04/02/21
This week: Professional exterminator-level parents saving their child, Tina Turner doc and moreTRENDS THIS WEEK
☞ Youtube Suez Canal Reopens
☞ Letterboxd THE FATHER
☞ TikTok #DoctorsofTikTok
☞ Spotify Lil Nas X - MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)
☞ Netflix BAD TRIP
☞ Twitter April Fools
Life & Culture
Two acts of violence left us shaken this week. In the third mass shooting in the U.S. in 16 days, a gunman killed four people—including a nine-year-old child—in Orange, CA on Wednesday. If you’re driven to action and looking to make a donation in support of gun safety advocacy, I recommend giving to Everytown, which works to reduce gun violence through both grassroots and policy work.
And on Tuesday, a 65-year-old Filipino woman was assaulted in broad daylight, a few blocks from Times Square, by a man yelling, “You don’t belong here!” before kicking her in the stomach. The violence itself is hard to watch, but just as troubling is the lack of action from the doormen and security guards standing feet away from her, who shut the building’s doors instead of intervening in any way. It’s another heart wrenching reminder of the different forms hate can take. And a good call to action for anyone who hasn’t taken bystander intervention training yet. It’s free (and virtual) through Hollaback!. Sign up here.
—Neha Gandhi, EVP Digital & Strategy
The casual game Among Us got a big update on Wednesday. The app, which came out in 2018 but didn’t see widespread popularity until the middle of last year, released a new map called The Airship. It’s the biggest map yet, and comes with a new moderation system and apparently some new hats. I honestly thought that the game had its 15 minutes back in October 2020 and would slowly fall out of orbit like ultra-popular mobile games of the past (ahem, Temple Run and 2048), but according to mobile intelligence provider Apptopia, that’s very much not the case: “monthly player retention has remained massive, reaching nearly as high as 200 million active users at the start of 2021.” Impressive.
I’m keeping it short this week, because I’m actually hidden away on a farm, taking a few vacation days, but I can’t leave you without my favorite TikToks: this America’s Funniest Home Videos-esque moment when a high school track runner gets into an unexpected accident, and these professional exterminator-level parents saving their child from the wrath of a spider.
—Darlene Kenney, Marketing Assistant
Film
One of my favorite films of last year, SHIVA BABY, is finally available for everyone to watch! This impressive debut film by Emma Seligman follows a young college student who attends a shiva (a Jewish memorial ritual), only to run into her sugar daddy... and her secret ex-girlfriend/high school best friend. Seligman does an incredible job capturing the awkwardness and claustrophobic nature of the encounter, and Rachel Sennott's performance as the titular sugar/shiva baby is laugh-out-loud funny. If somehow these women are not already on your radar, take note. And please, check out the film ASAP!!
—Julia Hammer, Creative Executive
I fell in love with the documentary TINA, following the life, music, and legacy of Tina Turner. As a young, Black woman, I grew up listening to her music and fully appreciate how much of an icon she is. However, this documentary dives deep into the 60s and 70s music scene, and thoroughly explores her personal life, excavating details I never knew about Tina Turner. We follow her rise to fame from such a young age, and get to see how her music truly shaped rock n’ roll. And we don’t shy away from the harrowing truths of Tina’s personal life, either. I was captivated by Tina’s juxtaposition of the emotional and physical abuse she endured offstage with the power she found in her performances on stage. Through interviews with celebrities like Oprah, Angela Bassett, and Tina herself, as well as snippets of her incredible live performances (Her dancing! Her energy!), this documentary on HBOMax definitely deserves a spot on your weekend watchlist!
—Erin Harris, Development Assistant
Theater
Jaqueline Novak's one-woman show GET ON YOUR KNEES is a strong candidate for my favorite live performance of 2019 (remember those??). It's a stand-up show that often felt more like a one-woman play, offering "a personal and intellectual history of oral sex" (thank you, NYT, for the delicate phrasing). More importantly: It's the funniest thing I've seen in years. And now, Novak is taking it on tour! She’s already announced dates for shows in Austin and Boston, and she should be making stops in London and Los Angeles as well. If you’re anywhere in the vicinity, run, don't walk!
—Julia Hammer, Creative Executive
Book
Rather than recommending a book this week, I wanted to take a second to talk about the amazing legacy of Beverly Cleary, who passed away last week. Her books are a gateway into the world of reading for so many children, and I know they were important to many of us here at Picturestart. If you haven't read Sarah Larson's 2016 New Yorker essay celebrating Cleary's 100th birthday, it's a great analysis of why her books struck such a chord: "Cleary was an early pioneer of emotional realism in children's writing, respecting young readers enough to write about the feelings provoked by the joys and embarrassments of the world as it was, for children and their allies, animals." We love you Beverly!
—Julia Hammer, Creative Executive
Podcast
This week, in light of Anna Young’s recent death, I recommend UCP Audio’s new podcast THE FOLLOWERS: HOUSE OF PRAYER. This podcast details the events leading up to cult leader Anna Young’s daughter telling the police that her mother had likely murdered a child years prior. This police report and subsequent investigation resulted in the indictment of Anna Young for multiple murders as well as a window into what life was like in the ‘House of Prayer’ cult. This series is heartbreaking and fascinating for anyone (like me) obsessed with the psychology of cults.
—Lucy Putnam, Creative Executive
