Tuesdays with Tish: August is just pre-Autumn, that's why they're spelled so similar
It’s a newsletter, a letter of news.
Well, it’s the beginning of September, aka Autumn, aka the best season, aka Hallobirthween season, so I’m looking forward to a lot. I’m planning my annual October trip; this year I’m going to Prince Edward Island to embrace my inner Anne Shirley for a week. I’ve got an idea for my Hallobirthween costume that shouldn’t be too difficult to source at Value Village. I don’t love the Halloween decor theme at Michaels this year (pastels?) but I’ve spotted a couple things I’m going to add to my wall. I’ve got the autumn scented candles burning, my few autumn decor things out, and I’ve already started watching Gilmore Girls so I am in full autumn mode! I’m looking forward to the temperature dropping (just enough for a sweater or jacket!) and those leaves changing colors. Ah, yes, I am in my element in Autumn.
What Happened in August?
August started with another of my “The Female Gaze” screenings; the film was Sweetheart and my talk was with my friend Jed (a filmmaker and smort person). If you missed out on the screening but you’d still like to hear me and Jed talk about teen angst movies, then you can watch the IG Live we did to promote the screening. Watch here.
I published my travel vlog from my solo road trip to Lake Erie; aka Sad Lonely Woman Vacation. It was a roller coaster of emotions- dread, excitement, loneliness, peace, sweat, fog, tears. Now, that’s entertainment! I have higher hopes for the trip to PEI I’m planning for October (I do much better in October).
I also finally published a piece about My First Cannes Experience, which happened in July (right after my bummer summer vacation). Find out what it’s like to attend a film festival online, to watch films for work, and which films to keep an eye out for their release.
My favorite Tales with Tish IGTV this month was reading fairy tale tarot where I drew the Scheherazade card and read more about her.
I caught up on a lot of TV this month; Nora from Queens, Ziwe, Doing the Most with Phoebe Robinson, Killing Eve (S3), Brooklyn 99 (S7), and Feel Good (S2). It’s all great, I recommend it all. I think I need to take a break from TV and catch up on movies!
I also got my second vaccine dose (and felt like shit for two days after), moved my mattress into the living room for a very hot week (because I could not sleep in my bedroom because the air conditioner only reaches the living room and I could not sleep on the sofa because it is rock hard), finished up The Spotlight Series, tried out a week of no background watching (it was tough), socialized in-person a few times, and finished up Summer with another attempt at a beach day (I give it a 6/10) and my first ever drive-in movie (Fanny: The Right to Rock).
What's Happening in September?
I watch Gilmore Girls every September. Since I’ve been getting into making Instagram Reels, or trying it out at least, I thought of an idea that uses my familiarity with Gilmore Girls and the lip syncing format that pretty much makes up Reels; I’m going to do a bunch of lip syncs to Lorelei Gilmore. I turn 32 this year (October 31st- remember to get me a present) which is how old Lorelei is at the beginning of the show, so I’m old enough to be cast as Lorelei in a remake* and will be campaigning for this non-existent role with #CastMeAsLorelei reels. So follow me @tishchambers if you’re not already, duh. (*No one should ever actually remake Gilmore Girls. The reboot was bad enough.)
If you’re in need of more autumnal viewing, besides Gilmore Girls, I have an Autumn Watchlist from two years ago full of my favorite shows and movies to watch leading up to Hallobirthween.
Tales with Tish videos will finally start being released in September, starting with a trailer. Then, soon, the first fairy tale films video essay is about how Snow White films define beauty and create power. Oooh, you’re intrigued. In the meantime, follow @taleswithtish on IG for weekly Tiny Tales or an IGTV of me reading or making up tales.
Also coming in September: Tuesdays with Tish: Pimp My Hearse video and a blog post about my formative films and recent films that give me the same feels.
September means I’m busy at work preparing for the Ottawa International Animation Festival at the end of the month. It’s online worldwide again this year, so you can all “attend” and watch some cool stuff. It’s Sept. 22 - Oct. 3 and passes are already on sale, with ticket sales coming soon. I recommend checking out at least one of the short film competition screenings- you’ll see a lot of different genres of film and styles of animation. Or if you just want to watch a feature, my favourite this year is Fortune Favours Lady Nikuko. It’s “A heart-warming story with a hearty laugh,” says OIAF programmer* Tish Chambers. (*I don’t really program for OIAF, but I help finalize the choices for the Young Audience categories and the features, so I wrote the program notes for this one.)
I’m going to submit a short story to the CBC Short Story Prize after submissions open on Sept. 1. Here’s a super exclusive VIP newsletter subscriber-only peek at my two finished fairy tale stories: please, read Ebony, Blood, and Snow and Red: Wolf Hunter and tell me which you think would be the stronger submission!
This season’s playlist is for moody badass bitches, called scorpio szn and includes a lot of Banks, Halsey, K.Flay, and Billie Eilish. It’s still a work in progress, but you can listen to it on Apple Music. Or if you want a more acoustic and chill autumnal playlist, listen to my playlist autumn walk full of Taylor Swift’s folklore and evermore, and lots of The Sweeplings, perfect for taking an introspective walk among the fall foliage.
The End
What’s your favourite thing about Autumn, besides Hallobirthween? What are you getting me for my birthday? What is your Halloween costume? What do you watch every September? Please reply and include all the Autumn/Halloween emojis you can find!
See you next Tuesday!