This week the crews dance to the music of the Queen of Pop, Madonna. The episode started with a shocking revelation that two crews will be eliminated. Collizion Crew, Funkdation and Irratik found themselves in the bottom three. Collizion crew were saved and has a chance to perform for another week. Here's my review of the crews' performances (from best to worst).

Here's the most awaited horror-suspense movie this month. Since the first release of the movie trailer in youtube, i knew this movie is no ordinary one. Local films has a bad reputation for the weak quality of design. Corazon: Ang Unang Aswang gave a good impression with the beautiful cinematography and lighting as seen in their trailer. Recently, i discovered the movie poster and  i was simply amazed by the whole concept. Here, the main characters are in fetal position, hand-in-hand, lying in a nest-like structure. The movie is about the birth of the first "Aswang" which explains the nest, and fetal positioning of the characters. The grass and nest has also a subliminal meaning which resembles a womans birthhole, if you know what i mean *insert Mr Bean face meme here*.

I love the passion in Derek's eyes which tells the story of romance between the two. On the other hand, Erich's face and stare is hauntingly beautiful at the same time mysterious. I wonder how she will be the first Aswang. What i dont like in this poster is the rest of the elements under the logo. It is so distracting and the font is awful. I just want to crop them out. Anyways, hooray for this wonderful film. I can't wait to watch it..

This is my third time to attend the biggest conference on design. I am usually one of the earliest in the venue but due to the rain, there were lots of people lining up already. The line was so confusing. Since i bought my ticket through bank deposit, I have to go to a separate line to get my ticket in exchange of a voucher that they provided. The students already had their tickets so it was so disappointing seeing them entering the hall while i was waiting for my ticket. I wished that they just sent the ticket to me before the conference like what they did before.

Unlike before, this year's conference was held at the SMX Convention Center which is wider (see photo below) and can accomodate more people. Before it was held at the cinema where you can see their works in the big screenes. But in SMX, the ceiling is low so there is no big screen. Instead, they provided 4 LED Screens. Since i entered late, i was seated almost at the back. I can hardly read the texts in the slides. I really prefer the cinema cause the presentations will look much more amazing in the big screen and the seats are more cozy than the chairs in SMX.



Well, that's it for the downside of my review. The rest went just fine. I really like the conference kit which included the better looking ID, better bounded GM Book, the program, some stickers and stuff. They didn't give a poster, though.

Anyways, the most important thing in this conference is the lineup of Speakers. I must say they we're really amazing and inspiring. I was really entertained by all of them, some are too serious but their works are so impressive.

The first speaker is the duo of 27+20 (Twenty-seven Twenty). They shared some of their experiences and work flows like their toxic schedule in making a documentary for ANC in just a week; and the infographic about Mercedita Gutierrez. It was really entertaining. They also showed some of their works like the music video which incorporated both 3d animation in live action settings. They were fun and cool.

Next in line was Dan Matutina, a UP Fine Arts graduate, and an awesome illustrator. I've seen his works before and I am truly a big fan. My style is somewhat similar to his which is textured, vibrant, with the mixture of clean and dirty, and old and modern. His concepts are witty, humorous and cool. He shared his story by chapters, from his beginnings to his evolution of style. He even gave some tutorials on how to make his own textures. He's very funny and awesome.

Then it was lunch time :D I was with my former schoolmate, Micco, who was the heir of my throne as the Creative Director of our school publication, Beacon Newsmag. We had our lunch at Tokyo2x (It's a tradition of mine to have my lunch there during Graphika Manila). Then we headed back to SMX and looked for a better seat.

To start the afternoon, Seph Mayol, a Cebuano designer/developer showcased his web and interactive designs. His clients include Latino singers and Games for famous animated movies like the upcoming 3D film by Pixar, Cars 2. One of his unique works is his experimental interactive installation. He had a live demo of the app which creates an abstract motion graphic based on the image captured by the camera (see photo to the right). A lady danced in front of the camera and, simultaneously, we can see the abstract motion graphics forming the silhouette of the dancer. It was really impressive. It reminded me of this awesome installation where kids can grow trees and control the river flow of a virtual forest. I'm happy that there are projects like this here in the Philippines.

Laundry! was up next. It is a design and animation studio based out of LA, California. They make motion graphics and animation for music videos, TVC's and more. I learned the three approaches in making a video. The backward, forward and freestyle approach. I realized that i have been doing these approaches before. The approach usually depends on the resources given. Their clients include Nicki Minaj, MTV, VH1, Nike, The Cool Kids and more. I was just in awe looking that those crazy graphics and animation in the music video.

The next speaker is Mike Friolo aka Monkey Mike, the senior designer of Nike, Inc. in Oregon who designed and conceptualized Manny Pacquiao's gears, logo and crest. He showed the design process in creating the logo and crest from sketch, to studies, to revision, to criticisms, to final design, and everything in between. He also explained the influence, inspirations, and symbolism he used in coming up with the logo. You can say that he is really grounded to his Pinoy roots. Mike also designed the shoes of Pacquaio and is so lucky to have Nike make those designs a reality for him. I wish i can be a shoe designer someday :D

And finally, the one everybody is waiting for. The final speaker represents WETA Digital, the world leading visual effects company based in New Zealand. They won an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects on James Cameron's AVATAR. Some of their works include X-Men2, Matrix Revolutions and Beowulf. Kevin Smith, a Digital Effects supervisor, showed us how the animation pipeline, the different departments, and people who worked on the effects for Avatar. It took hundreds of people just to make a shot. He outlined the parts of the pipeline like Motion Capture, Modelling, Rigging, Animation, Lighting, Matte Painting, Special Effects, and more. Each department constitutes different sorts of artists, programmers, and technicians. In the company, they only hire experts on that field. Some are undergrads, but some have majors in Math and Physics.

Every part of the pipeline is essential for the efficiency of the flow of work. Hundreds of people collaborate just to create that revolutionary movie of the century. The movie was exceptional and it requires quality work from artists and people in the industry like those people in WETA Digital. Every participant was just amazed by what we learned and seen. I just wished that someday i will also be one of those people.



Well, Graphika Manila went well and it was really worth the pay. Though i didn't like the ticketing and venue, the most important thing is that i brought home inspiration that i got from the speakers. I just hope that they will take our feedback constructively and wish that next year will be a better one. Here are some of my shots during the conference :D

Last February 23-25, 2011, Zamboanga City finally had the chance to host a film festival where activities all about film were held at the city. Indie films were screened for three days at the cinemas of Mindpro Citimall for free! Lots of students and movie enthusiast had the chance to watch indie films since the local cinema rarely screens them. The films included were "Halaw" by Sheron Dayoc, "Limbunan" by Teng Mangansakan, "Emir", "Concerto", "Sabungero", "Kano", "Ang Mundo sa Panahon ng Bato", "Di Natatapos ang Gabi" and the classic 1937 film "Zamboanga". The event is called "Sineng Pambansa" which is an activity of the Film Development Council of the Philippines. They also have it in other cities like Iloilo and Baguio.

Weeks before the film fest, i already heard about it in the news and i'm really excited to watch the films. The Mayor really had the full support to host the Sineng Pambansa in the city since it the place where one of the most important and first ever films in the Philippine film history was produced. "Zamboanga" is one of my most anticipated film because i'm curious about how the old Zamboanga looks like and how they created the movie. I'm also excited to watch "Halaw" by a Zamboangueno director Sheron Dayoc. The film bagged the Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Editing during the Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival.

However, I was really busy for the three days so i wasn't able to watch the indie films at the cinema. Good thing, we were invited by Council Gerky Velasco at the Red Carpet night just an hour before the event. Not only we had the chance to watch "Zamboanga" we also saw the directors and casts of some of the films. Mr. John Arcilla, the lead actor of Halaw, also rendered an original song made for the film. The song is beautiful and epic. Anyways, i really intend to write this post to share my thoughts about the film "Zamboanga".

"Zamboanga" is one of the five existing pre-war Filipino films and one of the oldest, produced in 1936. The film was said to be lost due to the war. But a film historian, Nick de Ocampo rediscovered it at the archives of the US Library of Congress in Washington D.C.

Synopsis:
A sea-faring tribe whose livelihood is to search pearls in the rich, pristine waters of Zamboanga. Danao, a young pearl fisher, is engaged to the datu's granddaughter, Minda. With Danao's exquisite pearls, the datu announces a celebration in his return. Hadji Razul, a cruel and lustful ruler of a Moro tribe living in another island was among the invited. Involved in piracy and looting, he associated himself with a renegade American Captain who owns a small trading yacht providing Chinese laborers. A tribal war sparks as Hadji abducts the beautiful princess during one of Danao's diving expeditions, tearing down the peace and tranquility Zamboanga once enjoyed. (resource: FDCP Zamboanga Film Festival 2011)

Check out Gaga's latest music video. Here it is!



Here's my take on Lady Gaga's new video. When i saw the teaser, i knew i wouldn't like it. I thought Gaga has finally revealed her true identity, a dark, scary, satanist, blasphemous, illuminati puppet who uses music to control the minds of the people. I know many facts about her especially the conspiracy theories surrounding her whole identity. When i watched the video, I was not dissappointed at all. I liked it, actually. I remember how i used to like her not only because of her "junkfood" music, but also because of her passion for her art. All of this is made for art. As long as you know the symbols and hidden meanings, you will really appreciate her. If you are ignorant and narrow-minded, im sure you will really hate her especially with this video. But like all the little monsters who loved gaga, i don't care what you think about her. You can say that im one of them who is mind-controlled by her music but there is more about her music and visuals that made me a true fan of her art.

Anyhow, i came across the web and read some articles and reviews about her latest hit. Here are some shocking scenes that you can see in the video:

1.) Soldiers In Drag!
2.) Gaga Goes Steampunk: "Arcanum" meets "Predator" meets David Bowie's "Outside"?
3.) Gaga Smokes A Pipe: That's just a stunt pipe, right Gaga?
4.) Gaga As A Nun: A nun who likes LATEX!
5.) Gaga Gets Into Bed: Hot like Mexico! Bad Romance indeed!
6.) Bedtime For Gaga! Because Gaga is sick and tired of you borrowing her heels without asking!
7.) Strategically Placed Signifiers: She's wearing white vestments and has crosses all over the place. You do the math.
8.) More Crosses: Is this Gaga as the Virgin Mary? The mind reels with overt hagiographic symbolism. At this point I'm also positive Gaga's read The Handmaid's Tale.
9.) Gaga Swallows A Rosary.
10.) The Crucifixion Of Gaga?

Here are more of the links that you can read about her video:
20 most shocking scenes about the Lady Gaga's Alejandro video
Lady Gaga's "Alejandro" Video - Guide to its Madonna references.
Lady Gaga's "Alejandro" is not just a Madonna homage: the Counter Point

Genre: Comedy / Slapstick
Type of Animation: 3D Animation
Creator: Pixar

PRESENTATION OF STORY

OVER-ALL

This short animation is included in the release of Pixar's latest movie Wall-E. It is about a magician who struggled to execute his hat trick because of his hungry rabbit. He ends up hurting himself whenever he tries to do a move but the crowd loves it. It is a hilarious short clip that would surely knock you off your seat. The bunny was very cute especially when asks for the carrot. The music was a very good factor for the comedy as well as the facial reactions of the characters.