The One AM Radio video

Beautiful little video, made with pencil drawings and a Mac isight camera and photobooth. And to think I use mine to just pictures of myself and my dog with distorted heads. Music by One AM Radio. Check out their youtube channel for more.

St-Viateur street party

Finalement! The summer seems to be here to stay now, and to kick off the festival season, last week started with the St-Viateur street party in Mile End. Here's some highlights. A video of Socalled and Friends, with Josh's hit song from his album Ghettoblaster. As well as the unofficial afterparty under the over pass by Bernard street with Sixtoo.

Socalled and the Klezmer cruise film blog!

Just rushing around packing - getting ready for the National Film Board and Beitel/Lazar Production of The "Socalled" king of Klezmer I will be blogging from the Ukraine on the first ever Klezmer cruise down the Dneiper River, that Josh Dolgin aka. Socalled will be both attending and leading a 60 person choir.

check out the blog with videos like this one at
www.nfb.ca/socalled

opensourcecinema

Ever wanted to use "happy birthday" in a film? Sick and tired of corporate media conglomerates stifling artistic and cultural expression? Had enough of youtube's "cease and desist" emails on your favourite videos? Got DJ Dangermouse's now classic mashup, The Grey Album on your ipod? Rest assured, there is a remedy to aid the mediaphile ...

Release your inner frustrations in a creative way with opensourcecinema.org, the interactive website for Brett Gaylor's current film, Basement Tapes, the documentary being made in co-production with EyeSteelFilm and the NFB on the issue of media ownership, and in particular, the importance of the music download culture, as well as the artistic revolution behind reappropriation, and mashing up pop and political culture for citizen made media. On the site, you can get involved in the making of the film, by mashing up your own remixes and interpretations on scenes that could appear in the final film.

All the necessary ingredients are provided :
1) your vids and footage to remix
2) already made mashups for inspiration

In Basement Tapes, Brett will explore the issue of copyright, how it neither protects the artists, nor helps the consumer/citizen react to the cultural/commercial icons, music, and images that we are surrounded with everyday. But, the free culture movement, spurned by the power and freedom of the internet and technology has opened up creation to the consumer. So, with download culture being threatened, and with Google having too much to lose to be inovative, Brett and Basement Tapes asks the questions to those that are effected and are effective in the war on intellectual property, an invites you to get involved in this process.

You will even have access to heavy hitting free culture thinker, Lawerence Lessig footage to have your way with. Just re-upload your final work back onto opensourcecinema.org and get involved in the movement to release art from the corporate owners.

Check out the site for more info, and an up close and personal "walk and talk" vlog from Brett himself, where he tests your listening skills with the concepts of Left and Right.

tags technorati : basement tapes, copyleft, mashup, brett gaylor, remix, film, video, editing, archive, open source, technology, internet, community

Creative Commons UK: Mix and Mash Film Contest

Get into the copyleft spirit with Creative Commons UK moving pictures mash up contest of three minutes shorts. CCUK even has a video resource providing archival and public domain material for your downloading pleasure.

So, reclaim your cultural commentary, stir it up with some good ol' human competitive nature, and get into it with your take on the remix theme of, "Britannia Rules, Britannia Sucks", and the possibilities that that holds.

Deadline is March 10th, so get downloading, get cutting, and get sharing - because your film has a chance to be judged by a stellar panel, that includes, BoingBoing's Cory Doctorow, as well as film and net worthy beings from the British Film Institute, BritDoc Festival, as well as independent filmmakers. And, there's prizes. Cool prizes.

Check out the link for more info, and to see the current submissions for some share-alike inspiration that cultural expression is on its way out of corporate hands, and into the hands of the artists.

And, stay tuned for a Canadian version of Mix and Mash...
cross posted to Art Threat.

Tags: creative commons, CC, UK, mix and mash=contest, boingboing, remix, mash-ups, film, video, music, share-alike, cory doctorow, BFI, BritDoc, culture, lessig, competition, contest

Best Shout Out Ever.

The 49th installment of the Grammys has been quite stellar, with such highlights as The Police reunion (but everyone is going to say that), and Jamie Foxx crip walking on stage (which reminded me that this was a goal of mine to learn to do since I was a teenager...now my current goal of the week...), but so far, best thing of the Grammys was Ludacris' SHOUT OUT to right wing "culture warrior", Bill O'Reilly. Confused at first, I admit (and bit peeved about The Roots not winning...), jumping onto my trusty imac to ensure that this had to be a joke. And, sure enough, Ludacris has as much humour as he does, frequent ladies homes in various area codes (lame joke, I know). For those like me, who were confused, a few years ago, O'Reilly critisized and insulted Ludacris and other hip hop artists, and the corps. that they endorse. Corporating whoring is another topic of discussion, but for now, we can just stick to the dressed up racism, and the undeserved self-righteousness of the Fox trainwreck, and his accusations that slapped him back in the face soon after.

You can read more about this scandal that ensued with Bill O'Reilly's sexual harrassment suit on AllHipHop.com , where they write:
"According to reports, former associate producer Andrea Mackris claims that O’ Reilly bought her a vibrator and gave her instructions on how to use it."

So creepy.

And you can read more at GlobalBlackNews.

Anyway - the Grammy's aren't over yet, but a here's my shout out to Ludacris for being the best speech yet.

tags technorati : ludacris, grammy, grammys, 49th, music, rap, hiphop, bill o'reilly, winner, scandal, fox, shout out, funny, rapper, best rap artist of the year, awards show

90s pop culture turns high culture - Mario bros medley

Is this what it feels like to hear your favourite song on the "oldies" network? Not really, but I thought that I would try to shake some of us invinsible 90s kids up a bit...

The rate that our pop culture gets turned around, reapproriated, and sent back to us packaged in a newer, sexier outfit is remarkable - and exciting when things like this video/orchestra are out there - to shake up the remixers and tech savvy gamers out there.

Here's a fun reminder that the recylcing of cultural symbols and signifiers is not limited to the underground DJ, or even the remixing rap artist. here's a 6 minute medly performed by play! a video game symphony.

This is not an original idea, and I am proud to say that during my high school band days (stand up and electric bass - which I cannot play at all anymore but in my mind), two keen and talented musicians, no older than 17 wrote an entire ensemble piece for a full band, with this very same idea. The Mario Bros theme songs - sans the Ninetendo 64 version. Now that is foresight, and if those two talented Dartmouth Highers of Nova Scotia (circa 1996-1999) are out there, please drop me a line - you wrote us in the rhythm section the most kick ass dungeon part.


recorded by: djuret
www.kristiankarlberg.se

tags technorati : supermariobros, mario bros medley, mario, luigi, orchestra, play!, video games orchestra, video games, video, songs, waterworld, mario 3, nintendo, nintendo 64, music, live