5AM StoryTalk Coffee Reading: Issue 19
5AM StoryTalk Coffee Reading: Issue 19
A compilation of new and older arts-related articles that you might've missed
On the second Friday of every month, I share a list of arts-related articles (and occasionally podcasts) I’ve recently read that I think you might find illuminating/challenging/inspiring, too. I don’t necessarily agree with everything in each article/episode, but I don’t need to entirely agree with something to think it’s worthy of my time - and, when it comes to art, I encourage you to embrace the same philosophy. These articles are capped off with some recommendations about arts newsletters to read here on Substack.
Thanks for being part of this arts conversation!
Cole
R.E.M.’s Music to Soundtrack Buster Keaton’s ‘Sherlock Jr.’ for Re-Release
By Kory Grow; Rolling Stone
"I'm honored that in some small way R.E.M. is collaborating with [Keaton] from beyond the grave," guitarist Peter Buck says of pairing, which will come out this winter.
“We resisted neurotypical ways of making films”: how The Stimming Pool creates space for an autistic cinema
By Lillian Crawford; BFI
Steven Eastwood and Georgia Bradburn of the Neurocultures Collective tell us about their bold experiments with an ’autistic camera’ on The Stimming Pool, and why they resisted explaining autistic behavior on screen.
Australian Gothic: Peter Weir’s ‘Picnic at Hanging Rock’
By Tim Pelan; Cinephilia & Beyond
Los Angeles Film and TV Production Approaches Historically Low Levels
By Winston Cho; The Hollywood Reporter
Amid the decline, some industry observers are calling for an expansion of the California film and TV tax credit program to compete with other countries and states beefing up their incentives to lure Hollywood dollars.
‘Fandom has toxified the world’: Watchmen author Alan Moore on superheroes, Comicsgate and Trump
By Alan Moore; The Guardian
We’ve never deserved Moore, but I’m so glad we have him.
"Y.M.C.A." - Village People
By
;The story of how the mainstream co-opted a queer music producer’s plan to give gay culture its own supergroup.
Quincy Jones Had Something for Everyone
By Hanif Abdurraqib; The New Yorker
The music superproducer knew that if you have to find your way to a kind of telepathy with an artist, operating as one mind, you can’t speed past the human element.
When Do We Stop Finding New Music? A Statistical Analysis
By
;When does our taste in music stagnate?
‘It was a deflating experience’: the novelists who nearly gave up
By Ellen Peirson-Hagger; The Guardian
With earnings having dropped by 60%, it is harder than ever to keep going as a writer – even if your work gets rave reviews.
Penguin Random House books now explicitly say ‘no’ to AI training
By Emma Roth; The Verge
The copyright page on new books and reprints now says they can’t be used or reproduced “for the purpose of training artificial intelligence.”
Universe would die before monkey with keyboard writes Shakespeare, study finds
By Agence France-Presse; The Guardian
Australian mathematicians call into question the ‘infinite monkey theorem’ in new research on old adage.
SUBSTACK RECOMMENDATIONS
I enjoy reading the following Substack newsletters about art. Maybe you will, too. I try to change these up every “reading list”, so there is always something new here.
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by Alex Rollins Berg
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If this article added anything to your life but you’re not up for a paid subscription, consider buying me a “coffee” so I can keep as much of this newsletter free as possible for the dreamers who couldn’t afford it otherwise.
My debut novel Psalms for the End of the World is available from Headline Books, Hachette Australia, and more. You can order it here no matter where you are in the world.
Your selection’s range this month—from the “infinite monkey theorem” to Quincy Jones’ genius—adds an enriching mix to the conversation. You have a talent for capturing the spirit of each piece, inviting us to explore with open minds. It's another inspiring read that’s just the right mix of familiarity and surprise.