Best of 2011

02Jan12

MOVIES:
No.1-  Tree of Life by Terrance Malick

Because I sat there without moving for two hrs and just watched.  After this I’ve become a Terrance Malick devotee, it started with “Days of Heaven” and “New World.  Side-note: if you’re a guy with daddy issues, this one is for you.

No.2- The Skin I Live In (El Pielo Que Habito) by Pedro Almodovar

Because Pedro never disappoints and his way of telling stories— just incredible.

No.3- Drei by Tom Tykwer

I really didn’t know what to expect, all I knew was it was the same director as “Run Lola Run”.  But the storyline was absolutely over the top interesting (if you can believe that).

NEW “IT” ACTOR/ACTRESS

Elena Anaya (Spanish)

Sam Riley (English)

MUSIC:

No.1- Moneygrabber by Fitz and the Tantrum

I couldn’t get enough of this track, just makes me happy and according to my iTunes play count, this track has been played 718 times.  My favorite line:
“I don’t think twice for the price of a cheap time whore.”

No. 2-  Ty$- All Star

It’s very bad-ass.  I always listen to this before I enter Major Studio.

No. 3- Bigger Than Us by White Lies

It’s been a long time since I’ve been excited about a band.  It’s the lead singer’s strange vocals that got me.

No. 4- When I’m Small by Phantogram

Another talented indie band and the lead singer has some amazing knockers!  Favorite line: “I’d rather die than to be with you…”

No. 5- Why I Love You by Jay Z + K. West

This is the only song I really liked from that entire album.

No.6- ADELE

I think she just wrote the hometown’s glory… All her lyrics are so honest I think she ripped it out from her own heart and wrote them with the blood that gushed!

FASHION AD CAMPAIGN
Only one caught my eye and that’s Vivi’s Ascot ad campaign.  There were none of that vintage wash trend that was going around (70′s RGB).  It’s full on true color, lots of drama, flair and beautiful design work.

COMMERCIALS

Very disappointed this year with the car commercials, awful, except for one which was the Passat by Volkswagen.  But here are some good ones from fashion/perfume commercials and somehow stumbled on Studio Canal+.

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Game of Thrones Show Package

15Dec11

 

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5 Sec Diesel Logo-

13Oct11

Chosen Music:  Goodbye Horses by Psyche

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Nike- Round 2

22Sep11

Round 2:
- Keeping with the aesthetic of a skater boy starting from 12 and up which happens to be the demographic chosen.  Decided on keeping the look + feel organic.  Where it’s pretty much a boy’s daydream of the pro skater world, so there’s a few doodles incorporated which you’d find in their notebooks, distracting them from their actual class and a collage effect on the skaters images.  The Nike Shoe Cush ID Air is featured in some instances, as well as the rest of the graphic elements, hopefully all animated with the use of MGMT’s single “Kids”.

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Nike- Preliminary Round

15Sep11

Chosen Shoe: Nike Air Zoom Cush ID Shoes
(Sk8- Skater Shoes)

Type Explorations:

Mood Board:

Music:
Kids by MGMT

2nd Option: Dare by Gorillaz

Type Layout Preliminary Round 1:

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Beautiful cinematography I’ve seen this year

07Sep11

Movie: Brighton Rock

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Branding- LADUREE LES MACARONS

26Jun11

In Paris, there’s a patisserie called Lauduree and quite famous for these delicious demons. They are famous for a lot of sugary but artistic desserts but mostly the macarons.  These macarons are pretty much the death of me. I blame these little goodies for the six pounds I put on and the double chin.

Then I noticed the beautiful box that it came in. Whoever art directed this product really captured its decadent taste and translated it visually.

One can tell right away it’s very French. They have taken influences from Louis XIV and La Belle Epoque. It carries that over-the-top decadence and artistic sensuality. And once you’ve had a taste, you’ll understand why.

Observe:

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Pushing A Fashion Brand- QUIRKY IDEA via Marc Jacobs

14Jun11

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Tags: http://www.marcjacobs.com/

The Vintage Invasion

05May11

Throughout the years we’ve been obsessed in color correcting our images on film, then digitally through photoshop and even invested in high end printers.  All to make the red really red, the sky its truest blue form and the skin tone to match those of its real human subject.

All of a sudden I’ve been noticing this vintage wash treatment trend in both editorial, cinematography and advertising. I don’t exactly know when this revival began, I’m guessing end of 09 and more so in 2011. I don’t know who started this craze because I don’t think it’s original, but it’s rather fun.

In its own unoriginal concept, this throw back to retro photot treatments are nice to look at, depending on how you use it, it can either look campy or glamourous. There’s been a lot of these vanilla or magenta skin tones, red and green light leaks. Of course now, creative directors and photographers placed their own modern spin on it. I noticed that a lot of the vanilla and green wash are back from the 80s, the magenta moods from the 60s and my favorite, the lomo effect, and they have these colors have been saturated to make them more “new/current”.

Here are some images I’ve gathered as samples from editorials and fashion ads. There’s been a lot of them so I’m sure these aren’t the only ones. So do message me if any of you have found something more remarkable.

I started playing around with it as well in my own photos to see what the fuss was about and it’s been interesting. It was so simple, just play around with the RGB settings on your PSD. I had a great time doing these:

© 2007 Hazel Bala. All rights reserved.

© Hazel Bala 2010

© 2009 Hazel Bala. All rights reserved.

© 2007 Hazel Bala. All rights reserved.

The music videos have also jumped on to the Vintage Wash wagon:

In conclusion, I think this retro/vintage treatment will be a passing fancy, but it’s been wonderful.  I wonder what’s next?

Meanwhile, I’ll keep adding more vintage inspired treatments if I find anything interesting to post up.  Be sure to check in once and a while.

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Beautiful video by Yoann Lemoine for Woodkid Iron

19Apr11

Spotted this music video from Diego A.’s blog and thought I’d share his find. He remarked “Everything in slow motion looks better, and this video proves it” and I quite agree.

It has everything I like. Sharpness, simple bw, and moody:

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Tags: http://www.flylyf.com/woodkid-iron/