HIS TIME IS NOW | JOSEPH SIKORA

Throughout the past few months we have loved interviewing those who have been in POWER, POWER BOOK II: GHOST, POWER BOOK III: RAISING KANAN and with the release of POWER BOOK IV: FORCE on Feb 6th, we were excited to chat with Joseph Sikora (POWER, Ozark, Jack Reacher) who is back playing fan favorite, Tommy Egan. We talked about how he got into acting, being on POWER, where we find Tommy in the latest series and what projects he has coming up that we should keep an eye out for!

ATHLEISURE MAG: When did you realize that you wanted to be an actor?

JOSEPH SIKORA: I was 10 years old. There was a show that used to be on called KIDS Incorporated. Fergie used to be on it and I think even Jennifer Love Hewitt. They were just the kids that were being rockstars and actors. I went to my mom and I said, I’d love to be an actor. She said that if I still wanted to be an actor in a month, come back. So I’m waiting and counting down the days. I said, “ma I want to be an actor.” She says ok and pulls out the Yellow Pages and we look up acting and there isn’t much in there. We look up theater and my mother, to her credit starts cold calling theaters and says, “my son wants to be an actor, how do we do this?” Eventually, I auditioned for a role in A Christmas Carol at The Goodman Theater in Chicago, but I didn’t get it. The casting director said that I was really talented and that I should audition for The Little Prince which was up in a far suburb in Lake Forest in Chicago. I ended up booking the role so my mother had to trek me out all the way to Lake Forest for rehearsals and performances. I did it and it was really a bug. Then my mother again cold-called agencies and said, “my son is in a play will you come watch it and would you want to represent him afterward?” Some of them came and then I got representation, I did some commercials which really helped pay for college and saved all of my money and even when I was just getting into mischief in high school, I kept paying my SAG dues and I have been a member of SAG since 1988. That’s how I started acting, it was through the theater and doing little bits of pieces here and as you know, I have done a ton of stuff! But none of it was any real success until really the POWER show. It’s my biggest thing for sure!

I was a series regular one of the series leads of an Adult Swim show called The Heart, She Holler that I am very proud of. It was directed and written by Vernon Chatman and John Lee starring Patton Oswalt which was so much fun. I did stuff here and stuff there, but acting is a tough thing and it’s truly a calling in some ways that I just never gave up.

So in a lot of ways, Tommy Egan, he’s that same guy. Tommy Egan never gives up and he says as much in episode 1 of POWER when he takes Holly out for their first date to the bar. He just keeps fighting and so I really just kept fighting and I did it not for reasons of fame. I didn’t want people to recognize or know me, I did it because I wanted to be able to explore the human condition and to see what it would be like to be other people and from what other people experienced. To see what it’s like to love, lose and win in other bodies.

AM: What made you want to be part of POWER?

JS: I mean, I was starving! I had no money, I was auditioning, I had a couple of little things around that time that I was really happy to do. I had just done Jack Reacher and I had done True Detective, the series Banshee – I was dating a girl who is now my wife and I had found something that I loved more than acting. For whatever reason in the irony that is life, when you don’t want something so bad, things start coming to you. This is one of those things.

There were 5 auditions for POWER for Tommy Egan, which was originally called Eddie O’Neal by the way!

AM: Where did we leave Tommy in POWER and where do we pick him up again in FORCE?

JS: Well, where we leave Tommy in the POWER show, is with Tommy and NY in his rearview mirror. But then, in POWER BOOK II: GHOST, we realize that he made a U-turn to take care of some unfinished business with Tasha played by Naturi Naughton and obviously the lead of the series Michael Rainey Jr who plays Tariq. After he leaves Tariq in Monet’s capable hands, but makes an enemy of the Tejada group, it’s even more of a reason for Tommy to get out of town. He’s not welcome back in the town of the city that raised him, so now he’s on his way to Los Angeles to take care of the ports and to work at the ports of Long Beach and Port of Los Angeles. But he makes a pit stop in Chicago for what people will find out in the first episode. But then he ends up saying, “you know what? Chicago may be talking to me right now. This may be my land of opportunity.” It’s a harkening back to the 1890’s where the NY papers said, “go West young man, go West!” Tommy did it and he ended up in Chicago and he sees a possibility of a future in the gem of the prairie in Chicago, Il.

AM: How does it feel to have this whole spinoff wrapped around your character?

JS: It’s great! I love working and I get to work more, it’s a win-win! I’m so happy and grateful for the audience demanding it and that Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson made it happen!

AM: Is there anything that you can tell us about it as I know it’s out very soon but any insights would be appreciated!

JS: Absolutely, I think that it’s super exciting and that it’s really truly different city, different rules, same Tommy. I’m so excited about the pilot directed by Larysa Kondracki (Legion, Gotham, THEM) and then we have Kieron Hawkes (POWER, POWER BOOK II GHOST, POWER BOOK III: RAISING KANAN) a POWER alum who directed in Raising Kanan and on the POWER BOOK II: GHOST, he’s an amazing director – so it’s great to have Kieron Hawkes! Another director that I am so excited about is Deon Taylor (Kicks, Meet the Blacks, Black and Blue) who directs our incredible finale. Everyone knows him from The Intruder and Black and Blue, Supremacy, and I am doing another film with Deon that’s going to be coming out in March called Fear, also starring Andrew “King Bach” Bachelor, T.I., Annie Ilonzeh, Iddo Goldberg and Terrence J – so a bit of an all star wonderful cast that is a thriller and a horror film that revolves around our current state of pandemic so you have to check that out!

AM: I just finished watching Ozark Season 4 part 1. It was nice seeing you in that!

JS: Nice! Frank Jr! Frank Jr is the antithesis to Tommy! Tommy is everything that Frank Jr is not. But they share the same struggle. They want to be able to make their way, they want to get outside of somebodies shadow, but Frank Jr is as unsuccessful as Tommy is successful.

IG @JosephSikora4

PHOTOS COURTESY | STARZ's POWER BOOK IV: FORCE

Hear STARZ's POWER BOOK IV: FORCE's Joseph Sikora on our show, #TRIBEGOALS - which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multimedia companion podcast network! Subscribe to be notified when the episode drops. Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts or wherever you enjoy your podcasts.

Read the JAN ISSUE #73 of Athleisure Mag and see HIS TIME IS NOW | Joseph Sikora in mag.

FORCE TO RECKON WITH ALEKS PAUNOVIC

With the second season of TNT's Snowpiercer back on, we're excited to checkout more from Aleks Paunovic who plays Breachman Bojan Boki Boscovic! We took some time to find out more about this character as well as his show SYFY's Van Helsing. We also find out how he got into the industry, his music and more!

ATHLEISURE MAG: Before getting into your acting career, you were a boxing champion and you’re a descendant of 3 generations of champion boxers! What was it that drew you to the sport?

ALEKS PAUNOVIC: Watching my dad shadowbox and watching fights with him when I was younger was always a good memory. What really attracted me to the sport was the idea of challenging one’s self. I never looked at boxing as fighting the other person, or wanting to hurt the other person. It was about my skill and seeing how I can adapt to a situation with someone that wants to do the same thing to me. It’s a lonely sport but one you can take a ton of life lessons from. Walking through fear, relaxing in tense situations so you can perform your best, getting knocked down, getting back up, and never quitting. I like to think it’s shaped me for my career in film and television.

AM: You parlayed this to initially being a stunt actor, what was that like?

AP: That’s right, boxing helped me get my foot in the door in the business, but it’s a tough gig. You have to be a special kind of human to do what stunt performers do. I personally wanted to tell stories. My goal was acting, but stunts has helped me tell my stories at a physical and emotional level.

AM: We know you’re remastering and have released your songs from your band, Specula Black on Spotify. These songs were recorded 30 years ago, why did you decide to release them now?

AP: Ahhh!! I love that these songs are out in the world now. Not only is it on Spotify, but it’s on all streaming sites. Please check it out if you like heavy metal and rock. Having our songs released 30 years later is largely attributed to our showrunner for Van Helsing, who asked if I had a song for one of the episodes. When he asked, the guys and I got on a chat and we started thinking how cool it would be, so we took those recordings and remastered them and sent it to the show. They liked it. Then we were off and running. Very proud of the boys in the band—those days were some of the greatest times of my life. I need to give them a shoutout, Tony Brenda, George Lazic, Scott (Ham) Botham and Rob Bjornson.

AM: What is it about storytelling that has drawn you to the characters that you play?

AP: There’s something about finding the missing pieces and puzzles in telling acharacter’s story. The script analysis and my creative filter to make it something no one else would think about -- finding the truth in there. It’s quite fulfilling.

AM: What is your process like when you're reading a script to see if you want to be attached to the project?

AP: It’s usually about how the character fits in the story, and how I can make them compelling. I love a conflicted character. Finding the moments that make him struggle to make decisions, and then going for it. Sometimes the simplest character is the most complex.

AM: We loved Snowpiercer as a movie and were excited to see it as a series on TNT last year! Of course, we’re enjoying the 2nd season right now. Tell us about your character Breachman Bojan Boki Boscovic and what it’s like to film this show?

AP: Ahhhh, I love Breachman Bojan BokiBoscovic! He has the most dangerous job on the train. The train can’t function without the Breachmen. He’s from Serbia and he’s a devout Wilfordite. There’s a history with Wilford and myself, which connects me to him more. This season there are trials and tribulations with Boki and he runs the gamut of emotion and physicality. I can’t wait for people to see this season. Working on the show has been a dream... Great team in front and behind the camera. I am so grateful to be a part of it.

AM: Many are fans of your character Juliusin Syfy’s Van Helsing and the 5th and final season will air this fall. Is there anything that you can share about the upcoming season and what we should keep an eye out for?

AP: Well, I'm not going to give you any spoilers if you’re looking for that. lol. But it’s been bittersweet. Such an amazing family we created in the 5 years of the show. All of them are lifers with me now. It’s been glorious, and I think it’s one of our best seasons. Fans are going to see us wrap up the characters on the show in such an epic way. So thank you to SYFY and Netflix for giving us one more season to say goodbye.

AM: You were in Stargate Atlantis along with Jason Momoa and now you guys are on SEE on Apple+ TV. What drew you to this show and what do you enjoy about being apart of this cast?

AP: Well one of the things that drew me to SEE was my man Jason Momoa. We've been friends for over 10 years and when your buddy, who has blown up in the industry to megastar, so well deserved, and is still the crazy life-loving man you first met, you just gotta hang with him. I was very lucky that a role came up and we got to reconnect on a working level. All of the amazing things he’s been doing for the environment has made an impact on the world. I'm proud to be his buddy.

AM: As someone that has been in a number of films and TV series, are there roles that you would like to add to your body of work that you have yet to be involved?

AP: I like the idea of being in a show like True Detective. I’m never the dude investigating, I'm always the dude getting investigations... lol. The first season of True Detective when it comes to character struggle and storylines are what I would love to do soon.

AM: Are there upcoming projects that you have coming up that we should keep an eye out for?

AP: Yes, I have one called CHAINED that will be released soon, and a Zoom movie I did during the beginning of the pandemic. It was quite the trip to shoot a whole film without shaking anyone’s hand. lol. One of the coolest parts of the movie is an acting legend that signed on. Can't wait to share it. We have to keep it hush hush, but check back to with me and I'll tell you when I can. And as we are having this interview, I’m in Atlanta shooting a very exciting project; that’s another one I can’t wait to share with the world when I'm allowed to. Eeeeek. It’s killing me!

AM: Tell me about your film studio in Winnipeg as this sounds like such a great thing for the industry.

AP: Winnipeg is my hometown. I cut my teeth in the industry there. Not only do they have amazing talent but it’s a hotspot for shooting in Canada, and one of the best tax credits in North America. The locations and the crew are top-notch. Our team (Eric Mark, Bill Sarine) feel really strongly that we can contribute to the industry there in a big way. It’s definitely an exciting project.

AM: What is a general week like in terms of your workout?

AP: A good week of workouts is 5 or 6days a week. 2 or 3 days doing HITT train-ing switched with 2 or 3 days of boxing. If I can get 6 days a week in I feel like I accomplished my workout goal for the week. Also, I like to have meditation and visualization before and after my work-out, and about a 15 min cooldown after I workout. It helps me to stay mentally and physically on point for the day.

AM:As we have all been navigating these times, how have you been spending your time when you’re not prepping for a role or filming?

AP: I do a lot of Facetime calls with my folk and friends. I want to stay connected. This pandemic has been a kick in the gut on so many levels, but as long as I can listen to music, make music, work out physically and mentally that’s a good day. Can’t wait until I can actually hug people again. lol

AM: You are an advocate against bullying and have partnered up with the Canadian Red Cross’ Anti-Bullying Initiatives. How long have you been involved with this and what is your role with them?

AP: My role has been more of an advocate to let people know they are not alone. They are not an island in this big world. We all have gone through tough times and there is always help. To be there and listen and so show people even though I’m a 6foot 5 dude that boxes and is enjoying an amazing life, there are still times I need someone to talk to, to get a perspective in life, to let me know it’s ok. I think If we can give that to young people -- kids that have a hard time controlling their emotions and only react to hurting others so they don’t hurt. WE can end bullying if we just are available and are there to listen and guide -- and also be vulnerable. It’s ok to be vulnerable with people you can trust. I like to think I’m one of those people.

IG @AleksPaun

PHOTOGRAPHY | Brendan Meadows

Read the Feb Issue #62 of Athleisure Mag and see Force to Reckon with Aleks Paunovic in mag.

STOLEN MOMENTS WITH NIECY NASH

We have been fans of Niecy Nash for a number of years. Whether it was when we first saw her hosting one of our favorite shows, Clean House on The Style Network, her comedic talents in Reno 911! or her dramatic roles such as Netflix's When They See Us or FX on Hulu's Mrs. America - Niecy always steals the show with her dynamic personality and ability to absorb her role. Like many, we're fans of TNT's Claws where she plays Desna Simms who roles with some of the baddest manicurists who create nail art along with navigating the underworld of Palmetto, FL. Throughout the show, we have seen her rocking dazzling styles in front of the camera and bringing us into the world of nail artistry as well as showing usher directorial chops behind the camera! With the final and fourth season airing in 2021, we caught up with her in New Orleans where they are currently filming. She shares the importance of Christmas, the 2021 Staycation that we have all endured and upcoming storytelling projects.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What was the moment that you realized that you wanted to work in the entertainment industry?

NIECY NASH: I was 5 years old and I was watching TV with my grandmother and I saw the most gorgeous Black woman that I had ever seen in my little 5 years of living. I said, “Grandmama, who is that?” and she said, “Baby, that’s Lola Falana.”I said, “Ooo,” and I felt that in that moment, that was definitely stamped on my canvas of my imagination and I was like, that’s what I want to do – that right there.

AM: You know, you’re involved in so many projects and you’re constantly on the move, why is the holiday season so important to you?

NN: The holiday season is so important because there is so much connective tissue there. There’s so much time and space to bring families together. But because we have all been in this mandatory 2020 Staycation when we have had to stay in the house, it has really become about curating moments and memories in the best way that we can given the circumstances.

AM: What are ways that we can curate those memories as we continue into the holiday season since we are spending so much time at home.

NN: Girl, I’m glad you asked! I want to tell so many people what I have stumbled upon and that’s HP Printables. I just got married and I was able to through HP, create my own holiday card they offer free crafts and activities. I thought this was so interesting because we can’t go out. I can stay in and involve my family and to have fun. So I found the most gorgeous tulle skirt, all the way down to the floor. Guess where I went when I wore it?

AM: Where?

NN: To my sofa girl! I went to the sofa, laid out and took a picture. I made it into a holiday card! It was absolutely gorgeous! I have to tell everybody about this because it is something that you can do with your whole family. We were able to change and do different looks as well as wearing our pajamas. It was so much fun!

AM: Are there other things that this printer can also do?

NN: Well, girl, you’ve got some good questions today! Here’s the other thing that I love about it. It’s the fact that HP has a subscription program called InstantInk meaning that if you’re in the middle of a crafting project, or your children are using it or if you have an important task that you’re working on – you will never run out of ink. This is because the print-er will let it be known and like magic, the ink will pull up to your house so you don’t have to worry about that! I feel like they are really thinking about families because in this time that we are in right now, the fact that you have services that are free is good, the fact that they’re accommodating families so we’re not making extra trips – that’s good. And listen, here’s the uptick. It’s so easy that you can let the kids sit down and do the crafting and you can go take a much needed break, if you know what I’m saying! That’s the most important part.

AM: How do you take time for yourself especially during the holiday season when itis so busy?

NN: You know, I have what you call “stolen moments.” It may not be where you can sit down and have an entire hour, but you can curate maybe 10 or 15 minutes here and 10 to 15 minutes there to do those things that make you feel restored and renewed. Whether that’s a little book on tape, making a phone call to a loved one, going into the bathroom and closing your door to pluck your eyebrows and put on your favorite song. You just have to find stolen moments.

AM: We have enjoyed seeing you on a number of TV shows and movies over the past couple of decades. Being able to see you on screen and representing Black women is something that inspires so many people with the ability to see ourselves. We know that right now you’re filming the final season of TNT’s Claws and although you can’t tell us too many details, what can you say about this show and what can you tell us about projects that we should keep our eye out for?

NN: I’m filming Claws right now and we’re in our fourth and final season. So with big promises to our fans of the show, they will leave completely satiated with our show. They will not be disappointed!

In addition to that, in 2021, right at the top,I am doing a project for ABC that Jay-Z is producing called Women of the Movement and we’re going to be telling the Emmett Till story. That’s going to be great story-telling!

IG @NiecyNash1

PHOTOS COURTESY | Niecy Nash

Hear Niecy Nash on our show, Bungalow SK - which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multimedia companion podcast network! Subscribe to be notified when the episode drops. Listen on iHeartRadio, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts or wherever you enjoy your podcasts.

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see Stolen Moments with Niecy Nash in mag.

HITTING THE STREETS WITH POOCH HALL

We've been hooked and fans of Showtime's Ray Donovan since day one! The storytelling, the family - the fixing. With season 6 currently filming here in NYC, we were beyond excited to have Pooch Hall, who plays Daryll Donovan as this month's cover! Our shoot focuses on how he enjoys his down time in the city as we shot in various locations in Flatiron as well as hanging out with him on set! From playing Derwin Davis on BET's The Game, his current role as Daryll Donovan in Ray Donovan and being Frank Alexander on USA's Unsolved The Murders ofTupac & Notorious B.I.G. - Pooch shares it all with us.

ATHLEISURE MAG: We had such a great time shooting with you and then coming to your set! When did you realize that you wanted to be an actor and share with our readers about your journey as an actor and roles that you have appeared in?

POOCH HALL: I realized I wanted to become an actor, when I realized I could be a part of the world that entertains and influences, that I could be an influencer. I love entertaining and role playing.

AM: Regardless of our industries, we have had mentors that have really set the tone for our success - who has done that for you and what words of wisdom did they leave you?

PH: A few of the people who have been an inspiration to me are Jon Voight and Liev Schreiber. Jon with his caring and insight based on his experience and Liev based on pulling out my potential as an actor, whether we are acting together or he’s directing me. I have fun and I move based off what they give, or they share what is beneficial. Whatever they teach me, it’s always cherished and helpful.

AM: We've been fans of yours since "The Game" and when we saw that you had joined "Ray Donovan" we were so excited! As you're currently here in New York filming the 6th season, can you take us back to the audition process for being in this show and what have the past seasons been like in terms of being a part of this dynamic cast?

PH: The audition process was awesome it happened quickly. I was fresh off the end of season 5 of “The Game” and ready for the next move. I auditioned and then met with producers and we all connected. I’m blessed that they saw something in me to where I could be considered and recruited for the Ray Donovan star team.

AM: Do you find similarities and/or differences between yourself and Daryll and how do you prepare to play him on set?

PH: Daryll and I are different, but the same. Different because I’m in control of my life - where Daryll is still finding his way. Then the same because I play Daryll... and I want Daryll to be real and have qualities that people can relate to, an underdog trying to defy the odds and be someone who has a purpose...

AM: What if anything can you tell us about Season 6 and what are you excited about for the upcoming season?

PH: Daryll has finally come into his manhood and is exercising his independence as a man and as a Donovan.

AM: With filming being in NYC, how does this affect the show?

PH: Filming in NY is awesome. It’s different from LA. Their looks are different, their swag is different. New York offers a different energy and vibe. It makes people have to work and move differently.

AM: Watching the show there are so many dynamic personalities that interact with one another, we imagine that off camera, you guys are pretty close - how important is it to have that kind of camaraderie?

PH: Having a family camaraderie is amazing, but we have waited a long time to have a show like Ray Donovan and part of the show’s success is due to dynamics outside the show. We have been around Hollywood for a while and each one of us recognizes how important family is. And us being parents and having kids brought us together rather quickly. For example, my kids call Jon Voight "Papa Jon,” Eddie and my kids hang out and Liev fought for me to be in his movie "Chuck" where I played Muhammad Ali.

AM: Are you working on any projects that we should keep an eye out for in addition to the upcoming season of "Ray Donovan"?

PH: I’m working on writing my own story and I was recently in USA's “Unsolved: The Murders of Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G.” where I played Frank Alexander, Tupac’s best friend and bodyguard. It’s now available on Netflix.

AM: In our shoot, we included a yoga session at Humming Puppy which is one of our Style Director's favorite places to work out. How do you stay in such great shape?

PH: I run, and I train with some great trainers. Boxing, Basketball and hot yoga are all a part of the regimen. I also try and eat as clean as possible.

AM: In LA, where can we find you working out, grabbing a bite/cocktails and where do you shop?

PH: I work out at 24hour Fitness & Wild Card West Boxing Club in Santa Monica. I love eating at Boa Steakhouse and shopping at Zara.

AM: As you have been in NYC for awhile, where do you work out here, where might we find you for drinks and where do you like to shop?

PH: I work out at Blink Gym and at Carmine Park & Rec where I used to work out back in the day. I also signed up my 10-yr. old son Djordan.

I love to go to Beauty and Essex and I spend a lot of time in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Wherever I can find a bar- gain... love me some Flight Club NY.

AM: We see you in front of the camera, but will we see you directing down the road as well?

PH: Yes like I said I’m writing and yes that’s the plan. You have to be a triple threat.

AM: How do you take time for yourself, especially when you are in the midst of filming for this role?

PH: When I’m sleeping lol and whenever I do have down time, I write or just explore the city.

AM: Philanthropically, how do you give of your time?

PH: I try and give my wife a hand by helping and supporting her fight in raising awareness for special needs. Our oldest daughter has cerebral palsy, and we are in a fight to give her and ones like her the best life possible.

AM: We know that your family man as we love seeing pictures of your wife and kids on your Instagram and we had the pleasure of hanging out with your son Djordan - how great is it to have him join you on set and to take him to the office with you?

PH: It was awesome having my son on set with me. He’s well behaved and constantly asking questions and to learn how Hollywood comes together. And I just love seeing my family, they are my everything.

Our photoshoot took place at a number of locations in Flatiron. We enjoyed including Patisserie Chanson and Humming Puppy NYC which is the sister location to their Sydney and Melbourne locations. Although they have only been open a few months in Flatiron, our team enjoys taking in some much needed zen! Jackie Alexander, one of the Co-Founders is not only in the shoot but took a moment to tell us about their newest studio!

ATHLEISURE MAG: We've been fans of Humming Puppy back when we included you in our Athleisure List a year ago for your locations in Sydney and in Melbourne and now you're in NYC! We've taken a few classes and are huge fans. Tell our readers about the ethos of Humming Puppy in general and specifically about your Flatiron location.

JACKIE ALEXANDER: At Humming Puppy we want our clients’ experience within the space to begin when they cross the threshold from the busy streets of NYC and enter our studio. There are gradual points of reveal as you move through the different zones within our space, transitioning into a space of relaxation before moving into the sublime – the shala/studio - and onto the mat.

In the reception and bathrooms our aim was to create a luxurious space with a spa-like atmosphere. In the shala, the aim is twofold; provide a sacred and beautiful space for your practice but also a practical space where there is ample room between each mat, where the teacher is visible (thanks to a tiered floor) and where our trademark hum resonates within the studio to enhance and deepen the experience of your practice.

Our Flatiron location was also specifically chosen due to its high ceilings and it’s beautiful arched windows, which let an enormous amount of natural light into our lounge/reception area. Finally, the columns within the space are a stunning reference to the buildings heritage and played a big role our design process.

One of the unique things about our studio is that we actually inject specific frequencies into the studio to help ‘tune’ you while you practice.  Our yoga space or ‘shala’ is injected with a combination of frequencies to enhance and deepen your experience and make the shala feel as if it is humming. More specifically we use a combination of 7.83hz and 40hz. Being submersed in these frequencies helps you to naturally produce matching frequencies through a process of entertainment. 7.83hz otherwise known as the Schumann Resonance is actually the frequency of the earth itself and helps to 'ground' you through your practice. 40hz is specifically associated with ‘Gamma’ brainwave activity, integral for achieving states of peak performance. Elite athletes, top-notch musicians and high achievers in all fields, typically produce far more gamma waves than average.  

And whilst all of that sounds quite serious and complicated, on a much simpler level the hum just feels good!

AM: Why did you want to bring Humming Puppy to the states and ultimately to NYC - are there other cities that you feel you'd be interested in having Humming Puppy in?

JA: NYC is just an amazing city that has always held a special place in our hearts and it has been our intention, since before even launching our first studio in Melbourne, to bring Humming Puppy to NYC. Apart from personally being in love with the city, we also felt that the calming and restorative nature of our studio would provide an urban sanctuary where you can relax and take time out from the high paced NYC lifestyle.

AM: If you haven't covered already, tell us about the classes offered at Humming Puppy and what once can expect when taking them.

JA: We don't prescribe to any specific style but rather draw our inspiration from all of the lineages from which our teachers have practiced and learnt.  We believe this gives our students a unified and holistic practice. We base our teachings on the principles of breath-pranayama, movement-asana and awareness-meditation. These principles are the foundation of our 3 class styles in which we welcome beginners through to the most experienced yogi.

These 3 class styles include our Mellow Hum which is a super chilled class that may include gentle slow flows and postures held for 3-5 minutes at a time.

Our Unified Hum which is a medium intensity class that gives students an opportunity to link breath to movement to calm the mind and strengthen the body.

And finally our Dynamic Hum, which is a high intensity class that can include stronger, longer holds, Vinyasa flows and advanced postures that will energize and challenge your practise.

In all of our these classes we welcome beginners through to the most advanced yogi and will always offer variations for beginners for any advanced postures that are being practiced.

AM: We have a number of things that we love about Humming Puppy can you tell us about the phenomenal quartz light?

JA: Our beautiful quartz crystal light is an original piece by Christopher Boots who is a phenomenal Melbourne based industrial designer. When we first saw the piece, we immediately fell in love with it, not just because of its breathtaking aesthetic, but also because we loved the idea of showcasing an artist from our home town. Finally, crystals actually act as a resonator and amplifier of frequency and as such the piece is a beautiful compliment to the Hum that we inject into our shala.

AM: The shala is amazing from hearing you playing the bowls in the space, the dark interiors and the stadium like setup. Can you tell us why the space is laid out like this and how this is beneficial to doing yoga there?

JA: We have come to learn that many students actually have their favorites spots within a yoga class. And as a result of this we have built a mat booking system that allows you to reserve the exact location that you want to be within each class. However, we also didn’t want to disadvantage those who like being in the back over those who prefer the front and so we have tiered our studio (similar to stadium seating) so that no matter where you are located within the class you can always see the teacher.

AM: What is the connection between yoga and sound?

JA: Whist there here are many connections between yoga and the use of sound (through singing or the use of various instruments such as singing bowls), one of the more commonly known examples is the chanting of Om within the practice. The actual meaning of Om has many different interpretations, from it being the “sound of universe” to it representing that which is "mysterious and inexhaustible”.

AM: Tell us about amenities that are offered at Humming Puppy from products in the bathroom and the use of the lounge?

JA: At Humming Puppy we like you travel light - emotionally and physically - so we provide absolutely everything from our home town. Finally, crystals actually act as a resonator and amplifier of frequency and as such the piece is a beautiful compliment to the Hum that we inject into our shala. We also provide hair ties and phone chargers complimentary as well.

Our bathrooms are fully stocked with towels, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, hair dryers, straighteners and shower caps.

And finally in our lounge area, we serve complimentary herbal tea; coconut water and filtered water and students are welcome to make themselves at home before and after class!

AM: Being that you are in NYC now, tell us about where we can catch you grabbing after work drinks/meal, brunch on the weekends and shopping in NYC?

JA: I tend to be a creature of habit and go back to places I love a lot like Gramercy Tavern, The Modern, La Esquina, Café Dante and my local fav XYST but….. …..with that said I love exploring all the amazing food that New York has to offer and so you’ll find me trying out all that there is to offer most weekends. For shopping one of my favorite things to do is wandering through Barney’s on 7th Avenue and simply soak up the design aesthetic and creativity.

HUMMING PUPPY

119 W. 23rd St.
NY, NY 10011

www.HummingPuppy.com

IG @HummingPuppy

Read more from the June Issue in Athleisure Mag and see Hitting the Streets with Pooch Hall in mag.

NY WOMEN IN FILM & TELEVISION HOST 19TH ANNUAL DESIGNING WOMEN AWARDS

Earlier this week we headed to Stage 48 for New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT) for their 19th Annual Designing Women Awards which was co-produced by Variety Magazine with sponsorship by Netflix. This event honored  advocates for equality in the moving image industry and supports women in every stage of their careers and was attended by actors, producers, directors, writers, fashion industry leaders and designers. The night was aimed towards celebrating distinguished makeup artists, hair stylists and costume designers that work tirelessly to create the characters on screen in film, television and digital media.

PHOTO COURTESY | John Dallas Phelps

Actors Christine Ebersole and Maggie Gyllenhaal presented hair stylist Anita Lausevic with a Designing Women Award, along with a special video tribute from Mark Feuerstein.

Costume Designer Dana Covarrubias received her award from actor Jamie Lee, with Lena Waithe sending her well-wishes via video.

Actor Nia Long celebrated makeup artist Martha Melendez, along with Elizabeth McGovern chiming in via video.

Debra Monk presented Variety’s Ensemble Award to the acclaimed Amazon series Mozart in the Jungle for its makeup, hair and costume design teams.

PHOTO COURTESY | John Dallas Phelps

HE'S GOT YOUR SIX WITH BARRY SLOANE

With the second season of History's SIX coming out next month, we had to catch up with it's star, Barry Sloane about his road to success that began in Liverpool England, finding out more about this Navy SEAL show which includes Olivia Munn this season and how he enjoys his life in L.A.
 
ATHLEISURE MAG: We were a huge fan of ABC’s Revenge so it’s exciting to interview you.

BARRY SLOANE: Thank you it was such a fun show! I still stay in touch with a lot of the cast. It’s like a family that stays close with you. It’s great that you can be across the planet but you’re still connected. 

AM: When did you realize that you wanted to be an actor and what was your inspiration or road to get there?

BS: I grew up in Liverpool. It’s a very working class, kind of a blue collar kind of town and because of the British class system and the way that life is structured in the UK, it’s hard to get out of certain areas and so the arts, in Liverpool in the Northwest of England, has always been something that we’re very proud within the youth society there. It happens a lot in certain parts of London now as well. To kind of break that system and to achieve, the arts is always there. Especially in Liverpool, there was soccer, there was football and there was music -  I did all three. I threw my hand into every ring. And I was in a band from when I was about 13 and until 24, I played in soccer teams from the age of 7 until I was about 19 and I was in drama class, school plays from the same age until now! There was always something and I was always very creative.

I remember the day that I made it. My band that I was in at the time, we had a showcase for a record label which we had right outside of London in Oxford in England. We were playing our music and our songs for the showcase and I got a call from my acting agency and I had booked a regular role on a British TV show. It was like I had to decide then and there. We didn’t have the answers them from the label, and I was like, “Ok I’m going to go there,” and I had to tell the guys from the band that I was leaving the band and I was joining the TV show. They said that I was making a huge mistake and that they were going to be the next Oasis. And of course, they weren’t. But I think I made the right choice as I’m doing ok so far! 

AM: Clearly! The first time we were aware of you was in Revenge and then in ABC’s The Whispers which we were a fan of that as well!

BS: Thank you, thank you very much! 

AM: So tell us about History Channel’s SIX. Tell us about the show in general as we know you are coming back for the second season next month and who do you play on the show?

BS: I play a character Joe Graves, Joe “Bear” Graves. They all have pseudonyms or names that they use on operations. He is the appointed leader of Seal Team 6. The former leader of that team, played by Walton Goggins (Sons of Anarchy, Vice Principals) was working as a contractor in Nigeria and was taken hostage along with a group of school girls and our team is now taxed with trying to bring their brother home who served with them for the last 10 years of their career and he’s very much a father figure to my character, Joseph. Joseph is a very intriguing character – he holds a lot of weight of responsibility on his shoulders he’s a married man, he’s a man of God and he and his wife, recently lost a child. So there’s a lot of burden upon him. When we pick up his story (there are only 8 episodes in season 1) – what’s interesting is beyond these general war stories that we see, it's showing that they are contractors. They go in on a Friday, spend two days killing a bunch of guys and then they’re back doing their school run Monday morning. How do you differentiate from most? Keep in mind that although there is another SEAL show on another network, we don’t have the budget to just blow things up so we spend more of our money on script and characters which is why I am very proud of the show. I think it’ll hold strong to anything that has been out since.

AM: The cast seems very close as we’ve seen that you guys have done Tough Mudders together and the fact that you can take that off screen is definitely unique.

BS: Absolutely, it’s well documented that the kind of training that they put us through prior to shooting in Season 1 was unlike anything that we had done before and it bonded us in a way that we are pretty much in contact with one another, every day. Even if we don't speak on the phone, we're on the text message continuously. It just bonded us that we had a shared trauma and when we went through the training the first time, it was something that we all felt together and it was an experience that we were able to draw on. The Tough Mudder was something inevitable that we had done before. I feel like I can do anything as long as those guys are beside me – we do it all together and it’s very easy as we have it locked down.

AM: So Olivia Munn is now joining this cast, how is that and are there things that you can talk about in terms of Season 2 for those that have been watching the first season?

BS: It’s been great to have Olivia join the show. She’s brought in a completely different character then what we had last year. What’s interesting about her role is if you’ve seen Jessica Chastain’s role in Zero Dark Thirty, the interrogator of the CIA - the brain, Olivia has a similar role to that and she spends a lot of her time in the first part of the season with a character called Michael who anyone who has seen the show will know very very well. He manages to escape from being shot at the very beginning of the pilot and then ends up being saved again at the end of the series. And then, we start off with those two being locked in a room for a degree of the time and it’s fascinating to watch. Viewers will be able to pick up the story pretty much from where we left off at the end of Season 1. We’re not jumping ahead 5 years into the future, we’re picking it up right where we left off.

So that’s going to be great and we’re going to jump right back in there and the theme is revenge and vengeance. You know, I’ve done revenge before so I can do that. Everybody else is going to have their own form of, “what do we do" when a member of the US Armed Forces is shot on home soil by a terrorist - where do we go?
 

AM: You were saying that you had to do SEAL training – what other workouts did you have to do to prepare for being in this show as well what your general fitness is outside of it?

BS: For the show specifically, we tend to prep prior to filming because when you’re in it, it’s just a maintaining job. Last year, I gave myself a 12 week plan for building so that I could be in time for shooting and training. Of course, I got 5 weeks into a building schedule and then was told that we were taking up the story from the very second that the last season ended and I was like, that’s not going to work! I was like, “oh shit” I had to get back down to where I was. So this season there was a lot of body work and I was already kind of where I left off so it was all about maintaining. We have some pull up bars and we’re in the gear which is about an extra 60-70lbs. 

My daily stuff includes my home gym, which is all practical body stuff like calisthenics and just easy stuff. If it’s specific for a role, then I will get with a trainer and will bulk up job dependent. I like to stay around 200 naturally and if I have to go up or down it will be based on the role. 

AM: Do you have projects outside of SIX that we should keep an eye out for in TV or film?

BS: You can still check out last season of Longmire on Netflix at the moment - that's still going. SIX is coming next that I am working on now that I can't speak about. We're actually looking to shoot Season 3 in a few months time. 

AM: So you’re based in L.A. and we know you have your own home gym, do you have a fitness place you like to go to in L.A., where do you go for date night with your wife and do you have a favorite place that you like to go shopping?

BS: We lived in Santa Monica for about 6 years and we just bought a place in a different area which has been great! We’ve basically been trying to find new restaurants, new bars, and to see what we can find. We are very much so – beach people! We do a lot of beach walks, bike rides with the kids – easy beach days. Now, we have to get in the car and try to find some nice parks. We love it here and we love the lifestyle in L.A. as my wife is from the same town as me in Liverpool. So we grew up in the same place and this is a lot easier of a lifestyle then what we both had! We enjoy every minute of it and the kids know no difference. As it should be.

And now I’ve got season tickets for L.A. FC so I’ll be going to that. I kind of felt like I couldn’t support L.A. Galaxy because I’m an implant here. But then I thought, well this is a brand new team, they have just started out and I’m older than them – so I can support them! Now  I am a new supporter of L.A. FC - so there you go. 

AM: So how else do you take time for yourself as you’re a huge soccer fan – do you do anything else?
 
BS: Yeah we do, meditation – my wife and I do it regularly. She is a Reiki master she does spiritual healing. She has a great company called MeadoFace. We work together on that. Something that was interesting to me was when we did our first boot camp training with the Navy Seals, a good degree of it was meditation. We'd meditate in the morning, we’d use box breathing to focus and make the goals. They use the mental strength as it is infinitely more stronger than their bodies. To get through what they have to especially in the training levels, it’s all about focus. It’s about setting yourself micro goals and you can push through that self-imposed barrier. You keep drawing in the training levels, it's all about focus. It's about setting yourself micro goals and you can push through that self-imposed barrier. You keep drawing lines in the sand and that was something that we were given every day of our lives. It’s about how things happen and what you do when it happens and obviously with having one fit in it already with what my wife does already – it was a place that I could shift into quite easily. 

AM: Do you have any charities that you support your time to?

BS: Last year, I was apart of Movember and this year I wasn’t able to do it because I was filming and I couldn’t do as much work for them as I couldn’t grow a mustache. Another organization is 22Kill. Statistically, 22 Veterans die each day from suicide which is a tragedy so they encourage as many people as possible on social media to do 22 pushups for 22 days to post it and tag them in to help raise awareness for that charity. We have linked with a lot of military charities since doing this job. It was tough at first because I didn’t know how they were going to take to us until they saw the show and how we represented them. I think they saw that we came at it with a respectful approach and told the story and represented them well – so a lot more have reached out. A lot of them I link to in my social media which is a great way to see what I am up to. I’m very fortunate and I love to get behind charities like this that are doing such great work.

PHOTOS COURTESY | HISTORY

Read more from the April Issue and see He's Got Your Six with Barry Sloane in mag.

AWARDS SEASON 2018 | GOLDEN GLOBES NOMINATIONS/WINNERS

Who's watching The 75th Golden Globes hosted by Seth Meyers tonight? We have shared who we think is winning (italics) and we will have the ones we picked correctly in bold and italicized and we will have the winners that we did not select correctly in bold. Stay in the loop on who won with us and make sure to watch tonight on NBC at 8pm EST.

BEST MOTION PICTURE, DRAMA

Dunkirk
The Post
The Shape of Water
Call Me by Your Name
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

BEST MOTION PICTURE, MUSICAL OR COMEDY

The Disaster Artist
Get Out
The Greatest Showman
I, Tonya
Lady Bird

BEST DIRECTOR

Guillermo del Toro, The Shape of Water
Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Christopher Nolan, Dunkirk
Ridley Scott, All the Money in the World
Steven Spielberg, The Post

BEST ACTOR, MOTION PICTURE, DRAMA

Timothée Chalamet, Call Me by Your Name
Denzel Washington, Roman J. Israel, Esq.
Tom Hanks, The Post
Daniel Day-Lewis, Phantom Thread
Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour

BEST ACTRESS, MOTION PICTURE, DRAMA

Jessica Chastain, Molly’s Game
Sally Hawkins, The Shape of Water
Frances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Meryl Streep, The Post
Michelle Williams, All the Money in the World

BEST ACTOR, MOTION PICTURE, COMEDY

Steve Carell, Battle of the Sexes
Ansel Elgort, Baby Driver
James Franco, The Disaster Artist
Hugh Jackman, The Greatest Showman
Daniel Kaluuya, Get Out

BEST ACTRESS, MOTION PICTURE, COMEDY

Judi Dench, Victoria & Abdul
Margot Robbie, I, Tonya
Saoirse Ronan, Lady Bird
Emma Stone, Battle of the Sexes
Helen Mirren, The Leisure Seeker

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR, MOTION PICTURE

Willem Dafoe, The Florida Project
Armie Hammer, Call Me by Your Name
Richard Jenkins, The Shape of Water
Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Christopher Plummer, All the Money in the World

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS, MOTION PICTURE

Mary J. Blige, Mudbound
Hong Chau, Downsizing
Allison Janney, I, Tonya
Laurie Metcalf, Lady Bird
Octavia Spencer, The Shape of Water

BEST SCREENPLAY

The Shape of Water
Lady Bird
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
The Post
Molly’s Game

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

“Home,” Ferdinand
“Mighty River,” Mudbound
“Remember Me,” Coco
“The Star,” The Star
“This Is Me,” The Greatest Showman

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Carter Burwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Alexandre Desplat, The Shape of Water
Jonny Greenwood, Phantom Thread
John Williams, The Post
Hans Zimmer, Dunkirk

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

The Boss Baby
The Breadwinner
Coco
Ferdinand
Loving Vincent

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

A Fantastic Woman
First They Killed My Father
In the Fade
Loveless
The Square

BEST TELEVISION SERIES, DRAMA

The Handmaid’s Tale
This Is Us
The Crown
Game of Thrones
Stranger Things

BEST TELEVISION SERIES, COMEDY

Black-ish
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Master of None
SMILF
Will & Grace

BEST LIMITED SERIES OR TELEVISION MOVIE

Big Little Lies
Feud: Bette and Joan
Fargo
Top of the Lake: China Girl
The Sinner

BEST ACTRESS, LIMITED SERIES OR TELEVISION MOVIE

Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies
Reese Witherspoon, Big Little Lies
Jessica Lange, Feud: Bette and Joan
Susan Sarandon, Feud: Bette and Joan
Jessica Biel, The Sinner

BEST ACTOR, LIMITED SERIES OR TELEVISION MOVIE

Robert De Niro, The Wizard of Lies
Kyle MacLachlan, Twin Peaks
Jude Law, The Young Pope
Ewan McGregor, Fargo
Geoffrey Rush, Genius

BEST ACTRESS, TELEVISION SERIES, DRAMA

Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale
Claire Foy, The Crown
Katherine Langford, 13 Reasons Why
Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Deuce
Caitriona Balfe, Outlander

BEST ACTOR, TELEVISION SERIES, DRAMA

Freddie Highmore, The Good Doctor
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul
Jason Bateman, Ozark
Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan

BEST ACTRESS, TELEVISION SERIES, COMEDY

Pamela Adlon, Better Things
Alison Brie, GLOW
Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Issa Rae, Insecure
Frankie Shaw, SMILF

BEST ACTOR, TELEVISION SERIES, COMEDY

Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
Aziz Ansari, Master of None
Kevin Bacon, I Love Dick
William H. Macy, Shameless
Eric McCormack, Will & Grace

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS, TELEVISION SERIES

Laura Dern, Big Little Lies
Ann Dowd, The Handmaid’s Tale
Chrissy Metz, This Is Us
Michelle Pfeiffer, The Wizard of Lies
Shailene Woodley, Big Little Lies

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR, TELEVISION SERIES

Christian Slater, Mr. Robot
David Harbour, Stranger Things
Alfred Molina, Feud: Bette and Joan
Alexander Skarsgard, Big Little Lies
David Thewlis, Fargo

LUKE BRACEY GETS EXTREME

This month, we attended the launch party for POLO RED which announced the new face, Luke Bracey, for the high selling cologne. We took a few moments to find out about the actor who has been in a number of movies including, the Point Break as well as Hacksaw Ridge, which is enjoying a lot of buzz during this awards season.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What was it like being selected for POLO RED?

LUKE BRACEY: The process of becoming the face of POLO RED has been so enjoyable and fun. I’m so honored to be the new face of POLO RED – being part of such an iconic brand is truly a privilege. Having the opportunity to work with Bruce Weber was also a great experience. He's a beautiful man and is so talented.
 
AM: What are your duties as the face of POLO RED?

LB: As the face of POLO RED I truly live and breathe the fragrance – I focus on bringing the speed, adrenaline, power of the POLO RED EXTREME lifestyle to men everywhere. Next I'll be joining the Ralph Lauren Fragrances team in Madrid to help kick off the global launch of the fragrance.
 
AM: Say 3 words describing POLO RED.

LB: Endurance, adrenaline, boundary-pushing. 
 
AM: You're a busy man as you were in the remake of Point Break, you were in Hacksaw Ridge which had a lot of buzz this awards season, what movie will we see you in next?

LB: I’ve got a couple of movies in the pipeline, but being the face of POLO RED is the role that I’m really focusing on right now.
 
AM: You're in great shape, besides surfing what workouts do you do?

LB: I’m very no-nonsense when it comes to fitness. I do 100 push-ups and 100 sit-ups every day. When I get to the gym, I like to keep it pretty basic and my routine tends to vary. Sometimes I go through periods where I go to the gym 5 days a week, and then take a few weeks off and before getting back into it. It’s all about balance.

AM: How do you give time to yourself?

LB: One of my favorite things to do is read. Right now I’m reading a great book called "Prisoners of Geography" by Tim Marshall. It’s a captivating book about how geography still plays a pivotal role in politics today. Even though it's 2017, geography is still the biggest factor. In addition to reading, I like to be in the water as much as possible. I try to go surfing and swim as much as I can.
 
AM: What's your personal style?

LB:  My style is pretty relaxed - I'm a tee shirt and jeans guy most of the time. I love my Blundstone boots, they’re definitely a staple in my personal style. When I’m hanging out with friends I’m usually in board shorts and flip flops.

GOLDEN GLOBES 2017 NOMINATION LIST

Here is the full list of nominations for this Sunday's Golden Globes. We'll be checking in throughout the night and live tweeting the red carpet from @AthleisureMag as well as style tips from our Co-Founder/Creative Director of this magazine. Until then, check out our predictions and we'll see you on the red carpet for arrivals.

Names that are capatalized and are in bold are winners that we didn't predict, but won. Names that are bold and italicized are our predictions (if there is not another highlighted name in the category, we guessed correctly). 

BEST MOTION PICTURE, DRAMA

Hacksaw Ridge

Hell or High Water

Lion

Manchester by the Sea

MOONLIGHT

BEST MOTION PICTURE, MUSICAL, OR COMEDY

20th Century Women

Deadpool

Florence Foster Jenkins

La La Land

Sing Street

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE, DRAMA

Amy Adams, Arrival

Jessica Chastain, Miss Sloane

ISABELLE HUPPERT, ELLE

Ruth Negga, Loving

Natalie Portman, Jackie

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE, MUSICAL OR COMEDY

Annette Bening, 20th Century Women

Lily Collins, Rules Don’t Apply

Hailee Steinfeld, The Edge of Seventeen

Emma Stone, La La Land

Meryl Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE, DRAMA

CASEY AFFLECK, MANCHESTER BY THE SEA

Joel Edgerton, Loving

Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge

Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic

Denzel Washington, Fences

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE

Mahershala Ali, Moonlight

Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water

Simon Helberg, Florence Foster Jenkins

Dev Patel, Lion

AARON TAYLOR-JOHNSON, NOCTURNAL ANIMALS

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NBC THIS IS US | Mandy Moore + Milo Ventimiglia | PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY | This is Us/NBC

BEST PERFORMANCE BY ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE

VIOLA DAVIS, FENCES

Naomie Harris, Moonlight

Nicole Kidman, Lion

Octavia Spencer, Hidden Figures

Michelle Williams, Manchester by the Sea

BEST DIRECTOR, MOTION PICTURE

DAMIEN CHAZELLE, LA LA LAND

Tom Ford, Nocturnal Animals

Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge

Barry Jenkins, Moonlight

Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE, MUSICAL, OR COMEDY

Colin Farrell, The Lobster

RYAN GOSLING, LA LA LAND

Hugh Grant, Florence Foster Jenkins

Jonah Hill, War Dogs

Ryan Reynolds, Deadpool

BEST SCREENPLAY, MOTION PICTURE

LA LA LAND

Nocturnal Animals

Moonlight

Manchester by the Sea

Hell or High Water

ORIGINAL SCORE, MOTION PICTURE

Moonlight

LA LA LAND

Arrival

Lion

Hidden Figures

BEST MOTION PICTURE, ANIMATED

Kubo and the Two Strings

Moana

My Life as a Zucchini

Sing

ZOOTOPIA

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MOONLIGHT | Mahershala Ali | PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY Moonlight

BEST ORIGINAL SONG, MOTION PICTURE

“Can’t Stop the Feeling,” Trolls

“CITY OF STARS,” LA LA LAND

“Faith,” Sing

“Gold,” Gold

“How Far I’ll Go,” Moana

BEST MOTION PICTURE, FOREIGN LANGUAGE

Divines

Elle

Neruda

The Salesman

Toni Erdmann

BEST TELEVISION SERIES, DRAMA

THE CROWN

Game of Thrones

Stranger Things

This Is Us

Westworld

BEST TELEVISION SERIES, MUSICAL OR COMEDY

ATLANTA

Blackish

Mozart in the Jungle

Transparent

Veep

BEST TELEVISION LIMITED SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE for TELEVISION

American Crime

The Dresser

The Night Manager

The Night Of

THE PEOPLE V. O.J.: AMERICAN CRIME STORY

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES, DRAMA

Rami Malek, Mr. Robot

Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul

Matthew Rhys, The Americans

Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan

BILLY BOB THORTON, GOLIATH

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SUICIDE SQUAD | WIll Smith + Margot Robbie | PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY Suicide Squad

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES, MUSICAL, OR COMEDY

Anthony Anderson, Blackish

Gael Garcia Bernal, Mozart in the Jungle

DONALD GLOVER, ATLANTA

Nick Nolte, Graves

Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A SERIES, LIMITED SERIES, OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Riz Ahmed, The Night Of

Bryan Cranston, All the Way

TOM HIDDLESTON, THE NIGHT MANAGER

Courtney B. Vance, The People v. O.J.: American Crime Story

John Turturro, The Night Of

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, LIMITED SERIES, OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Sterling K. Brown, The People v. O.J.: American Crime Story

HUGH LAURIE, THE NIGHT MANAGER

John Lithgow, The Crown

Christian Slater, Mr. Robot

John Travolta, The People v. O.J.: American Crime Story

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TV SERIES, DRAMA

Caitriona Balfe, Outlander

CLAIRE FOY, THE CROWN

Keri Russell, The Americans

Winona Ryder, Stranger Things

Evan Rachel Wood, Westworld

BEST PERFORMANCEe BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A SERIES, LIMITED SERIES, OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

OLIVIA COLMAN, THE NIGHT MANAGER

Lena Headey, Game of Thrones

Chrissy Metz, This Is Us

Mandy Moore, This Is Us

Thandie Newton, Westworld

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE IN A SERIES, LIMITED SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Felicity Huffman, American Crime

Riley Keough, The Girlfriend Experience

SARAH PAULSON, THE PEOPLE V. O.J.: AMERICAN CRIME STORY

Charlotte Rampling, London Spy

Kerry Washington, Confirmation

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES, MUSICAL, OR COMEDY

Rachel Bloom, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep

Sarah Jessica Parker, Divorce

Issa Rae, Insecure

Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin

TRACEE ELLIS ROSS, BLACKISH

TWO IS BETTER THAN ONE WITH SOPHIE + ELOISE LOVELL ANDERSON

By Nisim Frank

Two is better than one-double trouble twins- especially when we're talking about  Sophie and Eloise Lovell Andersen. Dubbed the  "The L.A. Twins" originally from the United Kingdom, currently crossing over the pond and ready to take America by storm. Having just appeared on the FX hit series "The Bastard Executioner" (created by Kurt Sutter of "Sons of Anarchy") together, heads turned during their scene-stealing work, both by fans and amongst their veteran co-stars. Needing to learn more about them and their journey thus far into acting, we set up a Skype call while they were back in the UK to chat about all things Sophie and Eloise both as twins and as separate individuals. Bright, funny, and sarcastic, both Sophie and Eloise were ready to answer any and everything thrown their way. Find out which twin worked with legendary actor Anthony Stewart Head, who can't live without a "goddess headpiece", and what amazing work outs they both do to stay in the amazing shape that they are both in. Alone and together, they are ones to watch out for this year.

Nisim Frank: Tell us about how you decided to get into acting.

Eloise Lovell Andersen: Growing up, we were both vastly interested in film, I remember we used to do little plays together on camera- the first one we did was Indiana Jones, we had this natural gravitation towards film. We were at school and we did speech and drama, always in the plays together and it was inevitable that we were going to end up doing it as adults.

Sophie Andersen: We would act out our favorite films together and our dad would record us so we'd have a lot of home videos. We also did a lot of athletics and relay teams together, dance school, we got used to being a team and we both really had the same interests.

NF: Do you enjoy doing acting roles together or relish to do some work on your own?

SA: We love working together, it comes naturally to us. I know if I'm acting with Eloise, I always know that where I can bounce off with a person that I'm acting next to, which is always a great opportunity. It's a natural chemistry that we have and with other actors, it could take some more time to build that. It's always fantastic to utilize that but at the same time, we aren't the same person so it's nice to explore and experience life by yourself.

EA: I agree completely. It was super exciting for us to come together when we worked on "The Bastard Executioner". I relish the opportunity to work with my sister, I actually get most excited working with her because I think we can take it to this next level- which is a credit to her! We are both on this path and also embrace the opportunities we get as individuals collectively. 

NF: That's great! Have you guys ever competed for the same role?

::Both twins laugh:: 

EA: Yes!

NF: Do you want to talk about it? Is it weird?

EA: I feel like there are times when it comes up- not recently- but when it does, we look at it as two people who are in the same craft going for a job. It's inevitable that its going to happen and you don't make a big deal out of it. When I go into any audition, I try to put myself into a headspace that I need to concentrate on what I'm trying to do. 

:: Eloise to Sophie:: "I think you're the same."

SA: No no, I bring my hitman! 

::All Laugh::

EA: Oh wow! That's a different approach!

SA: I think the way to look at it as "Whatever will be, will be and life will turn out the way that it should." 

NF: Eloise, I know you've worked with Anthony Head (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Little Britain, Merlin). Tell us a little bit about how it was working with the legendary British actor.

EA: I worked with him on "Here After," he just  switches it on! I remember he had this big speech and it was the first day we've met him, he had this giant monologue to go on for a lifetime and he was joking around with us all be-fore. He was even saying that he doesn't really know if he memorized it! He was just so professional and a lot of fun!

NF: Tell us a little bit about your personal style.

SA: I find that I've gone through phases but I feel like I'm mostly laid back but a bit paradoxical in my fashion sense. Half of me is very laid-back, tomboy, sportswear luxe, it's comfortable and bad ass at the same time! There is this other side of me that wants to wear a dress with the brightest color, so it's a bit of a strange mix ,at times but I try to keep the crazy side under control! I realize I can be a bit of a tomboy, so I feel the need to amp it up and go crazy and dress loud and fun.

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EA: Like Sophie, we're both really into sportswear and are very athletic. Sophie is into kickboxing, I am into Muay Thai and I think the sport luxe thing runs prevalent to that. I'm a sneaker freak so I love my Nike Trainers and in my leg warmers at home. Where we differ, I idolize this "warrior mixed with boho thrown in there" look, I prefer high boots when I go out and love a goddess head-dress- I'm always thinking what goddess head dress I could wear next!

NF: Tell us what type of style you would like on a man?

EA: Wow! ::laughs:: How honest do I have to be!? 

NF: As honest as you want to be.

EA: I love guys that have this sporty vibe to him. I love a guy that can look equally as good in the gym just around the house with their joggers on- preferably with no shirt on! Then I love somebody who is just really comfortable in their own skin. I think you can tell when the clothes are wearing them as opposed to rocking their own expression of themselves which is really powerful and sexy. I don't mind too much what a guy wears as much as it's incorporated into his personality and how comfortable they are with themselves.

SA: I feel like my type of guys style is "Rambo" at home but can put on a nice suit! I think that sums it up in one sentence! 

NF: Absolutely! Tell us what you guys are both doing with FX and your future plans.

SA: "The Bastard Executioner" is our big thing that we got to do together and it's been a platform for us to really get to act together all the time like when we were younger, it's really our driving force. We love together, this has been such a great job, working with Stephen Moyer, he's a fantastic actor. Kurt Sutter as a creative force behind it was incredible and an amazing overall experience.

EA: That being said, we have a couple of projects coming up that we're filming in the States. We can't say exactly yet. The next two projects are together as well. We're very excited and ready for everything coming up!

PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY | Sophie + Eloise Lovell Anderson and FX Network

Nisim Frank is based in NYC and is the Co-Founder of Labeling Men.

Read more from the April Issue