Sarah Wilson

This week I have been working with Sky & WWF, for the second...

Mon, 11 Jun 2012 05:16:00 -0400

This week I have been working with Sky & WWF, for the second year running, on their project to save 1 Billion Trees in the Rainforest. Quirks include running around in a Jaguar suit, playing tug of war with Amazonian rubber sheets, running a 3D cinema and educating thousands of children and adults on the effects of deforestation. Here’s me and Mick Jaguar celebrating another successful year!

S x

FINALLY a definitive update on all things Brainchild! A team of...

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 19:41:00 -0400

FINALLY a definitive update on all things Brainchild!

A team of us are throwing a small arts festival at the end of June (29th June - 1st July). After lots of constructive work and the compilation of a crack team of other like-minded people, we have a lot in place already to really get it going. We’ve decided to call it Brainchild Festival, it is very small, on a scale of about 300-500 people (18+), aiming to exhibit, encourage and inspire talent and original thought. In the current climate, we all feel there is a real need to inspire and encourage creative, original thinking and to remind people of the strength in their own originality, so that we can all recognise the importance of imagination and the great potential of our minds. It should be a celebration of the raw creativity that links the performances we host, varying from DJ sets, live poetry, film screenings, theatre pieces, art installations and more, and a celebration of the artists’ intent and integrity. Brainchild has been born out of a serious need - so many people are too fearful or unsure to pursue their interest and/or talent, and to pursue creating value, and over the three days we’re aiming to create an environment that demonstrates and encourages creativity. My team and I want to create a collective platform over the course of three days to open up this potential and really celebrate it.

We have secured land in Easthamstead (Just outside of Reading), working on a temporary events notice (499 including site team etc). It really isn’t going to be expansive (geographically), with one main structure (mainstage) and two tents, as well as installations and points of interest across the site. We have secured a bar deal (free, splitting the profits 50/50) and a cheap deal on PA’s but are lacking support in the following areas.

Cheap structures (two tents, one stage)
Sponsorship
Content (Musicians/Poets/Theatre/Film)

Here is our (very rough) tumblr, a professional website is being created at the moment! http://brainchildhq.tumblr.com/. It is expanding at an unprecidented rate, so expect bigger things soon!

At the heart of this project is young people willing to go the extra mile to assert themselves in something bigger than themselves, hoping to show that with mindfulness and a positive, considered attitude we can turn cynicism into belief and aspirations into reality.

Brainchild is run by young people, but is not aimed at any particular demographic - the festival is a platform for anyone and everyone to find their creative voice.

I know there are a lot of people with great contacts in these areas, so if you are reading this and know of anyone/can potentially be of service in any of these areas, any area at all really, and feel passionate about what we’re doing, please please please get in touch!

Thanks in advance, wonderful people!

S x

brainchildhq: WE GOT LAND!

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 10:33:17 -0400

brainchildhq:

WE GOT LAND!

News news news SO things have been pretty insane lately. Frozen...

Fri, 09 Mar 2012 19:41:00 -0500

News news news

SO things have been pretty insane lately. Frozen Thumb had another grand month, collaborating with the lovely Roland Shaw (Shawbrook) in the South Gallery with the wonderful Henry Skewes and Sam & Isaac!

Henry’s been getting a lot of great press, check out some more great reviews here:

http://brapscallions.com/2012/03/14/henry-skewes/

http://www.seriousvibes.co.uk/page/2

http://hugoharrison.posterous.com/introducing-henry-skewes

http://flyingwithanna.com/2012/03/11/new-treat-94-henry-skewes/

The founder of Brapscallions, James Talbut, will now be working with me to guide Henry’s career in a beautiful collaborative effort. He’s worked with some big names, including Atlantis and Sony, so watch this space!

Here is Marina in a field. A very exciting field. Details to follow shortly…

The last couple of months have been pretty exciting! I’m...

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 22:23:00 -0500

The last couple of months have been pretty exciting!

I’m now having a go at managing, starting with my good friend Henry Skewes. He is a truly wonderful musician and a great friend, and I’d love all the help I can get. Any gig bookings, marketing advice and support of any kind are more than welcome!

Check out his music here - http://soundcloud.com/henryskewes

And like the fan page - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Henry-Skewes/286723168023184

Secondly, i’m now writing for Leeds-based online magazine, Music Broke My Bones. It’s been getting a lot of hype recently, so i’m really excited to be on board. I’ll post my reviews as and when they’re published!

Larsstt of all, we’ve just confirmed the wonderful Concrete Disco (Formally Toxic Funk Berry) to headline our next Proud gig, on March 20th. We want it to be a massive one, so make sure you’re all there!

Big love,

S x

HEY SGP!

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:15:00 -0500

HEY SGP!

Animal Collective – Fireworks Our creativity knows no bounds.

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 19:41:00 -0500

Animal Collective – Fireworks

Our creativity knows no bounds.

Daughter – His Young Heart

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 09:00:00 -0400

Daughter – His Young Heart

Scarface – On My Block Southern Fried - every wednesday at...

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 08:24:00 -0400

Scarface – On My Block

Southern Fried - every wednesday at Cockpit, Leeds. An amazing night of hip hop, RnB and gin & juice-induced fun. Come along!

A lovely little reminder of our 8 month residency at 93ft East....

Fri, 23 Sep 2011 19:41:00 -0400

A lovely little reminder of our 8 month residency at 93ft East. A big thank you to Sean, Helen and Pia for making it so special.

At the TEDx conference, a trailer for the Roundhouse Studios...

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 15:39:00 -0400

At the TEDx conference, a trailer for the Roundhouse Studios (featuring voiceover from our very own Elise Cobain) was shown to an audience of creatives. Amongst the talks from various inspirational people, our feature seemed to go down really well! Excited for things to come..

Bill Cosby – Sunny This summer was incredibly busy for me, and...

Tue, 20 Sep 2011 08:14:00 -0400

Bill Cosby – Sunny

This summer was incredibly busy for me, and I’d just like to say a big thanks to everyone who made it possible/ all those who made it so utterly brilliant.

From the collections office at Big Feastival to the work with Loudsound at L.E.D, Underage, Field Day and Applecart, the wonderful team at the Sky Rainforest Pod, the lovely bar staff at Secret Garden Party and Camp Bestival and Standon Calling for welcoming me into the family - a massive, massive thank you.

For the more chilled out elements - Robbie & Blagsound, who gave me an unforgettable Bestival, Filmclub and the BEV festival for pure inspiration and all the little bits and pieces I got to do around the country: I’m so thankful to you all.

Bring on Leeds!

Lat month I represented the Roundhouse at the launch of Rod...

Sat, 10 Sep 2011 19:41:00 -0400

Lat month I represented the Roundhouse at the launch of Rod Arad’s Curtain Call, an incredible installation that has to be seen to be believed.

My final hoorah with Future Cinema before embarking to Leeds:...

Tue, 06 Sep 2011 20:22:00 -0400

My final hoorah with Future Cinema before embarking to Leeds: California Classics, Top Gun & The Lost Boys.

In September, Ken Robinson will be leading a conference at the...

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 09:46:40 -0400

In September, Ken Robinson will be leading a conference at the Roundhouse, alongside TED, on educational reform. I urge you to join us in supporting it. This is one of the primary reasons why so many young people have idiotically taken to the streets this week. Education isn’t working. We need real, structural change. The tabloids have labelled us “the lost generation”, but it’s within our power to make the changes that will stop such mindless anarchy ever happening again.

It’s common sense.

Marketisation is wrong – real education can’t be quantified.

The education system cannot work in Post Modern Society - Opportunity structures are far more open, class systems more fluid, and career choices far more diverse. Education should not be one-size -fits-all, and grade-focused standardisation has made us lose sight of what education is really for. Ultimately, individual careers stem from individual passions, or they should, and that is what the Roundhouse, Ken Robinson and TED are fighting for.

The kids who have taken to the streets over the last few days, whether they know it or not, have been let down by the education system. This is in no way in defence of their behaviour – it is an explanation.

You only have to watch the link below to see that the problem is largely down to the uneducated. These kids have no knowledge of the nature of business, or economics, or politics. How, then, are they supposed to make educated decisions, or resist group mentality?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-14458424

Help us make the change so long overdue.

In anticipation of Bestival, I did another sing.

Tue, 09 Aug 2011 13:46:00 -0400

In anticipation of Bestival, I did another sing.

Whilst till op-ing at a bar at Secret Garden Party, I was told...

Wed, 27 Jul 2011 12:10:00 -0400

Whilst till op-ing at a bar at Secret Garden Party, I was told Amy Winehouse had been found dead of a suspected drug overdose. Obviously, like most of the nation, I was fucking gutted. I’d always loved her music and, as a songwriter and musician, had idolised her for years. But nothing really prepared me for watching the footage from her last ever concert, at Belgrade, when I got home.

Does no-one else find it disgusting that her management repeatedly let her humiliate herself on-stage, when she was clearly vulnerable and hurting? Or feel extremely unnerved by the boos of her so-called “fans”, the chants to “sing” and even, by one twat, of “who are you” as her eyes roll into the back of her head?

I’m surprised that the footage hasn’t caused more of a stir. In fact, I feel like causing a fucking stir over it. I’ve never done a blog before; I have decided to sit, enraged, at my computer, to try and articulate exactly what I have taken from this awful tragedy.

As Russell Brand says in his blog “We have lost a beautiful and talented woman to this disease.” A disease she could neither help, nor hinder from affecting her live performance. Yet countless times I’ve heard people report after gigs that they didn’t get their “moneys-worth” out of seeing her live or that she was a “disappointment”. The Belgrade gig, and many before it, turned Amy into some kind of performing monkey, demoralising and cheapening her talent, in a situation that gratified no-one but those profiting from her freak-shows. I also find it disgustingly ironic that, in the months before her death, the general, ignorant public felt at liberty to strut out of her gigs claiming she “wasn’t at her best” as if they, of all people, could pass judgement on talent of any form.

I think managements and the media should seriously reconsider their approaches to the Amy Winehouses of the industry, concentrating on the wellbeing of the person rather than the amount of money you can squeeze out of them before there’s nothing more to give. Being loosely in the industry myself, I had been convinced that lately there had been a real shift of independence from the management to the artist as far as branding and creative control were concerned, and I still believe, to an extent, that there has been. But when the artist is vulnerable or in decline, there is still a perception of the public having an entitlement to the artist as a product, and the duty of managements and the media to deliver it to them, a concept that has grown out of the consumerism of music and, ultimately, largely destroyed creativity for its own sake. Like a Black Forest gateau reaching its sell-by, with each live performance Amy’s management reduced her to 20p, threw her in the bargain bin and made sure everyone took a piece. Those selling a “failing” product have no respect for its original qualities, nor how out of place its creators would deem it if they could see what they had reduced it to.

There is an ever present attitude within the media that people have the right to indulge guiltily in something when they know it’s not got long left, something I don’t think i’m alone in finding deeply disturbing. It has made me seriously think about my involvement in the Arts industry, and whether my ethics disagree with the concept of creative industries in general. I don’t want to build my life around people who value easy money over personal integrity, but as yet I can’t say I’ve encountered many, despite being involved in a lot of shit. I’ve even been a part of organisations that are pioneers for real positive change, like the Roundhouse. Maybe things are changing.. I don’t know.

What I do know is that it is up to us, as the public, to show our refusal to support corrupt organisations in the music and media industry. Alongside the Murdoch scandal, I feel mildly hopeful of a real rejection of the media’s destructive invasions into peoples private lives. However, living in Essex, I accept that your general, OK-magazine-gossip-indulger isn’t likely to change their stripes.

It is with this air of hopelessness that I write this blog entry, really. Its less of an argument, and more of a plead for someone to restore in me some kind of hope in humanity. I’m not sure how we, as the human race, managed to sink so low as to develop as corrupt an industry as the media, and let it become a meta-narrative in our lives, yet society seems stuck here irreversibly. I also don’t know whether real change is possible, as the foundations stem far deeper than I can imagine.

Returning to the point, I still really don’t understand celebrity culture at all, and generally have a problem with people disrespecting talent due to irrelevant personal traits or actions. No-one says Byron was shit for falling in love with his sister, and Keats and Shelley are remembered for their art, rather than their suspected tenancies towards opium. Why can’t it be the same for Amy Winehouse, Michael Jackson and Kurt Cobain (etc.)? Why must all of them be plagued by their own personal choices?

At this time of tragedy, it is important for those that knew and loved Amy and her music to remember the person she was, not what her addiction turned her into.

My condolences to Amy’s friends and family.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4X7OInZjjZ4

Last night we hosted our first gig out west at one of Rough...

Sun, 10 Jul 2011 12:10:00 -0400

Last night we hosted our first gig out west at one of Rough Trade shop’s ROTA afternoons, at Notting Hill Arts Club.

With incredible acts; Look, Stranger!, Jocie Juritz, Speak & The Spells and kabogaeries alongside our very own Frozen Thumb DJs, we had a brilliant time and we hope you did too!

My third production with Secret Cinema, The Battle of...

Wed, 11 May 2011 20:22:00 -0400

My third production with Secret Cinema, The Battle of Algiers, at the Old Vic Tunnels, Waterloo.

Some great footage from Frozen Thumb’s debut at Brixton...

Sat, 07 May 2011 20:22:00 -0400

Some great footage from Frozen Thumb’s debut at Brixton Windmill. Footage courtesy of the wonderful Tajona Karhu.