AMERICAN ON VINE

After the initial buzz surrounding the launch peaked a few weeks back, I recently downloaded the Vine app for my iPhone 4GS, and quickly became obsessed with the new realm of creating / sharing six second clips in the same manner that I fell in love with Instagram (and twitter... and facebook... and blogging for that matter).

In a world where it seems like there is a new social media app-of-the-moment every few months, most people are resistant to adopting yet another platform into their already robust portfolios. So it begs the question, why bother with one more icon on your already cluttered home screen? For me, whether I'm acting as a photographer, copy writer, video director or editor-- or when I'm concepting marketing campaigns, the answer is simple:

I like telling stories.

Each channel lets me tell different kinds of stories. I love Vine because it's inspired me to look at things from a fresh perspective, and has unlocked a deeper form of narrative storytelling unseen in other social media sharing apps. A find myself searching for a completely different type of subject: telegenic opposed to photogenic, unexpected tableaux of motion.

The user interface and flow is also really nice. I like being able to control the "takes" and "shots" within each six second clip. It's already impressive to see the wide diversity of styles and results generated by the relatively small group of initial users. Hopefully, we'll continue see the community and stream of awesome content grow as more and more users join the network (which technically is run by and a part of twitter).

GET ON VINE. 

Follow me on Vine @ Jeff Cleveland
Download Vine here: https://vine.co/

OPENING 007: the Skyfall Opening Sequence

Dissecting the intricately beautiful opening sequence of SKYFALL, the latest blockbuster in the James Bond legacy, is a heady task. First hurdle is the length. Director Sam Mendes dedicated over 3 minutes and 55 seconds of his film to the sequence, and designer Daniel Kleinman clearly had no trouble filling every frame with richly layered compositions hinting toward the movies key themes and elements.

I love the gorgeous segue from the Prologue into the Opening Sequence! As Bond (Daniel Craig) crashes below the water's surface, we shift from the reality of the main story into his psyche. Our hero plummets into his dark, watery grave as finely manicured, female fingers grip his collar pulling him deeper into his own demise.

Click here for more still-frames and the link to watch the FULL video:

Baby, there's a shark in the water

Here's another spooky collage I've been working on in the spirit of Halloween. This one features three iconic moments from the classic thriller JAWS (1975) directed by Steven Spielberg. 
 

DAMMNIT, JANET!

In the spirit a rapidly approaching Halloween, I proudly present my latest digital collage featuring elements from Alfred Hitchcock's classic 1960 thriller "Psycho". I used three main shots: a) a wide-shot of the famous home Norman shared with his mother behind The Bates Motel as it sat on the Universal Studios Backlot during filming; and b) two shots of the stunning Janet Leigh at various stages of her downfall.  

Enjoy! 

(evil laughter)

 

ABQ COLLAGE

Kennedy Center

Seeing the 100th Performance of the La Cage tour at the famed Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington D.C.

MARILYN

Visiting Logan in Chicago between Christmas and the New Year.

Freezing cold and a long walk led us to this beauty, a 26-foot tall statue of Marilyn Monroe by John Seward Johnson II (born 1930; also known as J. Seward Johnson Jr). The Blonde Bombshell is striking the infamous hot-air-up-the-skirt shot from "The Seven Year Itch" and people line up all day to take pictures of her.

A lot of art people (especially locals) hate it-- but I think it's hilariously perfect.

More detail on the story here.

GO DO GOOD

December, 2010 - Chicago, Il
Snapped this a few weeks back while in visiting Logues.

Lost & Found

Rihanna lets us have it (yet again) with her new video for "We Found Love". It's dark and dangerous, and dares to be everything Britney's "Criminal" is not.

It's shaky, hand-held vibe and fast cuts are jarring, and the art direction makes me go-- wait, is this a Levi's commercial? And then I'm all like, no way... RiRi is a ho for Armani Jeans, right?

Right now somewhere in the world Ryan Mcginley is going "huh?".

But I dig it.

Let's break it down:

Okay, so RiRi lives in the big city, but it's kinda gloomy out-- so she's not that into it.

  

But she's got a fine man in her life... and  he's totally artsy.

 

 And he doesn't like that it's so bleak either.

 So, they take a bath.

Together. (Love the product placement, btw)

 And smoke.

 Together.

Go forth. 

"Levi's... getch your Leviiiii's...."

 

I'm not even going to dignify this with a remark. 

 Look familiar? See the Too Cool For Pool invite for yourself. We were way-way ahead of this one.

 

They eat dingy fast food.....

 

Things are gettin' stormy....

 The try to let off some steam at an underground local skate park.

 But that's not enough, so they take some pills. A lot of pills. 

Their eyes go all Requiem-for-a-Dream. 

 The room goes crazy. 

 They go freak-nasty...

  Great, now there's a mosh pit.

Oh, gawd-- it's just too much to try explaining. Just go watch the hot mess for your self. 

PS - when do I get to make a full-time job of analyzing pop music videos.

PPS - who said the music video was a dead medium. 

ROBO-MICKEY

My first lil guy from the new "Robots" Vinylmation series by Gerlad Mendez for Disney.

MY NEW FAVORITE: LES MIZ EDITION

Far and way, this is my new favorite version of the uber-gay "On My Own" featuring @celiakb Celia Keenan-Bolger (25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee).

This one's for you, @kellyambereng.



Please also reference Katie Holmes version below, #barf:

TRUE COLORS

It's not even noon yet on a Monday morning, but my mind has already been blown.

Click here for all the details!

Goldie

 I once won a goldfish from the Carnival at the State Fair, and that bitch lived for over five years. While she was gorgeous, she sadly was far less talented than these divas:

CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL REPORT

 

 

Quintetto by Quiet Ensemble from yatzer on Vimeo.

Glass House

Really amazing art installation at the World Financial Center Plaza. I did location scouting there a couple of months ago for a project that never took off... it's like a whole other world down there.Click here for the full story.

Disco Vadar

Check out the full story on THE VADER PROJECT here.

HUNGRY

Discover the work of Brusse here.