Jef Rouner, Freelance Journalist Profile

Articles

First-Time Texas Director Has Festival Hit

5 days ago | texassignal.com | Jef Rouner

When most people get ghosted, they have a cry and move on. Zach Goodwin launched what is quickly becoming an auspicious debut as a film director. Stitched has its world premiere in Houston at the 58th WorldFest Houston International Film Festival on April 28. The film follows a counterfeiter referred to as Dead Ted who is fatally shot after a too-brief reunion with his granddaughter.
Here are five films to catch at this year's Worldfest international film fest

5 days ago | houstonchronicle.com | Jef Rouner

This year will mark the first WorldFest Houston International Film Festival since the death of founder Hunter Todd on Feb. 9. Despite his passing, the event is going on as planned, screening 92 films from 40 different countries across 10 days starting April 24 at the River Oaks Theatre before moving to their traditional home at the Cinemark Memorial City.
Star Wars actor Hayden Christensen flies into Houston for Comicpalooza

6 days ago | houston.culturemap.com | Jef Rouner

Crank the "Imperial March" and may the Force be with you. Comicpalooza announced this week that Hayden Christensen, famous for playing Darth Vader in multiple Star Wars projects, will be in attendance at the 2025 convention, which takes place June 20-22 at the George R. Brown Convention Center. “Our first round of guest announcements covers a wide range of fandoms and is indicative of the diverse interests of Comicpalooza attendees.
School Voucher Bill Passes Texas House

1 week ago | texassignal.com | Jef Rouner |Jessica Montoya Coggins

Late last night the Texas House passed the controversial school voucher bill Senate Bill 2. The bill, a major priority for Governor Abbott, would allow families in Texas to use tax dollars to send children to private or charter schools. The vote was nearly on party lines: 85 for and 63 against. Two Republicans, former speaker Dade Phelan and State Rep. VanDeaver voted against it. Ahead of the vote, the rotunda of the Texas Capitol was awash in red on Wednesday.
Best Bets: Pedal Punk, Meta4, and the Texas Latino/a/x Contemporary Dance Festival

1 week ago | houstonpress.com | Sam Byrd |Jef Rouner

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Houstonians want a new Astroworld and a WNBA team, study finds

1 week ago | houston.culturemap.com | Jef Rouner

Rapper Ice Cube will headline a tour for the first time in over 10 years with his “Truth to Power: 4 Decades of Attitude” tour, which will come to the Toyota Center in Houston on Saturday, September 13. The hip-hop pioneer and co-founder of N.W.A. will celebrate his nearly 40-year career on the tour, which will also feature his most recent album, 2024's Man Down.
Casual Gamer Reviews: Rusty Rabbit

1 week ago | houstonpress.com | Jef Rouner

Rating: 7 out of 10The entire metroidvania sub-genre is living in a perpetual shadow as we await the release of Hollow Knight: Silksong, and Rusty Rabbit is the latest attempt to fill the void. It's also the first foray into the genre from developer Nitroplus, who is mostly known for visual novels with adult themes rather than relatively light hearted action platformers. Unfortunately, I think a metroidvania might have been too big a carrot for Rusty Rabbit to chew.
Brad Williams On Improvising in Spinal Tap II and “Going Bigger” For The Laughs at 713 Music Hall

1 week ago | houstonpress.com | Vic Shuttee |D. L. Groover |Jef Rouner

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150 miles of bayou trails connect Houston's major urban parks

1 week ago | houston.culturemap.com | Jef Rouner

In Houston, bayous are as ubiquitous as good tacos and Astros caps. Aside from flooding, most people rarely think of them as anything other than something to build a bridge over. The Houston Parks Board's Bayou Greenways project aims to return these waterways to what they were during the city's early days: a way to get people somewhere they want to go.
Doctor Who:The Only Normal Woman in the Universe

1 week ago | houstonpress.com | Jef Rouner |Houston Press

Spoilers for Doctor Who: The Robot Revolution ahead. Talking about the first episode of the new season of Doctor Who and what it might mean for the rest of this brief, eight-episode run is going to involve discussion of the twist ending. As usual, here's a bit of Doctor Who trivia before we dive in so you don't feel like you've wasted the click. When Jodie Whittaker filmed her regeneration scene at the end of "The Power of the Doctor," she was pregnant.