Zana Briski: Indie Director, Waif

Of Indie Film It Girl, Zana Briski, Waif: What are we supposed to think?



Above: Zana, sitting waifishly, and co-producer, Ross Kauffman

Though becoming lachrymose -- annoyingly, twice (two times too many) -- during the course of a glowing New York Times blowjob-interview could be regarded as a Social Misdemeanor in the rarefied air of Chattering Class drawing room conversation in Manhattan, a clear violating of code section #: 76773 -- "Sympathetic Media Manipulation," the sheer waifishness of Zana Briski compels us, breathlessly, to believe that she really does deserve such adjectives as "fragile," and "rather scrawny," and "swanlike," that Times reporter Lynda Richardson heaps upon her indie plate at the ultra-hip Cafe Habana.

There other are evident the signs of waifhood, aside from the fact that she cries over the loss of a "trapeeze artist" boyfriend (WTF?), such as, "caramel-colored eyes," the aforementioned lack of appropriate body-mass, the telltale holy mission to save kids from bleak futures.

Of Waifs, The Corsair wrote:

"They lack appropriate body mass (look, for example, to Fiona Apple and Bob Dylan or even Daniel Day-Lewis) and are often vegans (Moby; Briski is vegetarian), eschewing feeding off another living animal, turning violently away from a process we call the cycle of 'reciprocal maintenance' -- eating and being eaten, behavior readily evident at Hollywood Studios.

"Others, to wit, may be devotees to really exotic and rare ethnic foods -- the more odd the better, as if, almost, to suggest that they are less physical than otherworldly creatures, influenced less by mundane gravity than by cosmic rhythms ('are you up for Mongolian today, guys'). They tend to enjoy the culture of France (see Johnny Depp), almost in spite of how everyone else feels about the subject, and they believe in eccentric, and/or visionary ideas, like 'solar power' and 'international law' and 'world government' ('Briski doesn't rule out reincarnation; waif-black sheep Michael Jackson believes in "Jesus juice")

"If they are not international celebrities or artistically inclined (most are, some are not), they aspire to live in fashionable neighborhoods and gravitate towards jobs at 'nonprofits,' or arts management or institutes of radical politics (The Corsair yawns) and odd spiritual movements, like the Open Center in New York, or Esalen in Big Sur, California.

"Some also gravitate towards vocations that bring them into contact with beauty and social beauty (Kate Moss).God bless their naive, waifish, beauty loving I-Wont-Grow-Up-and-Join-the-Republican-Party hearts."

Suckers.

The Corsair gently places a radio tracking transmitter on Ms. Briski's inner ear, so as not to startle her in her natural environment at Cafe Habanas, munching on the corn on the cob, and brands her, subgenus: "waif, pop culturus," then releases her.

(1970s PBS Nova theme song blares, exuent)