Los Angeles Festival of Movies

There are two kinds of film festivals out there. In one camp there is Cannes, Toronto, Venice, and Berlin. These are largely corporate sponsored galas—competitions even—where the aim is for Hollywood studios or multinational financiers to gain clout and distribution. They give out gold stars like the Palm d’Or and the Golden Bear. It’s not…

Jungle @ Fox Theater [4/11/24]

As I approached the box office of the Fox Theater, I was greeted by a bustling line of people stretching hundreds of feet across 3rd Street. Although it was an hour before the show, eager fans were already lined up to catch Jungle’s performance, only two days before their highly anticipated Coachella appearance. Basking in…

Xavi @ The Novo

As I walked down LA Live, the streets were flooded with lines, merchandise vendors, food vendors and a lot of security. Initially I had thought to myself, “Perhaps there’s a concert at the crypto arena tonight.” But in reality the line, filled with fans and latino news channels, was for the Novo theater. As you…

Ryan Beatty @ The Wiltern [3/15/24]

“It’s brave to be nothing to no one at all.” “Ribbons” – Ryan Beatty An ironic line from singer Ryan Beatty, who catapulted himself to fame in his mid-teens co-signed by Radio Disney and Ryan Seacrest. After he took a hiatus from music for three years to break away from his teen heartthrob image, he…