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Thursday, April 2, 2026
Weight of the World: Stellar by Deuzeman Photography
'It's a cruel, cruel world to face on your own
A heavy cross to carry along
The lights are on but everyone's gone
And it's cruel'
I don't often post religious imagery. It has nothing to do with my personal beliefs, or my own faith, it's more that historically religion has been used to harm more than to help. Sadly, lessons were not learned, and over the last few years, the far-right has again tapped into religion to justify their bigotry and cruelty.
I make an except however on religious holidays. Regardless of what we believe personally, many holidays are soaked in religious tradition and history. Back in 2020, I was looking for images to celebrate Good Friday on the site. I was fortunate to have been following a model on Model Mayhem who had some powerful shots on theme. The model was Bas, and the artist who captured the shots was Jan Deuzeman.
I featured their work in two posts that Easter, (HERE:) and have been fortunate to have featured Jan's work many time since. This year, The Netherlands based photographer's Easter shoot was inspired by a song by the Indie pop band Gossip. The lyrics of the song Heavy Cross talk about what a cruel world it is, especially when your in a position to face on your won.
Jan asked ,model Stellar J. (Mortemmodel) to take on the role of the cross bearing Messiah. Jan and Stellar have worked together multiple times, and the Netherlands based model is always up for Jan's creative themes and ideas. For this shoot, Jan also wanted to expand the theme beyond just the Biblical references. The goal, was to show the burdens of the universal cruelties that we all must face in this modern world. So many of the problems started long before we were born, but are still playing themselves out generation after generation. From wars to climate change to more personal struggles, no one is really free from carrying a multitude of heavy burdens, not just at Easter, but each and every day.
12 Days: Xenia
Together they will go far.
I found a copy of Xenia on-line and was instantly drawn into the story, the characters and the actor's performances. I did however, not have subtitles, so only heard Greek. Even without understanding a word, the performances, the visuals and the writing and directing from Panos H. Koutras made it an emotional watch.
Actors Kostas Nikouli, (Dany) and Nikos Gelia, (Odysseas) were both new to acting during the filming, I believe it was Nikouli's first professional role. Both rose to the occasion given their character's emotional arcs and the complex relationship between the brothers. Although the film is described as a romance drama, there was no actual incest between the two brothers. Their certainly were homoerotic moments however, and an emotional connection due to circumstance.
Brothers Dany and Odysseus cross the entire country in search of their Greek father, after their Albanian mother passes away. Determined to force him to acknowledge paternity, little do they know that the road to the much-coveted Greek citizenship is paved with ghosts from the past, adult savagery and a dream that needs to come true, no matter what. Reaching the end of this initiatory journey they eventually come of age even if Greece refuses to follow.
'Nikos was like a real brother. We were beginning our career together so the first thing that we said to each other was, ‘Come on, we are in this thing together,’ so we had a relationship to support each other.'
Kostas Nikouli
Although the connection between the brothers is the core relationship, also enjoyed Dany's relationship with Dido. (the white bunny) As I shared in the opening post, the rabbit has several purposes in the story. Dido also has many incarnations, from actual pet bunny to stuffed animal, to a large fantasy rabbit in Dany's dreams. This meant actor and animal had to also have a connection, something Nikouli discussed with FilmDoo.
'Dido and I had to build a relationship. Before the shootings, for example, I went like once a week to a guy who had animals in order to be with Dido, to feed him, to build a relationship and for him to smell me and feel comfortable with me. We had a lot of shootings where Dido was in my bag and it had to be comfortable there because the bag was like its house but it was all very nice I believe. '
'The best part was in one shooting, where we had Dido running through a grass field and I had to grab him and hug him. It was difficult to shoot. The whole crew was asking, “Where is Dido? Where is Dido?” and I was running after him but, when I took him, it was very nice. Then when we did that scene where we fall down on the grass and Dido comes onto my neck like a little puppy. It was a very nice image that Dido did made. I believe that we built that relationship before shooting. '
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