The Muse Films

14/12/2024

Am I crazy not to embrace it?

Our economic religion is an omnicidal heat engine that foments war. Maybe we all need a hobby.

06/12/2024

Our world is experiencing a crisis in communication.

Please read my post. Have a lovely weekend.



https://cospolon.substack.com/p/communication-in-service-to-life

https://www.cospolon.eu/globe-hackers-blog/2024/12/6/communication-in-service-to-life

"The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place." —George Bernard Shaw I have read and spoken with popular attention-seeking communicators. They are charming, confident, and adept at developing a following, but their messages often harm honest dialog

05/12/2024

Please read my post and let me know what you think. Is the collapse of civilization a privilege? Can something good come of it?

“I implore you all in the name of the gods, stop valuing material things! Stop enslaving yourselves, first to mere things, and then, because of them, to the people who are able to procure them for you or deny them to you.” (3.20.8)—Epictetus

Our species may become extinct, but we will never again be cavemen. “Tolerance and apathy are the last virtues of a dying society.” —Aristotle Some ideas are off-limits to most ideological cliques. For democrats, conservatives, neoconservatives, neoliberals, well-informed social democrats, Mar

26/11/2024

I spent some time on this. It would be nice if you'd read it. 🙂

How do we break the status quo and invent a new culture?

How do we break the status quo and invent a new culture?

25/11/2024

It is frequently true that those who will inherit the greatest consequences of our climate crisis – today’s youth – have the least voice in shaping what happens next. But if given a seat at the table, what would these children have to say about creating a more sustainable path forward?

In this Reality Roundtable, Nate sits down with documentarian Damon Gameau and three young activists featured in his documentary film The Future Council to discuss their experiences grappling with the complex challenges of transforming a system that is actively harming our planet and what they think should be done to save humanity from itself.

What do kids think about the actions of the most powerful and wealthy individuals and corporations in our global societies? How would they act differently if they had children sitting in their boardrooms? Finally, what would the world look like if we incorporated the hopes and fears of the youngest amongst us into our decision-making for the future?

About Damon Gameau:
Damon Gameau is an Australian film director, speaker and author. In 2015, he turned to activism with his debut feature documentary ‘That Sugar Film’, which sold to 25 territories and received numerous awards. Damon then directed the climate solutions feature documentary ‘2040’ and authored an accompanying book ‘2040: a Handbook for the Regeneration’. Both films sit in the top 10 highest grossing Australian documentaries at the domestic box office.

Damon then co-founded Regen Studios with Anna Kaplan where together they work with philanthropists and partners to build comprehensive impact campaigns for their films, raising money for ecological solutions and awareness in classrooms, boardrooms, and Parliaments around the world.

About Skye Neville:
Skye lives near Fairbourne in North Wales. This village has been described as the doomed village and its residents are destined to become the first climate refugees of the Western world. For the past few years Skye campaigns against the plastic rubbish on kids’ comics and magazines. Skye is a massive fan of sailing but has a genuine dislike for plastic wrap magazines.

About Clemence “CC” Currie:
She is the founder and current CEO of CCs Plastic Pick-up Crew, where they clean up local beaches in Scotland. She has a particular passion for the ocean, plastics and the climate crisis. CC loves hiking with her Dad but has no time for chocolate cake.

About Joaquin Minana:
Joaquin is our straight shooter! Joaquin is from The Netherlands and has worn hearing aids since he was an infant. He speaks multiple languages and wants to use these skills to speak about the injustices of the world, as a writer or lawyer. He hates math but loves the first sound he ever heard.

(Conversation recorded on September 24th, 2024) It is frequently true that those who will inherit the greatest consequences of our climate crisis – today’s ...

21/11/2024

WE DUMP NUTS

Welcome to a poorly executed theatrical production that Disney has been doing for decades.

I can't imagine how cynical Tesla workers are, or are they all simply delusional followers of a very American cult?

Donald and Elon were made for each other; both are dark tetrad con artists looting the United States and catapulting our world toward civilizational collapse. (Symptoms of a mass social disease.) This is not an exaggeration.

We spend more time on our phones than with friends, so imagine a world where ten billion useless robots are walking around, waiting to become landfill. How much energy and materials are required to make these toys? As we wage war with China, who is going to make the microchips needed for these things? And let's not assume Elon will make them or make them better than his competitors.

Groupthink and $$$-motivated reasoning-$$$ run the country. The Managers of the Empire's primary remit is to keep people entertained until the whole s***e show crashes. Good Lord!

A month in the making, this review of Musk's 10/10 event is equal parts reaction video and analysis through a historical review of past projects. It examines where these newly unveiled vehicles fit into Musk's vaporware universe.

A month in the making, this review of Musk's 10/10 event is equal parts reaction video AND analysis through historical review of past projects where these ne...

13/11/2024

I am outlining some key concepts that underlie my worldview as a prelude to a series suggesting ways to mitigate the worst potential outcomes of the polycrisis, leading to a peaceful and healthy culture.

The Great Game

12/11/2024

Long time readers, and those who follow the excellent blog of Erik Michaels, need not to be introduced to the idea of a predicament. Generally speaking while problems have solutions (and thus can be eliminated), predicaments only have outcomes, and by definition cannot be solved. Our double bind with civilization is a classic example. Because what is civilization? According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary it is “a relatively high level of cultural and technological development”, where “technology” refers to “the practical application of knowledge”. Think: agriculture, pottery, writing, construction, metallurgy, but most importantly: the harnessing of energy flows to power all these activities. Earlier, this meant wood or food calories from grains for humans and grass for draft animals, later, fossil fuels. Take technology (as defined above) away, and what remains is culture — myths, heroes, legends, poems, music etc. — all of which is very important, but not enough to build high rise cities, or to feed millions of people. But why is civilization a classic example for a double bind — damned if you do, damned if you don’t? Two reasons: first, it is both a response and a cause to ecological overshoot, and second, it is unsustainable. I know it is a lot in one sentence, so allow me to unpack these two ideas below.

Read “Can We Escape Our Predicament?“ by B on Medium:

Civilization is a double-bind: damned if we continue with it, damned if we don’t. Is there a way out?

29/10/2024

Now Read This ... so good!
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MS. Found in a Bottle by Edger Allen Poe

Summary
An unnamed narrator frames his story by disclaiming connection to his family and country. He says that he prefers the company of the German moralist writers, whose flights of fancy he can detect and repudiate. He admits having a rigidly rational mindset, dedicated to the truth and impervious to superstition.

The narrator then recounts a voyage from the island of Java upon a vessel containing cotton-wool, cocoa-nuts, and a few cases of o***m. Soon after departure, the narrator observes a large, ominous cloud in the distance and fears the signs of an approaching Simoon, or typhoon. The captain of the ship, however, dismisses the narrator’s fears. As he retreats below deck, the narrator hears a loud noise and feels the ship capsizing. When the ship bobs back up, the narrator realizes that he and an old Swede are the only survivors. However, the ship remains engulfed in a whirlpool, which threatens to suck the vessel into the depths of the sea. For five days, the two men float on the shattered ship, escaping the pull of the whirlpool. They find their surroundings have grown cold, and soon complete darkness overwhelms them.

Another hurricane erupts amid this darkness, and the men observe a gigantic black ship riding on the crest of a large wave. The force of this ship’s descent into the water rocks the narrator’s ship and hurls him onto the unknown vessel. He quickly hides in the hold, where he observes the ancient mariners on the ship speaking an unrecognizable language. Growing braver, he explores the captain’s private cabin, in which he finds the paper for the present manuscript. He proposes to enclose the manuscript in a bottle and toss it to sea.

MS. Found in a Bottle April 2, 2022 MS. Found In a Bottle A wet sheet and a flowing sea.CUNNINGHAM Of my country and of my family I have little to say. Ill usage and length of years have driven me from the one and estranged me from the other. Hereditary wealth afforded me an education of no common o...

28/10/2024

"Magic is a great analogy for how we edit reality and form a story -- and then mistake that story for the truth," says psychological illusionist Derren Brown. In a clever talk wrapped around a dazzling mind-reading performance, Brown explores the seductive appeal of finding simple answers to life's complex and subtle questions.

"Magic is a great analogy for how we edit reality and form a story -- and then mistake that story for the truth," says psychological illusionist Derren Brown...

27/10/2024

“Not creating delusions is enlightenment.” — Bodhidharma 6th century CE, Buddhist monk who brought Chán teachings to China from India

26/10/2024

What makes Pretty Woman (1990) look so good, even 30 years later? We dive into the film's dreamy cinematography, luxurious locations, iconic wardrobe, and soft, romantic lighting that still feels fresh today.

What makes Pretty Woman (1990) look so good, even 30 years later? We dive into the film's dreamy cinematography, luxurious locations, iconic wardrobe, and so...

13/10/2024

Brilliant! It was bound to be produced. American Values @ REAL PR

We need a movie about how the reality TV show Apprentice was made.

Trump is a major brand, but DJT is a colossal loser. Will he win the election? Stay tuned. What does this say about American culture today? My goodness!

Support our work: https://democracynow.org/donate/sm-desc-ytWe speak with the director of _The Apprentice_, "the movie Trump doesn't want you to see," which ...

12/10/2024

In Naked, actors rehearsed for six months, exploring their characters to deliver raw, fully developed performances. This video dives into the meticulous process behind these performances while exploring the film’s complex themes, characters, and bleak, apocalyptic world vision. David Thewlis won Best Actor and Mike Leigh Best Director at Cannes in 1993 for their work on this film.

In Naked, actors spent six months in rehearsal, exploring their characters to deliver raw, fully developed performances. This video dives into the meticulous...

11/10/2024

"It is not the answer that enlightens, but the question." — Eugene Ionesco, Decouvertes (1970)

11/10/2024

Francis Ford Coppola’s new film Megalopolis will hit theatres at the end of the month.

The director of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now has been working on-and-off on this project — a retelling of the Fall of the Roman Empire set in modern times — for nearly 5 decades.

In a baller move, the 85-year old Hollywood legend sold parts of his winery to help finance the majority of the film’s $120m+ budget (similarly, I recently sold my Peloton bike and used the funds to finance a pair of waterproof Nike Pegasus Shield runners).

It is often said that individual films are like startups, with each one requiring someone to raise funds (to finance production), recruit talent (directors, actors, designers etc.) and deliver a product (film).

This is Coppola’s latest all-in move for a career that has seen the entire spectrum of entrepreneurship: 1) fake it ‘til you make it; 2) working on thin budgets and scrambling for every dollar; 3) mortgaging a house to ensure creative control; 4) working to pay off debts; 5) multiple bankruptcies; and 6) a ~$300m fortune that was built mostly from a side hustle (Coppola has made more from wines than films).

With Coppola taking such a major swing for his 23rd film, I want to walk through the entrepreneurial side of his career by taking a chronological look at 8 films and 2 business ventures:

Exploring the legendary director's business career in 8 films, a studio and a winery.

11/10/2024

Francis Ford Coppola was flush from The Godfather in 1973 when he bought an architectural jewel in San Francisco’s North Beach for $500,000. His new headquarters was a flatiron building clad in tile and copper, with an eight-story steel frame that withstood the great earthquake of 1906. Coppola has held on to the Sentinel Building through a half-century of intense seismic activity in his career, including cinematic triumphs and Hollywood debacles, bankruptcies and windfalls—most recently, a fortune he amassed in the wine trade and then leveraged to fund a wild big-budget movie called Megalopolis, the 85-year-old director’s first release in 13 years.

On a golden July day, Coppola’s building looks like a wedge of white cake rimmed with green frosting. Each layer is an example of his reflexive way of mixing art with entrepreneurship. On the sidewalk level is Cafe Zoetrope, a European-style bistro named for the film company Coppola launched with George Lucas and other insurgents in 1969. On the middle floors, former American Zoetrope offices are being renovated into sleek hotel rooms, soon to receive guests at the seventh property in a string of boutique resorts Coppola owns in Argentina, Belize, Guatemala, Italy and Peachtree City, Georgia.

The director talks about his passion project, ‘Megalopolis,’ including reports of problems on set and how he paid for the film.

11/10/2024

Without Black, you wouldn't see the White.