Amberley Snyder can check “appear in a biopic about myself” off her bucket list. The Utah State University alumna spent the summer of 2018 as a stunt double and resource for the Netflix movie “Walk. Ride. Rodeo.” The upcoming biopic is based on her own life story as a barrel-racer and the car crash that left her paralyzed from the waist down. The film, which focuses on Snyder and her mother, is a tale about overcoming trauma and making the best out of the life one is given. Snyder knows a lot about that topic. After her crash in 2010, Snyder was in the hospital and physical therapy for months but eventually found herself back in the saddle riding horses again. She graduated from USU in 2015 and received her master’s degree last year. “I was raised to have an attitude to persevere, work hard and continue to strive for my goals no matter what,” Snyder said. “Having been raised that way and having parents who are examples of that made it easier to keep going regardless of the wheelchair.” Snyder said that she knew reliving the event would be traumatic, and when a production company first approached her to make the movie she was uncomfortable with the idea. Snyder said it was “exciting yet challenging” to see herself portrayed on screen. Tina, Snyder’s mother, thought the film would inspire others and touch lives. “They really took special care in how they brought about her story,” Tina said. “Walk. Ride. Rodeo.” stars Spencer Locke as Snyder and Missi Pyle as her mother. However, unique to this film, Snyder does all the stunts herself. This was non-negotiable for Snyder in allowing the production company to tell her story. “I sometimes look at my life and think of where I might be if not for this,” Snyder said of her injury. “It is so hard to guess. I am a true believer in ‘everything happens for a reason,’ so I feel that I had a purpose to serve and am hopefully serving it. There was a reason I am in the situation I am in and have to believe that.” Snyder said there were many times she wanted to quit rodeo, but her passion kept her going. “[Rodeo] is the place where I still get to compete and accomplish my life goals” Snyder said. “I truly treasure the moments I get to have on my horse in or out of the rodeo arena because it gives me the opportunity to be like everyone else, and that means a lot.” After her accident, Snyder had to make adjustments to her horse-riding technique. “I have a seat belt and other modifications on my saddle that hold me in and keep me center when I compete,” Snyder said. “When I get on my horse, I don’t worry about my legs, but more on my voice, hands, balance and communication with my horse. Balance is a huge factor for me now. I have to constantly be aware and one step ahead of my horse or I will be thrown off center.” Snyder also had to adjust her own expectations of riding as she worked to get back in the saddle. “Mentally, it is freeing yet challenging. In the beginning, I struggled because I wanted riding to be just like it was before,” Snyder said. “That was not realistic, and it took a lot of time to accept that. I have to understand my abilities and then use what I have. This is a challenge both on and off my horses.” Even though Snyder’s gig as a movie star is coming to a close, Snyder likes to keep busy. “Rodeo season is beginning, and my sisters have been training,” Snyder said. “I am always booking speeches for the months ahead. I absolutely love to travel and share my story in the hopes of helping others with their challenges.” Going forward, Snyder wants to speak in all 50 states and internationally. Snyder also wants to finish her second book and make it back to The American Rodeo. “I just bought by own home, so I can check that goal off the list,” Snyder said. More than anything, Snyder wants to continue to inspire others to keep going no matter what difficulties come their way. “I feel we all have obstacles. Some are seen and some are not, but everyone faces their challenges,” Snyder said. “I hope that with my story, people can find strength to overcome what they are facing. We don’t always get to choose what happens to us, but we do get to choose what comes next.” “Walk. Ride. Rodeo.” will be available for streaming on Netflix beginning March 8. —[email protected] @GrahamWoodMedia
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Oscar night rocked with a cold open performance of “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions” by Queen and Adam Lambert, and that wasn’t the only unorthodox thing the Oscars did this year. Spoiler alert: the show had no host.
The formerly-announced host, Kevin Hart, stepped down after controversy regarding homophobic tweets. The 91st telecast of the Academy Awards went host-less for the first time since 1989, and it paid off in a big way. While big rock numbers are usually reserved for shows like The Grammys and The MTV Music Awards, Queen took advantage of all the hype surrounding “Bohemian Rhapsody” and was invited to open for Hollywood’s biggest night. “Bohemian Rhapsody” itself took home four Oscars for Best Actor, Best Film Editing, Best Sound Mixing and even Best Sound Editing, beating out the frontrunner for the award, “A Quiet Place.” The awards show was 36 minutes shorter without needless jokes from a host; instead, multiple stars shared the spotlight. Maya Rudolph, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler were the first presenters and did the job of “monologuing.” Awkwafina, John Mulaney and Trevor Noah stole the show with their one-liners, while Julia Roberts closed out the night saying goodbye to the audience and viewers at home. To help cut time, the musical numbers were also fairly scaled back, with only Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s Oscar-winning song “Shallow” getting much time to shine. This year’s show was prefaced with multiple announced changes that didn’t make it to the actual show, including the announcement to not air speeches for categories like Best Documentary Short. Had the category been cut, the night’s most memorable speech by the creators of “Period. End of Sentence” wouldn’t have been seen. Other surprises included “Green Book” winning Best Picture over frontrunners “Roma” and “Black Panther,” and Olivia Colman winning Best Actress over Glenn Close and Lady Gaga. “Green Book” also brought home two other awards: Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor for Mahershala Ali. Other Best Picture nominees “Vice,” “The Favourite,” “A Star Is Born” and “BlackKklansman” all only won one award each. “Black Panther” won three awards for Production Design, Costume Design, and Original Score. Best Animated Feature went to “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” so while “Black Panther” didn’t win Best Picture, a sci-fi film featuring a black superhero still won a top honor. [email protected] @GrahamWoodMedia This weekend I watched a movie.
This is a common practice for most Americans who, according to a study done by Redbox, will watch over 5,000 movies in their lifetime, usually seven per month. In an age where Hulu, Netflix, and Amazon are all producing staggering amounts of original content and licensed content, there is almost an unlimited amount of entertainment at the touch of a button. Yet that’s not all. In 2009, 521 movies were released in North America. Every year that number has risen with 740 films released in 2017, 871 films released in 2018, and over 900 films slated to be released in 2019. The film industry is growing, and the U.S. is the third largest market for film behind China and India. So, if someone says they don’t watch that many movies, they are probably lying, and here’s why: These numbers don’t account for other forms of media consumption. Television and film used to be totally different entities, however now, a limited series on Netflix is just a long-format version of a movie. If a television series is eight 30-minute episodes, then the viewer is essentially binging a four-hour movie. Even Shane Dawson’s latest conspiracy videos on YouTube have essentially become film-length productions. More than ever, Americans are consuming more entertainment through a wide variety of mediums. Facebook is creating television shows. Apple is launching a streaming service that will provide free content straight to the owners watch and cell phone. I personally probably spend 60-70 hours a week consuming content. The reason: Escapism. FEEL GOOD MOVIES ARE BACK I go to the theatre a lot. Theatre attendance as a whole has seen an uptick in the last few years with almost every studio-produced film becoming a “must-see” event. Dr. Ping Xiao from the University of Technology and Business School in Sydney, Australia studied movie attendance compared with economic indicators such as consumer sentiment and stock prices. “While you might think that movie demand would go down during bad economic times, we found the opposite happens,” wrote Dr. Xiao in his study. “When people are feeling stressed or miserable, the desire to escape and immerse themselves in a movie increases.” Dr Xiao found that action movies, comedies and romances were most in demand. These are the three types of films that are released most in the U.S. So, as I said, this weekend I saw a movie. The Rebel Wilson romantic-comedy “Isn’t It Romantic” is a film about a businesswoman falling into a cliché rom-com world and it just so happened to open in theatres Valentine’s weekend. When I go to movies, I hate people. I don’t want it to be crowded and I don’t want people to be noisy. Not thinking straight, I saw “Isn’t It Romantic” on V-day in a crowded theatre. The person next to me was eating an entire sub sandwich, the couple in front of me was making out, and the person behind me kept kicking my seat. I was grumpy through the first third of the film. However, somewhere in between the laughs and the musical numbers and the charm of this Nancy Meyers-stylized world where Liam Hemsworth played a saxophone shirtless, I fell in love. I loved life. I loved the movie. I loved the possibility of being happy in a world that makes me feel grey and maybe I even forgot about the sandwich girl who checked her phone three times with full brightness on sitting next to me. I was elated. This is why most people consume entertainment, to avoid unpleasant, boring, scary, or banal aspects of daily life. In 2019, there’s a lot going on and consequently a lot of reasons to want to get away from it all. That may be why “dark and gritty” films are a thing of the past. The last year has seen the return of romantic comedies. For almost two decades, rom-coms have been considered dead and unable to hold their own at the box office. Last year, “Crazy Rich Asians” and “To All The Boys I Loved Before” made splashes in social media culture quickly becoming fan-favorites. Films like “The Dark Knight” and “The Machinist” are a 2000’s trend that isn’t seen any more. This is one reason why films like “Justice League” and “Annihilation” haven’t done well in recent years. Movies have to be funny now. For an example of this, watch the Oscar Nominated period piece “The Favourite” in which Queen Anne’s court are literally voguing during the ballroom scene. THE LAST TIME CINEMA BECAME AN ESCAPE This weekend the president announced a national emergency over funding for his border wall, Payless ShoeSource is closing its 2,300 stores five people were killed in a shooting in Aurora, Illinois. So why does it matter when we will see the next “Star Wars” trailer, what happens in the post-credit scene of the newest Marvel movie, or Lady Gaga’s performance of “Shallow” at the Grammy Awards? When white-nationalists are taking to the streets and children aren’t being vaccinated, should entertainment matter? Well, American film-making has always been steeped in political and economic upheaval. During World War II, going to the movies was a source escapism for most Americans. During the Great Depression, “Gone with the Wind” became the highest grossing movie ever made. Sci-fi serials gave way during this time for films like “Star Wars” to rise up and become a blockbuster a few decades later. Our need or entertainment and escapism has always been important to who our society is and the social construct. Films like “Harry Potter” and “Lord of the Rings’ were massive successes due to an emotional response fallowing the 9/11 attacks. Many studies have theorized that today’s nostalgia and emotional attachment to films stems from a world prior to 9/11. Terrorist attacks have affected this generation. Advancements in technology have made it harder to disconnect and has increased nostalgia. Living in 2019 is complicated. CAN WE ESCAPE REAL LIFE? The simple answer is no. No matter how much entertainment we consume, the real world will always be right outside our door. In Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World” the characters consume a new type of entertainment-technology called “the feelies.” In the book “the feelies” are a way to engage with intense emotions that are basically prohibited in the real world. While escaping the real world can be fun and one might wish they were in a romantic-comedy, life is happening right now. It is important that our beliefs, experiences and our emotions are coming from places in the real world. It is okay to want a break from politics and the news. It is okay to be upset about the newest “Star Wars” film. It is okay to love to Tweet at celebrities and watch cat videos. However, enacting change in the real world, experiencing the things that matter in life and growing to understand people on opposite sides of your spectrum requires stepping out of one’s comfort level. Watching the films you like will not change or enhance your view of the world. Avoiding political issues because they do not affect you will not help you grow. Denying the chance to meet someone new because “life isn’t like a rom-com” just means that is one less connection made in the real world and one more person living virtually somewhere else. Don’t escape to the movies. Be a part of your entertainment. Live it, change it, experience it and when the real world comes knocking, leave it behind for a while and go have a real adventure. [email protected] @GrahamWoodMedia The 53rd Super Bowl was short of any surprises or laughs. Even the game was a yawn-fest.
Typically, the Super Bowl is the place to be on the first Sunday of February. Each year studios and advertisers pay millions to get a spot in the commercials of the game. This year it was rumored that Disney would have multiple films being marketed, and while that's technically true, there really wasn't anything worth seeing. Disney released a 30 second trailer for "Avengers: Endgame" (which you can read about in my last post) and a 30 second "Captain Marvel" trailer. Both trailers were pretty dull and didn't offer up anything new to either movie. While it was rumored that Star Wars might be up to bat (wrong sports pun, I know) at the Super Bowl, I didn't expect to see anything and I was right. Disney is clearly saving Star Wars for Celebration in Chicago in April. I did, however, expect to see an "Aladdin" of "Lion King" trailer, neither of which premiered during the game. Even "Artemis Fowl' received no love. "Toy Story 4" did get a yawn of a trailer though at the very end when the game was over. Aside from Disney, the biggest trailers released had to have been for Universal's "Hobbs and Shaw" (which looks lame) Hulu's season three of "Handmaid's Tale," a weird Budweiser/Game of Thrones trailer, and Netflix's nature documentary. (Yes, a nature documentary from the company that released an entire Cloverfield movie last year for the Super Bowl.) Even the ad's weren't that funny. T-Mobile kept hitting the same dead horse, and the only stand out was Amazon's star-studded Alexa commercial starring Harrison Ford. Maybe this means advertisers are moving away from the traditional advertising deeming it unnecessary. I guess time will tell. (Don't get me started on the half-time show.) [email protected] @GrahamWoodMedia A new "Avengers: Endgame" trailer was released during the first quarter of the Super Bowl on Sunday. The trailer didn't show much more than the first did, but the 30 seconds of footage were jam-packed checking in with all of our (still-living) heroes. The Wasp, Nick Fury, Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, Falcon, Scarlet Witch, The Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Panther, Bucky and Vision were all shown in the first second of the trailer in black and white with only red tones in each picture. This is a review of all of the characters that died in "Infinity War" from Thanos' snap. The Marvel Studios 10th Anniversary Logo is shown and then dusted. We see four shots of New York City looking barren and ravaged from the effects of the last movie. We hear Captain America say "Some people move on, but not us" while he is in a group meeting of sorts. Possibly a group for people who lost loved ones. We see a poster that reads "what do we do now that they're gone?" Next we see Iron Man working with Nebula, probably trying to get back home. We see Rhodey, Cap, Natasha and Bruce looking up at the sky, possibly as Tony returns. There's a short glimpse of Rocket with a green land and water behind him as he opens a door. Natasha is showing off her excellent shooting skills. War Machine and Ant-Man suit up. Thor wields his axe and looks to be going to the same place Rocket is at. We see Hawkeye (now Ronin) looking up from wherever in Japan that he is fighting. Then Cap straps on his shield and finally... "Not us," is repeated as the heroes are shown assembling in Avengers HQ. And that's it. The trailer ends saying that the film is not yet rated and is coming in April but there is nothing inherently new about the footage shown. In fact, I'm quite surprised that Disney and Marvel spent the money to show such a lackluster trailer during the Super Bowl when it could have been released online or on Good Morning America. Anyways, watch the new trailer below and let me know what you think! [email protected] @GrahamWoodMedia The Oscars are always full of surprises. Here are my predictions for all the winners above and below the line.
“Brooklyn Nine-Nine” is the best show on television right now. I know I am late to the game, but this month I binge-watched all five seasons (and all the episodes currently available of the sixth season) of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine.” It was addicting. I watch a lot of television so it’s rare for me to have any gaps in my pop culture references but when “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” was canceled and then affectively un-canceled last year, I took notice because I had never seen the show before. Then, I saw the season six trailer, and the memes, and I found out that Rosa was bisexual, and that Jake and Amy were engaged (basically every season five surprise was spoiled for me) and those details piqued my interest. So, in the first week of this new year, I started binging. The cop drama-comedy which stars Andy Samberg as an immature but lovable Jake Peralta and Andre Braugher as the stern Captain Raymond Holt quickly won me over. I fell in love with the cast and the stories and the fearlessness of the show. An openly gay black man was something that hadn’t been delved into on TV. Two Latinas in leading roles hanging out together and solving crime also wasn’t expected. Terry Crew’s unmatched wit and warm version of masculinity is impressive for a show that also has sex jokes and a simple week by week narrative. Honestly, I don’t think there is a comedy on network television that is better than this. I recommend it to everyone I know and it really has changed my life for the better. [email protected] @GrahamWoodMedia |
Erick L. Graham Wood
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