Sound Cinema: SIFF Downtown (Cinerama)
Before the brilliance of IMAX or the new immersive theater gimmicks of today, there was Cinerama. The technique was to use three synchronized projectors to run a film on a staggeringly large, curved, widescreen. It was a way to mimic how the human eye sees. The format began in 1952 and quickly spread in the 1960s. Seattle obtained its own Cinerama theater in 1963. Though, soon after, the format fell out of fashion and the suburban multiplexes kept people closer to home and away from these one-screen wonders. Seattle's theater languished and was ready to close for good when Microsoft co-founder and all around pop culture philanthropist Paul Allen saved and revamped our Cinerama.
Parker’s Pages: Project Hail Mary
Friends, please allow me to peel away from our Puget Sound authors to bring you my latest and greatest obsession: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir. Unless you’ve been living under a rock—or the spring fever haze here in the PNW—you’ve probably heard about Project Hail Mary (2026), the newest addition to Ryan Gosling’s filmography, and, in my opinion, quite possibly the best space movie of the last decade (sorry Dune). The film adaptation is spectacular (I watched it three times in theaters), and I definitely recommend you check it out when it starts streaming if you didn’t have the pleasure of seeing it on its big screen run.
To Seattle, With Autistic Love
Growing up in the South, stigmas can run wild, branding you. Queer? Hide that shit. Autistic? Mask it at all costs. I learned to let people perceive me like a shadow. I showed enough of myself to let people get a sense of me without letting anyone in too deep.
![The Divided Line: Juno [Part 1]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/65456cf1d440cc19dd37c744/ab6f9f63-58c3-459b-825f-4766d73f1ba6/pexels-alesustinau-bombed+Ukrainian+building+-+Calista+Robbins.jpg)
The Divided Line: Juno [Part 1]
The Divided Line RETURNS.
It had come on suddenly, the sky cracking open with a bolt of electricity and a sharp clap of thunder.
And how fitting a night for it to strike. Nature’s encore of the bombs that’d burst mid-evening. Now the rain smothered the smoking debris and washed clean the bloodied rubble.
Juno tapped the screen of her phone to wake it, heart pounding with nerve-addled hope in the fleeting moments before it illuminated. Hope that Atticus’ name might be on the screen with two words trailing it.
SIFF 2026: Bigger, Queerer, Wilder, and More Inclusive Than Ever
The Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) is here at last! The 10-day celebration of cinema starts May 7 and closes on May 17. This year, the festival's physical locations feel like they will keep us in the heart of everything—all four venues are within a reasonable walking distance of each other. There are the three remaining SIFF theaters: the Uptown, Downtown, Film Center, and PACCAR IMAX Theater at Pacific Science Center serves as the fourth. The festival brings together film lovers and filmmakers in a raucous cavalcade of films from around the world and right here at home.
Sound Cinema: Bainbridge Cinemas
Bainbridge Cinemas caters to a wide demographic. It is meant to be a theater that offers broad audience fare so that those that live on Bainbridge Island do not have to make a trek to the mainland if they want to see the latest releases on the big screen. Like most theaters, the theatrical window can be a bit tricky to manage, but in the old sense of the theater experience, if it plays, it stays.
Parker’s Pages: Schrader’s Chord
Author Scott Leeds lives in the Pacific Northwest, and just like many of the other authors I have covered before, his work perfectly encapsulated what it feels like to live and be in Seattle and its neighboring cities. There’s a certain way that writers from the PNW write about the rain, the fog, and the dark. Leeds is no different, and effortlessly brings Seattle to life.
Noveltease Arouses, Enlightens with Intersectional Literary Burlesque
If you believe burlesque isn’t for you or you’ve never attended a show before, Noveltease offers an experience that highlights the intersection of literature, dance, music, and history in a small venue, creating an intimacy that provides multisensory entertainment. I left feeling good, emboldened, and creative. And though glamorous clothes were shed, the message of the evening—particularly within the selected poems—was that of reclamation, self-affirmation, and pleasure without shame or exploitation.
Mudlark Oddities Communes with Curious Minds and Spirits
Mudlark Oddities sits nestled on a side street in the Ravenna neighborhood. To enter, you descend an unassuming staircase, then pop into a shop with narrow, cozy aisles and a seemingly never-ending collection of beautifully macabre things to look at. I’ve never stayed less than an hour in the place. In keeping with the name, which dates back to 1800s London and refers to people who scavenge riverbeds for valuable objects, the shop holds many gems in its keep and has fostered a dedicated community around it.
Take This Poetry Starter Pack to Your Library
The Seattle Central Library was the first haven I found. My friend helped me get my library card and showed me all its inner secrets and quirks. I immediately found sanctuary in the poetry section on the ninth floor. This is where I would read, write, and immerse myself into the world of poetry. My manuscripts felt right at home. One does not go to the library just for books—they go for the experience.
Seattle Film Society Nurtures Local Filmmaking Scene
On the last Thursday of every month, SFS screens thematic groupings of Washington-made short films at Northwest Film Forum. Submissions for Locals Only are open year-round. These screenings are followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers and aftershow drinks and discussion at a nearby bar. Introvert that I am, the thought of mingling at a networking event was enough to make me feel nauseous. But I wanted to give it a shot, and it sounded intriguing.
‘Sinners’ in the LGBTQIA+ Lens, Part 3: Agency
Sinners continuously highlights the power and danger in refusal. This is an underrated technique that women, marginalized races, the Queer and Trans community, and anyone else that the world actively rejects have to learn if they expect to survive—when all options have been systemically stripped from you.
When your voice is not only ignored, but silenced… There is power in saying “No.”
‘Sinners’ in the LGBTQIA+ Lens, Part 2: Protection of Youth
With Sammie, one of the most notable themes in Sinners—the protection of youth—is carried through the film.
‘Sinners’ in the LGBTQIA+ Lens, Part 1: The Grift
Grifting, originally used to describe someone who swindles others, is now colloquially used to describe someone whose political, spiritual, or cultural views have shifted outwardly to appease those in power, even if they do not truly believe in those views. Often, these people are left-leaning to start, and ‘grift’ to right-wing political views as a way to gain favor with the current right-wing politicians in power. A grifter is usually someone who has positioned themselves as a strong voice in their community, as an activist, a social media icon, or some other persuasive voice.
‘Sinners’ in the LGBTQIA+ Lens: Introduction
Setting a record with 16 Oscar nominations, Sinners proves that there’s a reason why everyone is still talking about the film. In the current sociopolitical climate, only a year later, many deeply entrenched systemic inequities highlighted in the film are being exposed as foundational U.S. beliefs merely receded, biding their time in the shadows until they felt welcome again. But despite what conservative influencers and pundits would have you believe, the hate that they justify is neither superior, nor even the majority-held value system in this country.
ECCC Wrapped: Mixed Bag of Community Joy, Grumbles, Nerdisms
There were still plenty of comics professionals signing, sketching, chatting, and being cornered by fans who did not realize that their 20-minute theory on Aquaman's ability to communicate with sea life as part of a broader metaphor for climate change was not appropriate when other people waited patiently behind them. Yet, Artist Alley felt like a small piece rather than the centerpiece it had been in years prior.
Mornyng Knight Queers ECCC with ‘The Solo Swordfight’
The gender-defying scoundrel known as Mornyng Knight—a stage character who is an amalgamation of drag and Renaissance faire theatrics—has come to the Pacific Northwest. And they’re armed! Embodied by the Jeff-nominated actor, combat choreographer, and producer Chloe Baldwin, Mornyng Knight transforms your inner demons into physical objects (possibly balloons), then stabs them! In their own words, it’s a show of “epic poportions.”
Queers Confidently Flourish Amid ECCC’s Commercialism
ECCC was so very Queer this year. Not in a rainbow capitalism kind of way (at least not exclusively). There was an authenticity to this queerness that wasn’t planned or staged or made exclusively for profit. There were simply lots of gay-ass people around, stopping and gabbing and hyping each other up—even talking about their various artistic pursuits. This year, ECCC felt more like a public forum than it has in a long time. And that truly feels worth celebrating.
Ben Mauro Dives into Future’s Past with ‘Huxley: The Oracle’
I had the pleasure of chatting with writer and artist Ben Mauro who has his own booth on level 2 of the Summit Building at Emerald City Comic Con. We spoke about Ben's career as a video game and film artist as well as his graphic novel Huxley. He is at the convention with the prequel chapter in the Huxley saga—Huxley: The Oracle.
Emerald City Comic Con Returns with Sparks of its Former Glory
Finish up your cosplay and grab your favorite comic books—Emerald City Comic Con is back! ECCC is a time-honored (and super nerdy) Seattle tradition, held at the Seattle Convention Center on March 5-8 this year. Attendees will be preparing for four days of panels, screenings, fan meetups, cosplay contests, after-dark partying, and perusing the wares of Artist Alley, where local artists come together to hang out, create, and sell fun products.
