Longest Night: Solstice Ceremony 2020
Mon Dec 21, 2020
7:00pm – 11:59pm PST
7:00pm – 11:59pm PST
PRICING
Sliding-scale, pay-what-you-can; no one turned away for lack of funds.
• $11 • $22 • $33 • $99 • $333 • $1111 •
FORMAT
Public, Multi-Room Group Zoom
w/ Twitch Stream for music
+ a Private Zoom for individual tarot readings
Series -
Live Shows
About
Enter a waking dream as Northwest Film Forum’s virtual space is transformed in celebration of the longest night of 2020. Full of music performances, guided movement, wellness activities, participatory rituals, and countless inventions culled from subconscious states, LONGEST NIGHT is a communally-minded, staff-invented, season-inspired Solstice party that brings light to the liminal space of the year’s darkest day.
For the 2020 edition, the Forum will co-create a celebration that unifies artists and organizations who span multiple cities and timezones! (Full schedule and partners TBA; see who’s announced so far below.) To make sense of the digital space, we’ll be segmenting off into different Zoom rooms throughout the evening, which visitors are invited to drop in and out of to enjoy different activities.
Try as they might, neither COVID-19 nor 2020 can stop our collective Sagittarius and Capricorn year-end party. If you would like to participate in the festivities and have a birthday this season, please e-mail vivian@nwfilmforum.org to see how you can get involved.
IN OUR VIRTUAL SPACES:
"Lobby" - Communal Experiences
Woozy (Movement Guided by Matt Drews; Sounds by livwutang)
Woozy is a virtual movement meditation that disrupts and reorders isolation. We hold a queer lens on apocalypse inside a guided dance party of unveiling. It’s designed for all bodies to separate from stagnation and move into spacious embodiment. This is not a workout class, it’s a psychonautic surge.
Through the raw freedom of our bodies moving we reach towards ecstatic states. We aim for the liminal, a dreamy seam of trance that awakens the flesh and unwinds the mind. You’ll be guided through a series of poetic cues and become a conduit for many textures, images, states, and rhythms. Get wooz’d out, fade into wholeness, and ride a lucid groove towards healing and connection.
Guided by Matt Drews
Matt Drews is a Seattle-based artist who harnesses yoga and dance as rituals toward communal immersion. He has 10+ years of experience shaping spaces where folks can gather in embodied play towards liberation. He also works individually with clients through an integral approach weaving massage, breathwork, and Reiki.
photo by Stefano Altamura // graphic design by Isabel Von Der Ahe
Sounds by livwutang
About livwutang:
Seattle’s livwutang’s DJ sets traverse dubby, bassy sounds with a slick, effervescent flavor and infectious energy. For Woozy, she slinks expertly into a low and slow mix for this mind-body movement meditation. See mixes or playlists.
photo by James Knowlton
Introductory Space Talk & Tarot Readings w/ Elissa Ball
Not only is Dec. 21st the Winter Solstice, but this year, it’s also the date that Jupiter and Saturn make a rare planetary conjunction in the sign of Aquarius. What’s that mean exactly? Astrologer Elissa Ball will explain when she gives a brief public talk (15–20 min.) on the astrology of 2020 and a sneak peak into the astrology of 2021. Afterward, she’ll offer private, FREE 15-minute intuitive Tarot readings. Registration opening soon!
About Elissa Ball:
Elissa Ball is the author of two humor books, a few zines, and a collection of poetry (The Punks Are Writing Love Songs). For two years, Elissa wrote a weekly astrology column in Seattle Weekly called Space Witch. Originally from Yakima, WA, she now lives in Spokane, where she reads Tarot cards, performs stand-up comedy, and dotes on her dog.
Astrology with Hannah Piper Burns
Getting an astrology reading is like getting help in-progress on a piece of artwork, and that work of art is your life. On the longest night of the year, get acquainted with your cosmic self and receive unique insights into your current condition through the generous spiritual conduit of artist & astrologer Hannah Piper Burns!
About Hannah Piper Burns:
HPB (she/her) is an extramundane anthropologist of her culture’s phenomena, detritus, kitsch, and trauma who works in time-based art, writing, curation, and divination. She is offering 30-minute “office hours”-style birth chart consultations to Longest Night attendees on a sliding scale from $25–40. So, take a breath and dedicate a precious moment to align intentions and dreams for the new year. The days will be getting brighter from now on! SIGN UP HERE BETWEEN 7:30–11pm.
"Cinema 1" - Music Performances
Co-presented with Holocene (PDX)
Holocene is a music + arts venue, nightclub and events space in the core of inner-SE Portland. Since the summer of 2003, Holocene has been hosting touring acts from folk to minimal techno, Portland’s own most exciting musicians, unforgettable dance parties, and all manner of arts and multimedia parties that blur the line between highbrow and down-and-dirty. Learn more at holocene.org or stream on YouTube or Twitch.
Moss Wand
Moss Wand is Troy Micheau and Brianna Sas, partners in life and music who explore the intersection of sound and healing in their electronic meditations. Cascades of droning synthesizers and the resonance of crystal singing bowls generate deep healing vibrations to provide beings with a place to simply rest with Mother Earth – a place to come home to themselves.
Yawa (also known as Amenta Abioto)
Yawa is a singer and producer from Memphis, TN, currently residing in Portland, OR. Yawa composes atmospheric loops from kalimba (mbira), guitar, voice and synth. Skipping freely around elements of soul, hip-hop, folk, and blues, her music blurs genres lines. Yawa is notable for her improvisational works and exploration of sounds and stories of the African diaspora. instagram
Crystal Quartez
Crystal Cortez is a sound & installation artist based out of Portland Oregon. She is also a professor of Creative Coding & Sonic arts at Portland Community College. As someone who never saw herself represented in computer music or creative tech her work focuses on the empowerment of underserved populations gaining access and knowledge around technology. In 2019 she co founded whateverSpace, a maker space offering free and sliding scale workshops and technology rentals with priority going to the BIPOC community. Under her performance moniker Crystal Quartez she transforms field recordings, uses synthesis, audio programming, data sonification, and 3D sound spatialization to produce complex sonic realms. Her practice has recently involved the development of interactive sculptural interfaces and wearable technology that monitor movement and other corporeal methods to liberate the performer from their interfaces.
The Biōm Experience with Mōksha
The Biōm Experience is a gateway to deep meditation and relaxation. We use sound, plant and light therapy to help you clear the mind, release stressful energy and reach a deep meditative state. Vibration and frequency are fundamental elements to all life. We use the resonance of crystal bowls and metal gongs to wash your body with waves of healing frequencies. Sound therapy allows your mind to reach deep meditative states and it is useful in relieving anxiety, depression, and insomnia. Plants are central to the design, philosophy and purpose of The Biōm Experience and we have created an innovative hydroponic growth system to create a therapeutic jungle. We believe that as urbanization continues and as people spend more time indoors, it is important for our mental health to stay connected with plant life. Our jungle provides a lush and warm indoor climate complete with a canopy for you to meditate under.
Your session will be guided by Karleen and Robin, the caretakers of Mōksha, a Seattle boutique and arts venue. As a creative team, we practice the art of listening, balance and harmony to create a unique blend of sensory bliss. Karleen will lead you in light stretching, guided breathing and focus, while we duet on crystal bowls and a variety of gongs. Prepare yourself by rolling out a yoga mat, grabbing a few pillows and dimming the lights in your room. Headphones are essential for best results. This will just be a taste, The Biōm Experience is available to you in real life by appointment.
Mōksha is a boutique, art gallery and event space. Originally opened 2002 in the University District, we are now in the Chinatown/International District at 670 S. King Street in Seattle. We work to cultivate Seattle’s creative community with a focus on underrepresented and marginalized peoples. At Moksha we explore infinite styles, listen for sublime harmonies, feel the texture of culture and awaken in the future. We invite you to be an active witness.
"Cinema 2" - A/V Lounge
Video Art Showcase
Featuring work by Paul Siple, Hannah Piper Burns, Vivian Hua, Dustin Wong, Sondra Sun-Odeon, and others! Details forthcoming. If you would like to submit a video for inclusion, fill out this form. If you have any questions the form doesn’t answer, e-mail paul@nwfilmforum.org.
"Workshop Room" - Interactive Activities
Contour Drawings with Fail Times
Tonight, you’re going to need a piece of paper and a pen, because we’re going to draw self portraits. Business as usual, except you can’t look at your paper or pick up your pen once you’ve begun to draw. Yep, blind contour drawings. Looking at our final pieces is deeply tied to how we think about failure. We’ll look and see and talk about it. And hopefully you’ll send us a picture of your drawings so we can include them in our 2020 issue of Fail Times.
About Fail Times
Fail Times is a zine created by two creatives who fail a lot, Maddy Harkness and Clarissa Hernandez. Focusing on making space for the good that comes out of the bad, we collect the arts of getting it wrong and fails for the betterment of humankind, then we print it on paper and mail to friends and strangers. Fail Times is a Minneapolis + Austin operation.
Dream Life
The cycle of birth, decay, death, rebirth, regeneration – the Winter Solstice invites us to go beyond contemplation and enter a space of reflective habitation inside these processes that proceed and persist past each discrete life form on planet earth. Join us for a meditative dream exercise that reels us back to the original hibernation setting: the womb. After all, we spent 60-70% of our time in utero not just asleep, but in REM sleep, actively dreaming our biological circuitry into existence, feeling our first sensations as our nascent selves. What might you say to your womb-self, by way of dream, before your primal awakening? Let’s subscend and find out.
Facilitated by Courtney Sheehan & Deborah Girdwood
Courtney Sheehan is a dream tech researcher and creative producer, working to map the emergence of dream tech and the ecosystem of dream research and cultural practices. She presented on the ethics of dream tech design at the Interaction Design conference and is a member of the Guild of Future Architects.
SAGITTARIUS & CAPRICORN BIRTHDAY PARTY PEOPLE:
Nov. 29 - Mujale Chisebuka
Mujale has a background in graphic design, videography, photography, and publishing arts. Combined with 12 years of experience being a small business owner, he has had the opportunity to work with clients such as the City of Seattle, Seattle Central, Africatown Seattle, Community Roots Housing, Northwest Film Forum, and more. Coupled with his background in teaching, he hopes to further grow his business that inspires innovation, development and a creative way of thinking that positively impacts people.
Dec. 7 – L. Fried
Dec. 9 – Tanya Tran
Dec. 18 - Sondra Sun-Odeon
Dec. 19 – Courtney Sheehan
Dec. 20 – Vivian Hua
Dec. 20 – Emily Pothast
Dec. 21 – Jess Kim
Dec. 29 – Madeline Harkness
Born two weeks early on the holiday-black-hole of birthdays: December 29, 1986. Just in time for Wild Berry Pop Tarts to become a staple in my childhood.
Dec. 31 – Brianna Sas
Brianna Sas, owner and founder of Elixir Field Wellness, is a sound healer and acupuncturist in Portland, Oregon. She is a doctoral candidate in acupuncture and Chinese medicine with a background in Daoist philosophy and alchemy. She believes that the body is a beautiful landscape – it is a direct and perfect reflection of nature around us. Brianna combines gentle sound, movement and bodywork to help her patients reconnect with the natural cycles of the universe. Her deepest purpose is to hold space for her patients to remember their innate intelligence – the living, breathing, infinite wisdom that exists within each of us.
Jan. 3 – Gina Altamura
Gina Altamura is a live music and arts event curator (at Holocene), artist manager and DJ out of Portland, Oregon. She holds a degree in Philosophy from Lewis & Clark College. She currently has an avid scholarly interest in the realm of Jungian depth psychological thought, and is honored to volunteer with a wonderful organization called Oregon Friends of Jung. She has a deep interest in exploring archetypes through the lens of popular culture, as well as helping her generation connect to archetypal thinking via modalities such as artistic practice and tarot.
Jan. 9 – Emily Zimmerman