Tuesday, November 24, 2009

And more obscure trailers....

Yep. Following the rollicking success of my last trailer, here's one (using archival 'test' footage, when we were working out how to make a fake battered goldfish look real) that ventures into the arthouse. David Lynch would be proud.

Saturday, November 21, 2009

The Goldfish Cometh.

Here's another stupid little teaser for 'Pisces, Arise!' that will hopefully go viral. Or something.

Friday, November 20, 2009

The first collaboration.

A long time ago, in a galaxy far far away, I studied film at university. Given that half the people in my group usually didn't do anything other than turn up at the first and last class of each semester, I'd usually rope in friends who didn't even attend my uni to work with me on my videos.

It is for this reason that many of my uni films star Mr Gregory Bricknell (studying at Swinburne at the time) and feature collaborative efforts with Mr Trevor Matthews, my dear Excordis collaborator. And thank god for them, otherwise I would have been producing most of my videos entirely by myself.

This video from the archives (circa 2003) was the very first film I had to make at uni, the criteria being that it had to be some kind of instructional video. My group was largely crap and did nothing; I wrote the basic script, arranged the shoots and filmed the whole thing, Greg and I came up with most of the scenarios ourselves, Greg recorded the music, I did the edit, and Trevor (who was working full time) popped into the edit suites to improvise a voice-over. We used the first and only take.

Despite its slapdash nature (hey, it was first year...), it's still a pretty funny film - and a bit of a precursor to 'Pisces, Arise!' in that it's the first filmic collaboration between T-Dex and myself.

Also, it's the only time in my life that I've EVER had the justification for using a starwipe. And that's important in itself.

Enjoy.


Sunday, November 8, 2009

Woman Attacked by Giant Squid.

It's not just fishing boats - even PEOPLE are being attacked by creatures from the deep. This poor lady copped it sweet earlier this year when a carnivorous squid ripped her diving equipment off and nearly drowned her.

Check out this article from The Morningstarr, or have a watch of the video below. Awesome.


Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Attack of the Giant Jellyfish!


If you've checked out the Pisces, Arise website (and I sure hope you have!), you'll notice that the background image is a rather cool etching of a giant sea monster attacking a ship.

Like most mythological creatures, sea monsters (in all their varying forms) were based on reality - namely, certain species of giant squid that frequent the deep and scary areas of the ocean.

I was therefore quite excited when an article entitled 'JAPANESE FISHING TRAWLER SUNK BY GIANT JELLYFISH' popped up in the British Telegraph.

It's pleasing to see that, even in this modern age, the sea monsters are still putting in a good effort.

Sunday, November 1, 2009

What might have been...


In case Kiera DID want Mr Finnsmore stuffed - it's definitely possible.

Courtesy of Al's Taxidermy

Freeze Dried Pets: A Step Too Far?

So you want to keep your beloved pet after their death. And the idea of taxidermy freaks you out a little. Fair enough.

In that case, why not get them FREEZE DRIED?

Yep, that's right. Freeze-dried.

In case you're also going 'WTF?' in the same way that I was:

How Does the Freeze-Drying Process Work? (from the Perpetual Pets site)
'The animal is carefully prepared and posed, supported by a custom made framework. It is then placed into a sealed vacuum chamber at extremely low temperature. Over time, frozen moisture is slowly converted into a gaseous state, and then extracted. The larger the subject, the greater the amount of moisture to be extracted. Typically, a small cat or dog will take 10 to 12 weeks. Larger pets will take a longer period of time, perhaps as much as 6 months in the case of a very large dog. However, all pets are unique, and sometimes take a bit more or less time than expected.'

My. Goodness.

Here to the left is poor little Cisco, who has clearly been treated with the respect and dignity that such a noble dog deserves.

Check out the gallery for photos of just how real your animal can look after dying, being placed in a freeze-drier, and having its very vitals slowly sucked out over a period of three months.

I can only assume it's just a matter of time before these processes can be applied to humans too.

The Rainbow Bridge

One of the biggest 'turning points' of this film is when Kiera, the object of Grant's affections, loses her beloved goldfish, Mr Finnsmore. She's so distraught that she turns to Grant, and his powers of the Black Arts, to bring her dear little fishie back from the dead.

But was this really necessary? Was she actually dragging Mr Finnsmore back from a place of joy - The Rainbow Bridge?

For those of you who weren't aware - and I'm not entirely sure that it's mentioned in the Bible - the Rainbow Bridge is a place that joins earth and Heaven, where the spirits of your dearly departed pets (or 'Fur Babies' as they're known on these sites...) will wait for you until you cark it yourself, and then you both head over to Heaven together.

And if you click on the image on the left, you can head to the Rainbow Bridges website - an online memorial where you can create your own tributes to lost pets, complete with wreaths, flowers, headstones, guest books for others to share their special memories - the lot.

In, fact, there are hundreds of sites dedicated to pets who have passed over - sharing stories of grief, sites that offer pet cremation, counselling services for when you lose an animal, and even services that allow you to have your favourite pet stuffed, so that they can remained curled up on your bed until the end of time.

So, had Kiera decided just to 'let Mr Finnsmore go', there certainly would have been some excellent options available to her.