Proof that Britain is a Nation of Diversi-tea, With 24 Million Ways to Make a Cuppa... and a Bagful of Science in the Blending from Tetley

Academic James Hind (left) & Tetley Master Blender Sebastian Michaelis (right) examine the prefect blend (PRNewsfoto/Tetley)

The YouGov research, commissioned by Tetley Tea to mark its 180th birthday and analysed by mathematician Dr James Hind of Nottingham Trent University, factors in all possible variables when it's time to pop the kettle on.

From brew time, milk levels and dunking behaviour to sweetener choice, water (or milk) first and overall water temperature, the reality is that it all boils down to personal taste.

As for the most commonly drunk cuppa, this involves 60 seconds of brewing, a dash of cold semi-skimmed milk, three dunks of the teabag, no sugar, drunk hot from a mug and made by the drinker themselves.

But according to master tea blender, Sebastian Michaelis, whose taste buds are insured for £1m, all 24 million possible cuppas start with one perfect blend, revealing there is still science behind the art of the individual cuppa.

That's why he has spent months with Dr Hind in the Tetley tea rooms, where over 40,000 cups of tea are tasted every week, developing a mathematical equation for the perfect blend that is the basis for 24 million possible cuppas. 

Missy (Michelle Gomez) drinking tea  (Image via BBC)

The equation for the perfect blend:

Perfect Blend=Sin(Y114.5⁄)√ZB+CS(π−W)(5T⁄) 

• Y = years of experience (180 years for Tetley) 
• W = Weight of tea in the teabag (3.125 for Tetley) 
• T = duration of training for blenders (5 years for Tetley) 
• Z = Zing (1-30) 
• B = Body (1-30) 
• C = Colour (1-45) 
• S = Sparkle (1-50) 

The key variables centre on the process of perfecting a blend from crop to cup, including years (Y) of experience and weight (W) of tea in the teabag.

Also captured is the duration of training (T) for the master tea blenders and the colour (C), size and density of the leaf; the brew's purity of colour (its sparkle - S); the weight of the tea in the mouth (its body - B) and the overall liveliness of the tea on the palate (its zing - Z). 

Madame Vastra's Sontaran butler Strax serving tea (image via Horrorpedia)

Sebastian Michaelis comments: "What I found fascinating is that there are so many possible ways of making a cup of tea, but there is no secret method for the perfect cuppa. Everyone takes their tea a little differently, which is why no one can quite make it as perfectly as you. Whether you add milk or not, drink it weak or strong, what is crucial to a great cup of tea however is the blending. 

The complexity of the equation reflects the many layers required to craft the nation's favourite drink. Blending tea, like blending whisky or champagne, is both a science and an art. Tetley tea blenders spend five years training and honing our ability to be able to taste and grade any of the thousands of different varieties of tea in the world in just 15 seconds. 

Without the right balance of flavours, brightness and body, your tea would taste less like a Grand Cru and more like cheap plonk!" 

With the blend perfected, the nation's nuances and twists on how they take their tea then come in to play. 

• According to the research, 48% brew the teabag for at least a minute, with almost a third of UK tea drinkers considering brewing time the most important factor when it comes to making tea. 

• Whilst one in 10 Brits favour a more traditional take on the cuppa, drunk from a teacup rather than a mug, a small but significant 3% of white tea takers opt for the less traditional in heating up the milk first! 

• 44% of people think they make the best cup of tea and 14% say they prefer ones made by their partners. Meanwhile, office tea rounds could soon be on their way out, with only 1% preferring their colleagues' method of making tea. 

• Despite 'hot' being the most common temperature for tea to be consumed, 24% of Brits prefer theirs 'warm' and a whopping 72% take no sugar, with 17% instead opting for replacements such as honey or sweeteners. 

• As for what makes the worst cup of tea, putting in too much milk comes top (20%), followed by splitting the tea bag by squeezing it too hard (16%) and reheating tea in the microwave (15%). 

SOURCE: Tetley

Bonus Videos:

First Transgender Day of Remembrance Cenotaph Statue to be Unveiled in Palm Springs

Transgender Day of Remembrance 2017 Cenotaph Sculpture by Heath Satow

On November 20, the Transgender Community Coalition will host their annual Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDoR) honoring the memory of those whose lives were lost in acts of anti-transgender violence in the past year. 

• The event will take place at Palm Springs City Hall, 3200 E. Tahquitz Canyon Way, from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m., with the vigil commencing at 5 p.m.

"One out of eight transgender people of color face murder in their lifetime, and one out of 12 Caucasian trans people face murder in their lifetime," says Thomi Clinton, Chief Executive Officer and founder of the Transgender Community Coalition in Palm Springs.

• Speakers at this year's event include: the CEO of the Transgender Community Coalition with Gwendolyn Ann Smith, founder of the TDoR, Ian Harvie, Transgender comedian and actor from the award-winning TV series Transparent, Ryan Sallans, Transgender author and advocate and Ashlee Marie Preston, Transgender producer and activist.

This year, Palm Springs' Transgender Community Coalition unveils the first Transgender Day of Remembrance Memorial Cenotaph Sculpture. The non-profit organization commissioned the life-size sculpture to honor victims of transgender violence. 

The statue was inspired after the death of a transgender woman, Yaz'min Sanchez, who was shot and burned behind a garbage bin in Florida. Sanchez' body left a silhouette where her remains were discovered.

Los Angeles-based metal artist Heath Satow created the breathtaking sculpture, illustrating the life-size figure, made of steel butterflies (symbolizing metamorphosis or transition), lying on their side. 

• The sculpture aims to inspire needed conversations aimed at ending discrimination and violence against transgender people in the United States and across the world.

Transgender Day of Remembrance - Leaflet

About Heath Satow:

(Via Transgender Day of Remembrance)

Heath Satow (b. February 6, 1969) is an American artist who works primarily in fabricated metals. He received national attention for his 9/11 Memorial sculpture of hands – created with 3,000 stainless-steel doves – lifting one of the twisted steel beams from the World Trade Center to the sky. 

His passion is art that expresses social justice issues and the inequality of the discriminated and oppressed. Inspired by the scale model that Thomi Clinton presented to him, he has created a unique piece of Cenotaph art – an empty tomb or a monument erected in honor of a person or group of people – that embodies the murders and injustices faced by the transgender community in hopes of increasing public conversation to support transgender equality. 

The piece was inspired by the murder of transgender woman of color Yaz’min Sanchez, who was thrown into a Florida alley and burned to death. The scorched burned marks from her remains inspired a breathtaking sculpture of a person laying in a somber fetal position covered in butterflies. 

• Butterflies are the spiritual symbol of transgender people. These butterflies represent the spirits of those we have lost preparing to return to their Creator in the heavens.

About Transgender Day of Remembrance:

Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDoR) was founded in 1999 by Gwendolyn Ann Smith when she held a vigil for Rita Hester, a transgender woman that was murdered. It has become a global event to address the violence and oppression against this community.

It is a time when the community that supports LGBTQ+ equality comes forward with their direct support to end violence against the transgender, intersex, gender non-conforming and non-binary communities. 

SOURCE: Transgender Community Coalition

The Video:

World's First And Most Extensive Exhibition Celebrating Marvel's Visual And Cultural Impact To Premiere At Seattle's Museum Of Pop Culture In April 2018

MoPOP and SC Exhibitions commissioned several renowned Marvel artists to create a series of posters for the Seattle show which will be released over the months to come. Michael Allred’s interpretation shows Spider-Man swinging from the Space Needle

Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes will feature more than 300 original artifacts, including some of Marvel's most iconic and sought-after pages, costumes and props, many of which have never-before been seen by the public. These will be displayed in a major retrospective at the Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP) in Seattle, opening on April 21, 2018.

• The exhibition will tell the Marvel story through comics, film and other media, taking place as it celebrates 10 years of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and ahead of the 80th anniversary in 2019.

Rare artifacts and interactive set design creates a multifaceted and vivid experience for visitors. (Concept artwork by Studio TK)

"Our show takes us from the origins of the Marvel Universe to the present, providing a chance to see some of the rarest and most precious objects to have survived from the past 80 years of pop culture history," says curator Ben Saunders about the exhibition, which is being produced by MoPOP, SC Exhibitions and Marvel Entertainment.

Marvel statues invite visitors to interact and become part of the scenery with great photo opportunities throughout the exhibition. (Concept artwork by Studio TK.)

The exhibition will trace the story of the company and its influence on visual culture – including how it's responded to historical events and addressed wider issues such as gender, race and mental illness – as well as uncovering the narratives of individual characters such as Captain America, Spider-Man, Black Panther and Doctor Strange. It will honor the so-called "imaginauts" such as Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, who have made the Marvel saga one of the most expansive fictional universes ever created.

"Marvel transformed the idea of the Super Hero in the 1960s—and beyond—by ratcheting up the visual spectacle, emotional dynamism and philosophical sophistication of the action-adventure comics genre," says Brian Crosby, head of Marvel Themed Entertainment. "Marvel has always been a reflection of the world outside your own window and one of its most compelling messages has always been, that anyone—regardless of race, religion or gender—can be a Super Hero."

Immersive set pieces will bring the comic book world to life, and the exhibition will be accompanied by an immersive soundscape created by acclaimed composers Lorne Balfe and Hans Zimmer.

Visitors can stroll through the streets of New York City, catching a glimpse into artists’ studios to learn about the creators behind the comics and gaze at original props from Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and more. (Concept artwork by Studio TK.)

The exhibition has been curated by an outstanding team that includes three scholars of comics – Benjamin Saunders, Matthew J. Smith and Randy Duncan, all of whom are university professors and experts in their field. MoPOP curators Brooks Peck and Jacob McMurray, as well as renowned comics writers and editors Ann Nocenti and Danny Fingeroth, have also contributed.

Tony Stark’s Lab is one of many different settings in which visitors can immerse themselves and interact with their favorite characters. (Concept artwork by Studio TK.)

"This is the largest exhibition ever staged at the Museum of Pop Culture," says Brooks Peck, curator, MoPOP. "We're thrilled to present more than 300 original artworks, props, costumes, and genuine relics of pop culture history, from the earliest incarnations of super heroes in comics to ground breaking movie moments reflecting the timeless appeal of the Marvel universe."

Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes - Logo (PRNewsfoto/Museum of Pop Culture)

SOURCE: Museum of Pop Culture

Bonus Videos:

Barbie Honors Ibtihaj Muhammad With One-Of-A-Kind Doll At Glamour Women Of The Year Live Summit

Barbie honors Ibtihaj Muhammad as a Barbie Shero with one-of-a-kind doll in her likeness at the Glamour Women Of The Year LIVE Summit

Today, Mattel honors Ibtihaj Muhammad, the first American Olympian to compete while wearing a hijab, as a Barbie Shero by gifting her a one-of-a-kind doll in her likeness. The doll was unveiled at the Glamour Women of the Year LIVE Summit, an annual event that gives young women the opportunity to hear from select past and present Women of the Year honorees, as well as other influential leaders from a variety of fields, in Brooklyn, NY. 

Muhammad is the latest honoree as part of Barbie Shero program that recognizes women who break boundaries to inspire the next generation of girls. 

• Muhammad was presented this doll by last year's Shero, body activist and model, Ashley Graham.

"Through playing with Barbie, I was able to imagine and dream about who I could become," said Ibtihaj Muhammad. "I love that my relationship with Barbie has come full circle, and now I have my own doll wearing a hijab that the next generation of girls can use to play out their own dreams." 

One of TIME magazine's "100 Most Influential People" of 2016, Muhammad not only breaks boundaries with her swordsmanship, but with the launch of her clothing line, Louella. Noticing a gap in the marketplace, Muhammad designs new fresh and vibrant looks for the modest fashion industry.

"Barbie is celebrating Ibtihaj not only for her accolades as an Olympian, but for embracing what makes her stand out," said Sejal Shah Miller, Vice President of Global Marketing for Barbie. "Ibtihaj is an inspiration to countless girls who never saw themselves represented, and by honoring her story, we hope this doll reminds them that they can be and do anything."

"Ibtihaj Muhammad has challenged every stereotype—which to me is the definition of a modern American woman," said Glamour Editor-in-Chief Cindi Leive. "Last year, she was the first athlete from the U.S to compete in the Olympics wearing a hijab, and today we are thrilled to celebrate Ibtihaj as the first hijab-wearing Barbie. She will play a tremendous role in ensuring that girls of the future see themselves represented fully and beautifully in our culture." 

• The doll will be available for purchase in 2018. For more information and images, visit Barbiemedia.com and Glamour.com. 

Ibtihaj Muhammad (image via The Independent)

About Glamour:
Glamour is one of the biggest fashion and beauty media brands in the world, currently reaching an all-time high of one out of eight American women, with 9.7 million print readers, more than 11 million unique monthly users online, and over 14 million followers across social media platforms. 

Glamour believes in the power of women being themselves and stands with women as they do their own thing: honestly, authentically, and awesomely. Across every platform, Glamour is the ultimate authority for the next generation of changemakers.

SOURCE: Mattel, Inc.

Bonus Video:

Internationally Acclaimed Japanese Play 'Godot Has Come' Comes to Montréal for 5 Special Performances Only

Godot Has Come - Poster

Infinithéâtre is known for incubating original Québec playwrights but this time, in association with a new arts centre in N.DG, Espace Knox, they host a world famous original by Japan's most prolific writer Minoru Betsuyaku. 

Godot Has Come pays a moving and vibrant tribute to Samuel Beckett by taking a layered and hilarious look at our overly occupied existence in modern times. 

• In an interview with The Irish Examiner, world renowned Japanese director, and director of Godot Has Come, K. Kiyama notes the play reflects "…society which has moved from being family and community based to individualistic and somewhat controlled by technology.". 
• The Berlin Deutsches Theatre says the play is "…a powerful, successful production…".
• Paris critique Dashiell Donello calls it "Suite joyeuse dans laquelle sa vision aiguisée ne laisse rien passer à la société actuelle.". 

Godot Has Come is Minoru Betsuyaku's deep dive into what it means to actually experience life – and whether, with our manic modern mentality, we can exceed indifference to exist in the moment.

Godot Has Come

Infinithéâtre's Artistic Director Guy Sprung notes "This is an excellent opportunity for us to continue our on-going dialogue with Japanese theatre. In 2014, Hanafuda Denki was a smash hit with audiences and we're equally excited about Godot Has Come. With comedy as a rich byproduct, the play examines the absurdity of life, of forgetting to wait for what we hope for whether it be a higher power, a break, or the tapestry of relationships we stake our very happiness on. It is not to be missed.".

The Plot: 

Evening. A telegraph post is on stage right. A bus stop sign and a bench are on stage left. 

Estragon in shabby black clothes and hat carrying a shoe is trying to put off another shoe. Vladimir in similar attire comes with a toy trumpet. Lucky with a chain around his neck and Pozzo holding the chain appear just like those in Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. But two young female receptionists and an elderly woman with a knitting set join them here. 

Then a man named Godot with an umbrella arrives and abruptly introduces himself to the receptionists, saying “I am Godot.” His arrival is too abrupt to be recognized as Godot. Hereafter he tells Estragon and Vladimir that he is Godot every time he has a chance, but they never react as he has expected. Godot “has finally come” with no mistake but nothing changes with his arrival. There is no dramatic encounter. Only laughter bursts in a vacant sight. 

This is a slapstick comedy – much more comic than the original by Beckett. There lies Minoru Betsuyaku’s strong critical recognition of the present society in this bold challenge. 

Betsuyaku, who has established the Theatre of the Absurd in Japan, wrote this brilliant play as homage to Beckett. 

About The Author:
Minoru Betsuyaku is a leading playwright in the contemporary Japanese theatre. Influenced by writers such as Samuel Beckett and Franz Kafka, his absurd play The Elephant [Zo] (1962) dealing with Atomic bomb victims received a remarkable attention. 

He appeals to his audience in ways he uses the language vividly spoken by people of the lower middle class and develops absurd situations happening in our daily lives. He is known as the most prolific writer of our day; he not only wrote more than 130 plays but also produced children’s stories, essays, criticisms, etc. 

• 1966 Founded the Waseda Little Theater with Tadashi Suzuki. 
• 1968 Awarded the 13th “New Theatre” Kishida Kunio Drama Award for his play The Little Match Girl [Match-Uri no Shojo] and A Scene with a Red Bird [Akai Tori no Iru Fukei]. 
• 1970 Awarded the Kinokuniya Theater Award for A Town and a Blimp [Machi to Hikosen] and Alice in Wonderland [Fushigi no Kuni no Alice]. 
• 1987 Awarded the Yomiuri Literature Award for his collection of plays entitled The Story of the Two Knights Travelling Around the Country [Shokoku wo Henreki Suru Futari no Kishi no Monogatari] and Other Plays. 
• 2007 Awarded the Kinokukniya Theater Award for Godot Has Come [Yattekita Godot]. 
• 2008 Awarded the Tsuruya Nanboku Award for Godot Has Come [Yattekita Godot]. 
• 2009 Awarded the Asahi Award for his long-time activity as a leading playwright who has established the Theatre of the Absurd in Japan. 

About The Director: 
K. Kiyama (1942〜2013). Graduated from the Law School, Doshisha University. After working at Yomiuri Newspaper Company in Osaka, Theater Company Bungaku-za, Theater Company Shiki, he founded a theater producing company Office Kiyama in 1980 and has been producing about a hundred plays not only in Japan but also in other countries since then; he produced Kanadehon Hamlet in New York, London and Moscow, Barefoot Gen [Hadashi no Gen] in New York, Seoul and Poland, and The Terminal is Japan [Saishu Mokuteki-chi wa Nihon] in Seoul and Pusan. 

He has been working as a director since 2004. 

His directorial works are: 

• A Scene with a Red Bird [Akai Tori no Iru Fukei] (by Minoru Betsuyaku, produced in Seoul and New York) 
• It’ll Be a Long Way [Michi Tookaran] (by Kunio Kishida) 
• The Legend of the Noon [Shogo no Densetsu] (by Minoru Betsuyaku) 
• Sick [Byoki] (by Minoru Betsuyaku, produced in Moscow and Paris in 2010).

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GODOT HAS COME AT ESPACE KNOX

Nov 28th – Dec 2nd, Tues-Sat. at 8:00 pm 

At Espace Knox, 6215 ave Godfrey, Montréal, QC H4B 1K3 

Regular: $30, Students/Seniors: $23, Groups: $20, Season 6-Packs (6 tickets for $120)

Box Office: 514 987-1774 ext. 104; Box-Office@Infinitheatre.com or Infinitheatre.com

(70 MINUTES IN JAPANESE WITH ENGLISH AND FRENCH SURTITLES)

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Infinithéâtre: developing, producing, and brokering new Québec work.

• Infinithéâtre is generously supported by season sponsors: CN and Hydro-Québec
• Infinithéâtre also thanks our production sponsor Hôtel Le Cantlie Suites

Samuel Beckett (image via Wikipedia)

SOURCE: Infinithéâtre

French Holocaust Survivor Donates $500,000 to Aid American Wounded Veterans

Bernard Darty, 83, is compelled to support Wounded Warrior Project this Veterans Day in honor of his family’s 1944 rescue at Normandy.

At age 83, Paris-born Bernard Darty feels fortunate to enjoy time with his family and spend winters in Miami Beach nearly three-quarters of a century after escaping Nazi invaders in France as a child. 

Although he lost his mother to the Auschwitz concentration camp, today he is so moved with gratitude for the American troops who liberated him in Normandy in 1944 that he has made a significant donation of $500,000 to Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) this Veterans Day to help U.S. veterans and their families—hoping to trigger a new movement of supporting American veterans.

"In giving this donation, I want to thank Americans with all my heart for rescuing us during the war," Darty said. "The gratitude I feel to these men is beyond words. They were saviors, doling out sweets to half-starved, war-worn children who had almost given up hope of freedom. That is why I want to support American veterans—and why I support America. I hope my donation inspires others to do the same."

• Darty's donation will support two key WWP programs: Warrior Care Network, which connects wounded veterans and their families with individualized mental health care, and the Independence Program, which works with warriors with moderate to severe brain injury, spinal cord injury, or other neurological conditions to ensure each wounded veteran can live as independently as possible.

"We are incredibly grateful to Mr. Darty for his generosity, which will enable us to reach even more veterans, particularly those most in need," said WWP CEO Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Mike Linnington. "We serve the most critical needs of our nation's wounded heroes, including those who live with traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder. Thanks to generous supporters like Mr. Darty, we provide them crucial support services free of charge, making a tremendous difference in the lives of wounded veterans of this generation and their families."

Holocaust story illuminates strong ties to America
Darty was born in 1934 to a Jewish family that had fled the pogroms in Poland for France, hoping for safety there. With the German invasion of France in 1940, however, the family was again at risk. 

An older brother was sent on the first convoy to Auschwitz, but fortunately survived. Darty's mother was not so lucky when, on July 16, 1942, the French police led a big round-up of Jews. At 6 am that morning, Darty recalls the police came to the family's apartment. Darty, age 7, was able to escape to an aunt's house that was considered safe, but his mother was sent to Auschwitz and likely died three weeks later. 

Darty spent the next few years living in foster homes on the outskirts of Paris, afraid and living on borrowed time. The day American troops came ashore at Normandy in June 1944, Darty finally felt the relief of freedom.

That was the beginning of his connections to America. Since then, he and his wife, also a Holocaust survivor, have wintered in South Florida ever since his retirement 26 years ago—to which he says, "I have had the chance to meet many American people who I am lucky enough to call my friends. First, Americans saved us, and then 50 years later they welcomed us."

• Darty hopes his donation will deepen that trans-Atlantic connection, inspiring other families throughout Europe to help American veterans in deference to the shared history of the Allied forces of World War II.

About Wounded Warrior Project

• Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) connects, serves, and empowers wounded warriors. 
• Read more here. 

SOURCE: Wounded Warrior Project

Teaser for New Documentary "The American Question" Challenges Americans To Question Whether They Are Part Of The Problem

Award Winning Director and co-creator of The American Question James Kicklighter

A year after the historically divisive 2016 elections, a new documentary is challenging Americans to stop blaming others and question how their own decisions and actions shape the contours of our society and our country. 

By asking questions about family, money, religion, civics and more, the film gets viewers to question whether the divisions in our society truly stem from group dynamics, or if we're all part of the problem as individuals.

A trailer for the film has now been released  to audiences worldwide.

The Trailer:

"The American Question," produced by Guy Seemann – a political veteran and entrepreneur who's lived all over the world and directed by James Kicklighter – a Hollywood filmmaker raised in rural Georgia, profiles dozens of Americans from across the political, economic and social spectrum in search of these answers, going far deeper than just getting people together to find some superficial common ground.

The film explores this question through the lens of history, deteriorating civic education and evolving culture rather than rehashing the 2016 election. 

• After conducting dozens of interviews of people from different walks of life all across the country, the creators believe something much bigger is at work, and that it has the potential to threaten the status of America as a superpower.

"We found that our divides had nothing to do with the election," Seemann said. "Fights spring up over core values which are supposed to unite us as a nation. Religion, speech, equality, opportunity -- these concepts kept coming up over and over again."

"This is a unique period in time, but the identity crisis we're feeling is part of a cyclical pattern in this country. After our nation unites to defeat a common enemy – the imperial British, slavery and secession or the Nazis, we tend to lose our cohesiveness. This time, though, we have to address this issue or our status as a cohesive entity – let alone a superpower – is under threat," he added.

Kicklighter continued, "there's a set of values that define what it means to be an American. I heard people from all corners of the country saying the other side did not have their interests in mind. A fascinating pattern unfolded about the broader culture here, and we are trying to figure out what's causing it and what it means."

"What's dangerous is when someone comes to a different set of conclusions based on their ideological perspective and pegs the other as an enemy simply because the other doesn't agree with their individualized ideology," Kicklighter said. "I hope The American Question helps people recognize that their neighbor is as American as they are. That's the starting point we need to get to," he said.

With entire communities in crisis due to this breakdown over America's core values, the filmmakers are looking to spark a national conversation to encourage viewers to rethink how they themselves approach their own life decisions as well as their perceived differences with their neighbors. 

• Seemann, Kicklighter and their national team want to enable them to reconcile over the shared values laid out in the founding documents which have helped the country overcome adversity since its founding.

Political Scientist, Producer and co-creator of the American Question Guy Seemann

SOURCE: The American Question

Related Video:

Nicki Minaj Stars In H&M's Magical Holiday Film

(PRNewsfoto/H&M)

The H&M's 2017 Holiday campaign film will star Nicki Minaj alongside Jesse Williams and John Turturro. Directed by Johan Renck, the film tells a story of a parallel fantasy world filled with memorable characters and a universal message of caring for one another.

A modern take on the classic fairytale, the film centres around a heroic little girl who tracks down the evil brother of Santa Claus in order to save the holiday season from his selfishness. 

(Image courtesy of H&M)

Nicki Minaj stars as the mother of the little girl as well as the fabulous fairy named the Wisest Thingy, while Jesse Williams plays the dual role of the father and the supernatural Fastest Fairy, and John Turturro takes on the part of both Santa Claus and the evil brother of Santa Claus.

"I love the film's over all empowering message. I love seeing this young girl become the champion that lives in all of us. There's always magic in the air during the Holidays," says Nicki Minaj 

"It's exciting to see our festive designs come to life together with such inspirational talents. They definitely added some extra magic to the film and we hope that our customers will love how the fashion is presented throughout the holiday season at H&M," says Pernilla Wohlfahrt, H&M's Head of Design and Creative Director.

(Image courtesy of H&M)

The Teaser Film:

• The full version of the Holiday film will go live on hm.com on November 28th.

SOURCE: H&M

Bonus Videos:

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(Image courtesy of H&M)