frivolous friday fun

I just recently discovered Ylvis, a Norwegian comedy duo made up of brothers Bård and Vegard Ylvisåker.  And they are cracking me up.  

Another hit from Ylvis and some bonus laughs...

crazy in love

 Just some good fun music to get you going this friday.  I cannot get enough of this version of Beyonce's Crazy in Love by Emeli Sande & The Bryan Ferry Orchestra.  This is what good pop music should do, get you jumping up out of your chair and dancing around. 

Listen to the entire track and get your butt going...

maisie maud broadhead

I've seen this piece in person (twice!) at the CaixaForum here in Madrid, and was so happy to find a version online to be able to share with you.  Even though "An Ode to Hill and Adamson" by London-based artist Maisie Maud Broadhead is an homage to the creators of the first photographic studio in Scotland, for me it represents everything that is magical about film production: the tricks, techniques, cheats, labor, time and teamwork that go into creating beautiful images from nothing.  Or, in this case, into creating another era in the midst of the one we live in.

Here's the photo that inspired this video:

Nailed it, don't you think?

A few more of the photos from the original Hill and Adamson photography studio...

fashion film

Just for fun today.  Here's to having a light and silly weekend!

leonard and lana

I woke up with this song in my head and have been humming it all day long.  I only knew the original version by Leonard Cohen, which is painfully beautiful itself, but I just discovered Lana del Rey's cover and I have to say, I think it's lovely.  Simple, delicate, true to the original, but earnest and heartfelt at the same time.

The original and then some...

balance

Meditative and beautiful, this video also made me very aware of my own breath, as if the power was in me to topple all of his efforts or save them.  This is the work of photographer Tobias Hutzler, and when I found it yesterday via The Improvised Life I knew I had to share.

He also does these...

manhattan

This morning I stumbled upon this video from Cat Power and got all excited.  I know it's still a good 6 months away, but I also know that 6 months can pass in the blink of an eye.  Gotta get on it, gotta get busy.

momentum

This video by Boris Seewald expresses the joy of dance in such a simple and eloquent way, I had to share.  And I think it's only fitting, since here I am, pretty much officially retired (are these my golden years then?) but still dancing on my own time, on my own terms, for the joy of it.  The circle has been closed and that is somehow very sweet and satisfying to me.  It's taken me a while to come to terms with, but then again, most things do.

Do you dance?  For the joy of it?

andrew bird

Have you heard the Bird?  Andrew Bird, that is.  Three White Horses was on repeat for me all through the winter, but now I'm branching out and getting hooked on a few other tunes of his as well.

More Andrew Bird...

james blake

I literally stopped in my tracks when I heard this song for the first time the other day.  I rushed home to figure out who and what it was, and have spent the past few days listening to everything James Blake has done.  While some of his older work is a bit too straight-up electronic for my taste, I find the stuff from the past few years totally fresh and unexpected: some odd blend of singer/songwriter, R&B, electronic and his own magical mind.  I honestly have never heard anything like it, and I find his boldness and honesty utterly moving and captivating.  The videos he's done with director Martin de Thurah are no less hypnotic.  I'm officially obsessed.

More James...

how we got started

My pal, the very talented Aaron Thomas, has just released his newest album Blues and Greens, with some of my favorite songs on it.  Good stuff, I highly recommend you check it out.

I was lucky enough to be a part of the music video for the single "How We Got Started" (directed by the fabulous Alonso J. Lujan - yeah, I know, I might be biased), both in front of and behind the camera.  Creative consultant and 2nd Assistant Director were two of the hats I got to wear, and then at the party I got to wear this hat as well. 

(Did you spot me?)

self-contained

What is everybody looking at?

Come closer and take a look, you have to see this...

maiyet in motion

Maiyet has teamed up with director Cary Fukunaga (Sin Nombre 2009, and Jane Eyre 2011) to create this gorgeous short film.  Aren't those images are just breathtakingly beautiful?

More beauty and the story behind the brand...

kinetic intelligence

Choreographer Wayne McGregor's organic and totally natural yet also constantly surprising quality of movement blows my mind.  Seriously, what beauty is this?

20 years

Mentioned a few weeks ago that I'd been crazy busy with an exciting project, thought I'd share it with you now that life has calmed down a bit.  Since then we've actually shot another music video in addition to this one, but this is still the one I'm most excited about, as it was the first time I was able to co-direct with Husband. It was exhausting and overwhelming but also totally exhilarating and ridiculously satisfying.  I might be addicted.

A few more still photos for your viewing pleasure plus the video itself...

nuit blanche

Looking through videos for inspiration for a possible upcoming project and came across this beauty directed by Arev Manoukian.  And excuse me while I geek out for a minute, but the making of is almost more fascinating even than the video itself...

daily monster

Artist, graphic designer and writer Stefan G. Bucher draws a monster every day.  They start of with a small puddle of ink and a gust of air, and from there his imagination has free reign.  Watching them emerge in these high-speed videos is almost as thrilling as it must be to make them.  There's literally hundreds of daily monster videos in the archives here, so head over and check them out, but be warned: you may lose an entire day to it.

Here's a few more monsters to whet your appetite...

cousins

Just a quick note to my very own Identical Cousin - Happy Birthday, Co!  Wish I could be there to celebrate in person!

Here's one more tailor-made song for us to dance around to (albeit long distance) on your birthday:

sukita

I swear I am not here to bore you with yet another post on the wedge sneaker.  Isabel Marant started what I'm sure we all thought was going to be a fleeting trend, and it has stuck.  In the weirdest way.  I contemplated it for a minute, but quickly discovered (after trying a pair of the originals as well as a pair by Marc Jacobs) that these are best left to lanky teenage model types.  And despite the fact that they are now everywhere, and available in all price ranges, I have resisted.   Have not even felt the least bit tempted.  Until now.  Yohji Yamamoto has created a version in the Y-3 Sukita that I am almost sure I need.

Check it out:

press play - civil wars

Been listening to The Civil Wars album Barton Hollow pretty obsessively all weekend.  It's the perfect blend of folksy harmonies that just burrow their way into my brain and stay there.  And somehow that doesn't bother me one bit.  Funny thing is, it actually took me a bit to place this cover.  Do you recognize it?

(Answer after the jump in the form of a must-watch video...)