8 December 2012

Gothenburg 1913: Get That Camera Out of My Face!


Almost a hundred years ago an unknown filmmaker took to the streets of Gothenburg and just filmed the streets – upsetting at least one gentleman in the process. The city, founded in 1621 is the second largest in Sweden and so even a century ago its population was hardly what you could call provincial.  The Barber's Shop in the Village, the first-ever Swedish film drama had been released to acclaim in 1897 and by 1905 most Swedish towns had their own cinema.

Yet even though, when this found footage was made, eight years later – this was still new technology.  Although many Swedes were regular cinema goers they were not regular witnesses to filmmaking, particularly in the middle of a busy street.  So, the way that many of the men in this footage react (found by Anton Withagen), staring straight at the camera and engaging its operator in conversation, is not surprising: this would have been a huge novelty for them.

Most seem quite happy to be filmed but there is a point at 00:58 where one middle-aged gentleman (picture above), clearly unimpressed with the intrusion, pulls his tongue at the camera (it might even be that he is baring his false teeth, I’m not quite sure) while several youths happily wave their hats at the camera behind him.  What leaves a lasting impression on me, however, about this found footage is its incredible quality: it is after all almost 100 years old.  That, and just how dapper the people of Gothenburg were in 1913.

2 December 2012

The Girl and The Siren


A young girl lives, parentless, in a Swedish sea port. In order to survive she works in a tavern run by a vicious one-armed brute. Yet, surrounded as she is by a life full of drudge and casual cruelty the girl retains her imagination – not to mention ambition.  Unsurprisingly, given her upbringing, she wants nothing more than to be a pirate and join the sea-faring rogues on their adventures. Yet who will take a young girl seriously? 

One evening, however, a seagull comes crashing through her bedroom window and a chain of events is set in motion – one which will change her life forever.

If you are a fan of stop motion animation then you will love The Girl and the Siren, directed and animated by Jacob Petersson and Cristoffer Ålund with production credits going to Jakob Arevärn.  Don’t be put off by the length – seventeen minutes is long for an animated short but this is one which will, if you are like me, bring you in to the story right from the beginning.  Please, too, don’t be put off by the subtitles you see in the first minute – they lay the scene and the vast bulk of the action is wordless.

What did I particularly like about The Girl and the Siren? Pretty much everything, but the overall design stands out – meticulous and evoking a whole old but new world in its attention to detail.  It is also very difficult to invest puppets with emotion but it is so well done here, a small tilt of the head and an entire range of emotions is conveyed. Go make a coffee (or beverage of your choice), get yourself comfortable and just enjoy this beautifully crafted adventure.

27 November 2012

Memorize


It is the near future. The population have been implanted with chips which record their every move. Law enforcement officers can then see exactly what happened at the scene of a crime. One particularly grisly murder needs to be solved and our masked and silent protagonist tracks down the suspects one by one.

Memorize, written and directed by Eric Ramberg and Jimmy Eriksson is seriously cool. I wasn’t sure about it to begin with – it seemed to be so full of science fiction tropes that the territory upon which it treads was in danger of being just a little too familiar.

Yet that is one of its strengths – we are all fully conversant in its imagery and, considering its brevity, that means we know exactly where we are from the beginning. We can just settle in and enjoy the action – and as that constitutes 90% of the plot I’m happy.

Plus, it’s a gadget feature! The weapons effects are truly well done, particularly if you take in to account the fact that this short movie has (I suspect) a budget that doesn’t go anywhere near 5 figures. While many science fiction shorts go for the ethereal and fx-lite option, Memorize is packed with action and extremely well realised effects. Hats off to Ramburg and Eriksson.

Other shorts that are, like Memorize, shoot 'em up or chase 'em down movies sometimes fall in to the trap of focusing on the shooting and chasing with little regard to visual backstory, both in terms of realistic future technology and setting.  Memorize obviously has had a lot of thought go in to both.  

If you would like to learn more about this short movie and how it was made, then visit Ramberg and Eriksson's production blog - I particularly like the weapons and tech concepts they have on it.

28 November 2011

Close Encounters of the Swedish Kind

There doesn’t seem to be any sign of Klaatu, the ET or even a solitary Vulcan looking to make first contact. Yet this wood near the town of Harads in Sweden is home to something strange and out of this world. Have aliens finally landed? Perhaps it’s a reconnaissance party from the planet we humans have just discovered - Gliese 581g?

Nope. On closer inspection, the more down to earth nature of this mysterious saucer shaped object is revealed. Are those wires? Is that a stepladder? Both are needed, in fact, as this is not a visitor from another world but a hotel - or part of one.

The saucer is a new addition to Treehotel, the award winning alternative to four walls and a window. Unlike those who have (at least in fiction) managed to hitch a ride on a space ship, this one will be a little heavy on your wallet – you and a friend can stay there for about $US650 a night.

At least you get a hearty Swedish breakfast thrown in for good measure. If this was the real thing the most you could probably expect would be a probe in every orifice and an uncomfortable implant!

24 October 2011

French Post-it War Goes Global

It all started in July. As far as anyone can tell the first salvoes of the war came from the offices of Ubisoft in Montreuil, Paris, in late July. August is traditionally a quiet time for the workers of France, the employees of the French video developer must have had a little time on their hands.One of them, at least, came up with a plan to relieve the boredom.

They began to create images of iconic games and the associated characters – out of post-its – on the windows of their office. A single post-it became a pixel and soon there were post-it pictures on a number of their workers. The workers in the BNP banks across the road took this display of art d’ennui as something of a challenge. The staff their ‘retaliated’ with speed, returning the Ubisoft challenge with cartoons, 80s video games characters and street art.

This soon spread – as good ideas do – across France and soon the displays were becoming more elaborate.

Many thanks to Flickr User Geoslideshow (website here) for a photograph of perhaps the most elaborate of all. With the oxygen of publicity, slow at first, the war began to spread across Europe. It has now reached the United States. Before long the world should be fully engaged in the world’s first global post-it war. Until the workers become bored, that is, and move on to something else (some work, perhaps!).

 Sydney, Australia

Antwerp, Belgium

Arnhem, Netherlands

Hamburg, Germany

Brussels, Belgium

Stockholm, Sweden

San Francisco, California

Downtown Seattle, Washington
Many thanks to Kuriositas reader Jennifer Lankenau who emailed this in.

Have you taken part in the Great Post-it War of 2011 or seen a great example? Then send us your pic (and tell us where it was taken of course!) and we will include it here!

27 July 2011

The Big Yellow Rabbit of Örebro

A Big Yellow Rabbit has invaded a Swedish city.  There he is, above, relaxing in his new home. It may not be a surprise to hear, however, that this piece of installation art has split the local community down the middle. Yet love it or hate it, the Big Yellow Rabbit of Örebro in Sweden demands attention.

The town is in the middle of its annual open art festival and among many others this year it attracted Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman who already has something of a reputation for the sensation that his art creates. Made from wood and painstakingly constructed over a number of days, Hofman’s big yellow rabbit has attracted many fans.

It has, on the other hand, attracted the ire of some locals who resent the fact that the historic center of their town has been taken over by a fifty foot high, thirty foot long rabbit. They feel that the art on display should enhance Örebro and feel that the rabbit simply does not do that.  Plus it was pricey, costing US$20,000. It may not be my money but I think the Big Yellow Rabbit is huge fun (literally) and worth every krona.

The BYR (as perhaps we should call it!) will not be there forever – the festival lasts for a month and after that the rabbit will disappear from the town.  Until then the townsfolk have a new attraction to look forward to seeing every day or something to avoid for the duration.  At least the festival has 1,000 other (albeit smaller) exhibits from which to chose a favorite.

So, what do you think of the Big Yellow Rabbit? Let us know!