Inspiration

Found this on Motionographer.com, one of my regular places to visit for motion graphics related news and inspiration. This song is by Lost Lander titled "Wonderful World" and I really like the Flaming Lips vibe this track gives off.

 I find it beautiful because of its simple idea executed so well and the style of the blended layers and motion that give it such a natural feel. I believe that subtlety can go a long way, and looking at the small things done to give the natural feel of motion sell the realness of this project in a sort of microscopic kind of way. Everything from the slight inertia applied to the objects and the heart beat like glows.. simply amazing!

Update

So now that I have some downtime, I can finally update on what's been going on.

I just recently got into a cycling accident last Wednesday which threw off my schedule off by a couple of days. Had to push back some important dates because my back and shoulder bothered me a lot the first couple of days. I'm just lucky I didn't suffer any head injuries. Definitely buying a helmet soon.

I'm currently working on an appeal video for a Kickstarter, which is website designed to help raise funds for independent projects. It'll have some kinetic typography, but will be largely based on motion graphics and visual editing. Finishing this project will be my official start to my Summer.

Things are picking up a bit at work. For the past couple of weeks, I've been mainly doing easy data work, but now that things are getting readjusted for the Summer, and now I'm currently just shooting b-roll for future projects. I get to go out and shoot graduation commencements and it feels nice having media passes to get around. I try to travel with light gear though because of my shoulder and lower back. I had Jess be my camera assistant today and we managed to get into really good spots at the graduation.

Since I have a stable job now, I'm not too worried about my next freelance gig, and I can focus on relaxing and doing personal projects. Hopefully my body heals up soon and I can get a new bike so I can do some cycling this summer.

Connection Problems

Here's a student film I helped out on. I did sound on set, and did visual effects for post production. This is the first project where I've used Mocha's planar tracking, and I've absolutely fallen in love with it. Definitely a huge step up from the point tracking system on After Effects. Still need to understand masking in Mocha, and I mostly just rotoed my way through this project because I'm stubborn.

I did some screen replacements for the tv, laptops, and iMac and created a mock iPhone interface with a little ode to Final Fantasy 3 (the best Final Fantasy! [and yes, I know 3 is really 6 in Japan, but I grew up with calling it 3 and I was born and raised in the best country in the world, Amerikkkka!])

Also love the song choice for the moment the two characters have. It's "Fold Air" by Sora, a Japanese producer who likes to mess with glitchy effects and organic sounds.

Hope you guys enjoy "Connection Problems".




Jess, can you spot the easter egg?

Joe's Classics - In Honor of MCA

MCA, a member of the rap group The Beastie Boys, passed away today after his battle against cancer. I haven't done one of my music video recaps in awhile, but I was meaning to getting around to talking about the all time classic 90's music video "Sabotage".



Directed by Spike Jonze, this music video is one of the best genre parodies done to date. Based on the hood sliding and thick mustache stereotypes of the cop shows of the 70's and 80's, "Sabotage" is executed  beautifully with absolute mayhem without reason. Accompanied with rhythmic editing that carries on a constant chase scene and dozens of wide angle over the shoulder "intense" type feel shots, "Sabotage" doesn't disappoint but translates this song beautifully into a film medium.

Rest in peace, one of the only rappers to do it right.