Otelo Burning - First Wednesday Film Club

If you can't wait until the country wide cinema release of Otelo Burning on 11 May, then shimmy along to First Wednesday Film Club at Atlas Studios on Wednesday 2 May

It is worth it. Then go see at cinema's when it opens. Support!, you know.

This made me smile

She [the one whom we have to curb our obsession for] sent this passage to me. From a notable book she is reading. She, it, all of it made me feel whole. She said I personified the first passage. I felt seen.

So I read this

 Then I saw this. It feels like it was made for the above paragraph.

Paige Bradley sculpture

Then I listened to this

http://www.reverbnation.com/play_now/song_6960757

I feel whole

Otelo Burning is a must see

Waves of emotion, human truth, angst, excitement and the internal wars we have when faced with right and wrong versus what is the best way to live is told beautifully through the story of three young men in the KwaZulu Natal township of Lamontville in 1989, as they navigate growing up in apartheid South Africa; young boys becoming men through blood covered streets and discovering their passion surfing.
These waves crashed onto the big screen,  enveloped me and transported me to a world of Freedom where there was none.

Otelo Burning showed me beautifully that even though humans are fallible creatures, all of us in all that we do look for and experience beauty in life; we are moved by beauty in all forms. What makes us feel alive is this beauty - be it the young men escaping on the waves offered by the sea, or the beauty in one of them falling in love, the beauty in the other discovering his love of capturing life's incredible kinetic moments in stills; beauty and experiencing it drove them. I believe, and I saw this confirmed in the movie; experiencing the adrenalin of life through something you love makes you feel like you can handle almost anything.

Otelo Burning is based on various true life experiences of the people who were in Lamontville in '89, with a golden thread being Sihle Xaba,  who is a lifeguard and surfer in real life, and one of the lead actors in the film,  and so the story of Lamontville in that time is carried by him and the tumultuous and enigmatic ocean and the conversation she has with all who touch her. Quite brilliant.

The acting is powerful and flawless, so much so that you are transported from being a viewer to the being in the very pulse of each character. Jafta, Thomas and Sihle were perfectly cast for the lead roles. I could feel each performers exhilaration, pain, joy, anxiety, happiness and fear. It is a well shot story told extremely well. The movie is gripping from the very first second, gritty, with a stirring and poetic script, beautiful cinematography and incredible soundtrack (Please download the amazing mixtape)

My initial and only criticism was that the English subtitles didn't quite capture the Zulu script, but I then came to realise that this made me proud in a strange way. I'm not an isiZulu speaker, but I understand it because it is close to isiXhosa. I fell in love with the language for the first time. The metaphorical and riveting way in which the language allows for communication further carried the film and I loved that it would be impossible to perfectly translate into the less developed and less emotional language like English.

Otelo burning is an amazing movie that I will see again and again.

Think of waves; Soft, inviting, hard, crashing, flowing, breathtaking, mesmerising, enigmatic, powerful, enveloping, moving, escapism and freedom - OTELO BURNING is all of that.

www.oteloburning.com
Out in cinemas 11 May 2012

Sihle Xaba

Thomas, Sihle, Jafta

Word on the street: Idris Elba

Word on the street is that my husband Idrissa Akuna Elba is in Cape Town. Since end of March.

Dear Idris. If you come to Joburg now, we can be wed by your 40th Birthday....

Source - Driis

The way I objectify this man's man is despicable! but delicious.

Yum: Rock Wednesdays at Dukes Greenside

You know about my burger heaven right?
I've talked about it here and here...

A few weeks ago, the kind people at Dukes invited the Ogilvy and SaysWho teams over for lunch to thank us for designing and creating the new look Rock Wednesday Menu.
The Wednesday only menu is a collaboration with DSTV music channel MK,  the heavenly burger joint and popular South African bands - together they came up with fantastic creative meals exclusive to Dukes.

On this particular afternoon, I couldn't decide between two offerings:
The Pestroy and The Bittereinder. Ended up with the latter. So delicious. So much flavour.

 Yum with Gin, tonic and cucumber....

You neeed to go. Every day, but particularly on Wednesdays.

Will post more of the menu later

I think I like this hairstyle....

Maybe after this current bangs-bob hairstyle,  I'm thinking I could try this one...

The wonderful Miss Sunshine Shibambo

A bite at Great Dane, Braamfontein

Mili and I had a fabulous (albeit short) lunch session  a couple weeks ago. She had suggested Great Dane in Braamfontein (we both had never been but had heard whispers from some cool kids).

It is a new spot that (according to some local blogs and articles) opened sometime in March. It's right next door to Kitcheners and opposite the Neighbourgoods Market location.

We sat out in the quiet court yard on mismatched chairs and had a recycled wooden table to place our phones, smokes and things. (recycled: I can't remember what it was exactly, i just remember knowing it was a re-purposed something)
I especially loved the indoor floor made completely of Bronze 5c coins. So cool.

Their menu, which might not be the most famous thing right now (alcohol is more popular), is made up of gourmet hot dogs. Gourmet hot dogs. There were about 15 or so yummy-reading items. I had the 'Aloha' with chilli, pineapple, bacon, onion and some other deliciousness I can't quite recall at this moment. (Yes, I should have blogged it sooner)

Yumm

Will be back

Pieces by Pap - Siyabonga Ngwekazi

"no one knows what it means but its provocative, it gets the people going"

Found out yesterday that Siyabonga Ngwekazi aka ScoopMakhathini was launching his new label, Pieces by Pap, that he designed..
FOMO is not my friend, so I made missions to gatecrash the soiree at Arts on Main last night, and so very glad I did.

Pieces by Pap is a baby I think has been long overdue. Siya is incredibly stylish young man who has conversations with the world through his attire. This impresses me especially because I believe that 'expression is the key to our reality' and this multi-talented young man was due to share his style and expression with the world through fashion he creates.

Thomas Gumede, friend, comedian and co-star of reality show Forever Young,  was the MC for the evening, and introduced his friend as only Thomas can, with humour and respect and awe-inspiring love that filled the room. His pride could not be missed.
Scoop then thanked us for being there and introduced us to 4 samples of his men's pieces. I apologise for not taking any picture of the items.

Fish Eagle was part sponsor of the evening, and I was pleasurably distracted by this Fish Eagle ginger cocktail that I just couldn't get enough of.

The evening was rather enjoyable, met some fantastic people, including the refreshing empress and iSangoma @Noksangoma,  caught up with some other lovely people I hadn't seen in a while. Twas fun.

Here are the pictures I did manage to take.

 Lethabo 'Boogy' Maboi of Trunks and Cast, was in the BEST outfit of the night!

 Phuti laced the beats. Check her out on Soundcloud

And of course, the man of the moment.

African Print shoes by Maria McCloy

I absolutely love these gorgeous African print shoesies I got from the ever gracious Maria McCloy
She has different styles, fabrics and shapes. From pumps to wedges and these brogues. Gorgeous!

You should visit her stall at the Sunday Market on Main and see some more of her beautiful wares on sale.
Her stall always has the best gems at incredibly affordable prices.

Thanks Maria

Sundays in The City - 8 April

Guess where you and I will be this Sunday?......

I Said No: Fuck Rape

Seeing this screen grab made me feel like there were some sane people in the world who instead of telling people to not get raped, focus the energy on teaching people to not rape. Shifting the blame to the victims has  always been something that completely boggles my mind - it never will be the victims fault. No one 'asks' for it.Rape and sexual abuse stats are at such alarmingly high rates that people have almost become numb to the crime.

By the way. If you are a survivor, or near survivor, you can share your story, read other shared posts, find information on help centres and resources over here: www.isaidno.co.za (anonymous or not) - 


I said No is an initiative to Break the culture of silence. Victim shaming, anadded pain to the stripping of dignity and security that rape does, has become a norm, and survivors, for that and many more reasons, do not report their rapes and or sexual abuse. Let's end this, let's talk about it, let's stop the disrespect of people's bodies. 

Okay, done preaching (for now).
Head on over to ISaidNo - heartbreaking but necessary

And now... a moving PSA

Once...

Hey You
You with the piercing eyes, hair that tickled me gently, skin so soft and smooth, lips that loved all of me...
You with that beautiful mind, complicated soul, voice that carried so many stories untold
You,  I liked getting entangled with in conversation and coitus
I really liked your company, and making out with you

Source

           

we are connected

“We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men; and among those fibers, as sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and they come back to us as effects.” 
― Herman Melville

source: my friend's bbm pic which means he got it from the interwebs somewhere. Claim it

Logos with secret meanings

I love clever designs with lots of hidden things that don't necessarily jump out at you immediately.
Buzzfeed collected a few fantastic logos that have hidden meanings; some I'd never realised before. The use of negative spaces to create images fascinates me.

See the hand that makes "my"

Baskin Robbins has 31 ice cream flavours - see the number

See the city between the legs

Check out the rest = http://www.buzzfeed.com/ivanr4/great-logos-with-a-secret-meaning-1uq3

Dear Idea slash brain fart

Dear awesome idea
Please do not leave me
We fell in love, you excited me and gave me chills down my spine
I know I haven't thought about with focus in a few days, and I can feel you whispering your goodbye
Please forgive me
Please stay.

Source

Otelo Burning Mixtape

Much anticipated (by me) Otelo Burning Mixtape, produced by my hero Tumi of Tumi and The Volume is OUT!

Otelo burning is... (watch the trailor tu) - from what I picked up,  an incredible goose-bump creating story shot locally about township boys in the 80's who took to surfing during a tumultuous time in SA history. "Freedom is a revolution"

The mixtape features some of my favourite artists like Zaki Ibrahim, Samthing Soweto, Tumi and Tiago. I haven't had a moment to download yet (slow internet and all) but I already know it is a must listen!

www.oteloburning.com

Can't wait to catch the flick from 11 May.

Blog of the moment

“the free soul is rare, but you know it when you see it - basically because you feel good, very good, when you are near or with them.” 
― Charles Bukowski, Tales of Ordinary Madness

I've featured her in the Creative Activist section of my blog
I've highlighted her blog before - a beautiful collection of herself, fashion around the world, showcasing of creativity and the life of the 1st princess of fashion!

One of the most wonderful, creative and fabulous women this country has produced - Milisuthando Bongela aka MissMilliB.

She's one of the featured CNN Millenials, she's a store owner, she's a writer, she's a fashion heavyweight, she's my friend and light.

Click and enjoy:
Creative Activist: Mili
www.missmillib.blogspot.com
Millenials Episode
Mememe Store
@Missmillib