jwz - I, for one, welcome our new regular hexahedron-headed overlords I love this outfit. Love it. And you know I'd wear it, too.
Museum of Hoaxes: Floating Barn Eerie, and beautiful.
CNNMoney.com: social security short $13 trillion Makes me SO proud to be an American. We're officially going to hell in a handbasket.
unsecureflight.com: Read Your Own DHS Travel Dossier My question is, does requesting to see your file actually flag you as 'un-American, possible terrorist'?
stuff.co.nz: Police wiki lets you write the law Neat idea, allowing citizens to rewrite local laws online! Let's see if it actually works.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Dr. Randy Pausch, Dream Factory on Legs
Neatorama: The Last Lecture This is my gift to you, dear (jaded) reader.
Pausch is a professor at Carnegie Mellon who has changed so many people's lives for the better, it's just staggering. And he's hilarious and ridiculously likable and dealing with pancreatic cancer. Instead of dwelling on the pathos of his situation, though, he gives an hour-and-a-half-long lecture about his childhood dreams, and about the fantastic twists and turns in his life which enabled him to realize those dreams. And then he talks about bringing other people's dreams to life, in terms of virtual reality and gaming and so forth (his areas of expertise). Just a ridiculous amount of incredibleness in one person.
I guess what's really stuck with me since I last watched his lecture a few days ago is his sense of perspective. This guy has clarity like you wouldn't believe, his heart's in the right place, and he makes things happen. He's really become my role model, in addition to my parents.
This isn't my typical linkyloo; this guy's standing alone in his own entry, because he really deserves all your attention. If you don't come away from his lecture a changed human, then...I don't know what. You probably drown kittens for fun, punch little old ladies, and rip out the final pages of murder mysteries in bookstores.
If you want to find out more about him, check out his site. He's all "Pshaw, I'm nuthin' special," but don't let him fool you. He's wily that way.
Pausch is a professor at Carnegie Mellon who has changed so many people's lives for the better, it's just staggering. And he's hilarious and ridiculously likable and dealing with pancreatic cancer. Instead of dwelling on the pathos of his situation, though, he gives an hour-and-a-half-long lecture about his childhood dreams, and about the fantastic twists and turns in his life which enabled him to realize those dreams. And then he talks about bringing other people's dreams to life, in terms of virtual reality and gaming and so forth (his areas of expertise). Just a ridiculous amount of incredibleness in one person.
I guess what's really stuck with me since I last watched his lecture a few days ago is his sense of perspective. This guy has clarity like you wouldn't believe, his heart's in the right place, and he makes things happen. He's really become my role model, in addition to my parents.
This isn't my typical linkyloo; this guy's standing alone in his own entry, because he really deserves all your attention. If you don't come away from his lecture a changed human, then...I don't know what. You probably drown kittens for fun, punch little old ladies, and rip out the final pages of murder mysteries in bookstores.
If you want to find out more about him, check out his site. He's all "Pshaw, I'm nuthin' special," but don't let him fool you. He's wily that way.
Wednesday linkyloo
Bob Dylan, Times Magazine Interview Pretentious douchebaggery is timeless.
Foreign Policy: End of the Line This is an incredible magazine, and this particular photo essay about shipyard salvage is fascinating.
The Sundays - Here's Where The Story Ends SUCH a great, lilting little ditty, perfect for driving through the countryside on a dreamy...Sunday.
Museum of Hoaxes: The Top 20 Most Bizarre Experiments of All Time Humans are weird, and not always in a good way. Definitely a fun read.
International Herald Tribune -- Next step in pirating: Faking a company Horrifying. Is nothing sacred?
Foreign Policy: End of the Line This is an incredible magazine, and this particular photo essay about shipyard salvage is fascinating.
The Sundays - Here's Where The Story Ends SUCH a great, lilting little ditty, perfect for driving through the countryside on a dreamy...Sunday.
Museum of Hoaxes: The Top 20 Most Bizarre Experiments of All Time Humans are weird, and not always in a good way. Definitely a fun read.
International Herald Tribune -- Next step in pirating: Faking a company Horrifying. Is nothing sacred?
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Sea of Dreams
My favorite cinematography instructor from USC, Chris Chomyn, shot a film for a great guy and fellow alumnus of mine, Pepe Ochoa, and it's showing in quite a few theaters, perhaps in one near you (especially if you're in LA). It's called "Sea of Dreams," and I do recommend you see it -- it's magical realism with lots of sultry pizzazz, stars ridiculously gorgeous people with terrific screen presence, manages to make the ocean as palpable a character as the humans (which is pretty dang awesome), and both Pepe and Chris should be proud of themselves to the point of bursting.
I saw it at CineGear a few months ago, and found it beautiful, definitely go see it and support this teensy indie movie with hefty atmosphere and big passions! And, of course, it has lots of shots of beautiful people gazing at the horizon wistfully as the wind tousles their hair in various inviting ways...which is surprisingly not as cheesy as it sounds. Like I said, Chris and Pepe are talented that way.
My only caveat: the central female character isn't so much a three-dimensional human being as a symbol of Femininity (yes, with a capital F), or so it seems to me. This peeved me initially, since it seems like such a flat, inconsiderate, male perspective, but since the story overall is clearly a parable and has lots of other, similarly iconic figures in it, I've decided to let this sticky point slide. Aside from my righteous feminist indignation, this film is actually a wonderfully haunting view of Love (captial L, of course), and I'd happily go see it again with anyone who hasn't had the pleasure yet.
Go! See it! Do it now!
The Astrid has spoken.
I saw it at CineGear a few months ago, and found it beautiful, definitely go see it and support this teensy indie movie with hefty atmosphere and big passions! And, of course, it has lots of shots of beautiful people gazing at the horizon wistfully as the wind tousles their hair in various inviting ways...which is surprisingly not as cheesy as it sounds. Like I said, Chris and Pepe are talented that way.
My only caveat: the central female character isn't so much a three-dimensional human being as a symbol of Femininity (yes, with a capital F), or so it seems to me. This peeved me initially, since it seems like such a flat, inconsiderate, male perspective, but since the story overall is clearly a parable and has lots of other, similarly iconic figures in it, I've decided to let this sticky point slide. Aside from my righteous feminist indignation, this film is actually a wonderfully haunting view of Love (captial L, of course), and I'd happily go see it again with anyone who hasn't had the pleasure yet.
Go! See it! Do it now!
The Astrid has spoken.
Tuesday linkyloo
KT Tunstall: Suddenly I See I love when people mix with models and puppetry. Big surprise, huh? This song makes me want to jump on my bed as I'm belting out the words, or at least perch in a tree with a giant guitar and frighten passersby.
Tom Petty: I Won't Back Down One of the best anthems ever. I consider Tom Petty's work timeless, and on a human scale. I'm not sure what that means, but it feels right.
kollaboration.org: robot dance I wish, I wish, I WISH I could dance robotically. This will most likely never happen, but I can sure admire this from afar.
Kodak - Winds of Change HOW THE HELL DID I MISS THIS? THIS IS AWESOME. "They're turning the schmaltz back up to 11!" BOO YA.
Zazoo Condoms Best 'please use prophylactics' campaign I've ever seen in my life. Granted, I haven't seen many others, but...you know.... This rocks.
Tom Petty: I Won't Back Down One of the best anthems ever. I consider Tom Petty's work timeless, and on a human scale. I'm not sure what that means, but it feels right.
kollaboration.org: robot dance I wish, I wish, I WISH I could dance robotically. This will most likely never happen, but I can sure admire this from afar.
Kodak - Winds of Change HOW THE HELL DID I MISS THIS? THIS IS AWESOME. "They're turning the schmaltz back up to 11!" BOO YA.
Zazoo Condoms Best 'please use prophylactics' campaign I've ever seen in my life. Granted, I haven't seen many others, but...you know.... This rocks.
Monday, September 24, 2007
my Sunday shoot
So, yesterday I had a shoot at the home of the very good-natured John Faratzis, which was essentially a scene for the actors' reels, and was only supposed to be good for a little experience and some pocket change on my end. That, plus it was fun to play with John's nine Emmys sitting on his mantelpiece from his producing work on the Super Bowl and the Olympics ("I'd like to thank my aromatherapist for making this possible", cue air kiss). To be honest, I wasn't really expecting much from this shoot. At least there was a fun fight scene, complete with breakaway vases, fake blood, and catty woman-on-woman combat, and that was all before lunch. Did I ever mention how much I enjoy my job? Yeehay.
Still, things took a turn for the unexpected in the afternoon, and in the best possible way. There was a scene between two characters who were estranged lovers still madly in love with each other, but also very bitter about each other, and one of them was dying from a bullet wound in her gut. Since it all promised to be wistful and arty, I decided (along with the director) to block (meaning 'to physically set up') the scene with a window glowing behind the two people, and let them be almost silhouetted against the sunlight flooding in. All very nicely atmospheric and anime-ish, but again, I wasn't expecting much.
This was just the full rehearsal -- blood was oozing, sunlight was glowing, the guy looked very dapper in his suit, they each had a gun, people were gabbing in the living room, the roar of airplanes wafted through the open windows, and the camera wasn't rolling yet. I'd seen this all before, blah de blah blah. Wash, rinse, repeat.
Until the actors looked each other in the eye and started the scene.
Have you ever been transfixed by magic? Like, to the point where you couldn't breathe, and you just couldn't believe what was unfolding before your eyes, and you were terrified something would shatter the spell, and you wouldn't trade the experience for all the world?
It was a little like that, only a thousand times more so. It was Romeo and Juliet on steroids. It was so wickedly beautiful, I thought we were all going to spontaneously combust from the cold heat in that room. It was like the whole universe had contracted to only include these two people, and somehow I was both of them at the same time, and it was gorgeously dangerous. And then, when he gave this dying, loving, gloriously hateful woman the most tender kiss I've ever witnessed in my thirty years of existence, she shot him.
The shock in his eyes was mesmerizing. His eyes never left hers as his life drained away, her arms quietly enfolding his dying flesh which settled into her body, her life slowly dripping away as well, satisfaction and regret flickering through her eyes before they closed forever.
None of this was real, of course -- after all, this IS the movies. Duh. But I almost hiccuped my heart from out of my throat, it was that powerful. And, even more amazingly, they were able to do this scene with the same intensity again and again from different camera angles, nailing it every time. When we wrapped (packed up) the set afterwards, I didn't know what to do with myself. I wanted to run screaming through the streets. I wanted to hug lampposts. I wanted to kick things and blow stuff up and cackle maniacally and explode into a million pieces and then do it all over again.
This is why I wouldn't trade being a filmmaker for anything. For ANYTHING.
These moments are so rare, but when they come, they sear your brain and mark you for life. It's a good kind of pain.
And FYI, the actors were Chad Duell and Semele...something. I don't know how to spell her last name, but I'll try to find out this week. They truly are something to behold. They almost scorched my camera lens, but it was well worth the trouble.
Still, things took a turn for the unexpected in the afternoon, and in the best possible way. There was a scene between two characters who were estranged lovers still madly in love with each other, but also very bitter about each other, and one of them was dying from a bullet wound in her gut. Since it all promised to be wistful and arty, I decided (along with the director) to block (meaning 'to physically set up') the scene with a window glowing behind the two people, and let them be almost silhouetted against the sunlight flooding in. All very nicely atmospheric and anime-ish, but again, I wasn't expecting much.
This was just the full rehearsal -- blood was oozing, sunlight was glowing, the guy looked very dapper in his suit, they each had a gun, people were gabbing in the living room, the roar of airplanes wafted through the open windows, and the camera wasn't rolling yet. I'd seen this all before, blah de blah blah. Wash, rinse, repeat.
Until the actors looked each other in the eye and started the scene.
Have you ever been transfixed by magic? Like, to the point where you couldn't breathe, and you just couldn't believe what was unfolding before your eyes, and you were terrified something would shatter the spell, and you wouldn't trade the experience for all the world?
It was a little like that, only a thousand times more so. It was Romeo and Juliet on steroids. It was so wickedly beautiful, I thought we were all going to spontaneously combust from the cold heat in that room. It was like the whole universe had contracted to only include these two people, and somehow I was both of them at the same time, and it was gorgeously dangerous. And then, when he gave this dying, loving, gloriously hateful woman the most tender kiss I've ever witnessed in my thirty years of existence, she shot him.
The shock in his eyes was mesmerizing. His eyes never left hers as his life drained away, her arms quietly enfolding his dying flesh which settled into her body, her life slowly dripping away as well, satisfaction and regret flickering through her eyes before they closed forever.
None of this was real, of course -- after all, this IS the movies. Duh. But I almost hiccuped my heart from out of my throat, it was that powerful. And, even more amazingly, they were able to do this scene with the same intensity again and again from different camera angles, nailing it every time. When we wrapped (packed up) the set afterwards, I didn't know what to do with myself. I wanted to run screaming through the streets. I wanted to hug lampposts. I wanted to kick things and blow stuff up and cackle maniacally and explode into a million pieces and then do it all over again.
This is why I wouldn't trade being a filmmaker for anything. For ANYTHING.
These moments are so rare, but when they come, they sear your brain and mark you for life. It's a good kind of pain.
And FYI, the actors were Chad Duell and Semele...something. I don't know how to spell her last name, but I'll try to find out this week. They truly are something to behold. They almost scorched my camera lens, but it was well worth the trouble.
Monday linkyloo
sleepinginmyhead: tobler-oh-yeah! via Boing Boing Toblerone has a hidden bear in its logo? Rockin'!
Inventor Spot: 15 Absolutely Brilliant Billboad Ads...Really They're definitely not kidding, some of these are eye-poppingly wonderful.
Varieties of unreligious Experience: Humanism and the virtue of anxiety via the nonist Very thought-provoking essay on justifying your career in the humanities -- and the comments are just as intriguing/erudite.
Mother Jones -- Black Ops Jungle: The Academy of Military-Industrial-Complex Studies via Boing Boing Ender's Game is alive and well, they just need to throw in some video game sims and it'll be complete! ::shiver::
The Trade Card Place (Victorian trading cards) via Boing Boing via Little Hokum Rag I love these. Why can't we see such illustration gorgeosity in advertising today?
Inventor Spot: 15 Absolutely Brilliant Billboad Ads...Really They're definitely not kidding, some of these are eye-poppingly wonderful.
Varieties of unreligious Experience: Humanism and the virtue of anxiety via the nonist Very thought-provoking essay on justifying your career in the humanities -- and the comments are just as intriguing/erudite.
Mother Jones -- Black Ops Jungle: The Academy of Military-Industrial-Complex Studies via Boing Boing Ender's Game is alive and well, they just need to throw in some video game sims and it'll be complete! ::shiver::
The Trade Card Place (Victorian trading cards) via Boing Boing via Little Hokum Rag I love these. Why can't we see such illustration gorgeosity in advertising today?
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