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My essentials SEAN BRIFFA 40, artist As far as I can remember I've always been drawing and doodling. Then I fell in love with theatre and delved a bit in all its aspects, from writing and backstage work, to performing and directing. Whether it's finishing a painting, building a puppet, or performing in front of an audience, my main passion is storytelling. 1. Book 2. Film 3. Internet & TV 4. Music 5. Place A few years back I started listening to bluegrass mu- sic. Its use of acoustic only instruments, downbeat vo- cals and gloomy, yet some- times tongue-in-cheek lyr- ics, struck a chord with me. It creates a raw, lonesome lament that mirrored my internal journey as I started new phases in my life. Exten- sively playing Red Dead Re- demption 2 might have also played a part in this connec- tion. I find it difficult to choose a particular spot. When thinking about this I kept getting flashes of different places where I could get lost in exploring nature, away from anything man-made. Apart from loving nature and anything living, I think these moments where I could be away from society are a reaction to living in a very overcrowded, overde- veloped, often claustropho- bic, urban environment. Most recently, snorkelling at Xrobb l-Għaġin gave me that escape. LAST year I read the graph- ic novel version of Sapiens with my daughter. I found it was a great tool to explore learning about our species as just another species in ecological terms. It chal- lenges the outdated notion of a superior species; one that is above the rest of na- ture, which sadly is still too prevalent. As a book I found it balanced, giving informa- tion while keeping the hu- mour throughout, especially with the very stylised illus- trations. AS a big fan of sci-fi I had certain expectations when I went to watch Project Hail Mary. I was so pleasantly sur- prised that apart from telling an epic story spanning galax- ies, the film was loaded with heart, creating such a sweet and believable relationship between the astronaut and his new alien friend. It kept the audience super emotion- ally involved. I think having the alien played by a puppet instead of CGI helped create a credible dynamic between it and the real actor. RECENTLY I got hooked on American late-night shows. What's happening in Amer- ica is extremely worrying because of the global rami- fications, but also indicative of which way global policies are shifting. What makes these heavy topics more di- gestible to someone like me is the humorous approach, which gave me a new appre- ciation on the importance of satire in relation to political discourse. Compiled by Laura Calleja suggestions by email lcalleja@mediatoday.com 4 1 MaltaToday is supported by Arts Council Malta 4 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 9 AUGUST 2026 ALMANAC 3 2 5