SUNDAY SCROLL: Humanities, Ecology, Technology, Artistry & Pornography
Something new to read, watch, look at, listen to and do to #bemorehuman.
One of my favourite things to do on the Internet is to watch interviews from the mid-section of the 20th century by broadcasting legends such as Dick Cavett, Michael Parkinson and Terry Wogan who would sometimes dedicate an entire episode to a single, extraordinary guest. The guest had nothing to promote, no pre-approved anecdotes or cringey Fallon-esque sketches prepared and they talked not about their latest movie, memoir or rehab stint but about their craft and unique approach to living.
Airing these long-form, in-depth conversations during primetime improved the quality of public debate and made us all a little more worldly. I miss them but podcasting seems to be the medium where they can be found once more, generally produced by independent companies who refuse to believe that audiences are stupid and attention spans are dead. This week I heard one of the best ever so enjoy that and more on your Sunday Scroll. Nx
Read this...
It was only a few Scroll's ago that I recommended
‘s viral essay ‘The State of Culture 2024’ but it seems I am turning into something of a fan boy because once again I feel compelled to include him in my recommendation for best thing I read this week. His latest essay on the value of humanities as a topic goes to the heart of what's wrong with tech culture and its determination to reduce us all to data points for the benefit of advertisers and shareholders.
Watch this...
Now, I'm a big fan of humans as you know BUT we don't half create a lot of problems for everything else on this planet, not least with the waste we create. My old friend
and my new friend Jessica Cheam, founder of Eco-Business News, have produced a mind-blowing documentary called ‘Wasted’ and I would urge you to join me for the Earth Day Screening at The Projector, where you can hear from them first hand about the horrors they saw making it, but the hope they retain for fixing it. Book your tickets right now at https://theprojector.sg/films-and-events/wasted/.All ticket proceeds go to venue costs and EB Impact’s Wasted public education campaigns. Find out more at https://www.wasted.film/.
Look at this...
I am sure there must be a German word for something that is both amazing and depressing at the same time and if I knew what it was I would use it to describe the reaction to a short film released this week called ‘Airhead’.
Having made short films myself I know how hard it is to find viewers but this one has had tens of thousands of views in a few days because it was “made by Sora” OpenAI’s text-to-video application. Except, it wasn’t made by Sora, was it? It was made by Walter Woodman, Sydney Leeder and Patrick Cederberg at production company Shy Kids who wrote an inspired script, shot original footage and put it through a comprehensive post-production process as they explain in the far less viewed behind-the-scenes video below.
“Made with Sora” is the new “made with iPhone”, a reductive view of a deeply human creative process involving talented people collaborating with each other AND technology to create something extraordinary. Watch ‘Airhead’ everywhere, but watch the making of below too.
Listen to this...
Sir Antony Gormley OBE RA is a British sculptor whose works include the iconic Angel of the North, at Gateshead in the north of England.
Last week he spoke on Alistair Campbell and Rory Stewart's other podcast 'Leading' about the absolute necessity of arts and culture to modern society and it's a joy to hear someone articulate, so specifically, its value to us all.
Do this...
Nothing objectifies and commoditises the beauty of the human experience more than porn, which reduces its participants to mere meat props to be used and increasingly, abused. Unfortunately, online porn is how children as young as nine are learning about sex and relationships, without love or intimacy, but with growing levels of violence and aggression. No matter how tech savvy you are as a parent, you cannot prevent curious minds finding porn when it is so accessible, so what can you do?
15 years ago former ad exec and forever feminist
started an alternative entitled ‘MakeLoveNotPorn’, which is “Pro Sex. Pro Porn. Pro Knowing The Difference.” MLNP features “#RealWorldSex in all its glorious, silly, beautiful, messy, reassuring humanness” and, frankly, if I had a teenager I’d be buying them a subscription but I don’t so, instead, I supported her recent WeFunder campaign to raise money for expansion (in a world where women receive less than 2% of all VC funding).Porn is addicting our young people, making them depressed and endangering them by normalising sexual violence - read Billie Eilish’s account of how watching porn as a child gave her nightmares and “destroyed my brain”. Become an equity investor investor in MLNP for as little as US$100 and be a part of the solution instead of ignoring the problem at https://wefunder.com/make.love.not.porn.