AICN, Austin Chronicle on Termination

Over the weekend, Harry posted a very positive review of my debut film Termination, which won Best Texas Short at SXSW a couple weeks ago. Among other things, he rather amusingly says he "was shocked at just how damn good it was", and happily recognizes the stand-out work of writer/actor Michael Conway and cinematographer/editor Jen White. (Though to gently correct Harry, what I really want to do is produce, but no matter.) And in case you missed it, the Austin Chronicle called Termination "dreamlike", but didn't offer a full review.

MoMA's Sky Umbrella

Sorry I've been remiss in updating these past few days, but I've been piled up with work and... um... hey, I got a new umbrella!

Behold the Original and Collapsable Sky Umbrella designed by EFM with a cloud design by the late Tibor Kalman for the Museum of Modern Art Store, one of my favorite places to shop online. I couldn't resist getting the Collapsable one, which is more practical for me (and a mere $32, or $28.80 for MoMA members; the Original full-sized one is $48, or $43.20 for MoMA members). I also recently picked up the MoMA Swatch, which is still on sale for a mere $20.

Anyway, the umbrella arrived just a little while ago, and I love it. It opens and closes with a single button, and is just irresistably cool, whimsical, well-made and sturdy. (Now if only it would rain...)

Japanese Manhole Cover Design Gallery

Holy crap. Frangipani has a really cool gallery of 117 Japanese manhole cover designs. Sugoi!

The Venture Brothers renewed!

Oh happy day! The Venture Brothers, my favorite show on Cartoon Network, has finally been renewed for a second season. According to Jackson Publick's blog, 13 brand new episodes will debut in about a year.

INTERVIEWS: Greengrass, Whedon, Dhavernas

CHUD.com has posted parts 2 and 3 of their fantastic interview with Watchmen director Paul Greengrass (part 1 of which I plugged last Wednesday). Kudos to Devin Faraci for a job very well done.

Meanwhile, MTV.com has a brief but illuminating interview with Joss Whedon about why he signed on to direct Wonder Woman (see last week's announcement). He also talks (very) briefly to TV Guide, revealing plans to cast young (early 20s) and outside his regular company of actors.

Finally, Popgurls has an extensive and fascinating interview with the irresistible Caroline Dhavernas of Wonderfalls, who I really kinda wish was playing Kitty Pryde in the X-Men movies. (And if you haven't bought the Wonderfalls DVD yet, shame on you!)

Pentagram dreams up cool Apple iStuff

In case you haven't seen it already, Business 2.0 has a pretty cool photoessay online entitled Re-Imagining Apple: Apple Gear We Hope to See, featuring five hypothetical Apple products designed by a Pentagram team led by Robert Brunner (Apple's chief designer from 1989 to 1996, who designed the original PowerBook, among other products). It accompanies their current feature story, What's Next for Apple?, which includes such fun tidbits as the fact that 40 iPods are sold every minute, and nearly 10 million songs are sold every week on iTunes.
(Thanks to A.C. for reminding me to post this.)

The new Whole Foods freaks me out.

So here's my thing. The new 80,000 sq. ft. Whole Foods Market at Sixth & Lamar seriously freaks me out. I mean, first of all it's just plain huge. And it's always swarming with these... people. And there's all this... stuff. And it's just... so... damn... HUGE.

I've braved it three times now. It still gives me the heebie-jeebies. And I have yet to find the all-natural doughnuts.

Now, granted, the first time I went was a.) the day after the grand opening, b.) a Friday night, c.) at the end of an incredibly tough day that was d.) prefaced by my second all-nighter that week. It was insane, and I fled in terror almost immediately. My second visit was the middle of the following week, half an hour before closing. It was less insane, and I gotta say the chocolate mousse helped. But whenever one of the oh-so-cheerful employees asked me, "How are you today, sir?" I could only answer "I'm freaking out!" This happened about twelve times. And lemme tell ya, those employees were freaking out, too -- even though they had clearly been trained not to show it. (I almost got the bagger at checkout to admit it, though.)

My third visit, this past Saturday afternoon, I was more prepared, in the best possible company, and tried to focus on finding my happy place -- the bakery. My thoroughly comforting companion and I then happened to run into former Governor Ann Richards (I of course said hi), and then retired to the roof garden for a lovely chocolate picnic. I had finally found peace.

But then I couldn't find my car in the parking garage.

Anyway, Sandra Bullock was raving about the place to Letterman mere hours ago, but then she's probably just a better adjusted person than I am. So read the new Newsweek and recent USA Today feature stories, check the webcam, study the map, take a deep breath and go experience it for yourself.

But please let me know where the hell I can find those damn doughnuts.

P.S.: I found the doughnuts this afternoon... and they're fantastic.

Apple's Blueprint for Genius

The latest issue of Business Week offers an insightful commentary on two keys to Apple's success: in-house design, and Steve Jobs. "At a time when rivals are outsourcing as much design as possible to cut costs, Apple remains at its core a product company -- one that would never give up control of how those products are created. [Jobs] argues that the cost-savings aren't worth what you give up in terms of teamwork, communication, and the ability to get groups of people working together to bring a new idea to life."

Meanwhile, the The New York Times recently published an astute analysis of how Apple's iPod kicked Sony's Walkman ass. "A company thrives when it has all that it needs to make a compelling product and is undistracted by fractiousness among divisions that resent being told to make decisions based upon family obligations, not market considerations. The reach of a company with the optimal mix of assets can extend in all directions - and right through the front door of its competitors."

P.S.: BTW, Amazon currently has iPod Shuffles on sale - with free shipping! (1 GB / 512 MB)

NYT previews Aronofsky's The Fountain

Yesterday's New York Times has a fairly interesting (if somewhat ass-kissy) feature story previewing Darren Aronofsky's long-awaited The Fountain (his first film since 2000's Requiem for a Dream). It stars Hugh Jackman [above] as a man searching for the fountain of youth, and is currently shooting in Montreal - though "there will be lots more shooting, to capture Spain and Central America in the 1500's, a present-day American city, and then a trip out to a nebula near Orion anywhere from 150 to 500 years into the future." (No release date has been announced.)

Hinokio trailer

Check out the new trailer for Hinokio, the directorial debut of Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within visual effects art director Takahiko Akiyama. (I gotta say, this is seriously jockeying for a spot on my Top 10 Must-See Films of '05 list, though I don't think it has U.S. distribution yet.)
P.S.: For a better look at the Hinokio robot design, click here.

Joss Whedon will direct Wonder Woman

This makes me happy.
P.S.: Check out the teaser poster (designed by Adam Hughes).

Termination wins Best Texas Short at SXSW

On Saturday I had the privilege of premiering my short film Termination at SXSW, and last night was very pleasantly surprised to be awarded Best Texas Short. I actually almost missed the awards due to a screening of the (quite wonderful) Chilean comedy Promedio Rojo, but luckily found an amazing parking space, walked in just in time to hear my name being surreally called, then headed straight to the podium and hopefully said something coherent.

Anyway, I've had the very great pleasure of attending this fine festival every year since it started, so it meant a lot to be able to make my debut as a filmmaker here, and this award is icing on the cake. I'm really proud of my entire cast (including Anika Kunik and Bob Richardson, above) and crew (who will all soon be saluted on IMDb), but I am particularly grateful for writer/actor Michael Conway and cinematographer/editor Jen White.

If you haven't had the chance to see Termination yet, it's screening twice more in the Texas Shorts program at 11:15am Thu. 3/17 and 11:30am Sat. 3/19 at my new favorite theatre, the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema on South Lamar.

Superman Returns...

Check out these three aerial location photos from the Superman Returns shoot in Breeza, Australia - which is doubling for Smallville, Kansas, for the next two weeks. The production has quite faithfully recreated the Kent family farm set from the original Superman movie - and also built the crash site of the Kryptonian spacecraft that returns Superman to Earth at the beginning of the new film. (Oscar-winner Eva Marie Saint takes over the role of Martha Kent from Phyllis Thaxter, and newcomer Brandon Routh plays her adoptive son.)

Paul Greengrass talks Watchmen

CHUD.com has posted part one of a really great interview with Bourne Supremacy and Bloody Sunday director Paul Greengrass, who is currently in pre-production on Watchmen (based on the landmark graphic novel by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons). It sounds like the project is in very good hands, for which I thank producers Larry Gordon and Lloyd Levin (who recently produced my friend Guillermo's Hellboy). This could (and should) be a remarkable film.

TERMINATION @ SXSW

So you may have noticed that I sorta slacked off on updates late last week (sorry), but that was partially because I was getting ready to premiere my short film Termination at SXSW late Saturday morning. (I'm happy to report we had a full house and abundant applause!) FYI, it's screening twice more in the Texas Shorts program at 11:15am Thu. 3/17 and 11:30am Sat. 3/19 at the resplendent new Alamo Drafthouse Cinema on South Lamar.

DOUGHNUTS! DOWNTOWN!

It goes without saying that I love Austin, but one of my long-held frustrations with Our Fair City is that there hasn't been a proper doughnut shop downtown... until now. Behold the locally owned and operated BakerMan's Bakery, now open 24 hours during SXSW at 7th and Brazos (central to the Stephen F. Austin, Driskill and Omni hotels). I popped in the other night and was thrilled to see they not only stock caffeine-free Coke, but also Austin's own Sweet Leaf Tea (and coffee from Texas Coffee Traders). Plus, SXSW badge holders get $1 off any $10 purchase. I love this place!

Texas Film Hall of Fame recap

Friday night I had the pleasure and privilege (thanks to a very gracious invitation from Louis Black) to attend this year's Texas Film Hall of Fame with my (exceedingly fetching) writer/actor/goddess friend Lauran. We got to sit at the Mr. Blue table with three generations of Knowleses, as well as Shawn and the always stylish Amy from the Austin Chronicle, among others. It was a really lovely evening (except for the blinding yellow pre-show spotlight that assaulted our table), though I was amused to note that a.) the food seems to get weirder and weirder every year (I miss the Texas barbeque), and b.) the post-show juxtaposition of fireworks over the port-a-potties was deliciously subversive (if entirely unintentional). I could ramble rhapsodic about the whole affair, but you are probably better served by the Chronicle's feature story that previewed it, and Harry's entertaining recap on AICN. All in all it was really quite fun, but I'm tellin' ya - someone seriously needs to get off their ass and make a deal with the likes of IFC to get this thing on TV.

Brando is Jor-El once more...

Last week Harry filled me with glee by reporting that one of my biggest dreams/wishes for Bryan Singer's forthcoming Superman Returns may indeed come to pass -- Marlon Brando may posthumously reprise his role as Jor-El via never-before-seen footage (shot by Richard Donner for Superman & Superman II). Meanwhile, Singer's first video diary from the production is now online at BlueTights.net.

Adam West is Batman once more...

The other day Harry tipped me off to a new Batman CG-animated short voiced by Adam West, Mark Hamill, Courtney Thorne-Smith and Dick Van Dyke that was produced by animation students at Dave School (based on Minimates toy designs by Art Asylum). It's kinda fun, and was apparently inspired by last year's rather brilliant Lego Spider-man short The Peril of Doc Ock produced by Spite Your Face (who previously did the really funny 2001 Lego spoof One: A Space Odyssey and, well, this).

Spike Jonze's Adidas 1 spot

Spike Jonze has directed a really beautiful spot (:60 / :90) for the new $250 Adidas 1 "Intelligent Shoe" via [AdWeek's 2004 Agency of the Year] TBWA\Chiat\Day. I've been really digging their recent TV campaigns like Impossible Is Nothing and Unstoppable, which you can view here. (And if you haven't picked up The Work of Director Spike Jonze on DVD yet, I recommend that you do.)

Freaky Future Pens!

For the life of me I can't seem to find my trusty old Fisher Bullet Space Pen (which I used to carry around religiously), and while I've been shopping for a replacement I've been tempted by some intruiging alternate writing implements, like the Ergo-Sof PenAgain [shown above], and the less elegant RinG-Pen. (Just thought I'd share.)

World Jump Day: It's not crazy, it's science!

So if 600 million people across the Western Hemisphere were to jump at the exact same moment, do you think it would generate sufficient gravitational force to trigger a planetary orbital shift? Let's find out!

Freaky. Walking. Japanese. Robot. Dinosaurs.

Slashdot reported the other day that Japanese firms AIST and NEDO unveiled two walking, untethered, bipedal, 176lb robot dinosaurs at the 2005 World Exposition in Aichi. They utilize endoskeletons developed by Kawada Industries and wear skin designed by Kokoro.

Go here for more pictures, which you can click on for larger versions and some freaky QuickTime movies like this one. They've got an unfortunate rubbery wobble, but are disturbingly impressive nonetheless.

TRAILERS: Unleashed, Kingdom of Heaven

Two films that didn't quite make my Top 10 Must-See Films of '05 list -- but that I still very much look forward to -- are the Luc Besson produced / Louis Leterrier directed Unleashed (starring Jet Li, Morgan Freeman and Bob Hoskins), and Ridley Scott's Kingdom of Heaven (starring Orlando Bloom, Eva Green, Jeremy Irons, and Liam Neeson). (Click titles for trailers.)

New York Times on Lions Gate Films

"We want to be the smallest studio with the smartest plan and the biggest library."

Today's New York Times has an interesting article on Lions Gate, the largest surviving distribution and production company not owned by a Hollywood studio. (Last year in the U.S. alone, Lions Gate's movies grossed over $300 million at the box office -- second only to Miramax/Dimension among indie labels -- and their library of some 8,000 titles grossed $1 billion in home video revenue.)

John Ottman on Superman Returns

Editor-composer John Ottman talks to Superman-V.com about working on Bryan Singer's forthcoming Superman Returns (which is about to start shooting in Australia).

Disney Concert Hall... or Solar Death Ray?

The Los Angeles Times reports that the curved panels of polished steel adorning the Walt Disney Concert Hall dangerously reflect and magnify beams of sunlight -- roasting the sidewalk to 140 degrees Fahrenheit, enough to melt plastic and cause serious sunburn to people standing on the street. (Architect Frank Gehry, who designed the $274-million building, has agreed to break out the sandpaper.)

Takashi Miike retrospective starts tonight

The Austin Film Society and Alamo Drafthouse Cinema are presenting a seven-week, 15-film retrospective of Japanese filmmaker Takashi Miike, which kicks off tonight with Audition.

Screenings are Tuesdays at 7pm at the downtown Alamo Drafthouse through April 12, and Saturdays and Sundays at 4pm at the new Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar through March 27 -- and they're all free for AFS members. More information can be found here, and the Austin Chronicle has a good article previewing the series here.

(Meanwhile, the Harry Ransom Center's Brit Noir retrospective continues at the Downtown Alamo this Thursday with Night and the City, and next Thursday with Get Carter.)