· July, 2009

Stories about Arts & Culture from July, 2009

Put it On: Global Online Contest for Filmmakers

  31 July 2009

Put it On is awarding a scholarship to the New York Film Academy and a cash prize of $5000 USD in its contest for the best short and feature films from around the world. [This is a paid promotion].

Trinidad & Tobago: Emancipation Celebrations

  30 July 2009

“On August 1, 1985, Trinidad and Tobago became the first country in the world to declare a national holiday to commemorate the abolition of slavery”: Repeating Islands highlights Emancipation Day celebrations in the twin island republic.

Peru: Oral Storytelling Festival in August

  29 July 2009

The 3rd National Festival of Oral Storytelling will take place throughout the month of August in Lima and Lambayeque, Peru. Elizabeth Lino Cornejo of Te Voy a Contar [es] writes about the importance of preserving these types of traditions.

Cuba: Interview with Blogger Lizabal Mónica

  29 July 2009

Cuban writer Lizabel Mónica has been blogging since 2007 and has been using her blogs to "build bridges between literature and national and international art, as well as to explore the relationship between art and life." Claudia Cadelo interviews her about her Project Desliz and her project to bring more artists online.

Trinidad & Tobago: Mother Earth

  28 July 2009

“It’s not how many tractors you have or how much oil you drill or how many smelters you build. But the humanity and the humility of what you do with your knowledge and your resources”: Trinidadian blogger Attillah Springer fears that we will pay for the “gross and sloppy mishandling...

Jamaica: Dancehall & Child Abuse

  28 July 2009

As the Jamaican government introduces a child pornography bill, Jamaica Salt makes it clear that the blame for the rise in child abuse on the island cannot be laid squarely at the door of dancehall music.

Armenia-Azerbaijan: Musical collaboration

Despite the unresolved conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno Karabakh which has left many citizens of both countries intolerant and bitterly opposed to the other, a Baku-based newspaper has discovered a video on YouTube of an Azeri girl singing traditional mugham backed by Armenian musicians. Remy_G tweets that the...

Philippines: Eating Taho

  28 July 2009

My Cebu PhotoBlog posts pictures of Taho, a popular snack item in the Philippines made of bean curd, tapioca balls, and sweet ’sauce’ from liquefied sugar.

Uruguay: CIP, Showcasing National Films and Shorts

  26 July 2009

They call it an alternative to online video channels so that their videos don't have to compete for attention with short home-videos of birthdays, cats and lip synching to music. Two young Uruguayans decided to change the situation and created Cip, a website dedicated to showcasing the works of independent film-makers, so they can take their films out of their desk drawers and share them with a wider community.

Japan: Fireworks in Tokyo

  26 July 2009

Auberginefleur at Japan Now & Then has compiled a handy list of Tokyo's firework events for 2009. suzurzan.ranran, cadm2, chris.jan have uploaded their photos of yesterday's Sumidagawa Fireworks Festival, one of Tokyo's biggest summer events.

Japan: Possible Twitter Novel Publication

  25 July 2009

Netafull [ja] reports that writer/essayist Mica Naitoh tweeted [ja] that she has received an offer to publish her Twitter novel, just a few days after she started tweeting with the hashtag #twnovel.