FAVELA ON BLAST

NYC Premier August 4th 2009
Tribeca Cinemas as part of the Brazilian Film Festival

Presented in 35 cities so far, plus another year to circulate the globe, the music documentary, “Favela on Blast” has been on a worldwide tour, exposing national and international audiences to the Rio de Janeiro phenomena of “funk carioca” .
The musical word “Funk” resonates many different meanings and interpretations across the world, but in Rio de Janeiro, funk is the face of the city. Funk is a type of dance music out of Rio, and it is also referred to as funk Carioca (Rio funk); it is a lifestyle and a culture, which for the past 20 years has defined the music of the Rio favelas. Recycling the music of the United States, “funk carioca” is a byproduct of the Brasilian (Rio) ghetto, to which everyone can be cultuarally connected.
“The first thing kids learn in the favela is funk culture”
This is a straightforward, humorous, unapologetic film, which depicts Rio’s, “funk” music, (also interpreted as “baile funk”) as the most natural outlet and creative response to life in the favela, by the people of the favelas. This documentary could have easily had turned into a typical “issues” film , but that is not the case at all. It isn’t that the antagonizing degradation of the favela life and social strains of these people are ignored, but the film organically shows that there is more to life in the favela, besides struggle and strife. Rather, the filmmakers, Leandro Hbl and Wesley Pentz (Diplo), find a genuine, natural balance to these elements and stay true to their vision of exposing a musical and cultural as something that is “cool” and exciting. “Favela on Blast” not only educates audiences about the history of funk carioca, how in the past twenty years this genre of music has blossomed from its Miami Bass derivative; but it highlights the numerous funk artists telling their own personal relationship to funk and what it means to them, and how it is shaping their future. The stories of seasoned DJs , as well as emerging artists on Rio’s funk scene are featured such as: MC Deise Tigrona, Mr. Catra, Mc Duda Do Borell, Mc Colibri, Mcs Gorila and Preto and Dj Sany Pitbull plus, many more. This documentary teaches about a sound that has been created in a city of violence and oppression. Funk carioca produces a livelihood for the musicians of this movement. The filmmakers show how these funk sounds unite the people and children of the Rio favela communities who breathe and live by the beats. The music is vulgar, fast, magnetic and provocative, which to some audiences, may be disconcerting or misinterpreted. But “Favela on Blast” defends the notion that it is not violence comes from baile funk. Baile funk is an outlet from the violence of the socially marginalized. These musicians, mothers, fathers, young women and men, and children are unapologetic, and proud of the music that comes from their home. “Favela on Blast” epitomizes how, without even realizing it, the people of the Rio favelas have reinvented a sound that is crossing boundaries and borders , that has put Rio on the map, and has created a movement that will not fade away.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Suspended Cirque’s latest performance Urbanopolis at the Galapagos Art Space tells the story of a young man who enters into an urban  labyrinth where he meets over the top creatures . Urbanopolis is a different kind of performance as it incorporates dance, singing, musical instruments  along with amazing aerial  acrobatics.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The master-mind and curator behind P.S. 1’s Summer event Warm-Up, musician Zach Layton, brings together  the underground music sounds of New York City with stunning visual architectural pieces from P.S. 1’s contemporary art center. Every Saturday starting July 4 and ending September 5 the Warm-Up summer series merged the sounds of djs from all over the country with contemporary installations.  The courtyard was transformed as it became jam packed with musicians, composers, music lovers, artists and families. Every year Warm-Up brings people from all over together as a way to enjoy the summer fresh air, set to music, while exploring the amazing architectural pieces and exhibitions from the 2009 winners of young  architects program.

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These days everyone has something to share, and they do it all online with their blogs, facebooks, twitters, etc.  Tumblr is the blogging platform described to be ‘the easiest way to share yourself online’.  Many people seem to have found their blogging niche on Tumblr- from artists, writers, designers, photographers, and musicians.  For those who claim they don’t know what Tumblr is, they’ve probably found themselves reading a tumblelog at some point, with users such as Katy Perry, Pete Wentz, and Black Book, among others utilizing the service for their blogs.

Tumblr recently tapped into the talented pool of musicians on the site by throwing their first musical showcase at The Gramercy Theater, aptly titled “Reblog This Concert”.  The community aspect of the site was not overlooked, as they posted a call for bands to participate in the show.  The final line-up featured Shinobi Ninja, Bamboo Shoots and The Urgency, with DJ sets from DJ Machine and Bearbot.

We rocked to the bands as they rocked the stage, rocked out with the bands backstage, and talked to Tumblr founder David Karp about his amazing blogging platform.

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Steve and Rhema Trayner are the founders of the Maven Collective, a retail pop-up team serving the public trendy fashion lines at affordable and discounted prices. They are rightfully named “mavens” of their profession, catering to the American notion of immediate gratification with their pop-up locations and impromptu forms of advertisement, including word of mouth, twitter or grabbing a local off the street to work a sandwich board advertisement.

Their high-end collections briefly take up a raw space in the group’s cities of choice and are packed up and off to a new city days later. The Maven Collective has made appearances in cities such as NYC, LA, Orange County, and San Francisco.