"Cartoonist Nina Paley is slowly turning the narrative of Ramayana into a series of remarkable animations set to a soundtrack of scratchy old 78s. The result is Sita Sings the Blues, a "self-animated, unfunded, destined-to- drive-me-to- the-poorhouse feature-in-progress. "Nina describes the latest chapter, Hanuman Finds Sita: "Gags, gimmicks, AND narrative - hundreds of pages of text crammed into 3 minutes. Plus it contains all 4 main characters: Sita, Rama, Hanuman and Ravana, with extra added bonus demons ... People already familiar with the Ramayana will probably enjoy these musical bits more..." Now, anyone who is into animation, would know that's one hell of an effort. To add to the narrative, she has the story of her struggles captured through her main-page blog. A snippet from the blog: "But now that's all in the past, my cash and I have parted ways, and I've moved on (and in). I love my apartment. I love my Gothic Cabinet Craft cubes. I love my craigslist used sofabed and coffee table. Speaking of which, I've become a craigslist addict. The furniture listing pictures offer a rare and fascinating glimpse into the private lives of New Yorkers. Some vignettes look nice, some look awful, many look simply...alien. Certain photos have made me gasp aloud. Horrifying, but exciting - and I've come to crave more. I've never understood why some people love horror movies, but this must be similar. Now I comb through the listings for the sheer titillation, even while my apartment is full." Download the clip here
