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Ridley Scott, YouTube announce 'Life In A Day' crowd-sourced feature film project
Is the future of cinema truly this democratic? We dunno, but if you want to find out there's probably no better person to ask than Ridley Scott, who is teaming up with Kevin Macdonald and YouTube to produce Life In A Day. The idea is to get people from all over the world to submit videos taken on July 24, 2010. From here, director Kevin Macdonald will assemble a feature length documentary, to premiere at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. What's more, if your footage makes the cut you can be one of twenty lucky folks invited to the festival. Pretty wild, huh? Hit the source link for info on submitting your masterpiece. Trailer after the break.
Spike Jonze's free web film features robot love, vodka, long wait times
We wanted to tell you what Spike Jonze's new web film I'm Here is all about, we really did, and not just because it reportedly has robots in it -- though that was certainly a major factor in the decision. But after we crossed the virtual street to the virtual box office, we were informed that there were no seats left in the virtual theater. Imagine that. So instead of providing our impressions here, we'll just give you the facts. I'm Here is sponsored by Absolut Vodka; I'm Here is a 30-minute love story about humanoids living in Los Angeles. I'm Here can be viewed alongside Facebook friends; I'm Here can only be seen by 5,000 viewers a day. I'm Here promises a "striking online cinema experience," and we were struck by just how lifelike waiting for tickets could be. And if you, too, can't get "in" to see it, I'm Here can satiate you slightly with a one-minute trailer after the break.
JBO: Joystiq Box Office, January 25 - January 29
We can't be gaming all the time, despite our best efforts, and from time to time we'll actually take advantage of the movie-playing abilities on our gaming systems. JBO features our top picks for XBL, PSN, Netflix's Watch Instantly and Blu-ray each week. This writer has been out at Sundance for the past nine days, so week's JBO will be heavily influenced by independent films, past Sundance hits and a bit of the bizarre. Check out the list, and let us know what your favorite indie film is. Recommendation of the Week: Cube (DVD $14.98, lower at retailers. Pray for a Blu-ray release) Director Vincenzo Natali has a new film at Sundance 2010 called Splice. It's a dark science fiction story about genetic manipulation, and you can read all about it right here. However, he first burst onto the scene 13 years ago with his thriller Cube. Seven strangers from completely different walks of life wake up inside a bizarre cube-shaped room, with exit hatches built onto the four walls, the ceiling, and the floor. They have no idea how they got there, or how to get out. Each hatch leads into another, identical room, and some come complete with devious booby traps. But the real movie isn't about the Cube itself, it's about how human psyche unravels when you're stuck in a situation that makes no sense to your brain. After you give this a whirl, move on to his movies Cypher and Nothing for more good stuff. Read on after the break for the rest of our recommendations, and let us know what you're watching!
Asimo stars in Living With Robots, promises not to forget the 'little people' (video)
When we saw Asimo do his Fred Astaire act a while back we knew he had star quality -- and now it looks like the feisty robot is finally getting his big break. Living With Robots, which just premiered at Sundance Film Festival, was directed by Joe Berlinger (who directed Metallica's Some Kind of Monster) and tells the story of a humanoid robot that gets stranded at home while his family flies overseas for Christmas. Instead of calling the police, he stays home -- alone -- and bravely fights off Joe Pesci and some other guy whose name we can't remember. [Editor's note: This is patently untrue. Actually, the film promises to investigate "humankind's keen interest in robots and how robots can challenge the impossible by saving lives while also holding the promise to become more integrated and helpful in daily life." So there.] Interested? We bet you are! Check out the PR, and the eight minute commercial short film, after the break.
YouTube introduces movie rentals, only independent titles for now
In an atypically low key beginning, YouTube is starting to roll out a new movie rental service. Currently stocked with only five titles from independent film producers, it won't be posing any threats to the Netflix empire any time soon, but plans are naturally afoot to expand what's on offer. Available between this Friday and the end of this year's Sundance Film Festival, the movies can be rented for $3.99 a piece through the Google Checkout payment system. Prepare your muscles to do some cringing though, as YouTube is said to be working on adding health, fitness and educational videos as well. Still, the focus seems to be on getting indie filmmakers more exposure -- and cash, "the majority" of rental revenue will go to the film producers -- and we can't really argue with that.
Don't get between Wesley Snipes and Wii
While attending Sundance, the actor caught up with the MTV Movies Blog and talked briefly about, you know, movies. Turns out he isn't in town for that so much, instead showing up for what he assumes is some last haven for the Wii console. A kind of sanctuary for the Wii or something. Good luck finding that Sony Wii, guy. Just remember to pay for it. You don't want to be in any more trouble. Check out the video past the break.
Arcade documentary Chasing Ghosts now showing on Showtime
We wrote about the fantabulous arcade documentary Chasing Ghosts: Beyond the Arcade when it premiered at Sundance in 2007, and we featured interviews with director Lincoln Ruchti and producer Mark Verrachia. It's been a long road for the film -- which was playing in Park City against The King of Kong at Slamdance -- but now you can finally see it.Chasing Ghosts is on Showtime this month -- in HD, no less -- and has three more showings through the end of December. Set your DVRs for "capture" and have yourself a little screening party. It's well worth seeing and features everyone's favorite/most hated gamer, Billy Mitchell. With any luck, we'll see this on Netflix or DVD soon, because playing this on your Xbox 360 or PS3 will surely make the space-time continuum fold in on itself.
HDFEST schedule revealed, indie films hit Dolby Labs in December
It's been a while since we checked in with HDFEST, but the all-HD independent film festival, now in it's 9th year, is still going strong. Due to kick off at Dolby Laboratories in Burbank on December 7, highlights this year include a focus on animation and several innovative stop motion projects, a HD music video showcase and seven full length feature films. Hit up the website for more information and a schedule of the $10/per screenings, hopefully some of these flicks find away home to the rest of us on any of the number of distribution routes now available.
Cablevision's Rainbow Media snaps up Sundance Channel for $496 million
Don't peek -- which would you think is cheaper? A fiber-to-the-premises network touching 36,000 residents and businesses, or a 12-year old television channel? If you guessed the latter, you'd be badly mistaken. While iProvo was sold for a mere $40.6 million, Rainbow Media, the cable programming subsidiary of Cablevision, had to cough up nearly half a billion dollars ($496 million, to be precise) in order to claim the Sundance Channel as its own. Yes, the Sundance Channel. Richard Greenfield, an analyst with Pali Research, seems to think that Cablevision may try to combine its newest acquisition with Independent Film Channel, which just so happens to have a high-def counterpart. Of course, it's hard to say what will happen with it so soon after the buy, but if the sale ends up creating another (or more widespread) HD channel, we're all for it.
Sundance short films coming to Video Marketplace
If you'd like to give your Xbox 360 some culture, you may be interested to know that the Sundance Institute will be releasing 45 of the short films from this year's Sundance Film Festival on the Xbox Live Video Marketplace. The films are to go on sale Friday, January 18 for the attractive price of 160 Microsoft Points (about $2) each. Keep in mind that these are being offered as permanent downloads, not rentals. Not only do you films at a super low price, but you get to show your significant other (or would be significant other) that you really care about the arts. Not bad. Find descriptions of all 45 films after the break.
2008 Sundance short films on Xbox Video Marketplace
Sundance Institute and Sundance Channel have announced that a selection of 45 short films from the 2008 Sundance Film Festival will be available for sale on Xbox Live Video Marketplace beginning Friday, January 18, 2008. The films will be sold separately for $1.99 (160 Microsoft Points). There are currently no plans to offer the films in bundles or for rental at reduced prices. (A complete list of all 45 shorts is posted after the break.) In addition to Video Marketplace, these films will be sold on the iTunes Store ($1.99 download-to-own) and made available to Netflix subscribers through the rental service's 'instant watching' feature. During each day of the 10-day festival, one short will also be available to watch for free at Sundance.org.[Via Press Release]
iTunes to sell Sundance films
MSN movies reports that under a new deal, iTunes will sell many of the short films premiering at the Sundance Film Festival. The films will also be available via streaming at the Sundance website. The article says this deal is nonexclusive so filmmakers will be able to make their own deals with distributors. I tend to find Sundance shorts tedious and a bit self indulgent, but there are always some gems to be found among them. Unfortunately, this deal does not include the full length features from the festival. The festival takes place between the 18th and 28th of this month in Park City, Utah.
Video game documentary premiering at Sundance
A documentary detailing the 1982 World Video Game Championships will be hitting the screens at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. It's called Chasing Ghosts or Rulers of the Galaxy depending on which source you read (Variety calls it Chasing Ghosts, but the Sundance site calls it Rulers of the Galaxy. They probably had to change the title since a film called Chasing Ghosts was released last year starring Michael Madsen) and is directed by Lincoln Ruchti ... perfect for an Xbox Live Marketplace download, right?The movie focuses on the championships held at the Twin Galaxies Arcade in Ottumwa, Iowa, which was declared the "Video Game Capital of the World" in 1982 by the mayor of Ottumwa, and then later made official by the governor at a special ceremony in 1983. So, if you've been wondering where the capital is, now you know. Start planning your trip now. It also stars top video gamers like Billy Mitchell and Darren Olsen, and contains plenty of retro-gaming action.Twin Galaxies opened in 1981 after founder Walter Day toured over 100 arcades in four months, recording high scores on all the video games, and then brought them to his arcade as the "Twin Galaxies National Scoreboard." Although the arcade closed down in 1984 (wow, video game capital of the world doesn't hold much staying power, does it?) they still track high scores. Check out their Official Video Game & Pinball Book of World Records published in 1997. In today's day and age they live on the web, where you can search to your heart's content on their site. For instance, we just found out that Donald Hayes set the current official high score of 589,350 for Frogger in 2005. Now you know, and knowing is half the battle.We'll be checking the flick out at Sundance and talking to cast & crew, so look for that in January.
Sundance Film Festival: coming soon to your cellphone
While it's no surprise that video on cellphone screens is quickly becoming the next hurrah, it's saying something when ole Robert Redford himself dedicates a new branch of the Sundance Film Festival specifically to the mobile audience. Teaming up with the GSM Association, Sundance Institute is creating the Sundance Film Festival: Global Short Film Project in order to showcase the popularity and credibility in delivering media to those wee screens. Organizers have commissioned "six independent filmmakers to create five short films, crafted exclusively for mobile distribution," and all will make their debut at the world's largest annual mobile event -- the 3GSM World Congress -- in Barcelona next year. Dubbed as "the fourth screen," there's certainly a lot of coin to be made by opening up a new medium to deliver content, but there's always TinyTube (or Orb) to keep your multimedia-playing mobile happy until Hollywood takes it over.[Via Mobile Gadget News]
Sundance Channel making several programs available in the iTunes Store
The Sundance Channel just announced the immediate availability of several of its programs in the iTunes Store [iTS link]. Programs include "The Hill," "The First Amendment Project," and "The Staircase," and they are priced at $1.99 each. Sundance is also giving iTunes Store users a free sneak peek of Episode 1 of their upcoming six-part documentary series called "One Punk Under God," about Christian punk rockers, which will be downloadable from December 5-12, while the television debut is scheduled for December 13. Subsequent episodes will be for sale on iTunes the day after they air on television.[via iLounge]
Movies aren't the only thing on display at Sundance, Philips shows off Blu-ray
Turns out Cinematical aren't the only ones hanging out in Park City this week. With so many films recorded in HD, Philips decided this would be a great place to show off their Blu-ray players. At their Simplicity Lounge in the Village at the Lift, Philips is demonstrating the storage and playback capacities of Blu-ray media. Did the HD-DVD camp miss an important opportunity to promote their technology to content makers? I guess we'll see what format independent moviemakers choose for their HD releases later this year.
Mix Master Mac
If you've been following all the good news about Sundance Film Festival over at Blogging Sundance and Cinematical, then you've probably already spotted the news that Mix Master Mike was ripping up some cool tunes at last night's party for The Beastie Boys' film that James Rocchi reviewed for Cinematical.James went to the party last night, and shot the picture accompanying this post with his camera. Check it out: Mix Master Mike, cutting with a PowerBook. Nice. James said the cuts were off the hook, and I was very jealous that he got the pass to go to the party, but didn't get a plus one for yours truly. Fortunately, James is an awesome guy and hooked me up with some nice Beastie Boys schwag that he scored at the party, as well as the picture and title for this post.ps—Beasties rule!
Sundance HD Videoblog courtesy of DivX
More Sundance, more HD. We already know many of the films being shown at the festival were shot in HD, so of course even people who aren't there shouldn't watch them any other way. To that end, the Flavorpill lifestyle blog has teamed up with DivX to provide high definition videoclips direct from Utah. This is a good example of the high quality independent content we can expect to see more of as HD camcorders drop in price. I couldn't find any clips on the page right now, but we should see some 720p goodness before long.
Half of Sundance Festival is high-def
We didn't make it out to Sundance like some of the WIN crew; after all, who wants to see movie screenings when we can relax in our home theaters with high-def televisions, right? What's that you say....over half of the 193 films at the Sundance Festival are in high-definition? No, say it ain't so. Yes it's true, so now we feel totally duped by our obviously much smarter peers over at Cinematical. We should have known we were missing something when our very own CEO headed out West for Sundance. Sorta makes sense why he's the CEO and we're the bloggers, now doesn't it?In all seriousness, we're thrilled to see the number of high-def screenings increase by leaps and bounds. Eventually, whatever happens during the screenings makes it's way to the screens in the theaters, so you go Sundance!
Going to Sundance? Check out the HD House
Now of course we would say DVGuru is the best place to go learn about high definition tools for producing independent films, but if you like to get more hands on and happen to be in Utah starting tomorrow, visit the HD House. They've got panel discussions, product demonstrations and more planned. The tech sponsor for the house is Grass Valley, who will be spotlighting their HD camcorder and media. Any of you prosumers hitting up Sundance want to tell us how it is?
