COLUMN | ISSUE THIRTEEN | SPOOKY Written by Ricky Lai (he/him) | @rickthelai on IG & Letterboxd | Columnist Anguish (Bigas Luna, 1987) If you’re queasy about eyeballs and pupils, then either steer clear or work up the courage. In fact, to my fellow ommetaphobics out there, let me encourage you to test your mettle. What I really want to say about Anguish, a gloriously languid-paced fever-dream about film-induced hypnosis, is that the less you know about it going in, the better

NEWS/INTERVIEW | ISSUE THIRTEEN | SPOOKY An interview with Mike Smith by Maeva Moelagi Jackson-Becerra (she/her) | @maeva_moelagi | Contributing Writer It is easy to feel bogged down as the existential threats of environmental disaster and climate change loom over us. To counteract this doomerism, I spoke to a Māori climate activist with experience, advice, and hope to give us all. Mike Smith (Ngāti Kahu, Ngāpuhi) is an activist who has been fighting for the environment sinc

REVIEW | ISSUE THIRTEEN | SPOOKY Written by Caeden Tipler (they/them) | @ctipler | Contributing Writer One of the great blessings of the timing of the New Zealand International Film Festival (NZIFF) is how quickly we get to see films after their Cannes premieres. The iconic festival takes place each year in mid-May on the French Riviera, bringing together thousands of filmmakers, journalists, critics, celebrities, film lovers, and more. Each year has its own memorable moment

FEATURE | ISSUE THIRTEEN | SPOOKY Written by Liam Hansen (they/them) | @liamhanse.n | Associate Editor The decennial cyclical nature of pop culture is currently throwing everything back to the late 2010s, when New Zealand indie was having an international renaissance. Within a few years, several Aotearoa bands broke across the Pacific Ocean, signing with major Stateside record labels and gaining genuine virality on their songs and music videos before the term was co-opted by

ONE MOON COLUMN | ISSUE THIRTEEN | SPOOKY Written by Priscilla Zhang (she/her) | @p.zhangxy | Columnist Halloween is coming. It reminded me of a Christmas a few years ago, when I went to London to visit a friend who was studying there. I was excited to spend Christmas with her, until she said, “Honestly, you might as well stay home. Shanghai has a stronger Christmas atmosphere. Everyone here is on holiday.” She had a point. Halloween was never a traditional Chinese festival,

DEGENERATE GUIDES & ALTERED STATES COLUMN | ISSUE THIRTEEN | SPOOKY Written by Isaac Tenzing | Drugs Columnist “In an era with so many options to biohack and experience ecstasy and wonder and freedom, unfortunately people are going to take the skeeviest way to that path and unfortunately Darwin will claim his quota.” - Jillsa Goodwitch, The Drug Users Bible 3.7.1 Datura Yeah, fuck. I knew if I stared any longer at this particular seed, my entire spirit would be thrown off ba

FEATURE | ISSUE THIRTEEN | SPOOKY Written by Ha Minh (Niki) (she/her) | @_haniki_ | Contributing Writer Once upon a time… I grew up believing in the currency of tears. Like many generations of Vietnamese children, I was raised on the folktale of Tấm Cám. The rules of the universe, as I understood them, were incredibly simple: if you were kind, if you worked hard, and if you endured suffering with quiet grace, the universe would eventually offer you good things as gifts. And i

FEATURE | ISSUE THIRTEEN | SPOOKY Written by Jake Harvey | Contributing Writer I had been appointed the sole caretaker of Broadland Manor, a beautiful Jacobean estate, whose isolation suited me exceedingly well. I had long since grown weary of society and found the company of others increasingly tiresome. The promise of solitude, and of a life spent largely undisturbed, was therefore enough to persuade me to accept the position without hesitation. That I possessed no experien

TE AO MĀORI | ISSUE THIRTEEN | SPOOKY Written by Skye Lunson-Storey (they/them) | Whakatōhea, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Tūwharetoa | @uku_rangi | Arts, Culture, and Te Ao Māori Editor White Terraces 1882, by Charles Blomfield This eerie tale starts back in 1886 on Lake Rotomahana, with rising waters and the unsettling sighting of a phantom waka taua. These sightings were only about 11 days before the devastating disaster on 10 June 1886, from the infamous Mt Tarawera eruption

EDITORIAL | ISSUE THIRTEEN | SPOOKY Written by Tashi Donnelly (she/her) | @tashi_rd | Editor-in-Chief Illustrated by Niamh Donnelly (she/they) | @zaxoof | Contributing Artist Kia ora, nau mai, haere mai! Spooky season is almost upon us, and we’ve chosen to honour the time of year with this very special, first time ever, 13th issue of Debate. As per usual, I looked into the etymology of spooky (I suddenly panicked that I’d accidentally given our final issue of the year a racis

FEATURE | ISSUE THIRTEEN | SPOOKY Written by Emily Smith (she/her) | @emlillys | Contributing Writer The tooth feels heavy in my hand. It is no bigger than my fingernail, but it feels weighty, like a sack of rice. It is heavy because it is full of fortune, apparently. I don’t believe the back of my mouth is a particularly fortunate place, but Grandma does. This one came from the back of my mouth. My tongue can’t quite reach the gap it has left. When I clench my fingers around