Shrouded in a dark cloak of mystery and brimming with surreal special effects, Pan’s Labyrinth is a magical fairytale set in Spain after the Civil War. I had the pleasure of seeing parts of it the other day and it really is a beautifully shot movie, hauntingly atmospheric and completely engrossing. The synopsis is simple: ‘Recently remarried Carmen moves with her daughter Ofelia into the house of her new husband, coldly authoritarian Vidal, a captain in Francois army. Finding her new life hard to bear, the young girl seeks refuge in a mysterious labyrinth she discovers next to the sprawling family house. Pan, the guardian, a magical creature, reveals that she is none other than the long-lost princess of a magical kingdom. To discover the truth, Ofelia will have to accomplish three dangerous tasks, tasks which nothing has prepared her to face’. And so the story unfolds. Full of layers and unexpected twists, the film is directed by Guillermo del Toro, who considers it to be his most accomplished achievement to date. And thanks to our friends at Hopscotch we have fifteen double passes to give away for special advance screenings of the movie in Sydney between Friday Jan 12th and Sunday Jan 14th. To be in with a chance of winning, email your full name and mailing address details to marc [at] hopscotchfilms.com.au with ‘Lost At E Minor’ in the subject field.
Also by ZOLTON
Maths explains the origin of superhero characters
I love the colours and simple reasoning in this clever series by Scottish illustrator Matt Cowen, which uses basic maths equations to explain how certain pop culture icons came to be. Read more
Star Wars Uncut: a fully crowdsourced version of Episode IV
The project of creative technologist, Casey Pugh, this full length version of the George Lucas masterpiece was created from multiple 15 second segments recreated from the original movie and submitted by thousands of Star Wars fans, which were then spliced together by editor Aaron Valdez to form the final product. Genius, as both a commentary on contemporary pop culture trends (there are references to LEGO, stop motion, memes and the like) and on the power of tapping your audience for quality material.
Filmmaker creates LEGO stop motion to propose to girlfriend
Now, this is one for the ages: back in 2010, Atlanta film-maker Walter Thompson created a jaw-dropping LEGO stop motion to propose to Nealey Dozier, his girlfriend of four years. The video took 22 hours of shooting and some 2,600 pictures to splice together, a small sacrifice to pay for years of happiness together. Right? Right! Oh, and she said yes. Bonus.
YOU'RE SAYING (2)
Nat said | 21 December, 2006
PS I really like this Lost at E Minor banner, the Ruben one. Awesome.
HAVE YOUR SAY
We checked in recently with illustrator Josh Cochran and asked him how he kept the creative process fresh and stimulating, despite producing so much new work: ‘I try hard to keep pushing new ideas in my work. Of course, there are often times when I feel tired and stale and produce work that isn’t that isn’t challenging. Generally, though, I try to keep building on things I’ve accomplished in my work. To me, that’s what keeps my work consistent as well gives me room to grow. After a while a certain direction will feel boring to me and I’ll start pushing out to try something different’. Read more
I read Bill Bryson’s A Short History of Nearly Everything and emerged out the other end even more confused about what really happened than before. So thank you College Humor and Mark Zuckerberg for simplifying what was evidently a most complex period of time. Read more
The philosophy of a beginning is to me, a wonderful concept. I really enjoy flicking through the back catalogues of a musician and discovering their origin, then tracing their musical journey to the present. So for American-born, Paris-based sister duo CocoRosie, who released their third album The Adventure of Ghosthouse and Stillborn to much acclaim, making the trip to their beginnings is more than worth the journey: their debut album, Le Maison de Mon Reve (released back in 2004) was a gentle stroll through their pop and classical influences, which melt together seamlessly into a backdrop for their unique and enchanting voices.
We’re smitten (kitten) by the look of the new Standard Hotels’ Pendleton blankets, which were designed by the artists Geoff McFetridge and Chris Johanson. Composed of 82 per cent pure virgin wool and 18 per cent cotton, only 40 of each blanket design have been made. Read more
We have a thumping track by Chicago-based rocker Tom Fuller [above] available for free download in the Music Download section of Lost At E Minor (pssst, it’s in third column of the site), along with new tracks by Five O’Clock Heroes, Fujiya & Miyagi, and Madlib. Read more
The sound New Zealand band The Brunettes make is Hallmark card pop — naïve sincerity mixed with low-fi, casual kitsch. Says chief songwriter, Jonathan Bree: ‘You’ll find us somewhere between US punk and just before classic 60s romps’. And so we will.
Australian-born creative, Marc Newson, is considered to be one of the most influential designers of the past few decades. Having originally studied jewellery and sculpture at Sydney College of the Arts, ‘he started experimenting with furniture design as a student and, after graduating in 1984, was awarded a grant from the Australian Crafts Council, and staged an exhibition — featuring the Lockheed Lounge — at the Roslyn Oxley Gallery in Sydney’. Read more
WE'RE POSTING / SOME OF THE BEST
Michelle Blade’s psychedelic artwork
Michelle Blade’s washed out paintings are deceptively simple, her washy acrylics creating psychedelic textures and conjuring ghostly figures from the past. Read more
Pencils made from recycled newspaper
The problem with awesome things like these pencils made out of recycled newspaper is that you almost don’t want to use them.
Never ever, ever, ever, ever park here
Some friendly advice for the neighbours, who simply don’t get it, or street art? You decide which one it is.
A little infectious lollipop rock anyone? Feel free to embarrass yourself singing along at the stoplight. If the other drivers give you that look, roll down the windows and spread the love.
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Benjamin Edminston’s psychedelic heads seem to have some fearful wisdom behind their blissed-out eyes. Read more
Inside this sea urchin shell is an organic perfume made from grapefruit and basil essential oils. This bottle, designed by Stephanie Simek, is refillable and is packaged in a wooden box decorated with a satin photograph and padded with slices of exfoliating loofah sea sponges. The Honeymoon-themed fragrance is all natural: made from plant-based oils and contains no alcohol or chemicals. We like. Read more
If you have a Twitter feed that focuses on cool pop cultural things and you’d like to swap Tweets with Lost At E Minor and other like-minded Twitterers, drop us a note (with Tweet Swap in the title). We have a system in place and we’d like to have you in on it! [illustration by Brad Fitzpatrick]
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Nat said | 21 December, 2006
Psha. Like, I saw Eragon the other day and it was like, totally the best movie ever. Dragons rule! I kid, I kid. Eragon totally sucked. Dragons are lame. But this movie looks rad and FREE STUFF RULES!!! Onya Z-trip. Yay!