A Brave Cosplay Take on "Brave" (Yup, That's A Real Bear!)

The internet has been wowed this last week (at time of writing) with Jessica Chastain's new Merida look (courtesy of Annie Leibovitz for Disney Parks) but before then there was a different Brave photoshoot, with a very different Merida (and a very brave model), and it's currently going viral in English speaking countries now that Chinese and Japanese cosplay sites have spread the word.

While it's a little difficult to see Pixar's Merida in these shots, they were inspired by the fairy tale movie. In fact the model is a Russian cosplayer named, Tina Rybakova, who invited/collaborated with Dasha Kond on this project. I'm sharing this shoot particularly because I noticed that there's a whole lot of fairy tale folk who ADORE the theme of women and bears in myth and fairy tales. It turns out too, that this photographer has a strong fairy tale sensibility in setting up her photos, particularly in showing animal-human connections.

The photos are from Moscow-based fashion photographer Dasha Kond, who often uses real animals in shoots, whether they are wolves, camels, horses, snakes, and more.

Russian photographer Dasha Kond* does a lot of work with trained animals (I can't find very much info at all on the animals sorry - I wish I could, to be sure they were being taken care of properly) but it's clear to see she has a strong sense of myth and story when she shoots people with animals in particular. Though all her photography is excellent, there's something special about how she shoots different species together, implying both have a story to tell.

I have fond SO MANY beautiful images I simply can't add them all here but below the jump is a collection of my favorites so far (I've run out of time trying to see every photo, there are so many!) You can see the 2 300, or so, more photos HERE.


In the meantime, jump on over and take a look at the other fairy tale-ish images. I included some that are most definitely fairy tale but without an animal but it's clear the magical human/animal connection is what inspires most of the photography.

Oh and yes, there are more 'girls and their bears' images too.
✒ ✒ Click the "Read more" link below for MANY more fairy tale like images with animals c/- Dash Kond ✒ ✒

'The Little Android' by Marissa Meyer (New Lunar Chronicles Short Prequel!)

Continuing her sci-fi fairy tale retellings, Marissa Meyer is ramping up to the release of the third book in the Lunar Chronicles series. The book (in case you missed the multiple posts here on this) is Cress, for which she is spinning her own unique retelling of Rapunzel. All signs point to "continuing the awesome" and the expanding fandom for the series among the YA crowd bodes well for a future movie, methinks.

And, as is tradition now, Marissa Meyer has just released, yesterday (Monday January 27th), a short companion story, also based on a fairy tale, from the same world as the rest of the Lunar Chronicles, making this the third story supplement for the series. The story is also a prequel, appearing to fall before the events of Cinder.

As you may have inferred from the title, The Little Android is based on Andersen's Little Mermaid and, heads-up, it's not-so-Disney, ie. you may want to have tissues handy...

Artist unknown

Although the previous two were released through Tor.com, this one is exclusively available to read via Wattpad HERE, which, although still awesome, unfortunately means we don't get a lovely new illustration for it... yet. No doubt there is some fan art in the making though. People are really starting to envision this world in depth, as well as Meyer's sci-fi fairy tale characters.

Here is an excerpt to get you going...

An excerpt from...The Little Android by Marissa Meyer

Little Android inspired collage by mocamittel

As Mech6.0 was removing her first panel, someone yelled. She turned in time to see one of the enormous cranes tilt beneath a too-heavy load, its outstretched arm swaying dangerously for a moment that stretched out for ages, before it found the tipping point. The enormous metal arm careened toward the suspended platforms, bolts snapping and cables whipping into the air.

Still on the hanging walkway, Miko screamed.

Dataran pushed her out of the way.

The arm of the crane cracked against his head, the sound reverberating right into Mech6.0’s hard plastic shell. He was unconscious before his body fell into the oil vat below.

Miko screamed again, clinging to the walkway railing. The crane landed hard and one of the cables flew loose from the ceiling. The platform careened to one side, but the remaining cables held.

by Aditya Ikranegara

Mech6.0 did not take the time to process the situation or calculate the best course of action—she was already rolling toward the containers. Around her, people yelled and machinery screeched and halted, footsteps thundered and the rickety walkway trembled overhead. Someone called for a ladder or a rope, but Mech6.0 already had her magnets activated to collect the panel screws. With single-minded precision, she found herself climbing the side of the enormous tank, her grippers spread out against its metal sides, heaving her body upward.  It was an awkward climb, one her body was not made for, as her treads banged against the tank and her arms flailed for the next purchase. Her joints strained under her weight. But then she was hauling herself up onto the ledge that was just barely wide enough for her to stand on.

The vat of oil was black as the night sky without stars. Black and terrifying.

Mech6.0 tipped herself over and went in.

She sank fast, and though she immediately turned her sensor light on to full brightness, it did little to help her. Extending her arms as far as they would go, she searched the bottom of the tank, knowing that he was here somewhere, he was here, he was—

Here.

Little Android inspired collage by mocamittel

She tightened her grippers and dragged her body toward him through the thick oil. It was seeping through her paneling now, blocking her input plugs, glugging into the charging inlet. But she had him.

She wrapped her arms around his torso and heaved him upward. He was heavier than she expected and it occurred to her that the bolts connecting her arms to their sockets may not hold, but she kept going. Finding the tank’s wall, she planted her prongs against the side again and started to climb. There was no light anymore, no senses at all but the sound of her grippers and the tread bumping into the wall and the pressure of his body pressing down onto her as she forced both of them up, up, up …

—-

You can read the whole story at Wattpad HERE. Enjoy! 

And there's just 6 days to go till Cress is released...

New Trailer: "Once Upon A (Creepy) Dream" (sung by Lana Del Ray)

Released for Grammy night (last night, January 26th), the new Lana Del Ray version of Disney/Tchaikovsky's Once Upon A Dream also brings us new Maleficent footage  - and quickly gets rid of any warm fuzzy feelings about by amping the creep-factor by a ton.

Here's the trailer, with Lana Del Rey's new version of "Dream" featuring prominently:

Maleficent isn't looking quite as cuddly anymore.

It reminds me of those twisted versions of "what if this kid/family movie was really a horror.." you see remixed on YouTube, complete with reedited footage that tell a very different story from the happy, shiny, bunnies-&-rainbows impressions we've always had. You know, those haunting, no, haunted lullaby songs you really don't want to hear last thing before going to sleep...

It's kind of brilliant.

Although I'm not completely sure this is how I want to be hearing one of my favorite pieces of music (I knew Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty very well before I knew the Disney versions), I do like that pitching the tones and pacing this way adds a few different layers of possibilities regarding the lyrics: who's dream are we really talking about? I do like that this is causing people to ask more of the sorts of questions fairy tale folk tend to think about all the time.

The land creatures/dryads/Ents? war footage feels a bit confusing to me - maybe because I always associated that with very different faerie stories and, well, Middle Earth. Maybe because it's all quite colorful and bright daylight. But the logic fits. You just need to remember that Maleficent is actually a fairy - perhaps not quite the usual breed, but a fairy nonetheless.

Re "why Lana" for the song, for those interested, here's some behind-the-scenes info.

Angelina Jolie has handpicked Grammy Award winner Lana Del Rey to perform the title song for her new film Maleficent.  

Hollywood superstar Jolie, 38, plays the villainous female lead in a new take on the 1959 Disney classic Sleeping Beauty, and she had no hesitation in suggesting that the sultry 27-year-old sing the main track, Once Upon A Dream. The song also featured  in the original Sleeping Beauty film.‘ 

Angelina has been incredibly active in all aspects of the movie, even bagging a role for her daughter Vivienne, so it’s  no surprise that she helped choose who would sing the song,’ says a source.

You can currently download the whole song (minus trailer sound effects) from GooglePlay for free HERE. Although I'm fairly sure that will be a limited opportunity,it should be available until February 3rd as an individual download at least.

When we eventually see Lana Del Ray's full music video for Dream there will likely be more footage still, and perhaps it will answer the questions about who's dreams are who's.

Sources: HERE & HERE

Movie Pre-Production Update: Through the Looking Glass (aka Alice in Wonderland 2)

Announced yesterday afternoon, Through the Looking Glass has an "undisclosed villain" character, needing some star power to pull it off. As of yesterday it looks like it may possibly be played by Sacha Baron Cohen, who is officially "in talks" for the role. Cohen has worked with Director, James Bobin, before so it's not a complete surprise.

From Geeks of Doom:

Sacha Baron Cohen

Borat and Les Miserables star Sacha Baron Cohen has entered into talks forThrough the Looking Glass, a sequel to Disney’s megahit live-action/computer animated hybrid Alice in Wonderland. 

Baron Cohen would join returning stars Mia Wasikowska and Johnny Deppon the cast. Directing the sequel is The Muppets and Muppets Most Wantedhelmer James Bobin, who steps in for Alice director Tim Burton.
Who Baron Cohen is playing or what story the sequel will tell is not known specifically, as all details are being kept hush hush at the moment. What is known is that the actor would be playing the villain.

Is anyone looking forward to this? It's bizarre, but it seems to me that despite Johnny Depp and Mia Wasikowska signing back on, once Tim Burton left the project people haven't been too excited about it. The weirdest thing about it, is that it still has a chance to be a good film, although May 2016 (the scheduled release time) isn't quite as far away as it sounds. If Alice 2 is going to have anything like the amount of effects and post-production work (or more) that Alice did, they'd better get a shuffle on!

PS Aren't the chess pieces stunning? Not to mention the table..!!!

Here's some info on the artist and I recommend clicking the link HERE (and also HERE to see the table) to look at many more pieces as well as a very unique and mechanical display table.:

The famous sequel of the not less famous “Alice in Wonderland” called “Through the Looking Glass, and What Alice Found There” by Lewis Carroll has a very detailed description of a chess game with unique pieces which are rather to be called separate characters. One (FTNH edit: UNNAMED!) Ukrainian ivorycutting master was inspired to create a special table and a set of chess pieces for this particular game by his daughter’s interest to Carroll’s tales.

Update (and sorry for the late post - I had to do a lot of hunting to find this info):

I found artist names! As far as I can figure out, the (insanely detailed) carved table top with Alice falling down is by Vladimir Rusinov while the rest of the Through the Looking Glass chess table, including the pieces, was by Alexander Konyaev. [See HERE for the full (if somewhat confusing) artist credits but note that the above link on Konyaev's name seems to credit him with the complete work - I think it may have been his personal project, for which Rusinov created the table top.]

Ask Baba Yaga: I Feel Tired and Ill and Powerless When I Spend Time With My Family

Siergiej Panasenko – Baba Jaga

In the time period after the holidays, following many intense family activities, there are more than a few of us who could use an answer to this problem.

This week's question and answer (via poet and oracle Taisia Kitaiskaia* of The Hairpin):

(Originally posted at The Hairpin HERE)

So.. clearly family stuff ain't easy but Baba Yaga believes it's worth keeping on trying at it since "the stew of all yr bones together is better & truer" than each "mutely orbiting" planet, er, person. Maybe the clue in how to handle it is in that "pacing & tearing.. open" of the stars. Perhaps being ourselves in our passions, sharing our most alive selves with each other is the way through that awkward alienness to the good family stuff since, at least in part, the bones of this do lie within our families... (!!!) 

*sits down with a thud*

Clearly the Yaga does not believe in quick fixes or comfort zones but she's certainly straight to the meat of things! Or is it bones? Yes, I think it's the bones of a thing she's so good at.

(Do I hear rattling?)

What do you think of Baba Yaga's advice?

WARNING!
BABA YAGA IS ALMOST OUT OF QUESTIONS!
To encourage Baba Yaga to continue imparting her no-bones-about-it wisdom (ok, there may be some gristle in there... bones too), I suggest we not to leave her question box empty... 

(Don't be shy - she doesn't bite. OK that's a lie, but a Yaga bite via email is highly unlikely... especially if you make your request anonymously.)

There's now an email address where you can send your questions

directly to Baba Yaga herself.

AskBabaYaga AT gmail DOT com 

Email her today!
And thank you Baba Yaga (& Taisia).

* Taisia Kitaiskaia is a poet, writer, and Michener Center for Writers fellow. Born in Russia and raised in America, she's had her poems and translations published in Narrative Magazine, Poetry International, and others.

Sprite Symphony (Fairy Installation) by Davy & Kristin McGuire (Do NOT Tap the Glass!)

Not specifically a fairy tale but it might be the sort of thing you'd find in a fairy tale, here's a lovely little film of an inspired installation being hosted and exhibited by the RSC (Royal Shakespeare Company), made with holograms (and fairies!).

Thank you to the ever-creative and tuned in Lisa Stock of InByTheEye for alerting me to the magic.

The team, Davy and Kristin McGuire, were the creative geniuses behind another "projected project" I love, titled The Icebook, (you can see my post on it HERE), and they've done many more since.

Take a look at this lovely, lovely thing!

From the Vimeo description:

Commissioned by and developed for the Royal Shakespeare Company and later adapted for the Enchanted Parks, Sprite Symphony is a magical installation using projections and sound to create a beautiful yet dark display of fairies that have been trapped in jam jars and are trying to escape their glass cages. 

The fairies knock and tap on their jars and thereby create a polyphonic musical composition. 

The sprites are currently exhibited in a Victorian display cabinet in the RSC theatre foyer in Stratford upon Avon, (and) they also featured in the windows of the park keeper‘s shed at the Enchanted Parks in December 2013.

I'm thinking the fairies are drawing people to them with this magical sound and display, in order to persuade you to let them out. Trouble is, I don't entirely trust fairies. No matter how pretty they are, they tend to bite.

And just to underscore my wariness, this RSC exhibition also has a piece titled 'The Haunted Dress'. Worn by the Faerie Queen, it has a life of it's own.. and possibly teeth. (You can see the trailer for it HERE.) *shudder*

The Haunted Dress is an installation using theatre couture, projections and sound to tell the gruesome story of a beautiful but savage fairy queen who seduced a man into madness.

The exhibition, which opened in November last year, will run until March 2, 2014.

Press release from the RSC (and I'm including the artists' info & credit below as well, because these guys are just amazing!):

Sprite Symphony. By Davy and Kristin McGuire  

PACCAR Room, Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon  

16 November 2013 – 2 March 2014 

Sprite Symphony takes you on a journey around the theatre into a world of magical fairies and sprites. Follow the trail to find enchanting fairies trapped in jam jars and the Queen of the Fairies' haunted dress. Discover a cabinet of curious sprites in the foyer and listen to their enchanting music.  

Created by award winning artists Davy and Kristin McGuire, Sprite Symphony combines animation and projections with costumes and props made by the Royal Shakespeare Company, recomposed to invent a brand new contemporary fairy tale.

Davy and Kristin McGuire: Winners of this year's Oxford Samuel Beckett Theatre Trust Award, Davy & Kristin McGuire are multidisciplinary artists whose work has included The Icebook and an atmospheric stage adaptation of popular fantasy novel, Howl's Moving Castle. Their latest commercial commission for Courvoisier was displayed at Harrods and their new theatre production The Paper Architect premiered in July 2012 at the Barbican. The McGuires critically acclaimed theatre projects have toured to 12 different countries over 3 continents and their art work has been exhibited, published and screened internationally. 

Other Theatrical Snow Queen Productions (Pt 6) :Triad Stage's Appalachian "Snow Queen" (I Heart This So Very Much!)

Snow Queen poster for Triad Stage by Tom Woods of Bluezoom Advertising, Design, Chemistry

The final production in this varied theatrical round-up is my favorite find of them all (which is why I've given it it's own post - apart from it being long anyway, due to all the amazing images).

Taking a moment here to appreciate the poster: I haven't seen anyone approach the Snow Queen character (or story) quite this way in illustration! It emphasizes the natural aspect of the Snow Queen as well as how far her reach is. Somehow it's both comforting and foreboding. And notice Gerda's footsteps? (In this production it's Gertie.) They cross the crack the Snow Queen has made in the landscape - that's powerful imagery. Brilliant!

Not only is it a new production that debuted in December 2013 but it's an Appalachian take on The Snow Queen, which I just love. Triad Stage's Snow Queen was created as part of the company's mission to promote the local regional voice and flavor of telling stories in their productions, and that includes not only the design style, but the storytelling style and the musical aspect as well.

Part of the mission of Triad Stage, the ambitious American resident theatre headquartered in Greensboro, NC, is to promote a regional voice — reviving or creating stage literature that reflects the color and heritage of the Carolinas and the South.

Promotional image for Triad Stage's Snow Queen

Promotional image for Triad Stage's Snow Queen

The result makes for a very folkloric approach (a folkloric approach to a fairy tale seems obvious but it's actually more unique that you'd think - and very cool). First of all, just look at the empty stage:

Maybe it's my theater roots but I'm transported into a wonder world just with this (please transport me there immediately!). But it gets better.

While the promotional images are nice I think the production photographs are simply spectacular! Just one or two of these would have sent me running to get a ticket. I'd dearly love to see this show taken on tour. 

There's so much wonderful work here and I you don't need to be "one of the local folk" to appreciate how special this is.I'm not going to bother putting them "in order" as it's really not necessary to enjoy them and besides, I realized seeing them this way makes you think of the aspects of HCA's story in a different way again.

As a bonus, here are some pre-production drawings, showing some of the thinking behind the style.

Congratulations Triad Stage! This is breathtaking.

There's a great article HERE on the music created for the show, including links to a couple of the songs to give you an auditory taste.

In the meantime. if you'd like to see this show tour as well, drop by the Triad Stage webpage, or their Facebook page, and leave a comment to that effect. 

I think people everywhere would find this beautiful, fascinating and, as a result, it could run for a long, long time.