I have some new work in an art show curated by Regina Bresler. There’s an opening reception from 7-10pm tonight at 1501 Broadway in Brooklyn. I’ll be out of town for the opening, but check it out if you can.

Puppet shows are about to get a whole lot crazier thanks to Theo and Emily of design-io.com who created this great interactive puppet prototype using an Xbox Kinect and openFrameworks.

The follow-up to Alexis’s brilliant animated/claymation Video Musics is coming soon:

“Video Musics II: Sun Wu-Kong” is a one hour multimedia video opera based on the 16th century Chinese novel “The Journey to the West”. The project combines line drawing and watercolor animation as well as stop motion and claymation.

It has musical contributions from Rachel Blumberg (M Ward, Arch Cape), Cory Gray (Norfolk & Western, Carcrashlander), Shelley Short (Hush) as well as visual contributions from Cynthia Star (Coraline, Moral Orel, Robot Chicken), Becca Taylor (Punk Planet, Arthur) and Ezra Claytan Daniels (Darkhorse Comics, Top Shelf Comics).

The DVD/Vinyl release is on Africantape(EU) / Slowtrain(US) scheduled for fall 2010.

Michel Gondry’s newest music video for Mia Doi Todd’s ‘Open Your Heart’. After several years conceptualizing a video involving dozens of dancers wearing bright multi-colored outfits, Michel found a perfect fit with Mia’s tune. The music was produced and arranged by long-time friend and collaborator, Jon Brion and the video features the Riverside Community College Marching Band.

via stephanie whited

“This one time…” by Nelson Boles

Grizzly Bear’s new music video, by Allison Schulnik, is one of the greatest things I have ever seen. It’s so beautiful, strange, and haunting..

“With a traditional publisher, you go to stores and you try to read the book to audiences to sell it to them. Since I did this all myself I can do whatever I want. My idea was to read the book to as many kids as I could and for every book that I had already sold I wanted to give one away.”

You can read the whole book here.

Here’s nymag’s take:

Spectacular, visionary Swedish film unspools as a series of darkly comic vignettes—each taking place in a stylized, pastel-toned diorama-like set—shot with a nearly motionless camera. The resulting visuals are endlessly fascinating without feeling contrived or precious; it’s a fitting backdrop for the film’s ensemble of eccentrics, who put up with annoying everyday situations while tuba-heavy Dixieland jazz bubbles in the background.—nymag

For a hint of the feeling of the film, check out these two scenes:

You, The Living is playing through Tuesday, August 11th at the Film Forum.

2. Procrastination (2007): “Graduation film for MA in animation at the Royal College of Art. An investigative and exploratory hands–on gloves-off study into the practice of putting things ‘off’. Sometimes the only way to get something done is to do two dozen other things first.”

3. Shelly (2007): “the story of a lobster with a new-found love for music” based on a short story by David O’Doherty.

More Johnny Kelly:
Making of “The Seed”
mickeyandjohnny.com
Johnny Kelly on Flickr
Johnny Kelly on Vimeo

“Powers of Katsu”:

“The Powers of 10″:

More Powers of Scale:
Universcale by Nikon
Men in Black Power of 10 outro
The Simpsons Power of 10 intro

More Katsu:
Katsu on Flickr