#had to search up the bee movie script for this

[askblueandviolet]

Mac should read the "Bee Movie" script to Mayor while he's tied up.

[cyberkn1fe]

Hi, I stumbled across a screenshot of a post on Pinterest and I'm trying to track down the original post so I can reblog it. (It's a section of the season four finale of The Magnus Archives that transitions into the script of The Bee Movie.) It says it was posted by cyberkn1fe and I'm guessing it was originally posted by you, but a quick search of your blog doesn't show anything TMA related. It's really fucking funny and I just want to be able to give credit to whoever originally posted it. Just wondering if I missed something. Thanks!

(And I see you're making your way through Hollow Knight. Lovely game, hope you're enjoying it!)

Oh yeah, I posted that a few years ago. It eventually got deleted as part of blog cleanup I do every once in a while. I had no idea someone put it up on Pinterest lol. Glad it made you laugh

(I am indeed enjoying hollow knight, thank you. Funny, I've actually loved the game for ages, just never got around to playing it myself until now)

[duskys-dreams]

I had an Animorphs headcanon that Rachel was transgender (MtF). I imagined the conversation in my head, when the rest of the gang finally pieces it together. They discussed in another room and were completely supportive, already using she/her pronouns.

I started imagining Rachel’s past, how she would have been the tough macho man to hide that something felt off about herself. She was close to Jake before the whole Animorphs thing was even a thing. I even started writing an animation script for her, using the song Empty by Jaiden Animations.

I realized that I didn’t have any ideas for what her deadname could have been, so I went on the internet to search for baby names. I wanted it to be related to water in some way, but when I googled “baby names related to water,” I noticed that my favourite name website didn’t show up. This meant I truly was a writer.

I went inside the first website I found, and it wasn’t names at all. It just had a bunch of little symbols of random things. Even so, I found one thing that had clay on it, and that was a good enough name.

I decided to poke around the rest of the building. It was one of those Pay Per View YouTube websites, and it honestly looked like a classroom full of kids watching a movie. I went inside one of them, then immediately left and saw a bunch of kids in the hallway, watching as well. I thought that the whole premise was stupid and nothing was stopping people from just screen-recording, but I saw a rule on the wall preventing that.

I went to leave the building, and someone came up to me and started talking. I instantly forget what they were saying, but I went up the stairs and found myself on a sort of balcony, with a huge window on my right that looked down into an auto-repair shop.

There were two people already here, a boy that seemed to be a bit younger than me, and his mother. They were friendly, and I went up next to them.

The boy wanted to show me a trick. He took out a playing card, then flung it toward the window. The force of the strike made it completely shatter. His mother was very surprised that this was possible, but I told her that I saw a YouTube video about this a while ago.

He then threw a piece of paper, and it went down to the table down below and picked up a small stack of papers, then returned to the boy. I was very impressed, and said as much. The boy seemed to be a bit flustered, but he accepted the compliment.

I looked down and saw the car that they were working on was actually my dad’s. I waved, but Dad did not see me.

I realized I should probably leave. I looked at my fortune cookie paper, which declared that I would drive home today with a driver’s license. I was confused, because I was only fifteen in the dream.

The mother laughed and said that I should get a move on, because her boy would get it in that determined little head of his that this was something he had to help me with. I nodded, and left the two of them to go home.

I checked Discord, and found that Noah (@ultimatefanwing) was trying to draw himself in the front yard. I went out as well, and moved my drawing there piece by piece. The face didn’t fit quite right on the head; the chin was too short and the forehead was too long.

We had a scenting dog with us, and Noah sent it to look for something in the yard. We watched from the camera placed on the dogs head, and it stopped in a corner of the yard. I had taken the place of the dog, and I asked Noah if he could come see these small purple flowers I found, since I was confused about them. It wasn’t what we were trying to find, but he came over anyway, dodging the dog poop in the front yard.

The song Take A Hint was emanating from me, and there was this weird bug flying around me that looked like a cross between a bee, a cockroach, and a June bug. It landed on my face, and I didn’t flinch, just wondering what Noah would do if he saw it.

Noah sat down next to me, completely ignoring the bug, and I held up the flowers. He examined them, then shrugged. He didn’t know much about flowers either.

I decided to work on the Ultimate drawing here, and got the idea to flip the face horizontally. It fit perfectly now, but the mouth was too big. I redrew it, and it looked like a D. Third time’s the charm.

[everygame]

Telling Lies (PS4)

Developed/Published by: Sam Barlow, Furious Bee / Annapurna Interactive Released: 28/04/2020 Completed: 14/07/2023 Completion: Finished it. Trophies / Achievements: n/a

I enjoyed Her Story quite a bit, so I’m just going to admit front and center that I found that this was basically the exact same game kind of… disappointing? I thought there’d be some sort of evolution of the play, rather than just being “search for, and watch, videos until you work out what is going on, or get bored” again, but I suppose the counter-argument here is to imagine someone going to see their second movie ever and being like “This second movie was just exactly the same, it was just different images and a different story???”

So let’s assume we’re all fine with it being the exact same game and you just have to judge it based on how much you enjoyed the content. Which… I did!

Mostly!

Telling Lies is… a bit too long, and it suffers the exact same problem as Her Story where if you hit the natural end of a thread and can’t quite find the next (or just lose your place) you can spend a lot of time just watching videos basically at random hoping something starts to coalesce. It is, however, still superbly well structured; I’d be fascinated in how Sam Barlow and team script the games and if there’s a pre-filming playtest, because it feels like you get driven carefully along various hypotheses about what is “really going on” until a few twists and turns allow you to put it all together.

(Unfortunately for me this was long enough before the scheduled end of the game I had to piss about watching extra videos to get it to end.)

Anyway, in the spirit of things… I LIED. I’m not fine with just judging this solely based on the content! Because actually, how you interact with Telling Lies is as important as what you take away from watching the videos, and I’d like to complain bitterly that the game hides the ability to start a video automatically from the beginning behind a key combination (push rewind while starting the video, basically) and it worked way less consistently than anyone could ever hope. In addition, the game being (cleverly!) based around video chat means there’s tons of dead-time in videos, and so you often end up just scrubbing through them because they’re often quite boring. I get that the player is really intended to just be jumping from keyword to keyword, but trying that you’d lose context without rewinding and you could end up watching videos over and over, so it doesn’t really work.

I won’t be too unfair to it. I do think being in charge of the non-linear route through the game makes this better than, like, just watching a movie with the same mystery, your a-ha moment feels earned. I just feel like if the whole experience was a little tighter I’d remember this more fondly; it doesn’t stand up to Her Story, I’d say.

Will I ever play it again? I don’t think I would. Definitely had enough of Logan Marshall Green’s face, the guy who looks like what you think Tom Hardy looks like even though Tom Hardy doesn’t actually look like that.

Final Thought: I’m very confused by the jarring epilogue sequences in the credits in which (no spoilers) some characters explain what happened to them for the entire rest of their lives. I’m going to gamble here that the studio simply felt it was important to emphasise these characters were rich, full people outside of the context of what happened to them in the game, but it falls extremely flat because that’s not really the story that was being told/not how stories really work, and if that mattered to you probably don’t hide it behind playing the game in a particular way. Odd!

Support Every Game I’ve Finished on ko-fi! You can pick up a digital copy of exp. 2600, a zine featuring all-exclusive writing at my shop, or join as a supporter at just $1 a month and get articles like this a week early.

[thebittercorvus]

Amelia didn't thought much of it, when professor Sprouts asked the class to present an essay on their preferred mythological creature. She did found it extremely funny-- and a bit convenient as well, since her roommate had recently took a liking to everything vampire related and she's been learning through osmosis basically. Last month it was everything about frogs. And at the beginning of the year they got really serious about bread.

Sometimes she can see glimpses of what seems to be a normal person under the unhinged, uncontrolled chaos that they are. One day they locked themselves inside the closet to, quote, fight the moon. But they pay in time and keep things in the common spaces neat. So, they're alright.

And she got full points for the assignment too, which was sort of rare for professor Sprouts, who despite her nice appearance and grandma-core cardigans, gave everyone the hardest time in her class. It was such a big deal for her, she finally treated herself for a cookie from that shop across the street whose owner, a tall goth that goes by the name of Mephisto, she's convinced stepped straight out of a book by Mary Shelley.

And, y'know how sometimes you'd laugh at the characters of a horror story for doing all of the things that might get them haunted and killed? Some people would argue, it's unfair to expect characters to be aware they're inside a story, let alone its genre as well.

If you were to apply that idea in her life, she'd say, for sure, she's the main character living inside one of those pretentious movies in which nothing ever happens.

Apparently she missed the writing on the walls.

"So, let me get this straight," she says, rubbing her temple and feeling a headache that's just about to begin. "You're a vampire hunter who got cursed during the Witch Trials of Salem and has been reborn every since," she says, pointing at none other than Mephisto, sitting rather uncomfortably for a person their height, in the tiny ass couch that's on the apartment she shares with her lunatic-- read with endearment-- roommate.

"Certainly so," they reply because of fucking course that someone that calls themselves Mephisto would speak like that.

"And you," she then points at her professor, miss freaking Daisy Sprouts, who asked for the essay to begin with, has like four hundred art doctorates and restores paintings professionally, wears knitted cardigans in pastel colors, raises fucking bees, still dabs unironically, can use the word "sussy" in a sentence correctly and knows the motherfucking Bee Movie script to heart. "You. Are a vampire. Since the times of fucking Cleopatra?!"

And she smiles, like she just revealed she bought another vintage sweater. "Time flies am I right? Also, Mel, do you happen to have a dog in here? It sort of reeks of dog, don't you think Mephisto? It hit me as soon as I-"

Amelia missed the writing on the walls. All of the walls, all of the writings, the entire room sorta, she probably didn't realize this morning when she woke up that she would end up being involved in whatever nonsense this is now.

Well in her defense, she never got the script. How was she supposed to know.

"I helped you kill a cockroach yesterday!" She yells, interrupting the vampire's ramblings about a dog that doesn't exist, at least not inside the flat.

"And I thanked you! Those things are about as terrifying as their search history, y'know?" she says, pointing at the goth in the room. Mephisto simply frowns, while she smiles.

Also they're married. Because of course they are.

And she's officially inside a romcom. Or a fanfiction. Or an indie film, a really weird one.

"So, listen, we're here 'cause your essay got like. Extremely specific at certain points and like," professor Sprouts pointed at herself, and then her spouse. "Really we just wanna know how you stumbled upon your sources. 'Cause it's borderline stalkey y'know, no offense."

"None taken...?" she says, getting progressively more confused, and stressed. Yep there's the headache. "Right. So. You might laugh."

"I'm not known for having a great sense of humor," says Mephisto in the most deadpan expression mankind has ever witnessed.

"Right, they're super lame," Sprouts pipes in.

Whatever. This is not even the weirdest thing that will be said in this conversation, I'm sure, she thinks. "So, my roommate, they go by Aries alright, so, they've been like really into vampire stuff as of lately and like, I just kinda listen to them while I do my homework? I'm not much of a conversationalist myself and like, I think they love the sound of their own voice," she explains, and that has to be the longest sentence she's stringed in the entire month. "Anyways, they sent me some links and since your assignment came up, I just uh... Used that. So. Pure dumb luck."

The two of them blink. As in. In unison.

She's convinced, she'd pretty much rather listening to her uncles speak about how snowflakes doomed the world, instead of having to ever explain this exchange to anybody. Ever.

"So, you mean to tell me you're not part of a secret organization whose entire purpose is to tailgate us," says professor Sprouts, after a beat of uncomfortable silence.

And she could swear. Mephisto smirks. Sorta.

"Uh, no." As if she'd ever have time between her classes and her job and being in touch with her mom and taking care of a dying cacti in order to begin a whole-ass conspiration about her university teacher and the owner of the coffee shop. Who is she, Yagami fucking Light. No, all her brainpower is already being used. She's not sure there's enough left of it for this conversation. She might pass out for an entire day after this. "I literally just. Followed some blog. Listen I didn't want to disappoint you but I didn't take the assignment that seriously professor Sprouts, I just needed the extra credits. I bullshited my way to college, of course I'm going to bullshit my way out of an essay."

"You mean to tell me you girlbo--"

"Please don't," she whispers weakly. And professor Sprouts decides to leave it at that but she can see how proud she is of making her lose her patience. And for once, Mephisto sort of looks like they're sorry about all of this.

Although it all disappears once she blinks. So maybe it was just the sleep deprivation.

"I can just like, give you the blog I found most of this in and like, you try and contact the writer? I mean they were the ones who put together the entire thing anyways, if it seems stalkey like. Ask them. Please leave." Oops she wasn't supposed to say the last part out loud.

"Alright, alright! I can read between the lines, jeez, I just wanted to know how could anybody possibly keep such an exact archive of these things," she says, getting up and fixing her dress. Mephisto gets up as well and their head almost hits the ceiling. "Seriously, it's almost as if they were following ever since-- Hey now hold on a goddamn minute."

And, as if struck with a wave of inspiration, professor Sprouts looks at Mephisto, calculating. They look away in turn.

Great. And they were about to leave too.

"Honey, have you been archiving our entire lives for centuries without telling me?" She asks, crossing her arms across her chest.

They at the very least have the decency to look mildly embarrassed about it.

"... I was planning to make it an anniversary gift," they explain quietly. "Certainly I was not expecting to see the work of my life be part of an essay."

"Listen pal, I'm sorry, really, but like if you put it out in the internet where everyone can access it, eventually a student with like thirty minutes of sleep time and six energy drinks in their system will tear it apart for an essay," she explains, unblinking and uncaring. Nobody is going to return to her the time she just spent clearing this up.

Oh well. At least professor Sprouts looks deeply touched about it. Good for her. Or sorry that it happened. Whatever.

"Oh, my moonlight-!"

"Out! Please! I have to work in like three hours!" She declares firmly, once it looks like the eternal couple will begin to make heart eyes at each other in the middle of the living-room. Hard pass.

Eventually they leave, looking so enamored with each other that she might just have to check the levels of sugar in her body after this.

But first, she's going to finally take a hard earned nap and--

"Uh, Amelia? Could I bother you?" Jesus goddamn Christ in his holy fucking cross! Can't a woman get peace and quiet?!

"Aries, I'm really tired right now," she says instead, after considering murdering everyone in the building for three whole seconds. "Whatever it is, it can wait."

"... No, it really can't," they insist, and walks across the room until they're right in front of her. Great. "This is something you must know. I'm aware you see me only as a roommate, but I must confess, that I see you as a friend, and as such, I cannot hide this secret from you any longer."

Great, just what I needed. Now they're going to say that they've got a crush on me or something and I'll have to reject them and it's going to be a nightmare and--

"Amelia, I'm actually a werewolf."

...

Yeah it's going to be one of those long, long days.

You were happy with getting an A+ on your “vampire myths” essay, with a comment about how you did excellent research, but you thought that was the end of it. A few days later, though, you open your door to find a vampire and a vampire hunter on your porch.

[lgcxminji]

lee minji ~ character update

fabula’s minji takes fans on a tour through the inner workings of her mind... aka her cell phone

what are the top 5 most used apps on your phone?

i use spotify the most, since i use that to listen to music. i find that it’s the easiest app to use to find the music i want to listen to! but please stream our songs on every app! next, i use kakao talk for texting, group chats, etc. since it connects to most of my korean social media, it’s always important to have. next is snow. i just like playing with the funny animal filters and stuff a lot! then, i do use tiktok sometimes when i have extra time between rehearsals or to scroll before going to bed. finally, i use coupang to order snacks and ramen to the dorm! 

what is the most random note in the notes app?

this sounds very strange, but i have the bee movie script saved to my notes app. it was a bit of a joke when i was in high school in america and a friend had air dropped me it during class. i just never ended up deleting it! so it’s been sitting there for the past four years. i really can’t believe it’s been that long. the only time i’ve actually used it is once when i was watching the actual bee movie so i could keep up even if i left the room to get a snack or use the restroom!

what was the last message or call you’ve received and who was is from?

this morning, my mom called me. she asked me a bit about my recent schedules and what i had coming up. so i told her about all the events going on, like our legacy family concerts and the kiss goodbye showcase! she hasn’t been able to attend any of the fabula events yet, so hopefully, she’ll be able to come to one of the concerts or the showcase coming up. unfortunately, i don’t think my sister or my dad will be able to come this time, but i’m hoping they’ll be able to sometime soon! fingers crossed that everything will work out in the end. 

what were the last 5 songs that you’ve listened to?

i listen to a lot of songs, so don’t worry if i’m missing one of your favorites! but the first ones i listened to this morning were how you like that by fabula and illusion by fabula. i was practicing the choreography in the dorms this morning, so i was listening to the recordings. next, i listened to my sea by iu because it’s a very calming song and it helps me to feel relaxed in the morning before going to the company. a few hours later, during my lunch break, i listened to jikjin and same same different from future dreams season 5! i’ve been watching the episodes when i can and the songs are just so good! 

what were the 5 most recent online searches?

my first search was for a toaster oven with a digital screen. i saw it on a tiktok video, and since i burn my bagels and toast a lot, i thought i would see if i could buy one. it ended up being very expensive, though, so i guess i’ll just have to keep toasting the old-fashioned way. the next thing i looked up was flights from washington dc to incheon, since my mother was asking. she said she may have the chance to come to the family concert this year! next, i searched up “new pokemon game release date.” i actually really love pokemon so i’m looking forward to the new game that’s coming out soon. the new starter pokemon are so cute! finally, i searched up “fabula” and “fabula minji.” i was interested in what people were saying about the recent comeback announcements, teasers, and family concerts. and besides, i think everyone has looked themselves up online at least once before!

what are your contact names for all of the group members?

2nd mother 💙 (eunhye)

jinnie 💜 (yejin)

rinrin 💛 (arin)

4월 ❤️ (hayoung)

[moonnightyoongi]

yours | mark

love me like im never gonna leave, love me like im yours

word count: 2k

genre: angst (mainly), fluff, swearing (tehe)

a/n: just can’t stop thinkin of mark

based off the song yours | alina baraz

It had happened more than once, in fact you were definitely somewhere in the double digits but you couldn’t stop. Everything about him was intoxicating, the way he looked at you and the way he smiled at you, the smirk he had on his face when he would open the door to you - it was cocky and even though you hated it nothing could make you turn around and go back home. His voice was smooth and no matter what you asked him he never stuttered, there was a simple answer to everything. 

Except one question.

“What is this?”

You had asked him one night and you swear every single bit of colour he had in his body drained and he was left with his mouth open, small stutters coming out. You looked at him and realised what it was and what it always would be… sex. There was no hope of anything progressing past it so you simply shut your feelings off and continued to fuck him.

“Are you leaving?” He asks as you rolled out of the bed.

“Of course,” you reply searching for your dress, “I gotta get back to the wedding.”

“You already left, why do you need to go back?”

“Because my sister is so drunk she won’t remember giving me the go ahead to leave. Besides I have four missed calls from my mum and I don’t think using the excuse that I’m looking at her and waving is going to work at 1am.”

“Just stay here.”

“Why would I do that? I got a room in a 5 star hotel and a massage booked in the morning,” you frown.

“I want you to stay,” he says.

“Well I want a 5 star hotel room and a massage,” you fire back. His smile falls for a second before he looks out the window.

“Can I come with you?” He asks.

“I specifically remember you saying you never want to meet a family member or be my date to my sisters wedding,” you reply.

“I don’t, I wanna have sex in a 5 star hotel room,” he smirks. You look at him and roll your eyes, he was always so good at getting what he wanted out of you, you would move heaven and earth for him if he asked.

“Get dressed,” you sigh.

“Shall I put on my best trench coat?” He jokes.

“It’s cold, you won’t have a penis left if you do.”

He falls silent and looks at you, blinking harshly, “You’re so crude sometimes.”

“Oh sorry, do you not like hearing about how your penis will shrivel up from the cold temperature?”

He laughs, “Sweatpants it is.””

“Jeans, it’s a 5 star hotel Mark. You can’t stroll in wearing sweatpants.”

“Oh, its the brush your hair before going down to breakfast kinda vibe?” He asks.

“Brush your teeth too,” you reply.

“Can’t have orange juice then.”

“It’s the price you pay to not be judged by Gary, 55, on a business trip.”

“Where do you get these names from?” He asks laughing and throwing on a clean t-shirt.

“They just come to me,” you reply, “Zip up my dress.”

“It’s a very pretty dress,” he says walking over to you, “Floor length gowns suit you.”

“I’m just glad she let me get a navy dress and not that God awful pink dress,” you tell him. You shudder at the thought of the dress, it was a bright pink that made your eyes sore, even the thought of it irritated your eyes again. Of course, it nearly was the dress you had to wear because the meter of the groom thought you looked absolutely delightful ‘like a strawberry cheesecake’. Last time you checked you weren’t a fucking dessert. 

Mark’s hand touched the bottom of your back as you moved your hair out the way to avoid it getting caught in the zipper (again). His touch was soft, like he was afraid he would break you (or the zipper). Zipping it up slowly, he paused halfway through - letting out a sigh.

“Ah yes, do take your time Mark, there’s only a 55 year old woman waiting to chop my balls off,” you say. He lets out a laugh and you feel his breath on your shoulders causing you to shiver, even his light touch was enough to drive you mad. All you wanted was him to be yours.

“Done,” he says obviously coming out of his trance and finishing your zipper quickly.

“Let’s go,” you tell him, “Uber’s nearly here.”

<—>

She was like a dog to a bone, as soon as the Uber pulled up in front of the hotel she was rushing down the stairs ready to pounce on you. Until she saw Mark get out of the car with you.

“Who is this?” Your mum asks surprised.

“My friend Mark,” you reply with an awkward smile. She stares at him before putting her hand out for him to shake.

“Nice to meet you.”

“You too,” he smiles.

“Where the fuck have you been?” She snaps looking at you, clearly breaking out of her Mark trance.

“With Mark, he needed me,” you say. It was partly true, he had needed you - just a different kind of need.

“I had locked myself out,” he says, “My roommates are all out and not answering their phones.”

“We tried to get in through an open window but he nearly dropped me,” you lie.

“That’s so you, even when you’re not the one navigating you get lost.”

“What?” You ask confused.

“Who knows, I asked your father to get me vodka and he got me whiskey. It’s my nonsense drink,” she dismisses, “He’s useless, all men are. Your poor sister, her husband is the worst. He tripped over a table cloth today, how could he miss it? The floor is brown and the cloth was fucking white, not to mention there was also a table underneath it.”

“Go to bed mum,” you cut in.

“Is Mark staying with you?” She asks.

“Yes.”

“You know the rules.”

“I can’t leave the door of the room open, anyone could come in.”

“Leave the bathroom door open,” she says turning on her heel.

“Wh-,” Mark begins.

You shake your head and cut him off, “Don’t question it, she’ll start another conversation that’ll last another 10 minutes and I haven’t got it in me to de-code her.”

“Are you the same on whiskey?” Mark asks as you both walk up the steps of the hotel.

“Gin!” Your mother shouts, “Gin is her mumbling drink. On her birthday last year she started to recite the whole script from the film The Bee Movie. I don’t know know where she learnt it, we were always such Shrek people.”

“What is going on?” Mark asks, eyes raised.

“Don’t ask,” you reply, “Where’s your room mum? We’ll walk you.’

“Don’t be silly, there’s your father. FATHER!” She shouts, “Wait he’s not my father, MICK!”

“Who the fuck is Mick?” You ask her, “Dad! Take her, she’s driving me insane.”

You walk her over to him and he smiles weakly, “She’s been watching a lot of shows lately, Mick is one of the characters.”

“You hope,” you smile before walking back over to Mark, “Let’s get to the room quick, she might start reciting Shrek.”

“Donkey!” You hear her shout as you run up the staircase to the floor you were on.

“It’s begun,” you say looking at him. He laughs loudly as you walk down the hallway to the room you would be staying in. 

“Fancy,” he says kicking off his shoes and unbuttoning his jeans. He looked around intently while all you could do was stare at him, he looked beautiful even with his messy hair and tired eyes. Part of you was so glad he asked if he could come, you didn’t want to leave him - well, ever.

“What are you thinking about?” He asks snapping you out of your daydream.

“My mum,” you lie.

“She’s really funny.”

“Lucky for you she’s so drunk she won’t remember she met you tomorrow,” you say throwing the room key on the desk.

“I don’t mind if she does,” he says walking into the room.

You smile awkwardly once more and lean against the desk, unsure of what move to make. You normally knew what you were going to do when you saw Mark - but this felt like alien territory. Would you lie next to him? Turn the TV on and watch shitty morning television shows? Or would you simply sleep 2 feet apart?

“Come here,” Mark says putting his hands out for you to take.

“What do you want?” You ask accepting them and letting him pull you towards him.

“What are you really thinking?”

“About what to do.”

“We could just relax and watch TV, order some room service?”

“That sounds really nice,” you smile.

<—>

Less than hour later you both sat on the bed eating ribs and watching some stupid quiz show. Everyone answer you shouted was wrong of course, how did people know these things? How didn’t you know these things? 

Times like this felt nice, it was just you two doing normal things together. It wasn’t some quick hook up then ended with you leaving after it was done and feeling shit as you walked out the door, him not even batting an eyelid at you.

“How do people know these things?” Mark asks.

“That’s what I was thinking,” you reply throwing the rib bone on the plate and sighing, “I ate too much.”

“You don’t need to get back into the dress, you’ll be fine.”

“I’ll be bloated for my massage tomorrow.”

“She’ll deflate you,” he jokes.

“He’ll,” you correct.

“A male massage therapist, lucky you.”

“Hm, he’ll apply more pressure,” you say lying down and rubbing your eyes.

“Can I admit something to you?” He asks.

“You always wanted to be a massage therapist?” You joke.

“No,” he laughs moving to lie down next to you, “I really enjoy your company.”

“I bet you do.”

“No, I mean your company. Like that night we played games and the winner got oral,” he says, “I like doing those things with you.”

“Cause’ you always win and get oral,” you tell him. 

He looks at you seriously before looking down, “Yeah, because I always win.”

You almost didn’t believe him till the smirk reappeared on his face seconds later, “Wanna play a game?”

“Goodnight Mark,” you groan turning over.

“Goodnight Y/N,” he whispers.

You never wanted it to be morning. You wanted to stay in this moment with him. You wanted to feel his body heat next to you forever, you wanted to stay up late doing stupid mundane things with him.

You wanted him to be yours.

masterlist

[crustaceousfaggot]

As stated above, as a writer it is your responsibility to accurately tag your fics. Not just to maximize engagement and tick as many boxes as possible, but to tag material that people may want to avoid. Tag accurately, use your own discretion and try to tag what you think people may want to seek out or avoid.

However, try not to over-tag. This isn't a rule or anything, just etiquette. Your 2k drabble doesn't need 60 tags, and many people will end up just scrolling past it.

DRABBLE/FIC COLLECTIONS. I see this often. If you have 40 short stories, all unrelated and for different fandoms or pairings, it can be tempting just slap them in one giant work. Please don't. You'll end up with a massive work which will clog up the filters. (if I search for a fic that is 10k+ words long and features the Character A/Character B ship and the Angst tag, your work will come up, even though Character A and Character B only have a 500 word chapter and the Angst tag is for an unrelated story) People who don't want to read about most of your fandoms are gonna have the fic show up in their search, and people who would otherwise want to read your story are going to skip it because they don't want to wade through 39 other chapters to find it. Just post your stories as individual works with their own tags. You can make them part of a series if you want, but please don't put them all in one fic.

Similar to the point about not posting essays or theories. This goes for pretty much anything that isn't fiction or fanart. Don't post prompt lists or requests for prompts, don't post shitposts or falsely tagged bait posts (like the entire script of Bee Movie titled and tagged as a fic, or what have you), no "social experiments"

In the same vein, don't post chapters which just say "new chapter update soon!". Nobody likes that.

A very basic run down of the rating system:

G - Holding hands, gentle kisses, no discussion of sex and no detailed violence. Something you'd be comfortable showing a child (Think Disney)

T - Slightly spicier interactions, making out, action scenes with some gore, maybe a couple non-explicit sex jokes. Something you'd see in a YA novel. (Think Hunger Games)

M - Discussion of sex, non-graphic/vague depictions of sex, fade-to-black sex scenes (some people say this is T but it's a bit of a blurry line). Graphic violence and mature themes. Something you'd see on an HBO show (think Game Of Thrones)

E - Fully described sex scenes, or extremely graphic and visceral gore. (Think PornHub)

If you aren't sure whether something belongs in M or E, better safe than sorry and go with E

Fanart is not only allowed, but is encouraged! Either as part of a fic or on it's own, it doesn't matter. Just make sure it's tagged properly :)

As people have said in the notes - DO NOT TRY TO MONETIZE YOUR FIC IN ANY WAY. Even putting a Ko-Fi, PayPal, or Patreon link in the notes is actively endangering the precarious legal balance that the OTW had managed to obtain. Don't do it.

Please don't delete and repost a work just because it's performing "poorly".

Authors can see what you write in public bookmarks! Don't be cruel.

And most importantly of all:

Don't like, don't read.

AO3 Etiquette

It would seem a whole new kind of AO3 reader/writer is emerging and it is becoming clear not everyone quite understands how the website community works. Here is some basic guidance on how most people expect you to go about using AO3 to keep this a fun community archive that funtions correctly:

Kudos is for when the story was interesting enough to make you finish reading. If it sucked or was badly written, you probably left. If you finished - you kudos.

If you liked it, you should comment. It can be long and detailed or a literal keysmash. Writers don't care, we just love comments.

No critisism unless the author has specifically asked or agreed to hear it. Even constructive critisism is a no-no unless an author note tells you it's okay. Many people write as a fun hobby or a way to cope with, among other things, insecurity. Don't ruin that for them.

Do not comment to ask the author to write/update something else. It's tacky and off-putting and will probably have the opposite effect than the one you want.

There is no algorithm, it's an archive. Use the search and filter function to add/remove the pairings/characters/tropes etc. you want to read about and it will find you the fics that fit the bill.

For this to work, writers must tag and rate stories. This avoids readers finding the wrong things and missing the stuff they want. I don't care how cringy that trope is in your eyes - it gets tagged.

Character A/Character B means a ROMANTIC or SEXUAL relationship of some kind. Character A&Character B is PLANTONIC, like friendship or family.

Nothing is banned. This is an implicit rule because banning one thing is a slipperly slope to banning another and another, until nothing is allowed anymore. Do not expect anyone to censor for you. Because of the tags system, you are responsible for your own reading experience.

People can create new chapters and sequels/fic series any time after they "complete" a story. So it's considered perfectly normal to subscribe, even to a finished story. You can even subscribe to the author instead just to cover your bases.

Do not repost stories or change the publishing date without an extremely good reason (like a complete top to bottom rewrite). It's an archive, not social media. No one cares what's the most recent, only what fits their tag needs.

Avoid deleting a story you wrote if you hate it - orphan it so others can still enjoy it, without it being connected to you anymore.

This is a creative fanfiction archive. No essays on your insights or theories please. There are other places for that.

I KNOW there's plenty more I missed but I'm trying to cover most of the basics that people seem to be struggling with.

I invite anyone to add to this, but please explain, don't berate.

[melobee]

30 Questions

Rule: answer 30 questions and tag 20 blogs you want to get to know better

G’day mates! Welcome to my 30 questions post! This one tagged me to do this. So yeah blame her for filling up your dashboard....jk love you Laura 💜

Question 1: Name/Nickname

Melissa is my full name but my nickname I’ve gone by since I was like 14 is ‘Melo’ (pronounced ‘Me-low’. So many people pronounce it as ‘Mello’ lmao). Mel is also a common nickname I get at work and such.

Question 2: Gender

Female She/Her

Question 3: Star sign

Ok I’m a nerd for Star signs so I’ll give a more detailed answer than necessary

Virgo ♍️ || 150-180 degree || The element associated with Virgo is Earth || The type of Earth I am is mutable || The planet associated with Virgo is Mercury || I’m most romantically compatible with a Taurus, Capricorn and Scorpio || I’m least romantically compatable with a Gemini, Aquarius and Sagittarius || My opposite star sign is Pisces || Traits of Virgos, they are Kind, Reliable, Patient, Loyal, Idealistic, Overthinking, Shy, Critical and sometimes Stubborn

Obviously this isn’t all Virgos so take this with a grain of salt but yeah just a little in-depth analysis.

Question 4: Height

168cm | 5’6 feet

Question 5: Time

My Timezone is AEDT. Right now as I’m posting this it’s 10PM 23rd December 2020

Question 6: Birthday

31st August 1999

Question 7: Favorite bands

Imagine Dragons, OneRepublic, Major Lazor, Fall Out Boy, X Ambassadors, Galantis, The Chainsmokers, The Script and Coldplay

Question 8: Favorite Solo Artists

Ellie Goulding, Ariana Grande, Khalid, Logic, Nicki Minaj, Sia, Marshmello, David Guetta, Lauv, Eminem, Dj Snake, Kendrick Lamar, Post Malone

Question 9: Current song stuck in my head

Hmmmm atm it’s definitely ‘fire meets gasoline’ by sia cause our boi Pedro is in the music video 👀

Question 10: Last Movie watched

The Santa Clause Trilogy lmao

Question 11: Last show

The Mandalorian to absolutely no ones surprise

Question 12: When did I create this blog

Oh jeez idek sometime in 2018 I think. I only really started to blog since watching S2 of the Mandalorian though. Needed to vent somehow lmao

Question 13: When Do I post

Same reason as above when I need to vent or when I feel strongly about something and feel confident enough to vocalise it which is very rare.

Question 14: Last Google

Ok for this I’m going to bend it a bit cause my recent searches is to do with Christmas gift buying and that’s boring. So I’m going to go with ‘Triple Frontier’. Cause a certain someone is in this movie 👀

Question 15: Other blogs

Nope this is my one and only!

Question 16: Do I get asks

Oh god no I’m not that cool lolllll

Question 17: Why I chose my url

It’s a combination of my nickname ‘Melo’ and my last name ‘Beesley’.

Question 18: Following Count

36

Question 19: Follower Count

43

Question 20: Average hours of sleep

Sleep? Wtf is sleep? I do not know of this sleep. As an insomniac and a night owl (I know double whammy) I don’t get much sleep at all maybe 5-6 hours if I’m lucky. My sleep is very broken, so I usually wake up like 2-3 times during the night. I try to go to bed at 11 and I usually wake up at 7 which I absolutely hate. I’m NOT a morning person at all. It’s worse cause it’s daylight savings rn so the sun is up at 5am. I swear I don’t know how I function sometimes.

Question 21: Lucky number

I don’t really have one???? I guess if I had to pick it would be.....54! thank you random number generator

Question 22: Instruments

Not really sure what this is referring to. If it’s referring to instruments I’ve played then the only one I can say is I played to recorder when I was like 7 and it was forced by my teacher so it doesn’t really count.

If it’s referring to my favourite instrument then probably an acoustic guitar. I love me some acoustic covers. Plus there’s so much variety with this instrument it can be both upbeat and happy or really slow and somber. It’s all around a just a great instrument.

Question 23: What I’m wearing

It’s night and it’s summer so just some shorts and a singlet. Anything more and I’ll die from drowning my own sweat.

Question 24: Dream Job

My dream job is to be a voice actor. Key word dream. My realistic dream job however is to become a pathologist.

Question 25: Dream Trip

Ohhhhhh boy I have so many places I wanna go to! My first priority would be the UK (England and Ireland specifically). Nearly all of my heritage is from there so I think it would be really cool to go back to my roots amd explore the culture my family is from.

Second on my list is America not too sure about all the states I want to go to but I know for a fact that California, Nevada, Wyoming, Montana, Texas (cause of N.A.S.A) and New York is a must!

Third is literally any Spanish speaking country whether it be Spain, Mexico, Colombia or Chile. Just anywhere that Spanish is the primary language.

Paris and Italy would be a solid fourth

Norway, Sweden and Finland would be fifth

Japan is 6th

I’m not really interested in visiting Africa, Indonesia the Middle East or Asia (except for Japan) and I wasn’t interested in South America either until recently.

Question 26: Favorite Food

I’m a sucker for pasta and Italian food! Ravioli in particular. It’s been my favourite since I was little. Chocolate is another big one. Any chocolate with caramel in it I will swipe from you.

I can’t do spicy foods I’m so intolerant to it like even the mild stuff makes my face go red and my tongue go numb it’s ridiculous.

Question 27: Nationality

Australian

My ancestry however is British/Irish/Ashkenazi Jewish. 75% Irish, 18% British, and 7% Jewish with less than 1% French and German.

Question 28: Favorite Songs

I get too personally invested in my music SMH

1800-273-8255 | Logic, Alessia Cara and Khaild

First Time | Kygo, Ellie Goulding

Treat You Better | RÜFÜS DU SOL

All the stars | Kendrick Lamar, SZA

Runaway | Galantis

breathin | Ariana Grande

Ocean Drive | Duke Dumont

Powerful | Major Lazor

lovely | Billie Eilish, Khalid

Let you down | NF

Elastic Heart, Fire meets gasoline, Big girls cry amd chandelier | Sia

Capsize | FRENSHIP, Emily Warren

Question 29: Last Book

Like physical book??? Oh lord I legit have no clue. I think the last time I read a physical book was in high school for English don’t ask what it was cause I have no idea lollll

Question 30: Top 3 Fictional Universes I want to live in

Miraculous, Star Wars, Assassins Creed

Annnnnnnd that’s it I’m done I guess! As for the 20 people I’m supposed to tag that’s just too high of a number there’s no way I have that many friends 😂. So I’ll only tag a few and if you don’t want to do this, just ignore 💜 See ya later!

@littlemisspascal @razordest @thisisthe-wayson

[adore-holland]

Under Renovation |T.H.| - Chapter 1

Pairing: Tom Holland x Celeb!Reader

Warning: Swearing? Angst.. Mentions of vomit

Word Count: 2162

Disclaimer!: This was written before we found out Tom has a girlfriend. Any similarities are purely coincidental.

A/N: Hope you enjoy! This was mostly just setup, trust me you’re gonna get some Tom stuff soon enough ;)

Teaser

Chapter 1:

The ceiling above you seems to move in new patterns every second. Dark circles and stripes race across the the white paint in the pitch black room. You can make out the sounds of loud music and laughing people out on the streets of London. It’s Friday night, and you’re laying at home, in your bed, following stupid patterns on your ceiling - What has your life come to?

With a groan, you run a sweaty hand down your face. You squeeze your eyes shut, hoping for the weird patterns to go away. No luck - the insides of your eyelids take over for your ceiling. If you could just tune out, disappear for a little bit.. get some sleep. As if on queue, you let out a yawn. 

It’s the seventh night in a row, that you haven’t been able to fall asleep until the early hours of the morning, and your body is suffering from it. Large dark bags under your eyes, slumped shoulders and an almost complete loss of appetite. 

You desperately turn on your side, pulling a pillow over your head, hoping to just get some peace and quiet. You squeeze your eyes shut, welcoming sleep like an old friend. Except, sleep seems to be mad at you. Because the quiet only fills up with memories of cheerful laughs, and whispered “I love you”’s. Something in your stomach tightens at the sound of his voice. You always thought his voice was perfect. Smooth like honey, dripping in the love you thought he held for you. 

In all honesty, you had never told him how much you adored his voice. Well, he knew you loved it - and that the sound of his voice was enough to calm you down when the world was too overwhelming. What he didn’t know though, was just in what ways you loved it. 

No! No. You will not allow yourself to remember it… him. So you make a conscious decision to avoid any thought of the butterflies that went wild whenever he leaned in to whisper in your ear; or the way your heart would pick up speed for just a second whenever he said your name in whatever accent he felt like in that moment. 

Fuck.

With whatever strength you have left in your exhausted body, you throw the pillow off of you, welcoming the loud sounds of London. You turn around to lay on your stomach, listening intently to the sounds of the partygoers, chasing away his voice. There’s a group, nearing your apartment complex down below. Your condo is high up, but the deep concentration allows you to hear snippets of the conversation. 

“We should tell them…” The deep voice says with a concerned tone. You only hear the girl giggle as a reply. A conversation, so much like the ones you and Tom had so long ago. When you first got together, 3 years ago, you couldn’t figure out whether or not to announce to the world that you were a thing. Most nights discussing it were spent drunk, staring lovingly into each others eyes, forgetting the world, forgetting who there even was to tell. The two of you, together, were all that mattered in those moments.

Again! You want to scream out in frustration, but your throat is already sore from crying. You turn back around and quickly sit up. Your throat is tightening quickly, itching more and more every second. A silent yelp escapes you as you get up. Tears sting behind your eyes as you hurriedly make your way toward the bathroom. You make it to the toilet just in time, bile rises up your throat, and you throw up - pure stomach acid - you haven’t eaten enough lately to throw anything of substance up. 

:)-(:

An incessant noise wakes you up. Your head is pounding, and as you slowly blink your eyes open you realise why your back hurts so much. You’re sat next to your toilet, leaning against the tile wall. Your legs are sleeping, folded in weird angles beneath you. You sigh deeply, leaning your head back against the wall and closing your eyes for a second. The noise returns and you realize it’s your phone ringing. Slowly untangling your sore limbs you fight to get up, and walk back into your bedroom. You take it one step at a time, the pounding in your head worsening with every sudden jolt up through your body. 

“It’s y/n,” you mumble into your phone, rubbing your temple with the other hand, fruitlessly hoping to lessen the pain. 

“Hey! Hi! You’re up.” It’s Matt, your agent. “You remember that movie you turned down a few weeks ago?” You barely get to reply before he continues. “Well, exciting news, they are coming back to you with the part. They truly believe you’re the perfect fit.”

“Matt… I don’t think I’m up for a movie right now.” You eyes glance to the side. You still need to remove the picture of you and Tom on your first christmas together from your nightstand. You squeeze your eyes shut, ignoring the pain it brings and the tears that well up.

“Honey.. I know you’re in a lot of pain right now, so I’m not gonna force you to say yes to anything. I’m just telling you that I believe this movie is a good idea for you. How about we go out for lunch a little later? Talk it over, you read some of the script and then you can decide?” There’s so much concern and care in his words, that you almost want to vomit at the sound. When did you become so fragile, that even Matt’s extreme tenderness brings you to tears?

You really don’t feel like lunch, but you know you need to get out of the house. And maybe having someone watching you eat will help you actually… eat something. 

“Yeah. That sounds good.” Despite the complete lack of enthusiasm in your voice, Matt’s mood picks up all the same.

“Great! I’ll meet you at Louis’ Diner at 1 then?”

“No!” You startle yourself at your sudden outburst, but continue all the same. “Ehm… Sorry. Not Louis’ please. I’ll meet you at Little Bay.”

 :)-(:

Despite your less than excellent mood, the weather cheers you up a bit. It’s warm; even for late spring. Yourself and Matt are sat outside, at a small table under a cute red parasol. Bees hum as they busy themselves with the flowers around you. It almost feels like the week you spent hiding in your apartment made you forget the peace people and life brings you.

“So… The movie is a musical about a dancer? I haven’t danced in ages.” 3 years to be exact. Your career picked up around the same time you started dating Tom, whose career also seemed to be on the up and up, and you just didn’t have time to continue dancing that intensively anymore. You loved it though - You danced before you could run, and your heart leaped at the excuse to get back to your roots.

“See, that’s where you’re perfect for the part! Because you CAN dance! But just like Lia Morrison in this story, something is stopping you. Due to a motorcycle accident with her fiancé, she broke her left leg and hip.” Matt smiles at you, bald head shining in the sunlight. His grey top clings to his muscular torso, and his dark arms work furiously in large movements, as if whatever signs he’s making with his hands will help you understand what he’s saying. You feel a small smile tug at your lips at the sight of him. Your heart jumps slightly at the feeling of a smile after so long.. until you remember the last time your heart jumped like that.. the last time you smiled.

“Yeah, I got that part. But it’s a love story?” The summary he gave wasn’t very useful, still you feel dumb asking questions you know he already gave you the answers to.  But as much as you hate to admit it, the movie is starting to intrigue you. You had been quick to deny the part the last time Matt brought it to you. Two reasons especially made you turn it down.

1: Shooting starts in Los Angeles a few days before Tom gets off from shooting, so you wouldn’t get to spend any time with him.

2: You didn’t feel like doing a sex scene when you knew you would be attending the premiere, and watching it with Tom.

-Neither of those reasons are really a problem anymore.

“Yes! It is. So, the fiancé doesn’t get hurt. But he breaks up with Lia because she lets her injury consume her. She basically loses the will to fight for what she loves. She suddenly doesn’t wanna recover so she can dance again. She basically ends up catching herself ruining her own life, and then falls in love with her physical therapist.”

Something about the character, Lia, draws you in. You get the position she finds herself in, the devastation of losing something you thought you never could - brown eyes flash through your mind, a wide smile, hurried kisses. No.

You let out a small sigh, running a hand through your lose hair, searching Matt’s face for… something. “You really think I can do this?”

“Are you kidding me? Of course you can.” His smile is almost as wide as his face, and he blinks rapidly.

Old trick Matt. Instead of the usual laugh he used to lure out of you with said trick, you only huff out a small breath of air, and his smile drops immediately. His big hands find yours on the table. He holds your hands softly in his, slowly, tenderly rubbing his thumbs over the back of your hands. The feeling is comforting, familiar, and it makes your eyes sting with tears.

“Y/n.. I know what this part is asking of you is.. a lot. If you really can’t do it, no one will force you too.” His honey golden eyes hold so much care in them, that you feel your stomach coil at the sight. If only someone else were giving you that look. “But this pain.. it won’t last forever. The earth keeps rotating, and I just wanna make sure that you turn with it. This movie.. I know it brings back certain - memories -, but it isn’t about him. It feels like it is, I get that. But it’s about Lia getting more bent than ever before, but never breaking - And it’s about you, y/n, it’s about you, and the strength you and Lia share.”

Your head is spinning, everything he’s saying hits you like a stack of bricks. Not broken, but bent - but different all the same. You never subscribed to the idea of pulling your act together; the very idea would mean that you were responsible for spilling everywhere. You’re not. That doesn’t mean it isn’t still messy, or that it doesn’t drain you to clean up after someone else; even if the mess you. 

Daniel and yours conversation pop up in your head. Strength comes from tearing the muscles, letting them heal, over and over again. This role.. this movie, you already know it’s gonna tear you apart, but you need it to.

“Yeah,” you manage to croak out your answer, and Matt squeezes your suddenly freezing hands, “Yeah, I wanna do it.” The tears in your eyes disappear as you say it. You draw in a deep breath, filling your lungs, and your head clears as a result. You can do this, it’s not a matter of convincing yourself. You can do this, not doubt about it. Tom Holland took a lot from you, but he won’t take everything.

“Great, I’ll contact them right away then.” He squeezes your hands one last time before standing up, phone in hand, and walking a few steps away to call the casting director. To pass the time you pick up your own phone, scrolling through your twitter feed. Your notifications are insane, more than a thousand mentions. Your brows furrow as you start scrolling through some of them. You don’t read most of them.. Tom is tagged too, and you don’t feel like seeing your fans shipping you.

You scroll mindlessly through them, until you come across one with a photo attached. Clicking it, you almost drop your phone. Tom is very visibly on a date with someone. His hand is in her back pocket as they walk close together. They’re looking at each other, eyes shining, smiles bright.. Her blond hair glistens in the sunlight, and he looks so happy - smile showing off the creases around his mouth you always poked to make him smile when he was sad. You don’t recognize her, and in a way you’re glad because of it.

A week. He broke up with you a week ago. You finally know why.

[mintaii]

Hey💗 I recently stumbled upon your klance royalty piece on pinterest and I HAD to know who drew it so I reverse image searched and found the NY times article (LATE CONGRATS) and so I came onto here but I cant find it?? I can only see like 5 of your posts, is it meant to be like that or is my tumblr screwing with me :/ Anyway this is very long sorry byee

heyoooo!!

thank you 💖 !!!! and i didnt realize only 5 of my posts were showing up??? which is... strange?

but i actually sort of replaced the klance royalty piece w the bee movie script back when i was kind of annoyed at the vld fandom so idt it would have appeared anyways rip but i completely forgot that i did that LOL (so that post should technically be up on my blog but it’s only the... bee movie script. i’ll change it back now that i no longer feel any annoyance)

dw!! issok and i think my reply is even longer hahahaha

[letterboxd]

The Missing Linklater.

“Any time I’m on a set with Rick I feel very fortunate.” We talk to the writers behind Richard Linklater’s new missing-person feature film, Where’d You Go, Bernadette?

An adaptation of Maria Semple’s 2012 comedic novel about a reclusive architect who goes missing just before a family trip to Antarctica, Where’d You Go, Bernadette? stars Cate Blanchett in the title role. Bernadette’s daughter Bee (Emma Nelson) sets out on a quest to find her, with Bernadette’s husband Elgie (Billy Crudup). Laurence Fishburne, Judy Greer and Kristen Wiig also star.

Directed by American filmmaking icon (and co-founder of the Austin Film Society) Richard Linklater, the screenplay was co-written with his frequent collaborators (and married couple) Holly Gent Palmo and Vincent Palmo Jr. If their names are not familiar as scriptwriters, that’s because they usually work further behind the scenes for Linklater, and have been since 1993’s Dazed and Confused, when Holly was a production coordinator, and Vince a second second assistant director.

Vince became Linklater’s first AD for the films Bad News Bears, Fast Food Nation, A Scanner Darkly, Before Midnight, Boyhood, Last Flag Flying and Where’d You Go, Bernadette?. Holly co-produced Linklater’s Me and Orson Welles (2008), which she also wrote with Vince.

Reviewing Where’d You Go, Bernadette? on Letterboxd, Tom suggests that after a “generic” opening, the film “slowly starts to show its true colors as the character of Bernadette is unwrapped… it’s a story that is touching and even a bit inspiring for those who aspire to be their own artist in life.” J Oled agrees: “This could’ve been a Hallmark special, but because Linklater generally loves humanity, and is always experimenting, this film is quite watchable, it’s warm, relatable, and modest, and I wasn’t asking for much else.” Melissa, who has read the novel, offers: “If you’re a fan of the book… the movie is starkly different. But if you’re a fan of Linklater… you’re going to love it. Cate Blanchett may be the best actor of the decade.”

We spoke to Holly Gent Palmo and Vincent Palmo Jr. about their collaborative writing process with Linklater, mining their own relationship for inspiration, and making films for the social-media age.

Cate Blanchett as Bernadette and Emma Nelson as Bee.

How you were brought onto the project? Holly Gent Palmo: We have worked with Rick [Linklater] for many years. We first met on Dazed and Confused, where we were on the crew, and we’ve worked on many projects with him. He’s one of our close friends. He was brought onto the project and then we read the book and loved it so he brought us on. We started from scratch, it was all based on the novel.

What did you relate to in the book that made you feel you had the right perspective to take it on? HGP: This is a movie that for me personally is very relatable because it’s about a woman who has really lost herself in motherhood and as much as she loves that journey, she’s also really looking to rediscover her passion of her past creative impulses. I think that’s something that Rick, Vince, and I all can relate to, not only as parents, but also as people trying to do something creative in this world.

Was the book’s author Maria Semple involved at all? HGP: First of all, the novel is fantastic.

Vincent Palmo Jr: Love the book, love the book.

HGP: Maria knows so much about the filmmaking process and has that history herself that she knew that she wanted to hand it off to Rick. She talked to Cate and she talked to Rick but she did not take part in the writing.

Richard Linklater seems like a great writer to collaborate with. What is it about him that makes that operate so well? HGP: With Rick, the way we work is that we talk a lot in the beginning and clearly discuss every aspect of the book. This one was particularly challenging in that it was a modern epistolary novel told in emails and transcripts. It’s not a straight narrative and it’s not told in a linear fashion, necessarily. So we had to sort out the chronology of our story and what would be included.

Screenwriters Holly Gent Palmo and Vincent Palmo Jr. / Photo: Wilson Webb/Annapurna Pictures

It’s the way he works with actors and everyone. It’s a really respectful, really collaborative process where everybody gets to bring to the table their own personal point of view in their own lives. With Rick, we dove into the parts of the novel we liked best and what threads we were going to pick up and carry through.

VP: It was a pretty deep exploration of the novel, of all the different characters and situations. We talked through all that and came to an agreement between the three of us for what we felt said the themes best.

Vincent, you’re also Linklater’s first assistant director, which is an interesting combination of multi-tasking. On set, would you pitch in on the script-side? VP: No, on set as a first AD I’m more concerned about the day’s work and really having everything in place and ready to go so Rick just has to say “action” and “cut”. I don’t talk at all about the script. At that point we’re all dialed in anyway.

When Holly’s around they have their conferences and I’ll be arranging the next set up. I’ve done a lot of things with Rick. I did all twelve years of Boyhood. There’s a shorthand there that I’m intent and focused on each day’s shoot and what’s coming up the next day.

HGP: By the time Rick gets to set, he’s totally prepared and ready. He has his rehearsal process with his actors. Our process is over, he’s very sure of what he wants.

VP: You can’t over-prepare, but we’re very prepared.

HGP: Except maybe in a rare instance in having to negotiate some small change.

VP: Yeah, like in what the weather’s brought or something new at a location, things like that.

Boyhood and Before Midnight are both classics of their decade now. What were those sets like? VP: I’m so happy for Rick [that they’re highly regarded]. Boyhood just stretched on. I remember there were times where we were like, “is somebody in Eastern Europe doing the same thing and it’s going to come out before us?!” We really didn’t know.

To pick it up each year and shoot it on film when all that kind of change [to digital] was in the midst of us shooting… Any time I’m on a set with Rick I feel very fortunate. To see them received in the way they were, it’s really thrilling.

Emma Nelson and Billy Crudup in ‘Where’d You Go, Bernadette?’.

In what ways, if any, did you adapt your style to the talents of Cate Blanchett and the other cast members? HGP: We knew that Cate was interested from the moment that we began. We were always hoping to do justice to her great talent and thinking towards that. To me, there could be no-one better in that role. Cate brings so much to it.

It’s an inspiration to think that no matter what kind of nuanced emotion we write in a scene, she can carry it and do an incredible job. It gives a freedom of inspiration thinking that there’s a possibility that Cate Blanchett can be playing the part.

The book is largely renowned for the way it captures the nuances of Seattle. What types of research did you do for the characters’ occupations and their environments? HGP: Rick did a lot of interesting, in-depth research for Elgie’s technology role and the kind of things he was developing. He talked to a lot of people involved in Microsoft developing those sorts of things, to bring that in the most detailed and up-to-date way.

For architecture, Rick arranged some meetings with some really great architects to go and talk to them about the language they use. As far as Seattle goes, there’s no greater resource for that than the novel itself. Maria really knows that world and has so many funny and interesting outsider opinions about it that I felt it was the perfect way to learn about that.

What did you feel you could bring to the element of marriage when writing as a married couple? HGP: That’s interesting.

VP: That is interesting. Well, we’ve been married for 26 years.

HGP: I do think that all three of us brought in our past relationships and our current relationships to the process. I believe it’s a realistic portrayal of the quest to keep improving your life through self-discovery. It’s a unique story that you don’t really see a lot of.

That whole idea that you can’t ever really know anyone, but that doesn’t mean you can’t try—Rick really loved those words, they’re the opening words of the novel. It’s this idea that the other person is always somewhat unknowable, but you keep trying to get to know each other while you change through the years.

VP: The search continues! You find new things.

HGP: Nothing is more rewarding in life than those close relationships that last decades.

Richard Linklater, Emma Nelson, Cate Blanchett and Billy Crudup at a New York screening earlier this month. / Photo: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP

Do you think it’s difficult to write contemporary films for the social-media age? HGP: It’s fascinating when you see movies and there’s this before-and-after cell phones dividing line, because so many of the great films and their plots would have been so different if everyone was carrying a phone around.

I don’t know if it’s easier, but it is a change in your way of thinking as you realize everyone has a phone in their pocket. I think both [period and contemporary] are fun. Any kind of story or plot that you’re trying to figure out is a really fun and challenging puzzle. I notice in a lot of films they try and get rid of the phone in some way.

What was the film that got you into filmmaking and made you want to be a part of this industry? VP: Oh my gosh, wow. Jeez, that’s a really tough one.

HGP: There’s so many stages to it. There’s the ones you see when you’re a little kid that just blow you over. Those are so bound with light and emotion that you don’t even understand. I remember Apocalypse Now—that was something that blew my mind.

VP: It just kind of builds. I got a degree in journalism and then I ended up working in film so it’s hard to point to just one that really flipped the switch. I don’t know why, but I saw The Sound of Music a bunch of times when I was younger. Maybe it was just easier for my mom to take me and my four siblings out to see it.

‘Where’d You Go, Bernadette?’ is in select US cinemas now.

[iampikachuhearmeroar]

okay, y’all, i’ve gotta back on my tl;dr bullshit soapbox about something:

so, the other day, i was just mindlessly scrolling through my corporate & capitalist hellscape facebook™️ (i.e. LinkedIn) and came across this totally trite mostly bullshit meme that was shared by some corporate executive search man (whose name i decided to crop out bc eh):

so i obviously agree with the last three points on this list, bc god yes my life would’ve been a bit better if I didn’t get all my dialogue about mental health only from teen mags and horrible portrayals in teen tv shows (and also this hellsite). and hell yeah everyone, and I mean EVERYONE needs to learn that failure is okay many situations (like failing a class in uni or school) bc everyone fails at something sometimes. and dealing with failure is HARD. and time management is something that I’m pretty sure everyone lies to fuckin hell about on their resume, bc lots of people really suck at it, myself included. so yeah. that needs to be taught. and i also agree with the “how to manage your health” point. bc thats becoming ever more prevalent and important with career burn out etc.

but entrepreneurship? people management? conflict resolution? creativity? how to manage money? public speaking? like y’all. three of those ARE taught/learned in school, who the fuck wrote this meme? 

for anyone who actually paid attention in maths class, (which is probably very few people outside of the top performing classes), there WAS A WHOLE FUCKING UNIT that focuses on financial maths (in australia anyway). I ignored this unit as well as maths in general at school, bc I generally hated maths and was convinced that I was somehow never going to get a job. but i remember the gist of the overall topic and its subtopics. one subtopic teaches you how to calculate your wages in various contexts (overtime, double-time and a half, holiday payments, im pretty sure maternity leave pay was jammed in somewhere? idk if other countries would have double time & a 1/2 like australia though). another subtopic teaches you how to calculate interest on bank loans and credit rates on credit cards. a third subtopic teaches you how to calculate savings (obvs in terms of discounts in shops)....im sure there was a bit about budgeting in there somewhere? im pretty sure there were some questions were about tax payments somewhere as a subtopic enrichment exercise? but you get my gist. are these not money management skills? in some sense? like if i could find one of my old maths textbooks or old maths books i’d give an example of a question, to make my point stronger. but the problem, like i said before, is that a load of people (myself included) just zone out in maths in high school and stop trying with it. they forget what they’ve learnt, and just remember how much they hated algebra and how they’ll never use it again. maths was one hell of a fucking strong bitch, guys. but maybe i’m wrong.

creativity? excuse me? have people forgotten about art classes? drama classes? english classes? music classes? need i go on? okay don’t get me wrong, most of these classes did focus a lot on memorising quotes or facts about people (artists/writers/poets/composers/dramatists etc) or specific  periods/movements in art or theatre or literature for example.... but the amazing sculptures/paintings etc people created in art for their final projects in year 12, or even in year 10 were works of their imagination. the scripts people write in drama or maybe english (if you had a fun teacher who did a screenwriting unit, for example) are creative asf. especially in year 12 when they do their major projects, where they may produce a monologue or a short movie, and then there’s a group piece. drama students might even make their own costumes for these performances. LIKE AIN’T THAT A LOT OF CREATIVITY RIGHT THERE Y’ALL????? and english. lowly old english. THEY HAVE A WHOLE FUCKING TOPIC ON CREATIVE WRITING FOR FUCKS SAKE. the original music people might create for their final projects too in year 12? does that not count as creativity? like yes, i know a lot of these things do still have to meet bs assessment criteria (especially in catholic schools, where the main things are you don’t offend the catholic education office and jesus/god lmao) to be considered worthy of a mark for your year 12 exams. but FUCK. HOW THE FUCK AREN’T ANY OF THESE SUBJECTS COUNTED TOWARDS BEING CREATIVE???????? like fuck your corporate creative ideation or w/e bullshit, Callum. drama and english even lend themselves to improvisation in some instances, like public speaking, which is examined further, below.

next, we move on to public speaking. this shit is basically taught from the first goddamn day of “show & tell” in kindy/kindergarten, and this fucker has the gall to say that it’s not fucking taught in schools? someone call in miley cyrus/hannah montana to throw the fuck down in this motherfucking hoedown BC THIS STUPID-ASS MEME-FUCKER HAS NERVE. i hated public speaking. absolutely hated it. even though it was ironically one of the places i ended up excelling in in english classes. even when i fucked up in my english speeches with like “oh, fuck.... said nelson mandela,  i’ve seem to’ve lost my palm card. wait, shit! there it is... excuse me while i pull it out of my ass. whoops, sorry miss” *bats eyes and finger guns at my year 9 english teacher who has her head in her hands and is done with my shit, while the class laughs at my gaffe* i’d still end up with like 73% or like 26/30. it was baffling. but for people who weren’t the class clown/smart alec like i was from years 7-10 (and like i actually wasn’t once i moved schools).... public speaking is like the leading cause of anxiety, right? like by the time i got to doing speeches/presentations at uni i was having panic attacks... the thought of presenting to my classes made me fucking sick with fear and anxiety. nearly every subject i did at uni (even when i tried to avoid subs with public speaking assessments) and throughout school had some type of presentation/speech whatever you want to call it project/activity in it. even fucking SPORT/PDHPE at school and even philosophy at uni. and these fuckers are saying its not taught in schools. FUCK  OFF. like yeah, i get that they actually mean it in the professional sense.... where people can give the sappy bs motivational speeches or an insightful ted-talk worthy 20-minute presentation... or a great sales pitch. but like??? save that for mike “my dad phoned in to EY and i have a job waiting for me after uni” mcfuck in a business major or law degree? or for clubs like toastmasters? fuck. ok enough of the skills we learn in school. let’s move onto the businesslike-sounding ones of “people management”, “conflict management” and fucking “entrepreneurship”. like. what the fuck? okay in some sense people management and conflict management could potentially be used in managing friendships and relationships in your personal life. but like. i can feel the business underpinnings and i dont like it lmao. like why do you want fully functioning adults straight out of school, franklin? and there’s extra credit conflict management subjects at uni??? or at least my home uni had it... and i never did them bc they were intensive courses during summer break lol. but the one that pissed me off the most was entrepreneurship. LIKE ARE KIDS NOT FUCKING ALLOWED TO BE KIDS NOW????? well  apparently: “NO! YOU MUST ALWAYS THINK OF MONEY MAKING WAYS TO BE RICH! YOU MUST BE ENTREPRENEURIAL!!!!!! YOU MUST GENERATE BUSINESS IDEAS FROM THE TIME YOU CAN FUCKIN’ WALK!!!!! AND SPEAK!!! CHILDHOOD AND BEING A TEENAGER DON’T EXIST WORKER BEE!!!! CAPITALISM FOR ALL!!!! WORKER BEES!!! CAPITALISM IS YOUR FRIEND!!! OWN A BUSINESS BY THE TIME YOU’RE 8 YEARS OLD!” like it’s insidious asf. and it doesn’t acknowledge that most entrepreneurs are already privileged people anyway, who usually have some type of money to start off their venture (or that’s what it feels like anyway). and yeah throw all the “THIS BOY IS AN ENTREPRENEUR AT 18!!! 18!!!???? BY STARTING HIS OWN BUSINESS AT 12!!!! WHAT A CHAMP! 😁🙃” clickbait news stories at me, but i don’t fucking care. the concept and perceived over-importance and almost preaching mindset of entrepreneurship is slowly becoming insidious and toxic asf. call me paranoid. but that’s what it feels like.

but with those last three topics, i want to make a point that school curriculum’s (in australia at least, and probably worldwide) are so jam-packed already with sport (which is pointless and shitty), geography (ok how to read maps is important, but i never bothered to learned to do it properly), history, science, english etc etc etc..... that like.... where the actual fuck are the gonna jam the above bs (people management”, “conflict management” and entrepreneurship) into the curriculum???? and also teachers are already over-worked enough as it is, they don’t need another load of shitty subjects pushed onto them. and they sure asf don’t earn enough (especially in the states) to have this bs pushed into their subject schedules either. keep them at uni, where they should be. or just in the workplace/in the general public where they belong. and if people suggest that you could probably push these subjects into the year 11/12 business studies programs or elective commerce courses in years 9/10, save your goddamn breath. like i remember looking at business studies hsc papers in years 11/12 to see what they did.... and it was pretty chock-a-block anyway. and my experience of my year 9 commerce was horrible, to say the least. let kids be kids, for fucks sake. they shouldn’t have to be fully functioning adults in the workplace, by the end of high school, for fucks sake. AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP IS NOT AN ESSENTIAL SKILL????!!!! FUCK OFF WITH THAT SHIT, WILHELM. anyway. that’s my rant over about how i hate how corporate people are trying to be #relatablewiththeyouth🙃 with their shitty versions of “10 things i wish we learned in school” memes.... and failing.... without realising that this is why millennials are suspicious and cynical about meme usage by corporate people/corporations.

[wetookanoath]

Yesterday, I was wondering how this time they didn’t do a like Q&A for this season, but they disappoint me and did this out of fucking nowhere today. Thank you for my life, boys.

Look at them, I love them! They are so handsome!

Ghoul HQ, “you look like my parents trying to go live” true. Also love them accepting their dadness in this.

Today in Shane thinks weird ways to die are cool: Eaten By Birds.

The only camera man for them in my heart is TJ, so... “He’s a very... stoic man” “I’ve seen him smiling” “It looks like a struggle” LMAO.

I love Shane’s hair. And I love how fucking big Ryan’s arms are, I’m fucking dying, holy shit. Crush me in those biceps, sr.

“Ryan you have something on your teeth” OH YOU LIARS, also jdnsndskdmkdsdmkf. Shane realizing he is staying alone in the room, lmao. “LET’S HEAR YOUR BEST HOTDAGA QUESTIONS”, I love him.

HotDaga coming back this week, baby! Also, Shane saying “we’re back, baby” does a lot of things to me.

GUYS, stop asking them the same question. They have talked a lot about what their favorite location has been. Enough. But yaass, New Orleans has good jazz, check out their jazz.

These guys sure have a lot of Bad Food experiences during their trips, oh my god.

Well, I think it’s p obvious the story part of the show is writen down and the rest of it it’s... just what happen while they walk into location, Shane’s reactions are all real. Remember he knows shit about the case until he listens to Ryan’s script.

I kinda agree with Shane in this, “I woke up” stuff is kinda-- I don’t know. Also, I know some folks have been worried that others think Shane presents as disrespectful to people who believes, and this is a good time to say that he doesn’t and he is not. As said by him and supported by Ryan in this moment, he is not.

“And one of my fave characters is dead” oh my god, I’m sure they are talking about Infinity War, but these two-- oh my God, their faces just CHANGED. They are such dads, don’t do that to them, pals, they seriously care.

Ryan smiling at Shane live is the reason I wake up this morning it seems. Oh, look at Shane looking at Ryan, that’s the other reason I woke up today.

Every time I see Shane talking about videogames and Ryan going ?, all I can think about is @void-bee‘s fanart for the crack AU with Gamer Shane and Beauty Guru Ryan.

Heart Monitors and Shane goes immediately THAT’S A GOOD DIEA, he’s so excited-- freakin’ demon, you want us to see you seriously are just standing there humoring Ryan or what.

Guys, save me from this hell of getting Emotions out of the way Shane smirks while Ryan is saying he has gotten a little braver, and the way Ryan laughs about it while looking at Shane smirking, like... save me.

I love their laugh. I love seeing them laughing together.

A WHAT STOLE A BABY? Okay, I need to get from under my rock my often. Also, Shane going immediatelly to “that’s devastating” is such a mood.

The fact that they don’t know if TJ and the rest of their crew are boogaras or shaniacs is amazing, lmao. 

Ryan looking at Shane to confirm he agrees with him every single time is everything.

I love Shane’s jacket.

Hey guys, remember when we thought Shane was possessed but it turned out he had some bad food? Shane making fun of himself with the bad hotdogs story is such a mood, and the fact that Ryan will never let go of it it’s jdnsufdi. I love a friendship.

That’s a good quesiton, facebook person-- if Ryan would still be a skeptic if the toothpaste hadn’t fallen. But yeah-- I guess it was the whole trip that convinced him, that little thingy falling was just the cherry on top. Also-- the way turned on by itself? My english sucks today, it seems. I didn’t understand.

Shane talks about that day in the Queen Mary like if he was there and that’s... such Foolish Mortal mood. Also, I’m sure he knows Ryan’s pals by now, and that’s pretty cool, too.

Oh, God-- stop. The discourse is coming again, I can feel it. But also, the fact that these two seriously appreciate their co-worker should be enough for your people to shut up a little, holy shit.

Look at them roasting poor Steven and agreeing Andrew would be like :l all the time in location. How about you invited both to it? Please?

Bragging the boys with popcorn seems to be the answer to everything. Also, that story of Ryan looking at pictures of popcorn while with his friends, oh my God. How obssessed can you be? HOLY SHIT.

Space Invaders is a great movie, by the way. Is a lot of fun. It’s ridiculous, but fun.

Yeah, please bring in Jeff Goldblum. Can you imagine weird yet hot as fuck Goldblum with weird yet hot as fuck Shane? I want that.

I love the fact that Ryan doesn’t get scared with scary attractions and scary movies because all our fanfics are inacurate, so we need to start writing something else. But also-- it fuels that one headcanon, you all know which one I’m talking about 👀

Going again with looking at Shane to see if he agrees with what he’s saying. Mood.

“Yeah, I was. I feel comfortable to be out in the forest” he is, in fact, Bigfoot.

“Would you consider coming back to Mexico?” LOOOOOOK AT THE BEAUTIFULLLLL SIIIIGHT OF VALIDAAAATIOOOOOON. “Yeah, like go there-- I can touch, like, a bunch of my own culture.” LA VALIDACIÓOOOOON, ES TAN BUEEENAAAA. On your fucking ugly ass racist face, anons!

I love how much they hate the Island of the Dolls because I love that place so much, I feel so comfortable in that place and its story is resonates so much with me and the story of my cochina af city, it’s amazing. I’m gonna send me pictures of Alicia just to fuck with them.

Ryan confirming they do search for places where they can do more than the investigation, jdsnmknjdskmnj.

Can’t wait for this Post Mortem, seems like we are going to have a lot of things coming, dnsknfir. Included the Hotdaga, lmao.

PACKAGE!!!!!! What did you guys sent them now? I love you all.

They answered where they weren’t going to ever in the last live Q&A actually. Also, my boys respecting cultures and people’s struggles. I love them.

Glad you guys know how funny you look with all the gear you carry around. Also, WE NEED BEHIND THE SCENES OF THESE THINGS, COME ON. They need to do this at least ONCE, they must look Aesthetically Nice gearing up.

@ BuzzFeed give my mans money so they can keep travelling outside the USA.

Ah, the spirit box tweet. You guys say Ryan’s face is smug and therefore it must be real, but honestly? No, that’s not smug. He looks done. I’m even more sure than before that is bullshit. That “okay...”, yeah no-- it’s bullshit. Poor Ryan, save him from this demon.

We have hear the holy water story three times, guys... the same questions... ask other things, please.... Also, lmao, Father Thomas Mention(tm). Drink every time the boys mention Father Thomas in the Q&As.

“I hope we can get back in touch with him” “Yeah, I’m sure he is very disappointed in us” totally. I wonder if Father Thomas knows he is a meme in our fandom and recurrent character in fanfics?

Honestly, I’ll watch you two talk about shit for four hours straight if I could.

“It was good times, it was good times” it sure looked like it in the instastories.

They are such dads. I love them.

[crisp-sweet-pink-lady]

Summer of Strawberry Shortcake: Berry Bitty Adventures episodes 11 - 13

or the Berryfest Princess Movie, as these episodes were marketed on DVD. These three episodes form a story arc surrounding the festivities of the annual BerryFest, from choosing the BerryFest Princess, who's in charge of the whole thing, to getting the big parade ready, and finding a special fruit that serves as the dessert to the big picnic that finishes up the whole affair. The first two episodes flow into each other very well, so I can understand American Greetings labeling the whole thing as a movie, even if the segue between the second and third episode isn't nearly as seamless.

This arc could also be considered a mini-movie because Strawberry is the main character in each of them, learning lessons about what it takes to be a good leader, not just a good friend. Both the first and third episode have Strawberry, with the help of one of the elder characters (Postmaster Bee and Berrykin Bloom, respectively), that keeping the peace isn't necessarily the most important thing. The second episode has this lesson learned by her friends, when they realize that they've all been too caught up in the one thing Strawberry asked them to do to notice how much she had taken on herself, all in the name of making things easier for them. This scene not only feels very satisfactory, as the girls had been pretty awful to Strawberry and each other, but it's pretty funny, too, as the girls still try to one-up each other with who was more awful and who is more sorry. As the script puts it, "It’s a comical jumble of realizations, guilt and apologies."

Even though the lesson learned in the third episode caps off Strawberry's journey into leadership, overall it feels kind of superfluous. The first episode has all the set up of the tasks to determine the candidates for BerryFest Princess, and then the campaign tearing the community apart to keep it going, and the second episode is all preparation for the parade, so the lower stakes search for the wanderberry make for a lackluster third act. There's not even that much fun character interaction to make for it, like in the previous two episodes. As an episode it's fine, but as the conclusion to this arc, it falls short.

[mertrgencoglu]

“HONEYLAND”BY TAMARA KOTEVSKA AND LJUBO STEFANOV (BLOG #6)

Hello to all, welcome to the sixth blog post of my COMD 282 course. In this blog, I will share my feelings and experiences regarding the production of 'Honeyland' in the movie-documentary category directed by Tamara Kotevska and Ljubo Stefanov.

As a director, you search for a new movie and come to a part of Macedonia far from the city center to make an environmental documentary. After encountering a Turkish citizen named Hatice Muratova and seeing her life, the movie you want to shoot now turns into a woman's life story from an environmental documentary. As a result, this magnificent production emerges.

When I first started watching the movie, I didn't do any preliminary research. Therefore, I did not know that I would encounter a Turkish character and the Turkish language in the film. Even though it is a bit corrupt Turkish, I couldn't hide that I was surprised to watch the movie in my language without subtitles. This story, based on real-life, was shot with the principle of being completely natural without any script or acting. Based on my own experience, I watched many natural story-inspired productions, but I can say that 'Honeyland' was the best at conveying naturalness in its most transparent form. Hatice's emotional bond with her bedridden mother, the most precious of her life, and her happiness with little things in a small stone house was genuinely worth seeing. This woman, who is always in touch with nature and makes friends with animals, devotes every moment of her life to a positive life. However, unfortunately, this relationship with nature does not have the same effect on people, and Hatice's goodwill is abused by another Turkish family living as a nomad.

After the bees, who are her only friends after her mother, die due to the neighbors' carelessness and indifference, all she can do is watch their life collapse. Whereas Hatice is a person full of life, hungry for happiness, and a character who can be happy with little at hand, life does not always give her the same opportunities. But despite all this, Hatice always remains positive and never gives up her love and compassion by singing songs and spending time with nature.

If I talk about the shootings, I deeply felt the family's poverty and complex situation with the wide-shots. In addition to this, showing Hatice to the audience with close-up shots made me think more clearly and feel her emotions and changes. At the same time, seeing animals' relations with nature in certain parts of the film from the first eye impressed me as a viewer. In the cinematography part, the combination of images without losing the naturalness was another point that made the film successful. This film, which was a production phase that took 3-4 years to shoot, had a successful impact in the post-production phase and had the opportunity to be nominated for an Oscar.

That's all for this week. See you on the blog next week. Cheers.