prime warriors of change

"[D]on’t let anyone ever tell you that you are past your prime.”

~ Michelle Yeoh - Best Actress, “Everything Everywhere All at Once”

In a world of intrigue and envy what a joy these two delightful women carve for us. 

Michelle Yeoh & Jamie Lee Curtis

Twin flames in a world where an Asian actor and an Asian led movie winnig or losing doesn't have to represent a win or loss for a whole diaspora - carrying the weight of that history. 

poster of their award winning movie

We aren't there yet although these two shining stars have brought us closer. 

Lydia Gaston | actor, singer, arts educator

Bugal sang Banwa is a local term we use back home that translates to pride of our town. 

Whether that is her island home of Bacolod City, Negros Island or Brooklyn, New York; the Broadway stage or on the big screen - Lydia Gaston Greenberg has found her place in the sun and is shining bright. 

Lydia Gaston plays Jo Koy's mom Tita Susan

Actor, singer, and arts educator - she has succeeded where few dare to tread. She has carved a name for herself in bright lights and our hearts. 

wonder | wander | world is proud to have interviewed her recently - as we covered her decades of work on stage and on screen for Negros Season of Culture. 

Catch Lydia Gaston as comedian Jo Koy's mom Tita Susan in "Easter Sunday" #brava #kudos #congrats

kudos to Philippine independent cinema

In a true case of life being stranger than fiction, kudos to Philippine cinema and Filipino artists and creatives for these innovative films. 

Life on our islands have only gotten harsher and more bleak - caught between the rock that's such deep seated corruption in government and the hard place this virus and pandemic has put us all in. 

The Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival is a project of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) and the Cinemalaya Foundation, Inc. The all-digital film festival "aims to discover, encourage and honor cinematic works of Filipino filmmakers.”  

The festival runs from August 6 to September 5 - screening thirteen competing short films, Cinemalaya also presents the Premieres section - featuring four never before seen feature films by Filipino filmmakers. Available on on ktx.ph.

17th independent film festival

off the beaten path

As the world expands and explodes - ever growing, ever changing - finding pockets of peace or solitude is no longer easy to come by.

Whether it is your thing or not, viewing this precious video about what home means to an acclaimed and accomplished film maker may change that for you.

Amid massive urbanization and modernization, rural Japan persists in idiosyncratic corners, captured lovingly here in Yadorigi: A Village in Portraits.

London- and Tokyo-based director Eiji Iwakawa profiles three inhabitants of a small, secluded farming village in southern Japan.

Following the lives of an organic farmer, a junk collector and a circus trainer, each of them with his own distinct reasons for calling Yadorigi home.

* Also featured in Aeon.

American Epic

An extraordinary story of the trailblazing era when country-wide, the music of ordinary Americans was first recorded.

American Epic documents when America heard itself for the very first time. The three-part historical documentary and feature-length film showcases contemporary artists in rural recording sessions.

featured animation

This week's pick is the Oscar nominated film, Song of the Sea - a spellbinding ale bursting with magic, humor, and heart.

This animated feature film follows the story of a 10-year-old Irish boy named Ben (David Rawle) who discovers that his mute sister Saoirse, whom he blames for the apparent death of his mother, is a selkie who has to free faerie creatures from the Celtic goddess Macha.

Directed and co-produced by Tomm Moore.

The original music for the film was composed by Bruno Coulais, in collaboration with the Irish group, Kíla. The film also features songs by Nolwenn Leroy. A soundtrack album, consisting of 25 songs from the film, was released digitally on 9 December 2014, by Decca Records.

May this inspire and ignite more magic in us all!