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Adam Creighton, Voice & Film Actor (Ramblings) (Subscribe)
People, by nature, have some interesting things to say. Here are some of my things. Some about acting. All about living ...
Friday, April 02, 2010
Good Friday and my dad-in-law
Today is Good Friday -- that day where Judeo Christians remember the day Jesus died.Wait -- What?
So here's the deal:
For Christians, Jesus died on Friday. He rose from the dead on Sunday. So, it was in restrospect that the Friday he died was "good" -- It probably didn't feel that good at the time.
This year, it's also the first anniversary of my dad-in-law's death -- and it somehow feels right that for this first one, it's on Good Friday.
I've said before Victor Wallace Tirabassi was a "good man who made people better." I'm not so foolish as to elevate him to any version of pseudo sainthood, but he is a real-world inspiration whose example that has driven me forward as a husband, dad, and worker, in some ways as much as my own dad.
A year ago, when dad died, my oldest asked if we could make the anniversary of his death a holiday -- "Poppa Day" -- to celebrate all of the good memories.
Smart kid.
And this year, Poppa Day and Good Friday share a date.
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posted by Adam @ 10:11 AM
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posted by Adam @ 12:01 PM
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posted by Adam @ 10:34 AM
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posted by Adam @ 6:19 PM
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posted by Adam @ 12:53 PM
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That's the list for now. Too many covers aren't listed on Marvel for the vote, so I'm bummed to not be talking about some of my other favs. But this is a good nod to people who have inspired be over the years. Labels: comic books, inspiration Share:
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posted by Adam @ 9:44 PM
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posted by Adam @ 11:49 PM
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Here's the to-brief obituary, but please listen to the audio. Born in Lynn, Mass., he was the son of Irene Tirabassi and the late Frederick Tirabassi. Victor shined Christ, and was a model of generosity, hard work, holiness, and good humor. He was a U.S. Marine Corporal Vietnam Veteran, and 20-year Nucor Steel employee. Victor is survived by his wife, Elaine Tirabassi (Johnson); his children and their spouses Dan & Kate Tirabassi, Joanne & Adam Creighton, & Anthony Tirabassi; his four lovely grandchildren Kiera, Gianna, Isabella & Carina; his siblings and their spouses Frederick & Pat Tirabassi, Maria & Steve Segars; and his mother, Irene Tirabassi. His Funeral Service will be held on Monday at 11 a.m. in the Nardolillo Funeral Home in Cranston, RI, followed by Military Honors in RI Veterans Cemetery in Exeter, Rhode Island. In lieu of flowers, the family is asking donations be made to: Hope for the Hungry Vic wasn't my father-in-law -- he was my second Dad. He said he'll greet us at heaven's gates. Labels: inspiration, ramblings Share:
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posted by Adam @ 12:19 AM
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posted by Adam @ 5:21 PM
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posted by Adam @ 4:26 PM
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posted by Adam @ 10:27 AM
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posted by Adam @ 1:39 PM
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This was a short day, and we spent it basically just trying to make the most of the Exhibit floor. I talked to some more companies and individuals, looked for last minute schwag, and tried to help my buddy find some gift for his girls (I was useless). Toys: I took a few quick picts of the new DC toys from Mattel, sculpted by the Four Horseman , and looked longingly at the Hasbro Legends series 3 and 4 stuff one last time. Labels: acting, biz, business, comic books, Comic-Con, Comic-Con 2007, events, festivals, inspiration, toys, video games, voice acting Share:
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posted by Adam @ 7:44 PM
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(Sorry for the delay; been wicked ill; as you were.) Comic-Con on Saturday (July 28) was (oddly) less crazy than Friday. Maybe we just got used to the crazy. And Saturday was fun. My buddy and I split up first thing, and he went to the Avatar panel while I hit the Exhibit floor to introduce myself to companies and individuals, meet up with folks I'd only previously known via Email and phone (like Mark Irwin, co-creator behind multi-format property Jack Secret; pitched as "Harry Potter meets Johnny Quest"), talk to a bunch of folks on Artists Row, pick up that Leinil Francis Yu signed Captain America "The Return" poster I'd eyed the day before, and so on. Panels were great this day, too. The Marvel Spider-Man and Smallville panels, in particular, were what I expect panels to be. Poppy, unexpected, with panelists jumping in and out of conversations, having fun, and knowing their stuff. I picked up the "Ramathorr" figure from the Four Horseman's Seventh Kingdom, to complement the "Gauntlet of Vaskkh" figure with which I'd been gifted the day before. They guys offered to sign it, and were surprised when I told them I was actually going to take it out of the box for display. Hasbro also added a bunch of their Marvel Legends series 4 figures to their show floor display case, so I snapped some picts of those, as well as their upcoming Japanese-derivative, 6-inch figures, which nonetheless look cool. The Marvel Spider-Man panel was a blast. It included writers, editors, and artist Dan Slott, Zeb Wells, Bob Gale, Marc Guggenheim, and Phil Jimenez, with Joe Quesada moderating. The panel was snappy, fun, well-moderated, and the guys are obviously having a blast (and taking seriously) the Spider-Man "One More Day" arc, then 3-times-monthly change-up. Writer Marc Guggenheim and artist Phil Jimenez are now exclusive to Marvel, and I felt bad that Jimenez let slip who makes out alive between Mary Jane and Aunt May. And Dan Slott? Perhaps one of the funniest panel members I've seen. He was hilarious, punny, and having a lot of fun with the panel, and the absolute thrill ride that writing Amazing Spider-Man affords. I also attended the GameTap "Re/Visioned" panel, consisting of Jim Lee, Warren Ellis, Peter Chung, Gail Simone, and Brian Pulido, and moderated by GameTap's Ric(k)ardo Sanchez. I'm really liking Simone's down-to-earth take on female empowerment, and it was fun to watch part 1 of Ellis's 3-part arc, at the same time he got to see it. I also got to chat with Peter Chung and tell him "thank you" for the animated Æon Flux, and give him my voice demo. Very quiet, pleasant person. I was also able to meet the producer behind the Re/Visioned series, and let him know I was impressed with it. The there was the Warner Bros. Smallville panel. Again, how I think a panel should be -- a lot of back and forth, people jumping in and out, playful, sexy people (Seriously -- Hartley? Vandervoort? Morris? Durance? Gough? Millar? Wow -- wicked sexy, all). The funniest exchange happened during the Q&A when a fan asked Hartley and Durance how they prepare for their steamy scenes -- and both of their spouses (and Hartley's daughter) were in the front row. Good feedback on the professional side of the preparation, though. This panel was also a great example of how you video summarize an entire series, and tease the next season. Serious kudos to whoever pulled that off. Labels: acting, biz, business, comic books, Comic-Con, Comic-Con 2007, events, festivals, inspiration, picts, toys, video games, voice acting Share:
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posted by Adam @ 7:03 PM
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Panels: Mattel / DC Comics: We attended the Mattel / DC Comics panel, which was fun, and way more upbeat and jovial than Thursday's Hasbro panel. They showed a lot of stuff from the Justice League animated series, and copped to the poor design that makes them top-heavy and tough to display. They also announced new six-inch figures (with build-a-figure components) from none other than Four Horseman Studios. Orion and Etrigan, in particular, look pretty cool. I can't help but wonder if the fan support for Mattel is due to where they are with the license. They're comparatively in the initial stages, and haven't hit the over-under arc where the trade-off for collector and mass-market hits the fan, which is what I think was the tension under the Marvel / Hasbro panel. Joel Silver: Return to House on Haunted Hill and Moonlight: I only caught the last half of the "Joel Silver: Return to House on Haunted Hill and Moonlight" (the Moonlight part), which was a bummer. I'm not a gore fan, but I wanted to see the innovative "Navigational Cinema" stuff they're allegedly putting on the Blu-ray and HD DVD versions of the film. I'd like to see someone do something with the new technology. Moonlight looks and sounds compelling, but it's going to need to work to stay out of Angel's shadow, and Blade's (the TV series) curse. This was my first time hearing Joel Silver speak, and he's pretty interesting. Halo Universe: I was semi looking forward to this panel, and semi expecting it to be a disappointment. Brian Michale Bendis doesn't disappoint, and he was talking about the new comic book series (I took picts, but I'm not going to post stuff before the series goes to retail), so that was good. WizKids Brand Manager Mark Tuttle did a great emcee job, which was good, given his company had done the big Halo reveal the day before. The Topps trading card discussion was pretty mheh, and Eric Nylund, while a great author, was (like everyone) hamstrung by what he couldn't say. Since there were no Bungie or Microsoft folks on the panel, not much Halo 3 stuff was going to be revealed. (I did see them in the audience, about six rows in; with sniper rifles, I'm sure, should any of the panelists revealed too much.) Warner Bros. Animation: The Batman / Legion of Super-Heroes: This was a great panel, if for no other reason than Phil Morris, voice and on-camera actor, and comic fan; and Andrea Romano, single handedly responsible for casting some of my favorite voices in Batman: The Animated Series; Animaniacs; Pinky and the Brain; Superman; and Justice League. The next seasons of both The Batman and Legion of Super-Heroes looks to up the ante, get a little darker, and build on the intensity and team dynamics. I'm looking forward to it. I even got to run alongside Ms. Romano as she headed to the Warner Bros. booth for a signing, so I could say "thank you" for her work on things like Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain, and for the extras stuff she shares on her craft on many of the DVD extra features. Ray Harryhausen and 20 Million Miles to Earth: 50th Anniversary Edition: Ray Harryhausen is a hero of mine. I've seen his films. I read his coffee-table crushing book. I was inspired to do my own stop-motion as a device for getting my voice out there. And 20 Million Miles to Earth was a film he'd wanted to do in color, but didn't have the budget to do so. 50 years later, we were able to watch the newly colorized version of the film -- for the same first time as Mr. Harryhausen -- and have him give live commentary on the film, his processes, and his views on fiction and criticism. He will probably not do this again. From a Biz perspective, I arguably "should" have been at the Doctor Strange premiere, trying to connect with Craig Kyle, Marvel's senior VP of creative development animation. But this film, with Ray Harryhausen, was historical. It was being there for a guy that informed a part of my creativity. Other Cool Stuff: I spoke with Leinil Francis Yu, mainly to say thanks for his work on New Avengers in general, and issue #22 in particular. Really pleasant, talented guy. I also noticed he had forward-thinking, hopeful "Captain America: The Return" print that I thought I wanted, but needed to think about. The Four Horseman "Gauntlet of Vaskkh" gift from my buddy absolutely rocks, and hit me in a soft spot. And the 20 Million Miles to Earth screening was a piece of history, and getting to attend it with a friend who gets it as much or more than me? Awesome. What Sucked: Those %&*^$#! Red-Shirts. And not having hair gel. Pictures: Twitterings: Labels: acting, animation, biz, business, Comic-Con, Comic-Con 2007, events, festivals, inspiration, toys, video games, voice acting Share:
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posted by Adam @ 12:44 AM
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I said to her, "Did you know, they have shown that people with a positive attitude heal faster and do much better recovering from things, because it is good for you to be positive?" And being negative is really nothing more than a bad habit. I don't mean that one shouldn't honestly acknowledge the frustrations and grieve them, because they are real and their impact is also very tangible. But somewhere in the midst of it all, you have to DECIDE if your glass is half empty or half full. That distinction will make all the difference in how you experience life. Labels: inspiration Share:
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posted by Adam @ 12:44 PM
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I am freaking exhausted. But it's that great "I - just - worked - my - tail - off - had - a - blast - met - brilliant - inspiring - people - maybe - have - new - relationships - and - opportunities - on - the - horizon" kind of exhausted. Other than the last item, these were the roles under which I was going to play at Comic-Con, but as an abstraction, I was going to Comic-Con for camaraderie, passion, and potential. Passion: Make no mistake, I am a huge fan of all of this stuff. I wasn't there to placate a friend or to exploit people for work. I am a lifetime comic book, toy, cartoon, video game, and film fan. Comic books and toys informed my creativity and story telling as a kid, and continue to inspire me with their artistry. Cartoons and video games got me into voice acting. Film got me into my current on-camera work as I bust my tail on the training front, and come alive under the lights. I want to act in cartoon, comic book, video game, and film properties because I'm a voracious consumer of all of this stuff. I get it, and I want to give it. I'm like Phil Morris (I so admire and am happy for that guy). Comic-Con was the place to be to get an inspirational re-charge, get closer to the creative and logistical process that gives me these things I enjoy, meet the folks responsible and say "thanks", and see what stuff is coming down the pipe, before anyone else knows. Sure, stuff makes it out on news wires and such shortly afterward, but it's nothing like being there and watching it for the first time it's ever been shown, with the creators (often seeing it themselves for the very first time), and talking to them afterwards. Opportunity: I am a working professional. I work ridiculously hard at creating opportunities for acting, for technical development, and for management. I do this for me, I do this mutually for other people, and I do this for people independent of whether there's anything for me. I almost never stopped moving at Comic-Con as I tracked down the right people to whom to give a voice demo, head shot, or resume. I hit up the companies I'm passionate about from a creative or business perspective, and there were so many of those, that I didn't hit many "new business opportunities" while I was in San Diego. That means I was hitting up the folks whose stuff I love, and asking to work for or with them. There were more than 50 companies and people I wanted to meet in the four days. I knew this was shooting for the stars, but not only di I connect with roughly 30 of those, but some additional, unlooked-for, awesome, what could become "I was discovered" kind of moments. Great stuff. I also sought out the PR or events folks for booths that I was particularly impressed by, just to say, "Good job." It is important to give the workers their due. And my new demo has (so far) been very well received. What sucked: Nothing bad happened that can take away from the overall amazingness. Plus, I'm going to send a thoughtful note each to Comic-Con and the San Diego Convention Center calling out some of the challenges and offering some suggestions. But yeah, it wasn't all roses. The "Red Shirts" -- folks who were supposed to help attendees out, were very disconnected and caused some serious pain to my buddy and me. More on that later. And I had one of those "This is Hollywood, be-otch!" experiences with a biggie that was a good reminder for that I wasn't in Kansas anymore. I reset and changed my tack with a couple of opportunity folks that seem to be not so relationship-oriented. Seriously, I manage multi-million dollar, international programs and services, so if people want to go toe-to-toe on that hard-ass front, I can play. Oh, and too many people. Lines kept us out of things we'd liked to have seen and done, because the prospect of hours in line with no guarantee of getting in didn't appeal to us. And we had a bad Thursday night experience. More on that later. Not that we were going to see everything anyway. Between my split personality roles and passions, a top-notch packed programming and events roster, and my working so hard to make sure my opportunities didn't impact my buddy, I knew we were going to miss stuff. Which is fine. As in the rest of life, what should have happened did; what shouldn't have, didn't. So what happened? I'm a big tease, so I'm not going to tell you. Actually, I will, but this post is already too long, so I'll do separate, day-by-day posts of Wednesday through Sunday. I'll try to hit them from the perspective of the roles and abstractions that were my "filters" for attending, and I'll also try to break stuff up by summary, cool stuff, genres, panels, twitterings, and pictures. As far as pictures, there will be some, but not many, and they won't be overly high quality. The reason is I honored the "no-flash" rule during panels and reveals (I think I may have been the only one). Between that and popping my hand up and down quickly to snap a pict (so as not to block people behind me), the picts are a bit blurry. And there are some things I snapped picts of that have not been released to the general public, so I won't be posting those picts. Creative and business folks work hard for their IP, and I'm not going to do them a disservice by leaking stuff they're working to release in a controlled, exciting way. More later ... Labels: biz, business, comic books, Comic-Con, Comic-Con 2007, events, festivals, inspiration, other actors Share:
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posted by Adam @ 12:24 PM
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Monday, March 22, 2010
My daughter's perspective on my new job
I'm in the process of traveling back and forth between Austin and North Carolina as we finalize our move back to Texas, so I was in NC last week visiting my girls and fixing home inspection stuff (and glad that I'm handy).
While driving for an errand with my oldest, she looked up from her book, and asked:
Daddy?
ADAM
Yeah, Sweetie?
KIERA
How's work going?
ADAM
It's going great, Hon. I really, really like it.
KIERA
Are you working long hours?
ADAM
I am.
KIERA
Are you making as much money as you were before?
ADAM
No, but --
KIERA
That's OK. At least you're working for two companies you like Marvel and Disney and they have all those characters you like so much and you're getting to play with them and doing something you love and you're making a GAME and people buy games because they want to do something fun and your job is to work making it more MORE fun for them.
ADAM
Um ...
KIERA
So it's OK if you're working long hours and aren't making as much money and are in Texas away from us for a little while.
ADAM
(beat)
I love you, Sweetie.
KIERA
I know.
(Goes back to reading her book.) | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Sunday, February 21, 2010
AJC in ATX
I had the best of intentions (and still do) to do a post about the result of this decision, and its follow-on impacts.
But the short version is I'm working for Junction Point, making the Epic Mickey game for Nintendo's Wii console.
All of this means that I'm (a) working with Warren Spector, (b) working for Disney (and therefore Marvel), (c) making video games and other creative expressions. Friends and longtime readers* know what a head-exploding good thing all of this is for me.
And yes, I am now back in Austin, Texas, bouncing around from generous couch to generous couch (and sometimes even getting a bed), and bouncing back and forth between Austin and NC as I try to sell my house there, and take care of my family who's so awesomely sacrificing so I can pursue this crazy gig.
With all of this, I'm slow boating the "getting back into the Austin acting scene" (other than voice work), because new job plus crunch isn't conducive to me being out for a few days at a time for film shoots.
But I'm excited to get back into it here, because the acting landscape has changed surprisingly over the last two years, I'm jonesing to be back on a set, I'm burning the candle at both ends, and all this plus the whole not having a pot to piss in has made me ****ing raw and ready to do some daring stuff.
More soon(ish).
* Not the same thing. | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Aaron Hallaway's new commercial
I like Aaron Hallaway. Talented guy (actor / writer / independent creative). Good friend.
He has a new commercial (he's about 43 seconds in) -- VeriSign's "Company Information" video: | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Fede Alvarez and Ataque de Panico!
Man, I so love to see this kind of thing.
First, Neill Blomkamp with what was "Alive in Joburg" becoming District 9, then Timur Bekmambetov with "9" (which became, uh, 9), now another independent film maker, Federico "Fede" Alvarez -- who's been scrapping through at least 3 previous films since the turn of the century -- gets Hollywood attention for his short trailer, "Ataque de Panico!" (Panic Attack). And, in Hollywood, "attention" means "money".
So Alvarez is now getting recognition outside of his native Uruguay, $30 million, and -- probably most importantly -- a business relationship with caliber production studio Ghost House Pictures (Sam Raimi? Writer of Spiderman 3 (director of all 3)? Director for everything from Evil Dead to Darkman?)
Neat Cinderella story, and it’s so cool to see a guy who’s been working his tail off in film for at least the last 9 years pocket $30M – and better, build a business relationship with someone like Raimi.
Here's the music video version South American rock / punk band SNAKE, if that's more your thing.
And -- quick rant -- I hope I stop seeing Alvarez called an "unknown". Dude's been working hard for nearly a decade. He's unknown to some U.S. folks. But not for long. | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Favorite comic book covers
As part of celebrating 70 years, Marvel is having a Favorite Covers Countdown.
I can only pick 5, which is nowhere near enough, so I'm listing my favorites here, instead. Oddly, they don't have every cover online, so I'm just listing the ones they do -- so you can look at them, and not realize how much of a geek I am digging into my collection (what, no Alien Legion? No Deathlok?).
In no particular order: | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Loss and Jesus
AUDIO: Victor Wallace Tirabassi: Loss and Jesus
This is a follow with some of my thoughts about my recent dad-in-law's death. For the original audio, please see Victor Wallace Tirabassi (1946-2009). | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Friday, April 10, 2009
Victor Wallace Tirabassi (1946-2009)
AUDIO: Victor Wallace Tirabassi (1946-2009)
My dad-in-law, Victor Wallace Tirabassi (1946-2009) 63, went to be with Jesus April 2, 2009. He was surrounded by all of his kids, his wife, and his sister.
In support of Randy Sperger
PO Box 786 Belton, TX 76513
254-939-0124 | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Friday, March 20, 2009
Battle o' the Songz (Round 3)
If you're not up to speed with "Battle o' the Songz", go here, then here, first.
Due to the craziness surround GDC prep, this round actually took two weeks before we called it a wrap. And in honor of GDC, we're making our next battle video-game-themed -- which makes both chaining and theming required for the first time.
You ready to rock?
'Cause here's round 3 play-by-play!
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Saturday, March 07, 2009
Battle o' the Songz (redux)
Not satisfied to call it quits after our latest high-brow culture battle, co-worker Dan and I continued our song battle at a reduced rate.
To recap: We trade song volleys back and forth, and they have to be linked by artist, lyrics, themes, or other meta-context. The greater the link, the more “points”.
Here's the round #2 blow-by-blow.
Dan opens and wows me with the Transformers theme remix from Vince DiCola. I keep my cool and fire back the safe-but-appropriate G.I. Joe animated movie theme song from Ford Kinder. Dan responds with Joe Satriani's "House Full of Bullets" (because "G.I. Joe's fire bullets"). And it is on.
After regrouping, Dan sends REO Speedwagon's "I Can't Fight this Feeling", and while losing points for moving away from the sexual motif, he gets points for it being REO Speedwagon.
(Oh, and you people who think this is "stupid"? Please stop Emailing me to tell me. You're obviously reading. You're stupid.) | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Battle o' the Songz
Basically, we traded song volleys back and forth, and they had to be linked by artist, lyrics, themes, or other meta-context. The greater the link, the more “points”.
We set up speakers, blasted songs at each other, and gave rough weightings to each volley.
If it feels a bit like an ad hoc game from Where I Met Your Mother .. I'm honored.
Anyway, below is the summary. It's arguably a bit of a aural Rorschach (or MMPI) test, so let me know what you think it says about me.
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Piggy backing off of "Freedom" (and partying), my office mate lobs back DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince ("Parents Just Don't Understand"), with gives me an easy way to answer with Roxette ("Joyride"), because DJ and the Fresh Prince go on a joyride in their parents’ Porsche. He takes the driving theme to Sammy Hagar ("I Can't Drive 55")
I counter with Soundgarden's "4th of July", with a lyrical link from Chicago's "You'd think it was the Fourth of July" to Soundgarden's "I thought it was the 4th of July".
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Temple of the Dog seemed like an obvious retort, but I responded instead with my college thesis theme song from Mc 900 Ft. Jesus: "The City Sleeps", and definitely felt like I was winning the Battle (“Gasoline” in the title of theprevious song dovetail with the lyrics in the pyro song: “clutching the tools of my trade in my hand / an old box of matches and a gasoline can”).
Honestly, Dan's response metaphorically jump-kicks me (Kosheen / "Damage" -- from the Dead or Alive video f****** movie!). It's brilliant, becasue “Dead or Alive” the band links to “Dead or Alive” the movie, which is a VIDEO GAME movie, and Dan's real (and my toy) job is in video games.
Link #2: DOA → (The Game) → Crying Game (The movie) → Boy George (the artist, who was in ...) → Culture Club, the band, who sung) / Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?
(There's seriously still a flow chart in my office.)
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My opening volley was Johnny Cash's cover of "Personal Jesus" from Depeche Mode (Since it was Sunday.), and Dan followed up with exactly what I would have -- Nine Inch Nails "Hurt" (which Johnny Cash also later covered).
I follow up with the band - unknown - to - Dan - but - blasted - on -a - regular - basis - at - several - guys - I - accused - of - stealing - my - girls tune, "Under" from Filter, because it was another drug song, and from a band made up of sometime NIN touring and album members (oh, and the song I usually blasted was "Hey Man Nice Shot").
I had been waiting for two days to aurally assault Dan with some NKotB, and Huey let me leverage New Kids on the Block ("I Wanna Be Loved By You") via “New(s)” / “New”, the same insecure love vibe, and I’m sure Jordan did drugs.
I bounced back with Bob Marley ("Positive Vibration"). Duh -- “positive”; “vibration”; dancing; drugs; and I loves me some Marley. This also felt like the first legitimate volley return of the day.
Sliding deeper into the drugs connection, Dan sends over Sublime's "Smoke Two Joints" (Marley / Rastafari / Marijuana).
We kind of fizzled at this point (late on a Sunday night on a working weekend), and Dan said he didn't buy the cult angle, but if he did, he would have responded with Guster's "Red Oyster Cult".betting pool rivalry), once or twice a day (we figure we couldn't keep up the previous pace and still justify our paychecks) we crank the speakers and fire off tunes at each other. | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Saturday, June 07, 2008
On creativity and composition
My last post was pretty hefty, and there's no easy way to step down from it in a measured way that wouldn't be more orchestrated than it was genuine.
So, instead, I'm goning to dive right in with my next post and talk about boobies.
OK, not per se, but at least I've set an appropriately low bar on the thematic weight side of things, and have much more ceiling.
Moving on.
I so dig snorgtees.com. I'm not associate with them in any way, but I've been a fan of the package that is their company and offering and product for a long time.
They make hilarious T-shirts, riffing or springboarding off of retro and pop culture love, and they do it in creative (if not brilliant) ways.
An all-black shirt that says, "There are 3 ninjas on this shirt [try to find them]".
"Your epidermis is showing."
(Two pictures of bags of ice and a picture of a baby.)
But like I said, it's not just the logos and the products -- it's the package that is the company.
Take this shirt, "I drink your milkshake":
(If you're unfamiliar with the deriving song, I envy your blessed naïvité.)
The shirt is funny by itself; it plays on pop culture, and has an odd, stilted old-school graphic juxtaposition against what's in essence a jug-happy metaphor.
But what finally prompted me to write about these folks are there ads (which I usually see on Kotaku.com).
I snagged a pict of this ad, because you could take almost any of them, and match what works alone in the graphic above, magnified with A) an appropriately attractive (but not stereotypical) model, who's B) animated and bought in during the shoot, but in a C) realistic, living, non-posed way.
Tie to acting? Creativity and "being" (not faking).
(Let along the obvious example of smart branding and leveraging pop culture.)
Kudos! | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Austin's Best Veterinarian
I've mentioned my mentor in this column in passing several times. This is a guy with whom I've met and by whom I've been inspired for more than six years.
He's a mentor in a bunch of areas -- relationship, small business, and spirituality. He's also a comic book and toy fan like me. We have barbecue every Friday. We watch films in the theater all the time.
He's also a veterinarian. And, in the Austin Chronicle's annual "Best of Austin" for this year, he takes the Best Veterinarian crown.
From the Austin Chronicle write-up: Why would you trust your beloved but banged-up four-legged buddy to someone if you weren't sure they loved animals? With vet Mark Cotnam and his staff, every day is bring-your-pet-to-work day. Their love of animals as well as their quality of personal service and medical experience make these dog-and-cat experts the clinic of choice for our readers' furry extended family. And the best part? They only take walkies … errr, walk-ins.
Dr. Cotnam and the whole staff are top-notch, personable, and professional. They've been the clinic for my dogs since we've been in Austin, were there through the whole "Loki ordeal" (I so miss that dog), even when they weren't directly involved in the specialist stuff.
You find that less and less often in the services industry.
Well deserved! | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Comic book artists take on literary characters
I really dig media intersections.
And I'm a comic book guy. And I'm also fairly well-read on the literary side.
So when I stumbled across this site, which is a collection of comic book artists' takes on literary figures (both from the literature, and the folks creating the literature), I easily blew through a blissful hour.
Adam Hughes's rendition of Raymond Chandler? Bruce Timm's H.P. Lovecraft? Dave Cockrum's War of the Worlds? Neil Gaiman's Sunday (from G.K.Chesterton’s The Man Who Was Thursday)? Tom Grummett's Winnie the Pooh (a favorite of mine for some reason)? Mike Mignola's Dracula?
Why are you still here? | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Sunday, August 05, 2007
Comic-Con: Sunday
Previously:
Other Cool Stuff:
What Sucked:
Having to leave. Oh, and our Dallas connection getting canceled; but I spun on a dime and got us to Austin ... by way of San Jose. An hour later, but at least we got home.
Pictures:
Twitterings:
(Reverse chronology.)
@luge Congrats! 11:39 AM July 29, 2007 from web in reply to luge | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Comic-Con: Saturday
Previously:
Toys:
Panels:
Other Cool Stuff:
Talking with Leinil Francis Yu and getting the signed Captain America "The Return" poster?
Meeting writer/creator Mark Irwin in person and being the first to see the new Jack Secret preview art?
Talking with Peter Chung (and saying "thanks" for the animated Æon Flux; and giving him my voice demo)?
Chatting with artists like Chris Batista & Tom Nguyen?
The incredible (and incredibly redeeming) Marvel Spider-Man and Smallville panels?
Getting to meet and say thanks to Scott Porter in person for Friday Night Lights?
What Sucked:
Not having mentally linked clones of myself to run around the exhibit floor and attend all of the panels. Seriously, that's a good use for mentally linked clones.
Oh, and I was stuck in the Smallville line for forty-five minutes with a real-life, unfunny version of The Simpsons Comic Book Guy. Dude seriously hated every comic book arc since 1969, and every comic book TV show or film that didn't have George Reeves. I politely engaged him for 40 of those minutes, and expressed my opinions counter to his, until he started belittling someone in line merely for being born in 1982. I then told him I didn't understand why he was at Comic-Con given that he hated everything, and that we could either talk about something he actually liked about comic books, or something other than comic books. He stopped talking. Very sad, really.
Pictures:
Twitterings:
(Reverse chronology.)
(This is the END of the "Smallville" season 7 panel.)
(GabrielleSays was asking who "Phil Mor¬" from my truncated Twitter post was.)
(This is the START of the "Smallville" season 7 panel.)
(This is the END of the GameTap "Re/Visioned" panel.)
(Should read, "Gail Simone's Tomb Raider is the anti-Laura -- 12 years old, pre-pubescent, and chestless.")
(Should read, "--but they're all in one place!")
(This is the START of the GameTap "Re/Visioned" panel.)
(This is the END of the Marvel Spider-Man panel.)
(I have a copy of this issue; and the letters.)
(This is the START of the Marvel Spider-Man panel.)
(This was supposed to be "@StandIn You are absolutely right! ;-) "; he was saying my "overheard" comment earlier should be the start of an "Overheard at Comic-Con" reveal.)
This is should be Allen Bellman; my sincere apologies for miss-spelling his name.)
checking out the Sierra booth ... 11:40 AM July 28, 2007 from web | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Friday, August 03, 2007
Comic-Con: Friday
Previously:
Friday (July 27) was the first full-on "crazy day" of Comic-Con. Bodies everywhere. We showed up early again, and rather than wait in line for the exhibit floor, we were trying to find the line to San Diego's Hall H so we could catch the Warner Bros. showcase.
This turned out to be a bad, bad experience.
Why?
Because of the "Elite III" staff. Or, as I came to call them, "Those %&*^$#! Red-Shirts". Hey, they were nice and all; just incompetent, and gave very authoritative, contradicting information -- today and throughout the week/end. We were trying to find the line to Hall H, "if it wasn't too long". We got sent back and fourth to the two opposite ends of the Convention center -- two times each -- before I'd had enough. We decided to divide and conquer, and I had my friend wait in line for the Exhibit Hall while I tried to find the fabled "The Line to Hall H" (tip: It's not in the same location as Hall H itself).
This eventually led me outside to a line that wrapped around the entire San Diego Convention Center. I made it two thirds around the building, asking every %&*^$#! Red-Shirt I met if these folks were going to get it in. I finally found a guy who said, "No man. No way. Most of these folks are in line for the second or third show in the Hall. If they're lucky."
So I walked back to the front of the Convention Center, only to find the entry line even for badge holders now snaked off across the convention lawn. So I called my buddy, told him to go do whatever he wanted, and I would sync up with him whenever I got in.
After a half an hour in the sun, I ended up where I'd been an hour before -- just inside the front doors. And as I walked in, soaking wet from sweating (and angry), I was greeted by a smiling %&*^$#! Red-Shirt who said, "Welcome to Comic-Con! Can I help you with anything?"
He was so lucky I was out of hair gel.
That said, I'm a glass - is - half - full - and - how - do - I - fill - the - other - half kind of guy, so I quickly spun through the Exhibit Show Floor and met with people and companies that were on my list. As you can see from my Twitterings below, I was a machine, and really enjoyed touching base with these neat folks and companies with whom I'd really like to work.
Toys:
In my "go this way, go that way" crisscross of the San Diego Convention Center, I did pick up my Comic-Con exclusive "Vanishing Bugs Bunny" from DC Direct. This was the "official" Comic-Con exclusive for the show, and I'd paid for it when registering for the conference. It's a slick, well-done little sculpt, but I'm debating what to do with it, as it doesn't really fit into my collection, per se.
I also picked up some Shockinis from Shocker Toys (a custom and the Wizard World skeleton exclusive), and talked to the guys about using their toys for my stop-motion efforts. They were really nice, and very supportive of me using their toys, carte blanche. Which is better than some other toy companies have been with me.
My buddy sneaked away and got me the Four Horseman figure "Gauntlet of Vaskkh", which is a bad-a$$ looking rhinoceros warrior action figure, and part of the Four Horseman's own "Seventh Kingdom" line of toys. This is a perfect gift for me, and another Comic-Con exclusive. And it makes me want the Four Horseman to do figures from the Hip Flask universe.www.flickr.com
(Reverse chronology.)
(This is the END of the DC Animation panel.)
(This is the START of the DC Animation panel.)
(This is the END of the Halo panel.)
(This is the START of the Halo panel.)
At the "Haunted Hill" / "Moonlight" Comic-Con panel ... 03:57 PM July 27, 2007 from web
(This is the END of the Mattle / DC panel.)
(This is the START of the Mattle / DC panel.) | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Thursday, August 02, 2007
Inspiration ...
A dear friend of mine has cancer. She has a running blog, where she authentically chronicles what she's doing and feeling.
The following snippet is in the context of a conversation with her daughter:
Authenticity. Accountability. The choice to think on what is good and right and true. And all of this in the midst of something that is bad, seems so wrong, and causes us to ask, "Why".
The people who know her are blessed by this woman. | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Monday, July 30, 2007
Comic-Con sum-up ...
So I feel great.
In a previous post, I said I was hitting Comic-Con as a comic book & cartoon fan, toy collector, video game aficionado, voice & film actor, for professional (technical and management) opportunities, and for camaraderie.
Camaraderie:
Like I said, "I'm looking forward to sharing this experience with someone who gets all of this as much as I do." I've been meeting with a mentor pretty much every week, for at least six years. Not only is he a life / religious / business mentor, but he's an incredible friend and comic book and cartoon nut (like me). We mutually encouraged each other (led astray?) to go to Comic-Con this year, and we each probably would not have done it without the other. We were a great pair. There were things I was interested in and he wasn't (largely gaming), and we'd go to our respective panels, then re-sync and share. Or, there would be two panels we both wanted to go to, so we'd "divide and conquer" and fill each other in. Or we'd attend each other's event of interest, and broaden our horizons. Or there were panels or experiences we both wanted to do, and we'd experience them together. That last was the best, because we both "get it", and had common, amazing shared experiences. And we were there with like 100-150 thousand other folks who get it -- to some degree or another -- like us. And we realized we are far less geeky than some other human beings. | | | TinyUrl | Twitter
Previous Posts
- This blog has moved
- Lolcats and acting
- Free Comic Book Day
- Nunsploitation
- Good Friday and my dad-in-law
- Have mercy on me
- My daughter's perspective on my new job
- Auditions and Blood Work
- AJC in ATX
- Aaron Hallaway's new commercial
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