Stephen Fry Kinetic Typography - Language

Brilliant Flash animation from Alan Becker

This brilliant animation from Alan Becker makes use of all the tools in Flash in new ways.

WHERE GOOD IDEAS COME FROM by Steven Johnson

Helping to set a World Record

I've been busy working with a friend of mine on a big idea. The idea was to have his band, Quickie, play 40 venues in 1 day! The idea came from promoter Ted Walker, but it was no easy task to execute. In fact, we wanted to do it in June... July... August... But it all came together in September, with a total of 44 total shows played. Goes to show you what you can accomplish with an idea, a plan, passion, drive & teamwork

Here's a recap from our official press-release:

"Bikini Barista" Band sets World Record!

Seattle's Quickie plays 44 shows in 1 day!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PRLog (Press Release) – Oct 02, 2010 – Seattle pop-punk band Quickie has set a World Record by playing 44 shows in a single day! Billed as the “40 Quickies in One Night” tour, the exhausting stunt had the band dragging their equipment from door to door, city to city, to perform a single song at each venue. The effort attracted the interest of local media, as well as the diverse communities of the greater Seattle area.

“The response has been fantastic and really helped motivate us to keep going,” confesses bass-player and Quickie front man Lou Trez. “Playing 44 clubs from Everett to Lake City to Fremont to Pioneer Square—in one day-- will give you a great snapshot of where we live. This is our story, but it became clear early on that it was their story too.”

In Lake City, Quickie were welcomed with thunderous applause by the enthusiastic Rimrock crowd, who even created a banner in honor of the band’s visit to the self-proclaimed ‘dive bar.’ “Quickie #16,” they bragged.

At Mr. Villa’s Mexican restaurant, the concerned staff offered up chips, salsa and much needed water for the thirsty band, driver and roadies.

Quickie played Tony V’s in Everett, and Tony himself followed the band from show to show, along with a television news camera-crew.

And at 11 o’clock last night, street-corner hot-dog vendor Pedro greeted the band by saying “we’ve been waiting for you!”

The band fell a little behind on the journey, as you might expect. Regretfully, Quickie missed their window at popular rock club El Corazon. Monkey Pub, Galway Arms, Lucid and Club Motor were also dropped to get the band back on track to its promised final performance at the Central. “We always called it the 40 Quickies in One Night tour, and we delivered 44 shows,” says Trez. “Pretty damn good. And a new World Record!”

Not a bad investment for Zipfizz and Cowgirls Espresso, either. The companies helped sponsor the event, resulting in free t-shirts, cd’s and product samples along the tour route.

The guys had gotten plenty of rehearsal in by the time they hit the stage at the historic Central, Seattle’s oldest saloon and host to Nirvana, Alice in Chains and other Northwest icons. “We played a longer set there… I don’t know… six or seven songs. Great audience! We could’ve played longer, but our drummer fell asleep. (laughs) I’m kidding! It was a crazy day, but we did it!”

The next step is to submit the documentation to Guinness for consideration in their record book. And after that? “I guess we’ve got to come up with something, right? Oh, hey—I just got an idea!”

Here is a list of all of the shows Quickie performed on September 30th, 2010:

1. Bob Rivers Show (Bob’s last broadcast on KZOK)

2. Finn Mc Cools

3. Race Car Cafe

4. Scarlet Tree (Acoustic)

5. Little Red Hen

6. Zippys

7. Sidekicks

8. Tracey’s

9. Tony V's

10. Hayleys

11. The Anchor

12. Madison Pub

13. Flight

14. Baxter’s

15. El Norte

16. Rimrock

17. Backdoor

18. Mr Villa

19. Dante’s

20. Fuel

21. Temple Billiards

22. Seattle Historic Triangle Tavern

23. The Little Red Studio

24. The Red Door

25. The Hard Rock Cafe

26. The Ballroom

27. Ballard Loft

28. Rendevous

29. JuJu

30. Shorty’s

31. Lava Lounge

32. Funhouse

33. Owl & Thistle

34. Tost 8:00pm

35. Dubliner

36. Linda’s

37. The Garage

38. Belltown Billiards

39. J & M Cafe

40. New Orlean's

41. Merchant Cafe

42. The Central

43. Amani

44. King Kat

# # #


Quickie is an independant pop-punk trio from Seattle, Washington. Their music has appeared in movies and television, including the CW's hit series The Vampire Diaries.
Quickie made national headlines with their viral song and video "Bikini Barista."

Crazy Caricatures

Terrific 'funhouse mirror' style caricatures. Many look almost real, even though they are exaggerated and skewed.

PORTRATIS

Twitter Movie Trailer: Rated Awesome

Smart and funny parody of 'The Social Network' trailer.

Apple iAd partners say they're happy with early results

Apple iAd partners say they're happy with early results

Auto-Tune the News

The makers of Auto-Tune the News admit that the vocal effect has become  something of a "broken record," which is what makes it ripe for parody. Check out this behind-the-scenes look at some smart, funny and very talented people.



Then take a look at and, perhaps more importantly, listen to a recent episode of Auto-Tune the News.



I think these guys should be working for John Stewart. What do you think?

Inspiring, Provocative Ads

Some truly great 'guerilla marketing' campaigns. A few go too far over the line, even for me, but it's worth sharing the majority of these gems. Enjoy!

"Dice" TV spot for Northern Quest Casino

Here are a trio of commercials from Hanna & Associates for the Northern Quest Casino in Eastern Washington. I think they did a terrific job with the creative, and I'm proud to play one of the die in the second spot. I'm the guy who gets the last punchline in.

Keep an eye out for the ad during Mariner games on FSN.

By the way, if you ever find yourself near Spokane, check out the Northern Quest Casino in Airway Heights. Among other things, it's got a sportsbar with the games projected onto the biggest screen I've ever seen in a sportsbar!

The Other White Meat

Great blog about the pork industry's decision to abandon their long running tag line 'the other white meat,' and why doing so is a mistake!

Great refresher on Branding 101 as well!

Visit Blog Notions here to read the story.

Best,

Dan

Ralph Bakshi's fractured, forgotten film

I loved Ralph Bakshi when I was a teen. I guess I was turned on by the rotoscoped animation in the Lord of the Rings, and with the crude humor and drama of Fritz the Cat. I've never seen Hey, Good Lookin' or Harlem Nights (I'll refrain from using the producer's-not Bakshis-offensive, revamped title), but I just stumbled upon a great article about Bakshi and the traumatic time he had making these films. Looks like I'm going to have to hunt for the DVD's so I can see them for myself.

If you're unfamiliar with Bakshi, I recommend Fritz the Cat, the Lord of the Rings, and Wizards.

Social Marketing (great video!)

Terrific video presentation on social-marketing brought to my attention by Dave Courvosier.

Somebody to Love by Spike & the Impalers

Seattle's Bob Rivers Show has become my favorite morning radio program. A truly rare and special group of talented people who inform and entertain like no other show I've heard. A typical day might literally include a rocket scientist and a Playboy centerfold. So it really is like 'NPR on steroids,' as they proclaim.

The video up top is a great example of why these guys are above the rest.

A lot like you. A little different.

If you live outside of Washington State, you’ve probably never heard these terrific ads for Pemco Insurance. They are well-written, spot-on caricatures of Northwest residents. “We’re a lot like you,” they claim, “a little different.”

Bikini Barista

There is a lot I could write about in this blog. Writing. Voice-acting. Production. They all pay the bills. But I’ve got something else on my mind…bikinis.

Voice 2010 (June 2nd thru the 5th in L.A.)

VOICE 2010, an international conference for voice-over professionals, is fast approaching. The red-carpet rolls out on Wednesday, June 2nd at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel. Classes begin the next day. It doesn’t matter if your niche is voicing commercials, promos, cartoons or corporate-videos; there is something for everyone at this event.

I’m going there to learn from the masters, and hopefully make some new friends. Already on my ‘to do’ list:

• Pat Fraley’s class on comedy 
• Kristine Oller’s presentation on organizing your time for maximum career results 
• Nancy Wolfson’s tutorial is called ‘The Best Booking Secret F*$#king Ever!’ A provocative teaser by one of the best known coaches I’ve encountered in my research on the web. Nancy has a stellar reputation. I look forward to learning why firsthand.
• MJ Lallo’s class on ‘Kick Ass Characters.’ MJ is a respected coach who co-wrote the book ‘Voice-Over for Animation’; a helpful guide that should be a text-book for any class on the subject.
• Joe Cipriano’s Promo Panel. I imagine we’ll be able to finally put a face with some very familiar voices. Deep voices. Voices that make you want to listen to Today’s Hit Music! Watch an all-new Two-and-a-Half Men! Test drive the all-new Audi! And not miss out! Not my niche, but I’m a radio guy and I wouldn’t miss this for the world.

There are many other classes and speakers that I’d like to see (or see again), including Bob Bergen and Deb Munro, but workshops overlap and I’ve focused my attention to the above list. You can find a full schedule of events here and customize your own itinerary. I hope to see you there! (seriously—say hi if you recognize my mug)

Best,

Dan

Allow me to introduce...myself.

Hi! Thanks for checking out my blog. I figure an introduction is in order before we get started with the fuel-injected, caffeine-enriched good stuff. My name is Dan Roberts. I’m a voice-actor, writer and producer working in radio, animation and video.