TANJONG RHU (The Casuarina Cove)

Teddy and the short films

Parallel to the Berlinale, we have the Teddys. It is the official gay movie festival, ending by a price distribution and a party at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt. I have a bad experience with the Berlinale actually. It is a time when the center of the city (and especially Potsdamer Platz) is overcrowded, all expecting to see a movie star, long gone to another place on a private jet. The system of having tickets for the films is complicated as well. I waited one hour outside in the freezing cold to get ticket I never obtained. A colleague of mine took a week off, just to be able to see movies at the festival. She has friends in the place, so I thought It would be easier for her to reach the target. Because It’s a real fight. Only to understand the program, make the selection of what you want to see, trying to get tickets, reaching the point, for me just forget, I’m off. The colleague did not succeeded with her program and just went to see movies she could access. I, because I had A. coming over for the week-end, managed to buy tickets on internet for the short film festival of the Teddy queer film award. That was Sunday afternoon, It was snowing you can’t believe and we almost missed it because I was wrong with the time. It took place at the kino international, It’s also one of the reason I wanted to go because A. never went there and It belongs to the city. The theatre was full but started to empty itself after each break. Actually, I’m not surprised because I was disappointed as well by the program. It’s probably good from the cinematographer point of view but from mine, was not. Only 4 of them were interesting and this is my selection :

1) gevald. Israel 2008, short film, Teddy
Ein queeres Musical: Die einzige Queer-Bar in Jerusalem heißt „Shushan“. Hier spielt der Film an einem Novemberabend 2006. Am nächsten Tag soll eine private „Pride Parade“ stattfinden, nachdem ein größerer Umzug abgesagt werden musste: Religiöse Organisationen hatten Gewalt angedroht. Doch an diesem Abend wechselt eine gläubige Frau die Seite …
2) dish, USA 2008 short film, Teddy
Zwei Emos im Osten von Los Angeles. Sie tratschen über die sexuellen Es­ka­paden der anderen. Nachdem Israel von Louie alles erfahren hat, möchte der unerfahrene Israel endlich auch mitreden können. Prämisse ist, dass die Haare bleiben, wie sie sind.
3) the island Canada 2009, Teddy
Der Filmemacher hat einen Brief bekommen: Warum sich nicht alle Schwulen endlich auf eine Insel verziehen, um sich da gegenseitig mit Aids anzustecken. Trevor Anderson begibt sich auf das Eis und entwirft ein schwu­les Szenario mit Happy End. Ein animierter essayistischer Erzählfilm.
4) tanjong rhu, singapur, 2008, Teddy
Ein ehemaliger Offizier will einen Dokumentarfilm über einen Mann drehen, mit dem er sich vor Jahren heimlich am Strand von Tanjong Rhu getroffen hat. Dieser Strand ist ein beliebter Schwulentreff in Singapur. 1993 wurden hier zwölf Männer verhaftet und später zu Haftstrafen verurteilt. Dieses Ereignis bildet den Hintergrund dieser filmischen Fiktion.

I was truly amazed by this one and the level of profesionalism the director possesses when you know he is still at school. I hope he will go far and we can follow his carreer. Furthermore the subject he chooses is not that simple, especially in Singapore. Outside his niceness, It is a country where It is still difficult to be gay.

On Time

Instantanés

Network

I never really got into social networks, (facebook, …) or any chat on internet thanks to a profile you made yourself (gayromeo, …). First, I don’t understand what It is for. Second, I don’t know how to use it. Third, I just will get crazy just by the idea that some people I don’t (and never will) know have access to my life. That is the scary thing. Of course I guess the first idea you have when you create such a thing, is to share with your friends the latest news, even when you’re at work and even when you’re just meters away. There are people in your life certainly you don’t want to meet anymore and knowing that those people, just by clicking on the mouse, you show them your latest update of your face, bothers me. Don’t forget you can do the same too. It works. So be aware. Facebook declared this week that any contents will be its own, forever. As soon as you download a pic, a name, whatever, It does not belong to you anymore but to the site. They changed their general sales conditions. Of course, they tried to negate but read carefully. They protect themselves saying that when you send a message, 2 copies are created. One is sent, the other one stays in the file “sent”. Even if you delete your profile, the copy will always stay. As well as all files you download, will stay for ever and ever the property of the web site. And this web site can do whatever It wishes with all those files. Impressive. In the end, what do you do with Facebook ? posting pictures, chatting with friends, making links with people you will never talk ? looking lives which do not belong to yours ? And what do you do with a profile on gayromeo ? looking at men you’ll never get ? afraid of a contact, you don’t even answer when someone’s taking contact with you ? disappointed that no one is taking contact with you ? looking endlessly to profiles that do not match yours ? all this is useless and dangerous. I asked a friend of mine, since he has his profile on gayromeo the last 3 years, how many men he met ? 2. really. 2. and all is fine by him. But it costs him money, the site is not for free, you spend hours on it for nothing, or worse, having the idea you lost your time when you succeed to switch it off and It’s already late to go to bed, red eyes due to the screen. Go out for a drink and talk to the guys at the bar. You have more chances.

Signs part 1

Signs part 2

A thousand words

Yellow Monday

So, It is already Sunday evening and It is time to have look on my agenda and see what the week will look like. It starts tomorrow with the new session of the Yellow Lounge. I am very excited about it for many reasons. The last session was last year and we wait for it. It takes place a new time in berghain, and I like the place everytime, the acoustic is good, though It is an old electricity factory and the menu looks, a new time, interesting. Rundfunkchor Berlin will make the event. Can't wait to hear what they will play. Doors open at 9:00 p.m but as usual, the time everybody comes in, order a drink, say hello to friends, the start wil not be punctual.

The Hunger

I always liked The Hunger, from the first time I saw it at the theatre in 1983 and It has a space on my preferred list of movies I easily see. What amazes me is that I learned lately It is a cult movie ! I never thought about it because outside of the wonderful cast, It is not a very good one but I guess It leaves a nice trace of what the stylish 80's were. It is the story of a bizarre love triangle between a doctor (Susan Sarandon) who specializes in sleep and aging research, and a stylish vampire couple (Catherine Deneuve and David Bowie). The film is a loose adaptation of the 1981 novel of the same name by Whitley Strieber, with a screenplay by Ivan Davis and Michael Thomas. The Hunger was director Tony Scott's first feature film. The Hunger was not particularly well-received on its release, and was attacked by many critics for being heavy on atmosphere and visuals but slow on pace and plot. Roger Ebert, for example described it as "an agonizingly bad vampire movie". However, the film soon found a cult following that responded to its dark, glamorous atmosphere. The Bauhaus song Bela Lugosi's dead plays over the introductory credits and beginning (I love it, you want to be there). The film is popular with some segments of the goth subculture, and spawned the short-lived TV anthology series of the same name. By the way, the parties last night were fabulous.

Instantanés

The preheat's danger

As usual, the plans for the night changed. Because It is the Berlinale, the friend I was supposed to meet at SO36 said he would probably be late. Actually he had another party before and I guess he stayed there. I didn't go neither because what was supposed to be my first part of the evening, what another friend of mine calls a "before" or "preheat", last until 5.00 a.m. So of course it was too "early" to carry on and truly said, I was not in good shape. I even kissed a straight guy (he asked for it), so you can imagine how well It went. I also forgott my first appointment of the day but apologies, it is postponed. All this happened in KMA 36, where I don't go that often but it is true, in summer, the terrasse is worth the walk and It is just in front of Klub International, so I rarely hesitate. The vodka martinis are excellent, and the bar’s architecture alone is worth the visit—this former GDR cosmetics studio is an open constructivist glass box that would rank with the best of Warsaw Pact design. Glowing bright at night, the bar has a simplicity and inclusiveness that belie its ridiculous roots. it is a beautiful bar with two levels in a see through cubic shape. The scenery around the venue alone is worth the ride. The buildings, which were build to show off the glories of communism are among the most particular sights Berlin has to offer. But tonight, promise, I will go to Moebel Olfe party, one of the highlight of the year, truly. I can't miss it and I asked so many people to come that I must be there, though I have a "preheat" (very early actually) at CSA Bar. Can't wait for Monday to start again !

Tonight's party

Tonight at SO36, the party will be nasty.

We're all gonna die

We're all gonna die is a project of the photographer Simon Hoegsbert. During 20 days, he put his camera on the bridge of Warschauer Strasse in Berlin. This bridge is the link between the S-Bahn (train station) and the U-Bahn (metro station). So thousand of people walk on it everyday. The photographer took in picture those people and selected 178 of them. He created then a frieze of 100 meters long and you can see the result by clicking on the link. He said that most of the people were not aware of being taken in picture.

How many of them can you recognize ?

World's Most Famous Men/Women

Le Hamster Raggot. Version française

Armageddon!!... the gerbil

The Stammtisch concept

The stammtisch is normally a bar. It’s a place usually around the corner when you like to go when you don’t feel like staying home and you want to have a drink. The place can offer food as well so when you have nothing to eat or you just don’t want to cook, your fridge is empty, you go downstairs and order a little thing to eat. It’s the place your friends know they will find you there: It’s the place where all know they can give you an appointment and the bar keeper know how to welcome everyone you bring in. I tried to find a translation for the word bur didn’t find any good one. There are in the German language such words you can’t translate correctly. Sometimes It happens that people who come in the bar come often so you meet more or less the same people and It helps you to make new contacts. And It’s the bar you like to bring new people into, just because you’re happy to share. I think that I finally found my Stammtisch. It’s called Bariton and I talked about it a few days ago.

Instantanés

The president's wife

Is President’s wife Sarkozy, Carla Bruni, as well a president ? Named ambassador of the world fond for fight against Aids on December 1st, 2008, she participated the other day at a gala dinner to raise money against Aids. It is obvious that this role is dedicated to her as a President’s spouse and we only can be happy of the public help she ‘s bringing to the fight against Aids. However, her implication in the public life is sometimes contested. Those last days, she had to intervene in the medias to claim that she has nothing to do with the decision of Brazil, not to extrude to Italy the ex-left extreme activist Battisti. Not to mention last October, she dealt with Petrella not to be extruded to Italy, making her husband changed his opinion he took in July 2008. It’s not me to debate about the positions she’s taking. But she surely plays a role and some ask more and more themselves about the influence she could have on her husband. This is nothing very strange. Spouses at the top of the state play an important role. We’re easily thinking of Cécilia Sarkozy, Hillary Clinton, or Michelle Obama and if we look at History, we could easily make a list of Queens of France, like Catherine de Médicis or Anne de Bretagne, who play a crucial role. But, what looks like more or less acceptable for a monarchy, appears more strange in a republic. In fact, in a republic, power comes form the people, at least officially, and is given for a determined time to a person as president. We vote for this person and not for a couple. From this point of view, ye can ask ourselves at which title intervene presidents’ spouses. There is here a certain difficulty. French Constitution leaves no political role for a president’s wife, which is logical, but the public loves those pictures of the presidential couple, head of the state, and we find absolutely normal to see France represented abroad by Mr and Mrs Sarkozy. After all, It’s common sense and we do the same in almost every country in the world. We vote for a man, but we expect a woman too. Is this good republican ?

Let's do this !