Archive for August, 2004

Bush vs. Kerry Boxing

kerry_bush.jpg

Amid swift boat ads and recalled military records, political discourse in the presidential campaign is getting equal parts ugly and personal. Instead of just listening to candidates trade verbal jabs at press events, though, Sorrent is inviting gamers to come to blows. Round one has begun for Bush Vs. Kerry Boxing, Sorrent new pugilist parody where Bush, Kerry, Edwards, and Chenery slug it out — and results are posted on the ‘net. Ten-percent of the proceeds of Bush is going to Rock the Vote, an organization dedicating to getting young people interested and involved in the political process.

Read more.

No Comments

Graffiti Films Get Real on the Streets

bomb_banner.gif

“The average New Yorker sees upwards of 50 pieces of graffiti a day. But they never stop to think about the stories behind those pieces… this is one of those stories.” Bomb the System is the first feature in over 20 years to delve into the world of graffiti art. The film, shot entirely on the streets of New York City, is the feature debut of 23-year-old writer/director Adam Bhala Lough.

Mark Webber (People I Know, Storytelling, The Laramie Project) leads a talented young ensemble cast as Blest, a 19-year-old graffiti writer fresh out of high school with no ambition for the future. New York City is Blest’s playground. He spends his days stealing spray paint from local hardware stores – and his nights getting high and “bombing” the streets with his graffiti crew. He is the most wanted writer on the NYPD Vandal Squad’s hit list, and at the same time, is attracting attention from the local gallery scene.

But things quickly turn ugly when 15-year-old Lune, the youngest member of Blest’s crew, is arrested and brutalized by the NYPD. The crew retaliates by waging an all out “graffiti war” against the city: a war that ends up costing more than one life in the end.

Bomb the System is a true New York story – a cinematic poem dedicated to the art of graffiti, and to the city where it all began more than two decades ago.

Check out the ‘Bomb the System’ site.

Check out the ‘Quality of Life’ site.

Read an interview with the directors of ‘Bomb the System’ and ‘Quality of Life’.

No Comments

Nort, Recon, Huf pictures from San Francisco

03.JPG

Check out the pictures from San Francisco

No Comments

Kutmasta Kurt and Kool Keith

KKKKCrunkIndex.jpg

Read the New York Press interview with Kool Keith.

No Comments

A Site for Banner Ad Freaks

Tari Akpodiete has what might be called a mildly unnatural preoccupation with banner ads. For the last couple of years, she’s been copying just about every one she’s come across onto a website, and in the process has built what she believes is the largest collection of such ads in the world.

This month, the Toronto web designer decided to make that collection publicly available. And her site, Banner Report, has become at once a veritable banner ad museum and a tool where designers of new ads can investigate the countless styles that have been tried in the past.

“I thought it would be a good resource for creative types and people who might have an interest in that kind of thing,” Akpodiete said. “It has become a little bit obsessive, though.”

Perhaps, but the 15,000 banner ad samples she’s gathered do display a remarkable range of styles, features, dimensions and animation, all searchable by keyword, size and type. For designers involved in making the next generation of banners — an advertising medium often criticized as annoying and ineffective — more attractive and profitable, Akpodiete’s site may well be a gold mine.

“It gives designers a feel for what banners work and what doesn’t,” said Marque Guilbeault, the creative director of online marketing firm Contestix. “A lot of banner designs are based on the original site that (they are) representing. This can give designers creative ideas beyond just banner ads.”

Read more.

No Comments

RSS Attracts Really Serious Money

Really Simple Syndication is starting to attract some real money.

This is especially true after Technorati — one of the leading blog and Really Simple Syndication, or RSS, tracking services — acknowledged Monday it recently closed a multimillion-dollar round of venture capital funding. While Technorati’s haul is in and of itself impressive, it’s the expected ripple effect on other RSS technology developers that has some in the industry excited.

“I think this is clearly, in my opinion, the first of the many fundings you will see in the blog and RSS space,” said Om Malik, who broke the news about Technorati’s funding, which reportedly totaled $6.5 million, on his blog Monday. “Clearly, people are beginning to realize the impact of RSS. It’s changing the distribution of information.”

Over the last year or so, RSS has become one of the buzz terms most heard in blogging circles. It allows anyone to automatically receive free feeds from countless numbers of blogs and a growing number of news services.

Read more.

No Comments

Mobile Media Market Surges, Interactive Features Become Prevalent

by Ross Fadner

New data from Enpocket’s quarterly mobile marketing report, Mobile Media Monitor, shows that mobile phone ownership and usage continues to increase rapidly. The study’s findings reveal that 128 million US adults now use a mobile phone, and usage of different interactive mobile features like ringtones, games, and text messaging continues to surge.

Mobile phone penetration increased 8 percent from 53 to 61 percent in the third quarter, according to the results. Mobile, in general, is often thought of as a youth medium, but its highest penetration actually occurs in the 35-49 age group, where 7 out of 10 people have a mobile phone. Usage and income are also intertwined: 83 percent of those earning $75K or higher regularly use a mobile phone versus 38 percent among those who earn less than $20,000 per year.

Despite this, most mobile marketing initiatives are geared towards younger demographic segments. For example, on the strength of several interactive text messaging initiatives by major media companies, text messaging, received a quarter-over-quarter boost. Three percent of mobile phone owning adults have sent text messages to a TV show-more than double the tally from last quarter-and two percent of adults have sent text messages to a radio station, also more than double the second quarter figure.

In other key findings, Java and BREW mobile game downloads grew a whopping 75 percent quarter over quarter, from 4.4 million downloads in the second quarter to 7.7 million downloads in the third quarter. Mobile game downloads doubled quarter over quarter among 18-25 year old phone owners: in the second quarter, 11 percent of 18-25 phone owners were downloading games versus the third quarter, in which 22 percent downloaded games. For advertisers looking to penetrate this fast growing mobile segment, advergaming is a viable consideration point.

Read more.

No Comments

Sneaker Pimps NYC

sneaker_pimps_nyc.jpg

No Comments

xflashmobs.com

You can use SMS to create your own impromptu protest by using xFlashMobs. This site, a spin-off of plain ol’ flashmob.com, helps you devise and manage a list of people with SMS-enabled phones, who can then receive en masse instructions as to where to go-or stay away from-during a march.

Read more.

No Comments

Vandals from the movie, Thunderbirds

02a.jpg

Click here to peep the full “Thunderbird” Vandals collection.

No Comments

TXTmob.com

TXTmob is a service that lets you quickly and easily share txt messages with friends, comrades, and total strangers. The format is similar to an email b-board system. You can sign up to send and receive messages from various groups, which are organized around a range of different topics.

TXTMob was designed for use by protestors at the Democratic National Convention in Boston this summer. It is currently being revamped for use at the Republican National Convention in New York this August.

Read more.

No Comments

Mini – Make Your Own Robot

mini_robot.jpg

Check out the Mini robot configurator.

No Comments

1985 – Nike Skylark and Nike Penetrator Hi

nikeskylark-1.jpg


nikepenetratorhi-1.jpg

Check them out at deluded monkey.

No Comments

Know the Ledge

knowtheledge.jpg

Know The Ledge is here to keep you in the know about leftfield music and urban culture, with a focus on London and New York City.

Check out the site.

No Comments

Video jukebox (3 & BMG)

[from Trendcentral]

Video jukebox (3 & BMG): UK mobile network 3 and BMG have teamed up to create a subscription video jukebox service that will beam music videos to mobile phones. BMG has stated that various artists on its roster such as Justin Timberlake, Dido and OutKast, will air their latest videos on the 3’s video jukebox in advance, some 4-6 weeks before release date. At just £1.50 each, subscribers can stream the videos to watch once, or download the videos to their handsets to watch whenever they want. Beginning with 40 selections, 3 plans to add five new releases each week.

No Comments

Sneaker Art from peskyhumans.com

af_one_3_full_web.jpg

This piece, “Air Force One #3″, has been chosen for exhibition in the Sneaker Pimps Tour. This tour hits 55 cities all over the world, featuring the world’s foremost sneaker artists.

Check out his site.

No Comments

Mini Robot Viral Piece

mini_robot.bmp

Check out the mini robot site.

No Comments

Sneaker vending machine

reebokhome.jpg

The Daily News tries their hand, er, foot at a new sneaker vending machine at New York’s swank SoHo store Michael K. Originally debuted in Japan (of course), the Sneaker Vending Machine takes cash and dispenses a refrigerated Reebok Travel shoe in the size and color of your choosing for $60. We just want to know what happens if the shoes get stuck in the coil that drops the food into the bin.
[from engadget]

Also posted on Josh Rubin’s Cool Hunting site.

No Comments

Samurai FM from Japan

samuraifm.jpg

Listen now.

No Comments

SmallPlanet

SmallPlanet, a Los Angeles-based startup, created three location-based applications for mobile devices they are planning on rolling out sequentially

1. CrowdSurfer allows users to make the invisible connections that they may have to those around them.

2. DealSurfer –to be tested this Autumn, allows stores to send out (at up to 100 meters) discount opportunities or coupons via Bluetooth to users who have decided to turn on their CrowdSurfer application.

3. LineCutter is still under development. Using Bluetooth or WiFi from your mobile device, you could walk into, say, a fastfood, view the menu on your mobile screen, place an order and pay for it without waiting in line or having to go to the register.

No Comments