How Trump 2.0 and social media gave Orwell's 1984 new life
'It's sad that the timing always seems perfect for a bit of dystopia,' said Nick Skubij, founder and co-artistic director of Brisbane-based Shake & Stir Theatre, who will bring Big Brother, his thought police and the Ministry of Truth to Sydney from July 24.
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Perth Now
4 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Aubrey Plaza excited to play 'icon' Heidi Fleiss
Aubrey Plaza is excited by the "challenge" of playing Heidi Fleiss in an upcoming biopic. The 41-year-old actress is set to the play the former madame in The Heidi Fleiss Story, and Aubrey has revealed that she's looking forward to the playing the "icon". Speaking to IndieWire, Aubrey shared: "I've been on this track for a while. "I got it in my head that I wanted to play her a couple of years ago and I've never played a real-life person before. It's a different kind of scale, challenge, that I'm really excited about, and I just think she's an incredible person, incredible character." Heidi previously ran an upscale, Los Angeles-based prostitution ring and is often referred to as the Hollywood Madam. And Aubrey thinks her story will make for a fascinating movie. The actress explained: "The story is insane. She's done something that probably nobody else has ever done, and she's still going. I think she's the ultimate bad*** icon and she deserves the royal treatment. We shall give it to her." Asked if she's ever had the chance to talk to Heidi, Aubrey replied: "I have not spoken with her, [but] I hope so. I hope to make a little trip to her place in the desert at some point. Spiritually I feel her. I've heard she's very excited about it. We're in early stages." Aubrey has already enjoyed huge success in her career, starring in movies such as Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Happiest Season and Black Bear. But the actress previously revealed that her success has been fuelled by rejection. The Hollywood star told NME: "Auditioning always felt like this f*****-up game that I was playing with life. Like playing the lottery or something. "I think I've always been very fuelled by rejection. It only made me want it more, because I think I just had that thing inside of me that's like: 'I wanna be in the club that I'm not in' or whatever that is; 'I want the thing that I can't have, or the thing that I don't have. And if you tell me that I'm not good enough, I'll just find a way to prove you wrong somehow.'" Aubrey has starred in a wide variety of film and TV projects over the years, including thrillers, political satires and sitcoms. But the actress also loves the idea of starring in big-budget projects. She said: "I love blockbusters. "I think I'm always nostalgic for big movies that are also good – which is a really hard thing to make. But when you do, you'll never forget it. Those kinds of movies can change the world."
Sydney Morning Herald
14 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘Attractive, stylish, devoted to the boss': Are fictional EAs doing more harm than good?
In The Devil Wears Prada, Miranda Priestly describes her assistant Andy Sachs as 'fetching'. She fetches her boss' coffee, her lunches and her dry-cleaning. She even manages to fetch an unpublished Harry Potter manuscript for Priestly's daughters. While Sachs may no longer be Priestly's 'fetching' assistant in the highly anticipated sequel, which premieres in May 2026, she will arguably always be remembered as the person without whom her boss could not function – the unsung hero of Runway magazine. Sachs is in good company. Many other executive assistants have crossed our screens, characters who toggle between being a professional right hand and a personal life coach every day of the week. Decades before Sachs, there was Radar O'Reilly from M*A*S*H, the company clerk who was one step ahead of his commanding officer's needs – and the arrival of casualty-filled helicopters. On the big screen, Miss Moneypenny is perhaps one of the most famous office admins in film history. Secretary to James Bond's superior, M, at MI6, she appeared across several Bond films, though she was normally seen flirting rather than filing. More recently, Peggy Olson and Joan Holloway from Mad Men constantly had to navigate the murky waters of a male-dominated 1960s advertising company in the period office drama, while Simone in Netflix's Sirens often behaved more like a daughter to her boss than an assistant. Some of these characters are put through the wringer more than others, but they all share an overarching similarity: they're not ever quite given their due. It turns out that's not just the case on screen. 'We still battle the 'you're just an assistant' line,' says Candice Burningham, a Sydney-based executive assistant who has been in the business for more than 20 years. 'But we're not 'just' anything. We're business partners, we have major influence on business decisions, we have insight in business and we create real impact.' Many people are also unaware there are distinct types of workplace assistants, she says. A personal assistant is more likely to do things like make dinner reservations or organise gifts on behalf of their boss, while an executive assistant may operate as more of a business partner. There are instances in which these roles sometimes overlap, Burningham says, but film and TV tend to depict them as entirely blended.
The Age
14 hours ago
- The Age
‘Attractive, stylish, devoted to the boss': Are fictional EAs doing more harm than good?
In The Devil Wears Prada, Miranda Priestly describes her assistant Andy Sachs as 'fetching'. She fetches her boss' coffee, her lunches and her dry-cleaning. She even manages to fetch an unpublished Harry Potter manuscript for Priestly's daughters. While Sachs may no longer be Priestly's 'fetching' assistant in the highly anticipated sequel, which premieres in May 2026, she will arguably always be remembered as the person without whom her boss could not function – the unsung hero of Runway magazine. Sachs is in good company. Many other executive assistants have crossed our screens, characters who toggle between being a professional right hand and a personal life coach every day of the week. Decades before Sachs, there was Radar O'Reilly from M*A*S*H, the company clerk who was one step ahead of his commanding officer's needs – and the arrival of casualty-filled helicopters. On the big screen, Miss Moneypenny is perhaps one of the most famous office admins in film history. Secretary to James Bond's superior, M, at MI6, she appeared across several Bond films, though she was normally seen flirting rather than filing. More recently, Peggy Olson and Joan Holloway from Mad Men constantly had to navigate the murky waters of a male-dominated 1960s advertising company in the period office drama, while Simone in Netflix's Sirens often behaved more like a daughter to her boss than an assistant. Some of these characters are put through the wringer more than others, but they all share an overarching similarity: they're not ever quite given their due. It turns out that's not just the case on screen. 'We still battle the 'you're just an assistant' line,' says Candice Burningham, a Sydney-based executive assistant who has been in the business for more than 20 years. 'But we're not 'just' anything. We're business partners, we have major influence on business decisions, we have insight in business and we create real impact.' Many people are also unaware there are distinct types of workplace assistants, she says. A personal assistant is more likely to do things like make dinner reservations or organise gifts on behalf of their boss, while an executive assistant may operate as more of a business partner. There are instances in which these roles sometimes overlap, Burningham says, but film and TV tend to depict them as entirely blended.
