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LEFT: Taboo wearing LAVSH
LEFT: Taboo wearing LAVSH
Tavi Gevinson — the world’s hottest four foot eleven 14-year-old style blogger — just landed herself another little freelance gig! She’s guest-blogging on Jezebel this week about “feminism, and fashion, issues facing adolescents, and Daria,” Jenna Sauers writes. Tavi spoke to Jezebel on the phone today:
“There are some things that I want to write about on my blog, but, you know, it’s a fashion blog and I’m comfortable with it being primarily fashion,” she said, after putting Miuccia on hold. “So it will be nice to be able to talk about things that aren’t fashion-related.”
“I think it’ll also be nice to have a younger voice at the site. Wait, that sounds like you guys are like, oh-my-gawd, so OLD, it’s not like that — but it’s just that, I mean, everyone’s always talking about ‘THE YOUTH’ and ‘THE CHILDREN’ and stuff.”
Right. This is fashion, after all.
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(CNN) — When director Ivan Dixon and writer Sam Greenlee were trying to get the politically charged African-American film “The Spook Who Sat by the Door” made in the early 1970s, they faced major challenges in securing funding.
Not much has changed since then, says Christine Acham, a University of California-Davis professor who is working on a documentary about the making of the film.
Acham said that though conditions have improved in the last 40 years, black filmmakers still struggle to get their films made.
“It is always challenging for African-American filmmakers to get funding,” Acham said. “It’s clearly helped by the Oprahs and Tyler Perrys of the world, who have their own studios and the ability to greenlight projects, but outside of that, if you are an independent or a black filmmaker, it is difficult to get black stories told.”
Times are tough for Hollywood in general. With the country firmly entrenched in a recession, gone are the days when studio executives were eager to take a multimillion-dollar chance on projects that may or may not find an audience.
Even filmmakers such as Melvin Van Peebles, John Singleton and Spike Lee who have found success via independent vehicles don’t have free financial reign.
Acham, who teaches courses on black film, television and pop culture, said that in such a tough marketplace, the road is even tougher for minority filmmakers.
The professor said that with studios scaling back on the number of films they make and focusing on less risky ventures such as sequels, those going the independent route have to be creative.
That includes working the film festival circuit, Acham said.
“Film festivals allow the filmmaker to get their work out there,” she said. “Obviously, with the rise of Sundance, people are taking a closer look at festivals, and for the independents, many are looking beyond Sundance perhaps because it has gotten so large.”
One such event is the American Black Film Festival, which launches its 14th annual edition Wednesday in Miami, Florida.
Festival founder Jeff Friday said venues such as his are an integral part of the networking needed to launch the next successful filmmaker.
“When you look at the independent filmmaker in general, it’s a struggling population because you are making a product outside of the resources of the mainstream, and once you make it, you are competing with films from major studios,” Friday said.
“What we try to do is give the independent filmmaker an avenue to meet with the powers that be in Hollywood, with the hope that by exposing the Hollywood power brokers to the subset of independent filmmakers we will open doors.”
Such opportunities have been helpful for longtime attendees of the American Black Film Festival such as Lee Daniels, who was nominated for an Academy Award for directing the critically acclaimed film “Precious.”
“The world is having a very difficult time of it and that affects everything, including our art,” said Daniels who first came to fame as producer of “Monster’s Ball,” an independent film whose star Halle Berry became the first African-American to win an Academy Award for best actress. Daniels is being feted at this year’s festival.
And this festival is not the only game in town. The website Withoutabox.com bills itself as “the world’s largest independent film community” and offers information on more than 5,000 film festivals across the world.
Acham said the internet is making it possible for filmmakers from just about any continent to share their work with the world with just the click of an upload. So the next Spike Lee or Robert Townsend could just as easily be a writer or director from Africa, Europe or the Middle East.
Screenwriter Rhonda Baraka said that despite the tough times independents face, the landscape is also rich with the opportunity for creativity and to break into the mainstream.
“I think movies appeal to people during tough times,” she said. “By the same token, I think it appeals to us in the industry because we can create those other worlds for people to escape into.”
(InStyle.com) — One year after his untimely death, it’s clear that Michael Jackson’s legacy lives on.
His influence over the worlds of music and fashion is still strong enough that Lady Gaga — currently the reigning queen of the charts and an undisputed master in the Jackson-pioneered art of manufacturing buzz — recently hoisted her own star even higher by announcing that she’d been asked to open for (and duet with) the King of Pop on his ill-fated “This Is It” tour.
It’s not surprising that she’d boast: Like virtually every other singer of her generation, Gaga owes an enormous creative debt to Jackson.
And it goes way beyond the innovative role he played as a trailblazer of the music video (although Gaga’s latest mega-efforts in that field certainly do credit to the form.)
InStyle: Lady Gaga’s most gaga outfits
Jackson was dressing in over-the-top metallic ensembles back when Gaga was still in diapers, and though the elaborate masked outfits she’s worn everywhere from the MTV VMAs to her little sister’s high school graduation may have a high-fashion precedent, they also call to mind the period when a paparazzi-weary Jackson began parading around Bahrain in a burka.
Rihanna, too, has lately taken a few pages out of Jackson’s book. Last week, an exec at her label announced that “our bar for [her next] album is Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller,’” meaning they’re hoping that every song on it is a hit.
InStyle: Rihanna’s best looks ever
She sampled his “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’” for her song “Don’t Stop the Music,” and she’s been seen in a number of Jackson-esque garments, most recently a pair of shining ankle socks that strongly evoked his signature sequined pair.
InStyle: Stars channel Michael Jackson’s iconic style
But one would be hard-pressed to find a pop star who hasn’t been influenced by Jackson’s inimitable style: Usher dances in natty black and white and a very MJ hat in the video for his current smash, “OMG.” Justin Timberlake, too, has borrowed Jackson’s sense of showmanship — and, at times, his fedora.
InStyle: Stars pay tribute to Michael Jackson
The rhinestone-laden jean shorts that Katy Perry donned for her new “California Gurls” clip call Jackson to mind — he loved to add improbable amounts of glitz to quotidian items, like jackets, shirts, and (again) socks.
And the shining metallic ornament Beyonce wore on her left hand throughout the “Single Ladies” era seemed inspired, in part, by Jackson’s single glove.
Even eleven-year-old actor Jaden Smith — who was born well after the King of Pop’s heyday (and is himself the spawn of another musician, former Fresh Prince Will Smith) — recently pledged allegiance to Jackson’s style: At the June 10th premiere of his film “The Karate Kid,” he walked the red carpet in black pants, a crisp white shirt and a carbon copy of Jackson’s red-and-black leather “Thriller” jacket.
InStyle: Michael Jackson’s 10 greatest fashion hits
From Gaga to Jaden Smith and so many more before, Michael Jackson’s influence and reach spans stars of all ages and genres. For more on his legendary style, including his top ten looks and other famous fans, visit InStyle.com now!
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