#kristina thompson

[nevalizona]

Trying to find an old post of mine and being jumpscared by KT/Connor like ewwwwww get those two out of here‼️ I am SO glad I came up with Genevieve because Gen/Connor is one of my most favorite oc/c*non pairings of mine🫶❤️ and trust me I have a few🤭 (as you all know LOL plus so many more I *don't* have the courage to post about LOL)

[becharm-27]

Happy birthday to Stargirl director, Lea Thompson!

What I originally had in mind as tribute is not turning out like I planned, so it's still in the works.

[superghfan]

Colton Shore (Scott Thompson Baker) and Felicia (Kristina Wagner).

[harveyguillensource]

Go Fug Yourself highlighted Harvey's fashion over the years in a recent retrospective! Check out their slideshow for commentary on the looks.

Photo credits from source page: Sipa, Broadimage, Birdie Thompson, Anthony Behar, Chelsea Lauren, MediaPunch, John Photography, Frank Micelotta, Ovidiu Hrubaru, Ben Hider, Rob Latour, Kristina Bumphrey, CAROLINE BREHMAN, John Salangsang, DAVID SWANSON, AFF-USA, David Fisher, Gregory Pace, Stewart Cook, Christopher Polk, CraSH/Imagespace, Matt Baron, all via Shutterstock

[acotars]

books read in 2023

january

sweep in peace by ilona andrews

one fell sweep by ilona andrews

a court of mist and fury by sarah j. maas

sweep of the blade by ilona andrews

sweep with me by ilona andrews

my best friend’s exorcism by grady hendrix

kiss her once for me by alison cochrun

the seven husbands of evelyn hugo by taylor jenkins reid

i’m glad my mom died by jennette mccurdy

love and other words by christina lauren

sweep of the heart by ilona andrews

the only living girl on earth by charles yu

witches get stuff done by molly harper

you had me at hola by alexis daria

her vigilante by lillian lark

inconvenient daughter by lauren j. sharkey

anon pls. by deuxmoi

you are eating an orange. you are naked. by sheung-king

legends & lattes by travis baldree

bad vibes only (and other things i bring to the table) by nora mcinerny

signs of cupidity by raven kennedy

bonds of cupidity by raven kennedy

crimes of cupidity by raven kennedy

read: 23

february

exciting times by naoise dolan

sweethand by n.g. peltier

you made a fool of death with your beauty by akwaeke emezi

something wilder by christina lauren

highly suspicious and unfairly cute by talia hibbert

you deserve each other by sarah hogle

this is how you lose the time war by amal el-mohtar and max goldstone

would you rather by allison ashley

read: 8

march

meet me in the margins by melissa ferguson

king of battle and blood by scarlett st. clair

the exotic by hampton sides

river of shadows by karina halle

alone with you in the ether by olivie blake

lovelight farms by b.k. borison

the soulmate equation by christina lauren

before i let go by kennedy ryan

haunting adeline by h.d. carlson

the lies i tell by julie clark

one jump at a time by nathan chen

our wives under the sea by julia armfield

all systems red (the murderbot diaries #1) by martha wells

before the coffee gets cold by toshikazu kawaguchi

read: 14

april

funny you should ask by elissa sussman

make a scene by mimi grace

sweeter than chocolate by lizzie shane

the kiss quotient by helen hoang

my favorite half-night stand by christina lauren

romantic comedy by curtis sittenfeld

icebreaker by a.l. graziadei

the wedding proposal by john swansiger

circling back to you by julie tieu

by the book by amanda sellet

a lady’s guide to mischief and mayhem by manda collins

love in the time of serial killers by alicia thompson

if the shoe fits by julie murphy

whispers of you by catherine cowles

the kiss curse by erin sterling

by the book by jasmine guillory

honey & spice by bolu babalola

one night on the island by josie silver

the bodyguard by katherine center

the reunion by kayla olson

the neighbor favor by kristina forest

crooked kingdom by leigh bardugo

do i know you? by emily wibberley & austin siegemund-broka

just my type by falon ballard

delilah green doesn’t care by ashley herring blake

happy place by emily henry

dating dr. dil by nisha sharma

icebreaker by hannah grace

count your lucky stars by alexandria bellefleur

stone cold fox by rachel koller croft 

fake it till you bake it by jamie wesley

read: 31

may

the dead romantics

motherthing by ainslie hogarth

the woman in the library by sulari gentill

artificial condition (the murderbot diaries #2) by martha wells

the last word by taylor adams

you shouldn’t have come here by jeneva rose

read: 6

june

fourth wing (the empyrean #1) by rebecca yarros

the very secret society of irregular witches by sangu mandanna

love, theoretically by ali hazelwood

read: 3

july

the traitor queen (the bridge kingdom #2) by danielle l. jensen

the beast by katee robert

baldur's gate: descent into avernus by by james introcaso et. al

forget me not by julie soto

the wishing game by meg shaffer

read: 5

august

the true love experiment by christina lauren

pachinko by min jin lee

almond by sohn won-pyung, translated by joosun lee

hook, line, and sinker by tessa bailey

read: 4

september

hey, u up? (for a serious relationship): how to turn your booty call into your emergency contact by emily axford & brian murphy

everyone knows your mother is a witch by rivka galchen

fangs by sarah andersen

a room with a view by e.m. forster

juniper bean resorts to murder by gracie ruth mitchell

one's company by ashley hutson

the mysterious affair at styles by agatha christie

solita: a gothic romance by vivien rainn

you, again by kate goldbeck

the undertaking of hart and mercy by megan bannen

my roommate is a vampire by jenna levine

the picture of dorian gray by oscar wilde

the vampires of el norte by isabel cañas

her body and other parties by carmen maria machado

evil eye by etaf rum

the seven year slip by ashley poston

read: 17

october

keeper of enchanted rooms by charlie n. holmberg

the serpent and the wings of night by carissa broadbent

shy by max porter

down comes the night by allison saft

the unfortunate side effects of heartbreak and magic by breanne randall

the hurricane wars by thea guanzon

read: 6

november

a witch's guide to fake dating a demon by sarah hawley

the wake-up call by beth o'leary

when in rome by sarah adams

the view was exhausting by mikaella clements and onjuli datta

hello stranger by katherine center

practice makes perfect by sarah adams

do your worst by rosie danan

read: 7

december

bookshops & bonedust by travis baldree

the fake mate by lana ferguson

read: 2

final count: 127/100

[volatilehqs]

poderiam sugerir fcs para soldados?

Alexandra Shipp, Alycia Debnam-Carey, Clinton Liberty, Danny Ramirez, Erana James, Gemma Chan, Glen Powell, Hailee Steinfeld, Jacob Elordi, Jaz Sinclair, Jesse Lee Soffer, Josh O'Connor, Kento Yamazaki, Kerem Bursin, Kiana Madeira, Kofi Siriboe, Kristina Tonteri-Young, Lily Gladstone, Mason Gooding, Miguel Bernardeau, Milly Alcock, Namtan Tipnaree, Paul Mescal, Rebecca Ferguson, Riz Ahmed, Tessa Thompson, Victoria Pedretti, Wi Hajoon, Woo Dohwan.

[vortexhq]

greetings from fairewoods, california! we hope you're having a wonderful time, dr. ellie sattler ( jurassic park ), éowyn doherty ( the lord of the rings ), annabeth chase ( riordanverse ) and beatrice watson ( warrior nun ), here in our little sanctuary! make sure you read the checklist, and we'll be sending you the discord link through ims — once we reach our mun goal! welcome to a land where everyone gets their happy ever after, cosmo!

{  jurassic park ( canon, ca ).  tessa thompson;  they/she/he;  gender non conforming.  }  —  do you hear that? it sounds like ( call me ) by ( blondie ).  i think i heard ( dr. ellie sattler ) playing this before.  have you met them yet?  they’re a ( forty-one ) year old ( paleobotany professor / author ), and they’re usually always hanging around ( blue lace teas ).  they’re known around town for ( volunteering to teach kids about paleobotany during the summer holidays ); fitting for them, since they’re so ( determined ) yet ( argumentative ).  they’re sort of associated with ( the color green, jeans shorts & burying your toes in the sand on a beach vacation ) which makes total sense when you get to know them.  i wonder how they’ve been doing lately;  last i heard from them, they were telling me about a dream they had?  something about ( not being able to stop jurassic park being set in motion ), but i’m not sure what they were talking about.  they always do tell the strangest stories…  //  [  cosmo,  twenty-seven / cet,  any pronouns.  ]

{  the lord of the rings ( canon, ca ).  saoirse-monica jackson;  she/her;  cis woman.  }  —  do you hear that? it sounds like ( STFU! ) by ( rina sawayama ).  i think i heard ( éowyn doherty ) playing this before.  have you met them yet?  they’re a ( thirty-two ) year old ( carpenter ), and they’re usually always hanging around ( gladioli gym ).  they’re known around town for ( always winning arm wrestling matches as a kid ); fitting for them, since they’re so ( independent ) yet ( reckless ).  they’re sort of associated with ( a belief that you can do anything if you put your mind to it, standing up for what is right & the ren fair ) which makes total sense when you get to know them.  i wonder how they’ve been doing lately;  last i heard from them, they were telling me about a dream they had?  something about ( giving up her dreams ), but i’m not sure what they were talking about.  they always do tell the strangest stories…  //  [  cosmo,  twenty-seven / cet,  any pronouns.  ]

{  riordanverse ( books & tv show, canon, ca ).  precious mustapha;  she/they;  demi woman.  }  —  do you hear that? it sounds like ( washing machine heart ) by ( mitski ).  i think i heard ( annabeth chase ) playing this before.  have you met them yet?  they’re a ( twenty-seven ) year old ( architect ), and they’re usually always hanging around ( fairewoods art museum ).  they’re known around town for ( designing multiple new buildings for the town ); fitting for them, since they’re so ( intelligent ) yet ( condescending ).  they’re sort of associated with ( a vast knowledge of the world, a clear blue sky, summer camp ) which makes total sense when you get to know them.  i wonder how they’ve been doing lately;  last i heard from them, they were telling me about a dream they had?  something about ( wanting to believe in luke ), but i’m not sure what they were talking about.  they always do tell the strangest stories…  //  [  cosmo,  twenty-seven / cet,  any pronouns.  ]

{  warrior nun ( canon, ca ).  kristina tonteri-young;  she/they;  non binary.  }  —  do you hear that? it sounds like ( work song ) by ( hozier ).  i think i heard ( beatrice watson ) playing this before.  have you met them yet?  they’re a ( twenty-six ) year old ( librarian ), and they’re usually always hanging around ( fairewoods forest ).  they’re known around town for ( winning the spelling bee in 6th grade ); fitting for them, since they’re so ( supportive ) yet ( rigid ).  they’re sort of associated with ( always carrying a book with you, self defense classes & religious guilt ) which makes total sense when you get to know them.  i wonder how they’ve been doing lately;  last i heard from them, they were telling me about a dream they had?  something about ( not saying i love you sooner ), but i’m not sure what they were talking about.  they always do tell the strangest stories…  //  [  cosmo,  twenty-seven / cet,  any pronouns.  ]

[wausaupilot]

Evers' transportation secretary will resign in September to take job at UW-Madison

Deputy Transportation Secretary Kristina Boardman will succeed Thompson, becoming the first woman to serve as transportation secretary, the governor's office said.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Tony Evers’ transportation secretary plans to resign next month to take a job at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The governor’s office announced Friday that Craig Thompson will leave his post on Sept. 11 to take a position as vice chancellor for university relations at the state’s flagship university. Deputy Transportation Secretary Kristina Boardman will succeed…

[flamsparks]

Disney Princesses singing in their Native Languages (part 2)

Part #1

Part #3

Further info about my choices for the languages in this video under the cut

Belle

“Bonjour! Bonjour, bonjour! Bonjour! Bonjour!”. Yeah, the story takes place in France. Please, don't ask me to elaborate on this.

French Belle: Bénédicte Lécroart

Nala

When “The Lion King” was released in 1994, a special Zulu dubbing was made on that occasion: it is the first and only Zulu dubbing made by Disney, as well as the only dubbing in any language spoken in Africa (other than Arabic), not to mention, the language sung by Lebo M. during the song “Circle of Life”. Yes, Swahili would have been the correct choice here, but given the rarity this dubbing is, let’s not waste it, heh?

Zulu Nala: Wendy Molefe (? Wendy certainly dubbed Nala in the spoken parts, while it's unclear whether it's her singing too, or another uncredited voice actor)

Snow White

According to a book from the official Disney Princess franchise, “A Treasury of Enchanting Tales” (2019), the story takes place in Germany in the 16th century.

German Snow White: Alexandra Wilcke (1994 re-dub)

Anna

Anna and Elsa are daughters of a Norwegian king and a Sámi queen, as is shown in Frozen 2. It is also shown they have no trouble understanding the meaning of “All is Found”, a traditional Northuldra lullaby, which is certainly sung in Sámi. This means that Anna and Elsa are bilingual Norwegian-Sámi native speakers.

Norwegian Anna: May Kristin Kaspersen Sámi Anna: Elin Kristina Oskal

Merida

Again, please don't make me explain why the movie takes place in Scotland. Please. Sadly, Disney never issued a dubbing in Scottish Gaelic for Brave, but at least we got this one song taken from the original soundtrack of the movie.

Young Merida: Peigi Barker Elinor: Emma Thompson

Source for the various international dubbers here

[webotix]

NINE CREATIVE WAYS TO CONNECT WITH GEN Y AND GEN Z THAT AVOID CONVENTIONAL MARKETING METHODS

0  

By webotix  Uncategorized  April 13, 2024

Millennial and Gen Z audiences are tougher to please, more intelligent, and more educated than ever before (dosen’t mean to offend no one). As an experienced digital marketing company in Dubai, we have seen firsthand how the field of audience interaction is constantly changing. The era in which conventional marketing strategies were the most effective is long gone. But we know how to get their attention. In this blog article, we’ll go over nine creative ways to interact with youthful audiences (mentally and physically) who shun conventional marketing strategies.

ACCEPT TRANSPARENCY AND AUTHENTICITY

“The best marketing doesn’t feel like marketing.” Tom Fishburne, a market analyst.

Young people are drawn to genuineness. They are able to identify dishonesty quickly. You have to be sincere, open, and loyal to your brand in order to interact with them. Speak to them about your growth, successes, and failures. Knowing your business, your company make people close to your brand.

COOPERATE WITH SMALLER GROUPS OF PEOPLE

Being influential doesn’t require having a huge fan base. Establishing a reliable community is essential for success.” – Expert in influencer marketing, Brittany Hennessy

Put away the celebrity endorsements. Younger audiences look up to micro-influencers  people with modest but active followings who inspire trust. Form alliances with micro-influencers who align with your business and who have a true connection to their audience. More weight will be placed on their suggestions than on any conventional advertisement.

DESIGN INTERACTIVE ENVIRONMENTS

“The best way to engage with customers is to create an experience that they can’t help but share.” Econsultancy’s David Moth

Young viewers are happiest when they are experiencing things. Rather than being a third wheel, they wish to participate. Create fair opportunities for people to connect deeply with your brand. As we know, immersive virtual reality experiences, pop up stores, and escape rooms, they are real and entertaining.

PUT SOME GAMING INTO YOUR BRAND MARKETING

“Gamification is the process of using game thinking and game mechanics to solve problems and engage users.” – Gabe Zichermann, a gamified marketing expert.

A powerful way of attracting younger audiences is gamification in advertising. Embrace game elements into your marketing initiatives by including leaderboards, prizes, and challenges. Keep it lighthearted, friendly, and competitive.

MAKE USE OF USER-GENERATED CONTENT.

“The most genuine kind of advertising is content created by users.” – Kristina Libby, a social media expert

Younger viewers trust their peers more than brands. Encourage them to develop and distribute content relating to your brand. Run competitions, hashtag campaigns, or challenges to encourage others to be creative. Showcase their material on your channels to foster a feeling of community and belonging.

ADOPT A CAUSE MARKETING APPROACH

“Brands that do good, well.” Expert in Brand Citizenship, Anne Bahr Thompson

Social and environmental problems are important to younger audiences. They wish to back companies that have a beneficial influence. Assemble your brand around a cause that appeals to the people in your target market. Make children aware of the impact that their purchases and behaviours may have.

BE WHERE THEY ARE.

“Marketing is no longer about the stuff that you make, but about the stories you tell.” Seth Godin, Marketing Expert

Young viewers regularly switch between platforms and devices. You must be present in their environment in order to interact with them. Invest in multichannel marketing tactics that work together across social media, mobile, and digital platforms.

ENCOURAGE HUMOR AND ENTERTAINMENT.

“The best marketing makes the customer the hero.” Chris Brogan, a business strategy expert

Young people value comedy and fun. They want to be amused, not simply informed. Bring fun and levity into your marketing strategies. Create information that is not only informative but also engaging and easy to share.

“Engagement is not a one-way street.” It is a discussion.” – Sprout Social

Younger audiences want to be heard. They want brands to listen and respond to their comments, questions, and concerns. Encourage two-way contact by actively connecting with them on social media, replying to reviews, and asking for their feedback.

David Ogilvy, the creator of advertising, once quipped, “The consumer isn’t a mo; she’s your wife.” Treat young audiences with respect, sincerity, and inventiveness, and you’ll pique their curiosity and loyalty. At our agency, we’ve witnessed personally how effective these unique tactics are in engaging young audiences. So, abandon outdated marketing approaches and embrace the new era; your brand will thank you.

[madelynwsu]

The Lewiston Civic Theater and Its Dark History To Be Demolished Later This Year

Right above Main Street in Lewiston, Idaho, a building that could be mistaken for an old castle sits quietly at the top of a hill. This old brick building with its dusty stained glass windows and sharp peaks is no castle, however; It serves as the town theater in which plays and musicals are put on by a local group of actors known as the Lewiston Civic Theatre. Despite the group putting on many successful plays a year, but judging by the tape that has recently surrounded the theater’s premises, the future of the historic building looks bleak.

Andrew Thompson, an actor who has participated in many plays performed at the old theater, revealed that the building has recently been condemned.

“Our president noticed some wooden tresses were broken in the attic, and when a construction company came to look at them, we were told the building is at risk of collapsing,” Thompson, 25, stated. “It’s heartbreaking to think that this beautiful piece of our history will be replaced by a patch of dirt by the end of this year.”

Many residents of the town share these strong feelings about their disapproval of the theater’s closing. According to long-time Lewiston resident Mike Graham, the historic building was constructed in 1907 and used to be the First Methodist Episcopal Church.

“My grandma told me it was built to be a Methodist church in 1907 and didn’t become the Lewiston Civic Theater until 1972. It seemed old even when I was a kid,” Graham, 48, said with a laugh. “We all would have loved to see it stay open, but there’s not much you can do for a failing structure as old as that theater.”

The theater’s dark history is one reason local residents are not entirely opposed to the decimation of the building, which was once the scene of a triple homicide. In September 1995, Lewiston residents Kristina Nelson, Jacqueline Miller, and Steven Pearsall entered the theater and never came back out alive. Two of the three were later found deceased in a rural location and one body was never found, but the murders were confirmed to have taken place inside the Lewiston Civic Theater. A suspect was never charged, but police have stated that they are confident Lance Jeffrey Voss, who was the janitor for the building at the time, had committed the crimes.

“I remember when the news came out. Everyone was so shocked,” Clarkston resident Connie Miller said when speaking about the murders. “That stuff just doesn’t happen here, and not in places like that beautiful old church. It just shouldn’t have happened.”

Miller, 62, said she’s glad the church is finally being laid to rest. “It’s a sad thing, yes, but to be honest… I’m glad. That building is nothing but a hazard now, not to mention a reminder of one of the worst things to ever happen in our small town.”

As of now, there is no confirmed date as to when the building will be demolished.

[nevalizona]

Debating if I should repurpose KT and Yvette for another story I'm working on. It's set in either '69 or '70, I think! I'm not 100% sure yet. Might be set anywhere between '69-'75, tbh.

Basically, I'd keep basic things about them. But like their ages, for example, would be 26 instead of 23/24, and they're no longer living in Louisiana. Pretty much all ties to m3 will be severed for obvious reasons. Like, tbh I'll mostly be just taking their names, lol, but like maybe basic appearance, too? Idk. I'm not sure! But I'm not using them for anything rn, and I mean I might as well use them for something else.

[kristina-theresa-photography]

Thompson-Taylor Farmhouse, Monmouth Battlefield, Manalapan, NJ 03.13.19

https://kristina-theresa-photography.tumblr.com/

[galarianslowking]

Fuck It OC Memes time

[kwebtv]

Insatiable -  Netflix  -  August 10, 2018  -  October 11, 2019

Comedy / Drama (22 episodes)

Running Time:  60 minutes

Stars:

Dallas Roberts as Robert "Bob" Armstrong Jr.

Debby Ryan as Patricia "Patty" Bladell

Christopher Gorham as Robert "Bob" Barnard

Sarah Colonna as Angie Bladell

Erinn Westbrook as Magnolia Barnard

Kimmy Shields as Nonnie Thompson

Michael Provost as Brick Armstrong

Irene Choi as Dixie Sinclair

Alyssa Milano as Coralee Huggins-Armstrong

Arden Myrin as Regina Sinclair (season 2; recurring season 1)

Recurring

Daniel Kang as Donald Choi

Chloe Bridges as Roxy Buckley

Beverly D'Angelo as Stella Rose Buckley

Jordan Gelber as Sheriff Hank Thompson

James Lastovic as Christian Keene (season 1; guest season 2)

Christine Taylor as Gail Keene

Michael Ian Black as Pastor Mike Keene

Carly Hughes as Etta Mae Barnard

Ashley D. Kelley as Deborah "Dee" Marshall

Alex Landi as Henry Lee (season 2)

Vincent Rodriguez III as Detective Rudy Cruz (season 2)

Caroline Pluta as Heather Kristina Pamela Kendall Jackson Johnson (season 2)

Brett Rice as Robert Armstrong Sr.

Jon Lovitz as Father Schwartz

Robin Tunney as Brandylynn Huggens

Drew Scheid as Gary / Kid

William Baldwin (season 1) / Dana Ashbrook (season 2) as Gordy Greer

Gloria Diaz as Gloria Reyes (season 2)

Tommy Dorfman as Jonathan (season 2)

Katherine Manchester as Becky (season 2)

Shannon DeVido as Shannon (season 2)

Lance Bass as Brazen Moorehead (season 2)

Lucius Baston as Warden Winters (season 2)

[letterboxd]

Best of Sundance 2021.

From pandemic-era stories, via portraits of grief, to the serendipitous 1969 trilogy, the Letterboxd crew recaps our favorite films from the first major festival of the year.

Sundance heralds a new season of storytelling, with insights into what’s concerning filmmakers at present, and what artistic innovations may be on the horizon. As with every film festival, there were spooky coincidences and intersecting themes, whether it was a proliferation of pandemic-era stories, or extraordinary portraits of women working through grief (Land, Hive, The World to Come), or the incredible serendipity of the festival’s ‘1969 trilogy’, covering pivotal moments in Black American history: Summer of Soul (...Or When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), Judas and the Black Messiah and the joyful Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street.

The hybrid model of this year’s Sundance meant more film lovers across the United States—a record number of you, in fact—‘attended’ the prestigious indie showcase. Our Festiville team (Gemma Gracewood, Aaron Yap, Ella Kemp, Selome Hailu, Jack Moulton and Dominic Corry) scanned your Letterboxd reviews and compared them with our notes to arrive at these seventeen feature-length documentary and narrative picks from Sundance 2021. There are plenty more we enjoyed, but these are the films we can’t stop thinking about.

Documentary features

Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) Directed by Ahmir-Khalib Thompson (AKA Questlove)

One hot summer five decades ago, there was a free concert series at a park in Harlem. It was huge, and it was lovely, and then it was forgotten. The Harlem Cultural Festival of 1969 brought together some of the world’s most beloved Black artists to connect with Black audiences. The star power and the size of the crowds alone should have been enough to immortalize the event à la Woodstock—which happened the same summer, the film emphasizes. But no one cared to buy up the footage until Ahmir-Khalib Thompson, better known as Questlove, came along.

It would have been easy to oversimplify such a rich archive by stringing together the performances, seeking out some talking heads, and calling it a day. But Questlove was both careful and ebullient in his approach. “Summer of Soul is a monumental concert documentary and a fantastic piece of reclaimed archived footage. There is perhaps no one better suited to curate this essential footage than Questlove, whose expertise and passion for the music shines through,” writes Matthew on Letterboxd. The film is inventive with its use of present interviews, bringing in both artists and attendees not just to speak on their experiences, but to react to and relive the footage. The director reaches past the festival itself, providing thorough social context that takes in the moon landing, the assassinations of Black political figures, and more. By overlapping different styles of documentary filmmaking, Questlove’s directorial debut embraces the breadth and simultaneity of Black resilience and joy. A deserving winner of both the Grand Jury and Audience awards (and many of our unofficial Letterboxd awards). —SH

Flee Directed by Jonas Poher Rasmussen

Flee is the type of discovery Sundance is designed for. Danish documentarian Jonas Poher Rasmussen tells the poignant story of his close friend and former classmate (using the pseudonym ‘Amin Nawabi’) and his daring escape from persecution in 1990s Afghanistan. Rasmussen always approaches tender topics with sensitivity and takes further steps to protect his friend’s identity by illustrating the film almost entirely in immersive animation, following in the footsteps of Waltz With Bashir and Tower. It’s a film aware of its subjectivity, allowing the animated scenes to alternate between the playful joy of nostalgia and the mournful pain of an unforgettable memory. However, these are intercepted by dramatic archive footage that oppressively brings the reality home.

“Remarkably singular, yet that is what makes it so universal,” writes Paul. “So many ugly truths about the immigration experience—the impossible choices forced upon people, and the inability to really be able to explain all of it to people in your new life… You can hear the longing in his voice, the fear in his whisper. Some don’t get the easy path.” Winner of the World Cinema (Documentary) Grand Jury Prize and quickly acquired by Neon, Flee is guaranteed to be a film you’ll hear a lot about for the rest of 2021. —JM

Taming the Garden Directed by Salomé Jashi

There’s always a moment at a film festival when fatigue sets in, when the empathy machine overwhelms, and when I hit that moment in 2021, I took the advice of filmmaker and Sundance veteran Jim Cummings, who told us: “If you’re ever stressed or tired, watch a documentary to reset yourself.” Taming the Garden wasn’t initially on my hit-list, but it’s one of those moments when the ‘close your eyes and point at a random title’ trick paid off. Documentary director Salomé Jashi does the Lorax’s work, documenting the impact and grief caused by billionaire former Georgian PM Bidzina Ivanishvili’s obsession with collecting ancient trees for his private arboretum.

“A movie that is strangely both infuriating and relaxing” writes Todd, of the long, locked-off wide shots showing the intense process of removing large, old trees from their village homes. There’s no narration, instead Jashi eavesdrops on locals as they gossip about Ivanishvili, argue about whether the money is worth it, and a feisty, irritated 90-year-old warns of the impending environmental fallout. “What you get out of it is absolutely proportional to what you put into it,” writes David, who recommends this film get the IMAX treatment. It’s arboriculture as ASMR, the timeline cleanse my Sundance needed. The extraordinary images of treasured trees being barged across the sea will become iconic. —GG

The Most Beautiful Boy in the World Directed by Kristian Petri and Kristina Lindström

Where Taming the Garden succeeds through pure observation, The Most Beautiful Boy in the World relies on the complete participation of its title subject, actor Björn Andrésen, who was thrust into the spotlight as a teenager. Cast by Italian director Lucino Visconti in Death in Venice, a 1971 adaptation of Thomas Mann’s novella about obsession and fatal longing, Andrésen spent the 1970s as an object of lust, with a side-gig as a blonde pop star in Japan, inspiring many manga artists along the way.

As we know by now (Alex Winter’s Showbiz Kids is a handy companion to this film), young stardom comes at a price, one that Andrésen was not well-placed to pay even before his fateful audition for Visconti. But he’s still alive, still acting (he’s Dan in Midsommar), and ready to face the mysteries of his past. Like Benjamin Ree’s excellent The Painter and the Thief from last year, this documentary is a constantly unfolding detective story, notable for great archive footage, and a deep kindness towards its reticent yet wide-open subject. —GG

All Light, Everywhere Directed by Theo Anthony

Threading the blind spots between Étienne-Jules Marey’s 19th-century “photographic rifle”, camera-carrying war pigeons and Axon’s body-cam tech, Theo Anthony’s inquisitive, mind-expanding doc about the false promise of the all-seeing eye is absorbing, scary, urgent. It’s the greatest Minority Report origin story you didn’t know you needed.

Augmented by Dan Deacon’s electronic soundscapes and Keaver Brenai’s lullingly robotic narration, All Light, Everywhere proves to be a captivating, intricately balanced experience that Harris describes as “one part Adam Curtis-esque cine-essay”, “one part structural experiment in the vein of Koyaanisqatsi” and “one part accidental character study of two of the most familiar yet strikingly unique evil, conservative capitalists…”. Yes, there’s a tremendous amount to download, but Anthony’s expert weaving, as AC writes, “make its numerous subjects burst with clarity and profundity.” For curious cinephiles, the oldest movie on Letterboxd, Jules Jenssen’s Passage de Vénus (1874), makes a cameo. —AY

The Sparks Brothers Directed by Edgar Wright

Conceived at a Sparks gig in 2017 upon the encouragement of fellow writer-director Phil Lord, Edgar Wright broke his streak of riotous comedies with his first (of many, we hope) rockumentary. While somewhat overstuffed—this is, after all, his longest film by nearly fifteen minutes—The Sparks Brothers speaks only to Wright’s unrestrained passion for his art-pop Gods, exploring all the nooks and crannies of Sparks’ sprawling career, with unprecedented access to brothers and bandmates Ron and Russell Mael.

Nobody else can quite pin them down, so Wright dedicates his time to put every pin in them while he can, building a mythology and breaking it down, while coloring the film with irresistible dives into film history, whimsically animated anecdotes and cheeky captions. “Sparks rules. Edgar Wright rules. There’s no way this wasn’t going to rule”, proclaims Nick, “every Sparks song is its own world, with characters, rules, jokes and layers of narrative irony. What a lovely ode to a creative partnership that was founded on sticking to one’s artistic guns, no matter what may have been fashionable at the time.” —JM

Narrative features

The Pink Cloud Written and directed by Iuli Gerbase

The Pink Cloud is disorienting and full of déjà vu. Brazilian writer-director Iuli Gerbase constructs characters that are damned to have to settle when it comes to human connection. Giovana and Yago’s pleasant one-night stand lasts longer than expected when the titular pink cloud emerges from the sky, full of a mysterious and deadly gas that forces everyone to stay locked where they stand. Sound familiar? Reserve your groans—The Pink Cloud wasn’t churned out to figure out “what it all means” before the pandemic is even over. Gerbase wrote and shot the film prior to the discovery of Covid-19.

It’s “striking in its ability to prophesize a pandemic and a feeling unknown at the time of its conception. What was once science fiction hits so close now,” writes Sam. As uncanny as the quarantine narrative feels, what’s truly harrowing is how well the film predicts and understands interiorities that the pandemic later exacerbated. Above all, Giovana is a woman with unmet needs. She is a good partner, good mother and good person even when she doesn’t want to be. Even those who love her cannot see how their expectations strip her of her personhood, and the film dares to ask what escape there might be when love itself leaves you lonely. —SH

Together Together Written and directed by Nikole Beckwith

Every festival needs at least one indie relationship dramedy, and Together Together filled that role at Sundance 2021 with a healthy degree of subversion. It follows rom-com structure while ostensibly avoiding romance, instead focusing on how cultivating adult friendships can be just hard, if not harder.

Writer-director Nikole Beckwith warmly examines the limits of the platonic, and Patti Harrison and Ed Helms are brilliantly cast as the not-couple: a single soon-to-be father and the surrogate carrying his child. They poke at each other’s boundaries with a subtle desperation to know what makes a friendship appropriate or real. As Jacob writes: “It’s cute and serious, charming without being quirky. It’s a movie that deals with the struggle of being alone in this world, but offers a shimmer of hope that even if you don’t fall in fantastical, romantic, Hollywood love… there are people out there for you.” —SH

Hive Written and directed by Blerta Basholli

Hive, for some, may fall into the “nothing much happens” slice-of-life genre, but Blerta Basholli’s directorial debut holds an ocean of pain in its small tale, asking us to consider the heavy lifting that women must always do in the aftermath of war. As Liz writes, “Hive is not just a story about grief and trauma in a patriarchy-dominated culture, but of perseverance and the bonds created by the survivors who must begin to consider the future without their husbands.”

Yllka Gashi is an understated hero as Fahrjie, a mother-of-two who sets about organizing work for the women of her village, while awaiting news of her missing husband—one of thousands unaccounted for, years after the Kosovo War has ended. The townsmen have many opinions about how women should and shouldn’t mourn, work, socialize, parent, drive cars and, basically, get on with living, but Fahrjie persists, and Basholli sticks close with an unfussy, tender eye. “It felt like I was a fly on the wall, witnessing something that was actually happening,” writes Arthur. Just as in Robin Wright’s Land and Mona Fastvold’s The World to Come, Hive pays off in the rare, beaming smile of its protagonist. —GG

On the Count of Three Directed by Jerrod Carmichael, written by Ari Katcher and Ryan Welch

It starts with an image: two best friends pointing guns at each other’s heads. There’s no anger, there’s no hatred—this is an act of merciful brotherly love. How do you have a bleak, gun-totin’ buddy-comedy in 2021 and be critically embraced without contradicting your gun-control retweets or appearing as though your film is the dying embers of Tarantino-tinged student films?

Comedian Jerrod Carmichael’s acerbic directorial debut On the Count of Three achieves this by calling it out every step of the way. Guns are a tool to give insecure men the illusion of power. They are indeed a tool too terrifying to trust in the hands of untrained citizens. Carmichael also stars, alongside Christopher Abbott, who has never been more hilarious or more tragic, bringing pathos to a cathartic rendition of Papa Roach’s ‘Last Resort’. Above all, Carmichael and Abbott’s shared struggle and bond communicates the millennial malaise: how can you save others if you can’t save yourself? “Here’s what it boils down to: life is fucking hard”, Laura sums up, “and sometimes the most we can hope for is to have a best friend who loves you [and] to be a best friend who loves. It doesn’t make life any easier, but it sure helps.” Sundance 2021 is one for the books when it comes to documentaries, but On the Count of Three stands out in the fiction lineup this year. —JM

Censor Directed by Prano Bailey-Bond, written by Bailey-Bond and Anthony Fletcher

The first of several upcoming films inspired by the ‘video nasty’ moral panic over gory horror in mid-’80s Britain, Prano Bailey-Bond leans heavily into both the period and the genre in telling the story of a film censor (a phenomenal Niamh Algar—vulnerable and steely at the same time) who begins to suspect a banned movie may hold the key to her sister’s childhood disappearance. Often dreamlike, occasionally phantasmagorical and repeatedly traumatic, even if the worst gore presented (as seen in the impressively authentic fictional horrors being appraised) appears via a screen, providing a welcome degree of separation.

Nevertheless, Censor is definitely not for the faint of heart, but old-school horror aficionados will squeal with delight at the aesthetic commitment. “I’m so ecstatic that horror is in the hands of immensely talented women going absolutely batshit in front of and behind the camera.” writes Erik. (Same here!) “A great ode to the video-nasty era and paying tribute to the great horror auteurs of the ’80s such as Argento, De Palma and Cronenberg while also doing something new with the genre. Loved this!” writes John, effectively encapsulating Censor’s unfettered film-nerd appeal. —DC

CODA Written and directed by Siân Heder

A film so earnest it shouldn’t work, with a heart so big it should surely not fit the size of the screen, CODA broke records (the first US dramatic film in Sundance history to win all three top prizes; the 25-million-dollar sale to Apple Studios), and won the world over like no other film. “A unique take on something we’ve seen so much,” writes Amanda, nailing the special appeal of Siân Heder’s coming-of-ager and family portrait. Emilia Jones plays Ruby, the only hearing person in her deaf family, at war between the family business and her passion for singing. While Heder is technically remaking the French film La Famille Bélier, the decision to cast brilliant deaf actors—Troy Kotsur, Marlee Matlin and Daniel Durant—makes this feel brand new.

But it’s not just about representation for the sake of it. A sense of authenticity, in humor as much as affection, shines through. With a script that’s 40 per cent ASL, so many of the jokes are visual gags, poking fun at Tinder and rap music, but a lot of the film’s most poignant moments are silent as well. And in Ruby’s own world, too, choir kids will feel seen. “I approve of this very specific alto representation and the brilliant casting of the entire choir,” Laura confirms in her review. Come for the fearless, empathetic family portrait, stay for the High School Musical vibes that actually ring true. —EK

We’re All Going to the World’s Fair Written and directed by Jane Schoenbrun

Perhaps the most singular addition to the recent flurry of Extremely Online cinema—Searching, Spree, Host, et al—Jane Schoenbrun’s feature debut ushers the viewer into a haunted, hypno-drone miasma of delirium-inducing YouTube time-suck, tenebrous creepypasta lore and painfully intimate webcam confessionals. Featuring an extraordinarily unaffected, fearless performance by newcomer Anna Cobb, the film “unpacks the mythology of adolescence in a way that’s so harrowingly familiar and also so otherworldly”, writes Kristen. Not since Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Pulse has there been such an eerily lonely, and at times strangely beautiful, evocation of the liminal spaces between virtual and real worlds.

For members of the trans community, it’s also a work that translates that experience to screen with uncommon authenticity. “What Schoenbrun has accomplished with the form of We’re All Going to the World’s Fair is akin to catching a wisp of smoke,” writes Willow, “because the images, mood and aesthetic that they have brought to life is one that is understood completely by trans people as one of familiarity, without also plunging into the obvious melodrama, or liberal back-patting that is usually associated with ‘good’ direct representation.” One of the most original, compelling new voices to emerge from Sundance this year. —AY

Judas and the Black Messiah Directed by Shaka King, written by King, Will Berson, Kenneth Lucas and Keith Lucas

It was always going to take a visionary, uncompromising filmmaker to bring the story of Fred Hampton, the deputy chairman of the national Black Panther Party, to life. Shaka King casts Daniel Kaluuya as Hampton, and LaKeith Stanfield as William “Wild Bill” O’Neal, the FBI informant whose betrayal leads to Hampton’s assassination. Both actors have never been better, particularly Kaluuya who Fran Hoepfner calls “entrancing, magnetic, fizzling, romantic, riveting, endlessly watchable.”

Judas and the Black Messiah is an electric, involving watch: not just replaying history by following a certain biopic template. Instead, it’s a film with something to say—on power, on fear, on war and on freedom. “Shaka King’s name better reverberate through the halls of every studio after this,” writes Demi. A talent like this, capable of framing such a revolution, doesn’t come around so often. We’d better listen up. —EK

Pleasure Directed by Ninja Thyberg, written by Thyberg and Peter Modestij

A24’s first purchase of 2021. Ironically titled on multiple levels, Pleasure is a brutal film that you endure more than enjoy. But one thing you can’t do is forget it. Ninja Thyberg’s debut feature follows a young Swedish woman (Sofia Kappel) who arrives in Los Angeles with dreams of porn stardom under the name ‘Bella Cherry’. Although Bella is clear-eyed about the business she’s getting into, Thyberg doesn’t shy away from any of the awfulness she faces in order to succeed in an industry rife with exploitation and abuse. Bella does make allies, and the film isn’t suggesting that porn is only stocked with villains, but the ultimate cost is clear, even if it ends on an ever-so-slightly ambiguous note.

Touching as it does on ambition, friendship and betrayal in the sex business, Pleasure is often oddly reminiscent of Paul Verhoeven’s Showgirls. Or rather, the gritty film Showgirls was claiming to be, as opposed to the camp classic it became. There’s nothing campy here. Kappel is raw and fearless in the lead, but never lets the viewer lose touch with her humanity. Emma puts it well: “Kappel gives the hardest, most provocative and transfixing performance I’ve seen all festival.” “My whole body was physically tense during this,” writes Gillian, while Keegan perhaps speaks for most when she says “Great film, never want to see it again.” —DC

Coming Home in the Dark Directed by James Ashcroft, written by Ashcroft and Eli Kent

A family camping trip amidst some typically stunnin—and casually foreboding— New Zealand scenery is upended by a shocking rug-pull of violence that gives way to sustained terror represented by Daniel Gillies’ disturbingly calm psychopath. The set-up of this thriller initially suggests a spin on the backwoods brutality thriller, but as Coming Home in the Dark progresses and hope dissipates, the motivations reveal themselves to be much more personal in nature, and informed on a thematic level by New Zealand’s colonial crimes against its Indigenous population. It’s a stark and haunting film that remains disorientating and unpredictable throughout, repeatedly daring the viewer to anticipate what will happen next, only to casually stomp on each glimmer of a positive outcome.

It’s so captivatingly bleak that a viewing of it, as Collins Ezeanyim’s eloquent reaction points out, does not lend itself to completing domestic tasks. The film marks an auspicious debut for director and co-writer James Ashcroft. Jacob writes that he “will probably follow James Ashcroft’s career to the gates of Hell after this one”. Justin hits the nail on the head with his description: “Lean and exceptionally brutal road/revenge film … that trades in genre tropes, especially those of Ozploitation and ’70s Italian exploitation, but contextualizes them in the dark history of its country of origin.” —DC

The World to Come Directed by Mona Fastvold, written by Ron Hansen and Jim Shepard

Mona Fastvold has not made the first, nor probably the last, period romance about forbidden lesbian love. But The World to Come focuses on a specific pocket in time, a world contained in Jim Shepard’s short story ‘Love & Hydrogen’ from within the collection giving the film its name. Katherine Waterston and Vanessa Kirby are Abigail and Tallie, farming neighbors, stifled by their husbands, who find brief moments of solace, of astonishment and joy, together. What shines here is the script, a verbose, delicate narration that emanates beauty more than pretence. “So beautifully restrained and yet I felt everything,” Iana writes.

And you can feel the fluidity and elegance in the way the film sounds, too: composer Daniel Blumberg’s clarinet theme converses with the dialogue and tells you when your heart can break, when you must pause, when the end is near. “So much heartache. So much hunger. So much longing. Waves of love and grief and love and grief,” writes Claira, capturing the ebb and flow of emotion that keeps The World to Come in your mind long after the screen has gone silent. —EK

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