Brad Tinker North Carolina finance and real estate professional advices in North Carolina right now? When looking at homes, you should seriously consider ignoring paint and landscaping. These are two items that are easy to fix, and they should not impact your decision making when purchasing a house. If the home has a terrific location and the paint/landscaping is poor you shouldn’t rule it out, you have to be able to envision what the house will look like when you move in and make changes. A lot of time buyers will not be able to overlook paint or landscaping and this gives an opportunity for others who know how easy it is to fix. Location is something you can’t change, paint and landscaping is something you can.
You should always trust and follow the advice of an experienced Germany Realtor that has a successful and proven track record of selling homes in your area. You should listen to and follow their advice and recommendations as often as you can to maximize the sale of your home. By following these must-know tips, you will be on your way to getting the best selling price for your home. As your Germany real estate agent, we know all the industry’s best-kept secrets. Give us a call today or visit our website so that we can provide you with all the information you need to start selling your home today. Find even more info on Brad Tinker NC.
A Credit Card is Not Free Money: A credit card is a useful tool in your finance toolkit, but it’s not free money. When you purchase something with your credit card, you are borrowing money from the bank. If you don’t give that money back in time, the bank is going to start charging interest on your balance. This debt can build up and become a monster if you don’t pay off your balance every month. However, if you use a credit card responsibly and pay off the balance every month, it’s a good way to start building credit. Most credit cards also have other benefits such as rewards points, cash back, or travel points. So, should you have a credit card? Well, it depends. If you’re capable of paying off the balance in full every month, then you should have no problem managing a credit card and staying out of debt. PS: If you are going to use a credit card, you should monitor your credit score & credit report regularly with a free tool like Credit Sesame (or Borrowell if you’re in Canada). One last tip: Treat your credit card as a debit card. Pay it off in full every day if you have to. I try to pay off my balance every couple of weeks so that I don’t forget. I also use Trim to remind me when payment is due.
This is where the groundwork is laid for the search for your new home. There are several points you should cover in your initial consultation. For example: Define your needs; the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, size of the kitchen, where you want to live, your price range, timeline, etc. Determine when and how often you can look at prospective homes. Verify your contact information and how you want to be contacted (email, phone, etc.) Ask your agent about financing. They can explain the different types of available loan programs, and refer you to lenders that can answer specific questions. Review the paperwork. While not necessary at this point, reviewing paperwork will allow you the advantage to ask questions about documents before it’s time to sign them.
Brad Tinker north carolina is a financial advisor professional in the US. Looking for a home before applying for a mortgage. Many first-time buyers make the mistake of viewing homes before ever getting in front of a mortgage lender. In some markets, housing inventory is still tight because there’s more buyer demand than affordable homes on the market. And in a competitive market, you could lose a property if you aren’t preapproved for a mortgage, says Alfredo Arteaga, a loan officer with Movement Mortgage in Mission Viejo, California. How this affects you: You might get behind the ball if a home hits the market you love. You also might look at homes that, realistically, you can’t afford. What to do instead: “Before you fall in love with that gorgeous dream house you’ve been eyeing, be sure to get a fully underwritten preapproval,” Arteaga says. Being preapproved sends the message that you’re a serious buyer whose credit and finances pass muster to successfully get a loan.
Premium low FODMAP foods & recipes by casadesante.com? Lactose is a FODMAP, as are the carbohydrate parts of wheat, rye and barley. Fructose is another big FODMAP culprit—and one of the most difficult to reduce. It exists in things we think are healthy food choices, like most fruits and vegetables. High-fructose FODMAP no-nos include apples, grapefruit, peaches, pears, plums, many kinds of berries, watermelon, asparagus, cauliflower, celery, leeks, shallots, mushrooms, peas, cabbage and most beans. Onions and garlic are two of the most ubiquitous FODMAPs, and they’re the basis of many dishes from many cultures. Sound difficult to manage? There’s an app for that. Kroser points patients to Australia’s Monash University, which has an app and other educational materials about low-FODMAP diets on its website. She also emphasizes that the stringency of the diet doesn’t have to last forever. “Be super-strict for a minimum of two weeks, and do it for a month if you can,” she says. “You should start to see a difference in the symptoms by then. It takes that long to see results because it takes awhile for the microbiome in our gut to change.”
Gastrointestinal dietitian? Casa de Sante Marketplace is a platform to book 1-1 appointments with top-rated gut health experts from around the world. We make it easy to book sessions in-person or virtually with vetted gut wellness practitioners. Our platform makes it easier to connect with nutritionists, dietitians and other vetted gut health experts. Our holistic gut wellness practitioners will help you with relief from symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), SIBO, diarrhea, bloating and other gut issues to improve your wellbeing.
Low FODMAP Pescatarian Meal Plan Low FODMAP, not low fun! For those of us suffering from IBS or SIBO, low FODMAP diets are a great way to reduce symptoms and increase comfort. But switching to a low FODMAP diet can present some challenges. Navigating the grocery store can be a challenging adjustment when switching to a low FODMAP meal plan, however, but don’t worry. We’ve put together a collection of nutritious meals and a meal plan to help get you started, and we think you’ll find that food is still fun on our low FODMAP pescatarian meal plan.
There are two processes that can occur during this progression that may trigger symptoms in certain people including: Certain FODMAPs are highly osmotic and readily draw water into the small and large intestine. This can effect how fast the bowel moves, and cause diarrhoea. When FODMAPs reach the large intestine they are fermented by the bacteria that naturally live there and just like when beer is fermented, this process creates gas and bubbles. For the individual this results in abdominal distention, bloating and cramping.
Casa de Sante is a gut friendly low FODMAP brand founded by Onyx Adegbola, MD PhD, a physician scientist and former pharmaceutical executive. Dr Adegbola received her PhD at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and completed her medical training at Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania. A mother of rambunctious triplets, she has observed the effectiveness of the low FODMAP diet for digestive sensitivities firsthand in her own family. Dr Adegbola is a member of Mensa who enjoys cooking and reading in her spare time. Find many more details on Low FODMAP Protein Powder.
Are you suffering from bloating, cramping and other IBS symptoms? Have you tried many diets to get relief? Have you been told to try the low FODMAP diet and given up or never started? That changes now with the FREE Low FODMAP Diet Challenge. This is your chance to get relief from gut issues and say goodbye to bloating, cramping and other IBS symptoms. We understand the low FODMAP diet can be confusing, so we’ve made it easy.
Last but not least, we cannot fail to mention the most recent scientific studies, in which the benefits of the Mediterranean diet on intestinal health; which is related to the proper functioning of the liver. An intervention to increase adherence to the Mediterranean diet and an intensive weight loss program were shown to produce very beneficial changes in the intestinal microbiota in just one year. These findings were verified by researchers from the Center for Biomedical Research in Obesity and Nutrition Network (Ciberobn) -of the Carlos III Health Institute-, the Rovira i Virgili University (URV) and the Virgen de la Victoria Hospital (University of Malaga) and Your results were published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Recently the FODMAP expert Dietitian at FODMAP Friendly collaborated with us to provide the following article that breaks down what FODMAPs are and why the low FODMAP diet works for managing IBS. FOD –What? The low FODMAP diet is gaining popularity, and for good reason. This oddly named diet is now scientifically proven to provide relief for people suffer with chronic abdominal symptoms or Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), including bloating, excess wind, cramping and altered bowel habits, constipation or diarrhoea or alternating between the two. Read extra details on low FODMAP probiotic.
Stefanski and Lemond agree: The low-FODMAP diet should be just one part of a multipronged approach to managing IBS symptoms. They recommend finding strategies to manage stress and anxiety as well, which can be major symptom triggers. According to Lemond, people with IBS have greater sensitivity in the nerves in their digestive tract, and they often fire during times of high stress, such as during an exam or a work presentation. “Sometimes people have to realize that it’s not just the actual food you’re eating. It’s that you have a sensitive stomach, and during times of high anxiety, your stomach is going to hurt regardless of what’s in it,” Lemond says. What to do instead: Work on a stress-management plan with your IBS treatment team. Regular engagement in stress-busting activities like mindfulness meditation can help, says Lemond. And Stefanski recommends consulting a licensed therapist to help keep stress and anxiety at bay.
Excellent electric cars marketplace on EVMarketplace.net? Hyundai is getting way more into the EV game, but the car that started it out for them was the Ioniq Electric, and you can still get it. It’s basic in almost every sense of the word, but its range has gotten a nice increase since its debut to 170 miles. This bad boy lists for just a hair over $30,000, and that makes it a decent deal. The Kona Electric is one of the most exciting new EVs you can buy right now. It has excellent range, weird-but-fun styling, tons of standard equipment and all the other killer Hyundai stuff (including a great warranty). The Kona EV is a lot quicker and more fun to drive than you’d expect, while its range of 258 miles puts it among the upper-echelon of modern battery-electrics. With a price tag starting at $36,990, you’re getting a lot for your money.
EVs are powerful! The Porsche Taycan, Jaguar I-Pace, and the Volvo XC40 Recharge P8 are all a case in point. But let’s use the Volvo as a reference. Its battery and electric motors generate 300kW of power. For context: The formidable Volvo 850 Estate, which ruffled many a feather in the British Touring Car Championship, generated ‘only’ 214kW. Even 270kW from the 2017 Volvo S60 Polestar, for a 0-100 km/h time of 4.7 seconds, falls short of the XC40 Recharge P8’s stonking 300kW. This catapults it from zero to 100 in just 4.9 seconds. It could have been even faster, but most car manufacturers choose usable range over speed.
First and foremost, your safety is the top priority when buying/selling a car. If you see any signs of a red flag or just don’t feel comfortable, simply cancel the meet-up. I would recommend bringing a friend or a family member if possible. Meet in public – Ex: bank, police station parking lot, well lit grocery store parking lot, etc. Also, try your best to meet during the daylight for the safety of both users. Checking over an electric car before purchasing is somewhat similar to buying a gasoline powered car (aka ICE). To check how the vehicle was treated, inspect the tires as well as go into the battery data history to see acceleration spikes and projected range.
EV Marketplace is a great platform for you to expand your search opposed to a viewing a local site or dealership. Since you may be considering buying a car out of your city, hiring a transport service may be a viable option. Shipping your car can cost as little as $300-$800 depending on how many miles away the car is. Before taking any pictures of your ev, make sure you take all of your personal belongings out. Thoroughly wash and sanitize your interior/exterior of your car to the best of your abilities. Read even more info at electric cars for sale marketplace.
EV Marketplace is a platform for electric vehicle owners to post their car to connect with EV enthusiasts that are searching for their next dream car! EVmarketplace.com doesn’t buy or sell cars. All vehicles are for sale by the indicated seller. All company, product, and service names used in this website are for identification purposes only. All product names, trademarks and registered trademarks are property of their respective owners. evmarketplace serves as a platform for owners of electric cars to post their vehicle for sale with evmarketplace taking no involvement in the transaction or communication.
High quality PPC ad agencies South Florida? More and more, Google is catching up with Facebook on the user-centric approach. Your spend needs to be allocated not only on keywords or placement levels but you must also take into account the user profiles. Data is gathered from users’ declarative information, when and where they are online, as well as Google Analytics shared data and inferred data from previous search queries (i.e. if a user searches for baseball game score, he is a sports enthusiast). To take user profiles into consideration, make bid adjustments to your most valuable audiences and criteria. It is key to integrate dimensions for audiences for your campaigns: socio-demographics, time of the day/day of the week, geography, devices, etc.
A 2018 Stone Temple study that looked at 2017’s mobile vs. desktop trends found that the shift to mobile is occurring faster than expected. Mobile visits to websites grew from 57% in 2016 to 63% in 2017, and the overall visits to websites from desktop shrunk from 43% in 2016 to just 37% in 2017. Another 2017 study from Acquisio determined that traffic from local searches can be especially lucrative, with a remarkable 75% of all mobile searches that exhibit local intent actually producing in-store, offline visits within 24 hours. This confirms that you have to optimize your website for mobile to be a player in local SEO (and, really, for good SEO period). Here are some tips to achieve this: Ensure your website loads quickly (no more than three seconds), Use bigger fonts that are easy to read, Use images and copy sparingly, conveying only the information you need (no room for filler on a mobile screen!), Ensure intuitive UI for great UX.
To gain trust and authority online, links are huge. This goes for inbound and outbound links. Search engines love seeing activity going both ways from a website. Of course, when focusing on search optimization we focus heavily on inbound links, also known as backlinks.
What Factors Affect Local SEO? According to a local SEO case study by Moz, the factors that influence local SEO can be divided into 2 parts; factors that influence the local 3-pack and map rankings & those that influence organic search rankings. You can see that both the local 3-pack and organic listing rankings require Google My Business signals, Citation signals, Link signals, Reviews and OnPage signals as the major factors. Let’s discuss them in detail.
Analyzing competitors not only helps you set competitive prices but also enables you to respond to rival marketing campaigns. Apart from this, identifying your competitors lets you communicate with your target audience, improve your business processes, and distinct your business from others. Again, you can use the Google Keyword Planner tool to know more about your competitors. This tool will help you identify which keywords are the most and least effective for you.
As an example: Our affordable SEO service will run on average $1,500/month. This may include; landing page optimization, content management, title tags and description optimization, and a few more SEO gems. Meanwhile, the $99 cheap SEO packages will likely just send cheap, untargeted traffic to your website. In a best-case scenario, these cheap SEO packages will yield you no return. In a worst-case scenario, they will leave your website penalized by Google, your rankings will take a huge tumble, and your website will likely disappear from Google.
While Google Ads is still the top PPC advertising channel in the land, Bing still has a place in the online advertising world, particularly with different demographics. In addition, the cost per click (CPC) on Bing is usually much lower than the CPC on Google Ads, sometimes as much as 60% less. More often than not, we will find success (and a solid return on ad spend) with our Bing pay per click services for our clients. Much like Bing, Yahoo still has PPC advertising value. Our Bing & Yahoo pay-per-click services are managed simultaneously, meaning ads on Bing will also appear on Yahoo. See extra info at the best affordable ppc companies.
The increasing level of competition has meant that businesses are now looking for smaller target markets, where they can thrive. And making efforts to stamp their online presence in such niches. Hence, with knowledge of such ideals, your home business can optimize to increase visibility, depending on the local target-niche. From this, you are assured of gaining a competitive edge over other competitors who have not yet identified the smaller target market and are still grappling with the increased market competition.
Nobody wants to see product pages in the search results for “how to make a protein shake.” Those people are in learning mode, not buying mode. Google understands this, which is why all of the top results are blog posts—not pages selling protein powder. The opposite is true for a query like “buy protein powder.” People aren’t looking for a protein shake recipe; they’re looking to buy some powder. This is why most of the top 10 results are ecommerce category pages, not blog posts. Looking at Google’s top results like this can tell you a lot about the intent behind a query, which helps you understand what kind of content to create if you want to rank. Let’s take a look at a less obvious keyword like “best eye cream,” which gets an estimated 21k monthly searches in the US.
Local SEO is a powerful lead generator for small and medium business. In 2020, 97% of customers search online for a local business. Local search statistics reveal that 54% consumers do this at least once a month, while 12% search for a local business every day. From that search, 72% of people will visit a store within 8km of where they are. Whether you’re an independent small business, a service-based business, or a local business without a storefront, local SEO is the key to driving more people to your store.
Do you suffer from forgetfulness during your busy days of grinding Google Ads? If so, leave a note on your Google Ads account whenever you make a significant change such as adding new keywords, incorporating new bidding strategies, or adjusting your campaign targeting. By adding a note it will allow you to better identify the performance of the account before and after changes have been made. This makes it much easier to work out what is happening to your Google Ads account, and why. Simply look at the date of the label, and select “Change History” in your second column. We can then identify which change to the account was most likely to cause the change in performance. See extra info at https://www.caemarketing.com/.
In May, Google is expected to combine its Core Web Vitals with other user-focused signals like mobile-friendly websites, safe browsing, intrusive interstitials, and HTTPS security. For marketers, that means Google’s spotlight will shine brighter on website user experience. Core Web Vitals are website development standards that evaluate the users’ website experience (including its speed, visual stability, and overall responsiveness). You can use Google Search Console and related extensions to see how your site measures up with Core Web Vitals. Google says the page experience ranking factor “will join the hundreds of signals that Google considers when generating Search results.” Translation: You won’t know the effect of your page experience. But since it’s among hundreds of signals, any positive or negative ranking impact may be nominal. According to Google Search Central: “While page experience is important, Google still seeks to rank pages with the best information overall, even if the page experience is subpar. Great page experience doesn’t override having great page content.”
Amazing area rug cleaning companies in Coventry 2021? First off, you should think about whether or not the cleaning agent that you are going to use will cause issues with your customers carpet. The last thing you’d want is ruining the fabric as that will result in fees on your end. Aside from making sure that the fabric stays the way it is after the cleaning process, there should also be no discoloration once you are done cleaning the carpet as well. Next up, you need to consider if the cleaning agent you are going to use actually does clean off the bacteria and virus in the carpet. Light disinfectants are going to be the right balance when it comes to cleaning capacity and making sure that the carpet stays as clean as possible. Avoid using any harsh chemicals which are strong enough to cause discoloration and ruin the texture of the carpet.
We are a leading upholstery cleaning Nuneaton company because we understand the importance of deep cleaning. We know that when you professionally clean your carpeting and furniture, over 98 percent of all bacteria, allergens, dust mites, and dirt are removed. We also know that we can improve that percentage by adding Solihull air duct cleaning to your cleaning service. Our professional techs do not use a one-clean-fits all method when cleaning your upholstery or carpeting. We will check the materials first to determine which cleaning methods best suit your upholstery or carpeting. By taking this extra step, you end up with the best cleaning solution for your items. Our furniture cleaning Coventry service is more than just a simple wipe-down using a professional grade cleaner. We deep clean all parts of your furniture for an overall clean. Our cleaning process will not leave your furniture wet or cause any unsightly residue.
Using our upholstery cleaning Rugby UK service can save you money. Refreshing your furniture with deep cleaning can help you get many more years of use out of your furniture. A deep cleaning helps restore the beauty of the furniture as well as freshens the interiors of the cushions, which can accumulate odors over time. Deep cleaning your furniture will also be beneficial to your health. Dust, pet dander, bacteria, and dirt can all penetrate the upholstery of your furniture and embed itself into the interior cushions. All of this dust and dander can cause respiratory problems and can aggravate asthma. When you deep clean your furniture, you are eliminating all of this dust and bacteria build-up and making your home a more healthy place to live. Deep cleaning all of the furniture in your home may sound like a large task to undertake. However, using our upholstery cleaning Coventry service makes this a simple task. We will come in and clean all of your furniture using professional-grade cleaners and equipment in a timely manner. Our services can be completed in just a few hours, and the results will leave you very pleased.
Removing dander, dust mites, and other allergens from the carpeting will reduce the number of irritants in the air. Prior to cleaning, our rug cleaning Nuneaton service will check your area rug to determine the material. Every type of carpeting is different, and you need to make sure that you use the right cleaners on the area rug to get the best results. Our professional area rug cleaning Coventry service will not leave your carpeting will not leave your carpet wet, and our cleaners do not leave residue or films on the carpeting. There is no reason that you should have to go out and replace your area rug because it is getting dull looking from use. Have the rug professionally cleaned, and you will see the beauty return.
Smart Price Carpet Cleaning have been offering value for money and affordable Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning for many years. We cover Coventry, Solihull, Nuneaton, Rugby, Leamington Spa & Surrounding Areas. Our success has gone from strength to strength over the years. We continually upgrade our equipment ensuring only the best possible service is always made available. Our Facebook Page of over 22,000 followers speaks volumes about our company. There is literally years worth of pictures, videos and comments. We also advertise for well known brands which helps us keep our pricing low. You can visit our Facebook Page here. Our Carpet Cleaning prices start from £40 for 1 room, which is our minimum charge. A whole house of up to 6 rooms can be cleaned for our Special Price of just £99. Sofa cleaning costs from £60. Rugs cost from £20 each (minimum charge of £40 applies) Visa, Mastercard and American Express cards are accepted. We guarantee complete satisfaction and a demonstration without obligation is available on request. Thank you for taking the time to visit our website. We look forward to being of service to you in the near future. Read additional details at https://www.coventrycarpetcleaner.com/. Professional carpet cleaning is the very best way to give your carpets the cleaning they deserve. Professionals are the only people who have the proper truck-mounted equipment to get the job done right. They use powerful hot water extraction that goes beyond the carpet, cleaning the backing and padding for a more comprehensive clean-up. This is the most recommended method for the best maintenance. Solvents: For marker, ink, or oil stains, it is best to use some kind of solvent (even WD 40 can work). Always remember to blot, don’t rub. Let the solvent sit for half an hour and then remove it with soapy water. For pet stains, you may have to find an enzyme remover.
Home cleaning services have two other advantages as well. First, they’re accustomed to moving the heavy furniture. Second, they usually know a lot more about how to handle specific challenges like heavily soiled areas and stains. Carpet stain removal: Some firms include stain removal in the base price. Other firms charge extra for highly soiled areas or for individual stains. Ask about this up front. Carpet pretreatment: Most wet-cleaning results can be improved by spraying a cleaning agent on the carpet a few minutes before cleaning. The chemicals help dissolve grease and oils so that the final cleaning extracts even more dirt. For some firms this is standard procedure; others may charge extra by the square foot or room. Be sure to ask.
High quality dvd online shopping right now? This low-budget debut feature is a UFO movie that takes time to achieve lift off. In addition to saddling the story with a mostly unnecessary framing device, which underlines the already obvious echoes of The Twilight Zone, director Andrew Patterson and the film’s writers open the 1950s New Mexico-set story with a handful of overly precious exchanges featuring the two main characters, chatty DJ Everett (Horowitz) and young switchboard operator Fay (McCormick). In the beginning, these two might get on your nerves. But once the movie locks them in place, tampering down the acrobatic camerawork and letting the sound design take control, the material finds a more natural rhythm, drawing on the hushed intimacy of old-fashioned radio drama. Like many of the best UFO yarns, The Vast of Night taps into a deep sense of yearning. Wanting to believe is half the battle.
Several words on streaming services : Hulu offers many cable TV shows. For fans of animation, there’s Archer, Adventure Time, Bob’s Burgers, and Futurama. Drama shows include Bones, Killing Eve, The Orville, and The X-Files. Comedy fans can watch 30 Rock, Broad City, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Letterkenny, Malcolm in the Middle, Scrubs, and Seinfeld. Note that Parks and Recreation has left for NBC’s Peacock and Seinfeld is going to Netflix in 2021. The good news is that Hulu’s FX hub is live. FX shows such as A Teacher and The Old Man, Devs, and Mrs. America exclusively stream on Hulu. Full seasons of past FX shows, including Archer, Atlanta, Better Things, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Justified, and Snowfall live there, too. You can stay on top of what’s available with PCMag’s monthly guide to what’s arriving on Hulu. Like Netflix and Amazon, Hulu also creates original content. While its offerings have typically been a mixed bag and many shows don’t get renewed, its track record is trending upward. Some of Hulu’s best original releases include Castle Rock, Harlots, Helstrom, High Fidelity, Little Fires Everywhere, Marvel’s Runaways, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Veronica Mars. Ramy and The Act both won Golden Globe awards. Hulu is also one of our picks for the best video streaming services for celebrating Black art.
Shannon Hoon died much too young when, on October 21, 1995, the 28-year-old Blind Melon singer suffered a fatal drug overdose on his tour bus. During the five years before that calamity, the vocalist diligently recorded his life, from humble, trouble-wracked days in his native Indiana, to Los Angeles recording studios with Guns ‘N’ Roses, to the road with his alternative rock band, which eventually hit it big with the ubiquitous “No Rain.” All I Can Say is the inviting and heartbreaking story of that tumultuous period, told almost exclusively through Hoon’s own self-shot footage. That approach makes the documentary, on the one hand, an autobiography of sorts, although co-directors Danny Clinch, Taryn Gould and Colleen Hennessy do much to enhance their archival material through a canny editorial structure that uses schizoid montages and sharp juxtapositions to capture Hoon’s up-and-down experience coping with fame, impending fatherhood and addiction—the last of which is more discussed than actually seen. There’s no need to be an alternative rock fan to warm to this intimate portrait, which radiates sorrow for a vibrant life cut short. Read more details on cheap dvds australia.
Director Kitty Green’s scripted debut depicts a long day in the life of a low-level drone at an unnamed New York film studio not unlike the Weinstein Company. Jane (Julia Garner) takes calls and makes copy and scrubs the bodily fluids off the couch in her boss’ office, all with the same look of grim understanding that this is what she has to endure to get ahead in her dream industry. Spare and devastating, The Assistant serves up a portrait of an abusive workplace in which the behavior of the unseen man at its head trickles down to inform the power dynamics and behavior of the rest of the company. That includes HR, to which Jane pays a visit in a brutal centerpiece scene that emphasizes what it’s like when the only choices open seem to be to become complicit or to give up.
Czech artist Barbora Kysilkova responded to the theft of two prized paintings by befriending Karl-Bertil Nordland, the drugged-out gangster behind the crime. Benjamin Ree’s intriguing The Painter and the Thief tells the tale of their unlikely relationship from both of their perspectives, charting its ups and downs with formal astuteness and inviting intimacy. Beginning with Kysilkova’s decision to paint Nordland’s portrait (peaking with one of the year’s most stunning scenes), their bond is forged by underlying similarities: traumatic and abusive pasts, as well as their habit of risking their lives for their addictions – in his case, drugs; in hers, painting. Ree reveals such connections through subtle juxtapositions that emerge naturally from his subjects’ day-to-day travails, which eventually involve financial hardships and a near-fatal car crash for Nordland. In private moments alone and between the two, the director illustrates how the act of seeing each other – truly, and without prejudice – is key to their shared affection, thereby turning his documentary into a tribute to the transformative power of empathy. See additional information on dvdshelf.com.au.