NATHAN SEABROOK | YUBA DIAMOND VIDEO

I wanted to share a video by Nathan Seabrook that I've found inspiring. Seabrook is an artist, photographer and budding director here in San Francisco. I've known and worked with him for over a year or so now and his passion is really compelling. His vision in his newest piece, a music video for Yuba Diamond, is told through old fashioned film techniques including stop motion animation and projecting backgrounds. I only saw this piece in the making for a couple of hours one afternoon which was a fraction of the time he invested. For more of Seabrook's work visit his Vimeo page.

9/11 | SITE TIME LAPSE

Today marks the 10th anniversary of 9/11. A lot has changed, for better or worse since then and I'm not going to add any commentary. I do want to bring attention to what has happened to the site where the towers used to stand and reflect on the day I ascended the stairs from the subway to accidentally stumble upon the site and that eerie tingle that rose up my spine reminding me that I wasn't alone at this place.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF TITLE DESIGN | IAN ALBINSON

This video played during the SXSW "Excellence In Title Design" and is comprised of 72 titles from cinema and television. Most are iconic and recall the film instantly. Others show the power and importance of graphic design and art direction in story telling. Check out Art Of The Title for more and visit the Vimeo page.

THE NATIONAL | APARTMENT STORY

I can't get enough of this song. It's been on repeat all day, might be on all week. 

WOLFMOTHER | NEW MOON RISING

The only thing I want to hear for the next week, maybe month.

THE CULTS | GO OUTSIDE

Not a whole lot to be said about this band that hasn't been said on Pitchfork already. An infectious tunes with Go Outside, an album you can preorder on line (but isn't available until December 23) and a really great video that deserves to be shared. They're playing tonight at The Bottom of the Hill here in San Francisco and I'm at home.
NOTE : After doing  little more research, listening to some live performances and searching for a little more background I suggest enjoying this video and this song now because in 3 months, before you can get the EP, it will feel silly to still enjoy this one hit wonder.

For their official site visit here, cultscultscults.com or to pre order the 7" at their Bandcamp page, cults.bandcamp.com

SAMUEL BAYER | RUNNING IS DEAD

I've found Samuel Bayer's work inspiring for quite a while now. This piece seemed fitting to post now as I've been traveling for work and the only running I've been able to get in has been in the gym on a treadmill. Without saying too much enjoy Bayer's "Running Is Dead" and see more on his site.

RUNNING IS DEAD - click here to see the video on Bayer's site.

LUCIAN FREUD STUDIO

"The man is nothing. The work is everything." In Freud's own words. Listen to his narration. Take in his words, his studio and his work.

The God of Small Things on Nowness.com.

Lindsay Lohan by Richard Phillips for V Magazine

Disregard the persona of Lohan and all the trappings of celebrity and modern life. I find this beautiful and reminiscent of Godard and his work on Contempt.


LINDSAY LOHAN from V Magazine on Vimeo.

WOOLFY : LOOKING GLASS

From the "Looking Glass" Single on DFA 11.9.10 // Art Director- Myriam Aboukhater  Director of Photography- Collin LaFleche Exec Produced by C. Damga // special thanks Ted Stuart and Degraaf Design

Is Tropical - The Greeks

The animated violence is a little jarring in this music video for The Greeks. However, as a boy this is almost verbatim how the neighborhood kids and I played in the backyards, creeks and basements of suburban Kansas. Directed by Megaforce. Animation by Seven. Production by El Nino

Directed by MEGAFORCE
Label : KITSUNE
Animation : SEVEN
Production : EL NINO
Producer : Jules DIENG
AE : Gianni MANNO /Francois PELLAE
Sound design : Laurent D'HERBECOURT / Tranquille Le Chat

NATACHA PAGANELLI : KOLO

This 7:57 short borders chaos with intricate pieces and a driving score but remains captivating in it's order and form. It's like a dreamscape of Eastern European folklore. I don't know much about this piece except from what I found on We Find Wildness blog. According to WFW this short was done during Paganelli's artist in residency in Serbia and is on display at Kunsthalle Mulhouse until January 9, 2011.

Kolo from Natacha Paganelli on Vimeo.

OOPS, by CHRIS BECKMAN

Chris Beckman blew me away with the editing on this appropriated video pieced together with Youtube clips. I watched it 3 times today. His use of sound makes the transitions between clips work so well. While your watching it, turn down the brightness of your screen and or close your eyes and just listen. Beckman is the 2010 Vimeo Award Winner in the experimental category. These video vignettes may not stand on their own but Beckman 's editing creates a story of our shared experiences that stands as a memorable testament to modern life.

MIDNIGHT JUGGERNAUTS | Lara Vs The Savage Pack by Lucinda Schreiber & Beatrice Pegard

I love this. I am constantly inspired by the things I find on Vimeo and booooooom.com. Forget Youtube. Vimeo is all you need, unless you're looking for cat videos. Directed by Lucinda Schreiber & Beatrice Pegard. Lucinda Schreiber also directed that beautiful “Autumn Story” video which can be found on booooooom.com.

EL GUINCHO | BOMBAY by MGdM - Marc Gómez del Moral

I love the styling and editing of this video. It reminds me a lot of Alejandro Jodorowsky and has a catchy beat that has been in my head all morning. The video is by MGdM, Marc Gómez del Moral, a Spanish Cinematographer with quite an impressive body of work. Check out his website www.marcgomezdelmoral.com for more.

MR. ANDERSON'S BIRTHDAY by Thomas Broening

If you're not familiar with Thomas Broening's photography consider this your cue to look into his work. He's local to San Francisco and I've been an admirer of his work since 2006. Recently he's been doing a series of shorts around a character named Mr. Anderson. I really like his transition to video because he's using the medium to tell a story. A lot of photographers have tried making the jump to video. Video has become more accessible with the digital SLRs, however pursuing a medium just because you can doesn't necessarily make it a worthy pursuit. A friend of mine, Zan McQuade, scribbled into my notebook a paraphrasing of a quote she heard Braden King say at an event she was covering at Sundance that has stuck with me. I looked it up today to share.

"The film or the song or the painting isn't the thing," said King, adding that it's the medium to get at the mystery. Film, to King, is "a piece of fabric you can drape over an unseeable thing to give it form." -Zan McQuade from Obsolescence and Sustainability.

Maybe it's my education in journalism, my boyhood love of comic books or my obsession with film that causes me to pine for good story telling. None the less, Broening is successfully using video as a mode to tell stories which I really appreciate. Plus, today is my birthday and I think "Mr. Anderson's Birthday" is great.

BLEU DE CHANEL AD BY MARTIN SCORSESE

I've always loved Scorsese's lighting and story telling. At first I was skeptical of a Scorsese directed ad. The 1:01 run time of this ad is perfect. His lighting, styling, camera work and colors are on par with his other work. I love seeing an artist branch into a different medium while staying true to their stylistic vision.