Nanalew lives here.

Handful of puff.

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 00:16:31 -0400

Handful of puff.

Fluff face

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 19:42:52 -0400

Fluff face

hermionejg: Who’s that dude on the far right? I’ve watched all...

Sat, 15 Jun 2013 23:53:06 -0400

hermionejg:

Who’s that dude on the far right? I’ve watched all The West Wing episodes at least twenty times and I swear he’s not in any of them.

imposter alert imposter alert WHOOOP WHOOOP

tessaviolet: nanalew: My thoughts on women in film. Started...

Sat, 15 Jun 2013 23:49:43 -0400

tessaviolet:

nanalew:

My thoughts on women in film. Started paying attention to this for the past few years and found most female characters fall into one of these categories. Thank goodness not all of them do.

I think about this constantly. I could seriously talk about this forever but I’m not going to bother because Shawna wrapped it up much more concisely than I would have. Maybe I’ll make a super long post about this someday.

I await this day.

Photo

Sat, 15 Jun 2013 23:47:48 -0400

Photo

Sat, 15 Jun 2013 23:45:12 -0400

toxicnotebook: KNAPP The Post-War collection A/W 2012/2013

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 21:52:10 -0400

toxicnotebook:

KNAPP The Post-War collection A/W 2012/2013

via mistressofheight (on “Cho Chang”)

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:40:00 -0400

via mistressofheight (on “Cho Chang”)

Photo

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:39:39 -0400

This brings up a few interesting points. I’m gonna do my...

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:27:00 -0400

This brings up a few interesting points. I’m gonna do my best to sort my thoughts into a decent order, so bear with me here.

1. When I have been talking about women in film, I have been talking primarily about lead or important supporting roles. In terms of minor roles, it’s okay for a character to be seemingly one-sided, because that is simply all the time they are given.

2. I don’t actually think Cho is painfully one-sided for being a pretty minor character. We actually know a few things about her: she is intelligent, athletic, courageous, and well-liked (the list goes on). She expresses depth (her feelings before and after Cedric’s death and the relation he has to her feelings towards Harry). All in all, she seems to be a solid minor character to me. She’s no enigma, but she’s not meant to be. She serves her purpose.

3. The race card. I never gave a thought to Cho being misrepresented until I saw a spoken word video from a girl talking about her frustrations with the one Asian character and how she felt she was portrayed poorly, one example being Cho and Chang both being Korean surnames when Cho was meant to be Chinese. She called out JK Rowling on a few things, and this struck me very deeply due to the fact that I’m sure Jo Rowling absolutely did not meant offend anyone and was just exercising her creative freedom when she wrote “Cho” and “Chang”. However, to a reader who cared about Asian cultures and their portrayal, this came across as an insult, especially in light of the fact that Jo painstakingly researched her OTHER names. How could she have made that mistake? If it wasn’t a mistake, why didn’t she choose an actual Chinese name? Did she not think that would be important to millions of Chinese boys and girls reading the book? Why didn’t she write more Asian characters?

I can answer none of these things. I can only say it made me think hard about how I want to portray my characters. It reminded me that no matter what I choose, it will be picked apart. And I’d better be freaking sure about my choices and then firmly stand by them, because I owe myself and my readers that much, even if we disagree with one another.

As for Cho Chang—she seems to be a perfectly fine minor character to me. But the points the girl referenced still pop up in my head whenever I think about her and have challenged me as a creator.

Thoughts on Women in Film (Part 2)

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:56:19 -0400

Q. What are some examples of realistic, or in your opinion “good”, portrayals of women in film?

A: Any time a woman is represented as a complex human being.

Here are some examples in the drama, comedy, thriller, and action genres:

Everyone in “Girl, Interrupted”
Everyone in “Inglourious Basterds”
Everyone in “The Hunger Games”
Everyone in the “Harry Potter” series
Everyone in “The Royal Tenenbaums”
Everyone in “Stick It”
Everyone in “Never Let Me Go”
Ellen Page in “Hard Candy”

See? It’s not hard. You just write them as a complex person and you’re off to a good start.

Thoughts on a writer's responsibility to stop "whitewashing" characters

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:43:00 -0400

Q: Do you think its your responsibility as a creator/artist to give more opportunities to people of colour or people who are not well represented in the media?

A: I think it’s my responsibility as an artist to paint the most complex, beautiful, interesting piece I can. And for that I need to include many different types of people. I’m concepting a series right now, and to make sure I am not leaning into something too whitewashed, I keep an ethnicity chart, making sure I am making the characters as different and interesting as I can.

With that said, I wouldn’t change a character who was formulated as they were for a reason. Meaning if all the characters in a story were Asian, black, white, etc for a solid reason, I wouldn’t compromise on it. But that has to be an important reason.

Also it’s good to keep in mind the resources of the creator. If I were to make the series above with FOX or NBC, I would have access to thousands of talented actors of many different ethnicities. I’d have my pick of the litter, and I would be sure I could find a very talented actor in the race I specified in writing. But in independent film, you often have to cast what you have at your disposal, meaning whoever is the strongest performer is the one you often have to go with, regardless of their race.

What I’m saying is many, many things affect a story-teller’s ability to tell their story properly. Maybe a network is dictating who can be what race. Maybe a creator has looked everywhere and can’t find the right actor in the race they wanted. Regardless, it comes down to the artist to make the call on what they will or will not compromise on and to stick by that.

My thoughts on women in film. Started paying attention to this...

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:08:00 -0400

My thoughts on women in film. Started paying attention to this for the past few years and found most female characters fall into one of these categories. Thank goodness not all of them do.

abasnail: that’s what I call a traffic jam

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 17:51:42 -0400

abasnail:

that’s what I call a traffic jam

Hey is that famous bridge in Switzerland? I think I have been...

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 17:30:06 -0400

Hey is that famous bridge in Switzerland? I think I have been here.

Thoughts on Death Note and Dark Themes in Art

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 13:07:00 -0400

I was asked the question below a few moments ago on ask.fm. I felt compelled to answer it as a writer, a human being, a lover of good cinema, a fan of Death Note, and a follower of Christ. I feel this is particularly important, so I am sharing it here as well.

Q: Did you know that there have been copycat Death-Note crimes? Your show propagates hate, even violence, especially amongst teens and adolescents.

A: The show is about how absolute justice should not be in the hands of an individual because that individual will inevitably act in a corrupt manner. It is about how man is not God. It is about a myriad of things. Ultimately, just because someone misinterprets something’s theme or takes a terrible spin on it doesn’t negate its importance or its need to be said. In order to show light, an artist has to show darkness in its totality. And when he does this adeptly, there will be misappropriators of it. For every person who took away the opposite of its intent, thousands came away with a more complex view of morality and human nature and were bettered because of it. We interpret things how we do with OUR brains and then act accordingly. Welcome to the world of art; don’t make the mistake of blaming it, the looking-glass, for the existence of the world’s darkness.

I know how to party.

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 20:09:44 -0400

I know how to party.

jppcouto: It is reported that veteran voice actor Kenji Utsumi...

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 17:40:46 -0400

jppcouto:

It is reported that veteran voice actor Kenji Utsumi passed away at 15:01 today (June 13th) due to cancerous peritonitis, age 75. He debuted as a voice actor in 1963 and has appeared in many roles, the most famous being Senbei Norimaki in “Dr. Slump”, Raoh in “Hokuto no Ken” and more recently Alex Louis Armstrong from all animes and movies of “Fullmetal Alchemist” franchise. He also served as voice actor in dubbing of foreign movies and as narrator in TV programs. He is survived by his wife, Michiko Nomura, a voice actress.

R.I.P.

I watched 26 episodes of Death Note today

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 23:31:00 -0400

I think I might be dying.

buddhabuns: nanalew: holme-of-the-supernatural: You go...

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 12:12:21 -0400

buddhabuns:

nanalew:

holme-of-the-supernatural:

You go Jennifer Lawrence!!!

Her dedication to not changing herself to be Hollywood thin makes me feel… better.

Yeah but her skinny shaming amongst the other things she’s done kinda cancels out any hope I ever gained from her.

Certainly, no one should make statements shaming a particular body shape no matter the type. But from the things I’ve seen her say, it sounds like she is talking about the grotesque nature of the Hollywood standard, not calling naturally thin women grotesque themselves. At least, that is what I’ve seen from her and what seems to be her intention. It’s easy to be misunderstood or to say things out of passion when you’re so affected by them.