Interweb Gems: Coming Attractions Part 2

Ok as promised, though a day or two late, here are three of the most anticipated summer releases, as voted on by me!

First is Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. Sequel to the 2007 hit, Transformers, the Decepticon forces return to Earth on a mission to take Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) prisoner, after the young hero learns the truth about the ancient origins of the Transformers. Joining the mission to protect humankind is Optimus Prime and the rest of the Autobots who are ready to "transform and roll out" for this second epic battle. From director Michael Bay.


Next up is J.J. Abrams' Star Trek reboot. It is a chronicle of the early days of James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) and his fellow USS Enterprise crew members. An awesomely nerdy cast includes "Heroes" Zachary Quinto as Spock, Simon Pegg as Scotty, and Eric Bana as the villain Nero.
FUN FACT: Augusta's own, Rachel Nichols who plays Orion in the new Star Trek film will also be in the upcoming GI Joe film as Scarlett O'Hara. Thanks for keeping the dream alive Rachel!

Finally the last film is the one I've been waiting for since i was a child, Where the Wild Things Are. Based on the most beloved children's book of all time by Maurice Sendak is the adventures of a young boy named Max who, after being sent to bed for misbehaving, imagines that he sails away to where the wild things are. From director Spike Jonze.

Interweb Gems: Coming Attractions Part:1

Today is showcase of six of the finest Coming Attractions that i have found from around the Interwebs. To help save everyone's bandwidth i have decided to split this post into two parts; Part 1 (this one) is for three recently released trailers that have kind of slipped under the radar thus far and Part 2 is for the upcoming summer blockbusters. These previews have been approved for all audiences. Enjoy.

The first film is "Taking Woodstock" It's about a man (Demetri Martin) working at his parents' (Eugene Levi & Imelda Staunton) motel in the Catskills who inadvertently sets in motion the generation-defining concert in the summer of 1969. Also starring Emile Hirsch & Liev Schreiber. Directed by Ang Lee.


The next film is "500 Days of Summer" This is a romantic comedy about boy (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) meets girl (Zooey Deschanel) in a "post modern love story is never what we expect it to be" Now if that quote is correct and i expect it to be fantastic, does that me that it won't be? You tell me.


Finally is the long awaited third film from Judd Apatow, "Funny People" About the film, Apatow says, “I’m trying to make a very serious movie that is twice as funny as my other movies. Wish me luck!” He directs Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen and Leslie Mann in this story of a famous comedian who has a near-death experience.


Alright folks, that concludes Part 1! Part 2 will be up later, possibly tomorrow, as well as links to all of the actors, directors, and films mentioned here.

Interweb Gems from a galaxy far, far away.

Greetings young Padawan. (i will make some references that you may not understand, fear not for i have linked everything to Wookieepedia.com to clear things up!) A long time ago a man by the name of George Lucas brought us Star Wars, one of the greatest films ever. Since its release on May 25, 1977, the film has earned $797,900,000 worldwide, making it the first film to reach the $300 million mark, and one of the highest grossing films of all time. Its influence on pop culture however is incalculable. Over 30 years after its initial release the Star Wars franchise still has an extremely loyal fan/fanatic base. Thanks to the interwebs, they get to share their love with the rest of the world. Their homage has been paid and it is my job to dig it up. i am but a lowly Jawa scavenging for Interweb scraps to pawn, no wait I'm a ruthless Bounty Hunter that searches the outer reaches of the galaxy seeking the rarest of Interweb Gems to bring to back, yeah that's it. Now if only i had a ship that could have made the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs...

First up here is Benjamen. You might see this youngling playing at the Mos Eisley Cantina on Tatooine most Friday and Saturday nights. This appears to be his audition tape.


Now another youngling with the heart of a true Jedi. Often imitated, never duplicated, this is the original "Star Wars Kid." Caught on camera in 2006, is he flailing around an AV room with an aluminum pole or fighting off invisible enemies with Darth Maul's lightsaber? You be the judge.


The final video is reserved for none other than the Dark Lord himself, Darth Vader. This video comes from the guys at Blame Society Films and features Vader as a day shift manager at a supermarket and hilarity ensues. Chad Vader, RISE!


Some other Star Wars gems of inter-galactic proportions:
Feeling nostalgic? The Original Star Wars Trailer (1977)
Episode III meets Juno in Padme
Nerd Battle Royale! Ryan vs. Dorkman

I hope you enjoyed this trip around the Galaxy! Until we meet again, may the Force be with you.

Interweb Gem for March 23, 2009

He is Pjotro, the man with the musical suit. The newest rising star from Russia. He is music! Here he is on a Russian talk show. I don't know what the woman or the fat man are saying for the first half of the video, but what i do understand is that this is one of the coolest things ive seen in a while.

This is another video from his YouTube channel that showcases more of what he can do.



On his website pjotro.com you can play a flash game that allows you to make music with his suit by selecting dance moves for him to do. Note: this does take some time to load. Play the cleverly titled game "Pjotro - Man With the Musical Suit" here (i think it should have been called Pjotro Dance Revolution or maybe Rhythm is a Dancer?)

State of the Blog

This is the state of my blog as of March 23, 2009. I have had the best of intentions to post something new at least once a day, that dream died on day 3, god rest its soul. So instead, i have resolved to post when the following three criteria have been met:
[1.] i have something post-worthy
[2.] i have the time to devote to getting it right
[3.] i enjoy the final product.
I feel like that's what the Blogosphere is supposed to be and I'm glad I've finally come around to its ways. I have felt anxious when i hadn't posted something in a day or two. So i would then feel forced to post something for posting's sake. That's not fair to me and its not fair to you, my readers.

Which brings me to my next point, my readers. Who are you all exactly? I've gotten some decent feedback, but i could use more. I like feedback. I need feedback. As a writer and as an artist, it is my life-blood. Feedback helps me gauge what works and what doesn't and overall helps me improve and ideally bring you better quality content. So please feel free to comment the hell out of my posts. Questions, comments, concerns! i'll take them all. Don't be shy, i wont bite! Sign up for a Google account, or whatever they require, and follow my blog too (its that little box on the right that says 'Followers') and spread the word, it would make me really happy to actually see my audience grow.

Speaking of growth, (I'm getting better at these seamless transitions) i am currently trying to expand my local celebrity. Not for purposes that most try to, rather to try and affect change in my community (see my first post "Open letter to Augusta, Maine" to get an idea of the change that i speak off.) My spring break started on Friday and instead of going to some tropical party destination i have decided to get the ball moving on this. So i have resolved to do the following things in the next week: Begin planning for a web show and video blog, start a YouTube channel, and continue to promote my web content. Maybe ill get business cards too?

I think with these things and a growing web following, i could easily transition that success into my everyday life. We shall see how this week unfolds but it seems likely that i will be able to get this first phase of 'Operation Get Myself Some Famous' going if not complete. If this phase goes according to plan, it will be brilliant but most importantly it will be a whole lot of fun. If by chance, it doesn't go according to plan, well then its to my benefit that I'm good at improvising.

Me & Twilight

Me+twilight
Originally uploaded by shawnhart5

Twilight comes out today March 21. 2009! I got my copy at Wal-mart around 12:30am to avoid the midnight rush of screaming tweens dressed as their favorite character dragging their parents (and their credit cards) along for the ride. Eye witness reports say that upwards of 200 people where there at midnight for the big release. When i arrived there was not a single 2-Disc Special Edition copy to be had either, no big though it saved me almost $10 going with the single disc. No matter how you feel about the Twilight phenomenon you can deny the power of the tween consumer and the gullible twenty-somethings. Slow economy my ass!

In case you were wondering my obsession with this movie came from my undying (no vampire pun intended) love for Paramore, who is featured on the soundtrack. I went for Paramore and i stayed for the beautiful train wreck that is Twilight. Here is the video for Decode from the Twilight Soundtrack:

If you like the song check it out performed on Jimmy Kimmel Live!

Photo shoot part 1 now on flickr!

Yellow #1
Originally uploaded by shawnhart5

I have uploaded all of the finished shots from my recent photo shoot with my good friend Denae Spencer to my photostream at flickr.com! Go check them out and tell me what you think. I suggest you say things like "wow Shawn these are great!" and "where did you learn to be a model?" My responses to such questions would be "Thank you very much!" and "Tyra Banks." Photo shoot part deux will be taking place sometime in the afternoon on March 21st and those photos will soon follow. So keep your eyes peeled for that true believers!

Interweb Gem for March 18, 2009

I consider myself an aspiring filmmaker. As such i am always seeking new and interesting things to inspire me. It is also a way to write off all the visual media that i take in as "artistic enrichment" or something. So i scour the web hoping to dig up something that takes a chance, either in story, editing, or cinematography. Today i am pretty confident in saying that i bring you all three. I found this while checking out Chris Hardwick's Nerdist blog. It is a Norwegian short film titled "Nemesis." Enjoy!

St. Patrick's Day Interweb Gem

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! I saw this little "emerald" on G4's Attack of the Show and almost pissed myself so i thought id share it. Whats that? A leprechaun?! In Mobile, Alabama?

Interweb Gems for March 17, 2009

For today's Interweb Gems im going with an all tracking shot themed music video gems. I really love music and cinematography of all kinds, and being a former employee of Transworld Entertainment Co. (better known as FYE and Strawberries) i was exposed to many new things and some really great artists and entertainers. So i hope to introduce you to some new artists and filmmaking styles. So away we go.

The first band is Metric. This is the music video for Gimme Sympathy, from Metric's 2009 release, Fantasies. [Available for pre-order from ilovemetric.com.] The reason why i chose this video is for the great use of the tracking shot and seemless editing. Awesome concept! Pretty great song too. The selection has nothing to do that i have a slight crush on lead singer Emily Haines...
Here's the video:
Gimme Sympathy


Keeping with the tracking shot theme music videos the next artist is Oakland, California based band, The Matches. This video was shot in one take (after a hours of rehearsal) and with a budget of $1000!



Finally, Oxford Comma by Vampire Weekend, for its excellent use of the tracking shot and actually showing the track that the camera dolly runs on at one point towards the end of the video was a nice touch. The style is very reminiscent of Wes Anderson. Vampire Weekend filmed this on a farm in Ancramdale, NY in one long tracking shot. This was their 17th and final awesome take...



Some honorable mention external links for the tracking shot themed music video gems:
Radiohead - Karma Police
The Verve - Sonnet
The White Stripes - Seven Nation Army

Interweb Gems for March 16/17, 2009

We have reached a milestone folks, after more than 5 years my house has finally stepped into the 21st century and become equipped with hi-speed internet access! At approximately 10am on March 16, 2009 my laptop recieved a wireless signal and i havent left its side but for food, drink, and the bathroom. Sad? Maybe. Necessary? i think so. As a result of this recent change of events i have searched the web for hidden gems and im submitting the top 3 things ive found today.

Number 3.
I, among others, celebrated Pi Day (March 14 [3.14]) negligently, many of us failing to understand Pi's true power as the mathmatical constant whose value is the ratio of any circle's circumference to its diameter in Euclidean space. Chris Hardwick and Mike Phirman brake it down in this oddly amusing ode to pi.



Number 2.
Ever since i bought Street Fighter IV ive been hooked, more like addicted. Its quite possibly the best fighter i have ever played. So what do you get when you mix the best fighting game with some of the best face recognition software? My face on Street Fighter Ryu's body! Check it out.

Try it for yourself at streetfighter.com

Number 1.
March Madness is almost here and its time to fill out your college tourney brackets. What? you say you dont want to take the time to print it out and fill it in by hand or join some office pool that you'll probably never win. Well ESPN.com has taken all of the work out of it wit the ESPN Tournament Challenge. They have made it user friendly for even the most sport-challenged individual! Picking your teams is a breeze with this interactive bracket. Dont know who to pick between #4 Xavier and #13 Portland State? You are only one click away from match-up info and stats including records, key wins and losses, and even expert analysis to help you make the right choice to take all the way to the end of the Big Dance! Its quick, its easy, and best of all its FREE! Just take a few minutes to set up an ESPN Fan Profile and get started now before the tip-off!

Check out my picks here!

Well thats it for me! i started this entry an hour or so ago and now its officially St. Patrick's Day! I'll drink to that. Cheers!

Open letter to Augusta, Maine:

When I think of the future, I see Augusta, the town I live in and have grown up in, being not only a great place to live but one of the greatest cities in New England. If you've ever been to Augusta, you know that it's not much to write home about. Here are the bullet points if you haven't - Population: 18,560; Home to the Maine State House & University of Maine at Augusta; and apart from the Marketplace, a byproduct of urban sprawl and bastard child of capitalism flooded with consumer-zombies, that's about it. The sidewalks roll up promptly at 9pm, leaving us nWal-mart until midnight (no longer 24hrs). By the grace of the gods Denny's is open 24-7.

Is that all we have to offer the world? Really, Augusta? You are the capital of the Vacationland for christ sake! You cant figure out a way to support something of substance in a state teeming with talent? Something other than retail stores and big commercial chains? Unfortunately, the rest of the state, a few places excluded, seem to be following your trend of degradation in the name of "development." It doesn't have to be this way. I submit change. Real, honest to goodness change. Change that goes against economic trends. With the understanding that there is a need for a community-based effort to be better, with it I think Augusta could be great.

There is so much potential in this town that is just auctioned off to the highest bidder with the best of self-serving intentions. That's not good for us as a town. We need support from each other and we need to work together to make Augusta a better place. So far I have sat idly by hoping that something better would come along and save me from this stagnation. After 21 long years, nothing. No longer will I wait. I don't yet know how, but i will do everything in my power to turn this town around, with or without the help of "Augusta's Elite." Let the record show, I set my foresight high and I have lofty goals. I believe in Augusta. I just hope it believes in me.