Of Kitty Dresses, Hypnotherapy & Killer Shoots

~~~

New red Ray-Ban Wayfarers:

I've been trying out hypnotherapy with my friend, Gene - a naturopath, hypnotherapist and scent artist. We're trying to wean me off my evil neuralgia and bipolar meds because a lifetime of Lyrica, Seroquel, Lamictal and Epilim is a most unappealing prospect.

Gene's Clinic:
THE HAPPY NATUROPATH

My two sessions thus far have been rather productive. I feel a lot more light spirited and emotionally rejuvenated.



This week is killer.

Am shooting two films simultaneously - one, a romantic comedy, the other, a mob drama, which is resulting in work days that often start between 8 to 10 in the morning and end past midnight. I have to set five alarm clocks every morning just to fall out of bed on time.

Today's studio shoot was a hoot. We were filming a fantasy dream sequence for the romantic comedy - really campy, over the top, tongue-in-cheek and theatrical with retro costumes and smoke machines. I wore a red and white polka dotted dress, white shoes and a red bow in my hair - somehow managing to avoid resembling Minnie Mouse, while my co-actor had to dweeb it up with suspenders, a dress shirt tucked into his pants and giant glasses with thick black frames.

Tomorrow, there's a location shoot for the mob film in which my character drives a 1938 vintage BMW, which is pretty much the highlight of my entire week. Hell to the yessssuhh. I have never been so excited to meet an automobile.






Who knew my BlackBerry could take such cool motion photographs?

A Private World by Tim Walker

~~~

Sunniva Stordahl by Tim Walker for Vogue Italia November 2008

{Click images for larger versions.}

Want this mermaid costume, please.

There are quite a few more images from this editorial but these were just my favourite.

Beautiful Professional Space

~~~




I love going for castings here (it's a photography, digital imaging and television commercial production house) because it's such a gorgeous and functional space. Although the thought of ever working in an office kills me softly, I'd have to say that if ever forced at gunpoint to work in one, I would hope it looked like this.

My problem with most offices, and other professional/corporate environments, is that they tend to look cold and sterile even when they are well-decorated. I'm not a fan of excessive chrome, stark colours and that clean, minimal vibe that permeates everything from the standard issue desks to the white concrete walls and the shitty, token abstract art procured from a dealer keen to offload $5000 pieces that look like something you'd buy from a flea market for five bucks.

This production house, however, is more like a production home. It even comes with it's own spacious kitchen, laundry area and pool table. The last time I was there, some guy came out of a room with a guitar and began randomly playing along one of the corridors. In short, it is cozy, beautiful and perfect. I feel creatively stimulated just by stepping inside.




Reception/Waiting Area






Reception/Waiting Area (that's the couch I was sitting on).




Toilets (female and male).








Inside the toilet.



Sink.






Shower.






Entrance to female toilet.




Raw cement and black tiles juxtaposed.




Outer sink.




Kitchen and laundry.




Kitchen.




Kitchen and recreation area with pool table.




Studio for shoots.




Corridor.




Corridor.




Lounge area.




Corridor.




Entrance to one of the office rooms.






My... feet.




Desk behind the coffee table.




Desk.








Fountain.




Wooden spiral stairs.




Wooden spiral stairs.




Corridor that contained the aforementioned guitar player.


This is the last image but I only photographed a small portion of the place. It's much larger, with plenty more rooms.

NABIIA - ITALIAN ESCAPADE INSPIRATION BOARD #1 (Kenzo Spring 2009)

~~~

{Click images for larger versions.}

Magdalena Frackowiak and Guinevere Van Seenus for Kenzo Spring 2009

CURRENT ITALIAN SUMMER
ESCAPADE INSPIRATIONS

MUSIC
Frank Sinatra
Dean Martin
Nina Simone
Ella Fitzgerald
Billie Holiday
Astrud Gilberto
Edith Piaf
Marie Laforêt
Françoise Hardy
Brigitte Bardot
The Andrews Sisters
SPECIALLY FOR THE AMALFI COAST & CAPRI:
The Beach Boys
The Pixies
The Smiths
Coco Rosie
M. Ward (and She & Him)
Bob Dylan (Subterranean Homesick Blues era)

RUNWAY
Kenzo (Spring 2009 collection)
Chanel (Cruise 2010 collection)
Prada (Resort 2010 collection)
Balenciaga (Spring 2006 collection)
Louis Vuitton (Spring 2007 collection)
Miu Miu (Spring 2008 and the eveningwear from Fall 2006)
Erin Fetherston (in general)
Lanvin (in general)

STYLE
Flappers
Sailors
Ballerinas
Two-tone
Pearls
Full skirts
Puff sleeves/short butterfly sleeves
Anything that resembles the fabric on a grandmother's couch.

FILMS
Le Mépris (filmed entirely in Rome and Capri)
Sophia Loren movies
Monica Vitti movies
Antonioni movies
Bertolucci movies
50s and 60s new wave films (esp. anything with Brigitte Bardot or Jeanne Moreau)


As mentioned in my previous post, I'm starting my inspiration board for my coming Italian escapade with Bryony in September.

There are two ways I like to embark on a holiday. The first is the spontaneous haphazard route - throw together your luggage in 10 minutes, hop into a car on a whim and go on a week-long road trip that you only decided upon an hour ago, because what's life without those impulse decisions that change the entire colour of your immediate future?

The second kind of holiday is somewhat atmospheric and deeply personal. Often, when I have a theatre performance or a film shoot somewhere, I'll listen to specific music in the dressing room or in the car to get into the right frame of mind for the play or scene. Or I'll put on a certain perfume, because the smell triggers a specific feeling or memory. So it occurred to me, years back, to try setting the stage for my vacations - deciding upon an atmosphere I would attempt to create for myself (through mindset, music, clothing, special destinations within a country, etc.) and coming up with an overall purpose for the trip (e.g. once, I decided to try 'experiencing Japan from the point of view of an absolutely alien, and as a silent observer, standing back and looking in'. What transpired was an incredible feeling of isolation throughout the journey. I spoke as little as possible, and saw and heard things I would never have noticed if I'd been chattering my head off instead of shutting up and watching. It was lonely but inspirational. Not knowing things because I wasn't asking too many questions had an interesting effect on how my mind worked - I found my imagination working overtime to invent theories for why things were the way they were. Can't say I learned many facts about Japan on that trip but experiencing it through the eyes of a complete alien was an out-of-this-world experience, and oddly magical. I plan to take a second trip there and immerse myself in the culture - doing the exact opposite of what I did the first time. It will probably seem like a whole new country altogether, which is half the fun.).

NABIIA falls into the second category of holidays, so I guess this is the first of many Inspiration Board posts to come.





Kenzo Spring 2009 Collection

KEY PIECE
The dress (worn by Abbey Lee Kershaw below) is perfection.
It encapsulates everything I love about this collection.

ETC.
Some of the other looks I liked in the collection: