Turncoat Politics

Eric Ryan Anderson, I’ve Got Friends, and the Persistence of Making Things

Through an Nate, an old coworker I was introduced to Eric Ryan Anderson, a Brookyln-based commercial photographer.  He sent me a “zine” that he had worked on with friends.  

Who the hell does “zines” anymore?

I guess people who still like to make stuff.  People who think craft and storytelling are important, and that making things exist that didn’t before is valuable.  When we first did Twenty120 a few years ago, it wasn’t about making a film that was going to change the world, it was about working together to make something interesting, to perfect a craft and to continue to create.  With his work and his crew, it’s easy to see that he likes to make stuff.

What has been great about sifting through the portfolio and blog, is that there is a blur of the line between commercial and personal.  There is a life and excitement that pops out in the work, and is derived from his own experiences.  That’s the kind of creative POV you want when working together, and even more, when hanging out.

Check out his:

Portfolio - Eric Ryan Anderson

Blog - I’ve Got Friends

Shots of the Avett Brothers - Because I like the Avett Brothers

New Visuals- hot links from @Rhysrama aka Rich Rama

Nike78 - ABUKU!-From one of my favorite places, W+K Tokyo LAB, the guys there mold a little fishbowl out of a Nike Air Max 360.  Check it out here and keep playing to see the making of.  Really cool! http://vimeo.com/12113826

Things To Learn: -This is a mograph piece created by Christian Borstlap and animated by Paul Postma for a Dutch children’s charity called Kinderpostzegels.  Love the simplicity of this however I think it went on about 15-20 seconds too long.  Still, it’s really great because it’s still inspiring.http://vimeo.com/8224953

Cartoon Network Branding:-Brand New School creates a bunch of fun pieces for Cartoon Networks re-branding.  Could go into it and really analyze it, but I won’t…but I kinda want to.http://www.vimeo.com/13829806

Johnnie Walker “Fish”:-This legendary spot came out in 2003 for the UK and if you haven’t seen it, here’s your chance.  The reason why I put this on here is because it now comes with a making of which is always fun to watch.  Spot was Directed by Daniel Kleinman and vfx were done by Framestore London.http://postfolio.org/page.php?id=305

Puma “After Hour Athletes”:-Maybe I like this spot a lot because I see myself as an after hour athlete!  New spot created by Ringan Ledwidge from Smuggler for Droga5 in NY shows us a night out w/ our athletes in this :90 spot.  Nice camera work and lots of relatable visuals for myself and probably for you!  Karaoke tonight anyone?http://bit.ly/9BMfsa

Dos Equis x KAWS Collaboration:-As if the Most Interesting Man campaign isn’t goodenough, street artist KAWS was commissioned into branding the beer.  Using their iconic X’s in which they use in a lot of their artwork, they used them for the branding of the bottle.  I guess this helps to get in some of the younger generation who cling onto anything young street artists are getting into.http://hypebeast.com/2010/08/dos-equis-kaws/

Marco Brambilla:-Unless you’ve been living under a rock the last few weeks, you’d know that Kanye West recently released a new music video for “Power”.  Marco Brambilla was the Director of the music video who worked alongside homeboy Steve Mottershead and his crew at Artjail for all the vfx work.  If you’ve been to the Standard in NYC and have gone into the elevator, you’ll see a striking resemblance to the work that Brambilla did for the hotel over a year ago.  The work is inspired by Michelangelo’s frescos in the  Sistine Chapel.  At first I hated on it because it was nearly a lift of the work Brambilla had already done, then I liked it, hated it, but after a few days away from it, I like it.  I’m so wishy washy.http://vimeo.com/14032117
-This other clip was created by Brambilla and the guys at Artjail.  It’s a case study of model Natasha Poly.  Check this out, but it reminds me of the end scene in Terminator 2 when the T1000 (the bad guy) dies in the hot melted metal and the various forms he had taken in the film start popping out before he ultimately dies.  This is just done in a much prettier way.  http://vimeo.com/14038048

Buildings & Vampires:Directed by Sebastian Baptista & Nico Casavechia, they do an amazing job making high end production look so damn lo-fi.  Everything about this is great.http://vimeo.com/14001443

Black Swan: -A new film by Darren Aronofsky, the Director of “The Wrestler” and “Requiem For A Dream” that stars Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis.  A ballet thriller with so much drama and some girl on girl action?  Ummmm…no brainer!!!! Ummm…I love ballet! haha.  Well known DP and DP of Nike “Human Chain”, Matty Libatique is responsible for the camera work in this film.  http://bit.ly/cPgCh3

Deleted Star Wars Scene:‘-If you haven’t already heard, George Lucas has scheduled a Blu-Ray release of the films.  He showed this deleted scene that will be available in the Blu-Ray version.  Check it out here before it gets taken down.http://holykaw.alltop.com/deleted-star-wars-scene-revealed-video

Inception - The Shooting Script:-Just when I thought I was all done talking about Inception, the rest of the people aren’t.  Released recently is the shooting script of the film bound to win a few awards that is to give you a more in-depth look at the film.  Apparently many scenes in the script didn’t make it to the screen.http://www.amazon.com/dp/1608870154/?tag=prolost-20

More Inception:Here’s the hour long podcast of VFX Supervisor Paul Franklin talking about the fx: http://bit.ly/aYrkXMChristopher Nolan Sits w/ Post Magazine and talks Inception: http://bit.ly/dB57tu

Scott Pilgrim vs The World VFX:-AWN sits with Double Negative and Mr. X about the vfx in the newly released Scott Pilgrim vs The World.http://bit.ly/aqmUoX

CAVE: A virtual look inside of the human body:-Technological advancements in medicine have always been interesting and amazing.  This one is geared more towards us.  A new way to look inside of the body using “CAVE” which is a new 3D technology developed by Cornell Medical College.http://www.vizworld.com/2010/08/cave-3d-virtual-view-body/

22Filmmaking Apps for your iPhone and iPad:http://filmmakeriq.com/2010/07/22-filmmaking-apps-for-the-ipad-iphone/

The Foundry’s new Camera Tracker for AE:http://bit.ly/bzAmuM

“XXXO” Music Video for M.I.A.:-Newest music video for M.I.A.’s newest release, “XXXO”.  Directed by Hype Williams and vfx/design work created by Laundry in LA.  I’ll be brutally honest…Either M.I.A. is completely whack or Hype is completely whack…I’m going to blame both.  Why did she have Hype Direct this? Why didn’t she just go straight to Laundry??? They do some dope work.  Then I’ll blame Hype because his sensibilities design wise is probably whack…just stick to the fisheye stuff like you did with Missy Elliot and Puffy!http://videos.antville.org/stories/2011913/

Eyewriter:-I first caught wind of this a few months back at the CaT conference.  Developed by the awesome guys at Graffiti Research Lab as well as a group of other amazing artists, the idea is now up for a $250k Pepsi Good Idea competition.  It basically gives people suffering from paralysis a way to communicate using their eyes.  It started out as an experiment with one of their buddies TEMPTONE who is also a graffiti artist as well as a somebody diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).  Check it out and vote for the Eyewriter  http://www.refresheverything.com/eyewriterhttp://www.eyewriter.org/

Tips for making an awesome reel:http://bit.ly/boBQcV

Wages in VFX and Animation:‘-Somebody spent a lot of time putting together wages from various places in the industry.  Interesting.http://bit.ly/bv1kBp

Air Force 1: Anatomy of an Urban Legend:-For those of you who know me, know I love sneakers.  This is for all of you sneaker whores out there.  This has nothing to do with our industry, but hey…shoes can still be considered art.  This is just the trailer of a documentary about Nike’s Legendary Air Force 1s.  Screenings started this past Saturday and will be released to the public very, very soon.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1w8dqiuby6c

MOMA iPhone App:-Check it outttt!http://bit.ly/MoMAapp

Canon 7D vs. Barbie Video Girl:-This is a great spoof comparing the two cameras.  Wouldn’t be awesome to show up on set with a Barbie Video Girl instead of a proper Canon or Nikon?  http://vimeo.com/13992345

I’m Still Here: -This is the trailer documentary of Joaquin Phoenix, Directed by Casey Afleck about Joaquin’s breakdown.  http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1810167068/video/21429271

Texting Trends:-Interesting the amount of texting has increased in the past few years.  Notice that the Philippines still tops the U.S. in average texts per month.  It’s actually much more money to talk on the phone than it is to text.  http://bit.ly/9hO8Az

Witness The Way We Live

When I worked at TEG I met Chip Rees because he was doing some brand research projects.  I don’t know if we ever worked together, but we had chatted about him doing some honest investigation into certain market segments.  I think that everyone acknowledges that focus groups are a big joke, and these mini-documentaries that uncover issues, and touch points close to the hearts of individuals who represent archetypes within the marketplace are pretty great.

If we are going to do research, it should at least be engaging as the ultimate product we want to create, right?

Holy crap - @rhysrama does it again- links to cool shit! Google Earth, Old Spice, 3D…

SyFy 2010:
-This is an honorable follow up to the spots that SyFy did last year, which in my opinion was one of the better vfx spots put out last year.  Directed by Brett Foraker who also Directed last year’s campaign ( http://bit.ly/dD7ZH2 ) with the same vfx house, MPC in London.  These are fun 2 minute identity films that takes you into this magical world that only SyFy can take you to with their original programming. 
http://bit.ly/cPhoer

Cubehead:
-Another spot for MPC London for The Drench which is a soft drink.  It’s like having a rubiks cube as a head.  Wonder how they did this one…My guess is an animatronic head with eyes and parts of the face comped in? Could be all 3D, but hands are constantly interacting with it which is a reason why I think it’s a combination.  Sorry…I just nerded out a bit. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mio3sJ_GJoc

Hair Conditioner:
-I had forgotten that I stumbled upon this a few months back and then saw it again wondering why I never sent this out before.  This is a very fun spot coming out of Argentina for Santadner Rio Bank for Ogilvy Argentina, Directed by former Agency Creative Jonathan Gurvit.  The VFX were done by Bleed VFX in Argentina.
http://vimeo.com/11384488

Another World Music Video for The Chemical Brothers:
-Following in the footsteps of other artists who’ve combined music with visual data, Directors Adam Smith and Marcus Lyall of RSA’s Black Dog division created an interesting visual display for The Chemical Brother’s latest single on the “Further” Album.

36 Studio Reels That Will Knock Your Socks Off:
-It’s exactly what it says.  In my opinion, there are some companies that I was surprised made the list, but hey…that’s my opinion.  Blacklist is included in the compilation!!! Yay!!!
http://bit.ly/dlwA0D

“Pigeons” Music Video For The Hundred In The Hands:
-I think I like this video a lot because sometimes when you’ve partied too much and all that party comes out of your body and into the porcelain throne, it just feels like it’s fireworks coming out.  Great video by Daniels at Pretty Bird.

Deliver Me To Hell:
-So throughout film history, only a few monsters continue to terrorize the living.  Vampires, werewolves, and zombies seem to always figure out a way back into our hearts.  Well this one is no different.  This is a series of interactive videos for Hell Pizza in New Zealand where you have to help Steve deliver a pizza to a young woman who is about to be eaten by zombies.  Along the way you make choices that either help you defeat zombies or end up getting eaten by zombies.  It’s a little cheesy, but that’s ok…It’s still a little fun to play around.  I’ve always been a fan of the choose your own adventure stories.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9p1yBlV7Ges

Booty Reader:
-Yes, you heard this right…Crispin, Porter + Bogusky created a Booty Reader for Old Navy where a fortune teller accepts a picture of your bootay and then suggests the right pair of jeans that you’d look fantastic in.  Try it out!
http://www.bootyreader.com/

GE - Visible You Installation:
-Tronic creates an installation for GE that gives you a look at your major biological systems using cameras that respond to the movement you make.  Pretty cool thing to mess around with.  Just wait until Nintendo Wii has those same exact capabilities.  Best thing about it is seeing AC Slater give it a spin. 
http://creativity-online.com/work/ge-visible-you-installation/20889

Real or Fake 3D???:
-This is just a list of upcoming films that will either have real stereoscopic 3D or Fake 3D which is of course a post conversion of a 2D into 3D.  Don’t get too excited guys, but a re-release of Titanic is set to happen in 2012 in Fake 3D!  You know you love that movie.  Ron Artest from the Los Angeles Lakers not only loves the film, but also lovesCeline Dion and would want to work with her in the future on a song: http://es.pn/b8UGg6
http://realorfake3d.com/

Digital Tutors:
-Check out this little website I came across that gives a free new tutorial everyday.  That stuff adds up!!!
http://www.digitaltutors.com/09/index.php

Real time rain and snow now seen on Google Earth:
-Pretty neat stuff.
http://bit.ly/ctOuFO

Old Spice - The Numbers:
-Holy crap everybody…I thought I was done talking about Old Spice, but obviously not.  This is something to share with everybody.  Since the hugely successful campaign, the numbers are in.  Check out the article and see for yourself that the Body Wash jumped up 1900% from February to July.  I hope creatives Eric Krallman and Craig Allen at W+K get some kickback for coming up with the campaigns. 
http://bit.ly/aXxwVp

SIGGRAPH:
-The links…things you may have missed:
http://bit.ly/cX8guC
http://bit.ly/bbAEYo

MTV Music Video Awards:
-With video veterans/legends, Francis Lawrence and Jonas Akerland in the mix, it’ll be interesting to see if some of the younger Directors like LEGS can pull off a win for Best Music Video of the year.
http://www.mtv.com/ontv/vma/2010/video-of-the-year/

VFX Schools:
-Something to share with the younger ones.  Scott Squires breaks down vfx schools and includes links of some of the best out there.
http://effectscorner.blogspot.com/2007/06/visual-effects-schools.html

thanks @rhysrama for some sick linkage

Jamba Juice’s Cheeseburger Chill:
-Now before you say, “Jamba Juice and Cheeseburgers??? Ewwwww!!!”  Let me tell you that this is a spoof spot and that Jamba Juice is calling out McDonald’s for their attempt to get into the smoothie business.  If you go to their link, you can get a buck off your next smoothie.
http://www.jambajuice.com/cheeseburgerchill/video.html

Levi’s “One Man Walking America”:
Who doesn’t love stop motion when it works?  This viral ad from Levi’s has a guy walk across America using only a Canon 5D Mark II, a protractor, measuring tape, and a tripod.  The behind the scenes piece was pretty cool, but now it’s been taken off.  If anybody finds it, send my way.
http://bit.ly/aON5PK

“Ohio” Music Video for Outside Royalty:
-I love Bill Sneed’s work.  Maybe more because he showcased his talents in the Film Fest I Co-Produced, Twenty120 ( www.twenty120.com …ha! a little plug). This is a journey of a camper that goes land, sea and air.  Fun and song isn’t bad at all.
http://billsneed.com/ohio.htm

“Don’t Turn The Lights On” Music Video for Chromeo:
-Newest video for Chromeo on their latest album.  Lots of roto and clean up on this project! For those of you in NYC, Chromeo is playing tonight at the Bowery Ballroom!  After party w/ a Chromeo set is at Love on MacDougal and 8th St.
http://tumblr.com/xz0ehbfm3

“Ritalin” Music Video for Dancing Pigeons:
-Flame thrower meets fire extinguisher.  This music video is Directed by London based Blink’s Tomas Mankovsky.  Really nice cinematography by Adam Frisch.  Another good song.
http://bit.ly/dmlgH3

Lo Fi Video Experiments:
-Series of experiments created by Tell No One in UK.  Various fx tricks that just look cool:
http://vimeo.com/12825278
http://vimeo.com/12290161
http://vimeo.com/12290161
http://vimeo.com/9328051
http://vimeo.com/9325880

Short shot and edited entirely with the new iPhone 4:
-Really nice short shot by an iPhone 4.  Makes me wanna go out and get one.  Oh yeah, it was edited on the iPhone too.  The City Harvest spot created by The Mill was shot on multiple iPhone 3gs.  Imagine if were shot on an iPhone 4 (City Harvest: http://youtu.be/2V5fKX_U3qY )
http://www.brandflakesforbreakfast.com/2010/07/and-oscar-goes-to-iphone-4g.html

901 Silver Tequila:
-This one is for the Justin Timberlake lovers.  This is the first commercial he’s Directed and it’s for his new product, 901 Silver Tequila.  I’ll be honest with you all…I love the dude.  I think he’s pimp and he is multi-talented. I had to send this out.  I don’t think the spot is amazing though.  Strike on me.
http://bit.ly/bFQdl7

Mazda’s Driverville:
-Mazda has taken the social networking experience to another level.  They’ve developed a racing game using their products to build a car and race against friends.  Seems like a cool idea and would be even cooler if you can take it even further by creating an actual car, racing it with friends, and having the possibility of buying it.  But good to see the envelope being pushed in social media.
http://bit.ly/bK2Hzh

Comicon Q&A with Tron Director Joseph Kosinski:
-Let’s move past Inception and start obsessing about another movie.  I know some of you already have the countdown til this film comes out!
http://bit.ly/d0meNZ

Nukapedia!!!:
-Could be interesting for all of you compositors.  It’s supposedly an encyclopedia for Nuke.
http://www.nukepedia.com/

MORE FUN STUFF!!!

Mobile art truck hits the streets of NY:
-For those in the Lower Eastside, you may have seen some of the works of LES based Artist, Marco.  Following the food craze for Food Trucks, Marco takes his studio to the streets and is selling his artwork from out of the truck. 
http://www.coolhunting.com/culture/-luz-azul-the-n.php

Nikon Thermos
-I don’t want to put anything in your head, but could be good for one of those long and stressful shoots!
http://theworldsbestever.com/2010/07/28/drinks-are-on-nikon/nikon-thermos/

Rich Rama
Executive Producer
  -New Business & Development LA/NYC
MassMarket
NYC: 212/505-6065  I  LA: 310/577-5800
www.massmarket.tv

Disappearing in the Age of the Data Wake: Is it possible to hide anymore?

A recent client told us about an article in Wired where Evan Ratliff made an attempt to vanish.  In today’s digital age it is nearly impossible to not be seen, heard, or contacted anytime.  What is worse is that our expectation for replies gets shorter and shorter. 

The law of unintended consequences knows no more relevant place than on the interweb.  An attempt to make health care equal leads to an open kimono of information about who you are and what you do.  A spring break trip with friends posted on facebook reveals a character flaw by a potential employer.  I have always believed that if you give it all away, no one can take anything from you, but a few media folks are proving the opposite.

Evan Ratliff is one example, and over in the UK, David Bond has made his attempt to hide from Big Brother.  His try was less open-source (read: 90’s hacker movie) but rather he enlisted the help of two former detectives who run a P.I. business.  He documented the journey and the film showed at SXSW this year.

One Part “The Grid” and one part “The Blair Witch Project” it is a look at what happens when you try to slip away in the third most-watchful society behind Russia and China.

New Animal Planet Ads- Not sure I get them

Ready.  Go.  

I’m really not quite sure that I get the new Animal Planet Ads.  There seems to be so much messaging going on that it confuses me.  I’m assuming it is generally a brand message play, but I have a series of questions:

1/ Message focus:

What is the bulk of the ad targeting?  The pitbull show?  First of all, isn’t everything really about something else?  Fringe isn’t about really gross weird phenomena, it is a story about a relationships.  Starbucks isn’t about coffee, it is about consistency.  Playboy isn’t about the boobs- it’s about the articles.  Right?  That is the fun of TV/Film/Theatre.  Hell, that is the fun of branding.  We get to figure out how to connect. We get to craft an experience together.  For Animal Planet to not be about pit bulls but rather about a foulmouthed ex-con with a big heart we are layering metaphor on metaphor around the brand and it is confusing.

Secondly, am I supposed to tune in?  There is no real call to action or information about the show itself.  So is it targeting the show or the brand?

2/ Message spread:

Multiple posters such as this and a wrap up of a tagline: Surprisingly Human.

OK.  that makes sense.  The brand uses animals as a lens for us to learn about ourselves, or the brand uses animals as a lens for a range of human experiences.  Something like that.  I am sure that someone was paid a lot of coin to figure that out.  Maybe they are confused by the ultimate execution.  So we are talking about the show without talking about the show, we have a two-line metaphor, and then a brand tagline.  If you have an engaged viewer for two to 30 minutes on the train, why not just use the space to have a paragraph about the show.  There is nothing else for people to do.

3/ Realization:

I just realized that the show isn’t Pitbulls and Parolees, but rather Pit Boss.  There has got to be some clarification for that.

I am going to look around more online to see if I can find out what Animal Planet was trying to do here.  There has to be an idea in there somewhere….