The very hot and very new Vamp Magazine

There isn’t, by any measure, a dearth of fashion and beauty publications around the world but there aren’t very many objections to hot new magazines being put to print either.

The latest American edition to the newsstands is Vamp Magazine from the founders of Hercules, another fashion magazine. The new magazine’s ethos is based on the focus of featuring profiles of strong and prolific women as well as fashion and beauty spreads shot by the latest and hottest photographic talent. Their aesthetic vision is to emulate the fashion prints from the 70s and 80s.

The magazine went all out for its premiere issue featuring some of the hottest models at the moment all on six separate covers. Models Emily DiDonato, Andreea Diaconu, Liya Kebede, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Karmen Pedaru and Carolyn Murphy all look stunning in their respective covers; photographed by Paola Kudacki, Giampaolo Sgura, and Santiago and Mauricio Sierra.

The magazine is definitely off to a good start with beauties like these headlining their opening edition. And the spreads within the magazine don’t disappoint either. Its brilliant photography and dazzling concepts. And although all the models are breathtaking, Emily DiDonato is definitely a stand out from the others with her sublime images.

The magazine seeks to inspire women by showcasing other women who have made it to the top in their respective fields. According to its creators, it’s a magazine for women determined to succeed and be taken seriously but who also happen to love fashion and beauty.

“Oppressed Majority” – Imagined female dominance goes viral

Can you picture a world where women run around topless, urinate in the street, whistle at and check out men, and men are left in charge of child minding? Not so easy to, is it? Which is why French actress, director and screenwriter Eleonoré Pourriat has made a short film entitled "Majorité Opprimée", or "Oppressed Majority", depicting just this setting. And the film is not only hilarious and candid, but thought-provoking and nerve-hitting.

The film, in French with English subtitles, follows an ordinary man, Pierre, through a day of sexist experiences. The switched angle to women objectifying men really hits home in realizing the everyday taunting women go through. The male protagonist takes his child to day-care and then on his way to work is leered at, subjected to cat calls, and even sexually assaulted by a group of women. The film is a complete eye-opener that will most definitely leave you feeling reflective.

The video was recorded in 2010 but uploaded to YouTube on 5^th February this year. Since then it has gone viral with more than 5 million views. It’s being spread around the Net almost as a form of activism with women saying “Yes, this is what we go through!” Without painting females as victims, the film manages to portray sexism by not showing the issue how it is but by forcing men to look at their behaviour in a different – but perhaps not completely original – light.

Pourriat got the idea to make “Majorité Opprimée” when her husband was shocked to hear that she got yelled at in the street. The film’s exaggeration is also a tool in achieving the reaction that Pourriat was aiming for. But she was still shocked with the response she got for the film, having not expected it at all.

In light of the short film’s subject matter, it’s amazing that it has gone viral in such a short amount of time; most feminist films are overlooked and would probably never be discussed as luridly as this one. It’s certainly not a perfect or even brilliant piece of work, but it gets the message across.