SXSW Day 1
March 15th, 2009
From the balcony level at the majestic Paramount theater in Austin, I started the festival with Alexander the Last, Joe Swanberg’s 5th film in 5 years to premiere at SXSW. Does this man sleep? In a first in terms of distribution platform, it was simultaneously available on demand to cable viewers. Handheld, intimate shots of couples in relationships, being tempted by people they worked with in creative collaborations; lots of talking, staring, thinking, making out. It was sexy and real.
Walking down 6th Street.
The Rajputian Moustache
January 18th, 2009
Imbued with both historical significance and straight-up vanity, the image of the majestic mouche followed us everywhere in Rajasthan. While in exile, a celebrated Rajput King, Maharana Pratap (1542-1597) gets a letter from his cousin about the Mughal emperor, Akbar’s planned seige of the kingdom of Udaipur. Knowing Akbar’s might, the cousin asks if he should “keep his hand over his mustache” (various translations – from twirling the moustache, to wearing the moustache in an upturned arch vs. turned down) or take his life with his own sword. Maharana Pratap famously writes back that he must wear his moustache turned up proudly as a symbol of defiance and they successfully fend off the Mughals for the ensuing years. As seen on the streets today, the tradition continues.
The Road to the Taj Mahal
January 1st, 2009
Late Morning Dili Haat, Delhi
December 29th, 2008
This is Dilli Haat, an outdoor market where fine artisans sell direct to consumer. The white haze in the photos is actually the smog or the dust or who knows what but the city is cloaked in it. It makes almost midday seem like dawn. The winter sunlight feels weak and cold, filtered through this dense layer of fake atmosphere.
Baron Von Luxxury’s remix is Mark Ronson’s top pick (too)!
November 25th, 2008
The kind of candidate I’d like to have a beer with
November 4th, 2008
I can’t wait till tomorrow. It’s a few minutes past midnight on Monday, so actually early Tuesday, Nov. 4th and in one small town out East, the first votes have already come in. It feels like Christmas Eve! Tomorrow, there will be people waiting to streak in the Mission, to raise a glass at Joey and Eddie’s in North Beach, the world will be watching.
What’s been amazing to observe and appreciate over and over again over the past few months is that we can finally experience admiration for the personal and intellectual qualities of a political leader. When was the last time?! I see it in kids and in men and women of all ages and backgrounds. We have a role model, someone we’d be excited to call a friend, and yes, the kind of person I would like to have a beer with.
I also think of these times as marking the beginning of an irreversible leftward shift in American politics. There is something about the Democratic party that is starting to appeal to universal values. I think it’s because we can finally see a tangible representation, in Obama, of the ideals we’ve always believed in — honesty, humility, a challenge to any extreme imbalance of power, zero tolerance for spin, a leadership style based on restraint, grace, intelligence, compromise without weakness — it is the better face of America.
And if we think about what the information age and technology have brought about, combined with the inconvenient truth that the world’s resources are finite and as humans we have to be guardians of our planet in order to survive, then I think we are marching inexorably toward a future where 2 things will be true. First, institutions will become more democratized as the internet increases transparency and returns knowledge and power to individuals and communities, and second, our interdependence and vulnerability in the face of finite resources will force a level of compromise and cooperation that will reshape individual behaviors, community action and global alliances.
So I don’t think these will be just cyclical changes anymore – where there will be some backlash against openness, access and the empowerment of individuals and unfortunately, I don’t think there can ever be a return to a sense of abundance about the our planet’s resources. So if we can use these truths for good, and organize alongside a leader who symbolizes these values, I do think we are marching forward on a path that we cannot turn back on and it is so deeply exciting.
MOZART & THE VIEW UP AND DOWN COMMERCIAL STREET
September 20th, 2008
Tonight, San Francisco was insanely charming.
A surprise moment at the Gershoni biannual as Mozart, invoked by this spirited performer, suddenly interrupted our margaritas.
Opera at the Gershoni party from Indu Subaiya on Vimeo.
Later, this is what the Ferry building looked like in a quick as lightning glance down Commercial street, which intersects Grant in Chinatown.
And then the actual intersection of Grant and Commercial.
LAST NIGHT A DJ SAVED MY LIFE
September 13th, 2008
PUERTO VALLARTA OFF SEASON
September 6th, 2008
THE MOPED GANG
September 6th, 2008
On a warm Indian summer night’s walk to North Beach, we came upon a scene outside a Chinatown bar – a crowd of kids in hipster-nerd-sexy-schoolmarm attire milling around. We decided to buy a mai tai and hang out. We answered a nerd trivia question – Who is the Captain of the Starship Enterprise? – to get into a dark basement with a small but packed dance floor. Everyone seemed to know each other and we couldn’t figure out how. We speculated – the same college? Some type of art-school fraternity? Nope. It’s a San Francisco Moped Gang – the band were also members of the gang – and yes, then we remembered what we saw on the way in – lots of mopeds.
Billboard across from Magic Castle