Archive for May, 2010

Animated Documentary Compilation Available From A Million Movies a Minute

PORTLAND, Oregon (May, 2010) – A Million Movies a Minute, an independent distributor specializing in short documentaries, has announced its newest release, ANIMATING REALITY. This 13 film collection includes award-winning animated short documentaries by filmmakers from Sweden, the Netherlands, Japan, Australia, France, Finland, Canada, Belgium and the United States.

“Many people think of documentaries as simply conveying information—a dowdy, overly educational experience,” said Erin Donovan, founder of A Million Movies a Minute. “By adding a layer of abstraction, these filmmakers have found a way to convey profound emotional experiences.”

The films of ANIMATING REALITY also represent the wide spectrum of new and old animation techniques including stop-motion, claymation, flash, sketch, hand-painted watercolor, multimedia collage, manipulated archive footage and rotoscoping.

The films in ANIMATING REALITY represent a broad spectrum of both contemporary documentary filmmaking and the possibilities of the animated form:

•    Yoriko Murakami’s Talking About Amy explores the life and work of Japanese pop artist Emi Iijima while she resided in the States.
•    Corrie Francis’s Conversing with Aotearoa explores the way New Zealanders are coping with technological encroachment despite a deep sense of connection to the country’s natural beauty.
•    In Blue, Karma, Tiger, co-directors Mia Hulterstam and Cecilia Actis interview three young, female graffiti artists.
•    Samantha Moore’s The Beloved Ones is an intimate portrait of two African women living with the repercussions of AIDS.
•    Davina Pardo revisits one of her famous father’s unfinished animations in Birdlings Two.
•    In The Last Words of Dutch Schultz, Gerrit van Dijk presents an abstract interpretation of a gangster’s final words (voiced by Rutger Hauer) from his deathbed.
•    In Jeanne Paturle’s and Cécile Rousset’s One Voice, One Vote, two strangers come together on the eve of a major election to discuss their personal connection to voting.
•    In Learned by Heart, Marjut Rimminen and Paivi Takala explore the secret history of Finland’s post-WWII legacy.
•    In Sold Out Marie José van der Linden and Gerrit van Dijk depict a day in the life of a family of shopkeepers as a big box store looms.
•    In A Shift in Perception, Dan Monceaux gives three recently blinded women the opportunity to illustrate how their lives have changed.
•    Maya Yonesho presents a micro-history of architectural destruction and creation in Vienna with Wiener Wuast.
•    Emily Bissland’s In the Same Boat tells the story of the unlikely friendship between a racist Vietnam War vet and an Iraqi refugee who meet while hospitalized.
•    Eric Ledune’s Do It Yourself is a wildly funny take on a found CIA manual’s step-by-step instructions on how to torture and kill.

Each of these films has been screened at hundreds of festivals, and all have been honored with numerous prestigious awards. A complete list is available at:http://millionmoviesaminute.com/AnimaFests.html

Available on DVD at:
http://www.buyolympia.com/q/Item=animating-reality

Also available on Amazon VOD for rent or sale:
http://www.amazon.com/Animating-Reality-collection-short-documentaries/dp/B003FM8Q74/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=digital-video&qid=1271280458&sr=8-1

Apple leads the way in education people on how technology can change  our lives.  Google follows behind them and shows the people how doing the same thing with an open platform is a truly an amazing option.

Google has been stacking its deck in a very similar way apple did. Apple Had iTunes that it used to help sell iPods. Then Apple had the iTunes music store that soon opened up to a movie store and now a rental store. Now people don’t just buy apple products because of the products they buy them because they work with the Music/Movie story they have already invested tons of money in to.

Google’s starting point gives it a different take on the world. Its trying to sell search. A market which it already dominates. Then moved on to free web e-mail and free web office apps. They also branched out to a free way to share home brew video content online. They have recently build a movie rental store into youtube. They create an unique user experience by not tying you to any one devise and instead gives you a single log-in to all your devices. At least thats what their plan for the future is.

With Google TV you would login to your g-mail and now you can get your e-mail on your TV, watch your favorite online content, rent and by movies, chat, shop, and do all your other things you need and want all from any of your device. Apple’s and Googles ideas for the future technology seem to be very similar but their view of how the world should work is very different.

This consumer agrees a little with both companies but mainly with Google.

I saw this video and knew I had to share it.