Mala Svetlost (Little Light) Short Film

 Mala Svetlost (Little Light)

Mala Svetlost, (1966) also known as Little Light is set in Yugoslavia. It is a story about a boy who hates his shadow. This boy is a relatively young age, maybe 9 or 10. He tries everything he can to get rid of his shadow. He runs away from it, tries to hide it in the dark, runs it over with a train, shuts it out by closing a door on it. But it is always there. He becomes so unnerved by this shadow that constantly follows him around. But it is always there with him. Like a friend, but only one you cannot talk to.

Eventually his shadow leads him to a girl who is also very close to his age. She is not trying to kill the shadow, but is rather walking in tandem with it. Giving the boy a new perspective on his shadow. The shadow is not there to hurt you, it is there to comfort you and bring happiness to your life. He eventually comes to terms with his shadow and starts to follow the girl like a shadow as well. Doing the same things that the girl does, walking with her, and eventually finding some infatuation with this girl. They run through the sand together eventually with the film ending with them reaching the horizon where they continue to play. This whole film is connected with an ecstatic composition by Dusan Radic. Which brings suspense but also a jolly tone to the short 10 minute film. The camera work is also phenomenal with quality galore. At first glance it seems like a relatively stupid movie. Some kids run around and eventually become friends. But people fail to realize that these stories also have meaning to them and they're not here to suck. 

Some standout features of this film was when the boy drew a box around his shadow and added a cat inside to make it disappear in chalk on a wall. As in jailing the 2d being. Which obviously fails, but to me it is stuff like this that puts how much the boy resents his shadow into perspective.  But the box around the shadow with the cat also alludes to Schrogingers cat. Which says that the shadow is alive but it also isn't. Which I find very interesting. 

Another thing that I liked about the movie was the locations that they decided to shoot in. The architecture was so pretty. But yet it was desolate. There were only 3 people in the movie, but yet they had the ability to use these spaces of art to create even more art which is amazing to me. 

Anyways I rate this film a 7.8/10. It is really good and I recommend it to anyone who is interested in short silent films with excellent storytelling and great acting. It reminded me of a lot of Gucia which I covered before. 

Here is the link to the film to watch: Mala Svetlost

Ryan Yin: "Retrospective 2019-2023"

This is my first photo feature of one of my good friends Ryan Yin. I met him in New York City through a mutual friend. Since the beginning we connected on fashion and art as a whole. Now, we talk daily and even hold group meetings with other friends and talk about art, philosophy, et cetera. This is one of many photography features I can have of Ryan as I love his work, and he has agreed to doing photography for this blog as well. I hope you guys enjoy!

The History of the Japanese Hakama

 

I’m deciding to write a bit about the Japanese hakama as I am soon buying my first pair of hakama pants, and I thought why not research the pants and write a bit about them as well. Since I have started to actually get into fashion I have always found hakama pants interesting as they are extraordinary and beautiful. Their volume fills up a space, while also allowing the wearer to freely move. The reason behind this is most likely my infatuation with Japanese culture and their history as well as their clothing and their processes. I also love how embedded it is into Japanese culture, unlike most of the pants we wear today. Yes, I understand that jeans were made in the 1840s by a cotton farmer in California for work in the mines during the California Gold Rush; it was then patented in 1870 by Levi Strauss. Now, this history has been lost in American culture. Today, normal people wear denim, everyone wears denim because it is durable and literally one of the best workwear materials of all time. However, the Japanese hakama pants are more than a pair of jeans. The history behind the meaning of the pant is rich in story, and in the culture and the history of Japan. This to me is one of the reasons why I wanted to buy a pair of genuine hakama pants. Also as well as that they fit my style perfectly. I love wide and baggy pants. Now I will have a pair of pants that have a meaning behind them and I will be able to tell the story.

Before we start I must explain what hakama is and also the history. The hakama pant originally was not part of Japanese culture until the Kamakura period, (1185-1332). The pants were originally Chinese, and were around since the Sui and Tang dynasty (618-907). The pants were then exported to Japan, and thus became integrated into the culture via samurai and the upper class society of Japan. Although the hakama is unisex, in the beginning mainly men wore hakama pants as they were the samurais afterall. Another thing that really interested me was that samurai, who were visiting the shogun, wore specific hakama pants that limited the movement of the legs to show respect to the shogun. I find that really interesting and how something so small means a whole lot to somebody. Now, the hakama style of lower body clothing is divided into two categories. The  “Andon Hakama" or “Lantern Hakama,” is the skirt variant. The “Umanori Hakama” or the “Horseback riding hakama,” is the pant variant. These variants are mainly used in ceremonial as well as martial arts practices. Such as Kendo, and other martial arts practices in Japan. 

The hakama’s signature pleats also mean something. With five pleats in the front and two in the back each containing their own meaning. The meaning of the pleats stem from Bushido culture. Where each of the seven codes of Bushido virtues  are embedded into the Hakama. 

These are the words which are upheld by samurai who practice the Bushido code of conduct.

The five in the front:

Jin - Humanity or Benevolence

Gi - Justice

Rei - Courtesy

Chi - Wisdom

Shin - Faith or Integrity 

The two in the back: 

Chu - Loyalty

Ko - Filial Piety 

I also found two more meanings for the ones in the back which are:

Yu - Courage 

Meiyo - Honor

(I don’t know where these lay in the garment and the meaning but I found it so it must go somewhere.)

All in all, hakama pants are beautiful pants that have so much history behind them. The depth to the hakama is never ending, and so much blood has been shed on hakama pants and skirts on the soil of Japan. Even through death, the samurai who wears the hakama remembers their Bushido code and serves their shogun and remembers who they are down to the core until death. Wearing the pants means so much, and now I know what it means to wear and own a hakama. 

More interesting facts: 

Hakama pants are not meant to touch the floor as they are supposed to keep you moving. Having to run and trip over fabric, which then damages the garment with dirt and muck, must show disrespect to the person who has spent hours and hours creating the garment for one person. As well as limiting the footwork of a martial artist or samurai. This is just a speculation though.

Hakama pants are now dwindling from Japanese culture as the Meiji era brought in westernization which then led to the downfall of everyday hakama usage. Hakamas are only now worn for traditional usage as well as ceremonial services in japan. (I personally see them as a pair of pants that fit me perfectly and are wide enough to not limit my movement of myself and allow myself to move freely). 

Hakama pants used to be slim, but as time went on wooden boards were added to the back to add more comfort as well to widen the leg opening. This was probably also implemented to allow for better posture, which then adds more respect and creates more meaning behind the implementation. 

I am buying my pair of hakama pants from a brand I found on instagram. Tokiwa Studio which as of now only has pants. They have 5 products, and their pre orders are now gone, but they do take custom orders. Please support them! 

IG: @tokiwa_official_

Shop: https://tokiwaonline.shop/ 

Written by: Tyler Thum
Original IG Post: Hakama