Amnesty International: Signature Spot Commercial

A haunting yet beautiful animation for Amnesty International. Worth checking out... see it here on YouTube - enjoy!

Wicked Illustrator! Eric Feng...

I was recently re-introduced to wicked illustrator Eric Feng's work via NOTCOT: I have long admired Eric Feng’s (aka Feric) illustrations. His work is gorgeous - a mixture of real and imagined and of natural and mechanical. I love the fantastical, mechanical anatomies of his characters, and how you are given a peek at what is beneath through transparent layering. Limited edition giclée prints of Feric’s work are available at his online store. They are fairly pricey for a digital print, but I could almost be tempted because I love some of his pieces so much (“Roda. Continue” - I’m talking about you!). Worth checking out at the very least!

I couldn't agree more! Check out his amazing work at http://www.feric.com/ - cheers!

COOL! Animated Typography...

Designer Daily has a neat posting about cool typographic animations. Check it out here. Via Veer: The Skinny - Note: the page might take a while to load due to heavy traffic.

COOL! The Dark Knight's Joker...

Wicked! The Joker for the next Batman movie, The Dark Knight is on the cover of the upcoming Empire magazine... he looks wicked! I can't wait to see the movie... view the trailer here.
Via Clutter Magazine's blog.

Recommended Reading | 10 Absolute 'NOs!' for Freelancers...

There's a great post on the Wake Up Later blog entitled, "10 Absolute 'Nos!' for Freelancers." I found it to be of interest... perhaps you will too? Check it out here. Thanks to Cameron Cavers for posting the link to the GDC Listserve. Cheers!

Marian Bantjes - Design Matters Live with Debbie Millman Video on Zoom In

Via Marian Bantjes' website:
A video of Debbie’s Design Matters Live interview with me, which took place in San Francisco, September 2007, is now posted on Zoom In. The video is a compilation of the live event, and a backstage interview with me; skillfully put together by Rachel Talbot and her team at Magnet Media. Thanks to all, and love to Debbie. (I’ve had some trouble buffering the movie; my advice is to start it, then pause it, go away for half an hour, then come back and watch the whole thing without interruption.)

Enjoy!

Helvetica Film Deluxe DVD Boxset…

I received my copy of the Helvetica Film DVD Boxset which I blogged about a while back (08/17/2007). I'm such a sucker for these 'deluxe' packages, included in this boxset was the DVD, three letterpress prints, a still from the film signed by Gary Hustwit, one "I love Helvetica" badge, one "I hate Helvetica" badge and a piece of vintage Helvetica metal type (actually it's Helvetica Bold Extended), from the Stempel Foundry, c.1970s (I got a lowercase Z). I'm looking forward to watching the film again, as well as checking out the DVD extra features (95 minutes of bonus interviews), stay tuned for more to come - cheers!

Recommended | www.robertlpeters.com

I'm currently a graphic designer at Circle Design Incorporated (based in the historic Winnipeg Exchange District), where I work with extremely talented and amazing individuals. One of whom you may or may not know, the Principal of Circle, Robert L. Peters. I highly recommend that you check out his website (www.robertlpeters.com), particularly the News+ section where Rob has posts about his design related travels, lectures, articles, etc. If you've ever met Rob, you know that you'll want to check it out - great thoughts, images and intellectual stimulation abound! Enjoy!

COOL! VFX by Optix for IKEA...

Wow. There is some really slick VFX in this spot for IKEA by the talented folks over at Optix Digital Pictures. You should check it out... click on this link and play the movie - enjoy!

Via Motionographer.

GDC Manitoba | 'Automoto' - Evening Presentation

GDC Manitoba is proud to present 'Automoto' a remarkable animated film by Neil McInnes:

Isolated in an elaborately mechanized workshop, a lonely wooden skeleton suffering from writer’s block enlists a factory worker to help him reconnect with his muse.

Please join us tonight as Neil McInnes and his production crew present the stop-motion animated film Automoto (recently shown at the Toronto International Film Festival), and a review of the elaborate process involved in creating this stunning and affectionate commentary on the artistic process. Tuesday, November 20 from 7:30 - 8:30 PM at the RRC downtown campus room A104 (Great West Life Lecture Theatre) Free for members, $10 for non-members. Seats are limited so RSVP early! RSVP: gdcmanitoba@mts.net - hope to see you there!

COOL! Women In Art - YouTube Video

Very cool video on YouTube showing an evolution of women in portraiture over 500 years. Check it out on YouTube here.

Via Robert L. Peters' Blog.

Recommended Reading | RFP, R.I.P. via IdeasOnIdeas Blog

RFP, R.I.P. was recently posted to the Ideas on Ideas blog. I thought I'd share it with you all since I found it to be of interest. Check out the original blog posting at http://www.ideasonideas.com/2007/11/rfp-rip - cheers!

Recommended | VectorMagic - Online Bitmap to Vector Conversion Tool

VectorMagic is an online tool for precision bitmap to vector conversion. Now, I have yet to try it out for myself but, the website has some good comparison examples between the results from VectorMagic, Adobe Live Trace and Corel PowerTRACE. There is also a video on the website that shows how to use the site. Worth checking out for sure! Check it out at http://vectormagic.stanford.edu/ - Cheers!

Via Computer Arts Daily

COOL! FF Meta Serif…

I'm drooling over the latest font release from FontShop, FF Meta® Serif. Description from the FontShop website:

It took three years and three designers to develop FF Meta® Serif. All through the ’90s, Erik Spiekermann made several attempts at designing a counterpart for his groundbreaking FF Meta®. Fans of Meta frequently asked him which serif face would best complement it. He recommended Swift™, Minion™, FF Clifford™, and others, until he realized that he should just buckle down and draw his own serif Meta. True to his principle of collaboration, Spiekermann enlisted the help of accomplished type designers Christian Schwartz and Kris Sowersby.

Hopefully I'll be adding this font to my library soon! Cheers!

Recommended | Guitar Hero III for Wii

My brother and I both recently picked up a copy of Guitar Hero III for the Nintendo Wii. Essentially it is a video game that requires you to press colour coded keys and 'strum' on a guitar shaped controller as corresponding coloured 'notes' scroll down on a screen.

Now, I've never really been very musically inclined so this was an interesting way to live out the fantasy of being a 'guitar hero'. I also don't have the best dexterity in my left hand so this was a great way to exercise and improve the ol' hand-eye coordination.

I must say that this is quite a fun game and the wireless guitar Wii controller makes it easy to 'rock-out' from anywhere in the room (on top of a table, upside-down, etc.). It does take a little while to get the hang of the controls but most average players should find the easy mode managable and fun. I highly recommend anyone who is into video games/music to give this game a whirl. Now if only I had a few extra fingers... that expert mode is insane. Cheers!

FITC Road Show - Winnipeg 2007

Winnipegger's, don't forget that the FITC Road Show is coming to Winnipeg this Saturday, November 17th. A number of excellent speakers are in the line-up. There is a full-day workshop planned for November 16th as well. For more details visit the FITC Website. Cheers!

Helvetica Film Winnipeg Showing - Round 2!

The 'Helvetica Film' is back by popular demand for another round of screenings at Cinemateque. The film will be on screen from November 13-15, so if you weren't able to catch it the first time around, now is your chance! For more information about showtimes, etc. visit the Cinemateque website.

COOL! Paul Rand Tribute Video

Via Nancy Wu and the GDC Listserve:
For Paul Rand's posthumous induction into The One Club's Hall of Fame for 2007, the talented folks at Imaginary Forces created a short film, combining original animation with a videotaped interview of Rand himself, that encapsulated his unique and timeless contribution to the design community.

Check it out at http://www.imaginaryforces.com/project/415 - Thanks to Nancy for posting the link - enjoy!

GDC Manitoba | Button Swap 2007 Reminder!

Don't forget! If you plan on participating in this year's GDC Manitoba Button Swap, the artwork and payment deadline is November 15th (that leaves you with one week)! For more information, visit the GDC Manitoba website.

GRAPHEX 2008 Website Now Live!

The GRAPHEX 2008 website is now live. This year's theme and call for entries was designed by the talented folks at Rethink Communications. GRAPHEX is an Icograda-endorsed national design competition that has been celebrating the best of visual communication in Canada since 1977. The primary goals of GRAPHEX are to promote the value of design to the Canadian public and business community - Good Design Is Good Business- and to create an archive of Canadian design for future generations to reflect upon and study.

For more information or to enter the competition visit http://www.gdc.net/graphex - better hurry though, deadline for entries is November 23, 2007!

COOL! Chikanobu and Yoshitoshi Woodblock Prints

Via startdrawing.org | the Asian Drawing Portal:
A big round of applause for Claremont College’s Digital Library, who is so kind to have scanned 289 stunning Chikanobu and Yoshitoshi woodblock prints. An amazing archive of woodblock prints collection. And the best part? Most of the prints are accompanied with a corresponding Japanese folk tale or fable. [Link via Drawn!]

Very cool indeed! Enjoy!

'Munny, Munny, Munny... Munny!'

I picked up a DIY Munny by KidRobot over the weekend. I was extremely happy to find a shop locally (Urban Waves in Osborne Village) that sells designer Vinyl toys! I've got a couple Munny concepts in the works... I'll be sure to document (or at least try to) the creative process. I'm looking forward to it! Should be lots of fun... there are SO many cool custom Munny's its crazy! Just do a Google image search for Custom Munny and you'll see what I mean.

The Legend of Bruce Lee Trailer

I've been a fan of Bruce Lee for as long as I can remember... my younger brother sent me this YouTube link for The Legend of Bruce Lee, a TV drama series now in production in China. It's scheduled for release to coincide with the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games, I hope that they'll release a cantonese version... check out the trailer on YouTube. Cheers!

Make My Logo Bigger Cream...

This link was sent to me by a number of people (thanks!), so I thought I'd make a post about it... it's sad but true (in many cases). I'd say that it has to be one of the most common client requests... check it out at http://www.makemylogobiggercream.com/ - enjoy. ;P