“My Email Is a Monster”

Last updated on: March 17, 2017 at 2:56 pm By Joseph Susanka

Via The Oatmeal, some artfully articulated truths about those every-present entities that buzz and buzz and BUZZ about our office-worker heads each and every day. (Click for the full reveal or head on over to the site itself. The whole thing’s great, but especially the last frame. The punchline. The punch in the gut.) I enjoy Inman’s work — he’s a fixture in the ol’ feedreader — but this one really resonated. Probably because seeing the “process” of e-communication laid out this way made... Read more

The Welcome Ubiquity of “La Folia”

Last updated on: November 16, 2015 at 10:42 am By Joseph Susanka

Why, yes, I do have a favorite version of “La Folía” — the deceptively simple tune (or perhaps more accurately “the deceptively simple baseline”) that first appeared in print during the late 1600s, and has been used by more than 150 composers in over 330 compositions from Medieval Times right up ’till the present day. Thanks for asking. I’m definitely a Jean-Baptiste Lully man. I realize my Lully-love is closely tied to my (“borderline,” he says in a hopeful, almost pleading tone) obsession... Read more

Colorful Characters (Pixar-Style)

Last updated on: March 17, 2017 at 2:57 pm By Joseph Susanka

This is sort of brilliant, really. Not so much because of the artistic style/ability on display — though I certainly recognize that filtering one creative thing through the lens of an almost-entirely different creative thing is impressive — but because it reminds me of how brilliant Pixar is. And in this particular case, of how brilliantly those guys use colors to render their characters instantly recognizable. (Saying it’s Pixar is a clue. So is the opera house. And the hand…not.) Read more

SSF: “Silent”

Last updated on: January 15, 2015 at 2:21 pm By Joseph Susanka

Today’s short is a thinly-veiled marketing piece for Dolby. …hang on. Let’s start over… Today’s short film is a flat-out, straight-up ad for Dolby Atmos. Heck, it even includes Dolby in the title: “Dolby Presents: Silent, a Short Film.” And I don’t even care. Because it’s gorgeous. And includes so many wonderful cinematic references, it made my film-snobby hairs stand up and cheer. “Silent” is an animated short film created by Academy Award® winning Moonbot Studios. It celebrates how storytellers, inventors, and technology work together to... Read more

SVS: “How to Steal a Million”

Last updated on: January 13, 2015 at 6:35 pm By Joseph Susanka

As regular readers of the blog may know by now, I’m a huge fan of the 1966 rom-com How to Steal a Million. (I am not, however, a fan of the term “rom-com.” In fact, I hate it so much, I almost didn’t use it. But then I realized that said hatred is tied very much to the genre’s more recent …ahem …efforts. And this film is a particularly fine example of the Rom-Com Done Right. So I left it in.) But I... Read more

No Commentary Necessary — “Birds of Prey 4K”

Last updated on: November 19, 2015 at 8:50 am By Joseph Susanka

Mandatory Full-Screen and HD viewing on this one, folks, because such mind-melting majesty is best appreciated in as large a format as possible. This is footage that we captured while in Denver Colorado at 5K 60FPS. Stunning, stunning stuff. And all from a location surprisingly close to home; practically in my backyard, come to think of it. Words like “close” and “backyard” take on entirely new meanings once you’ve been in Wyoming for a while. Space is scaled differently here. (HT: Laughing Squid) Attribution(s): All images are the... Read more

Seeing with the Eyes of Children, Courtesy of Star Wars VII

Last updated on: January 18, 2015 at 5:03 pm By Joseph Susanka

Somewhere down in the depths of my soul, there’s a still, small voice telling me that I should not find this Star Wars VII: The Force Finally Wakes Up (Though We’re Still Not Quite Sure Why It Went To Sleep In The First Place) teaser trailer-related tweet as amusing as I do. Don’t worry. I told that still, small voice to shut up. They see me rolling, they hating — Ball-Droid (@BallDroidVII) November 28, 2014 I kid (or at least I appreciate... Read more

SSF: “Lightheaded”

Last updated on: January 15, 2015 at 2:24 pm By Joseph Susanka

I realize that calling Mike Dacko’s Lightheaded an Advent-themed short film might be a bit of a stretch. But when I returned to it this past weekend (having seen it when it was first released a number of years ago), I found myself thinking surprisingly Adventian thoughts. And not because it involves candles — OK, not just because it involves candles — but because it reminds me of the importance of sacrificing the comfort and safety of what we already have in order that we might grow... Read more

SVS: “Duck Soup”

Last updated on: January 14, 2015 at 10:26 am By Joseph Susanka

RUFUS T. FIREFLY: Not that I care, but where is your husband? MRS. TEASDALE: Why, he’s dead. RUFUS T. FIREFLY: I bet he’s just using that as an excuse. MRS. TEASDALE: I was with him to the very end. RUFUS T. FIREFLY: No wonder he passed away. MRS. TEASDALE: I held him in my arms and kissed him. RUFUS T. FIREFLY: Oh, I see, then it was murder. Will you marry me? Did he leave you any money? Answer the second question first. Today’s film, the legendary... Read more

“O Praise the Lord of Heaven!”

Last updated on: June 3, 2015 at 10:44 am By Joseph Susanka

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! O Praise the Lord of Heaven; Praise Him in the Height, Praise Him in the Depth; O praise the Lord of Heaven, Praise Him all ye Angels, Praise Jehovah. Praise Him Sun and Moon and blazing Comets, Praise the Lord. Let them praise the Name of the Lord, For He spake the Word and all were made; He commanded and they were created; Admire, adore. Ye Dragons whose contageous Breath, People the dark Abodes of Death, Change your... Read more