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5 authors who hated the film adaptation of their book

Most movies these days are adapted from something – whether it’s a book, a musical, a news story or even another film. However, commercial and critical success doesn’t necessarily guarantee everyone will be happy. Surprisingly, the authors of these 5 movies didn’t think much of the film adaptations of their books. 1. Mary Poppins Author of Mary Poppins P. L. Travers initially had no problem with her book being turned into a film, until she discovered that Disney had disregarded almost all of her edits. When it was released in 1964, then-65-year-old Travers voiced her disapproval at the animated scenes and the downplaying of Poppins’ stricter side. She reportedly spent most of the film premiere crying, and vowed never to let Disney near another of her books. 2. The Shining With such a prolific author like Stephen King, there are bound to be a few hits and misses when it comes to film adaptations. After King put his faith in acclaimed director Stanley Kubrick, whom he greatly admired, he found himself extremely disappointed in the final product, which went on to become a horror classic. “Kubrick just couldn't grasp the sheer inhuman evil of The Overlook Hotel,” the author explained. “So he looked, instead, for evil in the characters and made the film into a domestic tragedy with only vaguely supernatural overtones.” 3. Forrest Gump The 1995 Best Picture winner was a hit with everyone – except author Winston Groom, that is. Angry at the filmmakers for toning down the language and sexual references as well as omitting certain important plot points, Groom got back at Hollywood in the first few lines of the book’s sequel: “Don't never let nobody make a movie of your life's story,” he writes "Whether they get it right or wrong, it don't matter.” Groom sued the producers after failing to receive his promised 3% cut of the profits, and wasn’t mentioned in any of the six Oscar acceptance speeches by the cast and crew. 4. A Clockwork Orange It’s one thing to hate the film adaptation of your book, but to end up hating the book itself? It seems strange, but that’s exactly what happened to Anthony Burgess. Years after the release of the book and the film, Burgess claimed he regretted writing the book, which he wrote in three weeks and only because he was desperate for money, so was unhappy when it was turned into a film that “seemed to glorify sex and violence.” He adds, “The film made it easy for readers of the book to misunderstand what it was about, and the misunderstanding will pursue me till I die.” 5. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory One of the most beloved films of all time, the adaptation of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory certainly wasn’t beloved by Roald Dahl. He thought the 1971 film was “crummy” and that Gene Wilder’s portrayal of Willy Wonka was “pretentious” and “bouncy”, claiming director Mel Stuart had “no talent or flair”. For this reason, as long as the rights to his work is in the hands of his family, you’ll never see the book’s sequel, Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, grace the silver screen. Images: Getty

Books

From Chicago to West Side Story, how to successfully adapt a musical from stage to screen

The second half of 2021 is proving to be a peak time for movie musical-goers, with the release of critically acclaimed In the Heights, disastrously received Dear Evan Hansen, and Steven Spielberg’s hotly anticipated West Side Story. These films lead to reflection on one of the stranger sub-genres of film history — the musical stage-to-screen adaptation. To film a stage show (as in the recent professionally shot films of Hamilton and Come from Away), or merely to create bigger stage sets in a studio (there are many examples of this, from Guys and Dolls to The Producers) is not truly to adapt a musical to film. Instead, adaptors should use the tools unique to film to re-interpret the musical in this different medium. To help us through the vicissitudes of adaptation, here is an idiosyncratic list of a few DOs and DON’Ts. <h2>DO use real locations creatively</h2> Location shooting is a frequent tool used to enhance the realism of film musicals, but placing the un-realism of song and dance in a real place can backfire and create an uncanny valley. Locations are best used in a super-realistic way. A successful recent example of this is In the Heights. Director Jon Chu and his production team shot much of the film in Washington Heights in Manhattan, but in a way that the neighbourhood seems a natural place for music-making: very careful lighting, colour-timing, and the occasional unobtrusive effects shot lift the story out of the mundane. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437093/original/file-20211213-21-hr5jsr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437093/original/file-20211213-21-hr5jsr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> In The Heights (2021) is a love letter to the Washington Heights area of NYC. IMDB In the number When the Sun Goes Down, lovers Benny and Nina begin singing naturalistically on a fire escape, but then a set on hydraulics, green screen, and “magic hour” lighting come together to enable a gravity-defying dance across the rooftops and walls of the apartment buildings. See also: Fiddler on the Roof, Jesus Christ Superstar, On the Town <h2>DON’T ghettoise all of the musical numbers to a stark dreamland covered in artistic scaffolding</h2> Counter to the previous guideline about using real locations for musical numbers, some film musicals go too far in the opposite direction. Two musicals directed by Rob Marshall, Chicago and Nine, puzzlingly use the same solution to try and hedge their bets: the dialogue scenes happen in realistic locations (1920s Chicago and 1960s Rome, respectively) but the musical numbers are relegated to their characters’ internal fantasies, which in both cases means studio-like settings that allow for dancers to be placed in aesthetically pleasing formations. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437098/original/file-20211213-27-qhe4i9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437098/original/file-20211213-27-qhe4i9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> Chicago (2002), features musical numbers entirely set within the character’s internal fantasies. IMDB This strategy gets the filmmakers out of having to bridge the gap between speech time and music time, but the narrative innovations of both shows are smoothed out on screen. That makes for a less interesting filmgoing experience. The exception that proves the rule here is Cabaret, in which director Bob Fosse removed all of the “book” songs and kept only those performed in the titular cabaret. Through innovative intercutting and montage the cabaret songs pervade the whole texture of the film, however, resulting in one of the most “musical” of all musicals. <h2>DO fix problems with the dramatic unfolding of the source material</h2> Show Boat was the first stage musical to attempt a truly epic form, covering twenty years of story time and locations all along the Mississippi River. In 1927, stage mechanics had not caught up with librettist Oscar Hammerstein II and composer Jerome Kern’s ambitions, and the musical, brilliant and groundbreaking as it was, suffered from overlength and a dramatically clumsy second act. The production team fixed these issues in the 1936 film version, as the technologies of montage, dissolve, and cross-cutting that were possible on film allowed for a more effective unfolding of time and place. The 1965 film version of The Sound of Music similarly fixes problems in the stage version; another epic musical, the stage version feels hemmed-in and stifled. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437103/original/file-20211213-21-1maqjdh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437103/original/file-20211213-21-1maqjdh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> The Sound of Music (1965) uses film techniques and editing to improve on a ‘stifled’ stage musical. IMDB It is allowed to breathe on film, and the songs are moved around to better reflect what they are actually about (My Favourite Things on stage is sung by the Mother Abbess to cheer up Maria before she leaves the convent!) See also: Hair, Hairspray, Tick Tick Boom <h2>DON’T adapt a musical to film that didn’t work on stage</h2> Poor Alan Jay Lerner. After the extraordinary success of the film version of My Fair Lady, Lerner attempted film adaptations of three of his other musicals that had been less successful on stage. Camelot, which had a healthy run on Broadway because of its star actors (Julie Andrews, Richard Burton, and Robert Goulet), its Oliver Smith production designs, and a few excellent songs, rather more than for its unconvincing storyline and structure, was a natural for screen adaptation. But non-singer stars (Richard Harris, Vanessa Redgrave, and Franco Nero), unconvincing plot revisions, and dull direction by Joshua Logan caused it to be an inert behemoth on screen. Lerner tried again with Paint Your Wagon in 1969, based on a much earlier stage musical that had been only mildly successful with a few hit songs (notably They Call the Wind Maria). But once more, non-singer stars (Lee Marvin, Clint Eastwood, and Jean Seberg), unconvincing plot revisions, and dull direction by (again!) Joshua Logan resulted in yet another inert behemoth. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437105/original/file-20211213-27-1dca0r1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437105/original/file-20211213-27-1dca0r1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> Paint Your Wagon (1969) is generally acknowledged as a poor example of a film musical, and a stage musical. IMDB Third time was not a charm, with On a Clear Day You Can See Forever. This time the stars were singers: Barbra Streisand and Yves Montand. Unfortunately, their talents were hidden by another poorly revised screenplay and, unlike the other two films, this one could have used more of everything, especially music. Writing this has made me realise that successful stage-to-screen adaptations are quite rare. For every Cabaret there are two Annies and a Man of La Mancha. Spielberg’s new West Side Story will be the first musical he has directed in his long career, and musical-lovers everywhere are optimistic that he will do this classic musical justice. I merely hope that the only scaffolding to be found is on the fire escapes of 1950s Manhattan!<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/169946/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gregory-camp-1280180">Gregory Camp</a>, Senior Lecturer, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-auckland-1305">University of Auckland</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/from-chicago-to-west-side-story-how-to-successfully-adapt-a-musical-from-stage-to-screen-169946">original article</a>. Image: 20th Century Studios

Movies

From Chicago to West Side Story, how to successfully adapt a musical from stage to screen

The second half of 2021 is proving to be a peak time for movie musical-goers, with the release of critically acclaimed In the Heights, disastrously received Dear Evan Hansen, and Steven Spielberg’s hotly anticipated West Side Story. These films lead to reflection on one of the stranger sub-genres of film history — the musical stage-to-screen adaptation. To film a stage show (as in the recent professionally shot films of Hamilton and Come from Away), or merely to create bigger stage sets in a studio (there are many examples of this, from Guys and Dolls to The Producers) is not truly to adapt a musical to film. Instead, adaptors should use the tools unique to film to re-interpret the musical in this different medium. To help us through the vicissitudes of adaptation, here is an idiosyncratic list of a few DOs and DON’Ts. DO use real locations creatively Location shooting is a frequent tool used to enhance the realism of film musicals, but placing the un-realism of song and dance in a real place can backfire and create an uncanny valley. Locations are best used in a super-realistic way. A successful recent example of this is In the Heights. Director Jon Chu and his production team shot much of the film in Washington Heights in Manhattan, but in a way that the neighbourhood seems a natural place for music-making: very careful lighting, colour-timing, and the occasional unobtrusive effects shot lift the story out of the mundane. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437093/original/file-20211213-21-hr5jsr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437093/original/file-20211213-21-hr5jsr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> In The Heights (2021) is a love letter to the Washington Heights area of NYC. IMDB In the number When the Sun Goes Down, lovers Benny and Nina begin singing naturalistically on a fire escape, but then a set on hydraulics, green screen, and “magic hour” lighting come together to enable a gravity-defying dance across the rooftops and walls of the apartment buildings. See also: Fiddler on the Roof, Jesus Christ Superstar, On the Town DON’T ghettoise all of the musical numbers to a stark dreamland covered in artistic scaffolding Counter to the previous guideline about using real locations for musical numbers, some film musicals go too far in the opposite direction. Two musicals directed by Rob Marshall, Chicago and Nine, puzzlingly use the same solution to try and hedge their bets: the dialogue scenes happen in realistic locations (1920s Chicago and 1960s Rome, respectively) but the musical numbers are relegated to their characters’ internal fantasies, which in both cases means studio-like settings that allow for dancers to be placed in aesthetically pleasing formations. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437098/original/file-20211213-27-qhe4i9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437098/original/file-20211213-27-qhe4i9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> Chicago (2002), features musical numbers entirely set within the character’s internal fantasies. IMDB This strategy gets the filmmakers out of having to bridge the gap between speech time and music time, but the narrative innovations of both shows are smoothed out on screen. That makes for a less interesting filmgoing experience. The exception that proves the rule here is Cabaret, in which director Bob Fosse removed all of the “book” songs and kept only those performed in the titular cabaret. Through innovative intercutting and montage the cabaret songs pervade the whole texture of the film, however, resulting in one of the most “musical” of all musicals. DO fix problems with the dramatic unfolding of the source material Show Boat was the first stage musical to attempt a truly epic form, covering twenty years of story time and locations all along the Mississippi River. In 1927, stage mechanics had not caught up with librettist Oscar Hammerstein II and composer Jerome Kern’s ambitions, and the musical, brilliant and groundbreaking as it was, suffered from overlength and a dramatically clumsy second act. The production team fixed these issues in the 1936 film version, as the technologies of montage, dissolve, and cross-cutting that were possible on film allowed for a more effective unfolding of time and place. The 1965 film version of The Sound of Music similarly fixes problems in the stage version; another epic musical, the stage version feels hemmed-in and stifled. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437103/original/file-20211213-21-1maqjdh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437103/original/file-20211213-21-1maqjdh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> The Sound of Music (1965) uses film techniques and editing to improve on a ‘stifled’ stage musical. IMDB It is allowed to breathe on film, and the songs are moved around to better reflect what they are actually about (My Favourite Things on stage is sung by the Mother Abbess to cheer up Maria before she leaves the convent!) See also: Hair, Hairspray, Tick Tick Boom DON’T adapt a musical to film that didn’t work on stage Poor Alan Jay Lerner. After the extraordinary success of the film version of My Fair Lady, Lerner attempted film adaptations of three of his other musicals that had been less successful on stage. Camelot, which had a healthy run on Broadway because of its star actors (Julie Andrews, Richard Burton, and Robert Goulet), its Oliver Smith production designs, and a few excellent songs, rather more than for its unconvincing storyline and structure, was a natural for screen adaptation. But non-singer stars (Richard Harris, Vanessa Redgrave, and Franco Nero), unconvincing plot revisions, and dull direction by Joshua Logan caused it to be an inert behemoth on screen. Lerner tried again with Paint Your Wagon in 1969, based on a much earlier stage musical that had been only mildly successful with a few hit songs (notably They Call the Wind Maria). But once more, non-singer stars (Lee Marvin, Clint Eastwood, and Jean Seberg), unconvincing plot revisions, and dull direction by (again!) Joshua Logan resulted in yet another inert behemoth. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437105/original/file-20211213-27-1dca0r1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437105/original/file-20211213-27-1dca0r1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="" /></a> Paint Your Wagon (1969) is generally acknowledged as a poor example of a film musical, and a stage musical. IMDB Third time was not a charm, with On a Clear Day You Can See Forever. This time the stars were singers: Barbra Streisand and Yves Montand. Unfortunately, their talents were hidden by another poorly revised screenplay and, unlike the other two films, this one could have used more of everything, especially music. Writing this has made me realise that successful stage-to-screen adaptations are quite rare. For every Cabaret there are two Annies and a Man of La Mancha. Spielberg’s new West Side Story will be the first musical he has directed in his long career, and musical-lovers everywhere are optimistic that he will do this classic musical justice. I merely hope that the only scaffolding to be found is on the fire escapes of 1950s Manhattan!<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/169946/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gregory-camp-1280180" target="_blank">Gregory Camp</a>, Senior Lecturer, <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-auckland-1305" target="_blank">University of Auckland</a> This article is republished from <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/from-chicago-to-west-side-story-how-to-successfully-adapt-a-musical-from-stage-to-screen-169946" target="_blank">original article</a>. Image: 20th Century Studios

Movies

What is adaptive clothing and how can it make life easier for people with a disability?

Have you ever tried to do up a zip or button a shirt one-handed? Put on a pair of jeans while seated? Do you know someone with Autism Spectrum Disorder, who can’t stand the feeling of certain fabrics against their skin? If your feet are different sizes, or you only have one foot, how do you buy shoes? Advances in “adaptive clothing” aim to address these problems. Adaptive clothes are specially designed for people with a disability. This can mean providing <a href="https://hypebeast.com/2013/10/under-armour-creates-the-worlds-first-one-handed-magnetic-zipper">one-handed zippers on shoes</a>, replacing buttons with <a href="https://au.tommy.com/tommy-hilfiger-adaptive">magnetic closures</a> or designing clothing and footwear so you can get dressed while in <a href="https://jamthelabel.com/pages/adaptations">a seated position</a>. The key to effective adaptive clothing is catering for the vast array of needs different consumers have, while maintaining style and fashionability. Recently, fashion brands have begun to provide on-trend clothing with new styles, combining fashion and technology for people with a variety of disabilities. Here are five different ways fashion is approaching adaptive clothing. <h2>1. Magnets, not buttons</h2> <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/behold-the-worlds-first-one-handed-zipper-7278212/">Under Armour</a> were one of the first to adopt a magnetic zipper in clothing. Their redesigned jacket zip called MagZip uses magnets to connect the ends of the zip, making clothing easier to do up one-handed. Magnets have also been used in shirts, pants and other garments in lieu of buttons. These enable individuals who don’t have the dexterity or ability to use buttons to better dress themselves. <h2>2. Shoes without laces</h2> Different iterations of shoes also aim to make the process of tying laces easier, or remove the need all together. Zips can <a href="https://www.marksandspencer.com/au/kids%E2%80%99-freshfeet%E2%84%A2-adaptive-high-top-trainers-5-small---7-large/p/P60282243.html">replace traditional laces</a>, enabling shoes to be done up one-handed. Another design is Nike’s <a href="https://news.nike.com/news/nike-go-flyease-hands-free-shoe">Go FlyEase</a>, a sneaker utilising a hinge design. The wearer steps into the shoe and the hinge opens, holding the shoe in place. <iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZTRsiWa79rY?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe> The first FlyEase shoes proved popular with a wider audience, <a href="https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/nike-go-flyease-resale-prices/">creating supply issues and a large resale market</a>. This shoe is an example of <a href="https://universaldesign.ie/what-is-universal-design/">Universal Design</a> – a principle which proposes products should be designed in such a way that anybody can use them. <h2>3. Clothing for the wearer</h2> Many people with autism <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10803-021-05140-3">are sensitive</a> to certain fabrics or to tags and clothing labels. Adaptive brands, such as <a href="https://jamthelabel.com/pages/adaptations">JAM the Label</a>, screen-print labels, avoiding physical tags and offer a range of hyposensitive bamboo and linen fabrics. Baby onesies and traditional bathers which cover the stomach are not always practical for everyone. Their design can be restrictive to people who are tube feed or use ostomy pouches. Among other designs, Australian adaptive clothing manufacturer <a href="https://wonsie.com.au/">Wonsie</a> sells garments with stomach access for both children and adults who require frequent access to the stomach, meaning medical devices need not be a barrier to fashion. <h2>4. 3D printing and custom designs</h2> In the past, adaptive products were often designed to be unobtrusive, such as black wheelchairs or flesh-coloured prostheses and hearing aids. But this is changing too. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434889/original/file-20211201-13-qghrsa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434889/original/file-20211201-13-qghrsa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="A boy with a blue hearing aid plays guitar" /></a> Advances in 3D printing technology means devices, such as hearing aids, can come in many different designs and colours. Shutterstock 3D printing and advanced manufacturing are allowing for great flexibility and customised designs of various devices and fashion items. Open Bionics used 3D printing to create the <a href="https://openbionics.com/hero-arm/">Hero Arm</a>, a bionic arm powered by muscle movements. By using 3D printing to customise the arm to the user, the company is also able to provide users options around designs ranging from colours to branded content: a blend of function and fashion. <h2>5. Unique sales platforms</h2> The technology behind adaptive fashion is not limited to product design: it is also used in sales and marketing, too. <a href="https://everyhuman.com.au/pages/single-shoes">Every Human’s Unpaired system</a> allows consumers to purchase single shoes, while searching by size, width and a range of adaptive features such as easy to put on, and friendly for those who are wearing ankle/foot orthosis. This can benefit people who have different sized or shaped feet or with prosthetics, where traditional shoes would not suit. While it seems like a relatively simple idea, this requires brands to have more sophisticated ordering systems. Products must be itemised individually, rather than in traditional pairs, and tagged with additional features such as left or right shoe, and which adaptive features each side possesses, so consumers can search by their needs. <h2>Adapting beyond technology</h2> Like many consumers, people with a disability simply want to be able to shop in physical or online stores and find clothing they like and that fits. So while technology is helping retailers offer an increasing range of adaptive clothing, it is not the only solution. The next step is to not only think about the clothing itself, but also about the wearer and how they want to shop. All fashion brands should be adapting their items to the vast array of consumer needs: the technology is already here.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/171496/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/louise-grimmer-212082">Louise Grimmer</a>, Senior Lecturer in Retail Marketing, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-tasmania-888">University of Tasmania</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/gary-mortimer-1322">Gary Mortimer</a>, Professor of Marketing and Consumer Behaviour, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/queensland-university-of-technology-847">Queensland University of Technology</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jason-pallant-8729">Jason Pallant</a>, Senior Lecturer of Marketing, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/swinburne-university-of-technology-767">Swinburne University of Technology</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jessica-pallant-551705">Jessica Pallant</a>, Lecturer in Marketing, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/swinburne-university-of-technology-767">Swinburne University of Technology</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-adaptive-clothing-and-how-can-it-make-life-easier-for-people-with-a-disability-171496">original article</a>. Image: Shutterstock

Beauty & Style

Adaptations of Brian Jacques ‘Redwall’ series announced

The beloved Redwall series by Brian Jacques is being adapted into a feature film and animated series following a new rights deal between Netflix and Penguin Random House Children. The books will be adapted for the first time as a film, which will draw on the titular novel in the series and will be written by Patrick McHale (Over The Garden Wall). <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> ...i - am that is... <a href="https://t.co/Aau3o8bKHu">pic.twitter.com/Aau3o8bKHu</a> — Patrick McHale (@Patrick_McHale) <a href="https://twitter.com/Patrick_McHale/status/1359608617935265813?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2021</a></blockquote> The television series will be based on the second book, Martin the Warrior, and will be the first television adaptation of the books since the series that ran from 1999 until 2002. “We couldn’t be more delighted to announce this deal,” Ben Horlson, Fiction Publisher at Penguin Random House Children told <a rel="noopener" href="https://variety.com/2021/film/news/netflix-redwall-movie-tv-show-brian-jacques-1234904865/" target="_blank">Variety</a> magazine. “These perennially popular stories have been etched onto the hearts of millions of readers, and we are thrilled to partner with Netflix to bring those beloved characters on screen for families worldwide to enjoy.” Jacques; Redwall series follows anthropomorphic animals - including mice, rabbits, badgers, and moles - that live in the Redwall abbey and the surrounding Mossflower Woods as they defend themselves against bands of foxes, rats, and weasels. Image: Variety

Books

Five books to read before you watch them

As the pandemic sees us continuing to stay inside and look for ways to entertain ourselves, adaptations of beloved books on screens big and small are just one way to while away the hours. Here are five books that are worth a read before their adaptations are released. 1. The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga (Netflix) The 2008 Booker winning novel will be hitting Australian Netflix on January 14, 2022. Adiga’s darkly humorous debut novel follows the rags-to-riches story of Balram Halwal (played by Adarsh Gourav in his debut role), the son of a rickshaw driver, as he climbs the social ladder in India after murdering his master. The film will be written, directed, and produced by Ramin Bahrani (Fahrenheit 451, Chop Shop). <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/oM-Nw9XzqVM" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen=""></iframe> 2. Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney (BBC Three) After the successful TV adaptation of Sally Rooney’s second novel Normal People, BBC Three is doing the same with Rooney’s debut novel Conversations with Friends. The book details the relationships between Dublin college students Frances and Bobbi and an older married couple, Nick and Melissa. The adaptation is due to be released in 2022 and will star Alison Oliver as Frances, Sasha Lane (American Honey) as Bobbi, Jemima Kirke (Girls) as Melissa, and Joe Alwyn (Mary Queen of Scots) as Nick. 3. Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid (Amazon Prime Video) In 2020, Reese Witherspoon announced her production company Hello Sunshine would adapt Daisy Jones & the Six after claiming she “devoured [it] in a day”. <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/BueVkgqjuWV/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BueVkgqjuWV/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Reese’s Book Club (@reesesbookclub)</a> </div> </blockquote> Reid’s novel tells the story of a rock band’s rise to fame in the 1970s, led by titular character Daisy Jones played by Riley Keough (Mad Max: Fury Road). The miniseries is expected to air on Amazon Prime Video sometime this year. 4. Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughn (Netflix) Sara Vaughn’s 2008 thriller is hoped to arrive on Netflix sometime this year as a six-episode series. The book follows the crumbling marriage of James, a Home Office minister, and Sophie, after James’ affair comes to light. Meanwhile, young barrister Kate prosecutes some of the UK’s most serious cases of sexual assault. The producers behind Big Little Lies and Gone Girl are on board, and the series’ main cast will include Sienna Miller, Michelle Dockery, Rupert Friend, and Naomi Scott. 5. Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty (Hulu) Following the success of Liane Moriarty’s Big Little Lies as a series, another of her bestsellers is hitting the small screen. Nicole Kidman, Melissa McCarthy, Luke Evans will join the series, which follows nine strangers who gather at a remote health resort run by shady host Masha (Kidman). The series has been filmed in Byron Bay, New South Wales and is set to debut on Hulu from August 18. Image: Instagram

Books

5 blockbuster movies you didn’t know were based on books

So many books have been turned into movies that the question of which was better has become quite divisive. While it can be pretty obvious which books most film adaptations are based on, there are some that can overshadow their source material and come as quite a surprise. Here are five movies you may be surprised to know were based on books. 1. Nothing Lasts Forever became Die Hard Nothing Lasts Forever, written by Roderick Thorp, was inspired by The Towering Inferno which also features a skyscraper on fire. The main character, retired NYPD detective Joe Leland, was chased through the ashes of the skyscraper by a group of gun-toting terrorists. When it was later adapted into Die Hard, there were a few changes made. Though both stories feature NYPD detectives facing off against terrorists inside a skyscraper on Christmas Eve, the film changed the protagonist’s name from Joe Leland to John McClane, featured a younger version of the character and changed the ending to a happier one. 2. From The Short-Timers to Full Metal Jacket Stanley Kubrick took the 1979 novel The Short-Timers and adapted it into Full Metal Jacket. Though both stories are set during the Vietnam War and feature soldiers going from boot camp to the frontline, Kubrick’s film rearranged the novel’s structure to create a more cohesive and tragic story. 3. There Will Be Blood came from Oil! The Academy Award-winning movie There Will Be Blood is a loose adaptation of Upton Sinclair’s 1927 novel Oil! While director Paul Thomas Anderson was a fan of the book, he only used the novel’s first 150 pages in the film. Instead, he took the story in a different direction to focus on self-made oil tycoon Daniel Plainview, played by Daniel Day-Lewis, rather than the tycoon’s son. 4. Mrs. Doubtfire: Alias Madame Doubtfire The hit comedy Mrs. Doubtfire was adapted from British author Anne Fine’s young adult novel Alias Madame Doubtfire. Both share a similar plot, where a man who has gone through a messy divorce and has limited time with his family, dresses like an old woman and takes a job as his kids’ nanny. 5. Psycho to Psycho After paying $9,500 for the film rights to Robert Bloch’s novel Psycho in 1959, Alfred Hitchcock even bought every available copy of the book in the US to keep the general public in the dark. The studio was against the adaptation, feeling its source material was highly offensive, so Hitchcock used his own money to finance the film, his own crew to make it, and decided to shoot it in black-and-white to keep costs down.

Books

Many Aussie plants and animals adapt to fires but the fires are changing

Australia is a land that has known fire. Our diverse plant and animal species have become accustomed to life with fire, and in fact some require it to procreate. But in recent decades the pattern of fires – also known as the fire regime – is changing. Individual fires are increasingly hotter, more frequent, happening earlier in the season and covering larger areas with a uniform intensity. And these changes to the fire regime are occurring too fast for our native flora and fauna to adapt and survive. Our fire-adapted plants are suffering Many of Australia’s iconic eucalypts are “shade intolerant” species that adapted to exist within a relatively harsh fire regime. These species thrive just after a major fire has cleared away the overstory and prepared an ash bed for their seeds to germinate. Some of our most majestic trees, like the alpine ash, can only regenerate from seed. Those seeds germinate only on bare earth, where the leaf litter and shrubs have been burnt away. But if fire is so frequent the trees haven’t matured enough to produce seed, or so intense it destroys the seeds present in the canopy and the ground, then even these fire-adapted species can <a href="http://www.lifeatlarge.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/650007/Reshaping-alpine-landscapes-summary.pdf">fail</a>. The current fires are re-burning some forests that were burnt only a decade ago. Those regenerating trees are too young to survive, but also too young to have started developing seed. With the disappearance of these tree species, other plants will fill the gap. Acacias (wattles) are potential successors as they mature much earlier than alpine ash. Our tall, majestic forests could easily turn into shrubby bushland with more frequent fires. Even within a burnt area, there are usually some unburnt patches, which are highly valuable for many <a href="https://theconversation.com/burnoff-policies-could-be-damaging-habitats-for-100-years-30240">types of plants and animals</a>. These patches include gullies and depressions, but sometimes are just lucky coincidences of the terrain and weather. The patches act as reserves of “seed trees” to provide regeneration opportunities. Recent fires, burning in hotter and drier conditions, are tending to be severe over large areas with fewer unburnt patches. Without these patches, there are no trees in the fire zone to spread seeds for regeneration. Eucalypt seed is small and without wings or other mechanisms to help the wind disperse it. Birds don’t generally disperse these seeds either. Eucalypt seed thus only falls within 100 - 200 metres of the parent tree. It may take many decades for trees to recolonise a large burnt area. That means wind-blown or bird-dispersed seeds from other species may fully colonise the burnt area well before the Eucalypts. Unfortunately many of these windblown seeds will be <a href="http://hotspotsfireproject.org.au/download-secure.php?access=Public&file=fire-weeds-and-native-vegetation-of-nsw.pdf&type=">weed</a> species, such as African Love Grass, which may then cover the bare earth and exclude successful Eucalypt regeneration while potentially making fires even <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-invasive-weeds-can-make-wildfires-hotter-and-more-frequent-89281">hotter and more frequent</a>. Animals have fewer places to hide Young animals are significantly more vulnerable to disturbances such as fire than mature individuals. So the best time to give birth is a season when fire is rare. Spring in the southern zones of Australia has, in the past, been wetter and largely free from highly destructive fires. Both flora and fauna species thus time their reproduction for this period. But as fire seasons lengthen and begin earlier in the year, vulnerable nestlings and babies die where they shelter or starve as the fires burn the fruits and seeds they eat. Australian fauna have developed <a href="https://theconversation.com/animal-response-to-a-bushfire-is-astounding-these-are-the-tricks-they-use-to-survive-129327">behaviours that help them survive</a> fire, including moving towards gullies and depressions, climbing higher, or occupying hollows and burrows (even if not their own) when they sense fire. But even these behaviours will fail if those refuges are uncharacteristically burning under hotter and drier conditions. Rainforest, marshes and the banks of watercourses were once safe refuges against fire, but we have seen these all <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/nov/24/world-heritage-queensland-rainforest-burned-for-10-days-and-almost-no-one-noticed">burn in recent fires</a>. What can be done? All aspects of fire regimes in Australia are clearly changing as a result of our heating and drying climate. But humans can have a deliberate effect, and have done so in the past. <a href="https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1469-8137.1998.00289.x">Indigenous burning</a> created a patchwork of burnt areas and impacted on the magnitude and frequency of fires over the landscape. These regular burns kept the understory under control, while the moderate intensity and patchiness allowed larger trees to survive. There have been repeated calls of late to <a href="https://theconversation.com/our-land-is-burning-and-western-science-does-not-have-all-the-answers-100331">reintroduce Indigenous burning</a> practices in Australia. But this would be difficult over vast areas. It requires knowledgeable individuals to regularly walk through each forest to understand the forest dynamics at a very fine scale. More importantly, our landscapes are now filled with dry fuel, and shrubs that act as “ladders” - quickly sending any fire into tree canopies to cause very destructive crown fires. Given these high fuel conditions along with their potentially dangerous distribution, there may be relatively few safe areas to reintroduce Indigenous burning. The changed fire conditions still require active management of forests, with trained professionals on the ground. Refuges could be developed throughout forests to provide places where animals can shelter and from which trees can recolonise. Such refuges could be reintroduced by reducing forest biomass (or fuel) using small fires where feasible or by <a href="https://www.agriculture.gov.au/forestry/national/nbmp">mechanical means</a>. Biomass collected by machines could be used to produce biochar or other useful products. Biochar could even be used to <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13593-016-0372-z">improve the soil</a> damaged by the fires and excess ash. Midstory species could be cut down to prevent the development of fire ladders to tree crowns. Even the overstory could be <a href="http://theconversation.com/forest-thinning-is-controversial-but-it-shouldnt-be-ruled-out-for-managing-bushfires-130124">thinned</a> to minimise the potential for crown fires. Seed could also be collected from thinned trees to provide an off-site bank as ecological insurance. Such active management will not be cheap. But using machinery rather than fire could control biomass quantity and distribution in a much more precise way: leaving some biomass on the ground as habitat for insects and reptiles, and removing other patches to create safer refuges from the fires that will continue to come.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/129754/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/cris-brack-98407">Cris Brack</a>, Associate Professor, Fenner School of Environment and Society, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-national-university-877">Australian National University</a> This article is republished from <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/many-of-our-plants-and-animals-have-adapted-to-fires-but-now-the-fires-are-changing-129754">original article</a>.

Family & Pets

How adapting 4 easy self-defence tips can keep you safer

Taking on a few simple concepts to help protect yourself will help you feel confident in every area of your life. Start today! Most of us think of learning self-defence to fight off an actual attack. However, there is much more to it than that. If you think about it, it is much easier to deal with an attack before it actually happens by preparing a safety strategy. Almost all people who fall victim to an attack, say they ‘felt’ that something was wrong sometimes long before anything really happened. Trust your feelings and act on them. And always put safely before ‘being polite’. Self-defence has a huge amount to do with confidence, assertiveness and taking action. The more you apply these principles in everyday life, the safer and happier you will be. Tip 1: ABC of healthy habits a) When you are walking to your car have your mobile phone in your hand but don’t be on the phone speaking with someone or browsing the internet. Don't be paranoid or distracted, just be aware. <ol> <li>b) Get into the habit of carrying your car and house keys in your hand so you can get inside quickly. And you can also use it as a ‘weapon' if needed.</li> <li>c) If you are feeling overly tired then give yourself a night off and stay in.</li> <li>d) If you come across someone in need who you don’t know then don’t feel embarrassed to keep your car door locked and instead phone for immediate assistance.</li> <li>e) Keep financial matters private and consider having a trusted locksmith install a deadbolt lock. Review your home safety and ensure there are no easily accessible points in your home such as windows.</li> </ol> Tip 2: Create a safety plan Start by thinking about easy ways you can stay safe such as taking the main street home in well-lit areas instead of the short cut. Or it may mean that you have someone pick you up after a night out or get a cab. Confidence is important so consider taking a short self defence course or taking up a regular exercise habit to strengthen you physically. Light weights are a great option. Speak to your health professional. It is important to remember that most people who are on the attack don't actually want to struggle. They don't want to fight. They want an easy ‘victim’. If you look like you'll put up a fight, in most cases, they will look elsewhere. Confidence, or the way you carry yourself is your first line of defence against an attack. Tip 3: Trust your intuition We all have a very reliable ‘inbuilt alarm system’ that warns you of danger. It will tell you if you should be wary of your co-workers inappropriate remarks, or if they are harmless. To some degree it will let you know if it is safe to walk down this path or if you should consider crossing the street at the lights where there are plenty of people around. It tells you this by the way you feel. We all have it, but many of us have learned to override it because we learned to be ‘nice’ and we don’t want to be paranoid for seemingly no reason. It’s called intuition. An intuition is a feeling such as a hunch, a suspicion or even fear. It is a subconscious warning signal that tells us to investigate further, but without the logic or reasons behind it. It is there for a reason so don’t discard it blindly because someone ‘seems’ nice superficially. The huge benefit of an intuition is, that it gives us the opportunity to deal with a situation before it really becomes dangerous. Therefore, if you get a hunch that something is wrong, don’t just hope for the best, do something and protect yourself. Tip 4: Put your safety ahead of ‘being polite’ You need to be willing to make it clear that you are not a victim, that you will stand up for yourself and if necessary fight. If someone approaches you and you have a bad feeling about them you need to stand your ground. The earlier and the more convincingly you do this, the easier this will be. Don’t be embarrassed to get as loud and aggressive as you have to be or to get help from a helpful stranger. This still gives you a chance to defuse the situation early. Written by Otto Heutling. Republished with permission of <a href="https://www.wyza.com.au/articles/lifestyle/wyza-life/how-adapting-4-easy-self-defence-tips-can-keep-you-safer.aspx">Wyza.com.au.</a>

Caring

5 reasons why a dietitian doesn’t recommend paleo (and how to adapt it)

The paleo or stone age diet, heralded as an easy way to weight loss, has the nutrition world polarised. Half love it, while the other half say it’s a modern fabrication and does not replicate how our ancestors ate. Paleo cuts out any food that wasn’t available 10,000 years ago when organised agriculture began. This removes all grains, legumes (lentils, chick peas) and dairy plus anything else that came later, such as sugar and refined oils. Many researchers dispute the paleo diet, arguing that both humans and foods have evolved since our caveman days so what we ate then has little bearing on the modern food supply. Those bright orange carrots you now buy, for instance, aren’t the same as the thin ugly carrots of days long gone. And their colour is recent – originally all carrots were purple or yellow in colour. It's also important to note that the diet is not easy for vegetarians and almost impossible for vegans who rely on legumes and grains for their protein. Here’s 5 good reasons why I don’t believe a conventional paleo diet is right for the over 50s: 1. It’s not balanced. You need a little carb from whole grains and legumes to fend off hunger and tiredness. This is especially true if you exercise – and you must for weight loss and good health! 2. It can quickly deteriorate into a carb-free regime as you eat no rice, potato, bread or pasta. 3. It eliminates the main source of calcium (in dairy such as milk, cheese and yoghurt) which you need for strong bones as you get older. Unless fortified, almond or rice milks are low in calcium and not a true replacement. While the life span of a paleo person was only 25 years, we now live until our 80s, an age that makes us prone to osteoporosis. 4. It removes the main source of fibre (grains, legumes) which you need for gut health and regularity with age. Not forgetting the body needs whole grains, which have proven health benefits like the 20 to 30 per cent reduction they create in lowering the risk of early death, heart disease, diabetes, stroke and some cancers. 5. It relies too much on meat with its environmental problems. Any meat eaten should be fresh whole cuts like steak (which is expensive) and not processed such as sausages, bacon and ham, which are so popular. Don’t forget you’re not eating wild beasts but domesticated sheep and cows raised using mass production methods, even if grass-fed. What we can take from it On the plus side, paleo removes all packet and processed foods so you’re eating little added sugar (honey is ok), salt, refined oils or additives. You cook from scratch using whole foods. You eat a nutrient-rich diet from vegetables, meats, fish, chicken, nuts, seeds and fruits. Would paleo suit you? Paleo works well if you need to shed weight and if you: <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;">Enjoy eating a higher protein intake from meat, chicken or fish</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">Don’t snack between meals</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">Dine out a lot. Simply order steak or fish and salad but skip the mash or chips.</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">How to make paleo more realistic and balance</li> </ul> 1. Add 2 serves of whole grains a day such as rolled oats, quinoa, buckwheat, millet, brown rice, pearl barley or grainy bread (dense chewy types, not the soft pappy square ones). Remember our early ancestors DID eat wild grasses such as the wild rice harvested by American Indians – but not huge quantities and no refined flours. This could be as: <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;">½ cup muesli or 1 bowl of porridge with added seeds AND</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">1 thick slice grainy toast OR</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">½ cup cooked quinoa or brown/black rice</li> </ul> 2. Add 2 serves of fermented dairy foods a day such as: <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;">1 150g tub yoghurt</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">1 200mL glass kefir (fermented milk)</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">a thick 40g wedge of cheese</li> </ul> 3. Add 1 serve of legumes a day such as <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;">½ cup cooked beans or lentils OR</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">1 small 100g can of baked beans.</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">Bottom line</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">Use the paleo diet as a starting point then add in these whole grains, fermented dairy and legumes. Paleo favours weight loss due to its high protein content which is very satisfying and may increase muscle mass. But don’t forget that long-term balance and enjoyment are important. Know what you can stick to for longer than a week.</li> </ul> Further reading: <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;">Dietitians Association of Australia: The low-down on Paleo</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">The University of Melbourne: Paleo diet: fab or fad?</li> <li style="font-weight: 400;">Grains and Legumes Nutrition Council: Grains and health</li> </ul> Written by Catherine Saxelby. Republished with permission of <a href="https://www.wyza.com.au/articles/health/nutrition/5-reasons-why-a-dietitian-doesn-t-recommend-paleo.aspx">Wyza.com.au.</a>

Beauty & Style

Why are so many musicals adapted from movies?

In a 2004 original musical about creating an original musical – cheekily titled [<a href="http://www.guidetomusicaltheatre.com/shows_t/titleofshow.html">title of show</a>] – one writer asks, “So movies make good musicals?” His writing partner responds: “Well, they make musicals.” This year, Australian theatre audiences have seen stage adaptations of the films School of Rock, Billy Elliot, Saturday Night Fever and Muriel’s Wedding. Tom Kitt and Lin-Manuel Miranda’s adaptation of Bring It On, based on the <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0204946/">2000 cheerleading movie</a>, has already played in Melbourne and Perth and opened in Sydney. In 2020, productions of Frozen, Waitress, Moulin Rouge and Shrek will be performed across Australia. <iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/AtRgTLrcYdE?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe> Bring It On brings good cheer and audiences to the theatre. Some original imports like Come From Away and The Book of Mormon are being seen on Australian stages and Hamilton will open here next year, but the emphasis on movie adaptation seems to have a limiting effect on original Australian creation. Recent announcements by the <a href="https://www.limelightmagazine.com.au/news/queensland-theatre-announces-its-2020-season/">Queensland Theatre Company</a>, <a href="https://www.limelightmagazine.com.au/news/mtc-announces-its-2020-season/">Melbourne Theatre Company</a> and <a href="https://www.limelightmagazine.com.au/news/belvoir-st-theatre-announces-its-2020-season/">Belvoir St Theatre</a> do not include plans to premiere new Australian musicals in 2020. From novel to screen to stage Musical theatre has always been a genre that favours adaptation. In 1927, Show Boat was an adaptation of Edna Ferber’s novel. Oklahoma was based on the play Green Grow The Lilacs by Lynn Riggs. Musicals were adapted from novels, plays, short stories (South Pacific, Guys and Dolls), comics (Annie, You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown) and even the Bible (Godspell, Jesus Christ Superstar). When Oscar Hammerstein II mentored Stephen Sondheim as a composer and lyricist, he set him the task to write four musicals, including three adaptations. <iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/U_O8DN1CY_E?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe> As cinema increased in popularity, musicals were increasingly based on movies. These ranged from arthouse films such as Fellini’s 8 ½ (adapted as Maury Yeston’s Nine) and Ingmar Bergman’s Smiles of A Summer Night (Stephen Sondheim’s inspiration for A Little Night Music) to blockbusters such as Sister Act. Of course, this process can also be reversed with movie musicals like the upcoming Cats starting life onstage. The cycle completes itself when a production like Hairspray goes from screen to stage and is then filmed as a movie musical. Adapting popular films for the stage became common practice in the 21st century as producers sought to draw new audiences into theatres to see shows with familiar titles. The most recent Broadway season included adaptations of Pretty Woman, Tootsie and Beetlejuice. Many ways to stage The most straightforward adaptation approach is to use songs from the soundtrack of an original movie to create a jukebox-style experience. Moulin Rouge is an example of this style of adaptation, along with Priscilla Queen of the Desert. Although the music rarely propels the plot, the songs provide spectacular entertainment. Other adaptations, such as School of Rock, Kinky Boots and Pretty Woman take an existing plot and insert original songs, usually by one composer (Andrew Lloyd Webber for School of Rock, Cyndi Lauper for Kinky Boots and Bryan Adams for Pretty Woman). Songs are used to create memorable production numbers, but also take the place of dialogue or provide a reflective solo number. One difficulty with this style of adaptation, though, is that audiences are not familiar with the new songs and often expect to hear music from the original movie. The Roy Orbison song <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PLq0_7k1jk">Oh Pretty Woman</a> was not originally included in the Broadway production of Pretty Woman but was <a href="http://www.playbill.com/article/pretty-woman-musical-to-incorporate-roy-orbison-hit">later added</a> to the finale for this reason. Disney’s stage adaptations (Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King) tend to be a hybrid of these two approaches, incorporating the well-loved songs from the movie and adding new songs by the same composer. <iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DKKVwBSy0TU?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe> Disney favourite Frozen has been adapted on Broadway. Bring on originality Some of the most successful film adaptations bring new elements to create a stage version with enough familiarity to appeal to the audience while also updating the setting or altering the plot to spark new moments of engagement. Muriel’s Wedding still tells the familiar story of awkward Muriel Heslop but contemporises the original film by incorporating the pressures of social media in the song Shared, Viral, Linked, Liked. Bring It On maintains the thrilling cheerleading elements of the movie, but incorporates issues of self-esteem, socio-economics and the LGBTQ community. Australian musicals such as Hot Shoe Shuffle (1992), The Boy From Oz (1998) and Keating! The Musical (2005) have proved successful in the past. Since <a href="https://theconversation.com/where-are-the-new-australian-musicals-waiting-in-the-wings-79831">2017</a>, Muriel’s Wedding has toured nationally and <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-07-16/helpmann-awards-hannah-gadsby-new-comedy-wins/11310632">Barbara and the Camp Dogs trimphed at the Helpmann Awards</a>. But other than a revival of <a href="https://opera.org.au/on-tour/bran-nue-dae">Bran Nu Dae</a> our stages will be bereft of original Australian musicals next year. This may reflect an influx of international productions and low risk scheduling. Adaptation is an important element of musical theatre, which can harness the power of a well-known property for the stage and draw new audiences to the theatre. While film adaptations are sometimes critiqued as shameless attempts to play on nostalgia to chase dollars, they can also produce satisfying theatrical pieces that develop the artform. Hopefully, those new audiences will eventually encourage Australian producers to develop original works as well.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/122329/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> Written by Trevor Jones, Lecturer in Musical Theatre, Griffith University. Republished with permission of <a rel="noopener" href="https://theconversation.com/hollywood-onstage-why-are-so-many-musicals-adapted-from-movies-122329" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>.

Movies

5 easy beauty habits to adapt today for healthy and glowing skin

Ready to revolutionise your skincare routine? Try these do it yourself insider secrets from the experts! Expert dermal technician, Darlene O’Gara has more than 26 years experience in the skincare industry and shares her top five tips for rejuvenating your skin. Of course the cheapest and best advice it always to have a healthy diet and always use a good quality sunscreen to prevent skincare issues before they develop. 1. Getting technical: address skin issues at the cellular level Dead skin cells lead to a dull lifeless skin tone, and can reduce the effectiveness of your facial cleanser and moisturiser. Exfoliating on a regular basis is essential to getting to the root of this problem. “Daily use of an active scrub is the initial foundation to creating your flawless spring skin complexion,” says Darlene. Want a great result without visiting a professional salon? She recommends the Skinstitut Glycolic 14% Scrub for home use and if possible, combining this with regular microdermabrasion treatments in clinic. “Microdermabrasion works wonders on your skin by removing dull, dead skins cells on the surface and revealing the brighter skin beneath,” Darlene adds. The result? Glowing and more radiant skin that looks and feels fresh. 2. Invest in the right facial cleanser Some regular soaps are alkaline-based, which can dry out your skin. This leaves your face and body feeling tight and dry. A daily cleanse with a product with natural, active ingredients, like green tea, goji berries, aloe vera or vitamin E will help maintain your skin hydration while you cleanse your skin of impurities. Want great motivation to vacuum? 70 per cent of the dust in your home is estimated to be dead human skin! 3. Repair your skin with a nourishing moisturiser To get your skin back to its soft, smooth and supple state, you need intense nourishment. For daily hydration, Darlene recommends using a product, which contains antioxidants, and intense nourishment especially at night. For a more intensive treatment to repair your skin after the cooler seasons, consider a face peel, especially for older skin types. 4. Protect yourself against the sun You can help prevent the signs of ageing and further protect your skin from the harmful rays of the sun with the daily use of a good SPF, preferably 50+ broad spectrum sunscreen. “This is an essential part of any skin care regime,” stresses Darlene. “Remember the more frequently you use sunscreen now, the better you will look in five, 10 and 15 years.” 5. Increase your skin’s vitamin intake Getting enough vitamin A, E and C is essential to skin regeneration and hydration. While eating your vitamins through real food is important, applying vitamin-infused creams and moisturisers directly on your skin makes a big difference to your complexion. Want a great result at home? Try using active skin products, such as Even Blend, Vitamin C and Retinol, for a brighter, smoother and more radiant skin tone. Remember to always speak to your beauty and healthcare professional before changing your regular routine. Written by Mahsa Fratantoni. Republished with permission of <a href="https://www.wyza.com.au/articles/health/5-easy-beauty-habits-to-adapt-today-for-healthy-glowing-skin.aspx">Wyza.com.au.</a>

Caring

5 books that are scarier than their horror film adaptation

If you’re one of those people that actually love a good scare, it can often be better to read a book rather than see a film. After all, the mind can take you places far more frightening than that depicted on screen. These five books are for those that love themselves a bit of horror – and these ones are actually scarier in print than on screen. 1. <a href="http://t.dgm-au.com/c/93981/71095/1880?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.booktopia.com.au%2Fit-stephen-king%2Fprod9781444707861.html" target="_blank">It</a> by Stephen King Want to be scared it-less? Read this novel based on a scary clown that scares small children and then comes back to get them when they’re all grown up. The clown is a lot creepier in your mind than in director Andy Muschietti’s 2017 version. Perhaps it’s because your own imagination takes you to the darkest place possible, which is always more horrifying than someone else’s version of it. 2. <a href="http://t.dgm-au.com/c/93981/71095/1880?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.booktopia.com.au%2Fsilence-of-the-lambs-thomas-harris%2Fprod9780099532927.html" target="_blank">The Silence of the Lambs</a> by Thomas Harris Three years after the book came out, the well-known film starring Anthony Hopkins as Dr. Hannibal Lecter completely freaked out audiences around the world. But the book gives you an intense thrill ride inside your head that you just don’t get from staring at a screen. Your imagination will be stretched to the limit as you get inside the head of this psychotic, cannibal protagonist. Unfortunately, even if you haven’t seen the film, it’s hard not to picture Jodie Foster as FBI trainee Clarice Starling. 3. <a href="http://t.dgm-au.com/c/93981/71095/1880?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.booktopia.com.au%2Fthe-amityville-horror-jay-anson%2Fprod9781416507697.html" target="_blank">The Amityville Horror</a> by Jay Anson With a couple of remakes and spin offs, this book may be scary because everyone can relate to moving into a new house. And once again the horror in your head is a lot worse than the blood and gore on the screen. The book is written in a diary format, listing the different phenomena experienced at the house by the new family who move in after a mass shooting. The fact that it’s based on real events gives it an edge too. 4. <a href="http://t.dgm-au.com/c/93981/71095/1880?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.booktopia.com.au%2Fthe-exorcist-william-peter-blatty%2Fprod9780552166775.html" target="_blank">The Exorcist</a> by William Peter Blatty The main reason for the book being so much more terrifying is potentially the fact that in the early 1970s special effects just weren’t that good yet. So when the infamous scene of the exorcism of young Regan begins, it is almost comical rather than frightening. In your mind however, the depiction of a small child taken over by demons is enough to keep you awake at night for some time. 5. <a href="http://t.dgm-au.com/c/93981/71095/1880?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.booktopia.com.au%2Frosemary-s-baby-ira-levin%2Fprod9781849015882.html" target="_blank">Rosemary’s Baby</a> by Ira Levin Sure, you’ll miss the snappy 1960s dresses in the book, but the film just doesn’t quite capture the horror as well as the book in this instance. After moving into their new apartment, a young couple befriend their odd neighbours and soon become pregnant. Rosemary finds herself second guessing everything as she tries to determine whether she has given birth to the devil. While it doesn’t sound very true to life, the author delivers on the fear and tension scales. A literal page turner from start to finish. Which of these books did you find the most frightening? We would love to hear from you in the comments.

Books

5 book characters who were left out of the movie adaptions

When film adaptions are made, it is expected that some aspects of the original story will get cut. Whether it be changing the setting, altering relationships or cutting entire scenes, movies prioritise certain elements of the story for their intended audience. Here are five characters who didn’t make the cut in the onscreen adaptions. 1. Tattypoo – The Wizard of Oz (1939) In the book, the Good Witch of the South, Glinda, is described as a beautiful woman. Her counterpart, the Good Witch of the North, is an older woman who is dubbed as “Tattypoo” or “Locasta”. Glinda appears at the end of story and instructs Dorothy on how to return home while Tattypoo greets the heroine once she arrives in the Land of Oz. In the film adaption, Glinda is the sole Good Witch. Tattypoo is never mentioned throughout the film. 2. Mr and Mrs Hurst – Pride and Prejudice (2005) Charles Bingley’s brother-in-law and sister, Mr and Mrs Hurst, didn’t make it to the 2005 film adaption directed by Joe Wright. Mrs Hurst was described as being arrogant and a snob while Mr Hurst is known as a sluggish man interested in cards and food. The unaffectionate couple did, however, appear in the BBC TV series from 1995, played by Rupert Vansittart and Lucy Robinson. 3. Alexandra Finch – To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) Atticus Finch’s sister, Alexandra Finch, was left out of the movie adaption as well as Uncle Jack. Scout and Jem’s aunt was described in the book as a stern who wanted Scout to behave more like a lady. 4. Tom Bombadil – The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) The character of Tom Bombadil wasn’t included in Peter Jackson’s adaption of the film as the director believed he would slow down the action and believed the character’s scene didn’t move the overarching story forward. Tom was also left out of Ralph Bakshi’s 1978 animated adaption of the story. 5. The Countess Rugen – The Princess Bride (1987) The Countess Rugen, who is the wife of Count Rugen, was left out of the film adaption. She appears at the beginning of the book at Buttercup’s farm. The Countess was attracted to Westley which led to Buttercup realising she loved Westley too. A portion of the farm storyline was cut out of the film to reduce the running time and help the story flow.

Movies

Ability to adapt to change fades as we age

Ever wonder why change becomes less exciting as we age? It’s not about being set in our ways, but is instead due to a certain brain circuit which fades as we get older. A new study from the Queensland Brain institute found that the brain circuit responsible for accepting change, called the striatum, naturally deteriorates over time, making it difficult for older people to adapt to new ideas or situations. Dr J. Bertran-Gonzales and his colleagues tested their hypothesis by training mice to receive two different flavours of pellets based on whichever lever they chose. The experiment showed that younger mice quickly understood how to get the flavour they wanted, but that the group of older mice were confused by the situation, often pressing both levers. By studying another group of younger mice whose striatum had been “switched off”, so to speak, the researchers found they were just as confused as the older mice, confirming that the brain circuit is responsible for the way we deal with and accept change. However, there is a way to learn to cope better with change even as you age. By keeping the mind active, you’re less likely to become apathetic, which can in fact increase your likelihood of developing dementia. “When an aged person is apathetic, their goal-directed action is reduced to zero. They simply do not fulfil any goals anymore,” Dr Bertran-Gonzales told <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-21/brain-circuit-that-helps-us-adapt-to-change-fades-with-age/7342736" target="_blank">ABC News</a>. “There is more and more evidence showing the brain is similar to a muscle. The more you work it the more it responds.” Related links: <a href="/health/mind/2016/04/alzheimers-linked-with-negative-thoughts-about-ageing/">New research links Alzheimer's risk with negative thoughts about ageing</a> <a href="/health/mind/2016/04/why-we-should-let-go-of-the-pursuit-of-perfect/">Why we should let go of the pursuit of perfect</a> <a href="/health/mind/2016/03/tips-to-keep-dementia-at-bay/">Tips to keep dementia at bay</a>

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5 authors who hated the film adaptation of their book

From Chicago to West Side Story, how to successfully adapt a musical from stage to screen

From Chicago to West Side Story, how to successfully adapt a musical from stage to screen

What is adaptive clothing and how can it make life easier for people with a disability?

Adaptations of Brian Jacques ‘Redwall’ series announced

Five books to read before you watch them

5 blockbuster movies you didn’t know were based on books

Many Aussie plants and animals adapt to fires but the fires are changing

How adapting 4 easy self-defence tips can keep you safer

5 reasons why a dietitian doesn’t recommend paleo (and how to adapt it)

Why are so many musicals adapted from movies?

5 easy beauty habits to adapt today for healthy and glowing skin

5 books that are scarier than their horror film adaptation

5 book characters who were left out of the movie adaptions

Ability to adapt to change fades as we age

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