Das Weiße Band (The White Ribbon) by Michael Haneke
Top of the month October 2009: Das Weiße Band (The White Ribbon)
Grow up evil, children!
Why should you go see The White Ribbon by Michael Haneke, right now?
- Because of the sumptuous black & white and aesthetic photography.
- Because of the frightening children as if they were coming from an episode of The Twilight zone or Village of the Damned… without an once of fantastic.
- Because it’s one of the best screenplay pointing out the link between education and growth of terrorism of any kind, and the consequences that (may) follow.
Runners up :Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs by Phil Lord & Chris Miller and Funny People by Judd Apatow.
(not to mention Le Syndrome du Titanic by Nicolas Hulot & Jean-Albert Lièvre and Mademoiselle Chambon by Stéphane Brizé)
Book review: Dragon’s Dream Roger Dean
Dragon’s Dream is the third book to be published after Views (1975) and Magnetic Storm (1984).
Roger Dean is an english artist and designer, well known for painting album covers for rock bands (remember the Yes ‘bubble’ logo?).
In the middle of the 80’s, Dean has been commissioned by a software company, Imagine, then called Psygnosis and designed some of the greatest packaging artwork for video games (the first chapter of the book).
In recent years, he has been designing eco-friendly architecture and prototyping home concepts, a lifelong passion.
The height chapters cover the last twenty five years and contain a wide range of his work from videos games, album covers, paintings, logos, concept arts to architecture designs.
There are also a couple of pages about his daughter Freyja who appears to be an artist too, specialized in scientific illustration and costume design.
This book is a GREAT value, very affordable for a hardcover art book and highly recommended for every fantasy art aficionados! :]
Title / Author : Dragon’s Dream / Roger Dean
Publisher : Ilex
Published : October 2008
Format : Hardback 224 pages
ISBN : 9781905814411
District 9 by Neill Blomkamp
Top of the month September 2009: District 9
Best prawn movie ever!
Why should you go see District 9 by Neill Blomkamp, right now?
- Because you will have empathy for christopher, a fully CGI character!
- Because for once this is a truly original sci-fi concept and it’s not happening in the USA!
- Because it’s a great reminder of the history of South Africa - apartheid (District Six) AND post-apartheid (Zimbabwean immigrants).
Runners up :Mary and Max by Adam Elliot and (500) Days of Summer by Marc Webb.
(not to mention The Hurt Locker by Kathryn Bigelow & L’Affaire Farewell by Christian Carion)
Un Prophete by Jacques Audiard
Top of the month August 2009: Un prophète
Social climbing in prison.
Why should you go see Un prophète by Jacques Audiard, right now?
- Because of the acting: Tahar ‘Malik‘ Rahim, THE revelation, present in (almost) all the scenes and Niels ‘Luciani‘ Arestrup, scariest Corsican ever! :]
- Because it’s the best film of director Jacques Audiard who already has a perfect filmography!
- Because it’s an instant classic (in the prison genre).
Runners up :Inglourious Basterds by Quentin Tarantino and Les Derniers jours du monde by Jean-Marie Larrieu & Arnaud Larrieu.
(not to mention The Brothers Bloom by Rian Johnson & Staten Island by James De Monaco)
Black sheep Squadron
Black Sheep Squadron is an old PC/MAC project that had been shelved because of a lack of time and motivation and unfortunately it will (probably) never be completed.
The game is a vertical shoot-them-up, tribute to all the 1942-series (Capcom) including five ‘oldschool’ worlds in the glory of the 80’s: Pacific coast, Jungle, Country/Desert, Warp Zone/twilight zone and Sci-Fi.
You play either “John Trigger” or “Susie Goodspeed“. Choosing one or the other character changes the power of the weapons and the velocity of the aircraft, the famous WWII corsair F4U.
There are still a lot of sprites and backgrounds that are not shown in the video. The footage is sometimes buggy but it gives a good idea of what the game would have looked once tweaked and polished.
Side note-developed with the PTK game engine and in-house level & spline editors especially done for the game. All the musics done by Cyril Pereira and available right here.
Up by Pixar
Top of the month July 2009: Up
Spirit of Adventure with Carl Fredricksen!
Why should you go see Up by Pete Docter and Bob Peterson, right now?
- Because of the talking dogs, the funny bird and - SQUIRREL!!
- Because of the short “Partly Cloudy”, craftsmen Pixar at its best.
- Because of the first ten minutes featuring a dialogue-free sequence of Carl and Ellie’s life. Heartbreaking :°]
Runners up :Public Enemies by Michael ‘Heat’ Mann and The Reader by Stephen Daldry.
State of Play by Kevin Macdonald
Top of the month June 2009: State of Play
Print media won’t die!
Why should you go see State of Play by Kevin Macdonald, right now?
- Because it’s always good to watch a 70’s style political thriller movie in 2009.
- Because if you don’t know the original BBC mini-series directed by David Yates, what are you waiting for?
- Because of the great casting and brillant screenplay.
Runners up :Coraline by Henry Selick and The Hangover by Todd Phillips.
(not to mention Lascars by Albert Pereira Lazaro & Emmanuel Klotz and Terminator Salvation by McG)
Star Trek by J.J.”bad robot” Abrams
Top of the month May 2009: Star Trek
Reboot, live long and Prosper!
Why should you go see Star Trek by J.J. Abrams, right now?
- Because no need to be a trekkie to enjoy it, the eleventh Star Trek has been made for a wider audience.
- Because no old pyjamas in sight (well…)
- Because even if it’s not perfect… when was the last interesting Sci-Fi movie you have seen?
Runners up :Drag me to Hell by Sam Raimi and Millenium by Niels Arden Oplev.
(not to mention Looking for Eric by Ken Loach and The Boat That Rocked by Richard Curtis)
Royalty Free content packs
Naaty Design is proud to announce the release of its first collection of Royalty Free content packs (also called stock art or game packs) that contains ready-to use items for your productions, used as placeholder graphics to prototype your games, ideas and mockups, etc.
Good news, the first content packs are 100% free for both commercial and personal projects (website, advertising and promotional material,.. ), featuring:
- 10 shapes X 10 colours = 100 badges!
- 246 countries X 5 sizes = 1230 icons!
Forthcoming content packs: casual and board games!
Ponyo on the cliff by the sea by Hayao Miyazaki
Top of the month April 2009: Gake no ue no Ponyo (Ponyo on the Cliff by the sea)
Cute goldfish? po-nyo po-nyo ponyo sakana no ko
Why should you go see Ponyo by Hayao Miyazaki, right now?
- Because it’s a feel-good movie such as My Neighbor Totoro.
- Because of the magic of Studio Ghibli.
- Because it’s 100% CGI free, hand drawn and the animation of the ocean is particularly well done.
Runners up :In the Electric Mist by Bertrand Tavernier and Oss 117: rio ne repond plus by Michel Hazanavicius.
