AUTHOR Beverly Andrews
Tribeca 2025: Voices of Identity and Belonging Take Center Stage
The 2025 Tribeca Film Festival reaffirmed its role as a platform for powerful storytelling, spotlighting films that explored identity, belonging, and resilience. Standouts included Rebecca, a portrait of pop star Becky G; Happy Birthday, a moving debut from Egypt’s Sarah Goher; and Runa Simi, a Peruvian documentary about reclaiming Indigenous language through cinema.
HollyShorts 2025
Explore the standout short films of HollyShorts 2025, where hope, humor, and humanity collide. From heartfelt documentaries to bold fiction and animation, this year’s festival delivers unforgettable stories from emerging filmmakers worldwide.
Jane Eyre – An Opera That Burns Bright
John Joubert’s long-lost opera Jane Eyre finally gets its fully staged premiere at Grimeborne 2025. With a soaring score, a feminist twist, and a heroine who refuses to be silenced, this production proves Charlotte Brontë’s classic still burns with urgency today.
ROUGH MAGIC CASTS A SPELL OVER ALL AGES
“Rough Magic” transforms Shakespeare’s witches into a hilarious, fast-paced family adventure. With sharp comedy, brilliant performances, and a dash of the supernatural, it casts a theatrical spell that delights audiences of all ages.
Songs of Bulbul
Aakash Odedra’s Songs of Bulbul is a hauntingly beautiful fusion of classical Kathak and contemporary dance, inspired by the Sufi myth of the bulbul. Through powerful choreography and spiritual symbolism, the performance follows a nightingale’s transcendental journey from captivity to freedom, culminating in a final, soul-liberating song. A heart-wrenching yet enlightening exploration of sacrifice, divinity, and artistic expression.
Stories Without Borders: Arab voices
A celebration of Arab creativity, Stories Without Borders explores the highlights of this year’s Safar and Shubbak Festivals in London. From powerful documentaries to surreal cinema and community-led art spaces, this review reflects on how storytelling—through film, food, and conversation—builds bridges across cultures.
Prince’s Beautiful Misstep?
Once ridiculed as a cinematic misstep, Prince’s black-and-white directorial debut, Under the Cherry Moon, now feels like an ambitious, if flawed, experiment in style, satire, and self-expression. Rewatching it today reveals not just the cracks—but the brilliance trying to shine through them.
A Rare Window into Italian Documentary Filmmaking
The 4th Annual Italian Documentary Season arrives at London’s Bertha DocHouse, offering a rare chance to experience Italy’s most compelling documentary voices — from ecological epics to intimate portraits of childhood and identity.