Thirteen*6

Well here we are. 136 posts later I have reached the 1 Year Anniversary for my blog - who would have thought I'd actually keep going at it this long?

It's difficult to wrap my head around the fact that 1 year ago I was in 4th Year uni, down in Melbourne on work experience when I started this blog. And now I'm in Sydney still looking for a job.

How time flies.

I graduated on the 15th, it was a double whammy with my birthday the same day. It was a good day, the rest of the trip was pretty uneventful - I was quite disgusted by several friends who were very unwilling to make an effort to catch up while I was in town for a very limited amount of time. I was quite displeased. If it is them visiting, I make an effort and meet them halfway. But apparently if I'm in town I am expected to go to them at their convenience. No doubt they are offended I only saw them briefly once, but I did invite them to a few different happening whilst I was there. The best they could do was catch up with me for a little bit on the first day and ask me when I was coming down next?? I was there for 5 days, come on!

Having said this, there were a few friends who made a huge effort. I greatly appreciate the effort!

Thirteen*5

The Google Story from Nick Scott Studio on Vimeo.

Very cool video documenting Google's history. It's pretty damn concise.

Thirteen*4

Bit of a NPH post. I was looking up his opening number from the Oscars because Nine's coverage of the event was so terrible you couldn't hear a word he was saying. Anyway, this lead to a random assortment of Youtube wanderings.

Particularly a fan of the Dr Horrible Video.

Thirteen*3

Watched it tonight - loved it! Be sure to check it out! Great cast, suprisingly good direction by Drew Barrymore (directorial debut).

Thirteen*2

 "Kick Ass. More like Ass Kick."

- Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage), Kick Ass 2010.

This singular line speaks volumes about the newest addition to the superhero genre. I am undecided about my opinion of the film but my initial reaction is negative.

The film's opening is strong - establishes the story rapidly and develops the character of Kick Ass effectively. The problem with Kick Ass is you cannot help but draw parallels to Spiderman - the witty remarks, the 'homemade' costume and the constant 'with great power' references were obvious. The difference of course lies in the lack of super powers combined with his reason for becoming a superhero. That's the main source of enjoyment for me - the notion that everyone has thought of being a superhero at least once in their life and yet noone has ever really given it a shot. His first attempt goes horribly wrong - being stabbed in the stomach and hit by a car. I absolutely loved the sequence! The swiftness with which Kick Ass was overwhelmed and the unrefined flailing of his technique were realistic and brought a humbling naturalism to the film.

Unfortunately that was something that the film lost more and more as the story progressed (more on that later).

His first save was a beautiful sequence. Attempting to save a lost cat is the stereotypical first job for a superhero and their worst nightmare. His line "Fuck you Mr Bitey" was wonderful. This scene also included some of the best dialogue of the film, throwing his reasons for wanting to be a superhero into your face and also having a go at the people standing by and watching all this happen. It was a wonderful moment that completely encaptured Kick Ass' reason for being.

Unfortunately the film takes a turn after Big Daddy and Hit Girl hit the screen. Their inital interaction is hilarious - BD shooting HG so that she knows how to take a bullet. That was funny and in the strangest way, almost endearing. Nicolas Cage and in particular Chloe Grace Mortez perform their characters beautifully throughout the film but the way in which Mortez is used unhinges the film for me. I can see that such gratuitous violence would carry well in the graphic novel and look forward to reading it to see how it compares but in a film it is unsettling to watch. In another film I would not have had issue with it, it not even the fact that Hit Girl is an 11 year old girl that unsettles me the most - it is what the two 'heroes' are doing that feels off.

Big Daddy's wife was killed, thus robbing him of his love and Hit Girl of her mother and Big Daddy was framed by D'Amico and spent 5 years in prison. Throughout this time his character changed and became fueled by vengeance against those who had caused him pain, upon release he took this rage and used it to turn his daughter into a walking killing machine - so that she too could have 'revenge'. The parallels to Batman have been drawn and stand as a direct comparison point to the character's motivation. Both Batman and Big Daddy suffer personal loss and want revenge. The key difference is that Batman uses his anger and stops ALL criminals and will never ever kill - because he is already so close to the line if he takes a life he will be no better than those he hunts. Great! Big Daddy however takes his revenge and targets the people responsible for his wife's death and that's it. There's no attempts to help the greater good, so chivalry, just flat out revenge against those who wronged him. That feels wrong, he's not a superhero, not even a vigilante - just an angry man with a gun.

His reason for being when compared to Kick Ass' is where I feel the film loses it's point. Kick Ass is a hero - he is by definition doing heroic things, attempting to save people who are in trouble, regardless of whether or not he knows them. His character works well, I don't think Big Daddy or Hit Girl do. Red Mist fits in just as well as Kick Ass - he has motivation for his role and a distinct target. Christopher Mintz-Plasse suprised me with this character. I expected him to betray his father in the end and take the hero line - but Mintz-Plasse proved that he has a bit more under his belt than just Superbad style characters.

Overall I honestly can't say how I felt about the film. I absolutely loved parts of the film - the whole beginning, the voice over and the first person sequence but then there was the parts of the film that I really hated. But I did think despite everything else the film was really well cast, but for a more definitive opinion of the film as a whole I think it requires a rewatch to determine my thoughts.

Thirteen*1

Awesome stuff! I loved the shot of the bear leaping through the field!! Adorable stuff!

The film's production designer Jakub Dvorský was responsible for Machinarium - an awesome flash puzzle game which I discovered at the start of the year. I never did get around to posting about it but it's pretty damn cool!

Thirteen*0

It's been an interesting couple of days.

Went to another talk at COFA last night, this one about showreels. It was interesting to see the reels that people have been hired from because to be honest I thought some of them were a bit average - but upon explanation it helped me grasp what made it a good reel and why said individual had gotten that particular opportunity. Something that struck me as odd was the length of the reels - all of which extended past 2 minutes with the exception of a few which purely showcased a single (albeit impressive) project. This was something that goes against everything that I was taught throughout uni and I am still in disagreement with the longer reel times. We watched 15-20 odd reels in an hour and a half, some of which would have hit the 5 minute mark and that is just too long for a prospective employer to sit through in my mind (without stopping the reel). It depends on what you are showcasing of course, if you are showcasing compositing and including breakdowns of shots that you have worked on then yes - a reel is going to hit the 2 minute mark (dependent on the quantity of shots). But for an animation reel 1 and a bit minutes should be more than plenty to get your skills across effectively.

After the talk Liz and I stopped by a random pub on the way back to Central just to check it out, we haven't had much of a chance to explore Sydney despite having been here for months so that was good. Will definitely head back to that particular pub again! Classy and would definately be classed as a Beer Bar.

I was offered a contract After Effects Animator/Compositor job a few days ago which unfortunately clashes with heading to Wagga next week for Graduation and unfortunately the company cannot wait to do this job so I had to pass. They may be able to give me some work after I get back, but its doubtful. After months of fruitless job hunting that was a swift kick to the groin! The upside of course is that yes, someone has noticed my emails and are very willing to give me work! So that's what I need to focus on right now. I did email the company back thanking them for the offer and to definitely keep me in mind for future projects so you never know what could come of that!

Lastly, recieved a phone call from my good friend Ammon earlier in the day. He recently got engaged and has set the early date of July 17th for the Wedding in Wagga. Very happy for him and Bri and was doubly pleased when he asked me to be a Groomsman! Or rather told me! I believe it was phrased "I just need to tell you what to wear seeing as you're going to be a groomsman".

=)

Also saw lostprophets in concert back on the 27th March with my little bro! They were rather spectacular I must say! The 2 support bands were a non-event, especially the 2nd band who attempted to destroy everyone's eardrums by having the levels up high enough to cause minor tremors and as a result it was just noise! Horrible, ear shattering noise. They also covered one of lostprophets songs which I thought was plain rude. Here's some photos I took on my iPhone of the concert using the CorssProcess app - I think they turned out quite well as far as phone photos go!

Twelve*9

Very cool artwork I stumbled across the other day. I'm always 'stumbling' across things - I think I need a new way of phrasing it. 

Anyway, you should look into this chick's work - Camilla d'Errico.

Twelve*8

Mnet "Magic Studios" from panic embryo on Vimeo.

Twelve*7

 I recently read an article on The Guardian's website by Simon Pegg from 2008 arguing against the 'fast' zombies that have been surfacing in more recent years via films such as 28 Days and Zack Snyder's re-imagining of Dawn of the Dead. Pegg's story was in response to E4's new release 'Dead Set'.

Pegg's argument is sound - referencing Romero's bringing forth the 'origins' of zombie's in modern film; detailing how Romero adopted the myth and combining it with the viral transference of the disease (originating with vampire and werewolf myths) and introducing cannibalism. He reference's Romero as the inspiration for his own film Shaun of the Dead, commenting that 28 Days has been misrepresented by the media as a 'zombie' flick and observing that Snyder's re-imagined Dawn of the Dead appeals mostly to the MTV Audience - those with the need for faster EVERYTHING.

Pegg goes on to comment that as the Zombie Genre has been pushed into the mainstream it has diminished the quality and essence of the genre. One quote that I will pull from the article is 

"I know it is absurd to debate the rules of a reality that does not exist..."

It's interesting to note that the argument of how zombies should move and act is of course based upon the preconceptions of the individual and their exposure to the genre and it is nice to see that Pegg is aware of the futility of arguing a point which is largely based upon opinion and purely based in fiction. I think at the end of the day zombie's should not run. Why? Because why the hell would people have more vigour after they're dead? 

Full article.

Twelve*6

Twelve*5

I signed up to reelroulette a few days ago.

It's a simple site; sign up, add your reel, done! It's an excellent way of getting your work out there - the interface is as simple as "here's the reel, here's a little about the person, next reel!". You must add your reel to vimeo so that you can host it here - the numbers speak for themselves! I signed up on the 30th and my reel has received 38 plays since then. And considering it only had 36 plays from the 20 odd days it has been on vimeo prior to reelroulette that's pretty good. Looking at my previous reel it only got 46 plays in the past8 months... that's pretty sad isn't it!

Check out reelroulette here.

Twelve*4

g. from J. Xavier Velasco on Vimeo.

I have recently decided upon the objective of my Master's Project - to achieve a unique visual style through developing a unique visual style and using the visual effects to introduce elements of the way that I perceive the world into live action footage. Everything will reflect my personality  and perception of the world - the way that thing's and people appear, the way that that thing's move and interact with each other.

I know it probably sounds a little complicated but in my mind I have a very clear image of how this will work. Imagine walking past someone in the street - you see them but you don't really SEE them. All you see is what they project to the outside world - where you might see a huge bearded mean-looking fellow riding a motorbike, those that know him might see something different all together - like a cute little creature with endless compassion. That's what I mean - just by looking at someone and inevitably judging them from their appearances, it doesn't mean that you know them or see them at all.

Some main inspiration points that I am drawing on for this project are the works of Tim Burton, Chris Landreth and the film Tron.

The short film 'g.' provided me with some more inspiration today. The look and feel of the film is awesome, but the way that the story is what really inspires me.