I finally got around to uploading this gem from the classic ZAZ TV show Police Squad! This exchange contains what I consider the greatest single line in the history of comedy. OK, that may be an indefensible, lofty statement, but I stand by it.
You be the judge:
Bats and lemurs seemed like the best possible subjects, and The Fragile Forest is our favorite exhibit at the zoo...
Neither lemurs nor bats disappointed. The movie at the left has been reduced to half-resolution for your web viewing pleasure and has color commentary by Annika as a bonus.
To get a better idea of why we love the Singapore Zoo, keep in mind one of the few complaints reviewers have had about my new camera: the lack of any real telephoto functionality from its 24-60mm equivalent lens. It's a great wide-angle camera. You just need to get really close to your subjects. And I did. And then they fought over sugar cane!
Feeling the excitement and dread of learning a new operating system for each new gadget or appliance that enters my life. Plus, my first camera that shoots RAW!
That said, so far I'm liking my new Lumix LX3 and feel like I've got the perfect combination of pocketability and versatility. I have a stupid amount of manual control if I want it, but can go auto when needed...plus I can shoot 24p HD video with the thing in 10 minute chunks! I'm loving the wide 24mm lens, too. I need to sit down and start experimenting with exposure and aperture (and Aperture).
I think some family outings to the zoo, and bird park and orchid garden are in order for this weekend! Stay tuned for renewed Flickr activity!
My harmless flirting is about to become full-fledged cheating...
...after about a month, I am around 200 pages into Quicksilver. And I love it.
But...like a drive across Texas, for all my traveling, I don't feel like I'm getting anywhere. I prepared really well for the trip, too! I got a nice, compact British edition. I finished off all the other books I was reading to dedicate my full attention to Mr. Stephenson's beautiful prose. I have even recently re-watched The Day the Universe Changed which actually inspired me to finally start reading The Baroque Cycle. I was ready! Full tank of gas, snacks from Trader Joe's, an awesome mix tape...
But after making nary a dent in the first of three giant tomes, my gaze began to wander. The rationale was easy at first: reading a comic is hardly cheating. It's just a comic...
...Scott Pilgrim Volume 3 is just a comic. Invincible Books 5 & 6 are just comics. Buffy Season 8 Books 1 & 2 are just comics. What started as flirting, became heavy petting. I did go back to Quicksilver after each, but felt guilty and kinda dirty each time.
So, I'm coming clean. I am asking Quicksilver for a trial separation. It doesn't mean I love Quicksilver any less, it's just that I need things that it just won't, or can't do for me. Tonight, I'm seeing an old love that I haven't seen for a while, and frankly, probably wasn't ready for the last time I did. Tonight, I go to bed with Stranger in a Strange Land.
I will be back, Quicksilver, and I know you will wait for me. The way that Cryptonomicon waited for me...
So, I won't be going to L.A. for SIGGRAPH next week. It's the first year for a long time that I haven't gone. There's too much going on at the studio right now for me to get away for a week of SIGGRAPH and the week at the Lucas Homeworld that would help make the 16 hour flight from Singapore worth it.
Between working at ILM and teaching, my connections to the world animation, visual effects and video game development increase exponentially every year. Last year, SIGGRAPH was almost comical as I walked around the San Diego Convention Center and stopped every ten feet to chat with a former coworker from ILM or Academy of Art, a former (or current student), or a professor from another school. I joked with some friends that next time I woud just bring a card table and set up in the lobby and chat with folks as they walked by.
It will be wierd not to have my annual high-density friend catch-up opportunity.
Of course, if everyone comes to the first annual SIGGRAPH Asia in Singapore this December they can see me all over the place. No, seriously, you should all come!
So, we're getting our television from a wider variety of sources than ever nowadays. DVDs, iTunes, streaming video, and IPTV have all invaded our livingroom (and iPhones and Macs). Not much of it originates from the American networks or cable channels, especially during the Summer.
A recent discovery is one of ABC's new shows. That's the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, by the way, not to be confused with the American Bradcasting Corporation or ABC, Martin Fry's pop band from the '80s. You see, unlike the American Broadcasting Corporation, the Austrailian Broadcasting Corporation makes their program streams availaible internationally (in Singapore at any rate).
That new show is called The Hollowmen, not to be confused with T.S. Eliot's "The Hollow Men" or the short-lived sketch comedy show The Hollow Men from Comedy Central.
The Hollowmen is a sort of a combination of The West Wing, The Office and Flight of the Conchords with a dash of Mad Men and a nod to Office Space. It's not as overtly preachy as The West Wing, not as cringey as The Office, not as surreal as Conchords, and not as stylish as Mad Men, but has some of the better qualities of each.
The show is about the folks who make the Austrailian PM and his policies look good and polish them for public consumption. As an American, much of it feels familiar, but foreign at the same time...more so than English shows and less so than Canadian. The production value, acting and writing are excellent and is making me curious what other gems of Austrailan TV I've missed.
Anyhow, each week's episode is up on ABC's website and they are only half an hour long. Try one and see what you think. They make for nice Summer viewing...er, I mean Winter viewing.
Last night I had my first non-work-related public appearance in Singapore at Pecha Kucha Singapore #2.
The concept of Pecha Kucha Night is based on an exercise devised by designers in Japan to facilitate sharing ideas efficiently. Pecha Kucha Nights are made up of creative folks delivering Powerpoint/Keynote presentations with the following restriction: exactly 20 slides for 20 seconds each. My new friend Graham Perkins explained the Pecha Kucha introduced me to the idea and asked if I'd be interested in participating in an upcoming event (and acting as the official American on the bill, in honor of 4th of July). It sounded like a fun challenge, so I signed up.
Delivering presentations is not a problem for me, I've been doing it professionally for years now. But I'm used to blathering about a subject for three hours at a pop. But, doing so for 6 minutes 40 seconds is hard. Every slide the same length is hard.
I chose to present the challenge that filmakers face (unlike painters, for instance) in having only three basic aspect ration to choose from when creating their images. Ask my students, my normal aspect ratio lecture is 2-3 hours long. I liked the idea of dicussing one of the limiting factors of shot design in a format that is itself limiting. I *heart* meta communication.
I didn't have as much time to prepare my Keynote stack as I would have liked, but all things considered it went well. I did feel like I was on a quiz show, however, complete with giant digital clock counting down next to me on the stage. Not having control of my own slides was kinda weird, but liberating too.
The other presenters were all interesting and most stuck to the original intent of the format by presenting their own artwork. Beca and I agreed that our favorite presenter of the evening was ZXEROKOOL. His designs were really great and his delivery and presence were fantastic.
I'm already thinking about the next one in three months as well as ways to get more folks involved. Check out the links below and see if your city has Pecha Kucha nights coming up! I saw events this month in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Honolulu...
Yet another 100 Best Films list from AFI. The genres they chose are kinda odd, but there is a great interview clip with Harold Ramis in which he explains the duration of Phil's existential stay in Punxsutawney in Danny Rubin's original script. He also explains Phil's ingenious mechanism for keeping track of how many Groundhog Days he's lived through.
Harold Ramis talks about how much “real” time passes for Phil Conners.
