#╭ skill. jenna wilder

[ilictaffairs-archive]

╭ tag dump ⸻ jenna wilder.

[untimelyambition]

if i had a nickel for every time i’ve spent an entire tv show wishing jenna coleman’s character would just kill her husband i’d have 2 nickels, which isn’t a lot but it’s weird that it happened twice

[oswincoleman]

Screenrant and CBR have also now listed the "10 best Jenna Cleman movies and TV shows", saying the following about her:

 Jenna Coleman is a diverse and talented actress who has showcased her skills in dramatic and comedic performances on film and television, as well as in theater.

 Despite her successful run on Doctor Who, Coleman continues to be in high demand in the industry, with notable roles in projects like Netflix's The Sandman.

 Coleman's standout performances include her work in Waterloo Road, Titanic, The Serpent, Klokkenluider, The Cry, Death Comes to Pemberley, Me Before You, The Sandman, Doctor Who, and Victoria.

Jenna Coleman is selective about her roles, but whenever she chooses to grace the screen, it's safe to say that this movie or show will be worth one's time. She is a diverse actress, and she has a lot to show for it. Having landed her first role at 19 years old, she might have started out relatively late in life, but her career speaks for itself. Dramatic and comedic performances in film and on television, incredible voice work, theater aspirations–Coleman has done it all, and by the looks of it, she is not planning to stop enamoring viewers with her acting anytime soon.

Her Doctor Who days may be long gone but that does not mean that Coleman is no longer wanted in the industry. At 37 years old, the English star is at the height of her career, as she is part of high-profile projects, such as Netflix's The Sandman where she portrayed occult detective Johanna Constantine just last year. Coleman's range as a dedicated performer and impressive resume that consists of a string of roles in successful movies and shows are undeniable evidence of her acting talent. However, some of her performances stand out just a little bit more than others. 

Jenna Coleman has become one of Britain's greatest acting talents. The Doctor Who star has developed an impressive filmography since leaving the sci-fi series, appearing in several exciting movie and television projects. Her latest series, Wilderness, has recently debuted on Amazon Prime, prompting fans on IMDb to share which Coleman releases they consider to be her best work. These magnificent productions reflect Coleman's versatility as an actor. Blackpool's prolific media star has played a multitude of characters with strikingly different personalities. Coleman's astonishing performances demonstrate her sheer commitment and dedication to these parts, leaving audiences amazed at the multi-faceted individuals she has played.

[keithlederhaus]

Keith Lederhaus

Keith Lederhaus

I was born on November 21, 1983, to my parents, Janet Marie Lederhaus and Scott Charles Lederhaus. It was at St. Joseph’s Hospital in the City of Orange, CA. I am a quadruplet, which is to say I was born with 3 others, Eric Scott Lederhaus, Jeffrey Allen Lederhaus, and Kate Marie Lederhaus. My mother was taking fertility drugs at the time as it was difficult for her to get pregnant naturally. As is often the case in this situation, she had multiples. We are fraternal, and are all still healthy and alive (as we were quite premature; I was 2 lbs 9 oz as a newborn).

It was required that we stay in incubators for a period of time before we were safe to go home. My parents were surprised when my mother got pregnant with my younger sister, Jenna Rose Lederhaus, on August 14, 1985. So I have a total of 2 brothers and 2 sisters. We grew up in Southern California. Specifically, a city called Claremont, which is about an hour east of Los Angeles; also known as the “Inland Empire”. My father is a retired brain surgeon, and he practiced from about the early 80’s until he retired in about 2018ish. My mother worked as a nurse, but eventually stopped working to take care of and raise all of us. My siblings and I all went to the same schools together, even up through undergrad.

I went to Claremont High School from 1998 through 2002. I performed well in school and my fondest memories come from running on the cross county and track and field team, where I developed my love for running that I enjoy today. After high school, and for reasons still unknown to me, my siblings and I (including my younger sister a year later) went to the same college — UCSB (University of California, Santa Barbara). We were there from 2002 through 2006. I earned my bachelor’s degree in Psychology. It was after college that my siblings and I finally parted out own ways. I moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, in 2006. The reason I moved there was because a job in “wilderness therapy” was recommended to me. I worked as a staff at a program that tried to support and rehabilitate adolescents who experienced a range of mental health, behavioral, or substance abuse issues.

I would live out in the woods every other week, and work with rotating staff teams to support these teenagers during their time in the program (usually 3–4 months). After a couple years working in wilderness therapy and later a residential treatment program, I decided to go back to school to get my master’s degree in social work. I was accepted to the University of Utah and was enrolled in the program from 2008 to 2010. I lived in Utah for most of my 20s, from 2006 through 2012. My love for running grew as I enjoyed running on various trails or mountain ranges throughout the beautiful state. I started to sign up for more races as I started to run with friends who were interested in the same — long, grueling but gorgeous running. After graduate school I worked for a therapeutic boarding school and later a substance abuse rehabilitation program with teenagers as an intern social worker. I did that for a couple of years before I decided to move back to California to be closer to my family. *This is where things take a negative turn, and it relates to why I am requesting your services. I am happy to elaborate more on that if you’d like, but it doesn’t make for a positive bio. I spent a couple years in southern California, but eventually made my way up to the Bay Area, where I have lived since 2014. I held a few random jobs from about 2012 through 2014, but returned back to social work in 2016. Since 2016, I have worked in a variety of settings, mostly with aging adults or adults with significant health issues (which also includes issues with substance abuse and complicated psychiatric conditions). Since 2016 I’ve worked as a social worker at a skilled nursing facility (Vasona Creek Health Center), a program called Homebridge (in SF, which aims to provide in-home care to struggling adults and seniors), as an intensive case manager for a nonprofit called the Institute on Aging, and finally for the City and County of SF where I work for a program called In-Home Supportive Services.

[your-dietician]

Christina Ricci Says It Was ‘Lovely’ to Work on ‘Wednesday’: Details

New Post has been published on https://medianwire.com/christina-ricci-says-it-was-lovely-to-work-on-wednesday-details/

Christina Ricci Says It Was ‘Lovely’ to Work on ‘Wednesday’: Details

Christina Ricci AFF-USA/Shutterstock

Class in session. Christina Ricci is not reprising her role as the morbid and sadistic Wednesday Addams in Netflix’s upcoming Wednesday, but she will play a teacher at Nevermore Academy, where Jenna Ortega’s version of the beloved character is enrolled.

‘Wednesday’: Everything to Know 

Earlier this month, it was officially revealed that Ricci would be playing Ms. Marilyn Thornhill in Tim Burton’s adaptation, which also stars Catherine Zeta-Jones, Luis Guzman, Gwendoline Christie and Fred Armisen as Uncle Fester. (Ricci’s Now and Then costar Thora Birch will appear in a few episodes too.)

“It was super fun. I was really excited to work with Tim again,” Ricci exclusively told Us Weekly while promoting her partnership with Stella & Chewy’s. “I was so excited also to work with Gwendoline. Jenna is so amazing and so good in this part and was so great to work with. And so it was really lovely.”

Christina Ricci in ‘Addams Family Values’ and ‘Wednesday.’ Shutterstock; Netflix

The eight-episode spinoff series was initially announced in February 2021. Ricci previously played Wednesday Addams in 1991’s The Addams Family opposite Anjelica Huston, Raul Julia and Christopher Lloyd and returned for its sequel, Addams Family Values, in 1993.

While audiences await Wednesday’s debut in November, Ricci has also been keeping busy filming Yellowjackets season 2. The Showtime drama became an overnight smash, recently earning seven Emmys nominations.

‘The Addams Family’ Cast: Where Are They Now?

“I mean there’s so many positives with both genres and a few negatives,” Ricci told Us of working in both television and film. “I like doing TV because you kind of get to spend a longer time with the character, and if you do like the character, then that’s fantastic and great. And then I do like movies as well because you do have this beginning and end and a really in-depth** understanding of who it is you’re playing. And so that’s sort of like a warm security blanket, but TV’s not like that. I’m right now growing and learning and changing and developing new muscles. And I do like that about TV that even at my age when I’ve been doing this for 35 years, it’s forcing me to grow and develop new skills.”

Tim Burton Atilano Garcia/SOPA Images/Shutterstock

Ricci plays Misty in the psychological thriller, who reconnects with her former high school peers who (un)luckily survived a plane crash in the Canadian wilderness while heading to a soccer tournament years prior. For the Casper star, she’s most drawn to roles that she’s never come across before.

“I usually concentrate on the character that I’ll be playing when I’m just being hired as an actor. So for me, what I’m looking at is is the character something I haven’t seen before? Will I be getting to grow as an actor? I just always want to do things that I feel are original and unexplored in some way,” she explained. “I mean, obviously almost every aspect of human nature has been explored at this point by art, but you know, there are tiny little differences that can be made to make something new.”

’90s Stars: Where Are They Now?

The show also pairs Ricci with fellow ‘90s actor Juliette Lewis and features Melanie Lynskey and Tawney Cypress rounding out the powerhouse adult cast. Looking back at her career beginnings, Ricci’s advice to her younger self would be: “To just keep concentrating on the things that I do or that I did. … I would tell her to keep sort of leaning into cultivating what she does that’s special that other people don’t do.”

When not on screen, the Lizzie Borden Chronicles alum is also a “big animal lover.” She recently partnered with Stella & Chewy’s for the brand’s “All You Need Is Raw” campaign.

Christina Ricci Jenni Girtman/AP/Shutterstock

She and her husband, Mark Hampton, have a full house. In addition to 8-year-old son Freddie and daughter Cleopatra, 9 months, they have three dogs — Logan, Patrick and Karen Carpenter.

‘Casper’ Cast: Where Are They Now?

“I love all kinds of animals really, but I’ve always had cats and dogs and my main dog, Karen, who I always say is my first baby, I got her when I was 29 and she traveled the world with me and is still with me,” Ricci told Us. “As she got older, I was really interested in making sure that I sort of helped her with really good nutrition that would keep her comfortable and alive for as long as possible. And so I did some research, looked into things, and I found Stella & Chewy and I started feeding her and my other dogs Stella & Chewy. Karen is an old dog now. She seems very active and energized and my younger dogs — their coats are better and they seem healthier and they love the food. So I was excited to partner with them and support this campaign because I really feel very passionately about the product and what it’s done for my animals.”

Ricci sadly lost her cat a few months ago, but she still plans to expand. She gushed: “We are in the process of fostering, of adopting two kittens. So soon there will be five animals in this house.”

Read full article here

[bnha-imagines-and-hcs]

Class 1-A as Youtubers

(This was a request from a close real-life friend of mine!)

Yuga Aoyama: His channel is a mess. It´s just short weird videos nobody but him understands. They´re mostly reuploads from his vine (rip) account. Doesn´t make them any easier to understand though. Also Thirsttraps galore.

Mina Ashido: Is a vlogger for sure. Does all the challenges. Her videos are mostly about life at UA, her work-out routine, whatever new eyeliner she´s picked up and so on. Pretty much all of the others have appeared at least once in her videos.

Tsuyu Asui: For some reason I feel like her videos would be sort of calm and artistic? Beautifully done outdoor shots, timelapses, manages to always find the right music. Has the best camera out of them all.

Tenya Iida: He´s more on the educational/political side of Youtube. Doesn´t necessarily have the great equipment or the editing skills, but doesn´t really need them either to have very clean-cut videos that get the point across.

Ochaco Uraraka: The first thing I thought was mukbangs. I could also see her doing great videos on how to be thrifty and keep your expenses to a minimum with everything. Fans like her because she doesn´t try to be anything she´s not on camera.

Mashirao Ojiro: Martial arts, Sports and Health is what I see. I bet he does great Yoga videos. He has a nice voice for guided meditations, workouts and stuff. Has a surprisingly high amount of female fans.

Denki Kaminari: Memes. I betcha he´s the otaku of the group so he also does videos on general nerdism. Has a second channel that´s exclusively gaming content. Both of his channels are actually organized quite well?

Eijiro Kirishima: He also does vlog about his daily life but most importantly has a podcast he does with the Bakusquad once a week. They record themselves when making them and load that up to his channel (kinda like Jenna Marbles). Sero is the one that always comes up with great shameless sponsor plugs and everyone simultaneously loves and hates him for it.

Koji Koda: I´m sure this comes to no surprise but Koda is a Pet/Plant youtuber. Probably has like a jungle in his dorm room at this point. He´s acctually had to move some of his plants into Shoji´s room because he´s the only one that has a lot of space. Therefore you´ll see Shoji in many of Koda´s videos.

Rikido Sato: Again no suprise. He does baking and cooking videos. Sound´s boring? Well since everyone shares a kitchen he rarely does a video by himself. It´s always a surprise as to who will join today. Seldomly plans for collabs they just happen. All the time. And usually result in a mess and doubled over laughter.

Mezo Shoji: I was acctually struggling with this one but I guess there´d probably be lots of people that´d be interested in seeing how he does in everyday life with his quirk and his minimalist lifestyle! (also he´s just got a bomb ass personality and he deserves all the attention don´t @ me)

Kyoka Jiro: Her videos primarily revolve around music. She does metal and rock covers of popular songs and regularly destroys on the bass. I also see her being into festival culture and often vlogging at them with whoever´s with her (most of the time Kaminari and/or Tokoyami).

Hanta Sero: Oh man, he´s the editor of the bunch. Does a lot of like teaching how to get cool effects with specific ways of editing and just being a comedic genius in general. He´s also gotten into animating recently!

Fumikage Tokoyami: Okay hear me out. I think there´s a LOT of baby bats out there that would idolize Tokoyami. We all know he´s goth af (and denies it) and his videos very much fit that aesthetic. He does OOTDs and GRWMs and is surprisingly into fashion. Has defintely made black icecream on his channel before.

Shoto Todoroki: I think he´s the only one of the bunch who doesn´t necessarily like being miced up or having his face on camera. His videos are usually silent or have calm music playing while he does art. From drawing to ice sculptures he´s got it down. His fans are currently begging him for a face reveal.

Toru Hagakure: Theater kid gone ASMR. Being a Youtuber (or a theater kid)  isn´t easy for her since you know... she´s invisible. But she does her best and acctually is quite good at narrating and similar things. She´s first got into ASMR when she noticed that some of the people around her like Midoriya, Bakugo and a few others were having trouble sleeping and concentrating after the first villain attack in USJ. Her main reason to make videos is to help others feel more comfortable.

Katsuki Bakugo: Okay, scratch what I said about Tsu. THIS guy has the best camera. I was thinking to myself: “What kind of content would Bakugo like to watch?” and the first thing that came to my mind was things being destroyed in super slow-motion. So he does videos similar to the Slow Mo guys. The destroying is his favorite part.

Izuku Midoriya: Nerrdddddd, he has this series of videos where he takes one pro-hero as his topic and then goes into great detail about anything he can find about them. His videos are never about himself and he just kinda popped up one day so lately people have been asking to see more content about him instead of other heros! He´s very confused but happy about it.

Minoru Mineta: I don´t know why but my mind immediately jumped to like tutoring videos. Mineta IS very smart so it made sense in my head that he would. They´re acctually pretty helpful?

Momo Yaoyorozu: Ah yes. Finally the “Too-perfect-to-be-real-channel”. Momo´s videos are always aesthetically pleasing, have high production value and a lot of care put into them. She does anything you would find on instagram. DIY´s, Favorites, Nail art (mostly done by Mina tho), Book recommendations, all that good, cute, cozy stuff. She has one format that´s completely different though. Every once in a while on fridays, all the girls of 1-a get together to have a kind of sleepover. Just that no one sleeps and they play games and stuff their faces until the sun goes up again. It´s far wilder than any of Kirishima´s podcasts or Sato´s collabs have ever gotten. And I´ll keep it at that.

-Mod Anni

[explcrers]

oh hi there, welcome to holiday, CHARLES WINSOR. you’ve been here for THREE WEEKS? awesome! you look just like TOM HOLLAND, it’s crazy. oh, so you’re a 22 year old TRAIL GUIDE. and you’re CISMALE and use HE/HIM? okay, just checking! oh, people say you’re LIVELY & DEDICATED, but PESKY & AWKWARD? well, i’m sure that you can prove yourself here. you’re looking forward to the HOODIE-HOO DAY celebration? that’s a good one, you’ll love it. i have to get going now, bye! [el, 23, est, she/her]

character parallels: sam shakusky (moonrise kingdom), spongebob, stan uris (IT), bill (mamma mia 1 & 2), stan marsh (south park), lazlo (camp lazlo), aquamarine (aquamarine), jenna rink (13 going on 30), bill s. preston, esq. (bill & ted’s excellent adventure)

zodiac: TBD

aesthetic: “a rock! the pioneers used to ride these babies for MILES …. and it’s in great shape”

the youngest of four by 12 years, charlie spent much of his childhood entertaining himself; his prized possessions were his raccoon tail hat, snowshoes, and various books on plant identification held together by tape

he was the only member of the ponaganset high school bird watching society and was known for his bird calls

spent his summers camping; once he got his license, his world expanded by that much more and he’s still (and always will be) a nomad by heart; spent the three months between high school graduation and his freshman year of college hiking the appalachian trail and putting his years of botany and survival studies to the test

has a degree in environmental studies and has so far done internships in idaho, alaska, and new york revolving around forestry, bird study and conservation, and ranger duties

wants to be a wilderness ranger with a focus specifically on the ecological study and preservation of the nation’s parks and forestry; isn’t entirely sure which park he wants to focus his efforts on and is focusing on getting some internships before applying somewhere to better expand his horizons

LIVELY ( full of life and energy; active and outgoing ): he basically wakes up with the sun and harnesses its energy at daybreak, making him quite possibly the most energetic morning person on the face of the earth. manages to turn ANYTHING into a positive situation. kid saw a jaguar during his study abroad and feared for his life but would describe the experience as “thrilling! what a beautiful cat! thought i was going to die for sure but all in good fun!”

DEDICATED ( devoted to a task or purpose ): no one has ever described charlie as lazy─ he’s the complete opposite. his dedication is what makes him ambitious as he doesn’t set out with specific goals in mind for himself, just an interest in a thing and the desire to do something for that thing. 

PESKY ( causing trouble; annoying ): his liveliness can quickly cross over into annoying territory as charlie is incapable of shutting up and his social skills are better tuned for moss than they are people. will try and diffuse a situation by offering up a longhorn beetle as a stress relieving entity. it’s not it’s a fucking beetle. anyway.

AWKWARD ( not smooth or graceful ): so the social skills ... aren’t the best. he talks too much and too fast and trips over his words even when he knows exactly what he wants to say to someone... which is only about 10% of the time if it isn’t directly related to catci.

works closely with the holiday parks department as a trail guide; it isn’t uncommon to see him covered in dirt, possible stings from beekeeping, and on the rare occasion, rashes from poisonous plant species; he uses these experiences during his guided tours and tries to make it more fun for those in his watch

if u wanna plot like this and i’ll message u!!!

[armeniaitn]

U.S. Embassy’s 2021 American Film Showcase opens in Yerevan

New Post has been published on https://armenia.in-the.news/culture/u-s-embassys-2021-american-film-showcase-opens-in-yerevan-71252-27-03-2021/

U.S. Embassy’s 2021 American Film Showcase opens in Yerevan

The U.S. Embassy brings back the fifth iteration of the American Film Showcase. This year the film festival will be comprised of free film screenings, three public lectures and two workshops.

Free Film Screenings

Eleven documentary films will be screened during the 2021 American Film Showcase. The showcase opens at 19:00 on March 28 at the Moscow Cinema with a screening of the festival’s feature film “In Search of Greatness,” which tells the story of how prominent athletes from around the world unlocked the secrets of genius. Their stories will inspire audiences to use their natural abilities and develop key skills to rise to greatness.

“We chose to open the showcase with this film because its lessons are universal.  They cross cultures and show that despite our differences, we share many commonalities.  This concept is at the root of the U.S.-Armenia relationship.” U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Lynne Tracy, said.

Ambassador Tracy continued, “We have much in common on which to continue to build our partnerships – our mutual respect for a free press and strong civil society to hold our leaders accountable; our commitment to the development of vibrant science, technology, engineering, and mathematics sectors; and our appreciation of a good, old-fashioned jazz concert!”

The American Film Showcase’s free film screenings will continue at the Moscow Theater daily from March 29 to April 3, at 18:00 and 20:00 each day. The films include: “The Dawn Wall,” “In Search of Greatness,” “The Jazz Ambassadors,” “King in the Wilderness,” “Make It Work,” “Mike Wallace Is Here,” “Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool,” “The Most Unknown,” “Netizens,” “Quincy,” and “RBG.”

Public Lectures and Workshops

The 2021 American Film Showcase is more than free film screenings.

On March 27, seven-time Emmy Award-winning producer, director, editor and composer Brian Malone will host a public lecture on “Finding Your Story”. Producer Jenna Ricker will speak about “Pitching for Funding” on March 29. The third talk will be hosted by producer, editor, and writer Lara Stolman on March 31 on “Documentary Self-Distribution”. All public lectures are free and will be at 20:00 via Zoom.

From March 28 to March 30, film director Denali Tiller will run a workshop on “Documentary Ethics and Creative Responsibility.” Casey Regan, a film cinematographer, will lead a workshop on “Technical and Interpersonal Skills for Documentary Film Cinematography” from March 31 to April 3. About 20 of Armenia’s top young filmmakers were selected, through an application process, to participate in these workshops.

Read original article here.

[michael-radi-the-glamorous-life]

How To Listen

One of the most important skills we have as human beings is our ability to communicate, and to do so effectively.

However, one could easily argue that - societally speaking - we have not been communicating effectively with one another, or have only been doing so with a select group of people. The events of the past ten days seem like blatant proof of that.

A large part - if not the largest part - of effective communication and the subsequent forward momentum of progress is:

Active Listening.

We - and I’m speaking to the heavily White majority of my readership here - are being asked right now to Actively Listen to our Black peers, friends, family, colleagues, allies, acquaintances, and all Black voices across the country.

So how do we do this? What does this mean? Where to start?

Active Listening

The practice of Active Listening can be defined as:

Giving total concentration to what is being said, providing full attention and utilizing all senses.

Active Listening is not merely hearing the sounds, nor is it giving passive attention whilst waiting for the next moment. Likewise, it is not waiting for your turn to speak.

The purpose of Active Listening is to fully comprehend what is being said and to provide both empathy and understanding. It is not critical - where you would listen and then offer your own opinion/insight - and it is not with the intention of reply, except to show comprehension.

Active Listening should be:

Neutral and non-judgemental

Patient

Filled with cues that you are listening (particularly if in person)

Open to asking questions and to clarification

Inclusive of reflection back on what has been said

Here are some clarifications on what Active Listening should not include:

Wandering thoughts

Disrespect

Interruptions

Distraction

One-upping the speaker

Focus on small details

Self-centering the narrative

Passing over what was not comprehended

Active Listening should establish a sense of trust and - most importantly - it is about the Speaker, not the listener.

Like any skill, Active Listening takes practice, but it may be the most crucial skill we can possibly posses.

Not Our Time

White folx: This is not our time to speak.

Honestly, I hesitated even writing this post today. But ultimately, it seemed that if I could use this platform to help educate and provide information that is critical at this time, it would be better to speak up right now than do my own work quietly.

We have been talking and controlling the narrative in this country from the beginning, and that was not right. We were wrong. So we must do better.

Right now Black folx are speaking up - as they have been the whole time - and are finally being heard. So instead of trying to raise our own voice into that conversation, it is time for us to sit down and Listen.

Here are some important considerations before we dive in:

Is this education going to be quick? No.

Is it going to be easy? No.

Are we going to make mistakes? Yes, and then we own up to those mistakes and we fix them.

Will we encounter discomfort? YES. If you’re not uncomfortable throughout this process, you’re likely not trying hard enough to learn.

Will we have to unlearn habits, practices, and biases? Oh yes. Many many many.

Can we rely on Black folx to educate us? NO. This is up to US to learn. They tried teaching when we weren’t listening, so now WE must do the work.

Will we get a pat on the back for our work, time, and effort? No. I know you’re going to want one, but we don’t get one. Not when we’re 250 years late.

Do we have to post on social media? No. As long as you’re doing the work and having the conversations, social media is not necessary. Honestly - and I’m trying to do this myself - the conversation on our social media accounts should be about providing resources to other White folx and amplifying what is being said by Black voices.

Should I ask questions? Yes! Ask other White folx if you’re confused about something. Do some research. Find a friend or family member you can trust with a question you think is silly or embarrassing. It’s all part of the work.

And I’m sure there are plenty more questions to answer even beyond these, but let’s dive in.

Where To Start

There is an overwhelming amount of material to be consumed for our education.

I’ve been collecting a list of places to start, which I figured could be helpful to everyone. I’ve broken it down into categories, which I hope you will all find helpful.

If you have further suggestions, please place them in the comments!

Watch:

Netflix:

13th

American Son

Black Earth Rising

Brian Banks

Dear White People

Get On The Bus

The Kaliep Browder Story

LA 92

See You Yesterday

Strong Island

When They See Us

HBO:

King In The Wilderness

Notes From The Field

We Are The Giant

Hulu:

3 1/2 Minutes. 10 Bullets

Blindspotting (free with Cinemax)

The Hate U Give (free with Cinemax)

If Beale Street Could Talk

Amazon Prime:

Blindspotting

Just Mercy (rent free in June)

Quest

Westwind: Djalu’s Legacy

CBC:

The Skin We’re In

SBS On Demand:

First Australians

Rent:

12 Years A Slave (possibly still on Netflix)

BlacKkKlansmen

Black Britain On Film

The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution

Black Power Mixtape: 1967-1975

Blood & Water (series)

Clemency

Detroit

Do Not Resist

Do the Right Thing

Fruitvale Station (possibly still on Netflix)

The House I Live In

I Am Not Your Negro (possibly still on Netflix)

Malcolm X

Maya Angelou: And I Still Rise

More Than A Month

Putaparri and the Rainmakers

Queen and Slim

Queen Sono

Queen Sugar

Roots

Selma

Slavery By Another Name

The Tall Man

Online:

Black Lives Matter activist videos: blacklivesmatter.com/activist-shorts/

Read:

Books:

So You Want To Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo

Algorithms of Oppression by Safiya Noble

Blood In My Eye by George L. Jackson

If They Come In The Morning… by Angela Y. Davis

The Great Unlearn by Rachel Cargle

Me And White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad

White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo

This Book Is Anti-Racist by Tiffany Jewell

How To Be An Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds

Unpacking The Invisible Knapsack (essay) by Peggy McIntosh

Black Feminist Thought by Patricia Hill Collins

Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower by Dr. Brittney Cooper

Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon

I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

I’m Still Here: Black Dignity In A World Made For Whiteness by Austin Channing Brown

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

Redefining Realness by Janet Mock

Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander

The Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism for the Twenty-First Century by Grace Lee Boggs

The Warmth Of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color by Cherrie Moraga

Raising Our Hands by Jenna Arnold

When Affirmative Action Was White: An Untold History of Racial Inequality in Twentieth-Century America by Ira Katznelson

Why I’m No Longer Talking To White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge

Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams

Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

Playwrights (and a First Play Suggestion)

Dominique Morissea - Pipeline

Lynn Nottage - Sweat

Anna Deavere Smith - Notes From The Field

Dael Orlandersmith - Yellowman

August Wilson - Fences

Katori Hall - The Mountaintop

Jocelyn Bioh - School Girls; or, The African Mean Girls Play

Alice Childress - Wine In The Wilderness

Jeremy O. Harris - Slave Play

Lydia Diamond - Stick Fly

Antoinette Nwandu - Pass Over

Charles Fuller - A Soldier’s Play

Aleshea Harris - What to Send Up When it Goes Down

Peal Cleage - The Nacirema Society Requests the Honor of Your Presence at a Celebration of Their First One Hundred Years

Danai Guria - Eclipsed

Adrienne Kennedy - Funnyhouse of a Negro

Langston Hughes - Simply Heaven

Lorraine Hansberry - A Raisin in the Sun

James Baldwin - Blues for Mister Charlie

Charles Gordone - No Place to be Somebody

Tarell Alvin McCraney - Choir Boy

Colman Domingo - Dot

Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones) - Dutchman and the Slave

Lonne Elder III - Ceremonies in Dark Old Men

Douglas Turner Ward - Day of Absence & Happy Ending

Kia Corthron - Breath, Boom

Ntozake Shange - For Colored Girls who have Considered Suicide When the Rain-bow is Enuf

Mfonsio Udofia - Her Portmanteau

Suzan-Lori Parks - Topdog/Underdog

Samm-Art Williams - Home

George C. Wolfe - Spunk & The Colored Museum

Listen:

Podcasts:

1619

About Race

#BLACKLIVESMATTER

Code Switch (NPR)

The Combahee River Collective Statement

Diversity Gap

How to Survive the End of the World

The Intelligence

Intersectionality Matters

Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast

Pod For The Cause

Pod Save the People

Seeing White

Speaking of Racism

The Stoop

TED Radio Hour: Confronting Racism

Uncomfortable Conversations

We Live Here

What Matters

You’re Pretty For A…

Audiobook:

How To Be An Antiracist

Beginning

Is that list comprehensive? Nope.

This is just the start.

But to make progress, we all must begin somewhere. I hope this list helps you find a place to begin and that you will continue to do the work. In the meantime, I’m here if you have questions.

Be well, friends. Cheers.

[planar-echoes]

The Battle of Fort Keff (Zendikar) By Jenna Helland (3/21/10)

Chandra's trail dead-ended at a barren mountain pass in Akoum, and there was nothing else he could do. Gideon considered planeswalking from this violent world right then, but he was exhausted after tracking her for two days—and nearly dying on several occasions—and he wanted a good night's sleep, or as close as he could in the inhospitable world of Zendikar.

As the daylight faded, he backtracked down the trail to a high-walled encampment he'd passed earlier in the day. The soldier at the gate was reluctant to let him in after dark, but Gideon pointed out that a sliver of sun that still showed above the high cliffs surrounding the settlement. Finally, the grizzled soldier admitted him inside the walls with a gruff "Welcome to Fort Keff, the safest haven in Akoum."

Keff wasn't much to look at, but it was well protected. The rampart had been built at the mouth of a deep ravine so it was protected on three sides by rock. Inside the fort, most inhabitants lived in sturdy dwellings attached to the cliff-face. The explorers and trappers were welcome to pitch their tents under the overhanging rock, which protected them from sky predators. At the bottom of the ravine, there was a swift river that disappeared into a tunnel in the rock—a natural supply of water that was crucial to the longevity of the haven. After talking with the locals, Gideon learned that Keff supported a renowned school for healers, who tended herb gardens on the ledges overlooking the underground river. The population of the Fort was exceptionally young—many tribes sent their children to live in the relative safety of the fort.

After trading for a shank of fat-speckled gnarlid meat, Gideon settled near a scarred adventurer named Tafre who offered him a place at his fire. While they shared the food, Tafre proved himself to be a skilled storyteller, spinning unbelievable tales of his adventures as a trapfinder for the Akoum Expeditionary House.

"And then the rune on the keystone exploded. At least I got my head out of the way," Tafre said, chuckling. He removed his leather glove and showed Gideon the chunk of flesh missing from the middle of his palm.

"I don't think I've ever seen a hole through a man's hand before," Gideon told him. "At least, not a man who was still alive."

"Yeah, there was some enchantment on that trap. Mixed with the wound, I'd say," Tafre replied. "We got the amulet though. Damn trapmakers couldn't fool me."

Soon, the tone of the conversation changed. Tafre began telling Gideon the troubling stories that were being passed around the havens throughout Zendikar. Things had been strange a while. The land was more volatile than usual, which was saying a lot, considering how much the world already shifted. Gideon had already had a run-in with the Roil, barely escaping a colossal whirlwind that swept across the mountain pass as unexpected as a snowstorm in the desert.

"What is the cause of the change?" Gideon asked.

"Some think the land is angry," Tafre said hesitantly.

"And what do you think?" Gideon prompted.

Tafre was quiet for a long moment. Then he glanced around like a man who had something to hide. "You seem like a well-traveled man. You've seen strange things, I'm sure. So maybe you won't judge me if I sound slightly ... confused. I've explored much of this world, done things that gave nightmares more than once. But what I saw two days ago—"

Tafre paused, his skin pale and his hands trembling. Concerned, Gideon handed him a water flask. Tafre drank deeply and then continued his story.

"I don't often venture into the wilderness alone. It's better with mates, of course. But I know the mountains here. I was hunting boar in the jaddi grove just under Sawtooth Ridge. Suddenly the world turned black. Not like night had fallen, but like I'd been thrust into a coffin and left to die. Yet, I was awake. I admit that I panicked. Running blind was damn foolish, and I smacked into something hard. And then I remember nothing ... until I awoke in a field of flesh."

Gideon tipped his head in surprise. "Flesh? As in skin?"

Tafre sipped the flask again. "I know it sounds impossible, but the grove had become an expanse of fleshy meat and bone, all mixed with this yellow dust that burned my nose and eyes. Dust that cast the horizon in a saffron glow. Clumps of blood and hair clung to my clothes, but I wasn't wounded. I had to wade through the knee-high carnage until I reached the ridge. Scrambling up, I saw that the world on the other side was still a pristine wilderness. But what lay behind me was unimaginable ... a thing of madness."

Gideon considered his tale. "Not an illusion, I suppose."

Tafre shook his head miserably. "I can still taste the blood. The dust has seeped into my skin. I can't stop wondering whose flesh it had once been."

That night, Gideon dreamed of Chandra engulfed in white flame. She was screaming. No, he realized, the screaming was outside his dream—an animalistic cry of fear and pain. Gideon was on his feet before he was fully awake. It was still night, but people were crowded along the edge of the ravine watching an injured creature lumber along the riverbank. It was a large, bulky humanoid with a prominent brow and muscular, stooping shoulders. Its characteristics were vaguely aquatic, although it wasn't like the merfolk Gideon had encountered on Zendikar. Beating it with cudgels until it collapsed, the soldiers threw a weighted net over it as it screeched in an unfamiliar tongue.

"Have you seen creatures like this before?" Gideon asked Tafre, who had appeared at his shoulder.

"It's a surrakar," Tafre answered. "Its kind lives mostly in Bala Ged, far from here. I can't imagine how it washed up in Keff."

"Is it intelligent?" Gideon asked as he watched the soldiers drag the subdued surrakar to a wooden cage near the front gate and roughly shove it inside.

"Nah, they're just beasts," Tafre said.

Gideon waited until the crowd dispersed and he was standing alone with the surrakar. Its breathing was shallow and labored, and it stared up at him with small black eyes. But there was emotion and intelligence in those dark pupils, and Gideon immediately felt pity for the creature whose only crime seemed to be surfacing the wrong place at the wrong time.

Gideon had just turned to leave, when the creature's clawed hand reached through the bars and gripped Gideon's arm tightly.

"The gods are coming," it hissed. "Kill me now."

Gideon had no doubt that Keff's captain of the guard was an honest man who took his duties seriously. Still, Gideon had managed to get on the man's bad side, despite his best efforts to be diplomatic in a situation that was rapidly deteriorating. Refugees had been arriving at the already-crowded haven all morning. Then, at midday, a large group of women and children arrived at the gate—many of them injured and all of them terrified. They had fled from village while their warriors died battling something they called "demon insects." None of them seemed in their right mind, which the captain attributed to fear, but which Gideon suspected was something far more insidious.

At least that's was he was trying to tell the captain, who refused to listen to Gideon and his tales about the "talking surrakar."

Gideon cursed the captain's provincial mind. It wasn't the man's fault, of course. But Gideon couldn't frankly explain why the surrakar's information was so crucial. He'd spent hours attempting to converse with the creature. From what he could glean from its rudimentary speech, the "gods" it once revered were from the beyond the world. They had been ripped from a void without color, without time, and without boundaries. And unless they were stopped, the gods would "chew off the meat and spit out the bones" of all existence. That seemed to be a rough translation, but Gideon got the gist.

And only a planeswalker like Gideon truly knew what that meant.

"I've got children coming out of my ears," the captain fumed. "No spare food to speak of. Only a handful of able-bodied men. And demonic insects coming down the hills that intend to slaughter us all. And you want me to talk to a fish man? If you don't move, you'll be sharing the cage with him!"

"Sir," said Gideon, "I doubt they are demonic insects—"

The red-faced captain held up a hand in warning. Gideon sighed. "If you won't listen to me, at least let me help. I've been around battlefields more than once."

The captain gave him a tired smile. "Now we're speaking the same language."

The attack began with yellow dust. The sickly cloud swept across the haven just as the work crew finished the reinforcements on the inner wall. Gideon was in the guard tower when it engulfed him. He sprawled on platform, and covered his face with his arm. He struggled to breathe in the gritty air, the acrid taste of blood flooding his mouth just as Tafre had described. An unpleasant memory of burning bodies filled Gideon's mind. The dust was like the ash from a still-burning pyre.

When the worst had past, Gideon struggled to his feet and saw that enemy was already at the gates.

Scores of creatures swarmed below the wall. Some walked on two legs while dragging claw-like appendages along the ground. Others scurried on all fours, with multiple limbs and tentacles branching out from random sections of their membranous bodies. The strange creatures emitted disturbing, hollow wails that tested Gideon's steadfast resolve. The creatures seemed partially decayed, their flesh segmented in an asymmetrical latticework. Pastel hues shone dimly from inside their bodies, the soft color a mockery of their horrific nature.

They crashed into the rampart, which swayed under Gideon's boots. The archers on the platform regained their senses, and fired volley after volley. But the arrows slid into the creatures as a knife into soft butter and did nothing to slow the assault. Unless Gideon took action, Fort Keff would be lost. From his belt, Gideon removed his sural, a whip-like, multi-bladed weapon. He steadied his mind until his fear dispersed and his mentor's teachings flooded his mind. Then he jumped into the fray.

"I am the center," he thought, willing mana to be like shards of glass in his veins. It was as his teacher said: Power and sacrifice can only exist together, like an eye and the sense of sight. "The light surrounds my foes, and they are blind to all but me. If any heart will be stilled, it will be mine."

When water is tipped into a funnel, it churns an inevitable course around the axis. So it was with Gideon as the creatures turned their attention to him alone. Gideon's magecraft chimed loudly in his mind—a necessary distraction from their netherworldly cries, the blows that found his unprotected skin, and any emotion that might distract him. He coiled the metal strands of his weapon so rapidly that the air itself became like a blade. Pain, he thought. I feel it, but it does not break me. Death. If it comes now, so be it.

The shouts of the soldiers on the wall broke through his consciousness as the pile of rosy, seeping flesh grew around him. Soon the sural was still, and Gideon stood on bruised and shaking legs. Battered, but alive.

So goes the teaching, he reminded himself yet again: Pain is welcome. Death is inevitable. Honor is the only legacy a man should crave.

A cheer rose up from inside the fort. A rope ladder was tossed from above, and the thankful inhabitants helped Gideon back onto the platform. Fort Keff had been saved.

And then it appeared on the horizon.

Once, Gideon had demanded that his teacher tell him more. More about the Blind Eternities. Moreabout other planes. More about everything. His teacher laughed: "No man can ever grasp everything he does not know."

Here on the horizon was everything Gideon did not know. Mind-numbing, phantasmal, 150 feet tall ... a thing of madness. It hovered above the earth, its tentacles draped across a landscape blasted into a barren crater by its passing. In the distance, Gideon could see a ripple in the air around it, like shockwaves of energy vibrating out from its core. The mountains crumbled like sand. The red drained from the rocks, the blue faded from the sky. Life became a void.

With a shudder of resignation, Gideon knew could not defeat this force. The most powerful mage would simply be ash on the wind. As he bore witness to the "god," he had no doubt what the surrakar had told him was true. This was the chaos of the Blind Eternities made corporeal.

Beside him, the captain of the guard fell to his knees and began keening softly. Gideon jerked him to his feet and forcibly turned him away from the sight from the colossal creature looming in the distance.

"Release the surrakar. He'll lead you out along the underground river. Take everyone and flee!"

"But where should we go?" The man cried.                                                                

"As far away as you can," Gideon answered. "I'm going for help."

From the top of the wall, Gideon waited until the last of the survivors were out of sight. For an instant, he watched it drift lazily across the horizon—obliterating everything in its wake. It mercilessly rendered all life to grit and dust. There seemed to be no purpose behind its actions. It was relentless, mindless, and seemingly unstoppable.

Gideon knew it would take many of his kind to thwart this menace. He'd heard of an organization that operated between planes. An organization of planeswalkers. He would travel to Ravnica and find them. Hopefully there would be something left of Zendikar when they got back. Gideon whispered a vow to return and planeswalked away.

[keithlederhaus]

Keith Lederhaus

It was required that we stay in incubators for a period of time before we were safe to go home. My parents were surprised when my mother got pregnant with my younger sister, Jenna Rose Lederhaus, on August 14, 1985. So I have a total of 2 brothers and 2 sisters. We grew up in Southern California. Specifically, a city called Claremont, which is about an hour east of Los Angeles; also known as the “Inland Empire”. My father is a retired brain surgeon, and he practiced from about the early 80’s until he retired in about 2018ish. My mother worked as a nurse, but eventually stopped working to take care of and raise all of us. My siblings and I all went to the same schools together, even up through undergrad. I went to Claremont High School from 1998 through 2002.

I performed well in school and my fondest memories come from running on the cross county and track and field team, where I developed my love for running that I enjoy today. After high school, and for reasons still unknown to me, my siblings and I (including my younger sister a year later) went to the same college — UCSB (University of California, Santa Barbara). We were there from 2002 through 2006. I earned my bachelor’s degree in Psychology. It was after college that my siblings and I finally parted out own ways.

I moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, in 2006. The reason I moved there was because a job in “wilderness therapy” was recommended to me. I worked as a staff at a program that tried to support and rehabilitate adolescents who experienced a range of mental health, behavioral, or substance abuse issues. I would live out in the woods every other week, and work with rotating staff teams to support these teenagers during their time in the program (usually 3–4 months).

After a couple years working in wilderness therapy and later a residential treatment program, I decided to go back to school to get my master’s degree in social work. I was accepted to the University of Utah and was enrolled in the program from 2008 to 2010. I lived in Utah for most of my 20s, from 2006 through 2012. My love for running grew as I enjoyed running on various trails or mountain ranges throughout the beautiful state. I started to sign up for more races as I started to run with friends who were interested in the same — long, grueling but gorgeous running.

After graduate school I worked for a therapeutic boarding school and later a substance abuse rehabilitation program with teenagers as an intern social worker. I did that for a couple of years before I decided to move back to California to be closer to my family. *This is where things take a negative turn, and it relates to why I am requesting your services. I am happy to elaborate more on that if you’d like, but it doesn’t make for a positive bio. I spent a couple years in southern California, but eventually made my way up to the Bay Area, where I have lived since 2014.

I held a few random jobs from about 2012 through 2014, but returned back to social work in 2016. Since 2016, I have worked in a variety of settings, mostly with aging adults or adults with significant health issues (which also includes issues with substance abuse and complicated psychiatric conditions).

Since 2016 I’ve worked as a social worker at a skilled nursing facility (Vasona Creek Health Center), a program called Homebridge (in SF, which aims to provide in-home care to struggling adults and seniors), as an intensive case manager for a nonprofit called the Institute on Aging, and finally for the City and County of SF where I work for a program called In-Home Supportive Services.

[keithlederhaus]

Keith Lederhaus

Keith Lederhaus

It was required that we stay in incubators for a period of time before we were safe to go home. My parents were surprised when my mother got pregnant with my younger sister, Jenna Rose Lederhaus, on August 14, 1985. So I have a total of 2 brothers and 2 sisters. We grew up in Southern California. Specifically, a city called Claremont, which is about an hour east of Los Angeles; also known as the “Inland Empire”. My father is a retired brain surgeon, and he practiced from about the early 80’s until he retired in about 2018ish. My mother worked as a nurse, but eventually stopped working to take care of and raise all of us. My siblings and I all went to the same schools together, even up through undergrad. I went to Claremont High School from 1998 through 2002.

I performed well in school and my fondest memories come from running on the cross county and track and field team, where I developed my love for running that I enjoy today. After high school, and for reasons still unknown to me, my siblings and I (including my younger sister a year later) went to the same college — UCSB (University of California, Santa Barbara). We were there from 2002 through 2006. I earned my bachelor’s degree in Psychology. It was after college that my siblings and I finally parted out own ways. I moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, in 2006. The reason I moved there was because a job in “wilderness therapy” was recommended to me. I worked as a staff at a program that tried to support and rehabilitate adolescents who experienced a range of mental health, behavioral, or substance abuse issues. I would live out in the woods every other week, and work with rotating staff teams to support these teenagers during their time in the program (usually 3–4 months). After a couple years working in wilderness therapy and later a residential treatment program, I decided to go back to school to get my master’s degree in social work. I was accepted to the University of Utah and was enrolled in the program from 2008 to 2010. I lived in Utah for most of my 20s, from 2006 through 2012. My love for running grew as I enjoyed running on various trails or mountain ranges throughout the beautiful state. I started to sign up for more races as I started to run with friends who were interested in the same — long, grueling but gorgeous running.

After graduate school I worked for a therapeutic boarding school and later a substance abuse rehabilitation program with teenagers as an intern social worker. I did that for a couple of years before I decided to move back to California to be closer to my family. *This is where things take a negative turn, and it relates to why I am requesting your services. I am happy to elaborate more on that if you’d like, but it doesn’t make for a positive bio. I spent a couple years in southern California, but eventually made my way up to the Bay Area, where I have lived since 2014.

I held a few random jobs from about 2012 through 2014, but returned back to social work in 2016. Since 2016, I have worked in a variety of settings, mostly with aging adults or adults with significant health issues (which also includes issues with substance abuse and complicated psychiatric conditions). Since 2016 I’ve worked as a social worker at a skilled nursing facility (Vasona Creek Health Center), a program called Homebridge (in SF, which aims to provide in-home care to struggling adults and seniors), as an intensive case manager for a nonprofit called the Institute on Aging, and finally for the City and County of SF where I work for a program called In-Home Supportive Services. https://sdtrackmag.com/PaperArchives/TM-0503.pdf

[planar-echoes]

Consortium Report: “The Incident at the Eye” (Zendikar) By Jenna Helland (1/20/10)

Location: Zendikar

Person of Interest: Anowon, House of Ghet

Age: Unknown. The most reliable sources indicate that Anowon is several hundred years old, but his exact age couldn't be verified.

Current location: Unknown

When possible, we used straight inquisition when interviewing witnesses. However, physical restraints and mind trawls proved necessary with several uncooperative subjects.

Zendikar is in the midst of a fundamental change to its geology and perhaps, its cosmology. We can provide no solid evidence that the recent incident in Akoum is connected to the increased instability on the plane, but all indicators point to a correlation between these events.

The Legend of Anowon

This much is known: Anowon is the scion of powerful vampire family in Malakir. He is an expert on ruins, runes, and ancient languages. In his relentless search for answers, he has left a trail of corpses from Tazeem to Akoum. Clever and callous, Anowon is a threat that requires serious attention.

During the investigation, it was a challenge to reconcile conflicting information. In settlements around Zendikar, Anowon is considered a renowned mage and benevolent scholar who leads expeditions from his base camp in mountains of Akoum. With the help of his followers, he's cultivated an image of himself as an expert in ruins and arcane languages—the man to go to with strange relics and hard questions.

But there are others who speak of Anowon's treachery. Many call him a thief and a murderer. In Malakir, vampires believe that Anowon is a ruthless power-seeker, yet they view him with grudging respect. And most importantly, some scholars and adventurers believe that it is Anowon who can stop the increased instability now afflicting the already dangerous plane.

The Murder of Bloodchief Tenihas

After obtaining protection from House Kalastria in Malakir, we were able to search the city's genealogy records, which are housed in a massive chamber underneath the Kalastrian section of the city. Given the vampires' preoccupation with lineage, the records were extensive. Unfortunately, we were unable to verify basic details about Anowon's life, including his age. Some records have been destroyed and many entries have been obscured by bloodstains or slashed with a knife to make them indecipherable.

During his early years, Anowon was "first son" of the House Ghet, under the tutelage of Bloodchief Tenihas. The exact method of his "birth" is not recorded, but Anowon viewed Tenihas as a father figure and the bloodchief seemed to hold his young heir in high regard.

By all accounts, Anowon was fascinated with Tenihas's extensive library, particularly ancient texts that allude to the enslavement of vampires by "famished gods." Apparently, this ancient servitude is a vaguely remembered but poorly understood aspect of the vampires' history. What happened to the tyrants is unknown. According to witnesses, it was this mystery that created animosity between Anowon and Tenihas, who didn't want his young protégé to unearth things better left buried in the past.

One night, Tenihas was brutally murdered in his own bedroom—his retinue slaughtered, and his treasure stores plundered. The only surviving witness swore that Anowon had killed his bloodchief in a fit of rage and then vanished. Anowon didn't return to his homeland for many decades, and in the intervening years, the legend of the killing of Tenihas grew to almost mythic proportions.

The Infiltration of Sea Gate

Anowon spent the next decades as sell-sword, honing his skills as a mage and warrior during dangerous expeditions. The most reliable information from this period comes from the Bala Ged Expeditionary House, where Anowon pledged his loyalty for a brief period. While hiring himself out to expeditions, he deciphered archaic language variants, inked hundreds of rune-scrolls, and collected hundreds of relics. Although the circumstances are lost to memory, it was during one of these expeditions that Anowon acquired a powerful scroll now known as the Dragon's Fire. Almost immediately afterward, Anowon renounced his loyalty to the expeditionary house and disappeared from Bala Ged.

A few years later, a young man calling himself Kejahar appeared at the Lighthouse in Sea Gate. He impressed the resident scholars with his magecraft and knowledge of the ancient world. He also possessed several powerful relics, which intensified the scholars' curiosity about the mysterious stranger. Based on several descriptions of the man, it's certain that this was Anowon in disguise. He soon ingratiated himself with the Lighthouse community. He traveled extensively with merfolk expeditions and spent untold hours in the Lighthouse Library, the largest collection of writings in Zendikar.

Despite having to deny his true nature as a vampire, this may have been one of the happiest times in Anowon's life. There are no indications of murders or thefts, and it seems that Anowon was genuinely seeking knowledge without dark motives. Then a young kor woman was killed and dumped in an alley near the Lighthouse. She was an acquainted with Anowon, and he was blamed for her murder. During the interrogation by the militia, Anowon's true nature as a vampire was revealed. The townsfolk beat Anowon nearly to death and dumped his body over the seawall. How he survived the dizzying fall into the Halimar is not known.

Because of his enforced departure, Anowon left many possessions at the Lighthouse, which the steward permitted us to view. Unfortunately, the Dragon's Fire scroll was not among the objects that Anowon left behind. But according to one of the scholars who read the scroll, it was the beginning of Anowon's preoccupation with the name "Ugin."

Massacre at Carnage Altar

His near-death experience at Sea Gate seems to have been a turning point in Anowon's life. From then on, he stole and killed indiscriminately to accomplish his goals. We discovered a witness to an event that is not common knowledge, even to Anowon's followers. A woman named Sabra says she encountered the vampire while on an expedition to Carnage Altar, a ruin in the jungles of Murasa. With Sabra's permission, we trawled her mind with spells, and confirmed that she is telling the truth. The ropey scar marring her neck also confirms her story.

Sabra was a new sell-sword on her first expedition out of the Murasa Expedition House. Her party had been hired to find a chest with this symbol:

Sabra was hired by a "Beyond Man," who provided the party with a map that led to a tomb below Carnage Altar. The expedition was plagued with problems from the beginning. Supplies kept disappearing, and their pack-hurdas succumbed to a mysterious sickness, probably from tainted water. One night, something dragged the healer from his bedroll and eviscerated him just beyond the light of the campfire—without anyone hearing a sound.

For the next few days, Sabra was sure that something followed their every move through the wilderness. Once inside the tomb, they located the chest, but were immediately attacked by a "nightmare abomination." When pressed for more information, Sabra described the creature as a cross between a hydra and a skeletal beast. Most of the party was slaughtered during this battle, but Sabra struck down the monster with a killing blow. Once she recovered the chest, a hidden foe emerged from the shadows and slit her throat. Falling to the ground, she glimpsed her attacker just before she lost consciousness. Her would-be killer was Anowon, of that she has no doubt.

After further research, we believe this chest contained crucial information about the Eye of Ugin, which many believe to be a relic hidden in the mountains of Akoum. Little is known about the mysterious Ugin. But by this time Anowon's quest for answers had become an obsession.

Origin of the League of Anowon

Now, Anowon sought the Eye of the Ugin with a singularity of purpose. Yet again and again, his quarry eluded him. From his base camp in Akoum, he gathered a group of rabble around him, searching endlessly for the eye and secretly killing anyone who got in his way. His widespread reputation as a ruin sage proved especially useful as adventurers would come to him for help and answers. He used their relics and knowledge to further his quest for the Eye. Many murders are lodged in the memories of his followers, and one can only imagine how many corpses of unsuspecting adventurers lay strewn across Akoum's rocky landscape.

And then Chandra Nalaar walked into his base camp.

According to one of his followers (another uncooperative witness), Anowon believed that Chandra had memorized a map that led to the Eye that he had long been searching for. He planned to guide her through the wilderness until they found Ugin's Eye, then kill her. But once Anowon and Chandra disappeared into the wilds, that was the last his followers saw of him until Jace Beleren and his guide met the crazed Anowon near the Eye of Ugin.

We have scoured the disturbed Eye and have been unable to determine exactly what transpired inside the chamber. Bodies were strung along the cavern walls. Reservoirs of blood pooled beneath crumbled walkways. There is an unsettling atmosphere and occasional tremors similar to the ones that threaten all of Zendikar. During a fight with a third planeswalker, Chandra Nalaar was engulfed in a white flame, but it is not known if this affected her physiology or magecraft. The alteration in the Eye indicates that something opened or was otherwise undone.

Anowon was last seen in a distressed state near the ruin. Further observation is warranted. The case remains open.

Threat Measure: High.

Report prepared at the request of Jace Beleren.