Cosmopolite: The work of Matt Tucker

Have you caught the Oscar Night Fever? Symptoms include rushing to the cinema, putting on your film critic hat and reading blog posts about the Oscars - the cure is to watch the Academy Awards Ceremony this Sunday. The media has also caught the hype, with articles and news reports speculating on the red-carpeted extravaganza in Los Angeles. 

Now in its 81st year, the Academy Awards has bestowed over 2,500 gold statuette Oscars to deserving actors, writers and directors. Fifty Oscars will be awarded on Sunday, but all eyes are on the coveted Best Film category. The nominations at a glance are:

•    Slumdog Millionaire: A tale of underdog success on the Indian version of ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’, as a young man from the slums of Mumbai defies expectations;
•    The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: The years keep rolling back for Benjamin Button, played by Brad Pitt;
•    The Reader: Kate Winslet plays an ex-nazi guard on trial for war crimes, who previously had a haunting affair with a young German boy;
•    Frost/Nixon: A retelling of the post-Watergate television interviews between British talk-show host David Frost and former president Richard Nixon;
•    Milk: The story of California's first openly gay elected official, Harvey Milk, a San Francisco supervisor who was assassinated in 1978.

So place your bets! The stakes are high, with Oscar success meaning a fast-tracked career straight to the top - particularly useful for nominated newcomers Richard Jenkins and Melissa Leo.

Receiving an Oscar means guaranteed work for years to come - the gold-plated statuette is quite literally worth its weight in gold. So who is the smart little figurine? The figure is a Crusader Knight in Art Deco style, modelled on the Mexican film Director Emilio Fernandez, who posed nude in 1928.

As famous as the ceremony itself is the red-carpeted walk up to the Kodak Theatre. Dressed in designer creations, the stars show off their best smiles and pouts to the cameras – the red carpet walk is the epitome of glamour.

But is glamour all there is to Hollywood? With the money and glitz, it’s easy to forget that cinema is about the bringing together of many Art Forms. The Academy Awards acknowledge the full creative spectrum of film making, as shown in the lesser known nomination categories: Art Direction, Animation, Costume Design, Film Editing, Documentary Features, Music and Writing, to name just a few.

But Hollywood blockbusters wouldn’t exist without the big money. The dinosaurs, aliens and spectacular car chases we’ve come to expect don’t come cheap, nor do the pin-up stars that grace our screens. Films of recent years have had as much as nine figure price tags. 

With big budget cinema comes capitalism - the enemy of many an artist. The Oscars are no exception; when you visit the Academy Awards website you are confronted with car adverts, even before you have found out the nominations. Hollywood and commercialism are intrinsically linked.
 
However, one Oscar nominated film that is standing tall with its big budget brothers is Slumdog Millionaire, which cost a relatively modest $15million to make. Nominated for 10 Oscars and having already swiped 60 awards, the film may be a winner for British Director Danny Boyle this Sunday. It wouldn’t be the first time that an underdog of film production triumphs; The Blair Witch Project defied the odds when it made a massive $248million worldwide, having cost just $22,000 to make.
 
For now, Hollywood is still about the big-ticket projects, with Johnny Depp collecting a reported $55million for reprising his role as Jack Sparrow in the planned “Pirates of the Caribbean 4”. Webjam’s very own Arts Channel is harbouring creative film talent in its members.

Lee Steele has been a battle re-enactor for 15 years, you may have seen his combat and archery skills on the Discovery Channel, as well as appearances in episodes of the soap opera Emmerdale.

There is The Griffin Mill Foundation, a recently launched non-profit organisation dedicated to helping young people achieve their dream careers in the British Media. Their recent project includes ToppSpin! - a 60 minute political comedy and lifestyle show for young people.

Webjam is also host to the Official Edward Speleers’ website. Ed Speleers is star of the film Eragon - join the Ed Speleers channel to hear the latest news about Ed's acting work and read his personal blog written by the actor himself.

Let me know your thoughts about the biggest film event of the year by posting a comment.

Enjoy the Oscars, best served with popcorn!

This article is written by Matthew Tucker and is part of the Arts Channel.
Flickr image from cliff1066's photostream.

Imagine that today is the start of your new dream job - you have those first day nerves - shaking everyone’s hand with a smile may be the only thing on your mind.

But how would you feel if that first day involved putting on flippers on a tropical beach and diving into crystal clear water? Getting out of bed on a Monday morning would feel a whole lot better! This isn’t a fantasy - it’s a real job being advertised around the world! A tiny Australian island is in need of a ‘Caretaker’ to explore the coral reef and report back to the world via a blog.

Thinking of applying? You might have some competition - the position has caught the attention of the world media and thousands are trying to scoop ‘the best job in the world’.

Whether you work to pay your bills or fulfil a childhood ambition, your job takes up seven hours of your life a day - getting the right position is pretty important! I've put together some quick tips for hitting the spot when it comes to nerve-racking interviews:

Talk to Yourself

Like any muscle, our voices need to warm up - mumbling, sounding croaky or hoarse wont score you points. Try this tongue twister to get you ready: “Six Swiss ships swiftly shift!”

Body Language

You may say one thing, but your body could be saying something else. Body language can speak volumes about a person’s attitude to a job - look attentive, don’t slouch and maintain regular eye contact.

Comfort is Key

Dressing for success is essential to feeling confident - for interviews you can never be too smart. To win that dream job, remember to wear what makes you comfortable.

This article was written by Matthew Tucker and is part of the Moss Fraser Blog

Flickr Image from Lodewijik van den Broek’s photostream.

In past job interviews I have had feedback about how I overlook the virtues of my degree. This is true; once I graduated and moved into the working world it became easy to take for granted those years of hard work.

At 17 I took the decision to study a degree that I knew I would enjoy, so that when the going got tough I could see it through. Having written through my teenage years, I wanted to continue my education in the same vein and get professional training in the field of writing. So Creative Writing was my way forward. In 2002 there were only ten Creative Writing degree courses in the country, as oppose to now; there are dozens. With a subject that was so new, I wanted to combine it with an established and respected academic field, namely English Literature. So I chose a course that combined the two subjects at a ratio of 2:1 of English Literature to Creative Writing at the University of Wales, Bangor.

In my three years of study I covered many theories and historical periods in English Literature: Anglo Saxon Poetry, Textual Analysis, Shakespeare, The Short Story, 21st Century Fiction, Film Studies, to name just a few.

One of my favourite modules was ‘Creative Industries’ where I looked at the history of creativity and how it is linked with society and business. Starting with Patronage in the Jacobean period and moving to the powerful and moneyed creative and entertainment industry that we know so well today.

My third year dissertation was part of the Creative Writing side of my degree. I produced two short stories and an Act of a Film script. This collection of writings was named “Heartbeat in the Dark: The Gothic, Location and Modernity.” I examined the original genre of Gothic and applied it to the modern fears and anxieties of 21st century Western culture.

Graduating in 2005 with 2:1 was a proud moment.

So I will not hide my light under a bushel when it comes to interviews and I will strive to impress upon myself the virtues of my degree and how it has shaped who I am today.

Imagine that today is the start of your new dream job – you have those first day nerves and you know that first impressions count – shaking everyone’s hand with a smile and remembering where the toilets are may be the only things on your mind.

Now add the prospect of sitting down to assess two wars in the Middle East and a global recession - would you want to wake up to this on a Monday morning? I can see you’re shaking your heads, except one man at the back – Barrack Obama – the 44th President of America.

Toughing it out in the first month of a job is somewhat more complex for Obama than the rest of us. What makes a man become the most powerful person in the Western World?

Maybe his lifestyle can give us some clues - after a recent interview with Men’s Health magazine, Obama has become known for some very healthy eating – snacking on dried nuts, protein bars, organic berry tea and being a committed fan of broccoli. If that were not enough, he fits in 45 minutes of gym time a day – before breakfast.

In fact, Obama is so different from the stereotype of the middle-aged world leader that The Telegraph exclaimed the 47 year-old was "redefining the male physique." 

Maybe the key to power isn't family connections and vast wealth - healthy living and self-respect could get you to the top.