62nd Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival: “Beyond 93 Letters” Review

What is it like to request the end of your own life? Beyond 93 Letters follows the heavy-hearted journey of Ting-ying, who, after earning her PhD, is diagnosed with a brain tumour. After four years of ineffective treatments and relentless pain, she ultimately sends a plea for help to Dignitas, the Swiss organisation that provides…

62nd Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival: “The Long Departure” Review

One of the greatest pleasures, or perhaps essential rituals, at the Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival (TGHFF) is exploring its consistently strong shorts program, particularly the documentary section. They usually struggle to reach wider audiences outside of the festival circuit, making this showcase a rare opportunity. This year, among a blossom of Taiwanese short films,…

“Sand City” Review

Sand City (2025), Mehde Hasan’s debut feature, derives its title from the city of Dhaka: Bangladesh’s capital and a huge industrial metropolis. Directly from the opening, it becomes clear how fundamental the grainy material is to the city and its inhabitants. Sand trucks roam the streets, distributing sand from its harbour to construction sites. The…

SUMMER Releases New Single and Music Video “Little Kitty”

Dancer and singer SUMMER, an artist known for her spring-like movement and refreshingly warm voice, has just released her newest single and music video, Little Kitty, a delicately emotional single that depicts the poetry of changing seasons and unconditional love. Following her Grand Prize win at the 2024 Koreo Awards, SUMMER was allowed to bring…

Coldrain Live in London – Concert Review

To call Coldrain “cold” is a delicious cosmic joke. There is nothing glacial or distant about this band live. If anything, attending a Coldrain show is like stepping directly into a combustion chamber. The name may be tinted blue – and if you know the band, you’ll understand why they chose the name Coldrain –…

Stray Kids Want You To “DO IT” – EP Review

Stray Kids are giving Shia Labeouf a run for his money with their freshest title, DO IT. The promoted song of the same name is a simple little tune, less loud than Stray Kids’ previous ones, and naturally, possesses a repeated motivational mantra to ‘Just do it, do it, do it, do it.’ Its catchy…

Samey, But Listenable: NCT DREAM’s “Beat It Up” Review

What do you get after having a nice bowl of soup at a restaurant? Another soup of the same variety? Likely not. Perhaps a main course, or some focaccia – but you’ve had your fill of one thing, and now you’re ready for another.  NCT DREAM’s latest comeback and titular song “Beat It Up” is…