Thursday, January 19, 2006

My Beast Friends ~ home-movies

In 5 episodes:

...and just for good measure: Class of 2005

posted by amiCreative @ 1/19/2006 11:03:00 PM   0 comments

Monday, December 12, 2005

DailyOM - Chanting

December 12, 2005
Divine Resonance
Chanting
In many cultures and civilizations, chanting, a form of vocal meditation, has endured through the ages. Practiced by many people around the world seeking greater health, a sense of well-being, enlightenment, and a connection to the divine, chanting unites the mind, body, emotions, and breath through vocal sounding. This unification can open and nurture your creativity, lower stress levels, and teach you to become fully alert and in the moment.

Some people are naturally drawn to chant while others feel awkward using their voices in such a way. Singing along with recorded chants before chanting on your own can help dispel any nervousness. However, the chanting that will resonate most deeply and beneficially for you is the chanting you do for yourself. There are many different chants. They can be composed of names, words, sounds, syllables, or even sections of text. What you chant is less important than your willingness to focus fully on the act of chanting itself. To begin, sit comfortably with a straight back and take a series of long, deep breaths to open and flex your lungs. Then, take another breath, and with resonant tones direct your breath outward in the form of sound. Simple syllables like 'oh,' 'ee,' or 'mm' are easy to remember.

Chanting lets you raise the level of your own vibration to a higher spiritual state. You can chant as an invocation or to set intention. Reciting even the simplest chant can bolster a flagging spirit, hone the mind, and produce natural painkillers within the brain. While chanting, you may feel energy surging through your physical body or joy entering your heart. Chanting can liberate and ground you simultaneously because it allows your soul to soar freely while compelling you to focus on the here and now.

posted by amiCreative @ 12/12/2005 11:20:00 AM   0 comments

Monday, November 21, 2005

Heel for Good Health - RealAge Tip of the Day

http://www.realage.com/reg/regassess.aspx?mod=TODREG

Walking a dog may be good for your waistline, and it doesn't have to be your dog.
In a study of elderly, economically disadvantaged people, study participants walked a dog several times each week. By the end of the yearlong study, the dog walkers lost an average of 14.5 pounds each. Boost your health with regular dog walks, whether you walk your dog, a friend's dog, or dogs at local shelters.
RealAge Benefit: Owning a dog and walking the dog regularly can make your RealAge as much as 1 year younger.
Originally published on 11/21/2005

MORE
Walking a dog helped people in a recent study lose nearly 14.5 pounds over a yearlong period. Participants began walking 10 minutes three times per week and worked up to 20 minutes five days per week. Owning a dog may help decrease blood pressure and depression as well, according to research. Before adopting a dog, consider the size of your home and yard, whether you have the time and energy to train and care for a dog, and the cost of feeding, grooming, vaccinations, and veterinary fees. Also, if you have children, learn which breeds are good with children. If you decide not to own a dog, consider volunteering to walk dogs at local animal shelters or volunteering to care temporarily for other displaced pets.

REFERENCE
Walking for healthy hearts : dog walk program. Pilz-Coulibaly, J., Adewumi, F., Barker, M., Johnson, J., Shaw, B., Johnson, R., McKenney, C., Meadows, R. University of Missouri-Columbia. Missouri Life Science Week 2005, poster session abstracts.

posted by amiCreative @ 11/21/2005 08:46:00 AM   0 comments

Monday, July 25, 2005


Whale Rider Posted by Hello

posted by Anonymous @ 7/25/2005 10:55:00 PM   0 comments

Friday, February 18, 2005

Photo Gallery & Related Films

"On the set, Off the set, Publicity Stills – from our Studio Friends": 10 images

Awards, Premieres, Parties & Festivals from WireImage : 15 images

WireImage.com Photos
Sundance 2003 - Whale Rider - Portraits
Date: 20 January 2003

Toronto 2002, "Whale Rider" Portraits
Date: 10 September 2002

There are 3 more WireImage.com photos of Whale Rider

Related productions, 2 Titles ~
1. The Making of 'Whale Rider' (2003) (TV)
2. Riding the Wave: The Whale Rider Story (2004) (TV)

Related Films:
1. Bend It Like Beckham (Widescreen Edition) (2003)
2. Billy Elliot (2000) DVD ~ Jamie Bell

posted by Anonymous @ 2/18/2005 06:10:00 PM   0 comments

Video Trailers on IMBd.com of "Whale Rider"

Trailers found on IMBd.com of "Whale Rider"
~ courtesy of ScreenPlay, Inc.
Windows Media, 28-300k
1000films.com - French Trailer ("Paï")
CineMovies - Trailer (Quicktime)

Clip: Download FREE Windows Media Player: 9 Series

Clip: Download FREE RealPlayer

Not available for: Free QuickTime by Apple

posted by Anonymous @ 2/18/2005 06:05:00 PM   0 comments


Fly Away Home Posted by Hello

posted by Anonymous @ 2/18/2005 06:00:00 PM   0 comments

Film Details on The Internet Movie Database

~ for Whale Rider (2002)

Directed by Niki Caro
Writing credits: Sir Witi Ihimaera (novel) and Niki Caro (screenplay)
Genre: Drama / Family (more) View a Trailer for "Whale Rider"

View a Trailer for "Whale Rider"

Photo gallery for Whale Rider (2002)

Taglines
- One young girl dared to confront the past, change the present and determine the future
- In the ways of the Ancients, she found a hope for the future

Plot Summary for Whale Rider (2002)
On the east coast of New Zealand, the Whangara people believe their presence there dates back a thousand years or more to a single ancestor, Paikea, who escaped death when his canoe capsized by riding to shore on the back of a whale. From then on, Whangara chiefs, always the first-born, always male, have been considered Paikea's direct descendants. Pai, an 11-year-old girl in a patriarchal New Zealand tribe, believes she is destined to be the new chief. But her grandfather Koro is bound by tradition to pick a male leader. Pai loves Koro more than anyone in the world, but she must fight him and a thousand years of tradition to fulfill her destiny. Summary written by berkeley

Cast overview, first billed only:
Paikea - Keisha Castle-Hughes
Koro - Rawiri Paratene
Nanny Flowers -Vicky Haughton
Porourangi - Cliff Curtis
Uncle Rawiri - Grant Roa
Hemi - Mana Taumaunu
Shilo -Rachel House
Willie - Taungaroa Emile
Dog -Tammy Davis
Maka (as Mabel Wharekawa-Burt) - Mabel Wharekawa
Miro - Rawinia Clarke
Miss Parata - Tahei Simpson
Hemi's Dad (as Roimata Tamana) - Roi Taimana
Rehua - Elizabeth Skeen
Jake (as Tyrone White) - Tyronne White
(more)

Trivia

Director Niki Caro insisted that Rawiri Paratene (Koro) stay in character throughout the entirety of the shooting process.

At auditions for the role of Paikea, Keisha Castle-Hughes told casting directors that she could swim. However, when it came time to film the swimming scenes, she admitted she couldn't but she did it anyway.

Many of Pai's swimming scenes were in fact done by Keisha Castle-Hughes's stand-in Waio Parata-Haua, because Keisha Castle-Hughes could not swim well.

Niki Caro said during the director's commentary that Pai's crying speech scene was done in one take, but using two cameras. Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties there was a short break however, in which time Keisha's tutor and chaperone helped her to stay in character in with the same emotions.

A scene showing Keisha Castle-Hughes vomiting was cut because Niki Caro felt that Keisha's vomiting wasn't convincing enough.

Much of the film is about Paikea doing traditional Maori things which women were not supposed to do (e.g. sitting in the canoe, fighting). The film cast and crew performed special Maori chants in order to ward off traditional bad luck that might arise from Keisha Castle-Hughes doing the things as part of the film.

The English translations for the Maori words used in the movie:

Te Reo - Maori language
Kaumatua - Elder
Rangatira - Chief
Wharenui - Meeting house
Tikanga - Customs
Whakapapa - Genealogy
Tapu - Sacred
Waka - Canoe
Haka - Dance
Karanga - Call
Karakia - Prayer
Taiaha - Fighting stick
Mau rakau - Stick fighting
Moko/Mokopuna - Grandchild
Marae - Meeting place

Memorable Quotes

Paikea: Why doesn't he want me?
Porourangi: He's just looking for something that doesn't exist anymore.
Paikea: A new leader? They exist.

Paikea: It's not Koro's fault, that I'm a girl.

Porourangi: Her name is Paikea.
Koro: No, not that name.

Paikea: My name is Paikea Apirana, and I come from a long line of chiefs.

Koro: When she was born, that's when things went wrong for us.

Paikea: A long time ago, my ancestor Paikea came to this place on the back of a whale. Since then, in every generation of my family, the first born son has carried his name and become the leader of our tribe... until now.

Koro: Wise leader, forgive me. I am only a fledgling new to flight.

[about her brother]
Paikea: They were waiting for their new leader... but he died.


Technical Details:
"Whale Rider" aka "Te kaieke tohora" (New Zealand: Maori title)

MPAA: Rated PG-13 for brief language and a momentary drug reference.
Runtime: 101 min
Country: New Zealand / Germany
Language: English / Maori
Color: Color
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital

Certification:
Argentina:Atp
Australia:PG
Brazil:Livre
Canada:PG
Finland:K-7
Germany:6
Hong Kong:IIA
Ireland:PG
Netherlands:AL
New Zealand:PG
Norway:11
Portugal:M/6
Singapore:PG
Sweden:7
Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva)
Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud)
Switzerland:12 (canton of the Grisons)
UK:PG
USA:PG-13
Canada:G (Quebec)

posted by Anonymous @ 2/18/2005 10:08:00 AM   0 comments


Lost and Delirious Posted by Hello

posted by Anonymous @ 2/18/2005 10:07:00 AM   0 comments


Bend It Like Beckham Posted by Hello

posted by Anonymous @ 2/18/2005 10:05:00 AM   0 comments

Showing Index for "Whale Rider"
page 1 of 35 -->

IMBd User Ratings for Whale Rider (2002) :
8.0/10 (9,516 votes)
top 250: #247

Related pages:
the IMDb top 250
the IMDb bottom 100
weekly ballot
votes charts
your votes history

based-on-novel
maori-culture
maori
whale-rider
artist
child
father-daughter-relationship
father-son-relationship
slide-show
tradition
whale
grandfather-granddaughter-relationship
grandmother-granddaughter-relationship
uncle-niece-relationship

Other Results ~ Titles (Partial Matches):
1. The Making of 'Whale Rider' (2003) (TV)
2. Riding the Wave: The Whale Rider Story (2004) (TV)

posted by Anonymous @ 2/18/2005 09:01:00 AM   0 comments

Critique of ''Whale Rider'', by IMBd member

User Comments:
http://www.imdb.com/user/ur2713733/comments

1 out of 5 people found the following comment useful:
Truly a film for the entire family to enjoy together. - 21 March 2004
Author: allisonmckinley (allisonmckinley@yahoo.com) from Yorkshire, England

If you have lost your belief in magic, perhaps this is a tale you need to hear about a film you need to see. It is the story of a thirteen-year-old girl, a class clown, a show-off. When strangers invaded her classroom one day, she continued to do what she was used to doing, playing the fool, thus attracting the strangers' attention.
The strangers cast her as the lead in a film. Though it looked like a small film to begin with, it turned out to be an international blockbuster. Then one day, she read in the newspaper that she had been nominated for the most prestigious acting award in the entire world. Her first acting performance had catapulted her from obscurity to the winner's circle, in competition with Diane Keaton, Samantha Morton, Charlize Theron and Naomi Watts for Best Actress in a Leading Role.
Keisha Castle-Hughes is the youngest person ever to be nominated for best actress by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Anna Paquin, discovered by the same casting agent, won an Oscar in 1993 for The Piano, but that was for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Yet she was not the youngest. In 1973, Tatem O'Neal won for Paper Moon at the ripe old age of ten.
So, we have established that fairy tales can still come true, but not without the proper vehicle, and I do not mean a pumpkin drawn by white mice. The vehicle in this instance is a very carefully designed and orchestrated film. And where do great films start? With the writer(s), of course.
Another fairy tale? Witi Ihimaera is the first Maori writer ever to have published both a book of short stories and a novel. He says he was sitting in his New York home one day overlooking the Hudson River when he saw a whale breach the waterline. A whale in the Hudson River? Mr. Ihimaera took it as a sign.
Inspired by stories of ancient tradition that streamed into his mind, over the next three weeks, Mr. Ihimaera wrote The Whale Rider. It is this one work of his that the Maori community accepts as being most representative of their culture, and the novel that became the backbone for the screenplay for the film Whale Rider (co-written by Witi Ihimaera and director Niki Caro).
Maori legend tells of a great man, Paikea, who came many ages ago riding o n the back of a whale and landed on the shores of a new world. He left word that someday another great whale rider would be born to lead the Maori people.
The film begins with a scene in a hospital of a young woman giving birth to twins. The boy is stillborn. With her last breath, she whispers to her husband, `Paikea, Paikea.' The remaining girl child is blessed with that name as the mother dies.Paikea's father, Porourangi (Cliff Curtis), crushed by the loss of his wife, departs his homeland, leaving Paikea in the caring hands of his parents, Koro and Nanny Flowers. `Pai' grows and becomes strong in the teachings of her people, yet she hears an inner voice as well.
Koro, her grandfather, is the chief of his people. When he sees that his son will not return, he begins to train the local boys in the ways of leadership. Pai believes that she could become the leader of her people, but her grandfather, though he loves her, rejects her.
Pai cannot be daunted; she is tougher than any of the boys. She hides around corners and eavesdrops as the boys are trained, learning the lessons, dance, movements and traditional ceremonies of her people.
Once he feels they are ready, Koro takes the boys out in a boat on the ocean and here he removes the carved whale's tooth, symbol of the chief, from around his neck, tossing it into the water. Though they try, none of the boys is able to retrieve it.
Here, the film takes a turn, one that is somewhat unexpected, and one that sets this film apart from the run of the mill. As part of a school pageant, Pai has written a work in honor of her people and has asked her grandfather to attend. It is this performance of the young woman that tests her skills as an actress, and is certainly one of the most touching moments in the film.
The rest of the film does not hinge so much on whether Pai's grandfather attends her performance or not. Something else occurs. Seven whales have beached themselves on the shore. Paikea has called the whales and they have responded to her call. As the people of the village struggle to help the whales return to the ocean before they die, Koro's other son shows him the carved whale's tooth.
`Which of the boys got it?' Koro asks. His son tells him it wasn't one of the boys. `It was she,' he says, pointing to Paikea, now sitting on the back of the biggest of the whales.
There is a very big difference in a film made for twelve-year-old girls and a film about a twelve-year-old girl, especially one on the threshold of womanhood. This is a film about traditions, about beliefs, about growing up, about magic, and about love.
Director Niki Caro transcends ordinary film making with Whale Rider. The film played to standing ovations at both the Toronto and Sundance film festivals, and with good reason. It is not a film that tells us anything is possible. It shows us. It does not sink into despair over the disappearing way of life of the Maori people. It shows us that any group of people, any tribe or village, any nation, can survive and even prosper if we rely on what we feel in our hearts.

posted by Anonymous @ 2/18/2005 08:55:00 AM   0 comments

''Whale Rider'' ~ Amazon.com DVD Information

Amazon.ca Buyer Information on:

Whale Rider (2003)
(September 7, 2004 - DVD)
Search for DVD by subject: Drama

Avg. Customer Review: 4 ½ STARS
Amazon.ca Sales Rank: 1,090

Edition Details:
• Region 1 encoding (US and Canada only)
• Language: English
• Release Date: September 7, 2004
• Catalog Number:
• ASIN: B0000CDNWE

Search results on "Whale Rider" on Amazon.com:

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Product Details
  • Starring: Keisha Castle-Hughes, Rawiri Paratene, See more
    Director: Niki Caro
    Encoding: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. This DVD will probably NOT be viewable in other countries. Read more about DVD formats.)
    Format: Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen, Dolby
    Aspect Ratio(s): 2.35:1
    Audio Encoding: Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
    Rated:
    Studio: Columbia Tristar Hom
    DVD Release Date: June 1, 2004
    Run Time: 101
DVD Features:
  • Available subtitles: English, Spanish
    Available Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
    Commentary by director Niki Caro
    Eight deleted scenes with optional commentary
    Behind-the-scenes featurette
    "Te Waka: Building the Canoe" featurette
    Art and photo gallery
    Whale Rider: The Soundtrack Showcase
ASIN: B0000CABBW
Other Formats: VHS

Average Customer Review: 5 ½ stars
Amazon.com Sales Rank in DVD: #794
Popular in: Alaska (#9) , South Orange, NJ (#19) . See more
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
One of the most charming and critically acclaimed films of 2003, the New Zealand hit Whale Rider effectively combines Maori tribal tradition with the timely "girl power" of a vibrant new millennium. Despite the discouragement of her gruff and disapproving grandfather (Rawiri Paratene), who nearly disowns her because she is female and therefore traditionally disqualified from tribal leadership, 12-year-old Pai (Keisha Castle-Hughes) is convinced that she is a tribal leader, and sets about to prove it. Rather than inflate this story (from a novel by Witi Ihimaera) with artificial sentiment, writer-director Niki Caro develops very real and turbulent family relationships, intimate and yet torn by a collision between stubborn tradition and changing attitudes. The mythic whale rider--the ultimate symbol of Maori connection to nature--is also the harbinger of Pai's destiny, and the appealing Castle-Hughes gives a luminous, astonishingly powerful performance that won't leave a dry eye in the house. With its fresh take on a familiar tale, Whale Rider is definitely one from the heart.
--Jeff Shannon --This text refers to the Theatrical Release edition.

Description
There is a legend that Paikea rode on the back of a whale and led his people to New Zealand. Since that time tradition has decreed that the first-born male descendant will become chief of the tribe. Then Pai is born...and she is a girl. She grows up within a close-knit village which retains the tribes traditional spiritual relationship with the sea and their warrior values. Although loved by all, Pai faces rejection from her grandfather, Koro, who is brokenhearted that there is no grandson to carry on the line.

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posted by Anonymous @ 2/18/2005 08:00:00 AM   0 comments


Billie Elliot
 Posted by Hello

posted by Anonymous @ 2/18/2005 07:54:00 AM   0 comments