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After 19 years of imprisonment, Mary, Queen of Scots is beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle in England for her complicity in a plot to murder Queen Elizabeth I.
Continue reading “THIS DAY IN HISTORY – Mary, Queen of Scots beheaded – 1587”
Guest Post by Maria K. Fotopoulos
Director Josie Rourke Adds Asian, Black Influence to the 16th Century Court of Mary Queen of Scots
A long-time friend shared his disappointment the other day about a film screening that he and his wife look forward to each year of the Short Films nominated for an Academy Award. In disgust, he wrote that the films “violated basic tenets of decency” and that those who had nominated the films needed to do some “soul searching.”
Films often reflect the “spirit” of the times in which they are made, and filmmakers are, of course, products of the period in which they live. We’ve seen dark moods before. Look back to the Academy Awards “Best Picture” nominations in 2009, for example, a year of films — with the exception of Juno — inhabiting the dark side, with films including There Will Be Blood and No Country for Old Men, among others. When viewed from the lens of contemporary culture and politics, right now we are living through a dark, ugly and some would say Orwellian period of history. So my friend’s evaluation is probably not surprising. He advised friends not to go.
Continue reading “Ahead of Filmdom’s Big Event, What We Can Learn from Films Today”