Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibit is on at uShaka

Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibition launches in Durban

Copyright - Photographer - Steve Winters - Title - LAST WILD PICTURE
Picture Courtesy Durban Wild Talk Africa

The internationally renowned Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibition, which launched last week at the Durban’s uShaka Marine World, is open to the public for two months from 25 July to 25 September this year. The glamorous cocktail party was attended by a number of filmmakers and broadcast experts from across the world. Other dignitaries included the producer of BBC Africa series James Honeyborne and New York based executive producer Peter Hamilton.

Copyright - Photographer - Adam Gibbs - Title -  FAIRY LAKE FIR

Picture Courtesy Durban Wild Talk Africa

The exhibition will feature 100 of the world’s most amazing wildlife photographs, taken by 77 top international photographers. The selection of images was made from a massive 48 000 entries submitted from 98 countries worldwide and includes work from South African photographers Brent Stirton, Jean Tresfon, Heinrich van den Berg, Kim Wolhuter, Frits Hoogendijk, Thomas Peschak and Hannes Lochner. The launch forms part of Wild Talk Africa, the largest international wildlife and natural history film festival and conference in Africa. The exhibition, which marks its return to Durban after a seven-year hiatus, has been brought to the city by National Geographic Channels International. 

“Photography has remained at the forefront of our vision and is still one of the best ways we have captured nature. National Geographic Channels International is proud to be a part of an initiative that supports the art of photography and highlights the beauty of wildlife,” Thandi Davids of National Geographic Channels International said.

The Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibition, an annual event, co-owned by the Natural History Museum of London and BBC Worldwide, is a carefully chosen distillation of number photographic entries from around the world.

Wild Talk Africa, alongside Wildscreen in the UK and Jackson Hole in the States, has firmly established itself as one of the top three natural history film festivals in the world. Strongly focused on wildlife, conservation and cultural programming, the four-day festival and conference includes seminars led by key figures in the international broadcast industry.

As part of the city’s greater vision to build Durban’s “golden mile” as a hub for film market activity in the month of July, similar to what Cannes is to Europe, Wild Talk Africa partnered with the Durban International Film Festival and the Durban Film Mart, to offer a strong film industry package for visitors, both local and international. 

Copyright - Photographer - Charlie Hamilton James (UK) Title - LOOKOUT FOR LIONS
Picture Courtesy Durban Wild Talk Africa

(Source - Durban Wild Talk Africa)

Make sure you get to see this exhibit dear reader.  There are some wonderful
images at this exhibit.  If you want to learn about how to take good pictures be
sure to visit this exhibition.  

Article by +Fred Felton 

Tweet me your thoughts about this exhibit @fredfelton 

 

Read about the Long Short Walk, news for photogs, Justin Bieber and exciting news for Musicians

Get ready for the Long Short Walk this coming Saturday

In case you weren't aware that we postponed the Long Short Walk to this coming Saturday, herewith the information. Due to the downpour last weekend we really couldn't walk, so we look forward to seeing everyone this coming Saturday. 

We will still be meeting at Mitchell Park, right across the road from Vida E from 11am onwards and should start the walk at 12pm. The walk will end at the attached (pic) point where local graffiti artist Pastel Heart will be whipping up something awesome to add some 031 flavour to our cause!

After we will head back to Spiga to serve some snacks to all those that took part! 

Please spread the word, we are hoping to get a big group together to support this cause, and get Florida Road buzzing with excitement. 

(Source - Spiga Durban) 

(Source - Sony Gateway) 

Bieber of De Aar: Notes from a Pan-American Ground Squirrel

On a whim, I thought of writing this essay about the Bieber concert where sanity is pitched very closely to the winds.

Some have compared the Beatles to Bieber, or maybe the other way around. Where is The White Album?  The albums that launched the lads from Liverpool were punctuated by genius, although the hysteria was less manufactured. This ragamuffin, exporting American mediocrity was being passed around with his mind filled with swine fever, and having his nails manicured at ECR, 5fm and yodelling whilst drinking liquor in the forbidden bush. Pausing to think I wondered what vast, cavernous cherubing was necessary for trumped up choristers with bad hair; shrill at that, being roundly feted as the young Mozart of his day.

Bieber certainly plays in a minor key. In another age, another time, Bieber might have been sent to a salt mine or imprisoned for corrupting a minor. Never mind the Bollocks. An evergreen friend of mine pointed emphatically to the axiom, “Teenagers were always thus” but I tried to face Machu Picchu and pondered exiling myself to Cape Town; where sadly the last outpost of the Empire was serenading the intrepid banality of this Uitlander.

Theatre in the round.  Theatre in the Zoo. In Amsterdam they are busy riding bicycles in a good cheer, and speaking in full sentences in a language I can understand.

Perhaps one can forgive this sophistry, should Justine Beaveriana sing La Traviata in perfect pitch in La Scala whilst writing his memoirs in the Karoo. The farcical disembodied voices on the radio, these days, are as much to blame for this alas. Of course I can believe that belief is something important to believe in even if corruption is the belief that distempers the air in our disbelief.  What is belief after all, on the back heels of a shoeless squirrel who is probably schooled in unbelief, if we are to be believed?  Did he relieve himself? I decided this morning to start walking to the mid Karoo to start a café that services the cisterns of De Aar when Bieber relieved himself on the way to a city or game reserve, where he tasted the lie of the land.

Noting in the margins that Belief only exists in the Karoo; I fetched a bucket of condensed milk to greet and bless this Canadian with a strange deformity on his left shoulder. The panting shoals of four-year olds dragged by parents after midnight, to this strange ceremony put my soul in danger. I thought of the wretched Child Protection Act of 1996 that allows our children to wonder aimlessly through the streets, with pencils in their noses, and being the fine citizens of North America that they always wanted to become. The future is not what it was I suppose! At last we can expect the next chapter in the soon to be published biography called "The Squirrel Whisperer" or the Scientific Version- "How I perfected the lobotomy of the World in Eighteen Years" or "Around the Page in Eighty Badly Misspelt Words". Local Thesbian Jaspar Ennui III is teaching his pet hamster Somalian, and calls his great sailing yacht, Bind the Thick to the Starboard. He already has several offers from the Department of Education. What a relief! Beaver can now retire. What animalism.

Opinion Piece by Timothy Sparks - email: tpwsparks@hotmail.com

Musicians Needed!

East Coast Radio is Looking for Musicians for Durban Day

For more details visit this link: http://www.ecr.co.za/competition/be-the-band/

(Source - East Coast Radio) 

If you would like to drop off your bankets for Twitter Blanket Drive Drop Off Locations so far in Durban are:

• Europa, Florida Road
• The Sharkcage at The Sharks Rugby Stadium

Read about the Long Short Walk, Photography Events, Mother's Day Events and Live Theatre

What ‘s it about?

The Long Short walk was established and launched as a part of the Zenani Mandela campaign. Zenani was Nelson Mandela's great grand-daughter, who was killed on the eve of the Soccer World Cup in 2010, on her way home from the Opening Concert.

It is a call to action, led by the Mandela family, and carried out during the United Nation's Global Road Safety Week that takes place between 6 - 12 May. This campaign is International and hundreds of countries are taking part and arranging their own Long Short Walks. The Long Short Walks are then filmed/photographed and distributed via Social Media such as Facebook,Twitter and Flickr with the hashtag  #walksafe . All photos/footage are then put together, providing snapshots of streets and journeys across the world. 

Our Walk.

We are hosting the 031 Long Short Walk. We will be walking down Florida Road as it is not only our 'home' but also one of the busiest streets in Durban in terms of foot-traffic, and we are always witness to vehicles speeding/driving under the influence in this street, with complete disregard to the pedestrians.

We are meeting at Mitchell Park (across from Vida E) on Saturday the 11^th of May from 11h00. The walk will start at 12h00 and our destination will be the Durban Tourism Office at the bottom of Florida Road.  

Thank you to Fishwicks for sponsoring the printing of the posterboards and banners for us. We will be serving snacks at Spiga after the walk to all those taking part.

Link to FB: https://www.facebook.com/events/565942543450202/

For details please contact Karla at 031longshortwalk@gmail.com  or 031 303 9511.

The London Walk

The Rome Walk

The Vietnam Walk

(Source - Spiga) 

Music At St Clements

Nibs & Rodney Branigan

                      Friday 10 May

                      St Clements

                     191 Musgrave Road, Durban

                     18:30, R80pp        

                     Bookings essential 031 2022511

Acclaimed South African troubadour NIBS will be on tour this May with world acclaimed, acoustic guitar virtuoso, Rodney Branigan from Texas.

The two met at in London in 2011 and have spoken about a combined tour ever since. Nibs will be releasing his brand new Anthology album, ‘Crossing Borders, Driving north’, while Branigan will be gracing our shores with his outer worldly guitar prowess.

(Source - St Clements) 

(Source - Hirsch's) 

Join Sony for a Photography Talk

(Source - Sony Gateway) 

Live Theatre

Catalina UnLtd proudly announces that Catalina’s Deaf production  “Listen with Your Eyes” a comedy play, created and performed by Bo Tasker, Darren Rajbal and Ismael Mansoor  and directed by Alison Swannack, is going international.

Catalina UnLtd has decided to showcase “Listen With Your Eyes” by running the play again   from 30 May to 1 June 2013 at the Catalina Theatre, 18 Boatman Road, Wilson’s Wharf for the public who missed this fantastic show last year. To book a ticket (R80) please visit http://www.computicket.com. The play runs from Thurs 30th May, Fri 31st May at 8pm and Sat 1 June at 2pm and 8pm.

 ‘Listen with your Eyes’ took Catalina’s “Talking Hands”, the first ever Deaf Theatre Festival delivered in  South Africa, by storm last year. It has been selected for the Festival Clin d’Oeil (European Deaf Theatre Festival) in Reims, France.  While showcasing the richness of performance art among the South African Deaf Community, the cast will be exposed to the excitement of the international Deaf Theatre world at a time when this Deaf Cultural Festival celebrates its 10^th year.

Festival Clin d’Oeil was created in 2003 (European Year of Disabled Person) and this year will run from 5^th to 7^thJuly.  This multidisciplinary arts festival is aimed at highlighting the richness of the Deaf community. This unique festival has become a reference and an essential event to the global Deaf community as it opens a space for artistic expression and communication which is accessible to both Deaf and Hearing people. In addition to the performance of ‘Listen with your Eyes’, the festival has also requested the performance of  ‘Rainbow Magic’ for the street theatre aspect of the Festival, as well as two workshops for children.

Message from Mr David de Keyzer, the Festival director ‘I always take great pleasure in meeting new artists and that is why we have chosen to invite the cast from Catalina UnLtd. It is very important for us to promote foreign artists in Europe, at Festival Clin d'Oeil. We encourage the exchange of experiences and cultures in which results in constant evolution of our art. I will be amazed by the South African culture now, and the audience can also discover this culture so far from France… We are very pleased with the arrival of these great artists. With more than 6,000 persons attending the Festival in 2011, "Clin d’Oeil" is today the international central meeting event of Deaf culture.

Diversity, protection and development of languages are a central concern of the Festival. Greater diversity in the public audience is now fortunately  possible thanks to the 15 interpreters present, the vélotypie, subtitling and the magnetic loop, which allows meetings and exchanges between deaf and hearing people.’

The play “Listen with your Eyes” is a Deaf-only comedy based in a science lab. The hearing scientist and his Deaf assistant find communication a big challenge and they set about designing a robot to interpret for them. While designing the robot the hearing scientist learns a lot about Deaf people’s communication needs but not without loads of humour!

This is the first time ever for a Deaf-led and exclusive South African cast and director to perform on the international stage, which makes history for Catalina UnLtd and South Africa! 

The Artistic Director of Catalina UnLtd, Mr Themi Venturas, says, “We have embraced the Deaf community and deaf artists at Catalina, and it is gratifying to see this international recognition for their efforts.  The play is sure to be well received in France, and we are currently looking for funding and sponsors for our talented cast and director.”

The festival is paying 50% of the airfares for 4 people, Ismael Mansoor, Darren Rajbal, Bo Tasker and Alison Swannack and providing a small fee for the performances. “All we need to showcase South African Deaf theatre talent in Europe is to find the funders.  A reasonable amount for these amazing South Africans to showcase their work on behalf of the city, the Province and the country,” notes Mr Venturas.  All assistance would be greatly appreciated.

For further information or to make a contribution please email Alison Swannack at listenwye@gmail.com or contact Francis Doherty-Bigara at 031 837 7400 or 072 795 5965 . You can also visithttp://listenwye.wix.com/about or www.catalinatheatre.co.za

(Source - Catalina Theatre)