager asked me how the drive was, and when I told her that the six hours wasn’t too bad, she was very confused thinking that I was still in the area. Lo and behold, when she showed me her copy of my resume, it turns out the contractor had stripped my letterhead and replaced it with their company’s stock information, which means my then-address was nowhere to be found. We had a laugh about it, and I silently thanked the contractor for the ruse because phone interviews are not my strong suit. It also gave me reason to work one less day at a company I was very unhappy at.

All that to say, that personal information is something to take pride in and also important to get accurate.

3. Play to Your “Strengths,” But Try to be “Dexterous”

In the TTRPG game space, there are a lot of easy guidelines to follow. If you wanna be strong, invest in strength. If you want to have more spell spots than a dictionary, invest in intelligence. Druids need wisdom, warlocks need charisma, rangers need dexterity. There are clear paths that you can follow and equally as many unexplored paths that you can forge on your own. Sometimes you’ll want to create characters that follow their original class all the way to level 20 (although, level 1 to 14 is the farther I’ve ever managed to take a character), and sometimes you’ll multi-class to get odd feats and class abilities (although, I haven’t thought about multi-classing since 3.5e when prestige classes were a thing).

In the professional development space, it’s a little bit more vague. But I think one of the advantages of being in the real world is that there aren’t necessarily hard and fast restrictions when it comes to applying. The qualifications that are listed are idealized postings, and there’s little harm in applying to a position that you’re not necessarily 100% qualified for if you think you have the core talents and drive to do the job. The worst a company can do is say no, and the moment you get over that, the more willing you’ll be to put yourself out there and see what random opportunities you’ll luck/brute force your way into. With a resume, you get to display the information. You get to the forge narrative. You can highlight your writing skills from an I.T. job or maybe just express interest in topics that you don’t necessarily have complete knowledge over. More of an interview thing than a resume thing, but one of the most powerful phases I’ve learned to use is “I have limited exposure, but I’m a fast study.” If your TTRPG characters can make snap decisions on the fly of a dice roll, surely you can create similar situations for your real self.

4. Conventional “Wisdoms” and “Intelligent” Tips

It is at this point we’ll minimize some of the parallelism and go straight into a bullet list of things that may generically be helpful.

• Do research and establish an understanding of what your end goals are with the resume/character
• Do put more relevant information in prominent places so that it’s noticeable
• Do include references if you think it would be helpful
• Do get creative with the format if you think the company will appreciate it.
• Do leverage the format and include hyperlinks on digital copies.
• Don’t put numerical stats on your resume. Five stars in Excel doesn’t actually mean anything unlike Five Points of Animal handling in D&D.
• Pictures are nice, but not necessarily needed (although, to reiterate the above, if you have a portfolio, you probably should include a way to get to it).
• Again, to emphasize a point, you don’t have to try and fit everything on one page.

5. Keeping Your “Constitution” and “Charisma” Up

I’d like to end this back and forth on resumes and character sheets to return to the concept of self, because both of these documents are in essences reflections of self. Whereas TTRPGs are a place of exploration, the resume is a place of presentation.

And perhaps, my particular experiences with serial character death (through both botched dice rolls and decisions made through dramatics) and serial resume constructions right out of college (a poor GPA, while ultimately meaningless in the long run, can really throw you off your game in the beginning), I’ve gotten used to making both. I like making both. I like the escapism of making an alternate version of me. I like the challenge of cultivating my own mythology. And I like the satisfaction of seeing either and both succeed at different points in times for different reasons.

Both of these are living documents, ephemeral things needed for a moment. And we can take the lessons of one and apply it to the other in a weird sort of cycle. But just to be honest, all this started because I really have no idea why an actual resume template has these weird percentage bars at the bottom and the other musings came after. But that’s how it goes sometimes.

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The post The Resume as a Character: Minmaxing Without Numerical Stats appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.