Monthly Archives: March 2011

My Blue Valentine

You have to question a cinematic culture which preaches artistic expression, and yet would support a decision that is clearly a product of a patriarchy-dominant society, which tries to control how women are depicted on screen. The MPAA is okay supporting scenes that portray women in scenarios of sexual torture and violence for entertainment purposes, but they are trying to force us to look away from a scene that shows a woman in a sexual scenario, which is both complicit and complex. It’s misogynistic in nature to try and control a woman’s sexual presentation of self. I consider this an issue that is bigger than this film.

 

—Ryan Gosling calls MPAA misogynistic over NC-17 rating for Blue Valentine oral-sex scene

 

Open discussion: Rom-coms, Ars Marginal style

Not too long ago, there was Black folks and romance – getting it right.

Then I thought, “There’s no reason why we should limit ourselves to Black romance. Why don’t we take on all the rom com bullshit? Let’s subvert the fuck out of what this cliche-ridden drivel shovels to us about sex, love, and romance!”

So let’s play a game, shall we?

Take something you hate about rom-coms, then flip the script and make it something awesome!

Do it as many times as you want!

 

Being Gay Is Okay…..Or Is It?

So a few days ago on the Outer Alliance forum, someone posted about New York Times bestselling  author Jessica Verday pulling her gay themed story from upcoming anthology.

You can read the details here.

The shorthand: Verday was part of an upcoming dark fairy romance anthology, WICKED PRETTY THINGS, and wrote a boy/boy tale for it. The editor claimed the publisher wouldn’t approve of it and she’d need to
make one of the characters a girl. Verday called BS on the claim as the publisher had previously produced m/m titles in the past. Verday pulled the story in protest. It now turns out the editor didn’t even check with the publisher first, and the publisher would’ve actually been fine with it.

The editor’s response was added to the blog post. Her response includes offering to show a YouTube video of her wrestling a gay guy.

I applaud Verday for standing tall and doing the right thing and I hope other authors follow her example.

What really disturbs me is that a lot of the comments that I’ve read.

Continue reading →

Eloquent privilege check by BioWare’s David Gaider

Here courtesy of Ars Marginal reader Immin! David Gaider of BioWare gives a refined smackdown of that whole “they’re the minority so why should they count?” argument. Here’s a taste of the awesomeness:

The majority has no inherent “right” to get more options than anyone else.

……….

And if there is any doubt why such an opinion might be met with hostility, it has to do with privilege. You can write it off as “political correctness” if you wish, but the truth is that privilege always lies with the majority. They’re so used to being catered to that they see the lack of catering as an imbalance. They don’t see anything wrong with having things set up to suit them, what’s everyone’s fuss all about? That’s the way it should be, any everyone else should be used to not getting what they want.

Read the whole thing and the post that started it here.

New additions at Ars Marginal!

Where y’all at? I’ve been working my ass off here!

Anyway, we’ve got some new additions to the list of websites and blogs. It’s amazing the things you’d find if you just look for them (hint, hint, mainstream media)

First off, there’s SciFi Latino, which is dedicated to Latinos in sci-fi and fantasy. I really loved Afterglow, a short film about what happens after we whup alien ass after the invasion.

Then there’s Women, Action & the Media, a grassroots organization geared toward – you guessed it – women in the media. Take a look at WAM! It Yourself, their decentralized version of their annual conference.

Women and Hollywood is the IndieWire blog about women in the film industry.

AFFRM (African American Film Festival Releasing Movement) is working to get distribution for more independent African American films.

Got anything else that should go up there? People who should write for Ars Marginal? Let me know in the comments!

“Tulpa, or Anne&Me” needs YOU

A while back, I announced that Tulpa, or Anne&Me is getting a staged reading at the Planet Connections Theatre Festivity this June.

I’m really grateful for everyone who’s stuck by me through Tulpa‘s journey from a few posts on my LiveJournal to this amazing opportunity. Your support has played a big part in keeping me focused and giving me the courage to move forward with this quirky little play. But to make this worthwhile, we need help.

We’re trying to raise $1,000 for the event in order to cover the costs of production – the biggest one being rehearsal space and paying the artists a small stipend. Check out our IndieGoGo campaign for a better idea of what we’re doing and why this stage is so important.

I did the math on this, and it’s very doable. If we can get just 50 people to contribute only $20, we can meet our goal. All I’m asking is that if you can spare it, I’d really appreciate it (and you’ll get a thanks from me). And if there is just one other person – just one person – you know who’d be willing to support Tulpa, or Anne&Me, please spread the word and let them know about it. It might not look or sound like much, but it does add up.

Thank you so much for being with me through all this. I really owe you one, and I’m going to do my damndest to pay you back.