#17: but i'm still young at heart. why are you laughing. please stop
Welcome to issue #17 of THIS NEWSLETTER CANNOT SAVE YOU. Tomorrow night - Saturday, May 14 - is my birthday, and if you're not doing anything, maybe you'll drop by my Twitch channel to watch some of my favorite things. If you like short films, I'm showing a selection of animated & live action highlights from 7-9pm (all times are PST); if you like music videos, I'm showing a set of my favorites from 9-11pm; and if you like weird little comedies and trippy animations and absurdist video art, I'm showing a selection from 11pm-1am. I don't expect anyone to show up for all or even most (or frankly, if I'm being honest, any) of this, but like I mentioned, if you haven't got better entertainment lined up, you might enjoy what I've got in the works. It's the Good Stuff<TM>. Jump on the Twitch channel to say hi, or just pipe the stream to your TV and ignore the chat if you like.
Highlights from Scottoworld
(i love this guy's work, everyone asks me "who's your favorite writer/director" and i'm like "without question it's yes yes yes good vibes yes yes yes")
The big news from the last couple weeks is that I finished reviewing the copy edit of the Next Book, which technically I can't tell you about yet. But it's already listed for preorder on Barnes & Noble's site (haven't checked anywhere else), so theoretically you could go find the marketing blurb if you were so inclined. I'm super excited about this book. It's potentially the definitive take on a bunch of ideas I've been iterating on for a long time. Also it's a rip roaring science fantasy adventure. It's due out next February.
I'm finally back in the swing of planning the Next Next Book, now that rewrites and copy edits on the Next Book are complete. I don't yet know how or when or if this book will see the light of day. Fingers crossed.
Scottovision
Let's get right to it then, for as usual, I have many things to share, and I can only hope you have time to enjoy any of them before the coming catastrophes.
"Eagles Are Turning People Into Horses: The Movie" (2008) - Someone on Reddit asked if there were any short films on YouTube of the caliber of the master filmmakers of old, like Bergman or Truffault or Tartovsky, and some wiseass posted this. It's so incredibly silly, and clearly cost around four dollars to make, but friends, I LOL'd. This is what you do in film school apparently.
"Cool Blue Car" (2022) - Surrealist filmmaker and Adult Swim staple Alan Resnick returns with this short film, about a man's love for his car, and the woman who shows up to his home without warning and demands to rent it. Maybe you saw "Unedited Footage of a Bear," one of the Adult Swim "infomercials" series that included "Too Many Cooks," or his classic short films "May I Please Enter" and "What Codec Should I Use?" This is that guy.
"Alyssa Learns To Drive" (2022) - Two women suffer life-threatening injuries, and it's up to their friend Alyssa to drive them to the hospital before they die. But Alyssa doesn't know how to drive. Also she may not be their friend. Directed by Maegan Houang, who directed several music videos for Mitski.
"Tick Tick Tick" (2020) - An educational film about how to be a good worker bee goes steadily off the rails, prompting uncomfortable questions from one lonely nonconformist. If you've ever worked in a corporate office... well, this is only superficially similar, but there's a theme somewhere in there that you'll recognize I'm sure. Brought to you by Falsetooth Films; I've seen three of their short films now, and this is my favorite so far.
"Monsieur Cachemire" (2022) - Official description: "A mysterious and eccentric man walks into a bank to ask for a hefty loan and to summon dark secrets from the past." Will the man's staid banker take the bait and join him on one last quest to find fabled treasure deep in the heart of the jungle? Dark comedy to be sure. Directed by Iouri Philippe Paillé.
"Playscape" (2022) - A combination dance/fashion film, directed by and starring FKA twigs, choreographed by Juliano Nunes, in honor of the seven finalists for the 2022 International Woolmark Prize (a fashion prize for best use of Merino wool, obviously). The official description says this film is "an exploration of play within creativity, a method in which the purest expression has a space to be birthed and happy accidents are embraced and elevated." (Obviously!)
"As Above So Below" (2022) - Another exceptional dance film courtesy of NOWNESS. About the film's trio of dancers: "Bachatale Kale Phrala (BKP) is a contemporary dance group based in Slovakia and Czechia. They revamp street dance styles such as locking and popping by incorporating aesthetic elements from their shared Romani heritage." Hard to describe the effect they achieve, but it's compelling to watch them achieve it.
"Hill Hikers" (2022) - The film that dares to take you inside the largely unknown world of competitive tandem hill hiking. A mockumentary by Elizabeth Godar & Mitch deQuilettes.
"Order & Chaos" (2021) - An art film by Thomas Vanz, with score by Max Cooper. Vanz frequently uses fluid dynamics techniques mixing oil, paint, glitter, etc. to create proxy celestial images and the like, for his music video work for Cooper and Ólafur Arnalds and for his previous short films. But he's got something a little more complex in mind with this piece--not narrative, exactly, but a guided meditation, perhaps. He describes the piece as "a love letter to contemplation," because in his words, "Everything is going so fast that it requires a lot of energy to freeze frame and contemplate what universe has to offer." Check out the nice little "making of" video too.
"What's inside a MASSIVE Disco Ball?" (2018) - The only way to find out is to make it explode.
Exit Music
Sending you out today with the listening party for the new Toro y Moi album, "Mahal." The album's an excellent slice of chillwave, and you're joined as you listen by a set of stoner intellectuals who periodically offer elite commentary on what they're hearing. Understated but sharp comedy, plus this album changed my mind about Toro y Moi and got me revisiting his older music.
Here is the YouTube playlist featuring almost all the recommendations from this issue; links to the items that are missing are provided in the description. If you like this newsletter, please consider inflicting it on--er, what I mean to say is, sharing it with a friend or two. And don't hesitate to send me any pertinent gems that cross your path. I'll almost always be motivated to take a look.
Until next time, I remain your friendly correspondent, thinking of you,
Scotto