Kinda like the Matrix

found this cool article about new sources of renewable energy... researchers are discovering ways to turn our heartbeats into phone chargers.

this will suck for people with heart conditions as their phones will always be off but life isn't that fair

the next step in singularity

check it out--

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/19s1bs/www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/03/30/future-iphones-charged-heartbeat-experts-say

Hey, Check out a Possible "Third Kind" of Videogame!

The Escapist Magazine is one of my favorite online publications. I visit it daily, and always find something new to read or watch. Here's something I read today: an article about a possible "hybrid" between hardcore and casual games. I've failed to find an article from here to post about cause they're almost exclusively about some subject relating to video game formalism, which seems a bit too specific for this class. However, as this article is talking about bridging the gap between Farmville and Farcry, I thought it'd be appropriate enough:

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/issues/issue_299/8747-A-New-Breed-of-Player

Enjoy!

what the internet would be like if it was a real place....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8U7HztvetQk

I would say this is pretty spot on...

Birth of a Viral Video?

Here's my "viral" video of our Skype interview with Funny or Die a while back. 

This is actually a project for my SI 124 class on networks and crowds.  If this video actually does go viral and I get the most views on YouTube, I don't have to take the final exam!

It's taken me over three weeks and countless hours to fix just this short clip (I captured an hour of footage).  If you think the quality is bad now, you should have seen it before.  My camera work sucks and so does my editing.  I'm not cut out for the film world.  Oh well.

Like, comment, spread!

seeing a concert.... again

I love music, like everyone else, Im a big fanboy and watch as many live concerts all the time on youtube, I love seeing how bands change it up live and what not. So last week I saw my new favorite band Salem. A band that is a product of online culture (music was made via emails, clear influences from a wide variety of esoteric subgenres, haunting mixtapes circulating a web before any proper cd) proved to have a very antisocial persona (go on at midnight, not a single word to the audience, no encore). They were great live and lived up to all expectations. A couple days later I was on youtube and searched "Salem Detroit" and what do you know the entire concert (no more than 8 or 9 songs) is up on youtube. I watched and skimmed through for all my favorite parts. Looking out for both Ryan Gosling and my fanboy exuberance (neither was identified) I noticed the lack of presence I felt at the concert. Of course the sound is of a much lower quality and volume I still felt somewhat nostalgic of the time, reminiscing of how songs and the crowd reaction. Its odd, because this is the first time I have ever seen a concert that I have seen in person. It makes me want to watch it more, but at the same time I feel like Im chasing the digital dragon...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_excygmyHU&feature=youtu.be

my personal fav 'Sick' starts at 6:00

they are great new band who are somewhat responsible for an entire new microgenre of music, two of the members are from way up north michigan and an extremely gross backstory, and when I BOUGHT their PHYSICAL CD at a RECORD STORE I got a free vinyl! Warning it may not be for all...

just to prove:

http://yfrog.com/h01pgpkj

“Digital” is not a noun

I like this article- By one of my favorite scholars, Lucas Hilderbrand.

http://flowtv.org/2009/07/%E2%80%9Cdigital%E2%80%9D-is-not-a-noun%C2%A0%C2%A0lucas-hilderbrand%C2%A0%C2%A0university-of-california-irvine%C2%A0/

More Signs of Convergence

For anyone interested in the way literature and new-media intersect, poet Ander Monson's work deals with these intersections in a number of interesting ways (online web-format, content, book presentation, etc...) His website is interlinked in a variety of manners (hypertext inside poems themselves, for example.) Worth checking out.

http://otherelectricities.com/

yeah muffins

Shooting on the [RED]

Last week I was granted the opportunity to work on a short film shooting on a [RED] camera. After seeing the quality of images in The Social Network, I was totally stoked. However, after working on this film, I realized digital production gives you more opportunities to take footage because the "film never runs out."

The director of this surrealist film allowed takes to go on for 5 minutes sometimes, which is absolutely not a possibility in the low-budget film production world.

So I ask the question, does digital technologies make filmmakers more relaxed because the medium is much less finite than the analog film? I would say yes.

I found it remarkable last week we took several takes of each scene with a lot less rehearsal. I mean the [RED] is just burning binary code, but still is it art if it takes significantly less time to get the performance perfect.

Granted, I love digital technology, but I wonder how drastic the art form of production is changing due to this technology.

Here is a fun video of my adventures last week:

hot new website...sinkbaby.com...babies in sinks...its the new cute overload.

Hannah Montana appropriated

Experimental Hannah Montana? Influenced by experimental filmmaker Dara Birnbaum.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARytyEiX8pQ

Here's Birnbaum's original film:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4Ru6hM2ZbM


I'm kind of digging this. This is how bored I was over break.

Funny or Die

I really enjoyed the visit from the brothers, despite some of the scary advice they had about the industry.

The biggest question that they answered for me was their business model. I always wondered if sites like Funny or Die and College Humor could actually sustain themselves solely off of site advertising, so it's cool to see how they've basically evolved into a small advertising firm. This would not be possible without ingeniously building the reputation they have. However, while the site obviously has a good creativity team, I would say most of their reputation comes from the star power they are able to recruit.

I've gone to see many talks from alums in the industry and would say this one was the most interesting and informative. However, I think they were the most pessimistic about conventional Hollywood, most likely since they became successful through non-conventional means. They made it sound impossible to become successful in the industry, while I think it is still very possible. Sure, it may take a little luck, but I think hard work and passion will land intelligent and creative people a job. Hopefully they don't prove me wrong!

Circle of No Life

I thought this was funny

Justin Bieber Film: Never Say Never

I've been avoiding posting this for a while but whatever. But first I by NO means have Bieber Fever, was dragged to see this film and did not pay a cent for a ticket.

But I thought it was really interesting how the film opened and closed. It started with an apple mail interface, with someone opening up an e-mail from a friend that sent them a link to a youtube video of Bieber as a kid singing. And then a youtube interface watching it. So basically for the beginning I was watching youtube clips in a movie theater and not only that the film was in 3d too (ew and why?). Much of the film concentrated on the fact that much of Justin's fame is attributed to new media, especially youtube and twitter. The film even had a segment where thousands of youtube videos of fans singing his songs are on display at once. The end of the film ended the same way with the same person sending an e-mail to all their friends to check out Bieber's videos. And the weird thing is that I remember getting those videos 5-7 years ago of that one kid who sang to usher.

Funny Or Die

I really liked the Farah Brother's just do it attitude. It was a relief to find out that you can still be successful without being bogged down by studios in hollywood. They took a risk and turned out to be pretty successful which is comforting, especially knowing how many people get stuck climbing their way to the top.

I had no idea that celebrities and directors go to funny or die and ask for work. But it makes sense with the way they described how many productions they turn out in a month. Each video it sort of like a break to do something funny and if it's successful great but if it flops oh well there are plenty more. It made me think about the way I approach my own projects. Maybe I should start doing short quick projects in between of big projects just get stuff out of my system and relieve some stress?