The Red Bulletin March 2016 - ZA

SOUTH AFRICA

BEYOND THE ORDINARY

EYE OF THE CLIMBER

SPECTACULAR IMAGES FROM A PRO’S LENS

THE RISE OF

RZA

DRESS SMARTER

Wearable tech reaches your wardrobe

FREE DIVING

Mastering the fear at 69m underwater

Learning lessons from Wu-Tang’s grandmaster NATALIE DORMER

00216

Game of Thrones’ crafty queen gets fearless

9 772079 428009 MARCH 2016 R30 INCL VAT (R4.20)

THE WORLD OF RED BULL

26

LOOK WU’S TALKING

How the switch from teacher to student helped RZA, the driving force of the Wu-Tang Clan, see the road ahead

WELCOME

06

“A lot of people thought it was ridiculous that I wanted to be a singer”

PAMELA LITTKY (COVER), SONY MUSIC

This month, The Red Bulletin is full of people with unexpected talents. Professional climber Jimmy Chin wows with the incredible photos he takes during his highaltitude adventures, and RZA, dauntless leader of rap royalty Wu-Tang Clan, talks about how starting from scratch in the world of film taught him surprising life lessons.

Mexico’s Estrella Navarro opens up about how facing her fears allowed her to freedive to an extraordinary 69m below the surface of the ocean, and the founders of Holy Ship take over a full-size cruise liner to host a perfectly unpredictable party. Plus, we equip you with an unusual new skill of your own – see our guide to escaping a volcanic eruption. We hope you enjoy the issue.

FOXES, PAGE 55

THE RED BULLETIN

MARCH 2016

62

AT A GLANCE GALLERY

QUEEN OF THE SEA

14 GOOD SHOTS! Photos of the month

Freediving champ, marine biologist, model: the world is Mexican mermaid Estrella Navarro’s oyster

BULLEVARD 21 INSPIRATIONS Unique talents

FEATURES

72

26 RZA

The Wu-Tang Clan’s main man on leadership and letting go

36 Jimmy Chin

Capturing nature’s highs on camera

MIKO LIM, IAN WITLEN, NURI YILMAZER/RED BULL CONTENT POOL, JIMMY CHIN

83 ROCK THE BOAT

All aboard Holy Ship, the rave-on-thewaves where DJs play deck games with the punters and the party never stops

ITALIAN STALLION

Supercar nirvana awaits in the driving seat of the new Ferrari F12tdf – once you’ve picked up your jaw from the floor

56

50 Heroes of the month

Game Of Thrones’ star Natalie Dormer, storm-chasing filmmaker George Kourounis, actor Ron Perlman and singer Foxes

56 Red Bull Sea To Sky

Motocross gets tough in Turkey

62 Estrella Navarro

Mexico’s Aquawoman goes deep

72 Holy Ship

Setting sail for three days of raving

ACTION!

36 THE ONLY WAY IS UP

Red Bull Sea To Sky draws the elite of Hard Enduro. Here’s how UK rider Graham Jarvis won it a fourth time THE RED BULLETIN

LOFTY AMBITIONS

Multi-talented Jimmy Chin combines professional climbing and landscape photography to breathtaking effect

79 SEE IT. GET IT. DO IT. The best travel, gadgets, films, games, music, wheels, watches and events. Plus Wings for Life World Run, our cartoon, and how to survive a volcanic eruption 93 SMART CLOTHING Wear the future 98 FLASHBACK Surfing with Cleopatra

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CONTRIBUTORS INSIDE THIS ISSUE MARCH 2016

WHO’S ON BOARD

IAN WITLEN

Photographer Lim with freediving star Estrella Navarro

Plunging into a freediver’s world Freediving champion Estrella Navarro swims like a mermaid. To capture how she flows underwater, photographer Miko Lim travelled to Mexico and went diving in the sea off Baja California to discover (and shoot) Navarro’s aquatic world. After hiring a boat and getting hold of the necessary waterproof camera equipment, Lim witnessed not just Navarro’s talent (she can swim 69m below the ocean’s surface without an oxygen tank), but also some amazing giants of the deep. Turn to page 62 to see Lim’s shots.

IN FOCUS BEHIND THE LENS

A luxury cruise ship, 4,000 ravers, a three-day, non-stop party. Nobody knows the madness of the EDM cruise known as Holy Ship better than in-house photographer Witlen.

Set sail with him on page 72.

JIMMY CHIN

The award-winning photographer filmmaker and mountaineer has climbed all 14 8,000ers without supplementary oxygen. He guides us through the best of his pictures from around the globe on page 36.

THE RED BULLETIN AROUND THE WORLD The Red Bulletin is available in 10 countries. This is the cover of this month’s German edition, featuring actor Fahri Yardim.

Read more: redbulletin.com

Littky gets cosy in the Camaro with RZA and writer Justin Monroe

“He took direction well” PAMELA LITTKY, PHOTOGRAPHER Accommodating to the end, RZA agreed to drive the ’67 Chevy Camaro over the Fourth Street Bridge in downtown Los Angeles for the last shot for our feature. “I had to sit in the back seat, and there were no seat belts,” says Littky. “At one point, he stopped short and I flew into his lap.”

Steer over to page 26 for the story.

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THE RED BULLETIN

JHB 50434/OJ As seen on DStv/SuperSport

WATCH THE BEST OF THE 2015/2016 FOOTBALL SEASON LIVE IN HD ON SUPERSPORT

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THE ACTION CAMERA REINVENTED

The first ever 4K HD action camera with a built-in media server, letting you edit video without having to download it first Official Technical Partner

VISIT

WWW.TOMTOM.COM

GALLERY

WHEEL DEAL

VIRGIN, USA PHOTOGRAPHY: BARTEK WOLINSKI The first man to pull off a tsunami backflip in competition, at Red Bull District Ride in Nuremberg in 2014, Mountain-bike freerider Szymon Godziek is a master of memorable performances. For his first appearance at Red Bull Rampage that same year, he wore only a basketball shirt, despite the risk of injury on the tough surface. He went on to finish 11th. This is Godziek trying out the 2015 Rampage course. He missed the final this time, though, after crashing in qualifying from a height of 6m.

Video highlights: redbullrampage.com

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BARTEK WOLINSKI/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

CALUM MACAULAY/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

THE RIGHT STUFF

THE RIGHT, AUSTRALIA PHOTOGRAPHY: CALUM MACAULAY Australian big-wave surfer Mark Mathews has won more than US$400,000 in prize money and surfed the world’s most dangerous waves, including Tahiti’s mega-barrel Teahupo’o and the shark-infested waters of Ship Stern Bluff off the coast of Tasmania. But even for him, this 15m breaker off the coast of Western Australia called The Right is no easy ride. It has held him under and ruptured an eardrum, but it has also provided some of his best surfing footage.

See more at: instagram.com/markmathewssurf

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BLADE RUNNER QUEBEC, CANADA PHOTOGRAPHY: SEBASTIAN MARKO

The rules at Red Bull Crashed Ice, the Ice Cross Downhill World Championships, are brutally simple. Each race sees four participants hurtle down a steep ice track, featuring 90-degree turns and kickers, at up to 60kph. The quickest two move on to the next round. In the 2015/2016 season opener in Quebec (pictured), American Cameron Naasz got away from the Canadian competition and went on to win the event, much to the disappointment of the home fans.

Season highlights: redbullcrashedice.com

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SEBASTIAN MARKO/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

Epic moments from the world’s best clubs and festivals: Strobelight Anthems on rbmaradio.com

BULLEVARD THE HOME OF PEOPLE WHO INSPIRE, ENTERTAIN, EDUCATE, INNOVATE

DEAD FUNNY

MICHAEL FRIBERG/CONTOUR BY GETTY IMAGES

RYAN REYNOLDS – ACTOR, FATHER, STAR OF DEADPOOL – IS LAUGHING. AT 39, A GOOD SENSE OF HUMOUR IS AN ESSENTIAL INGREDIENT IN HIS RECIPE FOR SUCCESS Willpower and discipline are synonymous. So says Canadian Ryan Reynolds, who has turned the mantra into a 25-year acting career and an estimated net worth of $45 million. Serious business. Not that he takes it seriously. Reynolds isn’t your standard A-lister, brooding and intense; Hollywood’s unlikeliest funnyman is famed as much for his rude one-liners and sharp wit as for his onscreen presence and age-defying athleticism.

This month, he exhibits that GSOH as the brutal, wisecracking Marvel antihero Deadpool – a role for which any leading man would kill, but only Reynolds was born. He’s a proper actor who likes a good joke. And, in this case, the punchline is enduring success.

THE RED BULLETIN

21

BULLEVARD

THE DUEL THE DUTCH INTERNATIONAL MIDFIELDER FACES THE BIGGEST PLAYER IN SOCIAL MEDIA. GAME ON

Vs

ARJEN ROBBEN Dutch. Age 32. Two of the mostfeared feet in European football.

$80 million

With a salary north of €5.5m and being coveted by Europe’s top clubs, his finances are among the sport’s most solid.

MARK ZUCKERBERG American. Age 31. Facebook’s founding father, philanthropist.

NET WORTH

0 :1

$41.6 billion

A recent upsurge in mobile advertising added an extra $13bn to his fortune – that’s 160 times Robben’s entire net worth.

TRANSPORT

1 :1 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF GTI HATCHBACK C’mon, Dad. The kids at school won’t believe I’m the heir to the Facebook fortune if I rock up in that every morning.

BOTH AN AUDI A5 AND AN A8 Maybe he’s a vorsprung durch technik mega-fan. Or perhaps it’s because Audi are one of the sponsors of Bayern Munich, who he joined in 2009.

LOVE LIFE HIGH-SCHOOL SWEETHEART Atypical of his sporting peers, Robben is a one-woman man, and has been since he met his wife, Bernadien Eillert, in school.

2 :1

UNIVERSITY GIRLFRIEND Equally monogamous, Zuckerberg married his girlfriend Priscilla Chan in 2012. The two have been an item since Harvard.

SOCIAL MEDIA CLOUT

2 million FACEBOOK FANS He also has a load

2:2

48 million

FACEBOOK FOLLOWERS The social network’s founder really has no excuse not to win this one.

of fake Instagram and Twitter accounts worth avoiding.

STYLE

CLASSIC TAILORING Robben foregoes the overly branded footballer uniform, opting instead for smart attire. Good on him, we say.

3:2

WEEKEND DAD Zuckerberg doesn’t let choice or fashion slow him down, opting for a T-shirt hoodie combo almost every day.

UNEXPECTED ALLY

3:3

THE POPE Robben has been truly blessed. Retired Pope Benedict is a Bayern fan. By Catholic definition, we guess that means God is, too.

CRISTIANO RONALDO With more than 100 million likes for his personal updates, he keeps fans on Zuckerberg’s side, instead of flocking to Twitter.

ATTITUDE

3:4

A DAREDEVIL “In a world that’s changing really quickly, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks.”

DEFINING MOMENT BECOMING THE CHAMP Robben gets a goal and an assist in Bayern’s win in the 2013 Champions League final.

22

4:4

GIVING IT ALL AWAY Zuckerberg has pledged to give 99 per cent of his shares to good causes. Touching or competitive philanthropy?

GETTY IMAGES (7), CORBIS (3)

UNUSUALLY HONOURABLE “I am not a player who will just sit and pick up my wages if I am not playing.”

BULLEVARD

INNOVATOR

THE FLOATING WORKSPACE SO, WHO LIKES THEIR OFFICE? WE THOUGHT NOT. ENTER COBOAT, A GREEN COWORKING CATAMARAN INVENTED BY A CREW OF SAILING FANS AND BUSINESS NOMADS

1) THIS IS ESSENTIALLY AN OFFICE ON WATER, THEN? culture

innovative “Not exactly. Coworking is a new and rtunity to work in exploding around the world: the oppo le, where you can an environment with like-minded peop creative mix, we’ve share ideas or create things. Into this it’s coworking on added one of our passions: sailing. So trip around the ture adven an want we ce, a boat. In essen internet.” oceans. But with high-speed satellite

2) WHY SHOULD THIS FLOAT

MY BOAT? “Like so many great ideas, this one was born on a beach. I was using a coworking space in Thailand, during which time I met James [Abbott], the owner of that space. While discussing a love of sailing over a beer on the sand, the idea of combining all these great things set us in motion. Who wouldn’t want to bob on the waves while working?” , SURELY? 3) A CRAZY PIPE DREAM and determined

“Not to the bubbling social community coworking enthusiasts founders. The ship is almost built, and . There’s still work board to ready are from all over the world draws ever closer.” to be done, for sure, but the launch date

THE IDEAS MAN KARSTEN KNORR, 48

4) HAS IT ALL BEEN PLAIN SAILING?

“Like the maiden voyage of any busin ess startup, this one has been rocky. People inves ted in the project wanted results quicker than we’ve been able to deliver. Keeping everyone motiv ated is challenging, but essential. We’ve celeb rated every ounce of progress while reminding every one of the end goal. We want to make use of this experience with any future profits. We’ll ‘think outsi de the boat’ to support the development of gamechanging solutions to the world’s probl ems.”

After living and working in Sydney for 12 years, Knorr began a nomadic lifestyle, working in coworking spaces. It was only a matter of time before he combined this with his passion for the waves. coboat.org

Marine satellite-based tech ensures a seamless internet connection anywhere

Energy generated by solar panels and harnessing wind power

COBOAT/PILAR SCHACHER

HERI IRAWAN

Capacity for 20 passengers in modern shared accommodation

5) WHAT’S WAITING OVER THE HORIZON? startup Fossil-fuel engines switched for eco-friendly electric propulsion

THE RED BULLETIN

“We’re going nowhere. This isn’t a quick for profit that we plan to launch then drop. It’s not . It’s a – anything we make will be reinvested us potential, passion project. Aside from the obvio in terms the ship offers so much more for the future st large the be to going It’s port. trans of green es.” engin ric elect with world the sailing yacht in

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BULLEVARD

VIRTUAL INVESTMENTS

SAY WHAT? IF LOVE IS BLIND, ALLOW THESE SNIPPETS OF WISDOM TO BRING YOUR ROMANTIC VISION BACK TO 20-20 – FOR VALENTINE’S DAY AND BEYOND

“To be brave is to love someone unconditionally, without expecting anything in return” MADONNA

“You have to keep the fights

clean and the sex dirty”

DRAKE

twitter.com/fvonf

A distinctly Berlin approach to visual storytelling with a global outlook, FVONF is a photographic insight into the personal lives of the creatives behind upand-coming music, film, art and everything else that should be on your cultural radar.

KEVIN BACON

“Dating has become a sport and not about finding the person you love”

BERRICS SKATE PARK

RASHIDA JONES

instagram.com/ berrics

“The only creatures that are evolved enough to convey pure love are dogs and infants” JOHNNY DEPP

“I’ve never been Romeo who meets a girl and falls for her immediately. It’s been a much slower process for me each time I’ve gone into a relationship” LEONARDO DiCAPRIO

“I don’t need the Prince Charming to have my own happy ending” KATY PERRY

FREUNDE VON FREUNDEN

“Before you marry a person, you should first make them use a computer with slow internet to see who they really are” WILL FERRELL

Come for the wipeouts and stay for the fisheye-lens shots.

Berrics is an ideology as much as a physical skatepark, created by pro skateboarders Steve Berra and Eric Koston. For a sport captured so beautifully on film, this account was the natural online evolution.

COOL HUNTING facebook.com/ coolhunting

Find esoteric gifts, gadgets and prints unlike anything on the high street. While browsing the account, you’re likely to succumb to the irresistible clickbait; underground musical remixes and NASA’s astronaut application process to name but a few highlights.

THE RED BULLETIN

MERT AND MARCUS, GETTY IMAGES(3), UNIVERSAL MUSIC

“I have an urge to communicate.

I think I’m a change from what it would be like dating a normal guy who doesn’t talk too much”

THE SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS IMPROVING YOUR LIFE THIS MONTH

BULLEVARD

ONE OF A KIND FKA TWIGS SUCCESS WITHOUT COMPROMISE? THIS SINGER SHOWS IT’S POSSIBLE FKA Twigs – enigmatic performer, darling of the critics, VMA nominee – is fearless.

But that’s what comes from cutting your teeth as a backing dancer in front of riotous crowds. Indeed, it’s those difficult situations that she credits as the source of her growth as an artist. Because that’s the type of performer she is: never shy of a challenge, always pushing boundaries. Some might think that makes her weird. But, for Twigs, that’s exactly the point.

“I ENJOY CHALLENGES. I WANT PEOPLE TO SEE WHAT’S INSIDE MY HEAD RATHER THAN JUST LOOKING AT ME” THE RED BULLETIN

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E G D E

ith w e r i p m ical e oup s u m a t buil is gr A h Z p R a e r e m e k e d o n a i t e c l t u o n t B – in g C l a f a m a s t e r. e n v a o T m u t W x o y TKY e r y n a t i s n i r M E L A L IT o A h o i P : h s Y e i t H t P V n d a u s f u l l y e x e c u S T IN M O N R O E P H O T O G R A a n o i s i JU the v cces WORDS: u s

t d n n e a d r togethe to become a stu – he had

Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, aka RZA, was named after Robert and John F Kennedy, both admired by his mother

27

collaborative process, and submit to authority as he never had before.

While editing his second directorial effort, musical drama Coco, which stars rapper/singer Azealia Banks in her feature film debut, RZA sat down to explain his creative process and why evolution is necessary for greater success.

obert Fitzgerald ‘RZA’ Diggs does whatever it takes to complete an artistic endeavour. To this end, the 46-year-old producer, rapper, author, actor, director and screenwriter from Staten Island, New York, has at times had to play the role of dictator. As the mastermind behind the Wu-Tang Clan – one of the most successful and, with nine members, one of the largest groups in the history of hip-hop – he convinced other alpha males to suppress their egos, trust in his vision and fall in line behind him. The result was their classic 1993 debut, Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers).

RZA also helped launch the solo careers of members GZA, Method Man, Raekwon and Ol’ Dirty Bastard. And when individuals’ success demanded a democratisation of the group and later a tiered economic system based on popularity, he ceded a degree of control to keep the peace and assure productivity. During the recording of the Wu-Tang’s much-publicised 2015 album Once Upon A Time In Shaolin – of which only one copy was made, bought by pharmaceutical hedge-fund bad boy Martin Shkreli last year for a reported US$2 million – he didn’t tell the other members what they were working on.

Having been a leader and teacher in hip-hop for many years, RZA’s transition to film – he acted in and composed the soundtrack to Jim Jarmusch’s 1999 cult crime drama Ghost Dog: The Way Of The Samurai, and was the writer-director of 2012 martial-arts flick The Man With The Iron Fists and its 2015 sequel – forced him to become a student, adapt to the 28

the red bulletin: You have a beautiful home in a quiet, gated community just outside LA. Do you need that kind of environment for creativity’s sake? rza: For me, it’s healthy. It’s like going in the water. You could get in the water, you could swim, but you’ve got to get out and dry off. You’ve got to relax those muscles.

All my homes are like that. If you go back east, I live in the woods, five acres, off the road. On Halloween, kids don’t come down the road, because it’s kind of scary.

You’ve got to detach yourself in order to reattach. I don’t mind going out, getting wild, crazy, zoning in, doing the Wu-Tang tours, working hard on my latest movie…

As long as I can come home, detach, turn a little fire on, sit down, I’m ready for the next day. Time is consumed by your job.

But, to me, even if a man can give himself an hour a day, he’s benefiting.

If you’re unable to physically isolate yourself from the chaos of a movie set or tour, how do you escape mentally?

Anything you can do on a macro level, you can do on a micro level. I came to a realisation, probably in the midst of being trapped in a jail cell. Even within that cell, that world, my island had to become myself. It had to become a micro island. I had to enjoy my personal self and leave everything else. I would advocate this: your first heaven is your body; your second heaven would maybe be your family, your wife and your children; and then that would extend to the rest of the family you have, then to your home, to your community, to your county, to your

“I say: JUST CREATE and don’t be attached to it” THE RED BULLETIN

RZA has written two books on the group’s philosophy: The WuTang Manual and The Tao Of Wu

“You’ve got to DETACH yourself in order to REATTACH” country. The aim is to make this whole world a heaven, but it starts with yourself. Here’s an example for you: I got to the airport late for a first-class flight to Hong Kong and they’d given up my seat.

The only seat remaining was a middle seat in between two people, and one person had a little weight on them. If I wanted to get there on time for this gig, I had to take this seat. I had to sit there and just leave [my body] because, for the first 20 minutes, there was no way I could get comfortable. I couldn’t go to sleep; I was already tired. I was like, “Man, I’ve just got to zone in, go into my mind, make a movie in there.”

How have you brought that approach to the film set?

When I did Iron Fists, there was a lot of confusion going on. Eighty per cent of my crew didn’t speak English, and I was bringing in some of the biggest players from Hollywood: Quentin Tarantino, Russell Crowe, Lucy Liu, Daniel Wu, Eli Roth. You’ve got all these people on set and I’m the man who has to guide it.

Some of the talent weren’t used to how they work [in China]. When I yelled “Cut”, 10 [crew members] would come up and start doing all kinds of things.

I recall Russell saying, “Get away from me!” I had to tell him, “No, bro. You’ve got to just close your eyes and relax. This is what they do. This is part of the process.

Like a massage, almost. You’ve got to just let them lead it.” So that’s the sense of finding the creativity in chaos, organising chaos. I like to say that Wu-Tang seemed chaotic, but there was a common thread to it. I can apply that to film. Of course, it’s not as easy… it’s collaborative.

In the Wu, you’re known as the abbot, the teacher and the leader. In film, you had to be a student and defer to others.

How do you balance those two roles?

Popa Wu [an affiliate and mentor of the group] used to always say that a good 30

In addition to his film credits, RZA has had roles in the US TV series Californication and Gang Related

RZA has been the driving force behind the Wu-Tang Clan since the group’s inception in 1992

listener is a good learner. Popa Wu was one of the older brothers. There was something they gave us when we were young, called ‘The Art of Listening’. It had seven precepts and concepts that you should practise and learn. One of them was to let another man’s wisdom prevail if your wisdom is not strong in that field. I read that when I was probably 16 years old, and I took it as fact. I still tell my son the same thing: there’s always someone among you who’s the best.

At any given moment, you could be the student, and at any given moment, you could be the teacher… The wise man, if he’s wise, is going to detect the wisdom.

You’ve got to take heed. I’ve been fortunate to have great people give me wisdom in the film world. In music, I had to almost make up the path, but in film it’s been paved by a lot of great minds.

I was fortunate to be on the set of Kill Bill [Vol 1] and watch how Quentin Tarantino works, how the set works. When I did American Gangster [he played the part of New York detective Moses Jones], Ridley Scott displayed to me what I coined “multi-vision”: multiple cameras running at the same time, yet he’s conscious of what each camera is doing – even more so than the people who were watching the monitors.

How difficult was it to accept someone’s artistic authority over you?

Some lessons are hard lessons. When I was the composer on Kill Bill, that was the first time in music that somebody told me what I [produced] wasn’t [good enough]. Quentin was like, “Nah, Bobby.

I don’t think so.” So I tried it again. Twice.

“Nah, that’s not it.” I was discouraged.

I didn’t know what the f--k he wanted.

But I came in the next day with a little foundation that I’d started at home, and I continued building on it. Quentin’s editing room was maybe two doors down [the corridor], but he could still hear the music, and he busted in. “That’s it!

THE TAO OF TINSELTOWN

RZA’s path from soundtrack composer to film director 1999 Filmmaker Jim Jarmusch hunts down RZA and asks him to compose the soundtrack for Ghost Dog: The Way Of The Samurai. RZA also has a cameo role where he delivers a single line: “Ghost dog, power, equality.”

2003

While serving as music supervisor for Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill: Vol 1, RZA asks the director to be his mentor. Spends a month with Tarantino on the Kill Bill set in Beijing and takes copious notes on directing.

2004 Teams up with Jarmusch again for a bigger scene in Coffee And Cigarettes. Shares the screen with Bill Murray and fellow Wu-Tang member GZA, sipping herbal tea.

2004 Composes music for Blade: Trinity. Not yet ready to conduct an orchestra, he works with Ramin Djawadi (who went on to write music for Batman Begins, Iron Man and Game Of Thrones). The experience inspires RZA to improve his music-reading skills and become a conductor.

2007

Plays a police detective who helps take down drug kingpin Frank Lucas (played by Denzel Washington) in Ridley Scott’s real-life crime flick American Gangster. RZA shows off his acting ability – and his Wu tattoo – in scenes with Russell Crowe.

2012 Joins the cast of US TV show Californication as charismatic rapper turned actor Samurai Apocalypse, who hires David Duchovny’s Hank Moody for a vanity film project based on Beverly Hills Cop.

2012 With Tarantino’s blessing and Eli Roth’s screenwriting help, RZA writes, directs and stars in his first feature, kung-fu epic The Man With The Iron Fists, with Russell Crowe and Lucy Liu.

2014

“A point came when I realised I didn’t have to win at creating art.

I HAD TO CREATE”

Shows menace as a dangerous drug kingpin opposite Paul Walker in Brick Mansions, a remake of the 2004 parkour-filled French film District 13.

It is the last film completed by Walker before his tragic death.

2016 RZA’s second directorial effort, New York-set musical Coco, starring rapper Azealia Banks, is out in March.

2016 Begins filming the action thriller Breakout, his third project as director.

Its plot revolves around an attempt to bust a young photographer, falsely imprisoned for drug trafficking, out of a prison in Bangladesh.

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“CREATIVE SUCCESS IS COMPLETION. You’ve got to complete the task” Keep going in that direction!” That’s when I realised – he’s the director and he knows what he wants; I’m here to facilitate his vision. Hopefully our vision as artists is the same, but if not, I have to be willing to sacrifice my vision, because at the end of the day, it’s going to say “Directed by Quentin Tarantino” in the credits. That was one of my first lessons in submitting to authority. You have to accept the fact that it’s all about what’s best for the film, and you have to give your all to improving it.

How did your experiences as a member of the Wu-Tang Clan prepare you for your role as film director?

I’ve been blessed working with Wu-Tang for so many years, with all the different personalities and all the different ways I had to find solutions to get what we needed. So many big egos, not a bunch of followers. So, no matter what situation I get in, I’m able to find my zone. And what that means is, I’m not the star on the field every time. That’s something I’m able to accept in the film world and the music world. My experience with Wu-Tang has been beneficial to learning how to talk about and translate different ideas to people at a high level.

RZA has a personalised tattoo of the group’s iconic logo, designed by longtime Wu-Tang DJ and producer Mathematics

How did that come into play on the set while directing Azealia Banks in your new film, Coco?

Azealia is looked at as a badass right now, but she really submitted herself to this role. She has a vulnerability that she hides, and I thought that I could get it out in the film. I think I did that. Being an artist, I know the things that make us excited. I used that philosophy – I’m not going to say it was trick knowledge, but that kind of psychology. I know that we do what we do because we appreciate the attention we get for doing it. You could make all the records you want, but there is no bigger medium of appreciation than the movie. When I was working with Azealia on Coco, I said to her, “Everything you give me is money in the bank.” That’s my slang to her. “Everything you give to me, it’s just putting more money in this

bank, and I’m going to make it worth something for you.” She trusted me.

The talent has got to trust you.

Speaking of trust, when you were recording the secret Wu-Tang album Once Upon A Time In Shaolin, neither the other members nor affiliated artists were told what they were working on. Why? A few people have voiced opinions as if they were deceived, and I could understand that. But, on the business side, you were compensated for your time and for your work. Whatever we were going to do with it really was not your concern. I wish I didn’t have to do it that way, but I had to because, especially in the last 10 years, look how much information comes out [prematurely].

They destroyed 8 Diagrams before the fans even had a chance to hear it [Raekwon and Ghostface Killah were publicly critical of the Wu-Tang Clan’s 2007 album prior to its release], so when you hear it, you’re already biased.

Why would I take a risk like that [again]?

I’m not taking a risk like that.

You’re an accomplished chess player and have a Zen approach to winning and losing chess games. Are you equally Zen when it comes to your creative work?

Creativity and art is actually not a game that’s played to win. In the beginning, I was playing to win. Protect Ya Neck – it doesn’t get any clearer than that. But a point came when I realised I didn’t have to win when creating art. I had to create.

And I had that revelation before I got to Hollywood. In creativity, I don’t think there are any bad decisions. You never know who the creation will inspire, or where it’s going to end up. Even a stupid movie you may never watch, like Attack Of The Killer Tomatoes or whatever, has something in it for that viewer. Tarantino helped me discover that. I say: just create and don’t be attached to it.

So, what would be your definition of creative success?

To me, creative success is completion.

You’ve got to complete the task. Of course, if we have lucrative success, that means you could always do it again. Critical success means your peers actually respected all the work you put into that sh-t. When your critics say, “That was a great piece of art and it moved the community,” that’s big. I would choose something lucrative over praise, because it’s a business. But I’d choose completion over money.

Twitter: @RZA

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A DAY OFF IN THE HIMALAYAS “I took this photograph while on an expedition with fellow American Stephen Koch, the first man to snowboard on all Seven Summits.

THE BIG PICTURE

We were the only team on Everest in the monsoon season and we wanted to descend the North Face on skis and snowboards. We spent one of our days off on the Rongbuk Glacier and did some climbing around its edges.”

FOR PHOTOGRAPHER, PROFESSIONAL CLIMBER AND FILMMAKER JIMMY CHIN, MAGIC MOMENTS ARE JUST PART OF EVERYDAY LIFE. HIS RECIPE FOR NON-STOP ADVENTURE: “THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX” PHOTOGRAPHY: JIMMY CHIN WORDS: ALEXANDER LISETZ 37

A NATURAL WONDER IN CHAD “This photo was taken when I was on the Ennedi Plateau in Chad with James Pearson and Mark Synnott, climbers from the UK and the US respectively.

After five days of driving our Jeep along unpaved roads, we came across this stone arch. It was one of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen, and I’m happy that I managed to document its first ascent

by James and Mark.”

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NORTHERN LIGHTS AT LAKE LOUISE “My good friend Chris Jerard is a writer and photographer for Freeskier magazine.

We’d been part of the same long shoot and really just wanted to get into our tents and sleep. Then, suddenly, the sky above Lake Louise was gleaming with the Northern Lights. We just sat and took photo after photo until it got light.”

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FREECLIMBING IN YOSEMITE “Freeclimbers Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson have practised for years on the Dawn Wall of El Capitan in the Yosemite National Park.

I had the opportunity to spend a couple of days with them on the wall and take photos.

I took this shot early one morning as they were getting ready to practise.�

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A SKI TRIP ON EVEREST “I’d been dreaming for years of skiing down Everest. Unlike everyone else, we only made our ascent after the monsoon rains, so there would be more snow.

Mentally, it was one of the toughest experiences in my life, because I’d already failed on Everest once before and had almost died in an avalanche. But I conquered my fears and, on October 18, 2006, there I was at the summit with American extreme skiing pioneers Rob and Kit DesLauriers.

Here, we see them about 20m from the peak, looking forward to the descent.”

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TOUGH NUTS IN OMAN “In 2012, I joined American professional climbers Alex Honnold and Mark Synnott in circumnavigating the Musandam peninsula in Oman on a sailing boat.

We made many first ascents on the pristine islands there.

This picture shows Alex on one of the superb rocks – he’d give us no peace until we climbed them.”

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TALENT

is a bit like intelligence: we all think we have it in abundance. It’s only when you meet someone like 42-year-old Jimmy Chin that you’re forced to reconsider. The Minnesota native is one of the world’s most gifted outdoor photographers and film directors. He’s also a professional climber, having made numerous first ascents and conquered all the 8,000ers (Earth’s 14 mountains that exceed 8,000m in height) without supplementary oxygen.

In addition to this, Chin’s a pretty good skier and was one of the first Americans to ski from the summit of Everest back down into the valley.

And yet he remains modest. “What’s my greatest talent? Bringing talented people together,” says Chin. “That ability is just as important when making films as it is when climbing mountains, because a team is stronger than the sum of its parts.”

So, that’s the way Chin – a man who by comparison makes our lives seem boring – works, but what

about his thought process? “Always think outside the box,” he says.

Chin looks for inspiration from other sports to become a better climber, and by keeping an eye on the work of artists and other photographers – whether in the field of war or in fashion – he constantly strives to reinvent himself behind the lens.

Is there anything this man can’t do? “I’m not as good a surfer as I’d like to be,” he says. Somehow it’s hard to imagine Chin being clumsy.

There’s that modesty again. jimmychin.com

SLOWING DOWN IN THE BUGABOOS “This is when I was with American extreme mountaineer Conrad Anker in the Bugaboos Provincial Park in British Columbia.

I photographed him freeclimbing Pigeon Spire solo on a day off. Yes, this is what a day off looks like for Conrad.”

JIMMY CHIN is a former Red Bull Illume finalist.

Check out his views on mobile photography and the world’s greatest action and adventure sports photography contest on redbullillume.com. The submissions for the 2016 contest close on March 31.

Take your shot!

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HEROES

“WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU MAKES YOU STRONGER” NATALIE DORMER The Game Of Thrones star, who

plays the lead in new horror film The Forest, knows how to turn fear to her advantage

the red bulletin: In The Forest, you’re tormented by ghosts and demons. What’s the most terrifying situation you’ve faced in real life? natalie dormer: It could be this film – my first leading role after 11 years in acting. But 50

when it comes to sheer terror, I’ve never been so scared as when I jumped out of a plane a couple of years ago.

What made you do that?

A broken heart. I was grieving for a lost love and feeling jaded. I had to confront my inner demons, so I did a parachute jump. I tried to shock myself into waking up and feeling what life was all about again. One of the twin sisters I play in The Forest does something very similar.

How did it feel?

You fly to a height of more than 3,000m, stare down

hoping to do the same again in April, if my schedule allows.

If I do, it will be for ChildLine, which offers free advice to young people in need.

But you can’t run a marathon or do a parachute jump every time you’re in need of a new challenge…

Work is still the biggest challenge. If you pick the right role, you’re forced to grow.

You have to raise the bar a bit higher every time. That’s still true of Game Of Thrones, even though I’ve been playing the part for five years. The show’s creators uproot your character every season, throwing you into a brand new scenario.

Life also offers you challenges you can’t plan for. For example,

“I ALWAYS LOOK FOR SOMETHING I’M SCARED OF – IT’S THE ONLY WAY TO GROW. IT’S HEALTHY TO LEAVE YOUR COMFORT ZONE” and see everything getting smaller: the houses, the trees, the patchwork fields. As the tension increases, so does your self-doubt. What am I doing here? Why am I putting myself through this? Then comes the sheer visceral terror when you jump out of the plane. You’re in the moment, the wind is hitting you and you’re spinning. Then comes the calmness of the parachute opening, and you have that moment of catharsis and

morning and getting up to go jogging for two hours before work. But marathon running is about preparation, discipline and sacrifice. Motivation is a very important factor, too.

I did my run for a good cause, a children’s charity. There were people who had pinned their hopes on me and I didn’t want to let them down.

What time did you run?

I did it in three hours and 50 minutes, which is pretty good for a first marathon. I’m

I was bullied in school. And after you’ve been through those lows, it makes you more grateful when things are going well. It may be a cliché, but, in my experience, it’s true that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Even when you get broken, ultimately you’ll be stronger when you get back on your feet.

Rüdiger Sturm The Forest is in cinemas from Feb 26; Twitter: @theforestisreal THE RED BULLETIN

DAVID ROEMER/TRUNKARCHIVE

W

hether she’s shining as scheming queen Margaery Tyrell in Game Of Thrones, acting the rebel in The Hunger Games or winning awards for her manipulative Anne Boleyn in TV hit The Tudors, Natalie Dormer has proved herself a memorable addition to any cast. So, after more than a decade on screens big and small, it’s surprising that new horror flick The Forest marks her first lead role. The prospect was daunting – but that, it turns out, was precisely its appeal. Here, the Berkshireborn actress opens up about facing her fears, taking on physical challenges, and her belief that it’s the worst experiences in life that can help you the most.

exhilaration. I learnt a great deal about myself that day.

Does that mean you would do it again?

No, I don’t think so. But I like a challenge – it’s an important part of my personality. If I’m afraid of something, that’s an extra reason to do it, whether it’s jumping out of a plane, running a marathon, or five weeks shooting a horror film where I’m in practically every scene. I always look for something I’m scared of – it’s the only way to grow. It’s healthy to leave your comfort zone every now and again.

What tips do you have for budding marathon runners?

It’s hard enough hearing your alarm go off at five in the

Natalie Dormer, 34, swears by the invigorating effect of near-death experiences

Not your average wedding suit: Kourounis wears this protective clothing when braving active volcanoes

“I CONQUER FEAR WITH CURIOSITY” GEORGE KOUROUNIS The Canadian documentary filmmaker chases tornadoes and got married on an active volcano. Unsurprisingly, he has a tried-and-trusted method of beating phobias

F

or George Kourounis, great weather starts at a force-10 gale – which is a stroke of luck, as his job as a documentary filmmaker takes him from one extreme situation to another. For his long-running TV series Angry Planet, Kourounis films tornadoes and wild animals, and climbs into the deepest, darkest caves on Earth. The 45-year-old Canadian knows the precise definition of fear.

Fortunately for him, he also knows how to overcome it. the red bulletin: When we first tried to do this interview, you were busy chasing Tropical Storm Erika. The cyclone raged across the Atlantic Ocean and wreaked large-scale destruction. Why do you seek out danger? george kourounis: I didn’t find it that time – Tropical Storm Erika broke up. Which was disappointing. No, but seriously, it’s not about danger for me. I chase storms because I revere them. Plus, it’s not as dangerous when you know what you’re doing.

THE RED BULLETIN

Do you still get scared?

Yes, of course I do.

How to do manage to take the risks you do?

Fear keeps me on my toes.

Without it, you feel too sure of yourself and end up making mistakes. I embrace fear.

Doesn’t it have a paralysing effect on you?

Fear is in the mind and you have to counteract it, ideally with curiosity.

Can you give us an example of how you counteract it?

OK, let’s take the fear of snakes… Keep looking until

you have to learn everything about your fear, so that you’re able to control it.

When was the last time this method helped you in your filmmaking?

Recently, I shot a film about polar bears and we were sitting in the tundra, about 20m from a male. Male polar bears have a reputation for being very aggressive, by the way. So I had sought out every conceivable piece of information about these fascinating animals. A friend, who I’ll call the bear whisperer, had taught me how to behave in order to survive.

So fear didn’t control you?

It can’t. As soon as a polar

What can we take from that if we don’t hang around polar bears? Do the same rules apply to, say, a strong fear of public speaking?

It’s the same trick, but swap curiosity for enthusiasm.

After all, when you’re invited to speak on a subject, it’s normally one that you’re very partial to. You have to infect the audience with your enthusiasm. If that doesn’t work first time around, don’t worry. Practice makes perfect.

Do you ever worry that people might emulate you and injure themselves?

I can’t stop people copying me. Everyone has to work out the meaning of life for

“IF THE POLAR BEAR WAVERS, GO ONE OR TWO STEPS CLOSER TO HIM AND GROWL. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES RUN AWAY” you come across something about snakes that you find interesting, such as their smooth skin, their bite, whatever. Then gather as much information as you can about that aspect of snakes and about snakes in general.

Your curiosity has to surpass your fear, and that’s exactly what happens when you research anything thoroughly.

I guarantee it. People are only afraid of things they don’t know about, which is why

bear notices you, it’s all about timing. If you’re sure that the bear is wavering, take one or two steps towards him and growl. Then stand your ground. And then repeat the process. By doing this, you’re showing the bear that you are dominant. Under no circumstances should you yourself waver, turn around or run away altogether. If you go for that course of action, the polar bear will attack straight away.

themselves. Mine is to travel around the most extreme locations in the world, to come face to face with the wildest animals and to chase the most dangerous storms, and document it all.

Maybe that’s my lesson: that wonderful things happen when you do something uncomfortable. That’s when life starts to get interesting.

Muhamed Beganovic stormchaser.ca

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Filmgoers will see Perlman, 65, this year in wizard flick Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them and sports drama The Bleeder

“YOU ARE WHAT YOU DO” RON PERLMAN Hollywood’s nicest bad guy

is only happy when he’s acting. But he thinks we should all become authors

MAARTEN DE BOER/CONTOUR, SONY MUSIC

T

he red bulletin: What’s the secret of an enduring acting career? ron perlman: The most testing part isn’t the time you spend working, it’s the time you spend not working.

We would have expected you to say the opposite.

The real peace in my life has always come when I’ve been given a creative puzzle to solve. No matter what else is going on at the time, whether I am having personal difficulties or money problems, as long as I have something creative to do, I’m OK. It’s an addiction.

Why do you think that makes you happy?

It engages me. It defines me. It gives me a purpose and makes me feel like I’m contributing, which I think is a very male quality. If you don’t feel that you’re contributing, you start to feel useless.

So how do you cope with the testing times when you’re not working?

I kept having these frustrating phases, gaps between work that would often last for years at a time.

Then, when I was 50, it suddenly all blew up. That was 15 years ago and since then everything’s gone well.

I was at the point of selling my house, then the phone rang and it was Jean-Jacques Annaud on the other end, saying, “Hey, let’s make Enemy At The Gates!”

Does your profession force you to think about THE RED BULLETIN

your looks more than the average man?

I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about my face. I spend a lot of time running away from what I think about my face. The only good thing you can say about my face is that it gets me mistaken for Tom Waits a lot. He’s such a hero of mine, it’s worth being this awkward-looking just to hear that once in a while.

You’ve written a memoir titled Easy Street (The Hard Way). It’s pretty candid...

I actually feel as though everybody, when they get to their mid-60s, should write a memoir, whether you’re famous or not. It’s a very therapeutic thing to do. That book will basically force you to think about your life.

You’ll realise what you’ve made of yourself, where you started, where you are now, and whether you’ll be leaving the world in a better state than you found it in.

It also ensures you know what you believe in: “Yeah, this is what I feel. This is what I stand for. This is who I am.” And you should do everything in your power to have the f--king balls to stand by it, otherwise you become like everybody else. If you just follow the tide, you have no right to complain. By articulating all these things, I got a clarity about where I want to go in whatever time the good Lord gives me from here on out.

Holger Potye (This conversation took place at the Monte Carlo TV Festival.) twitter.com/perlmutations

Foxes, 26: the salon’s loss is pop music’s gain

“DON’T BE AFRAID TO QUIT” FOXES The pop star would be a beauty therapist today if a phone call hadn’t changed her life.

Follow your dreams, whatever the risk, she says the red bulletin: Is it true that you have a telephone call to thank for your music career? foxes: In a way, yes. I grew up in a small town and a lot of people thought it was ridiculous that I wanted to be a singer.

The day before I started my training to be a beauty therapist, my sister rang to make an intervention. “Don’t be stupid,” she said to me. “Your thing is music! Come and stay with me in London and give it a shot.” So I did.

Now you’re a Grammy-winning pop star. But weren’t you afraid to leave home at 18, risking everything for a dream?

I was. But that was silly. If you can’t see a positive in the future of what you’re doing, don’t be afraid to quit and move on. Pursue your dreams, even if that means risking failure.

Isn’t that easy to say in your current position?

No. Stability only brings a certain type of happiness. You have to follow your passion or you’ll regret it forever. Florian Obkircher Foxes’ new album, All I Need, is out now on Sony; iamfoxes.com

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LUKASZ NAZDRACZEW/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

HAIL OF STONES Red Bull Sea To Sky is a Hard Enduro event in the Turkish resort of Kemer, where the world’s motocross elite go head-to-head for three days solid, across beaches, through forests and finally up a mountain. Avoiding flying pebbles is the least of their worries.

HEAVEN AND HELL SUN, SEA AND SUFFERING: AT RED BULL SEA TO SKY, THE ELITE OF THE HARD ENDURO WORLD FIGHT IT OUT ACROSS THE TOUGH TERRAIN OF THE TURKISH RIVIERA WORDS: ANDREAS ROTTENSCHLAGER

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NURI YILMAZER/RED BULL CONTENT POOL, CLAUDIUS VASILESCU/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

SANDSTORM The Beach Race at Kemer on day one determines the starting order for the two main stages: the Forest and Mountain Races. After a mass start, there’s a high-speed section leading into a motocross course complete with turns, hills and trialstyle obstacles. Here, Britain’s Jonny Walker, who dominated the 2015 Hard Enduro series, takes first place.

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THE RED BULLETIN

JUMP CLEAR The UK’s Mike Slater (front) rides the training circuit in Kemer, ahead of the Forest Race on the second day of competition. The stage comprises 46km of forest, gravel and trial track. Fellow Brit Graham Jarvis, the defending champion, knows how to get through it as quickly as possible – and in one piece. “You have to analyse the 5m ahead of your front wheel as quick as a flash and choose the line with the most grip.”

OFF-ROADING ADVICE FROM THE PROS: “ANALYSE THE 5M AHEAD OF YOUR WHEEL AS QUICK AS A FLASH”

WINNER GRAHAM JARVIS: “EVERYONE EXPECTED A THREE-WAY RACE. BUT I HAD ANOTHER ACE HIDDEN UP MY SLEEVE”

A CHAMPION’S TACTICS

MAHMUT CINCI/RED BULL CONTENT POOL(3), LUKASZ NAZDRACZEW/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

Above: Enduro veteran Graham Jarvis after crossing the finish line.

The 40-year-old missed his pit stop during the Mountain Race, got past rivals Jonny Walker and South Africa’s Wade Young, and went on to win his fourth Red Bull Sea To Sky title. No less exhausted at the end were Jonathan Richardson (below) and Paul Bolton (bottom).

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OFF-ROAD RACERS Showdown on day three. Race favourite Jonny Walker thrashes his KTM 300 EXC through the Kesme Bogazi gorge in Kemer. The crowning stage of the Mountain Race leads from the beach downtown up to the 2,365m volcano Lycian Olympos. Despite having suffered a heavy fall when he overshot a cliff, the 24-year-old keeps the race exciting all the way to the end. “The adrenalin kills the pain,� he says later.

The power of confidence Mexican freediving champion Estrella Navarro knows the essential role that self-belief plays in the quest for success. It’s what enabled her to dive 69m underwater without an oxygen tank, smashing records in the process Words: Alejandro Serrano  Photography: Miko Lim

Navarro swims with a whale shark in the harbour at La Paz

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Navarro’s passion for diving (opposite) goes hand-in-hand with her career as a marine biologist and fashion model

“Most of the time, I feel fear at the surface, but when I relax and submerge my face, that disappears�

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P

eople say that a baby’s first experiences define the rest of its life. Estrella Navarro is a good example of this. Thanks to her swimming coach father, Carlos Navarro, she got into the water before she could walk. And today, the qualified marine biologist from La Paz, Mexico, is a national freediving champion.

Navarro is like Aquaman (well, Aquawoman): she can hold her breath for several minutes while diving to depths of over 50m. Mastering breathing techniques is essential in order to stay beneath the surface for this long without an oxygen tank. But it’s self-confidence that Navarro identifies as the primary attribute underpinning her rare skills and successes. Without it, no matter how great her breathing techniques, Navarro would never have found herself so deep under the water. She’s convinced that if you have complete faith in your potential, success will naturally follow.

Step by step Navarro’s water confidence began as early as it gets.

When she was only a few months old, she began swimming in a pool. “I started freediving when I was a baby,” she says. “My dad took me into the water when I really little, and I learned to swim before I could walk. Babies start swimming naturally, so that was how it all began.” Before she could talk, Navarro could already hold her breath like a pro, thanks to her father, who encouraged a little friendly competition with her older brother. “Even then, she could hold her breath for over three minutes,” he says, proudly.

Fast forward a couple of decades of swimming experience and Navarro encountered another man who would become a key figure in her career as a future freediving champion. “Five years ago, when I was 25, I met Aharon Solomons, one of the best freediving coaches in the world,” she says. Solomons held the key to the next level for Navarro. “I was just minding my own business when Aharon saw me in the water,” she remembers. He told her that, with her swimming style and ear-clearing abilities – a diver must be able to equalise the pressure that 66

Navarro puts on her wetsuit in La Paz harbour. Below: diving with the sea lion colony at Isla Espíritu Santo

”I learned to swim before I even knew how to walk”

builds inside his or her ears while underwater – she could become the national champion in no time. “I thought it was weird that he had suddenly approached me and said that,” she says. “But I responded by asking, ‘When do we start?’ ‘Tomorrow,’ he replied.”

In this case, Navarro’s confidence in her ability to freedive came from her absolute faith in this respected coach. She’d attended a course run by Solomons while she was at university, and accepted that if he showed such confidence in her potential, she could, too. She just needed to follow his lead.

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“I already knew of Aharon’s reputation,” she says.

“And I had always wanted to compete. When he told me that I could become a national champion, I totally believed him, I was thrilled.”

The results soon spoke for themselves. “Just as he predicted, just three months later I broke the national record,” she says. Navarro followed up by becoming the first Mexican woman to win a medal at the world championships of freediving – the AIDA Individual Depth World Championships – taking bronze in the Constant Weight, No Fins (CNF) 67

”Since there’s no gravity underwater, I can move in any direction.

I’m totally weightless.

It’s like flying”

Exploring the waters of Isla Espíritu Santo, a small island off the coast of Mexico

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category, competing against 150 other freedivers.

“On that occasion, I descended 50m and back up swimming breaststroke,” she says. To date, Navarro has broken the national freediving record 21 times, and won two international medals. She believes Solomons’s confidence in her proved infectious, and allowed her to push her limits. But it wasn’t easy.

A leap deep into the darkness First, Navarro had to learn how her body worked, inside and out. “Before I was taught freediving relaxation techniques, I could hold my breath for three minutes and 20 seconds,” she says. “Aharon showed me how to breathe so that I consumed oxygen more efficiently. That’s the key. Breathing is the intersection between the body, mind and emotions.

By using it to relax, I was able to optimise my oxygen consumption. Then I managed to hold my breath for four minutes.” Now Navarro had the potential to win, it was time to put her new-found belief to the test.

Navarro soon learned progression goes hand-inhand with risk. To improve, she had to take a literal leap into the unknown. “I was very scared,” she says.

“When a person shows belief in you, and they say that you can do it, doors open for you” “In freediving you really have to develop your mental strength. You go deeper and deeper underwater and it gets darker and darker until you find yourself in the shadows.” But, gradually, Navarro turned the murky depths into her playground. “Most of the time, I feel fear at the surface,” she says, “but when I relax and submerge my face, the fear disappears. Now I’m more comfortable in the water than out of it.”

For the uninitiated, feeling at home at depths of 60m without breathing apparatus seems improbable at best. But it makes perfect sense to Navarro. “It’s physical and psychological,” she says. “There’s more freedom of movement down there. When you’re in contact with the water, your mammalian diving reflexes are triggered. All the muscles in your body immediately relax, even my back gives way and, since there’s no gravity, I can move in any direction.

I’m totally weightless. It’s like flying.”

To reach a level of freedom in the water that most of us will never be able to understand, the freediver trains five days every week, in the sea, in swimming pools, and on land as well; she meditates every day.

“In competitive freediving,” she says, “ you have to calm your mind in order to have as few thoughts as possible, so you use less oxygen.” Faith that she could achieve her freediving goals meant Navarro developed real physical and mental control in the water. She became a master of the shadows that once scared her.

Free your mind from fear

Preparing to dive at Balandra Beach, La Paz

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“Being told as a child that you can do things, that you can achieve something, allowed me to reprogramme my mind to get there,” she says. “It’s really important for coaches to communicate that to their students.

You might have the same technique as the other competitors, but if you don’t believe you can win, forget it. That’s what makes the difference.” For Navarro, it took the faith from both her father and Solomons to wake her up to what she was capable of. “They helped me to believe in what I was going to achieve. Confidence is everything. When coaching others, it’s the first thing I work on: preparing the mind. When a person believes in you, when they say you can do it, new doors open for you.” And when the mind believes, the body will follow. estrellanavarro.com

“Fatboy Slim opened the festival with a set studded with hits including Praise You as the ship sailed out from Miami�

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IAN WITLEN/THECAMERACLICKS.COM

Each w i nte r, th e cruise s hip M SC Di vina is tra nsfo r m e d fo r a three- day floati n g rave, wh e re 4,0 00 p a r t yg o e rs go wild in sw imwear an d an imal cost um es, a n d star DJs co m pete i n a sack race w ith th e i r fa n s. Ian W itlen, in- ho u se p h otog rap h e r for the H o l y S h ip festival, explain s why p arty in g on the hi g h sea s is even mo re f un than on d r y lan d

MAN THE DECKS!

“After arriving in the Bahamas, the ravers are taken by ferry to the beach party”

“You can either dance or splash around in one of 12 whirlpools (below) as the duo Galantis (above) play. Holy Ship makes both possible”

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IAN WITLEN/THECAMERACLICKS.COM

T

he brochure for the MSC Divina describes it as a familyoriented cruise ship with waterparks and spa rooms.

Each week, this 330m-long, 18-deck-tall colossus sails its passengers from Miami to the most beautiful beaches in the Caribbean. All its itineraries are designed with peace and relaxation in mind – except for two weekends each winter when the Holy Ship festival welcomes 4,000 ravers, each of them armed with their own set of rules, onboard the luxury vessel for three days of partying. The pool deck is transformed into a dancefloor, and partygoers strut between club, cabin and whirlpool in their swimwear as more than 100 DJs, including Robin Schulz, Disclosure and Skrillex, keep them entertained. If you’re not in the party mood, you can have a gamble in the onboard casino or try to get rid of that hangover in the well-equipped spa. The ultimate destination of this floating electronic festival is an idyllic private island in the Bahamas where a beach party is being held, with guest stars including Pharrell Williams. “Holy Ship is like a floating summer camp for grownups,” says American photographer Ian Witlen, who has attended six of the seven cruises organised since 2012. “You really notice that when you’re standing between a mermaid and a guy in a shark costume at the breakfast buffet and realise you’re dancing again. Or that you haven’t ever stopped.”

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“ You ’ll e n d u p stan d in g b etwe e n a me rmaid a n d a g u y in a shark costu me at th e b reakfast b u ffet” “BIKINIS AND SWIMWEAR ROUND THE CLOCK” In the early years of Holy Ship, Ian Witlen came aboard as a photojournalist for music magazines including Rolling Stone and Spin, but now he’s the official party photographer. So forget the tent and rain mac – here, the 32-year-old explains why you should pack a penguin costume and a bathrobe for this music festival.

1. YOU MEET THE STARS DOING THE SACK RACE

“During Skrillex’s set, one of the DJ’s friends proposed to his girlfriend”

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“At a normal festival, you might be lucky to scavenge an autograph from a DJ like Skrillex when they come to the railing after finishing their show. Then they’ll disappear backstage or fly off to their next performance. Things are different at Holy Ship. Because the only way to get back to dry land is by helicopter, most DJs stay onboard for the whole festival and are accommodated in berths cheek-by75

“The ravers dance to Sub Focus in an emptied swimming pool in front of the main stage”

jowl with the partygoers. You might bump into them when the other DJs are performing, or at the pizza buffet, or, if we’re talking about Fatboy Slim, at the sack race. After his 2015 gig, the DJ played holiday-camp games for hours with fans on deck.”

2. YOU CAN FORGET YOUR SMARTPHONE “You don’t have any reception when you’re at sea. And even when the ship lands in the Bahamas, you’re better off leaving your phone in aeroplane mode – on an American phone, you’re charged $20 for every megabyte. There’s been free WiFi on the ship since last year, which is handy, but the majority of the crowd are happy to make the most of the digital abstinence. One of the things you notice is that, for once, when there are DJs playing, almost no one is holding their phone in the air to film it.”

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3. THE PARTY NEVER STOPS “The great thing about partying out at sea is that no one complains about the noise. And as no one on the ship wants to go to bed, there’s no closing time.

There’s music playing for around 20 hours a day on the ship’s five stages.

If you haven’t had enough by 6am, you can carry on dancing at the 24-hour

buffet, where there’s always an impromptu party going on thanks to some partygoer’s Bluetooth speakers.

Or you can sniff out one of the cabin parties – residents will get together with 20 of their friends to create mini-clubs.”

4. THERE’S HEALTHY LIVING IF YOU WANT IT “Four years ago, DJ Gina Turner had the bright idea of turning her passion for yoga into an activity, inviting the crowd to join her. Now, 200 people plump for the early shift over the after-party. The MSC Divina also has a large spa area, in addition to basketball, volleyball and tennis facilities. Believe me, after a big night out, there’s nothing better than chilling out with a hot stone massage.”

5. STARS MAKE A SPECIAL EFFORT “In 2014, Pharrell Williams was the special guest star of the festival. He jetted onto the island by helicopter and played a set at the beach party. But what was even more special was his set on the ship afterwards. He appeared in one of the clubs, hooked up his smartphone to THE RED BULLETIN

IAN WITLEN/THECAMERACLICKS.COM

“I f yo u ’re sti ll g o ing st ro ng at 6am, you can carr y on dan c i n g i n the buffet o r in the cab in s”

“ Th e g reat th in g ab ou t p arty in g ou t at sea is that n o on e comp lain s ab ou t th e n oise”

“Partygoers even wear bikinis and sunglasses at night”

the decks and performed songs from his album Girl, which was still to be released, including uncut versions of hits such as Happy. DJs like Skrillex do likewise, performing impromptu onboard sets in addition to their official performances.”

6. YOU DON’T HAVE TO EAT FAST FOOD “You can get pizza and hot dogs around the clock, but if you fancy a change from the regular festival grub, there’s a fancy restaurant in the hold where you can order three-course meals from the à la carte menu and drink red wine out of proper glasses. You can’t eat in your swimwear there, which makes it the perfect place to temporarily leave the crazy party scene behind. Except, that is, when they’re holding one of their fancydress dinners with themes such as Noah’s Ark, when sharks and penguins overrun the place. Then it feels like you’re at an Alice In Wonderland tea party.”

“Pharrell Williams was the surprise star guest at the 2014 festival”

7. YOU CAN LEAVE YOUR TENT AT HOME

“Tommy Trash (left) hosts some of the craziest parties onboard. Here, the Australian DJ is chewing on a foam hand”

“The most annoying thing about music festivals is trying to find your way back to your tent every night. Of course, you have to stumble your way back to your berth on the ship too, but at least you don’t have to do it in the dark. You take a lift back to your quarters, not a jam-packed shuttle bus. You soon notice while onboard how ill-equipped the tent is as a place to recharge your batteries. The 1,700 berths may be small, but at least they come with a bed and shower. And for those with particular accommodation needs, there’s the Sophia Loren luxury suite, which was designed with the help of the film diva herself.”

8. EVERYBODY TRAVELS LIGHT “People onboard Holy Ship sport a uniform of bikinis and swimwear 75 per cent of the time. In other words, ravers cool-off after dancing by diving into the water and then come back to the club in their swimwear. For any festivals on dry land, you’re best advised to put on a jumper in the evening. If you get cold on the ship, you just go to the clubs below deck, where it’s as hot as a sauna.”

The next Holy Ship festival takes place in January 2017. For more details, go to: holyship.com THE RED BULLETIN

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TRAVEL

DEMONS OF DIRT

Get down and dirty in Asia’s ultimate off-road destination

IAIN CROCKART

MotoGP World Championship?

Mere foreplay. If you want to experience real thrills on two wheels, head off-road and into the jungle, on a treacherous, adventurous ride through the heart of the Cambodian wilderness for an endurance event like no other…

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TRAVEL

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EVENTS

HOW TO 79

ACTION

TRAVEL “If you can practise under a hairdryer wearing a wetsuit, all the better,” says Nick Capsey

CAMBODIA More to explore

Take flight

Cambodia Phnom Penh Want to hit the dirt?

Head to: bigadventureco. com

Wheel deal: jungle obstacles are hardcore

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THE INSIDER

“GET AS MUCH TIME IN THE SADDLE AS YOU CAN BEFORE YOU LEAVE,” SAYS NICK CAPSEY. “THE MORE YOU UNDERSTAND HOW THE BIKE MOVES BENEATH YOU ON LOOSE GROUND, THE MORE COMFORTABLE YOU’LL BE WHEN IT HAPPENS TO YOU EVERY DAY. ”

Get high

Get up close to rare sites

of environmental obstacles – and problems can’t always be solved by tweaking the torque. “We can travel around 1,250km on a trip, but when you have thick mud, sand and rivers to traverse, the going can get slower,” says Capsey. It makes for a thrillingly unpredictable environment.

“Sometimes it’s down to your initiative in a situation,” he says. “On a recent trip, the late monsoon season meant various bridges had washed away, so we had to rely on five local kids to fish out a sunken canoe, repair the holes using mud, and then help us transport eight bikes across the river.”

And while you’re not exactly using pedal power, it’s still very much an endurance sport. “The danger element comes from how hard you’re pushing people in extreme weather,” says Capsey. “Being in the jungle is a nice romantic idea, but you’re wearing an extra couple of kilos in serious tropical heat and you need to keep hydrated. It’s challenging riding that requires all your concentration. I’d compare the feeling to being at high altitude.”

There’s no better way to see the sights than from above them.

Climb, abseil and cave your way above Kampot’s stunning countryside canopy for an aerial adventure of a lifetime. climbodia.com

Go deep Discover the tropical waters, reefs and teeming marine life of Cambodia’s coastline with an overnight dive trip exploring Koh Rong Samloem, Koh Tang or Koh Prins. divecambodia.com

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IAIN CROCKART, NEIL PETERSEN, GETTY IMAGES

“People say that travelling in a car or by road bike gives you a wonderful view. But when you’re on a dirt bike, you’re smelling it, you’re feeling it, you’ve got the wind in your face.

Off-roading takes that extreme to the next level,” says Nick Capsey, founder of The Big Adventure Company. “You’re stood up on the [foot]pegs, leaning over the handlebars, with dust spraying you.

The faster you go, the harder you fall.”

Welcome to Dirt Bike Adventuring 101, a unique spin on a traditional biking holiday, which combines the high-speed thrills and spills of mud-splattered off-road biking with the cross-country cultural adventure of the finest travel tours. It’s a winning recipe for adrenalin-fuelled exploration.

That isn’t to say it’s pedal-to-the-metal the whole way. Going distinctly off-thebeaten-tourist-track brings its fair share

Soar through the air at heights of over 45m along one of the world’s most beautiful ziplines, situated within Angkor Park – a world heritage site a stone’s throw from the famous Angkor Wat. treetopasia.com

ACTION

GEAR

HITTING THE HIGH END There’s nothing wrong with having a little luxury in your life. Check out these highly desirable non-essentials

The BeoLab 90 (shown minus its sleek outer skin) has a 360° design and a variety of settings to ensure the music sounds mind-blowing wherever you’re standing

Bang & Olufsen BeoLab 90 If you have a small fortune to spend on sound, this elegant beast of a speaker is for you. Not only does 65kg of aluminium make it a match for the heaviest bassline, the BeoLab 90 compensates for the sound-stifling effect of furniture and, via an app, ensures you’re always in the sweet spot. bang-olufsen.com

Parrot Bebop 2 This lightweight drone laughs in the face of headwinds and has a long battery life. Pair it with Parrot’s Skycontroller for 2km more range and, with a VR headset, a pilot’s-eye view. parrot.com

Aedle VK-1 Aircraft-grade aluminium, manganese steel and lambskin leather are united in these high-end headphones, handcrafted in France. aedle.net

Xbox One Elite

FLYTE Magnus

Razer Blade QHD+ Touch

Developed with pro gamers, this sleek controller is programmable, customisable and even adapts to your style of play. microsoftstore.com

This levitating lightbulb is powered through the air using induction. It may cost a bit more than your average lamp, but it’s satisfyingly magical. Plus it can glow continuously for over five years. flyte.se

Thin, light, super-fast and with a flawless display that can be seen from multiple angles, this is the most powerful gaming laptop out there. Oh, and you can send emails with it, too. razerzone.com

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WATCHES

Edited by Gisbert L Brunner

DEPTH CHARGE

Tudor Heritage Black Bay This watch might look like a retro timepiece, but in truth that label is way off the mark. You could call it the aspiring Rolex spin-off’s ‘reinterpretation’ of the diving watch. With design flourishes like the dome-shaped black dial – a throwback to Tudor’s classic 1954 diving watch, the Submariner – the latest Heritage variant evokes much stronger memories of the past than the also-available red and blue models. Spec-wise, though, it’s very much a nod to the present. The robust 41mmdiameter steel case can, as you’d expect, withstand water pressure up to 20 bar, while the interior ticks away at 4 hertz thanks to the ETA 2824 mechanism – a self-winding, doublesided rotor. Then there’s the black rotatable bezel with luminescent markers (which, for safety reasons, is unidirectional, reducing the chance of potentially dangerous timing errors while Another distinguishing under the sea). But factor of the new Tudor Heritage Black Bay is despite all the modern the strap – or rather, tweaks, the dials and straps. Black fabric hands have, as always, comes as standard, been designed with and buyers also receive their choice optimal readability of either the steel in mind, whether in bracelet or elegant or out of the water. aged-leather strap. tudorwatch.com

BACK IN TIME

Our pick of the best retro-reviving diving watches Oris Divers Sixty-Five This revival of an iconic diver’s watch salutes the ’60s with its blue-black dial. It’s powered by the robust Sellita SW200 automatic calibre, and the steel case with sapphire crystal and unidirectional bezel is water-resistant to 10 bar. oris.ch

Seiko Prospex Diver’s 6309 Forty years on from the debut of Seiko’s 6309 range come new models with a 44.3mm stainlesssteel housing (waterproof

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up to 20 bar) and an inhouse automatic calibre with a 41-hour power reserve. The LumiBrite paint on the rotating bezel and time hands increases visibility. seikowatches.com

Longines Heritage Diver 1967 Also inspired by the ’60s is this stainless steel model, though the red rotating bezel has grown to 42mm. The steel case protects an exclusive automatic calibre with a 54-hour power reserve, and is water-resistant up to 30 bar. longines.com

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ACTION

WHEELS The Ferrari F12tdf gives you track-level performance on the road

MOTOR MERCH Buy it, wear it, drink it on the rocks

Ermenegildo Zegna and Maserati gifts The fashion house and car maker have a new collection of accessories and fine leather wear to celebrate the release of the Zegna trim package on the Quattroporte and the Ghibli. zegna.com

A RARE BEAUTY

Ferrari wows with its new supercar In the supercar stakes, modern Ferrari’s passion for sales and profit has left styling a little behind. But, with more effort, the firm can still produce a car that drops jaws. Such is the case with the Ferrari F12tdf.

The name of this F12berlinetta derivative honours the Tour de France road race in which Ferrari enjoyed a purple patch during the 1950s and ’60s. Maranello plans to build 799 of the 769hp monsters – a run sufficiently large for the marque to throw in a lot of new tech.

The 6.3-litre V12 engine up front propels the supercar to 100kph in 2.9 seconds, and it borrows the one-piece brake callipers seen on LaFerrari. Liberal use of carbon fibre substantially reduces overall weight, while an aggressive bodywork profile increases downforce by 87 per cent.

And a new active rear-axle system, dubbed ‘Virtual Short Wheelbase’ reduces oversteer, ensuring that owners reach their destination with all four corners of their beloved sportscar intact. ferrari.com

Land Rover and Barbour The cockpit of the F12tdf has been kept Spartan and sporty

Land Rover’s latest clothing collection includes jackets and coats from Barbour, with the British fashion brand’s usual mix of style and ruggedness.

Above is the Exhibition jacket. landrover.com

PERFECTLY FORMED Abarth’s compact car has racing spirit

For those seeking high performance in a more easy-to-park form, Abarth has introduced its latest Fiat 500 derivative, the 595 Yamaha Factory Racing edition. Very much the potent café racer, the 595 produces 160hp from its 1.4-litre T-Jet straight-four engine and gets the full treatment with lowered suspension and Koni shocks. It has all the usual lovely Abarth detailing, too: full leather interior, flat-bottomed steering wheel, aluminium pedals and conspicuous badging. These are somewhat hidden away behind privacy glass – but with its Record Monza exhaust, you’ll hear it coming. abarthcars.co.uk

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Rolls-Royce cocktail hamper There’s top-notch, carthemed merchandise and then there’s this lovely cocktail hamper, designed in consultation with The Dorchester.

Only 15 will be made, so if you have to ask the price, think again. rollsroycemotorcars.com

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ACTION

CULTURE COMING ATTRACTIONS The best gaming events and releases this month

EVENT rAge Cape Town

Batman wonders if the all-night grocers sells Kryptonite…

FILM

CLASH OF THE TITANS

Two comic-book giants go to war in Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice. We guide you through one of the year’s most ambitious blockbusters Wait, Batman and Superman are fighting?

Metropolis is still recovering from the collateral damage caused by Superman’s (Henry Cavill) heroic exploits in 2013’s Man Of Steel, and Batman (Ben Affleck) isn’t happy with the alien superhero.

“He’s angry, and he fears what Superman may do… if he does decide to turn against us,” Cavill explains. It doesn’t help that Supes’ old enemy, Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg), is fanning the flames.

Batman has changed his appearance, too…

Yes, he has a grizzled look and a grey-and-black costume influenced by Frank Miller’s classic comic The Dark Knight Returns. “I wanted a war-weary Batman bearing the scars of a seasoned crime-fighter,” says director Zack Snyder.

Who are the other new characters?

Batman v Superman marks the big-screen debut of Wonder Woman, played by Gal Gadot (Fast & Furious), along with Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and, reportedly, The Flash (Ezra Miller). This is the start of the Justice League – DC Comics’ answer to Marvel’s The Avengers.

So it’s the start of a new cinematic franchise?

Hence the ‘Dawn Of Justice’ in the title. All the new heroes will get their own spin-off, leading to a Justice League extravaganza. “It’s one giant story,” Snyder explains, “and the other movies will support the coming-together of the Justice League.”

Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice opens in cinemas on March 25. batmanvsuperman dawnofjustice.com

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Award-winning gaming expo rAge makes its debut in the Mother City at GrandWest Casino from March 18-20. A day ticket will set you back R100, a weekend pass R250. For entry to the next dimension of gaming, that’s a bargain. rageexpo.co.za

HEROES UNITED The new characters in Batman v Superman Wonder Woman Also known as Diana Prince, this Amazon warrior princess is as strong as Superman, with indestructible bracelets and a weaponised tiara.

The Flash Rumoured to be making a debut. Barry Allen to his mum, The Flash gained the power of super-speed after an encounter with some mystery chemicals.

GAME Hitman A reboot of sorts, this sixth game in the assassin series returns to basics, focusing on separate missions rather than an overarching plot and details of Agent 47’s murky past. Expect more inventive ways to dispatch targets, too. Available on PS4, Xbox One and Windows from March 11. hitman.com

Aquaman This Atlantis-born superhero (aka Arthur Curry) can breathe underwater and control sea life using telepathy.

EVENT Jozi eSport Championships

Wonder Woman: this Amazon delivers

From March 26-27, Mind Sports South Africa will be hosting the 33rd annual Gauteng championships. Gamers will compete for provincial colours across a host of eSport disciplines, including Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, FIFA 16 and League Of Legends. mindsportsa.co.za

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CULTURE

ACTION

CAN ART

DIETMAR KAINRATH

Dietmar Kainrath’s pointed pen

THE CAN IN ACTION

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ACTION

CULTURE

THE PLAYLIST JÓHANN JÓHANNSSON

SOUND AND SCREEN Experience Jóhann Jóhannsson’s work for yourself

In 2002, Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson released his debut album Englabörn, which sounded like a chamber orchestra jamming with a robot.

Since then, the epic quality of his work has attracted film directors, and his soundtrack to 2014’s The Theory Of Everything received an Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe for Best Original Score. This year, the 46-year-old is tipped for more awards with the sinister electronic music for crime thriller Sicario. Here, he lets loose on the five film scores that changed his life. johannjohannsson.com

Ennio Morricone

Miles Davis

Gli Occhi Freddi Della Paura (Cold Eyes Of Fear)

Ascenseur Pour L’Échafaud (Elevator To The Gallows)

“Morricone’s soundtracks for spaghetti westerns like A Fistful Of Dollars are amazing, but I prefer his more obscure scores from the ’70s, when he worked with an Italian improvisational avant-garde group. They did a few albums together and some of their music ended up in this horror crime film. It’s fascinating stuff. He was the first film composer who used his recording studio as an instrument.”

“What’s mind-blowing about this score is that it was improvised.

Davis took his band into the studio, projected the film onto a screen and they played along while watching it for the first time. It was all finished in one day. Nobody has done that since, except for Neil Young [Dead Man] apparently. I think that’s a great way of working. It’s my dream to do an improvised film score at some point.”

Bernard Herrmann

Howard Shore

Vertigo

Scanners

“This is the score that got me interested in cinematic music, not least because the film itself is so strong. Director Alfred Hitchcock’s way of arranging the interplay between Hermann’s score and the images on screen is unsurpassed. The music is almost like a character in this film. Check out the scene where James Stewart is following Kim Novak – it’s almost choreographed like a dance.”

“David Cronenberg’s scary films were a big part of my youth, I watched them so obsessively on VHS in the ’80s that the tape wore out. It was impossible to buy the Scanners score in Iceland, so I had to record from TV to cassette to listen to it.

Shore’s music stands out for its interesting and visionary combination of orchestral and electronic elements, which is something I aim for, too.”

Goblin Suspiria “This minimalistic score for Dario Argento’s 1977 horror classic, recorded by an Italian prog-rock band, is unique. It’s based on this repeated six-note phrase that builds and builds and has this unsettling effect. But it’s alluring and hypnotic at the same time; it really casts a spell over you.

I admire filmmakers who take chances with the score and don’t go for the more conventional or safe choice.”

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Foxcatcher

Jóhannsson’s chilling track Escape features in this 2014 American sports drama, alongside music by the Grateful Dead, Bob Dylan, David Bowie and Woody Guthrie.

The Theory Of Everything Jóhannsson won a Golden Globe for Best Original Score for his contribution to The Theory Of Everything, the biopic of mathematician Stephen Hawking.

THE GADGET

Titan Reality Pulse This egg-shaped pad is claimed to be the first virtual-reality music controller. A high-speed 3D sensor instantly recognises gestures, movements and even shapes, on and above the 30cm x 30cm surface. This makes Pulse capable of digitally replicating hundreds of instruments, ranging from guitars and harps to drums and keyboards. titanreality.com

Prisoners Nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar, this 2013 thriller deals with the abduction of two girls in Pennsylvania, and the resulting search.

Jóhannsson composed the soundtrack.

All DVDs available at musica.co.za

THE RED BULLETIN

ACTION

EVENTS Marc Márquez: gunning for the MotoGP title after a mediocre 2015

SAVE THE DATE More sporting, gaming and partying highlights coming your way this month

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February Tri again See the country’s top off-road triathletes at the three-day XTERRA Grabouw. Saturday’s XTERRA Full race has a 1.5km swim, 28km mountain bike ride and 12.5km trail run.

There are also Lite and Kids’ races.

Twitter: @XTERRASA

Honda rider Marc Márquez and teammate Dani Pedrosa have their work cut out to get back on terms with arch rivals Yamaha as the 2016 MotoGP season opens at the Grand Prix of Qatar.

Márquez failed to retain his 2014 title last year, finishing third overall, so he’ll need to get the best out of the new Honda engine and Michelin tyres this time round. Twitter: @HRC_MotoGP

March 20 International grid

March 11-13 X factor

Melbourne, Australia

Western Cape, South Africa

The 2015 Formula One season ended with the top teams conveniently grouped on the final log: Mercedes took the top two spots, followed by the Ferrari pairing, the Williams duo, the Red Bull Racing drivers, and the two Force India cars. Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo (below) will be out to shake things up in 2016. formula1.com

The Houw Hoek Inn just outside Grabouw will be race HQ for the three-day AfricanX Trailrun. Each day offers a new route through the picturesque Overberg, with distances of between 22 and 34km.

Teams of two (male, female and mixed) will take on the challenge.

Twitter: @runtheafricanx

March 13-20 Epic thrills Western Cape, South Africa South Africa’s premier mountain-bike stage race, the Cape Epic, returns to the spectacular but demanding Western Cape trails for another week of flat-out racing. It’s an Olympic year, which means some of the world’s best cross-country riders will be keeping their powder dry, but others will see it as a chance to win one of the most fiercely contested races on the global MTB calendar. cape-epic.com

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February Dance duo SA’s biggest EDM party keeps growing, with a new two-day format for both Joburg (Feb 26-27) and Cape Town (Feb 27-28).

Skrillex, Tiësto, Afrojack, Zedd and Black Coffee headline. ultrasouthafrica.com

18 March rAge On

The Mother City can look forward to three days of gaming, tech and geek culture overload when the hotly awaited rAge Expo 2016 touches down at GrandWest Casino. rageexpo.co.za

THE RED BULLETIN

GOLD AND GOOSE/RED BULL CONTENT POOL, GETTY IMAGES/RED BULL CONTENT POOL, EWALD SADIE/CAPSEEDPIC/SPORTZPICS, VOLUME PHOTOGRAPHY

March 20 Back in the saddle Losail International Circuit, Qatar

p ro m ot i o n

Must-haves!

1 tag heuer 27° eVOLutION Technological excellence in the name of sport. If you’re going to your next meeting under skyscraper sunlight or following your ball track to the 18th hole, the TAG Heuer 27° Evolution is ready when you are. Capitalizing on ultimate comfort and ergonomics, challenging on innovative design and patented technology, THIS IS EYEWEAR EVOLUTION. The 27° Evolution fully integrates the hinge within the frame, avoiding the gap at the temple. And delivering streamlined protection in a resolutely sporty design. Aerodynamic and well-proportioned, the sunglass’s shape combines ultimate protection and a very sporty allure. For further information contact Sportvision 011 836 0241 / 011 669 0500.

www.sportvision.co.za 2 PS4 IN-ear StereO headPhONeS FThis premium Stereo Headset with noise reducing AudioShield technology is equally impressive when connected to a DUALSHOCK®4 wireless controller or any number of other devices – in or out of the home. The noise reducing technology restricts sound from the environment around you, meaning every journey – from epic gaming adventures to your daily commute – becomes free from unwanted noise and distractions. Simply power up the AudioShield to experience increased immersion as you go deeper into the game-world, and enjoy flawless, uninterrupted audio every time. The headset includes a built-in microphone, which can be used for ingame chat on PS4TM, as well as phone calls on your smartphone. RRP: R1200.00.

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www.takealot.com/official-sony-ps4-noise-cancelling-in-ear-headset-ps4/PLID40995894

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3 SeaLLINe urbaN ShOuLder bag Withstands rain & light splashing. Earth-friendlier PVC-free materials. Constructed of a burly, waterproof 600D, urethane-coated polyester, these bags are built to last in your fast-forward world. QuickClip™ closures allow for easy access to an external zip pocket, and an internal organizer keeps your stuff at your fingertips. An internal divider and corner pockets add commuter-smart organisation. The shoulder strap provides one-handed adjustability and both it and the back panel are padded, waterproof and ventilated for comfort. The finishing touches are good clean looks, carry handle, bike-friendly hideaway waist belt and a light clip-loop to keep you visible. Contact Outward Ventures: 46/16. R 4900. RSP: R 2599,99.

www.outward.co.za

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4 CadeNCe NutrItION MarathON Marathon provides a scientifically optimized formula for prolonged endurance events. A combination of maltodextrin, fructose and whey protein, it offers maximal carbohydrate oxidation rates to sustain performance while also providing protein to prevent muscle catabolism and improve performance in multi day events and during hard training periods.

Balanced electrolyte replacement and isotonic formulation complete the picture. Available in two great tasting flavours and contains no artificial flavourants, colourants or preservatives. RRP R350.

www.cadencenutrition.com 5 OakLey aIrdrOP SatIN bLaCk Rectangular lenses and smooth lines give Airdrop™ a pure, genuine look that brings clean styling to any occasion. The fit is just as versatile with four available sizes so you can get a frame that feels made for you.

Our dark crystal theme adds colour to this goanywhere design made for those who take a straightforward approach to original style. RRP R1800.

www.oakley.com

ACTION

EVENTS BRIGHT STUFF Handy items for a run in the dark

LED Lenser Neo Super-lightweight, convenient, inexpensive and bright enough to cope wherever you are.

Puma Running Night Cat T-Shirt

He’ll go far: Wardian winning by night in Melbourne

THE MAGIC OF THE NIGHT

Make sure you’re visible without looking like a clown. Thanks to 360-degree reflective elements, you will be.

The American won his first Wings for Life World Run in 2014 in Florida in blazing sunshine. He won his second in Melbourne in the depths of night, running almost 13km Night runner more in the process.

Michael Wardian, 41 At the beginning, he was scared of going for night-time training runs. “Would I find my way? Would I be able to see enough? Would I be visible enough? Who would help me if something happened? Animals are often more daring at night than they ought to be.”

But his concerns soon dissipated.

Preparation and the right equipment, he learned, are half the battle. Then the advantages of running at night are huge.

“All your senses are really sharp. Your activity level is through the roof. If I’m out running at night, I feel like a superhero with

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magic powers. Then you get that tingling sensation you get from doing something exciting, almost like you got when you were a kid. Everyone thinks you’re in bed, but you’re outside running about. That gives those training runs a little extra kick.”

Wardian’s nocturnal sorties are extensive.

“Sometimes I’ll be out for five or six hours.

The city feels different at night.” He has one vital tip for anyone who wants to venture out of their daylight comfort zone. “If you’re planning to do long night-time runs,” he says, “learn to eat at all times of day and night.”

Michael Wardian will compete at the 2016 Wings for Life World Run in Japan, which, conveniently, starts at 8pm.

Can’t make it to any of the 34 cities where the Wings for Life World Run will be held on May 8, 2016? Be part of this global event with a Wings for Life World Run Selfie Run! Just download the app for iOS or Android and the virtual Catcher Car will set off behind you. wingsforlifeworldrun.com

Garmin Forerunner 620 A good GPS watch will help you judge distances correctly at night.

Importantly, this one is highly readable.

Puma FAAS 600 S V2 Suitable for every running style, and with high visibility thanks to reflective Night Cat mesh.

THE RED BULLETIN

MARK DADSWELL/WINGS FOR LIFE WORLD RUN, ROBERT SNOW/WINGS FOR LIFE WORLD RUN

Michael Wardian is one of the world’s best marathon runners. But it’s only after night falls that he feels like a superhero on a secret mission. How does he do it?

ACTION

HOW TO

SURVIVE A VOLCANIC ERUPTION Lava, ash, debris, poisonous gases, airborne shards… when a volcano blows, you don’t want to be close by. But what if you are? Awardwinning geologist Professor Dougal Jerram knows the dangers of being in the path of an erupting volcano, having studied volcanic margins all over the world. He’s also an expert in surviving them. Avoiding the initial debris is only part of the battle, he says, as waves of hot gas and rocks may follow. “That was what killed most of the population of Pompeii,” says Professor Jerram.

And that’s before rivers of mud and boulders begin to flow. This is what to do if a volcano erupts near you… dougalearth.com

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Take cover

Find shelter from the shower of ash, rocks and volcanic bombs, but beware: ash accumulates quickly on roofs, making them collapse. Locate a safe route away from the volcano as soon as possible. When the eruption column collapses, you may be hit by pyroclastic density currents – hot gas and rock travelling at up to 700kph.

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Go underground

If a pyroclastic density current is barrelling its way towards you, there’s little chance of survival unless you find a sturdy bunker below ground. When Mount Pelée erupted on Martinique in 1902, more than 30,000 people were killed, but a convict in a subterranean cell survived. After the Mount St Helens eruption in 1980, gophers emerged from their dens to discover all the trees had disappeared.

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Mask up

Explosive eruptions fill the air with volcanic shards that can be deadly if inhaled. Lava flows carry invisible poisonous gases like sulphur dioxide. In both cases, a good face mask can be a lifesaver. If you don’t have a mask, dampen any fine-cotton clothing you can get your hands on and hold it over your mouth and nose.

4

Get high

Post-eruption, there is still the threat of lahars: volcanic debris dislodged by melting snow or torrential rain and sent hurtling downhill. In 1895, more than 23,000 people were killed by these deadly mudflows after Colombia’s Nevado del Ruiz volcano erupted. Lahars follow riverbeds and access points down the volcano, so seek higher ground.

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Stay alert

MARK THOMAS

Eruptions can, in part, be predicted. Volcanologists produce hazard maps based on eruptive records, and modern technology including GPS mapping and drones that measure heat and gases can alert us to any approaching danger.

Warning system networks have been placed in volcanic areas – towns close to Katla in Iceland, for example – to watch for signs of potential flooding or tsunamis. Such measures are invaluable, as even a few extra minutes of reaction time could save your life.

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THE WORLD WILL RUN TOGETHER JOIN US ONE DAY AT THE VERY SAME TIME ALL OVER THE WORLD

MAY 8, 2016 SUPERSPORT PARK, CENTURION, PRETORIA, TSHWANE, 13:00 P.M. 100% OF THE ENTRY FEE GOES TO SPINAL CORD RESEARCH

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BE A PART OF IT!

WEARABLE

TECH IF WE ARE WHAT WE WEAR, WE’RE ALL ABOUT TO GET A LOT CLEVERER. HERE ARE 24 WAYS TO JOIN THE SMART FABRICS AND WEARABLES REVOLUTION

SCOTTeVEST PUFFER JACKET In the years before all of our tech gets woven into our clothing, the 19 pockets in this warm jacket will make it easier to carry all your gadgets around with you. scottevest.com

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WEARABLE TECH

ATHEER AIR SMARTGLASSES These interactive 3D smartglasses, designed for professionals, mean anyone from doctors to plumbers can study, manipulate and annotate 3D images with a nod of their head or a flick of the wrist. atheerair.com

SENSORIA SMART SOCKS Around 65 per cent of runners get injured each year, and these sensor-equipped socks are here to help reduce that. Via an app, they offer real-time analysis and coaching to help you improve your running style. sensoriafitness.com

LECHAL RIO LEATHER SHOES A tech pod snaps onto the side of these stylish shoes, making them able to track activity and even give you directions using vibration. lechal.com

NIXIE WEARABLE DRONE This prototype of the first wearable drone flies off to film or take photos before returning obediently to your wrist. Available soon. flynixie.com

SENNHEISER RS 185 WIRELESS HEADPHONES

SAMSUNG GEAR VR

An audiophile’s dream, these headphones offer hi-fi sound minus a wire tethering you to the spot. Enjoy max-volume music at home any time, anywhere. sennheiser.com

An affordable VR offering that takes Galaxy smartphone users into a new world. oculus.com

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THE RED BULLETIN

HEDDOKO SMART SUIT Workout gear that’s not only breathable and tough, it’s clever.

Track data on the app and get live feedback to improve form. And you can chuck it in the washing machine, too. heddoko.com

CUBE BASELAYER

VOLLEBAK CONDITION BLACK JACKET

Tech in the material of this baselayer regulates your temperature, keeping you warm when it‘s cold and cool when you’re hot. Sadly it can’t make you go any faster. cube.eu

Be all-but indestructible in this seriously rugged snowsports jacket. One of many great features is innovative material ceraspace, second in toughness only to diamonds, in 19 well-placed protective panels. vollebak.com

ION SNAPCAM Snap this tiny device into place and you can shoot stills or video with one tap of a finger, meaning you’ll never miss that perfect moment. Though small, this robust gadget can take 5,000 hi-resolution images or film for two-and-a-half hours on only one charge. ioncamera.com

CHRONOS Billed as the ‘world’s thinnest wearable’, this 3mm-thick disc brings your analogue watch bang up to date. Link to your smartphone to silence phone calls or skip tracks with a wave of the hand, and track fitness, too. wearchronos.com THE RED BULLETIN

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WEARABLE TECH

PAVLOK BEHAVIOUR CHANGER The makers of this electric-shock-delivering bracelet claim it can break any of your bad habits in just five (painful) days. pavlok.com

COLUMBIA WINTER CATALYST GLOVES Inspired by the US Olympic ski team, clever thermal reflective insulation means these waterproof gloves keep your hands warm and dry in all conditions. columbia.com

HELLY HANSEN OFFSHORE RACE JACKET

ADIDAS TECHFIT POWERWEB TANK

Designed for sailors in extreme conditions, the Helly Tech fabric of this super-lightweight jacket stops all water getting in, while letting moisture vapour out for true comfort. hellyhansen.com

This tight-fitting tank top aids posture and supports muscles to improve power output and energy efficiency when training. adidas.com

HUAWEI WATCH MICROSOFT HOLOLENS Blending the digital world with the real world, this headset creates realistic holograms that can interact with your environment. One of the most exciting applications for this versatile tech is using a wearable hologram weapon to blast the evil robot that‘s sitting on your sofa. microsoft.com

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Combining classic looks with modern tech is this Android and iOS-compatible smartwatch. Get a choice of over 100 digital faces, comprehensive fitness tracking and plenty more. huawei.com THE RED BULLETIN

WEARABLE TECH

OMSIGNAL A fitness system that promises to deliver in all conditions. The OM Smart Box is equipped with five sensors and attaches to a smart T-shirt made from conductive thread to ensure detailed readings no matter how much you sweat or move.

Then the app does the in-depth analysis. omsignal.com

MOOV NOW FITNESS COACH Can’t afford a personal trainer? Moov offers coaching, analysis and workouts in real time, and you can also measure yourself against your friends online. moov.cc

TAYMORY WARHAWK TRISUIT In the field of competitive sports, the wrong kit can make the difference between a win and a fail. This elite trisuit gives triathletes a boost with a lightweight material that also protects and dries ultra-fast for maximum comfort. taymory.com

PROJECT JACQUARD OK, so you can’t go out and buy it now, but this Google project is worth mentioning as its fabrics will soon revolutionise the fashion industry.

Having observed that the structure of textiles isn’t a million miles from the structure of touchscreens, those working on the project have managed to weave conductive threads into a brand new sort of yarn that makes fabrics interactive. They’re effectively adding computers to our clothes.

Being able to swipe the leg of your jeans to turn the lights down or switch the song your smartphone’s playing is just the tip of the iceberg. google.com

UNIQLO HEATTECH T-SHIRT Designed to sit discreetly under your shirt on cold days, the anti-microbial fabric of this T-shirt eliminates odours while preserving your own body heat to keep you warmer. uniqlo.com THE RED BULLETIN

LUMENUS BACKPACK Designed to improve cyclist road safety, Lumenus jackets and bags light up at night. Programme in your route via the app, and the backpack will indicate and put on brake lights in all the right places. lumenus.com

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MAKES YOU FLY

“Surfing in Cleopatra’s bathtub? Check!”

Thirty-five-year-old American wake skateboarder Brian Grubb can check one thing off his bucket list NURI YILMAZER/RED BULL CONTENT POOL

PAMUKKALE, TURKEY, October 24, 2015 For more than 2,000 years, people have been flocking to the hot springs of Pamukkale seeking a cure for their ailments. But Brian Grubb was the first one to ride his wake skateboard in the world-famous Cleopatra’s Pool. “It’s huge fun,” he said. “As long as you avoid the pillars.”

THE NEXT ISSUE OF THE RED BULLETIN IS OUT ON MARCH 8 98

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WHAT´S NEW IN FEBRUARY

ON DEMAND

ON DEMAND

WATCH NOW

WATCH NOW

FAR FROM HOME This film retraces the journey of Brolin Mawejje from his humble upbringing in Uganda, to his quest to attend medical school in America and become the first snowboarder to represent an African country in the 2018 Olympics.

LIVE

BURTON US OPEN

CARNIVAL IN RIO February 8/ 9

For snowboarders, the Burton U.S. Open is the event that really matters. Now in it’s 34th year, it’s the most prestigious contest of them all, drawing the best riders from around the world to compete in the longest running competition in the sport.

Parties, parades, and pretty people are the hallmarks of Carnival. A celebration of dancing, color and music. This is a party like no other. Watch Carnival in Rio, The Worlds Biggest Party, Live on Red Bull TV.