Adolfo Farsari – The Man Who Shot Japan

In the 1880s at a time when most Europeans were denied access to the Japanese interior an Italian photographer managed to capture many images of Old Japan. These were then beautifully and realistically hand painted and serve as a remarkable record of a world long since disappeared.

If You Have Never Wanted to Visit Florence, You Will After You Watch This

Florence is considered one of the most beautiful cities in the world and once you have watched this you will understand why (that is, of course, if you are not already of that opinion).  Kirill Neiezhmakov, whose work we regularly feature on Kuriositas, has pulled off another genius timelapse/hyperlapse which takes in all the sites of Florence, a city simply brimming with churches, museums and palaces.

Skywalker vs Starkiller: A Star Wars Mashup

What might have happened if Luke Skywalker and R2D2 had been whisked through a wormhole, arriving 30 years in to the future.  Before them lies the Starkiller – already under attack from the resistance – and a huge battle lies ahead.  You may well ask what on Tatoine is going on but fear not.  This is another of Fabrice Mathieu’s amazing Star Wars mashups.  Let’s just hope the studio executives don’t see this and start getting ideas..!

The Amazing Longsheng Rice Terraces

Village elders have a saying in Longsheng: where there is soil there is a terrace. Two hours ride from the city of Guilin in Guanxi province the problem of growing rice on steep hills was long ago solved. From the Yuan Dynasty at the end of the thirteenth century the colossal task of terracing the Longsheng hills to provide a rice harvest began.

Image Credit Flickr User Mark Z

If You Have Never Wanted to Visit Budapest, You Will After Watching This

Budapest is the largest city in Hungary and its capital.  It is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe with a history that goes back to well before the Christian era.  This timelapse (with hyperlapse sections in there for good measure) was created by Sergey Tatarinov, a photographer from Moscow, Russia.  You can see why Forbes ranked Budapest as Europe’s 7th most idyllic place to live.

Hybris

Take a trip around a nature reserve with something of a difference: all the animals within its walls are hybrids.  Above you can see the killer whale penguin hybrid, just one of menagerie caught on camera by a pair of intrepid French journalists (in truth students at ArtFX). However, things do start to get a little worrying when their guide leaves them and they stray where they shouldn’t…

The Spotted Lake of Osoyoos

A short ride northwest of the small Canadian town of Osoyoos there is a body of water which has come to be known in English as Spotted Lake.  It is believed to be the most mineralized lake on the planet with 365 ‘circles’ – one for each day of the year – in a myriad of shapes, sizes and depths. It is an extraordinary natural phenomenon.

Image Credit Flickr User Bryanh

It is called by the Ki lil xw (pronounced Kliluk) by the Okanagan, one of the aboriginal peoples in Canada collectively called the First Nations.  For them, it is a sacred medicine lake and their people have been coming to the lake in search of cures for various ailments for centuries.  There are hundreds of ceremonial cairns surrounding the lake, many of which are so old that they have been buried by time.

The Sim Chung Story

This is a rather lovely animated version of a traditional Korean myth.  It tells the story of a dutiful daughter, Sim Chung, whose mother died when she was young and whose father is blind.  Promised that his life will be restored if she sells herself to sailors for sacrifice, Sim Chung does so and as she hits the waves her adventures are barely beginning.

You do have to bear with the first minute or so of this animated short by M9 as it does take time to tell the story before the full visual treat gets underway.  But do stick with it – the underwater sequences are quite lovely.  Plus the denizens of the deep put Gershwin to good use!

Bismuth: Beautiful Diamagnetic Chemical Element

Until the 18th century it was often mistaken for tin or lead. Yet once refined in to its purest form it becomes a thing of great beauty. About twice as abundant as gold, the chance are you have come unwittingly in to contact with it if you have ever had a minor digestive upset. As a bismuth oxide core structure with salicylate ions attached to the surface (uh huh) you probably know it as Pepto-Bismol. What you see here is the chemical element bismuth in crystalline form.

Image Credit Flickr User Karasaw1024

Paris Hyperlapse

The time-lapse is dead, long live the hyperlapse!  This is perhaps not a completely truthful statement but one which could be argued over a glass of wine or two.  And where better to do that than the city of lights, Paris?  This remarkable hyperlapse by Kirill Neiezhmakov shows the city in all its spectacle.

The video shows some of the best examples I have seen of the hyperlapse techniques which involves moving the camera while still shooting at a speed normally associated with time-lapse.  It’s a new(ish) technique and one that has been evolving at some speed recently - Neiezhmakov and his ilk are comfortably taking it to the next level with some huge, sweeping shots that make you wonder exactly how they were done.  They  certainly make me scratch my head.  Have a gawp and see if you can work it out yourself.

Sprout

A woman decides that she wants a child and goes about getting one in quite an unconventional way.  She decides to go mail order and grow one in a plant pot.  Although this is not quite what one might expect to have delivered using Amazon et al, this animated short by Anne Breymann could prove one day to be a cautionary tale!  Be careful if you were going to click the play button expecting a happy ending!

Polaroid

Is it the things that you can’t see that terrify you the most?  Perhaps you had better not watch this, then, for there are ways to see behind the corner of your eye in to a different world.  Written, produced and directed by Joey Greene this is not for the faint-hearted especially if you are not a big fan of those made me jump and I’m still clinging to the ceiling by my fingernails moments.

Spain on the Edge

For many, Spain is and forever will be associated with its beautiful coastline and beaches and that is certainly where most tourists head.  However, there is an altogether steeper side to this larger than you might have thought country on the Iberian Peninsula.  This is Spain on the edge.

Image Credit Flickr User Maldarama

Our first stop is Malaga to the town of Ronda which dates back to Neolithic times.  The town of over thirty thousand people is built either side of a dizzying ravine.  There are three bridges which span the gap between the sides.  First there is the Puente Romano or Roman Bridge. There is the Puente Viejo or Old Bridge, and then comes the Puente Nuevo (New Bridge – which is the name it was given when it was completed in 1793).

I Am Here

Alone in an aging cosmos, a traveler's pilgrimage comes to an end.  He has a story to tell but who to tell it to at the end of time and space?

This enigmatic animated short was created by Eoin Duffy, whose work we have featured a number of times on Kuriositas.

Stick with it to the end…

The Last Time

Have you just quit smoking or are on the verge of giving up? Then this is for you.  One woman struggles with trying to finish with cigarettes forever but, like some sort of destructive relationship, she is just drawn towards them again and again (and includes some strong language).  The Last Time, directed by RCA graduate Christine Hooper and narrated by Charlotte Ritchie of Fresh Meat fame, captures just how hard it is for smokers to stub out love’s flame.

Mistletoe – Festive Favorite on the Decline

Kissing under the mistletoe has been a tradition since Victorian times in England and before that in other countries. When the railway arrived in the UK, this yuletide habit spread from southern England to the north and beyond. The chances are if you are offered a seasonal kiss then the person making the offer may well be waving a bunch of it over your head.

Image Credit Flickr User Rhian vK

The legends around mistletoe go back further than a few centuries – it has always been associated with fecundity and the winter solstice. The white fruit has a parallel with human reproduction which is impossible to avoid – and one of its favorite hosts, the apple tree, is also a favorite among people.

Amazing Aerial Tramways of the World

Highest

Let’s start with the highest. To do that we must go to Venezuela and the Cableway of Merida. This is a system of four aerial tramways that connect the city of Merida with Tip Mirror. The tramway itself goes from 1640 meters to 4765 meters and that makes it both the highest and longest tourist aerial tramway in the world. The views from the cabins are almost like being in a plane.

Image Credit Flickr User blmurch

Strange how most people do not mind being enclosed in what, according to physics, is not much more than a navigated catapult – that is a passenger plane. However, a good percentage of those who will blithely escape to the sun in a 747 will not step on to an aerial tramway, suspended at most a few hundred meters above the ground, for fear of their lives. However, even though aviation is much safer than many other forms of transport, being a passenger in an aerial tramway is, in turn, safer than being taking a flight in a plane.

Beyond

Here’s something that is visually stunning but so open to interpretation you can make of what you will (and I love it when storytelling is clever enough – or perhaps vague enough – to allow for that).  This is a self-initiated project by EGYD Studio.  The visuals are amazing and I have to add that my speakers had a lot of fun with the sound design too.  Altogether, Beyond is something to watch with the lights off and the sound up!

Moon Hill: The Hill with a Hole Through It

The Chinese province of Guangxi, on the border of Vietnam, is renowned throughout the world for the beauty of its karst landscapes.  One of the more unusual features the province has to offer is Moon Hill.  It has a large semi-circular hole which goes right through it.

As such it struck the imagination of those who first came across it and it has been forever known as Moon Hill.

Image Credit Flickr User yeowatzup

Sweet Sugar Candyman

Paris, 1900 – but not quite as we remember it from the black and white photos!  It is a world brimming with color and populated by candy people.  However, their sweet life is interrupted when a crazy anarcho-gumdrop disturbs the peace. His new goal: destroy the Eiffel Tower.  This wonderful animated short was created by Camille Haumont, Michaël Mac, Audrey Mille and Julie Vanandrewelt during their studies at Supinfocom Rubika.

Masterpiece

You might well understand this if you have a friend who is an artist.  In this short film by DessyMak Productions, the artist in question invites his non-artist friends for a sneak preview of the project he has completed for his university master’s degree.  It isn’t quite what they expect and they try to find ways to interpret the masterpiece they see before them.  This short movie is as much about the nature of friendship than that of modern art and has a low-key charm all of its own.  Masterpiece was written and directed by Runyararo Mapfumo.

Haw Par Villa – Unusual Singapore Theme Park

In 1937 two brothers from Singapore had a dream – they wanted to help people to learn, remember and pass on traditional Chinese values as expressed through myth, legend and the tenets of Confucianism.  They already had a small venue – the Tiger Balm - but wanted to broaden the appeal to a wider audience.  So was born the idea of extending the place to incorporate a garden in which Chinese legends would come to life.

Image Credit Flickr User Gruntzooki

Let the monkey warn you, however.  If you are of a nervous disposition, perhaps it is time to consider whether you wish to continue on this particular journey.

If You Have Never Wanted to Visit Northwestern China, You Will After You Watch This

Gansu Province is located in the northwestern China. To the west of Lanzhou and west of the Yellow River is the famous "Hexi Corridor," an important strategic passage on the ancient Silk Road stretching to the west. This area abounds in rich historical and cultural heritage, including grottoes, ancient buildings and other cultural relics.  This amazing film was made by Luciano Bosticco.

Fox and the Whale

A inquisitive fox goes in search of a mysterious, elusive whale in this enigmatic animated short, directed and produced by Robin Joseph.  If you are fond of your metaphors then you will find any number of them within this curiosity.  Frankly I am not quite sure what to make of it but I do know this – it’s gorgeously made and leaves an impression.  I’m in particular awe of the backgrounds – just exquisite.

Tightrope Walking – The Great Mid-Air Gamble

Did you know that the proper term for tightrope walking is funambulism? The first syllable says it all really – fun – but perhaps only for those who participate in this dangerous activity. It is definitely a gamble walking the tightrope. However, as you can see from many of these photos, those who take that gamble and walk across the wide open spaces on only a rope seem to enjoy the experience very much.

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Of course, that leaves the rest of us on the ground looking up, emotions a strange mix of awe and dread, as these brave souls traverse the distance from one point of safety to another.  People have been doing this for thousands of years – in fact the term funambulism is Latin in its roots.  However, it was never considered enough of a sport to be considered as an Olympic event – neither in the way back when or in modern times (which is something of a shame, don’t you think?).

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There have also been periods in history when rope-walkers were actively discriminated against.  In Post-Roman France they were forbidden to tightrope in the vicinity of churches.  This doesn’t seem much of a loss until you realise that traveling fairgrounds always pitched up as near to the largest building in a town or village as possible and this was almost inevitably the local church.  So, this was effectively a ban on the activity.

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However, there were times in history when tightrope walkers received the acclaim that they deserved and often became famous.  There were rope walkers at the coronations of many European monarchs including one at the investiture of Queen Isabeau of France in 1389.  This particular rope walker went from the spires of the cathedral to the tallest house in the city.  One can only imagine what was going through his mind as he traversed his dizzying route – what sort of bad omen would it have been, in the minds of the medieval onlookers, had he fallen?

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Yet tightrope walkers persevered and there was even a tradition at the Venice Carnival for an acrobat to walk between Saint Mark’s bell tower and the Piazza.  Yet it wasn’t long before they were once again associated with a criminal element and in the England of the 1700s they were looked upon with some suspicion (although it has to be said that most of those involved in the performing arts were considered immoral by the very choice of their profession).

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Swings and roundabouts – by the 19th and 20th centuries the reputation of tightrope walkers was once again untainted and they were able to pursue fame in their own inimitable if breath-taking way.   They would often appear in casinos, walking the rope high above the gamblers below – one can only wonder if there was any irony intended…

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Entire families would emerge as tightrope stars, including the Wallandas (above) who continue to this very day – in to the seventh generation of tightrope walkers.  Although this intergenerational gambling with the lives of an entire family might seem to be risk-taking taken to a ridiculous degree, the fact that they have persevered through seven generations says an awful lot about their natural or even innate skills.  As you can see from these pictures, bravery can often be associated with a sense of fun and perhaps therein lies the secret of the tightrope walker.  They really do keep the fun in funambulism!

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Radiation Therapy Explained for Kids

Radiation therapy is a frightening enough prospect for anyone but for kids it can be particularly daunting. Trunk Animation have created this lovely animation for the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation as part of their Imaginary Friends Society project (over 20 shorts created to explain scary medical issues to children).  I am quite sure that this, as well as the other films, will be much appreciated not only by the young uns but adults too.  Bravo.

The Story of Martin Luther

He has had to wait about 500 years, but finally Martin Luther gets his own animated short!  Produced by Tumblehead Animation Studio, this tells how Luther questioned the way that the established church did things and before long created a schism which had both immediate and long-lasting repercussions for not just Europe but the world in general.  As this is ‘completely and utterly accurate’ let this be your history lesson for the day!

Africa’s Unique Volcano: Ol Doinyo Lengai

For countless generations, the Maasai people of Tanzania have called the active volcano which dominates their landscape Ol Doinyo Lengai. The name translates as the Mountain of God.  Yet on the day Eng’ai, one of the gods of the Maasai, created this volcano she must have been in an unusual state of mind. Where most volcanoes spew lava which is rich in silicate materials, Ol Doinyo Lengai is different: very different.

Image Credit Flickr User CW Anderson

Image Credit Flickr User Ric Lander

Among all the active volcanoes in the world, Ol Doinyo Lengai is unique.  Its yield of lava is natrocarbonatite in nature. In other words, its mineralogical composition consists of greater than 50 percent carbonate minerals.  A carbonatite is a type of igneous rock more often enveloped in other formations and does not usually make it to the surface on its own.  It is often mistaken for marble. Although there are other examples of natrocarbonatite volcanoes in the world, all but Ol Doinyo Lengai are extinct.  If you want to see a truly different volcano, this is the one to put on the bucket list.

Wind

If you live in a windy place you might find yourself nodding in agreement at the sight of the daily lives of these people living in possibly the windiest place on the planet!  They might seem helplessly exposed to the weather. However, the inhabitants have learned to deal with their difficult living conditions. The wind creates a natural system for living.  Wind was directed by Robert Löbel.

Ex Libris

Thank goodness the fine art of gently paced, slow burn film-making is not dead. Not a single dead body or visual effect to be seen here. Yet down in the depths of the library passions are running high and an illicit relationship plays out among the books. Iris and Thomas embark on a doomed love affair but how can desire, pain, anger and sadness be expressed in the confines of a library? Ex Libris is directed by Jim and Jimmy of Long Arm Films.

The short film stars two very talented and versatile Welsh actors. If you are a regular reader of Kuriositas then you will probably recognize Robert Pugh (Thomas) from his roles in Game of Thrones, Doctor Who and Torchwood. Melanie Walters is perhaps best known for her role of Gwen West in the BBC comedy Gavin and Stacey but has also appeared in numerous British TV series as well as the movie Submarine.

The Horniman Museum Butterfly House

Our sibling site, the Ark in Space, today has a feature about the new Horniman Museum Butterfly House in London.  Whether or not you can make it there, you will still be able to enjoy the photographs of the new exhibition and it’s wonderful, free-flying residents.  The butterfly house only opened a few weeks ago so here is your chance to take a peek at London’s newest exciting attraction.   With over thirty species of butterfly flying around there are a few rules visitors have to follow in order not to squish the butterflies.  You can read more about them and take a look at the pictures over at the Ark in Space.

Why Do Some Male Orangutans Have a Flange While Others Do Not?

It might not have been keeping you awake at night but here’s a question.  Why do some male orangutans have a flange – that big flap of skin around their faces – while others don’t? The answer is we probably know the why but only possibly the how.  The Ark in Space has the story, and yes – it is all about the passing on of genes but there's more.  Even if you have a flange, as an orangutan you still would not be out of the woods (which, if they could speak, would probably not be the idiom they would use as generally, they seem to like being in the woods…).

Image Credit LK-GA