Thursday, April 20, 2006

Heart Attack De Vine

My dad introduced me to Tom Waits. As much as I love his early years - I always go out and get his latest musical incarnation. There's something about his shuffling, akward mystrical beat-ness in this 1978 Vienna doc that is magnetic - even when he's fucking with the camera man and taking it all with a grain of salt.

EDIT:

Hmmm the link seemed to be causing some issues - just go to YouTube and type in Tom Waits in the search feild and you'll be rewarded with a plethora of raspy goodness.

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

New York Via France


Here's a great animation from some French students that uses CGI and Cut out together to make the kooky world of NY.

The backdrops and layouts make me think of my early animations I did at VCA. I wish I got my act together after that course but my son came into the world at the same time as my degree and feeding a family became more important than swanning around the glamourous world of "starving animator".
One day I'll get my shit together and make an animation (with these young punks on my back I'd better hurry)

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

2am Design Studio

I've been burning a barrel of Midnight Oil (and at these prices....) to create some promotional flyers, posters, folders, press kits and CD sleeves for a whole bunch of friends and family. Here's a tasty selection of the design work I have created over the last 5 years:









More to come....

Thursday, April 06, 2006

Catalogue Man to the Rescue


For all your man boob needs...

I went and saw the new Pink Panther movie with the family. Let me state first and foremost that I am a sucker for the Panther franchise - always have been, even when the movies were at their most awful, bland and run of the mill they could still raise a chuckle (if not one good guffaw). I love Peter Sellers and Blake Edwards's comedy sensibilities. While they may not have always seen eye to eye (go out and rent - or read - the beautiful and sad "Life and Death of Peter Sellers") their partnership has created some of the finest gags I have ever seen on screen. Even the spin off "Son of the Pink Panther" with Roberto Benigni had some choice moments "Your lips are like worm...mangos...". But I'm no fool when it comes to expecting too much from this battered series so I went in with fair to middling hopes.




I laughed and laughed and laughed. It helped that my 8 year old son was sitting next to me, together we conspired and shrieked at the plethora of fart, sight and sound gags that Steve Martin and Co has littered the script with. Sure it falls down on so many levels - Clouseu would never work out who the Killer was by using his brains, he never got the girl (for long)and NY is not an "exotic" location (producers pandering to the American money men?) but who the hell cares? I had a good time. And I especially liked the opening credit animation - a nice update on an old favourite. One day I would like to play "The Second Cousin Once Removed of the Pink Panther". Then all my dreams would have come true.




Next one I'm hanging out all slack jawed like is for Art School Confidential (from the Ridiculous to the Sublime hey?)

I have also entered the murky world of renovations this month - but as the D Gen pointed out so well in the Late Show - Reno Talk bores the crap out of everyone, so consider me tight lipped.

Had a great time doing a Screenplay this week. Oops too late to blow my horn yet again...