BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | For decades, the New York Anime Fest was a regular event for fans of Japanese comics and cartoons. But it was devoured by the New York Comic Con (NYCC), and eventually resurfaced as a much smaller event that runs concurrent to NYCC. Two years ago, Anime NYC arrived to give otakus […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | Genre-savvy audiences are increasing numb to horror. The days of animatronic vampires groaning, “I vant to suck your bloooood!” are lone gone. The 21st century haunted house is technologically advanced, highly interactive, and immersive. Some of them even have selfie spots for people who want photo ops with the monsters (you […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | RuPaul’s DragCon NYC (Sept. 6-8 at the Javits Center) is in it’s third year, and attendees mostly know what to expect: meet-and-greets with drag queens who’ve appeared on RuPaul’s Drag Race, and booths hawking products and services for drag queens (or civilians trying get the drag queen look). Each year a […]
BY SCOTT STIFFLER | Tips from community members, pitches from publicists, and press releases from elected officials: It was just another interesting day at the office on Friday, July 26—and then, we came across an email with the subject line “Inclusion of your Website in the Library of Congress Web Archives.” It read, in part: […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | At the stroke of noon on Sunday, June 2, Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” boomed out on the corner of 37th Ave. and 89th St. in Queens. It was a sound check for Queens Pride. New York City was just 36 hours into Pride Month, and the first of our Pride […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | With WorldPride, the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots, and the usual frenzy of Pride month celebrations sweeping over New York City this week, LGBTQ pilgrims are coming in from around the globe, to be part of this truly unique moment in time. Among the notable visitors is His Royal Highness […]
BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | “I didn’t know that make up could be a job,” said makeup artist James Vincent, at a preview of The Makeup Show. Mr. Vincent is the Director of Education and Artist Relations at The Makeup Show, an industry convention which took up four floors of the Metropolitan Pavilion, (125 W. 18th […]
TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL REVIEW BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | Being a “professional cheerleader” isn’t quite what people think it is. The job comes with fame, social status, and a great outfit. But “wealth” isn’t part of the package. NFL cheerleaders have filed several lawsuits claiming they were underpaid for their work, and “A Woman’s Work” chronicles […]
TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL REIVEW BY CHARLES BATTERSBY | “Flawless” begins with a boy riding a white horse through the halls of a high school. Soon the audience learns that this surreal image is part of an elaborate “promposal,” and that the prettiest girl in school is about to be asked to the prom by the […]