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Your Proofness: Dilaira Dubash Master Storyteller: Hurmat Majid Creativity Analysts: Jamal Khurshid, Essa Malik, Talha Ahmed Khan, Mohsin Alam, Hira Fareed, Nabeel Khan, Sobia Khan and Umar Waqas
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, MAY 15, 2016
Hi light
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One of the things K-Pop does so well is creative use of costumes and colour in music videos. Hundreds of years ago, when North America was barely being industrialised, Asia already had a burgeoning art and graphics scene. So, it should come as no surprise that Asian pop culture in general, including music videos, is often heavily refined and well thought. Use of effects, make up, outfits and everything else, are always in service to a greater theme and vision. Another way that K-Pop keeps amassing fans is by utilising strong storytelling in many songs and music videos.
If PSY was your first introduction to Korean Popular music (K-Pop), then there’s a lot you need to learn about the industry. K-Pop is one of the fastest growing music genres in the world. K-Pop singers are referred to as ‘idol singers’. The term does not mean someone who won a music competition show. In Korea, it means a singer who has trained under one of the massive talent agencies of Korea. The largest of these agencies are SM Entertainment, YG Entertainment, and JYP Entertainment. Idols are normally either a part of boy band, girl band or are very rarely solo singersF. These singers have massive fan following and they are major trendsetters in the teen fashion industry as well. To make this easier to digest, we’ve broken things down and brought to you some of the basic characteristics of the genre.
K-Pop is also well known for its unique, extravagant and eye-popping personalities. K-Pop stars, or ‘idols’ as they are usually known in Asia, have a knack for truly standing out from the crowd and taking self-expression to a new level.
K-Pop stars bring a whole new meaning to fashion. Their real life outfits and styles often far surpass western stars’ in intensity and originality. K-pop idols never shy away from making a splash, and have a decidedly unique way of interpreting current trends. Take, for example, G-Dragon, a well know member of boy group Big Bang and an accomplished solo artist. Not only is he known for his superior musical talent, G- Dragon is a frequent trendsetter and overall fashion icon.
Additionally, K-Pop artists almost always act as well as sing. While you can certainly find stars who don’t act very well, usually a true K-Pop idol is just as skilled as an actor as they are as a singer and dancer. Far from the thin marketing ploy that combination singing and acting acts in North America and Europe often are, these kids are utterly talented. Not only that, K-Pop idols who take on major roles in many different TV shows and movies are common. Of course, these acting gigs are all concurrent to their regular musical career. For example, Daesung from boy band Big Bang made many appearances in the TV show What’s Up?
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, MAY 15, 2016
3 Not only are K-Pop artists extremely talented, incredibly hard working, and star in perfectly executed music videos, they often mix other cultures into their songs. Since most students in many Asian countries are required to learn English from an early age, singers frequently mix in English sayings with their lyrics. Not only does this appeal to fans throughout Asia, it makes K-Pop artists more accessible to fans in the Western world.
Unlike young western pop stars who often grow famous in a short period of time, K-Pop artists are usually groomed and mentored by managers or agents for years at a time before recording their first song. Intensive training, never less than a year, make these young artists seasoned performers by the time they debut. It’s no wonder even young kids are expected to go through this rigorous schooling, since their dance routines and schedules become so insanely demanding.
Hi light
Choreography is another area where K-Pop artists completely dominate. Groups not only sing and dance, they perform routines so complicated and challenging, they would usually require truly professional dancers. Not only does this take an insane amount of hard work, practice and skill, but K-Pop artists are well-known for performing these routines live — proving they are truly skilled, not just well edited in their music videos.
BTS, also kknown as Bangtan Boys, is a seven-member South Korean boy group fo formed by Big Hit Entertainment. They debuted on June 13, 2013, with tthe song ‘No More Dream’ from their first album, 2 Cool 4 Skool. BTS h has won several ‘New Artist of the Year’ awards, including those at the 2013 MelOn Music Awards and Golden Disk Awards, and Seoul Music Awards. A year after their debut, they received the 2014 Se major Bonsang Awards for Dark & Wild and The Most Beautiful MoBon ment In Life, Part 1. Having performed in Asia, North America and L South America, their outstanding performances won the ‘Best World Amer Performer’ award in the 2015 Mnet Asian Music Awards.
Exo is a South Korean-Chinese boy group based in Seoul. Formed by S.M. Entertainment in 2011, the group debuted in 2012 with 12 members separated into two subgroups, EXO-K and EXO-M, performing music in Korean and Mandarin, respectively. Exo rose to fame with the release of their best-selling first album XOXO (2013), which contained the breakthrough hit ‘Growl’. Their fourth extended play Sing For You (2015) broke the first week sales record by selling 267,900 copies in. In early 2016, Exo were revealed to have again ranked as the most powerful celebrity by Forbes Korea a for the year 2015.
Girls’ Generation, also known as SNSD, is a South Korean girl group formed by SM Entertainment. The group is composed of eight members: Taeyeon, Sunny, Tiffany, Hyoyeon, Yuri, Sooyoung, Yoona and Seohyun. Originally a nine-piece group, Girls’ Generation debuted in 2007 with their Korean eponymous debut album. The group’s fourth Korean studio album I Got a Boy was supported by the single ‘I Got a Boy’, which was subjected to major attention from Western media following its winning the ‘Video of the Year’ award at the inaugural YouTube Music Awards. Their fifth Korean studio album, Lion Heart, was released in 2015.
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, MAY 15, 2016
4 Special effects have always been an important part of the film industry for the longest time, but the advent of Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) was a big step up. Even though the technique has been around for a long time, these past few years have seen rapid advancements, taking graphic effects to a whole new level. Recently Disney’s Jungle Book showed us exactly how far we have come, with Neel Sethi being the only human being on the set of the film while everything else around him, including the scenery and the animals ware created through CGI.
CGI is used in films, television programmes and commercials, and in print media. Computer animation in film began in the 1970s as visual effects and short animations were crafted using the layering of 2D images. In 1972 Pixar co-founders, Ed Catmull and Fred Park, created the first prototype of a digitally-rendered 3D hand using a technology that would be the foundation for countless effects and filmic masterpieces that followed. Video games most often use real-time computer graphics (rarely referred to as CGI), but may also include pre-rendered ‘cut scenes’ and intro movies that would be typical CGI applications. CGI is used for visual effects because the quality is often higher and effects are more controllable than other more physically based processes, such as constructing miniatures for effects shots or hiring extras for crowd scenes, and because it allows the creation of images that would not be feasible using any other technology. It can also allow a single artist to produce content without the use of actors, expensive set pieces or props. Recent accessibility of CGI software and increased computer speeds have allowed individual artists and small companies to produce professional grade films, games and fine art from their home computers.
High-quality technical CGI applications in the movie industry have long since been discovered by other industries. But the automotive industry especially uses the new communication option with end users. In addition to the combination of films that have really been shot with vehicles fully generated on the computer, as well as the photorealistic aesthetic of the images and videos, the full configuration of industrial products has already become indispensable to a growing number of industries. CGI technology is also used for virtual representations of individually configurable vehicles, both online and in car dealers’ showrooms. As a result, customers can compose their desired vehicles individually on the screen and visual versions are then driven — in other words a virtual test-drive is provided. This principle can also be translated to furniture, textiles and jewellery and other industrial products. SOURCE: WWW.CGI.IN
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, MAY 15, 2016
World wide weird Hi light Get your weekly dose of unusual and funny news from across the globe!
Danching up a storm It seems like dancing Stormtroopers are taking over the world. Recently a bunch showed up at the White House to bust some moves with the Obamas. Now, another group has turned up on Britain’s Got Talent. The ‘Boogie Storm’ dance troupe raised the roof with their high-energy audition which aired in the United Kingdom. The dancers, whose individual identities are unknown as they refused to remove their helmets throughout their performance, boogied on down to Psy’s ‘Gangnam Style,’ Beyoncé’s ‘Single Ladies’ and Silento’s ‘Watch Me’. They even charmed the famously snarky Simon Cowell who, after being dubbed the ‘Dark Lord’ and the ‘real-life Darth Vader’ by his fellow judges, pushed the Golden Buzzer to send them through to the show’s live semifinals. “I don’t know who you are, but I literally said ‘If we could find Stormtroopers who could dance this show is going to go into a different league,’” said Cowell. “My dream has come true. Thank you.” EXPRESS.CO.UK
Historical selfie A young man’s attempt to take a selfie with the statue of a 16th Century Portuguese king ended badly when the 126-year-old statue crashed to the ground and shattered, police said. The man, whom police did not identify, accidentally toppled Dom Sebastiao’s statue after climbing up to its pedestal outside the ornate Rossio railway station in central Lisbon just before midnight. He tried to flee the scene but police caught him. He will appear before a judge at a later date. The child-sized statue of the sad-eyed, sword-wielding king stood in a niche between two horseshoe-shaped arches at the entrance to the station. Completed in 1890, the station is a protected monument. UK.REUTERS.COM
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Teacher of the year Jenny Thom, a teacher of 10 and 11-year-olds at Bucklebury Church of England Primary School near Reading, England, seems to understand exam anxiety fully. So to take her students’ minds off upcoming tests, she gave them the funnest homework assignments ever. In a letter, she urged them to spend the weekend eating ice cream, reading books, watching TV, seeing friends, cooking and playing outside. Most importantly, they shouldn’t be studying. A photograph of her note has been shared on Facebook and is now going viral. To help calm the children’s nerves, Thom — who’s been widely praised for her approach to the exams — did allow a little bit of study time. “If you feel you have to, you may revise, BUT you can only do this for a maximum of one hour total,” she wrote, adding, “Mrs Thom is in charge of worrying — you don’t need to.” HUFFINGTONPOST.COM
An experimental adventure Former plumber Colin Furze, whose video channel has 2.5 million fans, challenged his admirers to suggest a new form of transport. Some 15,000 people wanted him to design a hoverbike which could fly over obstacles or take alternative routes such as over rivers or fields. After a couple of weeks tinkering away in his garden shed in Lincolnshire, Mr Furze unveiled his drone bicycle replete with a couple of two-stroke engines and rotor blades. Although it has no seat, mechanical brakes or steering, the contraption is nevertheless strong enough to lift Mr Furze off the ground. “It’s the most outrageous thing I’ve ever ridden,” he said. “Feeling it lift for the first time was such a strange feeling. It only just lifts me off the ground. I tried out all sorts of frames; hacked bits off and added bits on, until eventually I started seeing results.” Mr Furze, who has also invented wrist-worn flame throwers and Wolverine-style claws, admitted the bike sometimes gets into a bit of a spin when the rotors are not running at the same speed. NEWS.SKY.COM
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, MAY 15, 2016
6 Exactly as it sounds, bedward means heading for bed. Who doesn’t like heading bedward after a hard day?
This one is a sneaky word; it sounds so very proper and yet it refers to abusive language and curse words.
Do you ever brabble? To brabble is to argue loudly about matters of no importance.
A most appropriate sounding word for the condition of feeling ill as a result of too much eating/drinking.
What a fun way to describe secretive or covert behaviour.
An imaginary illness. Sounds more like an imaginary word.
This is a perfect word that should never have left our vocabulary, it means to confuse or jumble.
It means a person who arrives somewhere, having conveniently forgotten their wallet, or having some other complicated story to explain why they don’t have money with them.
Such a sweet word to describe hair that is tangled, as if it has been matted by elves. Mumpsimums is an incorrect view on something that a person refuses to let go of. This very British sounding word refers to things that are not current, that belong to a former time, rather like the word itself.
English is a beautiful language, once you get over all the words that spell different but sound the same. Also, all the confusion between words that spell the same but sound different and have entirely different meanings. What we mean to say is, once we get over the strangeness of the language we start to see how magical it can be. To illustrate this point, we have selected some old English words that we need to start using again, simply because they sound so funny.
Something that wakes you up is an expergefactor. For most of us it’s our alarm clocks, but it could be anything from a chirping bird to a noisy neighbour.
Fudgel is the act of giving the impression you are working, when really you are doing nothing.
To shake something backwards and forwards is to quagswag.
We all know a few rawgabbits. A rawgabbit is a person who likes to gossip confidentially about matters that they know nothing about.
I think we can all agree this is a fantastic sounding word. It means a person who has intelligence but no principles; a dangerous combination.
This means to stare intently at someone who is eating, in the hope that they will give you some. Unlikely as it sounds, this word means ‘wise’. Grubble might sound like the name of a character from a fantasy novel but it does in fact mean to feel or grope around for something that you can’t see.
Things that look good but are basically worthless.
This means lying awake worrying before dawn. We all do this, we just didn’t know there was a word for it. Say it now, like this: oot-key-are-a.
Similar to the rawgabbit, this person takes every opportunity to share their opinion about things they know nothing about. Social media is the perfect outlet for these people.
Being in a drowsy, fuzzy state, after a big night out perhaps?
A small man with a big opinion of himself.
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, MAY 15, 2016
7 1: What is Darrow’s wife’s name? a) Harmony b) Dio c) Eo d) Evey
6: Who killed Priam in The Passage? a) Darrow b) Cassius c) Sevro d) Someone else
2: What do the Sons of Ares want Darrow to do? a) Become a martyr b) Become a Gold c) Join their ranks d) Nothing
7: When Cassius left Darrow to die, who saved him? a) Himself b) Fitchner c) Mustang d) Roque
3: How many question(s) did Darrow miss on the entrance exam to the Institute? a) 0 b) 1 c) 2 d) 5
8: What does Proctor Apollo send to try to kill Darrow? a) A bear b) A lion c) A wolf d) A stag
4: Who does Darrow meet first, Cassius or Julian? a) Cassius b) Julian c) Darrow meets them at the same time
9: Which Proctor does Darrow ultimately kill? a) Jupiter b) Apollo c) Pluto. d) Mercury
5: What draft number was Darrow and what House did he get recruited for? a) 5 / House Mars b) 15 / House Mars c) 12 / House Pluto d) 10 / House Mars
10: Who is Mustang really? a) ArchGoverner’s daughter b) Jackal’s twin sister c) The girl who sang Eo’s song d) All of the above
THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE, MAY 15, 2016
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10. All of the above
• Her full name is Elizabeth Chase Olsen and her nickname is Lizzie. • She is three years younger than her sisters Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen who gained fame after appearing on Full House. The Olsens have Norwegian ancestry on their father’s side. • As a child, Olsen received ballet and singing lessons. • One of her favourite films growing up was Tremors (1990). • Lizzie began acting at a very young age, with appearances in her sisters’ films. Before the age of 11, she had landed small roles in How the West Was Fun, Our First Video and the straight-to-video series The Adventures of Mary-Kate and Ashley. • She auditioned for Spy Kids but never got the part. She once said, “I’m very happy I didn’t get it because I didn’t want to be a child actor.” • She enjoys playing volleyball. • She went by a different name in high school. In order to separate herself from her famous older sisters, Elizabeth went by the name ‘Elizabeth Chase’ in high school! • Following her high school graduation, she enrolled at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. • Elizabeth didn’t always like being in front of a camera. In fact, cameras used to make her incredibly nervous. She thinks that is probably why she focused so much on theatre early in her career. • She landed her agent by herself and did not need to use her older sisters connection to break into the Hollywood scene. • Her favourite dessert is vanilla frozen yogurt with cinnamon and almonds. • Lizzie is best friends with Aaron Carter’s twin sister Angel Carter.