Cubicgarden.com
I love movies and decided a long time ago to hang them in my living room instead of the usual pictures.
However recently I’ve grown tired of the movie posters. There always too brash in my mind or don’t include the parts which are movie defining.
I got the idea a while ago to blow up Fan Art using Rasterbator and then replace my crappy movie posters with them. It might seem slightly cheeky but if I’m not replacing any of the attribution and I’ll happily point to where I got the art. I know Deviantart do sell poster sizes of some of the art but I quite like the rugged non-descript way Rasterbator makes Fan art.
So for my first piece I did one for Inception…
I used PosteRazor which is one of the most ugly linux apps I’ve ever used (but it does the job) and created a A2 sized poster out of some excellent Fan Art. Then bought an Ikea frame.
The result is…
And this is only the start… Not bad for the first attempt, although the line up isn’t right and I’m not so happy with the framing…
Certainly like the idea of changing the art around every once in a while too…
I really enjoyed my time in Copenhagen… It kind of reminded me of a combination of Berlin, Amsterdam and Stockholm. I had wished I had more time there for many reasons.
So what was I doing there? Well me and Tony Churnside were asked a while after that presentation at SMC_MCR by the European Broadcasting Union (they run the Eurovision song contest I’ve heard) if we would offer a unique look at a possible future for broadcasting. Originally we said no because the idea wasn’t fully formed (hence the early thinking) but it became clear we might have a demo which we could maybe show. That demo of course is still under-wraps and we hope to reveal it to the world soon enough (keep an eye on the BBC R&D Blog for more details). It was well received and it certainly got people thinking, talking and wanting much more. And yes it is Perceptive Media…
On top of doing the presentation and heading up a question and answer session with Tony, we got a good chance to see the rest of the summit and speak to many TV related people. Its amazing what our European public broadcaster friends are doing. Thanks to the always busy but super smart Nicoletta Iacobacci (who also uses troublemaker in her job title) from the EBU who was the one who invited us and made us feel very comfortable. Of course the amazing Mia Munck Bruns, who I had the joy of sharing my love for good cocktails with on the last night.
We also got to see parts of Copenhagen but we were mainly in Ørestad. I could only see the one of the moutain dwellings as talked about in the Channel4 documentary recently from a far, but it looked very impressive. And to be honest the architecture and design effort in Copenhagen was amazing… It was like walking through Stockholm or the pages of Inhabatit.
When we first arrived (our flight was 2 hours delayed) I had a massive headcold and couldn’t hear out of my right ear due to not flying well. But we walked straight into a session involving media study students and TV producers. It was run by Nicoletta and reminded me of when BBC Backstage invited the people behind UK Nova in to meet the BBC. The students explained there media habits and the TV producers tried to make sense of it all.
The thing which shocked me was the lack of twitter usage in Denmark. The students talked about using Facebook as we use Twitter. Google Plus never really came up ever. The 2/4 screens meme came up time and time again. And a few of the TV producers started getting irate why the students were treating TV like radio or as I prefer wallpaper.
They couldn’t understand why they have the screen on if there not watching it. Little disagreement broke out saying they should be watching what they broadcast. Well what followed was some ice words on both sides… As usual, as I’ve heard all my life. The students media habits were dismissed as early adopters. I asked if any of them created there own media rather than just consumed and shared? Very few did (maybe one) further indicating there not early adopters but just the norm.
Fantastic session along with
During the trip the EBU treated us to a series of lovely dinner including one at a amazing Opera Hall.
Unfortunately the way to the opera hall was via boat which isn’t exactly great for me. But I made it even with Tonys teasing…
The rest of the conference was dominated by TV as you’d expect and there was some real interesting things from other public European partners including Äkta människor or Real Humans
In a parallel present the artificial human has come into its own. Robots no longer have anything robot-like about them. New technology and advancements in the field of science have made it possible to manufacture a product – a kind of mechanized servant – that is so similar to a real human that it can often be considered a perfectly good substitute. The Human Robot (HUBOT) have also given rise to new problems and dilemmas. Thorny legal questions have increasingly started to occupy people’s minds and are still waiting to be answered: Who is responsible for the actions of a hubot? Do hubots have some form of “hubot rights”? Should they be paid for their work? As an ever growing number of people form relationships with hubots, the boundaries between human and machine become blurred. When humans make copies of themselves, which are so close to the real thing they form emotional bonds, the questions arises – What does it really mean to be ‘human’?
Looks like one to watch for sure…
Great to experience Copenhagen and see that crazy bridge/tunnel to Sweden from the plane.
If you’ve not seen Touch your missing out. According to Rachel Clarke its already on Sky and not far behind its American showing either.
“Touch” is a preternatural drama where science and spirituality meet in which we are all interconnected. The show follows a group of unrelated characters. One of these is Martin Bohm (Kiefer Sutherland), a widower and a single father who is haunted by an inability to connect to his mute and severely autistic 10-year-old son, Jake. Martin has tried everything he could do in order to reach his son, but at no success. To spend his time, Jake has cast-off cell phones, disassembling them and manipulating the parts. This allows him to see the world in a different way entirely. Martin is visited by social worker Clea Hopkins. She insists on doing an evaluation of the living situation. Clea sees Martin as a man whose life has become dominated by a child he can no longer control.
Touch is seriously great and really seems to fit with inspiring media which is really coming into focus right now.
Last year the film The Tree of Life was released and caused a little stir. Its one of those films you either love or really hate…
Likewise, Touch will be one of those things you either love or hate. A few people have already said they loved the pilot episode but now its going nowhere fast. I can see what they are saying but I’m usually so wrapped up in the episodes it doesn’t bother me. Tim Kring is also the kind of person who tends to come good with well thought out layered narratives.
Or at least I hope…
Touch does (ironically) touch the current zeitgeist of our hyper connected times.
It all fits with my own thoughts… Slide 48 onwards in the TEDx Manchester talk the story of me and a great tune I’ve been loving for a while, the string which binds us by Arnej
These are some of the most unconformable films I’ve seen recently… The kind of films where you can’t move from your seat afterwards or when you do, you feel like having a shower straight afterwards.
- Martha Marcy May Marlene
Haunted by painful memories and increasing paranoia, a damaged woman struggles to re-assimilate with her family after fleeing an abusive cult. - Requiem for a Dream
The drug-induced utopias of four Coney Island individuals are shattered when their addictions become stronger. - Shame
In New York City, Brandon’s carefully cultivated private life which allows him to indulge his sexual addiction is disrupted when his sister Sissy arrives unannounced for an indefinite stay. - Irréversible
Events over the course of one traumatic night in Paris unfold in reverse-chronological order as the beautiful Alex is brutally raped and beaten by a stranger in the underpass. - Trust
A teenage girl is targeted by an online sexual predator. - Hard Candy
A mature 14-year old girl meets a charming 32-year old photographer on the Internet. Suspecting that he is a pedophile, she goes to his home in an attempt to expose him.
Each film has a unique reason why they are deeply uncomfortable, challenging and unsettling but each one is a masterpiece in its own way. Certainly worth watching each at least once… I also use the words uncomfortable as the films are not nasty or sick, they linger in the air and slowly choke you. For example, Trust is partially nasty, depraved or evil, but its the after effect of seeing someone whose obviously being taken advantage of feeling pity for her predator. This is almost exactly the same for Martha…
The psychological effect Shame and Requiem for a Dream is intense and although you don’t actually see anything depraved or so dark. They both put American Psycho to total shame (although I understand American Psycho is meant to be a very black comedy). They for me also totally swipe horror films out the way. For me I could sit and watch Nightmare on Elm Street without flinching and sleep soundly. But Requiem for a dream gives me chills each and everytime.
I guess a good example is Trust vs Untracable?
I have no idea what they (Fevermedia) think there up to now…
But they seem to be recruiting for part 2, cover there tracks or trying to rescue the year of making love… A friend (removed details just incase), sent this to me, I first thought it was a old email but when I looked at it again, I noticed the date was way after the epic fail which was the year of making love event.
From: Flanagain, Kerry, Fevermedia [kerry.flanagan@fevermedia.co.uk]
Sent: 14 March 2012
Subject: Exciting new BBC Three show looking for single people to take part!I am contacting you from Fever Media on behalf of BBC Three.
We’re currently looking for people to take part in one of the UK’s biggest relationship experiments, for a brand new BBC television series.
The show will put the new science of compatibility to the test and in order to do this we are looking for single men and women that would be interested in going on a date with their perfect partner.I have attached a flyer to this email, it would be great if you can pass this onto your students via the intranet, or display it somewhere? Anyone that is interested can contact the team using the details on the flyer and someone will get back to them ASAP.
Alternatively we’d be really grateful if you can help spread the word via your social media networks to get encourage students to get involved. Can the you retweet the link to our application stage please? Our twitter account is @yearofmakingluv
And to post the following on your facebook page please:Would you like to be set up with your ideal date in a ground breaking scientific dating experiment? Fever Media and BBC3 are looking to fond you the perfect match! To take part please call 02074285759 or email your details toyearoflove@fevermedia.co.uk
Many Thanks,
Kerry Flanagan – The Year of Making Love
Researcher
And I’m not the only one to spot this… On the Facebook group setup by people who were there the first time, someone posted this Exciting new BBC three show looking for single people to take part!
Yes it seems Fevermedia didn’t learn their lesson first time around and want to repeat the mistake once again. But this time it might be that they stacking the deck (as such) this time to be sure? (of course this is all rumors, but if true show how desperate Fevermedia really are and serious lack of any scientific standing in the show)
My mate runs a modelling agency , yesterday he got a phone call from the fever team asking if any of his models would like to be on the tv show ..
Once again, the scientific experiment is just a washed away in the aim of creating TV. I certainly won’t be taking part, although I will be watching and researching to see what they do this time around.
I’m a bit of a sucker for mystery thrillers such as Cube.
One room or space, people trapped or stuck. An external entity working to convince them that they must kill each other to escape or be let free.
Here’s a few of those types of films which you may have missed but are worth checking out
- Exam – How far would you go for the ultimate job
Eight talented candidates have reached the final stage of selection to join the ranks of a mysterious and powerful corporation… - Panic Button – Have You Read The Terms & Conditions?
Four competition winners find out why they should have adjusted their internet privacy settings. - 9 Dead – It doesn’t have to end this way
Communication is the key to the survival for nine strangers who have been kidnapped by a masked gunman and told that one of them will die every ten minutes until they discover how they are all connected. Who of the nine lives and who dies?
Does anyone remember welcometothescene by Jun Group?
I wrote about it a while back here and here.
For me this was way too early for a lot of reasons but in a world where hackers are dominating the headlines and endless war against piracy this series could actually work very well now. The style is also being duplicated by the likes of some recorded google hangouts I’ve seen recently.
The drama slowly unfolds and although I’ve not seen series 2, I expect the risky move to do very slow drama has been reconsidered. It wasn’t gripping but intriguing enough…
The method of distribution at the time was very radical, creative commons licensed and freely shared on bit torrent (and even e-donkey, geez do you remember that?). Even created in sharing friendly formats like Divx, Xvid, etc… Although quite a obvious move now… back in the day this was pretty amazing and people lapped it up as soon as they could get there hands on it.
Yes Welcome to the scene deserves a place in my ahead of the curve series.
Some people make the grave mistake of thinking the darknet is full of kiddies messing with stuff to defeat drm and commit mass copyright.
They are so wrong and what they fail to understand is some of the smartest people are working together.
If you need any proof of this, see the recent changes in Standard Definition x264 release standards… Frankly the darknet puts the standard process of the likes of Ultra Violet to shame…
The whole NFO file is here.
-ªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªª¼ - - - The SD x264 TV Releasing Standards 2012 - LªªªªªªªTTªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªTTªªªªªªª- -ªªªªªªª++ªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªTªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªTªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªª++ªªªªªªª¼ - Lªªª[ INTRO ]ªªª- - - - - x264 has become the most advanced video codec over the past few years. - - Compared to XviD, it is able to provide higher quality and compression at - - greater SD resolutions. It also allows better control and transparency over - - encoding settings. With CRF in the mix, we can also ensure that a diverse - - array of material will get the most appropriate bitrate for them and not - - arbitrary and fixed sizes. This standard aims to bring quality control back - - to SD releases. There are many standalone players/streamers such as TviX, - - Popcorn Hour, WDTV HD Media Player, Boxee, Xtreamer, PS3, XBOX 360, iPad, & - - HDTVs that can playback H264 and AAC encapsulated in MP4. - - - - The SD x264 TV section was formed to separate releases from the ruleless - - world of TV-XviD. This document will cover the rules and guidelines for - - only SD resolution x264 television rips. - - - LªªªªªªªTTªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªTTªªªªªªª- -ªªªªªªª++ªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªTªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªTªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªªª++ªªªªªªª¼
I would go as far to as to say some of the best video encoders and there results are in the darknet including the likes of Yify, Froggie100, etc. Of course I’m not condoning what they do but its amazing they are able to squeeze a HD video down to a 700meg CD.
Question: How do you do it? Making movies so small, yet such good quality?
Answer: Magic hehe. But in all seriousness I use a combination of software and settings that I have found to work best. For beginner encoders I recommend Handbrake and Format Factory, very powerful tools that do a really good job.
@tdobson asked me on twitter what I thought of the above problem with Google Play/Marketplace.
This tally’s with a post I was going to write about how DRM only hurts people doing the right thing and how a generation are feeling the pain of moving out of media ecosystems. Theres a excellent letter on Framerate highlighting this exact problem, (clipped below, hoping it won’t get taken down but just in case you can hear it here about 10mins in).
So what do I mean? (just incase you don’t know)
Imagine you’ve bought into music from Microsoft’s playsforsure a long time ago and then recently you got rid of your Zune (because MPeg3 players are so over girlfriend…) in favor of a iPhone? It might be possible to move your music over but with some difficulty. But imagine if you swap audio for video?
You’ve gotten rid of your DVD collection and replaced it with downloads from the Apple itunes store because your so cool and everything just works. Then you buy a new TV without a Apple TV and it supports this thing called DLNA. You start wondering maybe theres more to media than Apple’s dream. Of course you can swap Apple for Google, Microsoft, etc…
Anyway the point is, piracy wins here. Currently the only way to effortlessly switch between ecosystems is to either buy physical products or pirate them (I challenge people to find a 3rd option without buying the same content more that once). Once again not condoning this but there is a problem here and no one seems to want to fix it! Mainly because forcing you to follow one route is so much easier and they can make money that way too.
So whats this got to do with a rooted phone? Well its the assumption that if you have root, that you will subvert the DRM and make a mockery of there ecosystem. I get it, Google, Apple and others said to right holders they will protect the content in there flawless systems and they will do all they can to honor that but what a house of cards this agreement was made on.
Change needs to come from both sides, the content makers and the content consumers. This is why I love and support Creative Commons.
This is our culture not theres and we don’t just want it back we demand it back! Whos with me?
Everyone once in a while, a concept gets turned into two films. Those two films are released within a few months of each other. We all know examples but I wanted to look at two which people may not know… Specially on the eve of Man on a Ledge
As a police psychologist works to talk down an ex-con who is threatening to jump from a Manhattan hotel rooftop, the biggest diamond heist ever committed is in motion.
A police officer looks to talk down a young man lured by his lover’s husband to the ledge of a high rise, where he has one hour to contemplate a fateful decision.
The wife of a gun manufacturer is held hostage by a man seeking revenge for the death of his daughter in a high school shooting incident.
A slick New York publicist who picks up a ringing receiver in a phone booth is told that if he hangs up, he’ll be killed… and the little red light from a laser rifle sight is proof that the caller isn’t kidding.
I know there’s a very clear difference between the DMCA and SOPA/PIPA but its interesting that right after the victory of the internet regards to SOPA, Megaupload was taken down a few days later.
It was almost like the incumbents saying, “well you might have won the fight but we’re still in the running and can still take you down…” (or at least thats how I see it). Something like a playground bully sending you message from detention saying “wait till you get outside, then your really going to see what I’m made of!”
The chilling effect is already in effect… Although Rapidshare claim there not afraid of the bully in detention.
Its certainly not a good time to be an file uploader service or even a user, however its funny that Bit Torrent may have built a solution to solve this problem.
BitTorrent Inc. launched a personal file sharing application called Share. Thursday that aims to give users an alternative to paid cloud storage companies and media sharing over social networks. Share makes it possible to transfer files without any size limits to an unlimited number of personal contacts. Files are cached in the cloud, so users don’t have to be online at the same time to complete transfers.
On Wednesday, BitTorrent Chief Strategist Shahi Ghanem told me the company is relying on Amazon’s EC2 and S3 services to provide this kind of caching infrastructure. Files are taken off the cloud as soon as they are sufficiently shared by peers. The app will initially be Windows-only, but Mac users will be able to download an alpha version of the company’s µTorrent client that will offer them the same kind of personal file sharing functionality. Future Windows versions of µTorrent will also offer Share functionality.
Just a shame it doesn’t support Linux in any shape or form yet… Welcome to the darknet?
After I got a automatic/robot take down for my intrusive TV demonstrate from the Black Mirror episode 2. I’ve decided to see what I can do to get the video back online, by going through the YouTube process instead of just posting it somewhere else.
However there seems to be little I can do…
Copyright Info: Intrusive TV?
Your video, Intrusive TV? , may include content that is owned or administered by these entities:
- Entity: Channel 4 Content Type: Audiovisual content
As a result, your video has been blocked in these locations:
Guernsey, Ireland, Isle of Man, Jersey, United KingdomWhat should I do?
No action is required on your part. Your video is still available everywhere not listed above.
What can I do about my video’s status?
Please note that the video’s status can change if the policies chosen by the content owners change. You may want to check back periodically to see if you have new options available to you.
Under certain circumstances, you may dispute this copyright claim. These are:
- if the content is mistakenly identified and is actually completely your original creation;
- if you believe that your use does not infringe copyright (e.g. it is fair use under US law);
- if you are actually licensed by the owner to use this content.
I need more information. I want to learn more about the dispute process.
Please take a few minutes to visit our Help Centre section on Policy and Copyright Guidelines, where you can learn more about copyright law and our Content Identification Service.
So as you can see its only blocked in the country of its origin, which strikes me as totally backwards…! Oh well, I could say a lot about this but to be totally fair, its not Channel4… Its some automated process doing automatic takedowns on behalf of Channel4. Who was it that said code is law?
I moved away from lets mix years ago even before they did the dirty on the Pacemaker with Pioneer, although its still a shame to see its going…
It is with great regret that Let’s Mix today announces that the Letmix.com mix streaming site will go offline on January 1st 2012. This decision follows the reassessing of our licensing restrictions, alongside a critical evaluation of the business case for our service. Our intention to expand on our operations had fundamentally outgrown the Let’s Mix site.
The closing of Let’s Mix is not the result of complaints from copyright holders. It is a decision based on the equation of cost for hosting and delivering copyrighted components, versus the ability of monetizing use of the site.
We found that as the business of music streaming evolved, so would we need to. Had we desired for Let’s Mix to grow any bigger, we would also have been forced to impose strict limitations on mixes in ways neither we nor our users would have wanted to. Faced with the proposal of sacrifizing user experience and scale, we were forced to reach the difficult decision of seizing all activity at Let’s Mix.
It has been a great pleasure to enjoy the hours upon hours of mixed music, and we are thankful for the many discoveries we have made listening to your mixes.
We have already begun offering our members the ability to download their own music mixes when logged in to their accounts. These are after all your music compilations, and we encourage you to download backups of these unless you don’t already have these in place.
Access to the service in its entity will be terminated on January 1st 2012.
Good to see them providing Data portability of mixes at least… Maybe the ability to transfer to Mixcloud would be good… Although looking at the export ability, it only allows you to download the media file and none of the metadata…. Shame
With the 50th edition of the ever-so popular (Popular with 2 or 3 people at least) #Techgrumps podcast coming up, and it being the holiday season, we will be recording two or three special editions with as many new ranters as we can think of. Like YOU! If you have nothing much to say, but can whine on a bit under the influence of too much caffeine, you too can join this most illustrious cast. And yes, that is Comic Sans in the speech bubble. Angry now? Rant with us!Remember, techgrumps is a family (Family of feral polecats) show, so use age appropriate language…
Let us know which dates & times works for you (add your twitter name to the doodle) and we’ll be in touch…
Host of seraphim, gives me the chills every time
I remember listening to The Host of Seraphim by Dead Can Dance, a while ago but I remember listening to it again soon after coming out of hospital last year. I believe I stopped dead when hearing it again during one of my more introspective times.
Then [...]
I remember listening to The Host of Seraphim by Dead Can Dance, a while ago but I remember listening to it again soon after coming out of hospital last year. I believe I stopped dead when hearing it again during one of my more introspective times.
Then I heard it again while watching the Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole, so I checked out the tune on YouTube, and usually the youtube comments are to be ignored, however this time it was amazing…
You get the idea… Anyway I bought the original tune and the remastered version from Amazon’s Mpeg3 store.