“MARIAN’S BIG DIG” by Laura Bontje, illustrated by Scot Ritchie

The mind of a child is a truly wondrous thing: full of curiosity and a different way of seeing the world. That is made manifest in “Marian’s Big Dig”, the most recent publication by local author Laura Bontje and award-winning illustrator Scot Ritchie. The story follows Marian, an adventurous and imaginative child who follows her true passion: rocks and fossils. When she makes a discovery that leads her to believe she’s found a fossil, she’ll use every ounce of her curiosity and determination to show her discovery to everyone she knows. In an interview with Antler River Media, Bontje explained…

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Abbas Wahab’s “Dialed In” Comedy Special: A Review

September 19 saw London comedian Abbas Wahab return for a stop in his “Dialed In” to a delighted crowd at Aeolian Hall. The born and raised Londoner of Sudanese descent began his comedy career 10 years ago after leaving an engineering career in the Detroit automotive industry. Since then, he’s worked on developing his craft as a comedian and has also branched into acting in television and film, featuring in “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” and M. Night Shyamalan’s “TRAP”.  “Dialed In” finds Wahab two years after his last tour “No New Regrets”, following a profound period of change. Since…

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What the Forest City Film Festival brings to London

Collage featuring three photos. The top photo features a screen lit saying Forest City Film Festival. The bottom left photo is of shoes on the Imagine Cinemas patterned floor, the bottom right photo is of a fan choice award ballot titled "Best of the world fests fan favourite award ballot" with the text "Let your voice be heard! Score this film by RIPPING through a number at the bottom of this ballot. 1 is poor. 5 is excellent." The balloted film is titled NO OTHER CHOICE. The numbers range from 1 to 5.

Last year, the tenth anniversary of the Forest City Film Festival (FCFF) brought together film fans, popcorn enthusiasts, and budding filmmakers from all around London for 10 days of celebration, artistry, and creation.  As we approach the festival’s 11th year, Antler River Media reflects at what having a festival like FCFF means for people here in London. Amidst many long-time fans, there were first-time attendees, like Elliott Cooper, who vowed to return for future editions.  “It’s cool to be able to just go see something that’s not out in most theaters yet,” said Cooper. “You can also help support local…

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Small City, Big Dreams: Hong Kong Night at TIFF 2026

For such a tiny peninsula/island combo, Hong Kong is, weirdly, a big deal.  Growing up there and taking it for granted, it has always been a pleasant surprise when people beyond our tiny confines recognize our movies and our music, and cite to me the atmosphere in Wong Kar Wai’s In The Mood For Love, the humour in Stephen Chow’s Kung Fu Hustle, and the choreography in Wilson Yip’s Ip Man or any Bruce Lee film. So, it is unsurprising, but no less pleasurable, to stumble upon an evening dedicated to Hong Kong cinema and its future on the world…

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Linda McQuaig and Neil Brooks discuss their new book on ‘Cancelling Billionaires’

On September 22, Canadian author and journalist Linda McQuaig and tax scholar Neil Brooks will visit London to discuss their recent book Cancelling Billionaires Before They Cancel Us: The Urgent Need for a Wealth Tax. The third book in their trilogy criticizing wealth hoarding and billionaires, their newest instalment brings a new urgency to the problem in an era further wrought with the wealth gap. The pair has been highlighting the issue for decades and now 16 years since the debut of their first co-authored release, The Trouble with Billionaires, McQuaig believes the problem has become much more pronounced. “The…

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An Interview with indie post-rock band QUOTAS: Outsider, Countercultural, and Loud  

Étienne Lavallée documents London’s current art scene with The Honey Dip Archives, a series of interviews with bands that performed at Honey Dip’s one year anniversary celebration. Here, he meets Amanda Mead, Mike Lurz, and Mark Ganassin of QUOTAS, a 1990’s inspired, indie post-rock band from South Ontario. Their music can be found on Bandcamp. *** QUOTAS audio interview: Étienne Lavallée: How long has your band been together, where are you from? Amanda: We’ve been together a year and a half, and two of us are from Brantford, one of us is from Stratford.  Étienne Lavallée: How would you describe…

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