Art

Laura Mooney
Arts Editor

otterheads rejoice! On 12

September 2013, JK. Rowling,
along with Warner Brothers pictures,
announced that they were not done
with the wizarding world just yet.
Rowling announced plans to adapt the
short anthology of magical creatures
entitled Fantastic Beasts and Where
to Find Them into a full-length movie
with the aid of the same production
company that helped bring the Harry
Potter world to life.

Although many fans of the series
jumped to the conclusion that this was
going to be a prequel to the beloved
Harry Potter series, Rowling stands
firm in saying that this will only be

an extension of the wizarding world,
simply because the events unfold
nearly 7O years before Harry is even
born. The book itself is mentioned
numerous times throughout the Harry
Potter series, having been assigned
as one of the required textbooks

for the young witches and wizards,

and is essentially an anthology of all
recorded magical creatures.

This news of the film adaptation comes
as an immense surprise for fans seeing
as the book was written back in

2001, and was such a small project
compared to the mass success Rowling
had with the Harry Potter series.
Rowling originally wrote the anthology
for the Comic Relief charity, and
although it did not reach the success of
her more famous books, she still ended
up raising hundreds of thousands of
dollars for needy children all over the
world,

Rowling plans to have the film based
around the life and adventures of

its author, Newt Scamander, as he
travels the world searching for all

of the magical creatures hiding in

the deepest, darkest corners of the
wizarding world. Scamander also
spent a few years as the headmaster
of Hogwarts, which of course set off the
many rumors that Albus Dumbledore

Thomas Pleiss

Jasper Dark Sky Festival

Laura Mooney
Arts Editor

f you are searching for the perfect
excuse to get away for a weekend
before things get really hectic with
midterms and essays, look no further
than a few hours east of Prince
George in Jasper, Alberta, for the
third annual Dark Sky Festival. For one
weekend Jasper National Park will
showcase their own dark sky reserve,
an area dedicated to preserving the
clarity of night skies, and will hold the
festival to display stargazing at its
finest. The festival promises spectacular
views of far off galaxies and stars like
you have never seen before. Your
experience begins by being taken

to one of the many observation

sites around the park, including the
Athabasca glacier and the Jasper
airfield. The Dark Sky festival is a
fantastic place to view the Northern
lights, meteor showers, and even

the occasional comet, and with the
assistance of a guide, you can even find
galaxies that are millions of light years
away. Ihe experience of standing with
only the night sky and the wilderness
surrounding you is the perfect way to
unwind and de-stress. It is also a great
way to see the universe in a way those
who live in light polluted cities are not
used to. The Dark Sky Festival runs

from 25 October to 27 October in
Jasper, Alberta.

would be making an appearance in
the film, but Rowling has yet fo comment
on that speculation. However, since the
book has a preface by Dumbledore
himself, it would seem more than likely
that the legendary wizard will make
some sort of an appearance.

The film will also mark Rowling's

debut as a screenwriter, with Warner
Brothers allowing the author to have
complete control over the project, and
truly allowing her to fully express her
vision and bring it to life. Rowling has
said, according to an Entertainment
Weekly interview that, in reference

to Newt Scamander, ‘| liked him so
much that | even married his grandson,
Rolf, to one of my favorite characters
from the Harry Potter series, Luna
lovegood. Due to her already
immense interest in the Scamander
character, Rowling could not have
imagined anyone else writing his story.

The adaptation of Fantastic Beasts
and Where to Find Them into a feature

Harry Potter Gets A Spin-off! ... Sort Of :

film also creates the question among
fans as to whether or not other
textbooks and series within the Harry
Potter universe will also be eventually
adapted into movies. The possibilities
are endless, with the inclusion of
Gilderoy Lockhart's complete series

of novels accounting his preposterous
adventures, and the accompaniment
to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find
Them, entitled Quidditch Through the
Ages. Many fans are not so secretly
hoping that this initial adaptation will
lead to a whole new series of spin offs
based in the Harry Potter universe.

Although there is no set date yet for
production to begin, the fact that this
has been announced brings hope to
all those who thought their journey
through the wizarding world was
over. It will provide us with a whole
new outlook on the universe that J.K.
Rowling created, and hopefully will
mean that we will still be able to look
forward to many more movies about
wizards, magic, and magical creatures

Rat er of the Lost Art:

Laura Mooney
Arts Editor

f autumn ever required a musical
persona, We Found A Lovebird's
newest EP, entitled Let's Start the War
would be the perfect fit. This indie
Vancouver band has been showing

up on independent music sites for the
past while, and has certainly made an
impression on this reviewer. With a truly
heartfelt sound, each song is rich with
a passion and emotion that can only
be reserved for those who have truly
lived a full life. From the initial strum

of the title track, “Let's Start the War’
to the bass-line driven “Northwest on
Southwest Avenue’, the boys from We
Found A Lovebird possess a maturity

We ound A Lovebird

'S Gp ip ie

and profoundness not often heard in
the pop-punk scene. The EP as a whole
has a sound one could equate with

an early 1990's rock vibe, combined
with the nostalgic sound of what could
only be described as being similar

to the Beach Boys. On top of their
great sound, the fact that they include
a theremin as one of their primary
instruments should be enough to
convince anyone to give We Found A
Lovebird a chance. Although the band
is still just finding their footing in the
music industry, their sound is pure and
honest, and is a great addition to any
music collection.