Happy spring! I have LOTS to share. Here’s some stuff (and it’s only Tuesday!):

Nowadays, I’m painting away in my studio for a picture book project. It’s a whimsical, Hawaiiana picture book written by another author. The above image is a reference photo of a black spiny sea urchin shown in the picture book. This cool looking creature lives in tide pools and coral reefs around the Hawaiian islands. Another illos project I’m working on calls for humorous line-art for a niche market book written by a doctor in NYC. More about these projects when they’re done :-)!

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Spring cleaning. Whether or not you’re currently obsessing or soon-to-be obsessing with stuff from spring cleaning, watch this eye-opening film: The Story of Stuff. This animated film introduces a whole new paradigm shift on “stuff”–how we deal with it in our daily lives, locally and globally. Ever wonder where all the stuff we use comes from? Where it goes? Think you know? Watch the film. The story is told with humor–it’s essentially, edutainment, filled with surprising, if not, sobering factoids. I highly recommend it. Check out a few teasers here and here.

While the film depicts some brute, and perhaps shocking, realities of modern living, it offers a message of hope (thankfully) by the end of the film. The Story of Stuff site suggests how we can make a difference, listing action steps, resources and organizations.

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May Day is Lei Day in Hawaii
Garlands of flowers everywhere
All of the colors in the rainbow
Maidens with blossoms in their hair..
(Lyrics & Music © Leonard Hawk)

After May Day, then what? It’s Asian Pacific Heritage Month!

So, it’s only fitting that PBS will include a Pacific island, award-winning film this month, Na Kamalei, The Men of Hula, directed and produced by my hula sister, Lisette Marie Flannery, under her film production company, Lehua Films.

Several years ago, Lisette was in the middle of editing the film, flying back and forth between NY and Hawai’i, pushing to meet her deadline. Not only did Lisette make her deadline, but she went on to win the Audience Award, Best Documentary at the Hawai’i International Film Festival and the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival, and the Emerging Director in Documentary Feature in the New York Asian American International Film Festival and more. {Yay, Lisette!}

The film documents Halau Na Kamalei’s hula journey, under the direction of Kumu Hula, Robert Cazimero, as they practice, prepare and compete in the premiere hula competition, The Merrie Monarch. FWIW, the halau I’m with, Na Lei Hulu I Ka Wekiu is hula cousin to Na Kamalei. My kumu studied hula for many years under Kumu Robert, competing and performing with the group in a wide range of venues, including Merrie Monarch and Madison Square Gardens, NY.

Also check out PBS for info about Lisette, her film and show times in your area. In the Bay Area, the film is running today, Tuesday, May 6 and Saturday, May 10 on KQED, channel 9.

Stay tuned for more stuff as the week unfolds. Thanks for visiting!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 6th, 2008 at 2:33 pm and is filed under Recent, Ideas, Multicultural, Cool Stuff, Visual Art. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.