How is it almost Autumn already?! I always find this time of year a good time to make changes to my routine and try new things (still getting the ‘back to school’ feeling at age 25 it seems) so what better time to share another batch of our team’s current recommendations! Check out what we are up to here at Rianne Pictures and get a pen and notebook ready to jot down some recommendations to explore this September.

What Are We Up To?

During August our team grew by 22 new members! With a festival on the horizon we wanted to ensure that we had people and resources on hand to help with the preparation but also to bring some innovating ideas to the table. Women X submissions came to end and we received over 200 films for consideration! It’s been so refreshing to watch such a wide variety of enchanting and exciting films and we can’t wait to announce our official selection on Friday September 11th.

We featured some wonderful interviews on the blog last month too from women who work in the industry in roles such as Composers, Editors and Assistant Directors - including the now three time Emmy nominated Catherine Thomas.

Our latest project Shades of Blue a documentary on mental health within the Black community is screening as part of the BFI Film Academy’s SCENE program this Thursday (3rd), with a live Q&A with film makers Damilola Lemomu and Sophie Abramovici over on the BFI Network’s instagram stories at 4pm.

And last but not least our podcast Not Having It All had featured some superb episodes on Schitt’s Creek, Reality TV in 2020 such as Love is Blind and Selling Sunset and The Sims Spark’d which you can check out here.

Our Team’s Top Picks

Film

Open City Documentary Festival 2020 Programme

Open City Documentary Festival 2020 - September 9-15
I mentioned the festival in our last article however I now have industry accreditation to Open City Doc Fest and will be digitally attending sessions, networking events and (of course) watching docs a plenty! There are some fantastic sounding films and events on this years programme - I’m most looking forward to Seen and Heard: Selections from the Black Lives Matter Video Essay Playlist, Questioning Authorship, and Sunless Shadows + Q&A. You can find the full programme here.

The Kingmaker - Sky Documentaries
Available to watch on Sky Documentaries, The Kingmaker depicts Imelda Marcos’ role in politics in the Philippines, showing the history of corruption of her and her family. Ashton has read fair few good reviews and is looking forward to watching it. I was able to see it last November at LIFF 2019 and can confirm it is a fascinating watch, though at times quite difficult too. Check it out for yourself here.

Love, Guaranteed - Netflix
If you (like Neha) have been waiting for another Netflix romcom then look no further! Love, Guaranteed stars Rachael Leigh Cook as a successful lawyer and Damon Wayans Jr. as a rich client - we are very much assuming they fall in love! This cheesy feel good film is dropping on September 2nd and you can get a reminder for it here.

Tenet - In Cinemas

Caris went to the cinema for the first time in seven months! For the long awaited Christopher Nolan adventure that is Tenet. The spy thriller delivers the Nolan trademark of out of this world cinematography and a plot that will keep you on the edge of your seat and on Wikipedia once the film ends making sure you actually did understand what happened. Plus John David Washington delivered a brilliant leading role with Robert Pattinson showing us just why he’s the right choice for the upcoming Batman. Her advice for those who wear glasses is to tape them down onto your mask to avoid steaming up your lenses, but other than that she felt the experience to be socially distanced and safe with Vue Cinemas operating a one way system and ensuring seats remain empty between patrons.

Matthias and Maxime - MUBI
Xavier Dolan’s latest film is now available to watch on MUBI and both Beth and myself are really looking forward to watching this one! Matthias and Maxime follows the two titular characters who are lifelong friends whose relationship begins to change after they share a kiss for a short film. Beth is a fan of his previous work and this film looks particularly promising with an intimate and interesting story.

Books

I will be linking to Waterstones for each book however, if you can, please consider buying these books (and others) from your local independent bookshop to support them!

Women Don’t Owe You Pretty - Florence Given
Now, Bella doesn’t want to sound too dramatic but Women Don’t Owe You Pretty is the book she has been waiting for her whole life - and I’ve heard many women share this sentiment! Florence Given offers a helping hand to those women who need it in terms of exploring everyday sexism, knowing your worth and prioritising your wellbeing and pleasure. There is a lot of necessary love for queer women trying to navigate their desire which is always greatly appreciated and very much needed!

Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race - Reni Eddo Lodge
A fantastic and vital book to read is Reni Eddo Lodge’s Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race which Larissa has just finished reading and highly recommends (as do I). The book is brilliantly written and we both learned a lot about Britain and the racist history and systems we, as white British people, shy away from. It was released a couple of years ago now but is still relevant as ever and covers classism, feminism and white privilege as well as other topics - it is rather directly about Britain which is important to read because as a nation we often ignore the racism and anti-Blackness that is prevalent here.

Three Women - Lisa Taddeo
As the title suggests, Lisa Taddeo’s book is about three women - and that’s all the blurb gives you! Once you immerse yourself in the world of these three women, you realise it’s a deeply disturbing and honest book about emotion, desire and sex. Lilia describes this book as reading like fiction, yet the women featured are entirely real. The author spent 8 years and thousands of hours with the three women, using interviews, texts, emails, social media, and court documents, to create a searing study of twenty-first century sexual politics. It’s a difficult read, exploring power structures, bodily autonomy and the extremes of desire, but an absolutely vital one as a young woman. Lilia has completely sold Three Women to me!

TV Shows

Euphoria - Sky Atlantic
In classic Courtney fashion (late to the party, though I can’t talk because I’m always so late that the party has been and gone), she has just finished the fantastic show, Euphoria. Starring the ever wonderful Zendaya, the show follows a group of high schoolers navigating their way through various issues of growing up in the 21st century. You can catch Euphoria on Sky Atlantic now.

I’ll Be Gone in the Dark - Sky Crime
If you love true crime and you love a good docuseries (basically half the team here!) then make sure to get on I’ll Be Gone in the Dark which is finally showing in the UK, available to watch on Sky Crime. The show is adapted from the book of the same name by iconic American true crime author, Michelle McNamara, and depicts her investigation of “The Golden State Killer”.

We’re Here - Sky One
Emmy nominated We’re Here on Sky One, is described by Ashton as being similar to Queer Eye but with drag! The show follows three drag queens (who you’ll recognise from RuPaul’s Drag Race) going to small towns in America and putting on drag shows that include straight allies and LBGTQ+ people who get put in drag for the first time. It’s super heartwarming and very emotional, and it discusses a variety of serious topics - Ashton highly recommends!

Glee - Netflix
Whether you love to hate it or hate to love it (is there an inbetween?) there’s no escaping Glee and our Lauren is currently rewatching all the seasons. It truly brings back a lot of teen memories for many of us and Lauren is currently swimming in the nostalgia of it all! You can catch all seasons on Netflix right now - go treat yourself to a cheesy singalong!

The Vow: A NXIVM Story - HBO
Courtney is looking forward to the new docuseries The Vow: A NXIVM Story created by the Oscar nominated and Emmy winning directors Jehane Noujaim and Karim Amer. The show follows various people involved in NXIVM, which is described as a self improvement group. It sounds like a fascinating watch as it looks to uncover issues and show the effects different events have had emotionally on the members.

Succession - NOW TV
Many of the team here are loving Succession, currently streaming on NOW TV. It’s a brilliantly funny, award winning drama filled with fantastic performances. We also have some content about Succession coming soon (including a podcast episode!) so keep your eyes and ears open for those and get started on the show if you haven’t yet.

Podcasts

All these podcasts can be found on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or various other podcast platforms - check the link in each paragraph to find exactly where to listen.

The Untold Story: Policing - Lemonada Media
Presented by Insecure’s Jay Ellis, this four part podcast called The Untold Story: Policing is all about demystifying policing in the US. Ellis speaks to various experts to learn more about the systems that are currently in place and what steps need to be taken. Neha has been listening and finds it engaging and informative - it is definitely worth a listen, covering important and complex topics. Just a note to be aware that the content can be a little graphic.

It Was Simple - LA Times
After Ashton’s recommendation last month of Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story, she is back to suggest an LA Times podcast named It Was Simple which also covers the story. It also features interviews with people involved in the Netflix show, including an episode with all of the female directors!

Guru: The Dark Side of Enlightenment - Wondery
A true crime limited podcast series, Guru: The Dark Side of Enlightenment is about a famous self help guru whose unorthodox methods ended in disaster - it explores what happened as well as talking to those who lived through it. Ashton listened to the whole thing in a day so there’s some proof of how compelling it is!

Soundtracking with Edith Bowman (Episode 175: Taika Waititi & Brian Welsh)
If you love the meeting of film and music, then you will love the podcast, Soundtracking with Edith Bowman! Bella describes it as “a genuinely soothing and heartwarming podcast” and you find a lot of insight into what inspired the creators. Bowman’s episode featuring Taika Waititi is especially wonderful - they discuss the fantastic soundtrack for his latest film, Jojo Rabbit.

Nice White Parents - Serial
If you’re looking for a new podcast, Georgina highly recommends Nice White Parents from Serial. It delves deep into the NYC public school system and how white liberalism has held back integration of schools in a similar way to gentrification of neighbourhoods - white parents working to make the troubled school work for their white, upper class children, and not the local community. The five part series is an interesting and uncomfortable story of people wanting to do good and be associated with all things “progressive” (and often times actually doing some good) but still being guided by those deep self-centred biases. It’s extremely relevant to what’s going on lately on social media, how many people want to be a part of the BLM movement, but have a reluctance to give up privilege in order to make genuine anti-racist and anti-Black change that is needed.

Such Pretty Forks in the Road - Alanis Morrissette

Music

The Ascension - Sufjan Stevens
If you too can’t get enough of Sufjan Stevens beautiful music (I know everyone says it but Mystery of Love is stunning as well as one of my personal faves, Tonya Harding in Eb major) then look out for his 8th album, The Ascension which is due to be released on 25th September. This is going to be Neha’s new soundtrack to taking melancholy walks in overcast woods and Friday nights in wearing face masks.

Such Pretty Forks in the Road - Alanis Morrissette
Forget Ironic (but also don’t because it’s a 90s bop), it’s all about Alanis Morrissette’s new album right now. Lauren is loving listening to Such Pretty Forks in the Road because of the personal touches and how intimate it feels. Her personal favourite tracks are Ablaze and Diagnosis.

Misc

The Blurt Foundation - September Buddy Box

Futur NOIR - Photography Exhibition
You can catch a photography exhibition over at the San Mei Gallery in Brixton called Futur NOIR - Desirèe saw it last week and recommends it! The photographers are Eddie Otchere and Remy Bourdeau, who are behind some amazing photos of Hip-Hop icons including Jay Z, Aaliyah and Erykah Badu. The photographs feature mostly Black artists and the exhibition focuses on their life work and how it has shaped the narrative of Hip-Hop. The exhibition is on until September 5th so if you’re around Brixton over the next few days, check it out!

The Blurt Foundation
I’ve been a fan of The Blurt Foundation for a long time now and I decided to treat myself to one of their Buddy Boxes for this month. They focus on opening a dialogue about mental health issues, particularly depression. They have articles with advice, they’ve written a couple of books about self care and they sell Buddy Boxes which are a subscription box (or one off!) that have comforting products aiming to nourish you - they are lovely little gifts to yourself or for someone else! I highly recommend checking them out - they spread acceptance and honesty around depression which is well needed.

Nowt Special - Art Exhibition
Over in Newcastle, there was a fab exhibition called Nowt Special that Larissa attended last week. It took place at Anarchy Brew Co., a new venue which has a rather artsy vibe to it. Local artists exhibited, sold and auctioned off their work, there was food for everyone, lovely people, locally brewed beers on tap, AND it was dog friendly - Larissa has completely sold it to me!

Mask Guidelines

With the rules constantly changing regarding social distancing and COVID it can be stressful trying to keep up with it (especially when the advice isn’t very clear). For up to date info, please check the government website or in some cases with your local council. Stay safe and please wear a mask to protect others!

I hope something on this list catches your attention and you find yourself a new favourite! We love sharing our recommendations and if you have any for us, let us know on any of our social media platforms. As always, a big thank you to our whole team for their fab recommendations!

Keep up with us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for our latest updates. Let us know what you’re looking forward to this month!

Stay safe, look after each other and keep well

Written by Sophie Duncan

Hello September

What Are We Up To?

Our Team’s Top Picks