Animation Roundup - FL'UX, Short Peace, Caveirão

The newest trailer for the Short Peace anime anthology featuring some of the best directors in the anime industry today just dropped, including: Redline’s Katsuhito Ishii, Freedom's Shuhei Morita and Super Robot Wars' Hajime Katoki, Koji Morimoto and of course, Katsuhiro Otomo of Akira and Steamboy fame. The shorts all seem like they'll share a similar hybrid style, mixing 3D and 2D in varying degrees. Can't wait for this one!

From The Future With Love : Security Isn't Free

This awesome scifi short by James Lawler Productions is one of the coolest dystopian scenarios we've seen in a while, based off the 'what if' concept of the privatization of security services in the future. If you thought that health insurance was bad in this day and age, imagine having to deal with coverage plans for law enforcement, including getting hustled to coverage from officers themselves.

Presented as a series of vignettes, the short features some rather diverse scenarios related to the 'security insurance' concept, futuristic identity theft and the inevitable outcome of privatized jurisdictions and territorial disputes. This proof of concept was directed and written by K-Michel Parandi, who really did an awesome job grounding this scifi concept with a dose of reality, especially considering the advent of for profit corporations calling for privatizing prisons and applying a monetary value to incarceration. A little unsettling to say the least, but I'd love to see this world get fleshed out more as a feature or series.

Some of the designs in this short were created by Ben Mauro, a concept artist at the famed New Zealand WETA workshop who has had the chance to work on projects including The Hobbit trilogy, Man of Steel, The Amazing Spider-Man as well as the upcoming science fiction movie Elysium. Check out his weapon designs after the break!

Daft Punk - "Get Lucky" (Michael Jackson Edit)

May 21 can't come fast enough. Following an 8 year hiatus after the release of 2005's Human After All, (Tron Legacy was a spinoff project) Daft Punk is returning with Random Access Memories, created in collaboration with Nile Rodgers, Paul Williams and Pharrell, among others.

Youtube user Maim Ixed imagined an alternate reality where Michael Jackson was still alive and decided to remix the new Get Lucky track into the ultimate team up of all time, and it works really damn well. Reddit user WhenDookieCalls put it best:

'I'd like to think that in an alternative universe somewhere, this is exactly what happened. Daft Punk chose Michael Jackson to do vocals for Get Lucky, setting in motion a chain of events culminating in MJ's long-awaited, massive comeback.'

The Illustrations Of Betteo : Cubism And Beyond

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Patricio Betteo is a prolific Mexican illustrator driven by a need to always mix things up, while maintaining his signature style, reminiscent of a modern form of cubism, a style comprised of taking objects, breaking them up and reassembling them in a semi-abstracted manner. As a mainly commercial illustrator, he's found a way to keep himself constantly challenged and diversified in his subject matter, a concious choice on his part to keep himself from ever stagnating. In a way he's the perfect example of a passionate artist, eager to broaden his horizons via his canvas rather than by other means.

In terms of illustrators we've featured, I think Betteo has one of the most varied portfolios I've seen in years, with hundreds of illustrations and regular updates. Check out a select few of his awesomely stylized pieces after the break!

Out Of This World : VW Meets Redline

Directed by Kaism Lim, 'Out of this World' is a pretty damn spectacular ad/short film created to virally promote the Volkswagen GTI in China. The production values behind this project are pretty mind blowing, employing a style reminiscent of a mixture between Takeshi Koike's hyperkinetic 'Redline' anime and the Wachowski brothers' recent take on the Speed Racer franchise. To put it lightly, it's a 4 minute visual feast that was a complete viral success in it's intended market back in late 2012.

The Beijing based director behind the project has gone on to work on even more high profile projects as of late, including a series of promos for the upcoming Ironman 3 flick. Check out the extensive two part making of feature after the break! Why can't we get advertising this awesome on our side of the pond?

The Art Of HJL

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HJL is a concept artist from the Guangdong province of China who caught our eye thanks to his unique thematic subject matter in the majority his pieces, mimicking an alternate reality universe version of World War II. If anyone is familiar with Sega's highly rated and appealing Valkyria Chronicles franchise, this work will ring a bell or two.

Using a rather impressionist approach to his digital work, his pieces have a wonderfully painterly theme to them, relying more on implied detail rather than tight rendering to give his pieces their unique charm. Check out more of the artists awesome concepts after the break!

The Illustrations Of Thine

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Thine (ざいん) is a female Japanese illustrator who caught our eye with her unique illustration style and subject matter, focusing on themes of societal detachment and disconnect. Despite the darker themes though, her pieces feature incredibly saturated, yet beautiful color palettes, offering an interesting contrast that sells the concept of being lost in a confusing, strange world.

The illustrators pieces really do a fantastic job telling a story, even though she dabbles in different, happier themes from time to time. Check out more of her excellent illustration work after the break.

Neill Blomkamp's Elysium Trailer : Scifi Grounded In Reality

Ever since 2009's excellent District 9, I've been dreaming of someone coming along and topping the unique scifi style and themes that director Neill Blomkamp put forward. The prawn filled film dealt with issues of xenophobia and racism from a perspective heavily grounded in reality, going so far as to use a name for the camp reminiscent of the apartheid era District Six. Blomkamp also made the bold decision to use real life interviews of South Africans talking about Zimbabwean refugees in their country, presented as if they were talking about the unwelcome alien inhabitants in District 9.

The debut trailer for Elysium looks like it will reflect some real life issues as well, mainly the never ending battle regarding the distribution of wealth among classes and the 1% concept that became truly obvious following the 2007/2008 financial collapse. Starring Matt Damon as a downtrodden earth dweller and Jodie Foster as the enforcer of a utopia for the wealthy, the movie looks like it's shaping up to be a scifi entry to truly look forward to this August.

In the year 2159 two classes of people exist: the very wealthy who live on a pristine man-made space station called Elysium, and the rest, who live on an overpopulated, ruined Earth. Secretary Rhodes, a government official, will stop at nothing to enforce anti-immigration laws and preserve the luxurious lifestyle of the citizens of Elysium. That doesn't stop the people of Earth from trying to get in, by any means they can. When unlucky Max is backed into a corner, he agrees to take on a daunting mission that if successful will not only save his life, but could bring equality to these polarized worlds.

Watch This Movie: Spring Breakers Is Not What It Seems

We had one of the strangest moviegoing experiences in years with Harmony Korine's Spring Breakers, a movie that was made to seem very common and ordinary in it's marketing, yet offered something starkly different to those who took the bait. This movie was a cinematic venus fly trap in the best way imaginable, drawing the stereotypical crowd who'd be interested in a 'party' movie before slapping them in the face with a movie so strange, surreal and ironic that it's nothing short of brilliant.



We'd heard rumors that this movie was selling itself as something it wasn't, but when we entered the theater to find a bunch of 16-18 year olds getting pumped about a Spring Break themed, fun movie..We were perplexed and bracing ourselves for the experience to come. What the movie ended up being was a true freefall into darkness for four girls, which unfolded in an uncnoventional narration style that juggled present, past and future at the same time with plenty of surreal, uncomfortable moments that reminded me of Gaspar Noe's Enter The Void in it's abstract style.

The movie could be referred to as a dark satire in it's entirety, and a cautionary tale of what happens to people who consider 'YOLO' and Scarface as things to glorify and live by. All glitz, glamour and no consequences? Think twice. If anything I'd consider this movie as a complete middle finger to movies like Project X, which went so far as to throw out the aspect of responsibility in a movie about taking things too far. If you're looking for a truly different cinematic experience, I'd highly recommend checking Spring Breakers out, I guarantee that it's unlike anything you've seen in recent years.

Wolf Smoke Animation Reel : China's Best Indie Animation Studio?

We're glad to hear that the talented folks over at the independent Chinese animation studio known as Wolf Smoke are still at it. They've definitely faced some challenges, including having a few of their videos taken down on Youtube for questionable reasons after getting hundreds of thousands of views.

The studio has been around since 2006, but they definitely burst into the scene with Kung Fu Cooking Girls and Little Big War, which you can check out after the break. They also created Bat Man Of Shanghai for DC and Cartoon Network as part of their DC Nation animated shorts.  Considering the rarity of established Chinese animation studios with international appeal, I truly hope to see this team prosper for years to come.

Kate Boy - Northern Lights

Swedish group Kate Boy are a relatively unknown, fresh group and they've come out swinging with their excellent debut music video for Northern lights, heavy on the optical illusions and hauntingly beautiful. Their sound really reminds me of a more consumer friendly version of The Knife (Also from Sweden) with their shared interest in playful, unsettling vintage synth pop. With this being their debut, I'm excited to see what else this group has up their sleeves. Keep your eyes on their Facebook page for more info about their upcoming January 22nd EP.

The Art Of Eric Fortune

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Eric Fortune's work lies heavily within the realm of surrealism, with his work evoking memories of becoming aware in a hazy dream, or that feeling of letting your mind wander till everything around you drones out. His beautiful paintings always feature characters that never quite look like they belong there, stuck in a strange state of limbo, with at times introspective, at times curious expressions that definitely leave an impression. You kind of end up pondering what these subjects are thinking or experiencing in the confines of the canvases they inhabit.

Eric is an emerging artist based out of Columbus, Ohio and has seen a massive amount of acclaim directed his way over the last few years. And he works in watercolor, which in my opinion is one of the most punishing mediums I've tried to learn over the years (Respect). Check out more of his illustration work after the break!

Lorn - Diamond

In conjunction with the arrival of Lorn's 'Ask The Dust,' which is now out (Check it out on Spotify), we've been treated to a variety of excellent music videos with similar aesthetics. And this distinct look matches the heavily atmospheric, haunting sound that the producer evoked from a nether dimension for his latest album. Following a similar visual narrative as 'Weigh Me Down,' Diamond follows a man on the run from an entity and the long shadow it casts that he can't escape, perhaps an allegory for the inevitable result of trying to run from your problems. Loved the simulated VHS artifact look, and I really hope to see a continuation of this series.

The Art Of FlowerZZXU

Monkey and the land god (Via)

FlowerZZXU, aka Tim Xu is a Beijing based artist who floored me with his fantastic illustrations. If there's one thing that truly struck me about his work, its the fact that he obviously had a traditional painting background before moving onto digital mediums. How can you typically tell? Its a matter of looking at the subtleties, including incredible control of his values, color shifts and edge variation, even down to how he lays down his paint strokes.

Looking through his portfolio, Tim has also dabbled in comic book work, concept art and a few other fields, but his illustrations truly take the cake. Check out more of his work after the break!

Corduroi: Glow Worm

Just in time for SXSW, Corduroi just released this new music video for 'Glow Worm,' an excellent track from his newest album, 'Future Adventures.' If you haven't heard Corduroi before, I tend to gravitate towards his dreamy, blissful beats when I need to relax or unwind. Love it.

Magazine Covers By Department International

Rendezvous (Via)

Department International is a visual development house with an incredibly minimalist website that gets down to the point about their specialties. Flyers, magazine covers, advertising, posters and building identity via striking images that channel 90's aesthetics with a modern twist. The use of selective negative, blowing out areas into flat color and some of the choices choosing type and layouts all add up into something familiar, yet new. The bottom line though is that they are incredibly eye catching, which accomplishes the goal that this form of advertising sets out to do. If I saw a magazine with a cover like this, I'd probably pick it up. Check out a few more samples from Department International's portfolio after the break!

Raiding The Lost Ark

As a followup to the incredibly in depth Jamie Benning documentaries about the making of Star Wars that we posted yesterday, today we're posting his Raiders Of The Lost Ark doc. This documentary about one of Steven Spielberg's greatest movies follows the same format as his other making of featurettes, following the original flow of the movie with the addition of trivia, deleted scenes and interviews spliced in to give an enhanced understanding of the thought process behind the movie. After sitting through the Star Wars making of, I'm kind of thinking that Jamie Benning's Filmumentary format should be adopted as the standard for creating 'making of' features.

Prometheus : The First Official Trailer

After an entire series of teasers featuring Ridley Scott himself, the official trailer has finally arrived for Prometheus, and it looks absolutely stunning. We've got all the elements of an excellent Alien prequel here: A scientific expedition of sorts, the discovery of a crash landed space ship (Like in the original Alien), and last but not least..A feeling of complete dread. I get this great feeling that Ridley is going to breathe life back into this series, which has been mishandled since Alien 3. Maybe we'll see a Nolan-esque reboot of the franchise!

The title of this movie is a story in itself, and I can see how it plays into the whole Alien origin story. This Greek mythology centers around the story of Prometheus, a Titan who attempted to steal fire from Zeus and give it to mortals. In doing so, he suffered quite the terrible punishment. If you think about it, this whole series has been about man attempting to meddle with forces unknown, and suffering the consequences. It'll be interesting to see how, and if they intend to play up the title of Prometheus. Nonetheless, this excellent trailer hints at a release date of 6/8/2012, and we can't wait to see more.