The Search for Two Photographers

Ok, number 2 in my list of awesome things found in the span of a couple days. I am constantly amazed and inspired by the creativity that lies within people.

Take this guy, for example. He came across a roll of film in the middle of an NYC park and, having made it a resolution to add more adventure to his life, decided to find the owners. So he made this video.

Since posting the video, several news organizations have written stories on his quest and he's received countless emails from people all over the world; some offering clues, and others simply offering a place to stay if ever he finds himself in their neck of the woods. People were going so far as to study the jaw structure of the men, suggesting they may be from Poland. Or to zoom in on these pictures to determine the backpack brands - one claimed to only be available in France (a fact negated by yet another viewer).

Talk about the power of the collective conscious.

No luck yet, however. He's still in search of the owners of these pictures.

Oh, those Swedes

I am finding it so hard to decide what to post about; I'm coming across too many intriguing, well-done things! The moment I decide on one topic, another something awesome comes along. This isn't the worst problem to have, though, eh? The fact that we can so easily come across things like the following says a lot about our culture - networking, social media, instant access...

That said, I will be posting some things in quick succession...can you keep up?

First, there's this: a trailer for a Swedish short film. Hilarious. I can't wait to see the full thing. Let it be inspiration for you to change your perspective and, a technique used by designers to find creative solutions, redefine a problem... And while laughing, let it help get you through your busy weeks!

I love me some photo-takin'

Going through files and files on an old flashdrive, I came across these photos I took one sunny afternoon with some friends at Utah's Hogle Zoo. They make me smile.

   

 

 I just realized...many of my photos from the Zoo are animal legs. Maybe I should start a project...call it "Behinds 'n' legs". Butts 'n' limbs......ideas, anyone?

Adele

Oh my, this lady.

Her name's Adele, she's from the UK, she's 21, and she's incredibly talented.

21! Also the name of her newest album (which is set to be released late February but inside sources got my hands on a copy early...). Her first album, "19", she recorded when she was 19. I sure hope this is a trend and she's spewing out such genuine stuff every couple years or so. I'm a fan.

Plus, I love stuff like this: in-home recordings, little blurbs from the artist tagged onto their work. It gives insight into their process.

**Update: I just listened to a short interview with Adele on NPR. Inspiration? Etta James. (No surprise there). And she hates the sound of her own voice; says if she wasn't herself she "wouldn't listen to my music". 

A Life Full of Important Fun

My previous post reminded me of the following two videos which continue the idea that, really, we need to have some fun. I credit my younger sister for their discovery.

1) I've got to agree with this guy. A life full of important fun? Exactly how I am aiming to describe mine (and, thankfully, could so far).

2) Aside from the obvious comment on the ridiculousness of some of our government's actions (and I know you're all agreeing because really, what was that!?), this SNL digital short has some meat to it. I would LOVE to see a band like Arcade Fire play a rockin' concert at a UN meeting. Those uptight, "professional" folk need to have a dance party. Why is this such a "silly" proposition? What would happen? I'd argue that a slew of creative solutions to the problems our world is facing right now would be generated...

Get Drunk

A great prose by Charles Beaudilaire in his 1869 publication, Le Spleen de Paris. Read on...

Always be drunk.
 That's it!
 The great imperative!
 In order not to feel
 Time's horrid fardel
 bruise your shoulders,
 grinding you into the earth,
 Get drunk and stay that way.
 On what?
 On  wine, poetry, virtue, whatever.
 But get drunk.
 And if you sometimes happen to wake up
 on the porches of a palace,
 in the green grass of a ditch,
 in the dismal loneliness of your own room,
 your drunkenness gone or disappearing,
 ask the wind,
 the wave,
 the star,
 the bird,
 the clock,
 ask everything that flees,
 everything that groans
 or rolls
 or sings,
 everything that speaks,
 ask what time it is;
 and the wind,
 the wave,
 the star,
 the bird,
 the clock
 will answer you:
 "Time to get drunk!
 Don't be martyred slaves of Time,
 Get drunk!
 Stay drunk!
 On wine, virtue, poetry, whatever!

 --Charles Baudelaire 

 
Ohhh! I can just see him in the fields of France, laughing wildly, gesturing grandly, trumpeting this to whomever will listen. It makes me bubbly inside. It's a wonderful celebration of life, confirming for me that we should go about our daily lives with passionate and glorious appreciation for what we have and do. Wiggle! Dance! Sing! Read! Laugh! Just be silly and soak it all in.

Thought of You

Alright, check this out.

It’s beautiful.

It’s not often I say that about dance. Anyone who has ever sat next to me at a dance concert, listening to my brutal critiques, knows I am not easily impressed.

So when I found this little gem that so intimately captures something raw, I had to know more. I tracked down the film’s website and making-of documentary (which I encourage you to explore).

“Thought of You” was a personal project dreamed up and fulfilled by the obviously talented Ryan Woodward, an animator, designer, and storyboard artist working for the big names in Hollywood – from Disney to Dreamworks – and teaching at his alma mater, BYU. He speaks of his reasons for the project – to “combine several art forms into one exhibition”.

And he clearly does so using music, dance, and animation to tell a story. Abandoning traditional narrative for individual interpretation, Woodward notes “a graceful moving human form can communicate more emotion that any length of dialogue.”  He plays between “academic” and “creative” drawing, letting the story and his aesthetics guide the imagery and style.

To the untrained eye, it’s sometimes hard to discern between quality and sh*t. But to a dancer, every detail matters – the placement of a hand, the sway of the back, the rotation in the hip. It is incredible that Woodward, having no dance training, was able to capture with such precision the subtleties in movement, body placement, and emotions of the dancers sans the use of facial expressions or words. This is dance.

It is a feat in itself to produce good choreography for the stage. When you translate dance for the camera, it’s as if a veil has been placed between the dancers and viewer. Something is lost – that real, raw quality. Thus it’s even harder to capture choreography on film, much less in animation. At 24 frames per second, I can only imagine the absurd attention to detail Woodward had to devote to create this three minute piece. Talk about late nights in the studio…

With nearly 500,000 views on Youtube alone and a busy Film Festival schedule ahead, it is clear that many people are inspired by this film. And needless to say, I am too.

Animation: Ryan Woodward       Music: “World Spins Madly On” by The Weepies