I’m not sure how I haven’t heard of this project before (it started 5 years ago), but it’s blowing my mind. I’m a big fan of Joseph Gordon-Levitt and his project hitRECord.org has to be his coolest so far. HitRECord is a professional open collaborative production company where anyone can create and develop art and media via the HitRECord site–videos, writing, photography, music, anything goes. Check out the demo reel below, I think you’ll be inspired.
Archive for the ‘After Hours’ Category
HitRECord.org
Somewhere
Sofia Coppola returns with Somewhere, the 4th feature film addition to her modest, yet accomplished body of work. The film stars Stephen Dorff as bad-boy actor Johnny Marco who lives at the Chateau Marmont in Hollywood and gets an unexpected visit from his 11 year old daughter, played by the stunning, Elle Fanning. I loved all 3 of Sofia’s feature films (despite her fascination with casting Kirsten Dunst) and I’m looking forward to December when this latest gem hits theatres. There are already whispers of another Oscar nomination for Sofia, while other critics are cringing at the decision to cast has-been Stephen Dorff in the lead role (come on, everyone loves a come-back story). I predict that this film will be much like her previous 3, full of breath-taking visuals, emotional performances and perfect musical scoring. (I can’t wait to hear what Phoenix comes up with for the score.)
Throwies and Skycams
The idea was to attach a camera to a million billion helium balloons and see what happens and that’s exactly what we did. It was poorly planned but filled with excitement and potential. That camera did go into the sky tonight and we were the very first to ever go onto the roof of the convention centre to attempt any kind of footage or anything that wasn’t maintenance related. Here are a few shots from the evening with a video to come.
Shades of David Gray
I just wanted to thank Gerry at the Centennial Concert Hall for the tickets to the David Gray concert last night. The venue was perfect, the audience had great energy and a guy sitting 3 seats down from us proposed to his girlfriend during the concert… she said yes!
Screen Printing 101
A couple of weeks ago, my friend Angela and I signed up for Martha Street’s DIY Show Posters class. It was a “crash course in screen printing” that was 10 hours long spread out over a weekend. This was my first time going to Martha Street, and I’m very disappointed I didn’t know about them a couple of years ago when I was in school - I would have had the coolest posters in town! I spent the first day of the class sketching and inking an image that I wanted to print, and day 2 was spent printing and trying out different techniques. I have to say, I have a lot of respect for screen printing artists - there is a lot of work that goes into a print and I don’t think you can truly appreciate it until you attempt it yourself. That being said, it was also a lot of fun! I definitely want to go back to try out a few other posters.
If you missed this spring’s sign up, don’t fret! They offer fall classes as well. I think my next attempt will be letterpress…
T.G.I.T
Yes, that’s right, a ‘T’ for Thursday. Thursday is the new Friday for a large lucky portion of Utah employees who now work four-day, 40-hour work weeks. This article is from August, but I say we pass this along to as many people as possible. With positives to shortening the work week being environmental, mental and physical, how can we not?!
Vintage Staff
Have you ever wondered what you might look like as a black guy (assuming you’re not already black), a soldier or someone who most people would like to punch in the face just because you looked so “punch-in-the-face-able”? Well, wonder no more. Now with iphone’ stellar Oldbooth app, you too can transport yourself back to days of yore, or even yesteryear. Back when people lived without colour and mirrors, they had to rely on friends to tell them they looked like complete doofuses (and yes, that is a word). It’s ironic that two of my favourite iphone apps of late are ones that take us back to days before iphones. (in this picture, Kerri as “black dude #1″, Tyler as “angry soldier” and Callum as “that guy I’m going to punch in the face just for looking so stupid.”)
Caught in the Act
On my way back to the office this evening I caught this guy putting up one of our Garden City posters. In a way I was a bit disappointed. I felt like I killed “The Magic of Advertising”. I liked the fact that I would go to sleep at night to find our ads magically appear in the morning on the way to work. It’s kind of like believing in Santa Claus only to find your Mum and Dad stuffing your stocking on Christmas Eve. Thank God I’ve got a short memory. I’ll forget all about this horrible turn of events within a week. On the bright side, however, the posters looked great and the dude installing them was doing a smashing job. Incidentally, I apologize to the traffic that got stuck behind me as I fumbled with my iphone.
Mahalo Hawaii
I apologize in advance for the lengthy post but I just got back from my friend’s wedding in Maui and I have to say, it just might be heaven on earth. I have a few photos that I’ll share and even though I’m quite happy with them, they don’t even begin to do Hawaii justice. I spent the first week of my trip in Lahaina, Maui and ended off my trip with 4 days in Waikiki, Oahu. While Maui was more my style, (and pace for that matter) Waikiki was definitely an experience and I would encourage anyone heading to the Hawaiian Islands to check it out, even if only for a couple of days. I would compare it to Las Vegas, in a sense, where Kalakaua Avenue, which stretches the length of Waikiki along the beach, is comparable to the Strip. Just substitute surf boards for slot machines and, well you get the idea. Maui, on the other hand, is more quaint and is made up of little towns and villages that are scattered about the island. Lahaina is on the west side of the island, also known as the dry side of the island, which made for some super-sweet hot weather. Our condo was about a block away from Front Street which stretches the length of Lahaina and is lined with shops and restaurants that all overlook the ocean. The streets are incredibly narrow, and while much of the original architecture has been updated, this town definitely maintains the vintage charm of it’s early origins. I haven’t included any photos of the wedding, but if you’re interested in checking them out you can head over to the Kamp Photography Blog. They’ve already posted some Hawaii photos and should be posting the wedding pics soon so keep checking back. Photos below (from top to bottom): A view of the summit of Haleakala from our helicopter tour :: Black Sand Beach at Waianapanapa State Park, Maui :: Cave that opens up into the ocean at the same park :: One of the many water falls along the Hana Hwy and a Rainbow Eucalyptus tree :: The next four images are from the Old Lahaina Luau :: Pipeline Beach, North Shore, Oahu :: Halona Beach Cove aka: Eternity Beach, Oahu :: And what would a trip to Hawaii be without a few pictures of Hibiscus flowers?
Barbados by iphone
I recently came back from a vacation in beautiful Barbados and while I was there I took some pictures with both my DSLR and my iphone. I have to admit, I was intrigued by my co-worker Ashley’s iphone holiday photos in Mexico where she used the shakeitphoto app to add a little vintage flavour to her shots. So, I went digging around the app store and came across hipstamatic, a fun, if not sometimes frustrating, app that allows you to experiment with different digital “films”, “flashes”, and “lenses” for your iphone. I say it was a bit frustrating because you have to wait a bit of time between taking shots for the pictures to “process”. I’m assuming this is done to make the experience feel a bit more vintage as well. Mission accomplished. However, that frustrating little wait aside, I found this app to be super fun, and in most cases, more rewarding than using my DSLR. Being a fan of Holga, Polaroid and other low tech photography, this app provides a satisfying amount of uncertainty in the results of each photo while giving you an opportunity to imagine what it would be like to use different types of film and lenses. And a big thanks to my friends Tom and Cheryl for having us at their humble abode during our stay. They were fantastic hosts and great tour guides.
