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On June 5, the Oxford Film Festival will host the virtual world premiere of the documentary feature, Far East Deep South, a film about a Chinese American family discovering its unexpected history in Mississippi. Before its premiere, the filmmakers, Larissa Lam and Baldwin Chiu, sit down for this month’s episode of Southern Fried Asian. https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/southernfriedasian/SFA_FEDS.mp3 Baldwin […]

Ella Jones made history on Tuesday night, becoming the first Black and first woman to ever be elected as mayor in Ferguson, Mo.

As the New York Times notes, Jones, 65, won out over her opponent Heather Robinett with 54 percent of the vote.

Jones’ historic victory comes almost six years after the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown in the city that sparked protests across the nation. It also comes as the nation is rocked by yet another police-involved death of a Black man, George Floyd, which has also resulted in protests not only in the United States but across the globe as well.

“I’ve got work to do…because when you’re an African-American woman, they require more of you than they require of my counterpart,” Jones said in a YouTube video posted by St. Louis Public Radio journalist James Rosenbaum. “I know the people in Ferguson are ready to stabilize their community, and we’re going to work together to get it done.”

Jones noted that the election and the goal of her administration would be to serve the people.

“If you go look in the budget the first thing you see is the organizational chart. When you look at the organizational chart in the budget at the top of that chart it says ‘citizens,’ and then…the elected officials,” she pointed out. “If the people are not in charge of what they’re doing, then you’re going to have chaos. And we done had enough chaos…”

This is not Jones’ first time making history. A member of the city council, Jones smashed ceilings in 2015 when she became the first Black woman elected to the city council.

The post Ella Jones: Ferguson Elects Its First Black, First Woman Mayor appeared first on Essence.

Jeff VanderMeer has been enchanting readers with his haunting prose for years. His novels often read like esoteric fever-dreams that you can barely escape from and in all honesty probably wouldn’t want to. Best known for his Southern Reach Trilogy–which began with Annihilation–VanderMeer is next turning his hand to young adult fiction. A Peculiar Peril centers around a young boy whose life is upended when he’s left a strange and magical mansion on the promise that he catalogs its contents. It’s a wicked read that features teen heroes, occult villains, talking animals, and alt-universes, all in VanderMeer’s unique style.

Farrar, Straus and Giroux

VanderMeer’s work has long inspired readers to think differently. And when I was putting together the questions for this unconventional interview I had to do the same. See, for out chat about A Peculiar Peril VanderMeer wanted questions that could inspire art. Because our conversation would be illustrated by the wonderful Las Vegas based artist Jeremy Zerfoss who worked with VanderMeer to create illustrations for the his first foray into young adult fiction. What you see in this piece are the original artworks inspired by our virtual conversation alongside the questions and answers.

Expanding on the already established world of the Lambsheads included creating an entirely new world.

A Peculiar Peril has a peculiar antagonist in an alt-universe reimagining of one of Britain’s most famed occultists.

VanderMeer also has a message for his fans who might have reservations about picking up a YA novel.

In A Peculiar Peril the Lambshead mansion becomes both the setting and inciting incident for Jonathan’s adventures.

Of all the fantastical locations, there is one that stands out for the author.

These gorgeous illustrated insights are the perfect introduction to the wild world of A Peculiar Peril. The novel opens up new worlds for readers and introduces a new hero for fans of fantasy. A Peculiar Peril also launches a new series for VanderMeer, The Misadventures of Jonathan Lambshead. So, if you’re a fan of his newest book you’ll be happy to know that you’ll be able to enjoy more stories from Aurora. A Peculiar Peril hits shelves on July 7th!

You can read all of these incredible illustrated images in our gallery below!

Jeremy Zerfoss

Jeremy Zerfoss

Jeremy Zerfoss

Jeremy Zerfoss

Jeremy Zerfoss

Jeremy Zerfoss

Jeremy Zerfoss

Header Image: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

The post Jeff VanderMeer Gives Us an Illustrated Interview appeared first on Nerdist.

Lulu Wilson has grown up steeped in horror. Literally. Her first feature role was in the occult thriller Deliver Us from Evil and from there she’s starred in a selection of other haunting supernatural chillers like Ouija: Origin of Evil, Annabelle: Creation, and of course Haunting of Hill House. In her newest film, Becky, Wilson takes center stage as a desperately angry young woman who has to dispatch a group of Nazis who have infiltrated her family’s cabin in the woods. It’s a gritty little horror-thriller filled with practical effects, gore, and a solid Nazi body count! Nerdist chatted with Wilson about taking on the role, her process, and the freedom of getting to be really f***ing angry!

As you can see from our exclusive red-band trailer above, Becky—directed by Jonathan Milott, Cary Murnion—is a no-holds-barred kid-that-kills movie. But the twist here is the killer is our hero and she’s protecting her family and herself. It’s a slasher movie where the final girl is both the survivor and the killer, and Wilson makes it an exhilarating watch. For Wilson, these kinds of films are what make her excited to act. “As I’ve grown up in this thriller-horror genre, I find that the experiences I’ve had are what take me back to genre every time,” Wilson said. “I also think that my best roles that I’ve played are in the horror-thriller realm. And obviously I’ve just worked with so many amazing horror directors!”

Wilson is quick to tell us that she thinks that Becky is more of a thriller than a straight horror, but those nuances are another thing that appeals to her. “I love how horror isn’t just one genre; it can be all the genres in one!” she said. “Some horror movies are really scary and really dramatic. There are others that sort of have that comedy or have some sort of just heart-wrenching aspect.”

Quiver Distribution

In a way, Becky represents all the things that Wilson loves about genre. There’s a little humor, a lot of horror, and a heart-wrenching origin, all of which offered the young actress a chance to do something young women rarely get to do: be angry. “I can’t even describe how amazing it was. Usually in a movie like this, Becky would have to be really pretty or very fragile, she’d have to be saved. But here she’s gonna save herself,” Wilson said. “I just love that because I personally get very angry when girls are portrayed like these fragile little beings. I hate it. I get really, really angry. Also, being able to put my teenage anger into it and having that opportunity to just cry and scream and beat up these four guys was an amazing feeling.”

Despite all of her anger and violence, Wilson told me that making Becky empathetic was key. “I wanted her to be likable. I wanted audiences to root for her,” Wilson said. “I didn’t want Becky to just be a bratty teenager. So I think putting that sort of emotion behind her feelings about the death of her mom, and that being the root of her anger, I really wanted to incorporate that. Also, not having her just be a one-dimensional character.”

She added, “You see a lot of TV shows with bratty teenage girls, but I didn’t want people to respond that way to Becky. I want people to be like, ‘Oh, this is maybe not totally realistic, but for the most part relatable.’ Mostly, I wanted other teenage girls, if they watch it, to be able to relate to her anger and to root for her.”

Quiver Distribution

Wilson told Nerdist that the film also gave her the chance to live out a lifelong dream. “There were so many amazing things to shoot. And it’s a pretty small thing but just being able to go into my fort and tear it apart. I had always wanted to do that because that’s like my first reaction when I’m angry, to just destroy something, so that was great to film.”

For a film with such a young protagonist Becky is a brutal thrill-ride with plenty of gruesome moments which are brought to life with glorious practical effects. It was experience that Wilson won’t soon forget. “I think it’s my first time working on a project that had most if not all, practical effects. I mean, a guy got lit on fire in front of me. Which was insane! To be able to say that gives me  bragging rights, I can brag about that! But watching that was a really great experience and seeing all the work that special effects artists put into was incredible. I got really close with Carly, our special effects artist. Even just having like the smallest practical effects are just like my broken nose was amazing. It’s really like art.”

Quiver Distribution

Although the radical leading role seems like the perfect fit for Wilson, the internet went wild when they saw the rising horror star kicking Nazi ass in the first trailer. The actor didn’t immediately jump at the chance due to some of her previous experiences as a young performer. “I wasn’t sure; maybe this would be weird because I’m a kid and sometimes adults don’t have the greatest respect for kid actors,” she said. “But I found that every single person on the set of Becky respected me as an actor and treated me as an adult. And I am so grateful for that. But I also don’t think that there would be a scenario where your character’s name being the title of the movie wouldn’t be the best experience ever. And it was a first for me.”

As for what the newly born horror heroine Becky will do next? Wilson laughed, “I don’t know for certain, but whatever she does I think it’s going to be pretty badass.”

Featured Image: Quiver Distribution

The post Lulu Wilson on the Cathartic Anger of BECKY appeared first on Nerdist.