issue n. 04 • FILM! + Some Other Stuff

Hello there. Welcome to ent3r issue #4.

Today’s issue will be more of a round-up of topics and films I’ve been on during the last week.

But first, a moment of silence for the actual childbirth-without-epidural that was today’s Argentinian victory over the Netherlands.

Dios mío.

I shed the first football-induced tear of my life at the game-winning penalty kick. Real story, full stop. The gut-shredding, soul-eviscerating collective pain of Argentina being eliminated from this particular World Cup is something I am not ready to experience. Not yet.

Here's what you're in for today/nite:

A read time of 5 minutes, 12 seconds and watch time of ~30 minutes if you decide to explore my recs.

(30 mins is a calculation of the vids embedded here, but peruse the entirety of the linked content at your leisure...it is the weekend, after all.)

Who is this week's issue for?

• Productivity Enthusiasts (cringe)

• Film Lovers

• Music Lovers

In this issue, I discuss/share:

1. My current obsession with finding THE perfect productivity/notetaking/worldbuilding app for my notes/plans/dreams/second brain.

2. Two short films I discovered and their respective directors.

3. Janelle Monáe

4. Yann Tiersen

Welcome, friendz, to ent3r issue n. 04.

SHOULD I START USING NOTION

Yes, all caps, because I have spent wasted a ridiculous amount of time the last few days watching YouTube videos like this one and this one to decide whether I should start using Notion. Or Airtable. Or wait, maybe Obsidian? Jesus. How many of these apps are there?

Honestly at this point I’m thinking of just sticking with my trusted Apple Notes system, which in the last weeks I’ve cleaned up and organized organically out of a need to get down my ideas for the writing group and what-not.

While I do see the benefit of being able to create elaborate databases and pages that link to one another and let me time travel through hyperlinked vortexes, etc, etc, etc, ETC—I’m simply not sure I have the energy to create a whole new system for myself. Not right now. Pre-holidays... post-vacation...

CUT TO:

*downloads and creates new accounts for all three aforementioned softwares*

—LOL. So who knows, maybe I find myself falling in love with one of them over the next few days IN MY SPARE TIME, of course.

If this sort of insanity interests you at all, Ali Abdaal’s Youtube channel might be for you. I fatefully came upon it during my research and went down ze rrrabbit jôle.

Abdaal is a former-doctor-turned-YouTuber with musical leanings and has a nice, matter-of-fact way of convincing you your home org game sUx. It's all a little intense, but interesting nonetheless. (And by interesting I mean, very high value/I'm eating it up.)

It is this video’s fault I’m talking about this nonsense at all — my first discovery — in which Abdaal discusses creating a system for your “second brain”. I apologize in advance.

WONDROUS FILM DISCOVERIES

I am in an ALL CAPS mood. Let's go:

The Headhunter's Daughter (2022)

I’m anxiously waiting for this gem to go live on the Criterion Collection on December 13th.

I discovered the director, Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan, while digging up info on another director, Karsten Runquist, who I discovered through his video essay YouTube channel. [1]

Without having even seen it yet, The Headhunter’s Daughter speaks to me on many levels. It follows Lynn, an aspiring country artists who goes to the city to audition for a televised singing competition. (Need I say more?) [2] And through reading this interview, I discovered that Eblahan himself is ALSO a musician. Neat.

Between that, his themes of family and homecoming, and his rustic, dreamy aesthetic, I’ve become an immediate fan. Here, Eblahan share’s a bit of the pre-development process for the The Headhunter's Daughter:

Inspired, I am.

From what I've seen in the trailer and other BTS images of the film, the Igorot culture seems somewhat reminiscent of Argentina's gaucho culture, which comes as no surprise, considering the Spanish influence on both lands. What's more, before learning about his Filipino background, I was convinced Eblahan himself might be speaking Spanish when he introduced himself in this video , as the words director and película are practically identical to ours. Phonetically it sounded quite similar as well, despite being fundamentally so different. Interesting! I'd like to learn about Igorot history and its people to explore this connection. [3]

The Headhunter’s Daughter promises to deliver a moving story against a Filipino cultural backdrop that I can’t wait to experience. Oh, and it’s an Official Selection for the 2022 Sundance Film Festival.

Fun fact: Eblahan also designs movie posters and co-runs a production company. Sick.

Dirtbag (2022)

This sweet short feels like a warm hug. Directed by Karsten Runquist, Dirtbag is about Harold and a mysterious bag of dirt that comes his way. I mean...yes.

Harold has a goofy innocence reminiscent of Napoleon Dynamite that makes me want to squeeze him and tell him everything’s going to be okay. The cinematography of the film is beautiful. I especially love the scene at the ribbon store (4:17). I also found the acting throughout to be simple and lovely; every character brings something fresh both to the screen and story.

If you enjoy Dirtbag, you’ll definitely want to check out Runquist’s YouTube channel, which I’ll link again here. If you’ve seen a recent film about unusually attractive, human-flesh-eating kids, you might enjoy this video in particular.

JANELLE MONÁE

Just enjoy.

YANN TIERSEN

Just enjoy.

Kidding, I'm actually going to do my job for this one. [4]

As a consummate fan of Amélie and lifelong piano lover/player, I have of course long maintained a fascination for the French composer and enigma that is Yann Tiersen.

I stumbled upon this short film about Tiersen randomly while searching online for a decent version of "Le matin" — one of my favorites-of-all-time pieces to play — and was delighted to gain some new insight into his life and work.

😍

Tiersen lives and works out of his studio in Ushant, an island in France......of course he does.

Of. Course. He. Does!!!! My admiration for for this man increases tenfold. Or is it envy? Aspiration? All of the above.

Tiersen is an incredibly prolific and eclectic artist, whose ouevre spans from cinematic scores to electronic weirdness to solo piano.

I'll never forget — the year was 2011. February 16th, 2011, in fact. Boston. I had gotten tickets to seen Yann Tiersen — THE YANN TIERSEN!!!!!! — live at the Royale. And then at the concert I get this:

I'm confused. I feel cheated. I'm indignant. This.....is not....umm...Amélie. Solo piano, anyone?

...let's just say I was a little disappointed after that concert.

Mind you this is 2011, so...about five years(?) before I return to any sort of music-making and at least seven years before I begin to have any reasonable understanding that music/art is not about *bEiNg pReTtY*. There was also the element of it being a live show and raw and LOUD, which I hadn't experienced much of or really understood at that point besides an NSYNC concert here and John Mayer concert there.

i.e. I knew nothing.

...it's funny and sweet to look back on it now. I wish I could relive it! And appreciate it fully.

But I digress — the point is that Tiersen does whatever TF he wants to. He names songs in code using numbers. [5] 

So cool.

Yann is a true artist and it is a joy to re-discover him through his beautiful short film, "Portrait". Yes, we are on a first-name basis now. He is my friend.

And, if minimalist, scenic piano videos are your thing, you’ll also enjoy his "Porz Goret".

You’re so welcome.

Well...

...that's all, folks.

Hopefully you’re out enjoying a nice dinner with someone you love, or at least are interested in. With of course, some wine. I’m going back to my Notion research. [6]

Until next time,

—B

[1] Highly recommend. Runquist also happens to have directed the other short I’m recommending this week, so get back up there.

[2] Surprise! I'm also a country singer. Kidding okay no country just singer.

[3] Some brief research returned that there are various languages and dialects among the Igorot people, including Yaangokek, Bontoc, Ilocano...TBD. Don - help us out!

[4] This is 100% not a job.

[5] Please decode and advise on meaning. Thanks in advance.

[6] Kidding.