Serious Feather Arts with Brett Gregory

Jon Greenaway is a horror expert, with a PhD from the Manchester Centre for Gothic Studies. He is the co-host of the leftist film analysis podcast Horror Vanguard and his work has appeared in The Guardian, The New York Times, The Baffler and a host of other online publications. He lives and works in the North of England.Capitalism: A Horror Story: Gothic Marxism and the Dark Side of the Radical ImaginationWhat does it mean to see horror in capitalism? What can horror tell us about the state and nature of capitalism?Blending film criticism, cultural theory, and philosophy, Capitalism: A Horror Story examines literature, film, and philosophy, from Frankenstein to contemporary cinema, delving into the socio-political function of the monster, the haunted nature of the digital world, and the inescapable horror of contemporary capitalist politics.Revitalizing the tradition of Romantic anticapitalism and offering a “dark way of being red”, Capitalism: A Horror Story argues for a Gothic Marxism, showing how we can find revolutionary hope in horror- a site of monstrous becoming that opens the door to a Utopian future.For further information visit:https://repeaterbooks.com/product/capitalism-a-horror-story-gothic-marxism-and-the-dark-side-of-the-radical-imagination/ 

Brett Gregory speaks with David Archibald, founding member and frontman of The Tenamentals, a group of academics, artists and musicians who are developing a series of songs which recount a history of Glasgow, and breathing new life into some old protest songs in innovative covers. Here, Archibald talks about some of their recent releases, which cover songs related to Spain, Scotland and Santiago, and the band’s debut album, Glasgow: A History (Vol. I of VI) which is released on Strength in Numbers Records in November.Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/artist/10S0JCoRJ7tFjX4j33IcSD?si=Dx3VEdLfQUu2iI1Xa43h9w&nd=1&dlsi=1a546069d4524166Socials: @tenementals

Full video and hyperlinked transcript available at www.seriousfeather.comOverviewIntroducing the key concepts and thinkers within the Marxist tradition, Marxism Goes to the Movies demonstrates their relevance to film theory and practice past and present.Author Mike Wayne argues that Marxist filmmaking has engaged with and transformed this popular medium, developing its potential for stimulating revolutionary consciousness. As the crisis of capitalism deepens, this history and these resources are vital for a better future. Marxism is one of the few approaches that can bring together political, economic, formal and cultural analysis into a unified approach of studying film, and how films in turn can help us understand and even critically interrogate these forces. The book examines how filmmakers, who have been influenced by Marxism, have made some of the most significant contributions to film culture globally, and provides historical perspective on the development of Marxism and film. Each chapter covers a broad theme that is broken down into sections that are cross-referenced throughout, providing helpful navigation of the material.Clear and concise in its arguments, this is an ideal introduction for students of Marxism and film, inviting readers to deepen their knowledge and understanding of the subject.For more information: https://tinyurl.com/3sf9j762

Full video and hyperlinked transcript available at www.seriousfeather.comOverview'AI in the Movies' analyses film representations of artificial intelligence, from their first emergence in the 1950s up to 2020. These strong or general artificial intelligences take different forms: some are digital AIs, some robot AIs, some move between material and digital forms. Some are indistinguishable from humans, and some have no material existence at all.Analysis of these representations demonstrates filmmakers eroding the division between human and AI, by presenting character doubles, narrative parallels and eventually, identities in which the biological and artificial overlap and intersect in new hybrid forms.The book identifies the aspects of AI science that fascinate filmmakers and outlines the key themes and tropes in AI film, including parent-child relationships, the female robot, human-AI doubles, parallels and hybrids, and AI death and mortality.For more information: https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-ai-in-the-movies.html

By turns a work of savage polemic, speculative philosophical reasoning and outsider insight, The Darkest Timeline is a dynamic ride through critical theory, pop culture and high-concept fiction. It is the document of a writer immersed in the technologically-accelerated culture war of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, and its strange artefacts.“Bram's political and social commentary is not just entertaining, but also horrifically coherent.” - Darren McGarvey (Orwell Prize 2018, author of Poverty Safari and The Social Distance Between Us)“For a book which explores such dark pathways it glows with the light of intelligence.” - Ewan Morrison (multi award-winning novelist, author of Tales From The Mall and Nina X)“The Darkest Timeline gazes unflinchingly into the broken mirror of contemporary culture... 'Timely' feels too small a word for the task this book sets itself — a bracing and essential read.” - Kieran Hurley (playwright and screenwriter, Beats and Adults)For more information: https://www.revolpress.com/the-darkest-timeline

Young Rebecca is forced to move with her father from the UK to Jerusalem, in the hopes that a new beginning can help her heal from her mother’s sudden death. Soon after settling into an old house in a neighbourhood known as the Valley of the Ghosts, a series of mysterious events begin and Rebecca is blamed. Diving deep into the mystery of the house and the mystical city of Jerusalem, Rebecca sets out on an enigmatic journey to discover what hides in the shadows of the house.Crafted by the talented duo Muayad and Rami Alayan, A HOUSE IN JERUSALEM is an eerily suspenseful and touching story told through the eyes of a young girl, exploring the strength of memory and the power of love.For more information: https://wellingtonfilms.co.uk/a-house-in-jerusalem

This insightful volume critically explores activist events in their scale and their capacity to attract media attention through a critical event studies lens, offering new perspectives on protests and social movement.This book conceives events of dissent as the public manifestation of counter-narratives that articulate advocacy for policy change. It focuses on the material and virtual manifestation of protest events and the media response to them, associated with three active social movements – Reclaim These Streets, Extinction Rebellion, and Black Lives Matter. In doing so, the text sheds light on how different political orientations within the media articulate the representation of events of dissent manifest by these groups, and how this results in significantly different opinion-forming statements on the issues behind those movements, as well as how this reflects mediated assessment of the responses of politicians, the public, and emergency service responses to protest events. Furthermore, it will explore the role of the Internet in the organisation of protest events and their part in the formation of networks of resistance, enabling the roll out of events with a global reach – demonstrated, more recently, by protests across many European cities against the war in Ukraine.This timely and significant book will appeal to scholars of and those interested in events tourism, protest, political communication, and media, amongst others.For more information: https://www.routledge.com/Protests-and-the-Media-A-Critical-Event-Studies-Exploration-into-the-Future-of-Protest/Kubiliute-Lamond/p/book/9781032608211

Despite being detained, silenced and hidden from public view in maximum security Belmarsh Prison, multi-award-winning Australian journalist and publisher Julian Assange has become one of the loudest voices for free speech of our times. He has also risked everything to bring truth to light.The disclosures of WikiLeaks and Assange from 2010 onwards ignited a firestorm of controversy and a relentless ongoing pursuit by the most powerful Empire on the planet.‘THE TRUST FALL: JULIAN ASSANGE’ examines the meaning and significance of the insights that WikiLeaks shared with the world, the resulting behaviour of the governments involved, the extraordinary personal risk taken by Assange, and the wider fundamental issues around press freedom that affect all of us and our right to know.Filmed over two years on three continents and in ten cities, the film features an array of luminaries including Daniel Ellsberg, John Pilger, Tariq Ali and Chris Hedges, with the insights of experts including Jennifer Robinson, Jill Stein, Stefania Maurizi and Nils Melzer, in addition to reflections of Assange’s family including Stella Assange, John Shipton and Gabriel Shipton.Examining the motives of this peace activist and innovator, this astounding, shocking and inspiring film invites viewers to embark on a journey of understanding, where the circumstances are unprecedented, and the destination unexpected.For more information: https://www.thetrustfall.org/

AMERICONNED is an award-winning film about income inequality in the US and its tragic destabilizing effects to Americans. Deep inequality has led to radicalization at every level of society, and this powerful documentary depicts what happens when America hits its tipping point, by looking back through our history at similar critical moments of instability. The labour movement of the past was born in times like these. We must restore the path to the once great middle-class that now suffers in silence.For more information: https://www.americonned.com/