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New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

Fareid El Gafy

Fareid El Gafy, Film Editor

Fareid is a senior at Tisch double majoring in Film & TV and Politics. He’s half-Egyptian and half-British which is pretty neat, if he does say so himself, but that’s where the neat stuff ends. Hit him up if you know Jake and Amir or don’t and want to throw down. Alternatively, Fareid can talk for a solid hour about the importance of insects to human culture or find any country on a map and pretend to know something about it. Fareid spends very little time outside. That’s why he writes for the newspaper. What’s everyone else’s excuse?

All content by Fareid El Gafy
"NYU announced it would still be holding Grad Alley — just over VR." (Image by Bella Gil)

The Highs and Lows of Virtual Reality Grad Alley

WSN’s top gamers went to Virtual Reality Grad Alley. Here’s what happened.

To call these times unprecedented would not only be an understatement, it would also just be repetitive. But something that perhaps nobody expected, despite everything that’s...

Fareid El Gafy

Fareid El Gafy

Fareid El Gafy May 8, 2020

Joining WSN was the best decision that I made at college. It got me to do things and develop skills I never thought I would. Contributing to the Arts Issue, attending press screenings,...

Dua Lipa released her second studio album "Future Nostalgia" in the last few days of March.  With its dance music power, each song takes you out of your mind, out of whatever bleak interiority exists in that moment, and into a higher plane of existence, especially amid this grim reality we are living in. (Staff Photo by Fareid El Gafy)

Photo: Dua Lipa’s Pop Escapism Arrived Just in Time

April 8, 2020

Dua Lipa released her second studio album "Future Nostalgia" in the last few days of March. With its dance music power, each song takes you out of your mind, out of whatever bleak...

Online gift cards, donations, live streams and more are still viable options during this time. The WSN Arts desk lists some ways you can still support independent artists from a safe social distance. (Staff Illustration by Charlie Dodge)

How to Support New York’s Vibrant Independent Arts Scene

Even though New York is on pause, that doesn’t mean you still can’t support your favorite local bookstore or movie theater from home.

One week ago, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio ordered New York City movie theaters to shut down as part of many initiatives to hopefully “flatten the curve.” Earlier in...

Sonic's design is significantly improved from what we've seen at the film's reveal. The visual success, nonetheless, couldn't save the film from its flimsy plot. (Photo by Hassan Elgamal)

‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ and a 40-Year-Old All-American Boy

“Sonic the Hedgehog” is a bog standard first outing for the blue blur.
Fareid El Gafy, Film Editor February 19, 2020

“Sonic the Hedgehog” is exactly what we thought it would be. If the film portended by the “Gangsta’s Paradise” trailer appeals to you, then you will likely see past its...

In the mood for love? WSN recommends some Valentine singles you may have missed this week.(Illustration by Rachel Buigas-Lopez)

Staff Recs: Valentine’s Day Edition

The Arts Desk recommends the best films, music and galleries for you to enjoy this Valentine’s Day.

Ashley Wu, Deputy Arts Editor  Even though Valentine’s Day was invented by Hallmark to sell greeting cards, let’s try to forget about capitalism for a second and celebrate...

Half of the critically acclaimed French Film "I Lost My Body" follows the misadventures of a disembodied hand, as told through animation. The film is one of several Netflix films nominated for Academy Awards this year. (Staff Photo by Fareid El Gafy)

Photo: ‘I Lost My Body’: A Hand’s Odyssey

February 14, 2020

Half of the critically acclaimed French Film "I Lost My Body" follows the misadventures of a disembodied hand, as told through animation. The film is one of several Netflix films...

After a tumultuous release, graphic designers were charged with adjusting the film's effects based on audience reactions. (Image via pixabay)

The Patched Film Adopts the Worst From Video Games

Films such as “Cats” and “Sonic the Hedgehog” show that the movie industry is taking a spooky page from the video game industry in releasing unfinished products and rushing fixes at the artists’ expense.
Fareid El Gafy, Film & TV Editor January 27, 2020

Any film or video game buff will tell you that when the two mediums come together the result is often ugly and offensive. Video game films gave us such abominations as the peanut-headed,...

(From back then clockwise) Matthew O’Connor, Vanneeda Keowmang, Jacob Linen, Vivian Gisle and Heather Vaxer.

Advanced TV Pilot ‘Mary and the Mob’ Blazes Trail for Sustainable Set

Showrunner and Tisch alumna Vivian Gisle and sustainability officer Bradley Sachs talk set sustainability and hopes for future Tisch and industry standards.
Fareid El Gafy, Film & TV Editor December 5, 2019

Every year at the Tisch School of the Arts, students and professors make more than 5,000 films. In the process, they discard food waste, single-use plastics, water bottles, expendables...

The Final Staff Rants (of the Semester)

The Final Staff Rants (of the Semester)

In honor of the semester’s final Staff Rants, we have no theme — only pent-up rage.

On Free Space By Ishaan Parmar, Deputy News Editor Look, I get it. We’re all on the homework grind. CAS, Liberal Studies, Stern, Tisch — we all have homework, and none...

Professor Sameh Zoabi digs deep into his roots as the director of "Tel Aviv on Fire." (Photo by Hassan Elgamal)

Sameh Zoabi: The Palestinian Director With an Israeli Passport

NYU professor and director Sameh Zoabi discusses his latest film, Luxembourgish Oscar contender “Tel Aviv on Fire,” and what it means to be a Palestinian filmmaker and an Israeli citizen.
Fareid El Gafy, Film & TV Editor December 2, 2019

Professor Sameh Zoabi has had to explain who he is since the day he was born. Born in a Palestinian village outside of Nazareth, Israel, Zoabi is a man stuck in the middle. When...

From pop to lofi, WSN's Arts Desk recommends their favorite music to study to. (via YouTube @ChilledCow)

Staff Recs: Good Music for Studying

The Arts Desk collects the perfect chill tunes for a serious study session.
Ethan Zack, Julie Goldberg and Fareid El Gafy November 22, 2019

“logical” by Shuttle358 Songs with lyrics are a bust for me when it comes to background music for studying. I always feel tempted to turn the volume up so I can hear the vocals...

From "Mamma Mia!" to "Joker", the Arts Desk recommends several last-minute, movie-inspired costumes for Halloween. (via Warner Bros)

Staff Recs: Halloween Costumes

Scrambling to put together a last-minute Halloween costume? The Arts Desk has you covered with these costumes based on characters from some of our favorite movies.

Donna Sheridan from “Mamma Mia!” (the movie version) Be the ultimate dancing queen this Halloween in your very own Donna Sheridan costume from “Mamma Mia!” Halloween...

An Artist’s Sensibility, With an Engineer’s Mind

An Artist’s Sensibility, With an Engineer’s Mind

Morgan Mueller, a graduate student at Tisch’s Interactive Telecommunications Program, approaches the arts world with the calculating demeanor of an engineer.
Fareid El Gafy, Film & TV Editor October 14, 2019

“I love being the stupidest person in the room,” Mueller said. 25-year-old Morgan Mueller is a second-year graduate student at NYU Tisch’s Interactive Telecommunications...

Tisch professor Chris Chan Roberson has worked extensively in the film industry before teaching at NYU. (Via NYU Tisch)

Chris Chan Roberson: The Fastest Professor Alive

Tisch professor Chris Chan Roberson discusses his experience in and outside of the industry from “Surf Nazis Must Die” to hawking vintage clothes.
Fareid El Gafy, Film & TV Editor September 30, 2019

Blink and you’ll miss him. From every corner of the film industry to every classroom at the Tisch School of the Arts, two decades of professional experience has left no stone...

(via YouTube)

Staff Recs: Pretentious Films to Impress Your Fake Friends

Need to sound like you know about movies? Here are a few of our go-tos.

Your friends told you to watch it. It was on your Amazon recommended list. And now the Arts Desk of WSN, a group of complete strangers, is going to reinforce everything that they’ve...

Larry David at a film festival in 2009. (Via Wikimedia)

Unpopular Opinions: Unconventionally Hot Girl Summer

The Arts Desk weighs in on some underrated hotties in the entertainment industry.

Hot Girl Summer is ending and with so many unconventionally attractive additions to the Hot Girl Summer canon (Lizzo, Billie Eilish, Beto O’Rourke), we at the Arts Desk thought...

“Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure” kicks off a fifth season, “Golden Wind,” exciting longtime viewers and garnering new fans alike. (via YouTube)

‘JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind’ Lives up to its Radical Name

Fareid El Gafy, Film & TV Editor September 3, 2019

Housewives, toddlers, senior citizens and dogs with the body of Arnold Schwarzenegger. Jacked and flamboyant heroes duking it out with super-powered manifestations of their fighting...

Still from Invader Zim: Enter the Florpus. (Photo via Netflix)

‘Invader Zim: Enter the Florpus’ Delights Inferior Humans Young and Old

Fareid El Gafy, Film & TV Editor August 24, 2019

The year is 2000. Nickelodeon has redefined children’s media with the likes of “Ren and Stimpy”; crass humor and gratuitous violence abound. American mothers shudder in the...

The second season of One Punch Man is out now and on episode three. (via Facebook)

‘One Punch Man’ Season 2 Pulls Its Punches for Now

The follow-up to the successful anime is off to a disappointing start.
Fareid El Gafy, Staff Writer May 5, 2019

“One Punch Man” was an instant hit with anime fans in 2015, taking the internet by storm with memes and parodies featuring its dopey, bald star. A second season was soon announced,...

The main subject of the documentary, Gemma, a troublemaking teenager who comes of age in a declining Scottish steel town. (via Falco Ink)

‘Scheme Birds’ Is a Scottish Story Long Overdue

Ellen Fiske and Ellinor Hallin frame Scotland in a new light in “Scheme Birds,” a coming-of-age documentary.
Fareid El Gafy, Staff Writer April 29, 2019

“Maggie Thatcher took the steel industry from Scotland and Ireland, [and] gave it to England.”  Twenty-one-year-old Gemma sums up the history of her sleepy Scottish hometown...

Promotional poster of Don Quixote. (Courtesy of Falco Ink)

‘The Man Who Killed Don Quixote’ Is a Lackluster Comedy Adaptation

The story of how Terry Gilliam’s adventure comedy made it to the big screen is more interesting than the film itself.
Fareid El Gafy, Staff Writer March 31, 2019

Nearly two decades of development hell would defeat most ordinary filmmakers, but Terry Gilliam of Monty Python fame is not deterred so easily. “The Man Who Killed Don Quixote”...

Dev Patel (left) as "Arjun" and Anupam Kher (right) as "Oberoi" in director Anthony Maras' Hotel Mumbai, a Bleecker Street release. (Courtesy of Kerry Monteen / Bleecker Street)

‘Hotel Mumbai’ Thrilling, but Not Too Profound

The new international thriller is intense, though it does not have as much depth as it thinks it does.
Fareid El Gafy, Staff Writer March 24, 2019

Thrusting ordinary people into extraodinary situations is a recipe followed by many gripping films, and it is certainly the backbone of Director Anthony Muras’ “Hotel Mumbai.”...

"How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World" is the third and final film in the DreamWorks franchise. (via Flickr)

‘How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World’ Has Great Visuals, but the Same Old Story

The final film in the franchise does not live up to its acclaimed predecessors.
Fareid El Gafy, Staff Writer February 26, 2019

As Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) and Toothless solidify their place in film history with a complete trilogy, I have to say, let’s end the journey here. In terms of longevity and revenue,...

Sussane Wolff in "Styx".(Courtesy of Amour Fou)

‘Styx’ Is a Modern Tragedy

Wolfgang Fischer’s drama is a deliberately paced, yet beautiful masterpiece.
Fareid El Gafy, Staff Writer February 25, 2019

Every year, thousands of refugees risk everything to find safety abroad. Many from war-torn countries near the Mediterranean often brave the open sea in a desperate and often fatal...

Promotional poster for the film "Mirai". (Courtesy of GKIDS Films)

‘Mirai’ Wants You to Love Your Family

Fareid El Gafy December 4, 2018
The director of “Wolf Children” returns with another unique family tale.
A poster for "Ralph Breaks the Internet," the sequel to "Wreck It Ralph." "Ralph Breaks the Internet" explores themes of self-improvement in the digital age. (Courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures)

‘Ralph Breaks the Internet’ Wrecks the Mold Again

The sequel to the 2012 hit finds the titular character entering the internet for another colorful adventure that parodies online trends and culture.
Fareid El Gafy, Contributing Writer November 26, 2018
The sequel to the 2012 hit finds the titular character entering the internet for another colorful adventure that parodies online trends and culture.
Chris Pine in "Outlaw King." (via netflix.com)

Netflix Historical Drama ‘Outlaw King’ Falls Short of Epic

Fareid El Gafy, Contributing Writer November 14, 2018
The Scottish biopic starring Chris Pine was re-edited following its TIFF premiere, but it’s still a mixed bag
Goblin Slayer, a character from the namesake Japanese series. (via facebook.com)

Five Anime to Watch and One to Sit In on

With a slew of new anime releases on the horizon, WSN has the picks of what to watch and what to avoid this fall.
Fareid El Gafy, Contributing Writer November 14, 2018
With a slew of new anime releases on the horizon, WSN has the picks of what to watch and what to avoid this fall.
(Courtesy of John Hollands)

NYU Sketch Comedy Group Joins New York Comedy Festival

Please Don't Destroy kills cows and you with laughter.
Fareid El Gafy, Contributing Writer November 7, 2018
Please Don’t Destroy, made up of three current NYU students and three alumni, is set to perform as a part of a week-long comedy blowout.
Nadia Murad, Yazidi refugee and activist, subject of documentary "On Her Shoulders." (Courtesy of Oscilloscope Laboratories)

ISIS Survivor Bears the Struggle of the Yazidi People ‘On Her Shoulders’

Fareid El Gafy, Contributing Writer October 26, 2018
Director Alexandria Bombach's documentary "On Her Shoulders" tells the story of Nadia Murad, a survivor of sexual slavery at the hands of ISIS who seeks justice for the Yazidi people.
A still from season 3 of "My Hero Academia." (via facebook.com)

‘My Hero Academia’ Exceeds Fan Expectations

Fareid El Gafy, Contributing Writer October 18, 2018
The latest season of popular anime "My Hero Academia" has fresh writing, heart and heroism and exceeds expectations.