What's Coming Up - New York Festivals 2025 Award Winners
Catch some of the award-winning documentaries from the New York Festivals 2025 starting this Sunday, 15 June.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
18 hours ago
- CNA
Why I use Gen Z and Gen Alpha lingo with my kids, even when they roll their eyes
'Alright, I think I totally nailed that and aura farmed, am I right?' I said, beaming with pride at the back-cam wefie I'd just taken that had actually turned out well. My 16-year-old daughter Kirsten, bless her, fought off every instinct to roll her eyes – an effort I appreciated deeply – and replied with a straight face: 'No, actually. Just by saying that, you lost aura points.' 'Huh, so it wasn't sigma?' I asked, grinning. 'You didn't like the rizz-sults?' This time, her eye roll came not as a conscious decision but a gag reflex. 'Dad,' she said. 'Just. Stop.' 'Okay, merry rizzmas,' I muttered, dashing away before I cracked myself up entirely. BOOMERS ARE OKAY I envy boomers. And I don't mean that sarcastically. It's not so much for their ability to craft and broadcast 'Good Morning, God Bless You' WhatsApp messages faster than they can open the app, but their complete, unadulterated embrace of being… uncool. I'm talking about the (mostly) utter lack of desire to stay relevant in the face of contemporary cultural shifts – whether it's fashion, pop culture, or TikTok. There's a certain beauty in being completely disconnected from new fads and trends. These are people living their best life, in a very real way. But Gen X dads like me grew up with the currency of cool as a core key performance indicator of our self-identity. It's partly us wanting to define ourselves outside of our parents, and partly our unique positioning as a generation birthed at the dawn of consumerism and globalisation. We grew up with movies centred on exploring the idea and value of 'cool' – Back to the Future, Grease and more. We wanted to 'be like Mike', whether it was Michael Jordan in his Nikes or Michael Jackson with his smooth moves. TOO COOL FOR SCHOOL So here's the tension: I know I don't need to be cool to be a good dad – but still, I can't help but try. And yes, sometimes that effort backfires in the form of second-hand embarrassment (or, occasionally, first-hand). But recently, as I try to keep up with a whole new host of Gen Z and Gen Alpha lingo, I've been realising that this struggle goes beyond the superficial. It's not about being cool for cool's sake. Let's be honest – if you're over 40, trying to make conversation with your own dad often felt like hitting a tennis ball against a wall, but the ball's been made entirely out of cotton wool. You'd serve up a topic, hoping for some traction – and it would hit the wall sadly, and fall lamely to the floor: 'Dad, I saw Mission: Impossible today, it was so good!' 'Oh, is it?' It's even worse if they're the ones serving. 'So… how's school?' 'Did you eat already?' That was pretty much the range. I appreciate the effort – but I don't want that for my own kids. I don't want to be a well-meaning but boring dad armed only with mundane questions that go nowhere. So I try – probably too hard at times – to speak their language, quite literally. My attempts to drop Gen Z lingo aren't about trying to impress anyone. At 45, the only thing I'm 'serving' are bad puns and lame jokes. But it is an attempt at connection. An awkward, cringey, sometimes-effective olive branch. The memes we share, the TikToks we laugh at together, the post-mortem chats after another episode of The Mandalorian – these moments mean something. They're small windows into my kids' world. They let me in, just a little. And in the awkward dance of parenting three teenagers (and two preteens!), the older they get, the more that little bit matters. I TRIED SO HARD, AND GOT SO FAR But here's the catch: There's a fine line between showing interest and trying too hard. There's a version of the 'cool dad' that's plain exhausting – the one who's constantly trying to stay relevant, who shows up at school pickup with a backwards cap and ironic slang, skateboard propped over one shoulder like a youth pastor who went too deep on Urban Dictionary. At a certain point, we have to accept that our cultural peak has passed. That's okay. Coolness is a moving target, and by the time we figure out what's in, it's probably already out. (It's probably out precisely because we figured it out.) So maybe the better question is: What does being a good dad look like now, in the age of TikTok and K-pop? It's not about relevance. It's about relationship. And sometimes, that means exchanges looks like this: 'Man, New Jeans' Super Shy is super catchy huh?' 'Dad. That was like, two billion years ago.' 'Yup, but like, aren't they super slay?' 'Oh, please no.' 'By the way, I did get new jeans.' That last random line actually got a stifled chuckle from her. Cue another small win for Gen X dads – connection topped off with a hint of cringe is still connection. THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT I may not be the authority on rizz or sigma energy. My jokes may be mid at best. But I'm trying. And I think our kids see that, even when they're groaning and sighing through our cringe. There's a kind of dignity in ageing out of the need to be cool. But there's also a kind of love in making the attempt now and then, even if it's obviously 'not it'. It's not about being cool – our kids don't need us to be cool. It's about caring enough to try and connect with them on their level. So, must I be a cool dad to be a good dad? Nah. But if misusing Gen Z slang helps keep the conversation going with my kids, I'll gladly take the L. Who knows – maybe I could even earn back a few aura points.
CNA
a day ago
- CNA
F1 movie could not have been made without Hamilton, says director
MONTREAL :Brad Pitt's soon-to-be-released Formula One movie could not have been made without Lewis Hamilton, director Joseph Kosinski said on Friday. The Apple Original film "F1", with action scenes filmed at race weekends with the Liberty Media-owned sport's cooperation, is due in cinemas and IMAX internationally on June 25 and in North America on June 27. Kosinski told reporters after an advance showing at the Canadian Grand Prix that the involvement of Hamilton, who joined Ferrari this season after winning six of his seven titles at Mercedes, had been key. The 40-year-old Briton is credited as a co-producer while his Dawn Apollo production company was also involved. Kosinski, who directed the Hit 'Top Gun: Maverick', explained how Hamilton was the first person he reached out to with the idea of a movie. "I sent him an email and just said 'I want to tell the story in your world. I want to make it as authentic as possible. Will you help me?'," he said. "And luckily Lewis said yes... He had actually talked to me earlier about playing a role in 'Top Gun Maverick'. So that's how I knew Lewis." Hamilton, who had to turn down a part in that Tom Cruise film because of his racing commitments, acted as go-between with Formula One and as a consultant advising on technical accuracy and authenticity. He was also a driver advisor to Pitt and co-star Damson Idris. "At Hungary for instance, he said, 'If Brad's going to let someone pass during a blue flag and he wants it to be as tight as possible, he's going to only do that at turn six'," recalled Kosinski. "That kind of detail... from a seven-time world champion who lives and breathes this world every day, I couldn't have gotten that from anywhere else." Hamilton also contributed to the story and served as an inspiration for one scene where Pitt's character talks about why he races in spiritual terms. "So his involvement has been amazing. We couldn't make the film without him." Producer Jerry Bruckheimer referred to Hamilton's insistence of authenticity also in the sound of the film, citing an example at Silverstone where the Briton had pointed out a corner was taken in second gear but the audio was of fourth gear. "It's that kind of detail that went into this," he said. Hamilton has said Pitt's speed is real and the movie will be the most authentic racing film yet. Formula One is hoping the movie cements the appeal of the Netflix docu-series 'Drive to Survive' that has boosted Formula One's popularity and growth worldwide and particularly in the key U.S. market. "I think there's this perception that 'Drive to Survive' turned America onto F1 but I think there's just so many more people out there that don't know anything about it," said Kosinski.
CNA
2 days ago
- CNA
What's Coming Up - World Media Festivals 2025 Award Winners
Catch the encore telecast of award-winning documentaries from World Media Festivals 2025 starting from 18 June.
