Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Los Angeles: Friday, September 22 – 7:30 PM
Three, count 'em, three of my films will screen in Hollywood's Egyptian Theater on September 22 as part of DANGEROUS VISIONS: ANIMATED SHORTS FOR CONNOISSEURS & GROWN-UPS, presented by the Los Angeles Film Critics' Association and American Cinematheque. I feel pretty freakin' honored. My contributions include the 35mm film print of Pandorama, and two Sita clips: Battle of Lanka and the never-before-seen Grief and Birth. And get this - Battle of Lanka will be screened as a 35mm film print! It's my first 35mm film test for the project and it's still at the lab, so I haven't seen it yet, but boy am I stoked. The only downside for me is that I can't attend the screening in person. Well, I guess I can, but travelling cross-country and back in September, when I already have plans to visit LA in November, is a little much for me time- and money-wise. Still, if you're in LA, please check it out!UPDATE: I changed my mind - I'LL BE THERE!
Friday, August 25, 2006
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Dear multi-lingual friends,
I'm working with a composer on a song made completely out of samples of the word "why." Part of the song will be in other (non-English) languages. That's where you come in. If you know any songs in your non-English tongue with the equivalent word "why," and your computer skills are up to it, could you please take a sample of it? All we need is the word "why" and whatever background music attends it, nothing else (and since we won't understand the words, it's important that only the "why" is in the sample - just a second or two long). All sound file formats will work - wav, aiff, mp3, etc. Because the clips are so short, they'll be tiny files and easy to email. Please join us in subverting international copyright!
Your pal,
--Nina
Friday, August 18, 2006
Listen if you dare
Check this out: Will Franken's new podcasts. Not for the stupid or faint-of-heart, but extremely funny and occasionally brutal, the way I like it.Update: Looks like Will's gonna be performing in New York again this September. Mark your calendars.
Ahoy, Mateys!
Yesterday I scoured the web for a copy of O Fortuna from Carmina Burana by Carl Orff to try as a temporary scratch track in a scene I'm editing. The only complete version I could find was an MP3 on itunes. So I bought it, my first ever $.99 itunes purchase. When I brought it into Final Cut Pro, it showed up as a blank line. No sound. The file can't be read or played in any program except itunes. Apparently music should be consumed passively only, don't even think of using it in any creative project, even if it's just a scratch track in your home studio, something to experiment with, oh no that wouldn't be passive enough.
Fortunately a friend pointed me to this fine product, and I now have the audio as a useable aiff. Audio Hijack Pro lets you digitally record any audio your computer plays - including those goddamn "protected" itunes. There's a free trial download on the site, which works great. I ended up not liking O Fortuna as a scratch track after all, I chose something else. Now I'm hiring a composer to write something better using similar timing. Ohh, what a terrible threat to the music industry I am, good thing they're "protecting" their "property" from deviants like me.
Saturday, August 12, 2006
Eyebeam
Imagine my delight last night when I discovered one of my favorite comic strips ever was viewable online. Eyebeam was a cult hit in the 80's, and one of my early influences. My Eyebeam books are among the very few to survive my many relocations over the years. Back in the days before the intertubes, our time sinks were ink on paper, but it's just as easy to get lost in Eyebeam electronically today.
Monday, August 07, 2006
"i know you did the sita version, but she doesnt go up onto a piano and starts singing the blues, like wtf."
If concerned viewer Guyanese Princess is actually a woman, this marks my very first hate mail from the gentler sex. Truly, I have passed a milestone.Update: the author of this email has since apologized (see comments).
From: "Guyanese Princess" dharshanie22@hotmail.com
Date: Mon, 07 Aug 2006 19:25:09 -0400
hi,
i saw your sita sings the blues shit. you have the nerve to make a
movie
based on the ramayan like that. mata sita does not deserve to be
dressed
like that with her breasts popping out. i have read the ramayan, it is
not a
story trying to insult women, it is a story of the avatar of vishnu. i
know
you did the sita version, but she doesnt go up onto a piano and starts
singing the blues, like wtf. I AM A PROUD HINDU AND YOU ARE INSULTING
OUR
RELIGION AND OUR BELIEFS. I DO NOT APPRICIATE YOU TO DO THAT STORY.
PLEASE
EITHER REMAKE THAT MOVIE, TAKE IT OFF YOUR WEBSITE, OR MAKE A PUBLIC
APOLOGY
TO ALL HINDUS FOR THAT CRAP THAT YOU MADE. I REALLY DO NOT LIKE HOW YOU
MAKE
SHRI RAM EITHER, YOU MADE HIM LOOK LIKE SOME MACHO EGOISTIC GUY THAT
THINKS
HEZ THE BEST BECAUSE HE ISNT, HE IS LORD VISHNU IN HUMAN FORM TRYING TO
SAVE
HUMANITY.
I ASK AGAIN PLEASE, TAKE THAT MOVIE DOWN, REMAKE IT OR POST A PUBLIC
APOLOGY
TO ALL HINDUS, I AM VERY OFFENDED BY WHAT YOU HAVE DONE AND I HATE YOU
FOR
IT, YOU HAVE INSULTED EVERY SINGLE PERSON WHO BELIEVES IN HINDUISM. YOU
KARMA WILL COM BACK TO YOU, IN YOUR NEXT LIFE YOU WILL SUFFER GREATLY.
Sunday, August 06, 2006
Nina's November West Coast Tour
November 2 - Los Angeles, CA. I'll be attending the grand re-opening of the Griffith Observatory 'cause I had the privilege of making animation for some of their new exhibits. The image above is from one of them.
November 9 - San Francisco, CA. A big screening of my work, including the entire work-in-progress of Sita Sings the Blues, at the Balboa Theater. Please come! Tell your friends! I haven't been to San Francisco in almost two years, so this is long overdue. Thanks to Karl Cohen and ASIFA-SF.
Update: see new date and venue. Balboa show cancelled!
November 12 - Portland, OR. I'll be giving a presentation and workshop at Reed College. They actually invited me and stuff. Yay Reed!
If you're in any of those cities and want to say hi, please leave a comment or drop me an email. I'm pathetic at maintaining email lists, so it's quite possible you're a close personal friend or relative learning about my travels through this seemingly impersonal web announcement. But that doesn't mean I don't love you!
