CoreyTess» Corey Tess

Alice In Wonderland – or should we say UNDERland…

Corey Tess — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 07:04:05 +0000

Why Re-Write a Perfect Story?

No one can argue that Tim Burton is the KING of Visual Stimulation and EYE POPPING if often Gothy/Emo Imagery… and that his ability to “snap his fingers and summon” Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter consistently results in characters that both strongly intrigue and mystify.

However, Alice In Wonderland (In Amazing 3-D) had an obvious lack of something basic… a great story! Which is confusing because commissioning the rights to Lewis Carroll’s great work of allegorical fiction, Alice in Wonderland and seemingly also “Adventures Through The Looking Glass” it’s sequel seem to guarantee rollicking good fodder for play!

Alas this absolutely GORGEOUS film suffers from a full tilt rush toward nothing… and I can’t image how confusing much of the references were to people who never read the second book as many of the character names, recitations and speak refer to what Carroll re-coined “Portmanteau” a practice of taking two words and sort of mashing them up and giving them a new meaning… such as Jabberwocky and FunderWhack.. The film itself rather mashes the first and second books together in an odd way – really matching the theme of neither.. the first more than the second… the first book had the structure and theme based on a card game, where as the second was based on the game of chess.. the card game is more represented in this version and yet the majority of the speak and character names come from the second novel…

I think children will enjoy the experience of this film immensely and adults will enjoy the visuals as much.. my sister said she would have enjoyed it much more with the sound OFF and in many scenes this was the case for me as well…

Johnny’s “Hatta” the Looking Glass version of “The Mad Hatter” was pleasing and yet sadly not explored or supported in a way that was really captivating.. visually, he was a banquet of tastiness but his story and his dialogue and his virtually invisible character development or arch was disappointing to say the least… his scene with the destruction during a lawn party is supposed to supply us with a reason for his sullen and manic depressive change from the crazy fun Mad Hatter she knew in Wonderland… before…

Helena’s “Red Queen” was hysterically funny. Very well done and probably the best developed character in the film. Her need for love and to be surrounded by people with more freakish physical attributes than her own made her endearing actually… It is so much easier to develop an evil character than a good one, but if I had to choose the best character in the film.. it would be Red Queen.. she was indispensable.

Anne Hathaway.. mmmmm I am a fan, but in this role, she just didn’t sparkle… The White Queen was virtually an after thought.. she simply filled a void where “good” needed to be represented to off set the evil… her pantomiming elegance was broken through in only one seen with the dog and should have been explored further.. was she really a dungaree gal under her over played Disney princess mannerisms or was this her true self? You got signals that supported both and neither and rendered her character almost totally useless except to serve as the famous brunette that goes platinum blond for Tim Burton… (Wynona Rider = Edward Scissorhands, Christina Ricci=Sleepy Hollow)

Alice wh0 is played by Mia Wasikowska was solid.. her’s was the best dialog in the film and although her development was predictable and not really pleasing in any way, the story did serve to put her into a mind frame that supported the story’s ending where we find her stronger and more able to defy those in power over her… (though this was not really a strong development, as she seemed pretty defiant before hand..)

Cheshire Cat was a bright spot in the film. He was used as sort of a Deus ex machina in some scenes.. most notably the “be-heading of the Hatta” but still the animation was amazing and the purring and classic kitty positioning and menace was appreciated.

The Blue Caterpillar was under-used really, one of my favorite characters from both novels, he represents the YODA of this story and yet only seems to serve as a rest in the pace during two scenes.. a pity because i do love Alan Rickman’s voice!

For all my complaining, I was really disappointed in only ONE aspect of this film… the screenplay… which of course effected the entire film and everything in it..

Not a MUST SEE, but a SHOULD SEE if you do 3-D, otherwise.. kind’ve a waste… (please do 3D if you see it)

and I have to say though the Funderwhack was cute.. it was anti-climatic and rather haphazardly inserted… i think there may have been an editing fail here as well… and through out the film.. because the pacing was erratic and often didn’t support climax moments…

WIN! The dresses and clothing they put Alice in… great designs…

The Hurt Locker – Best Original Screenplay

Corey Tess — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 07:43:24 +0000

When a film in this genre can grab my attention (someone who hates war films with nothing but male characters) attention and keep it 100% from credits to credits… I have to be impressed. This film is unwavering, true, real and yet not a gore fest. It speaks to the conditions of today’s war as well as the human mind and the dynamic of “normalcy” and responsibility – leadership and brotherhood. I was absolutely impressed by every participant in the creation and execution of this amazing piece of work!

`ZD Scribd iPaper`

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Follow That Truck!!!!

Corey Tess — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 20:20:24 +0000

Food Trucks Have Gone Gourmet in L.A. and We Love It!

If you live anywhere in Los Angeles, you have no doubt eaten off a “Taco Truck” in the past for a quick lunch or a late night grab after clubbing or working late, but chances are before 2010, you didn’t follow your Taco Truck on Twitter, Track who was eating there on Foursquare or FAN it on Facebook. With the invention of these new tools and the resurgence of Street Food Integrity, Food Trucks are making a huge comeback and lines are around the block!

As a kid I remember seeing the trucks parked in the neighborhood, silver or white usually with a name hand painted across the sides. They were usually surrounded by Men mostly; ordering food, eating. laughing, standing around. When I entered the work-force, the trucks were a lunchtime inevitability, people joked about grabbing a burrito or taco off the “Roach Coach” which left an indellible image in my mind that I needed to overcome to enjoy the new level of Street Food available now. This is not your Father’s Food Truck.

Follow That Truck!

With the invention and more importantly BOOM of Twitter, Street Food is now stalked down! A truck can park in Venice Beach, tweet/facebook it’s location and wait for the lines to begin. People from Downtown, Pasadena, Culver City even Long Beach will actually drive to find it after work, as a dinner treat! They will wait in a huge line with the threat of the food running out before they get to the window just to eat a magnificent GRILLED CHEESE! This is what happens every day for the Grilled Cheese Truck that boasts gourmet Melty Goodness. Their website outlines their menu and features a lot of “cheesey” graphics! and of course gives a schedule of where you can find them. The Grilled Cheese Truck was the first of these new animals to catch my attention, mainly because I am a Grilled Cheese fanatic, but also because I saw it mentioned more than a few times on Twitter by people who are definitely NOT your classic “food truck” eaters. I decided, I must find this truck and taste the Cheese!

A short Google session later I was amazed to find more than 40 such Gourmet Trucks including, The Buttermilk Truck, The Kobi Truck, The Flying Pig, Taco Zone Truck, and more… and as I was bookmarking and adding to my Twitter Follows, I found findlafoodtrucks.com and realized... THIS IS A WHOLE NEW BREED OF STREET FOOD VENDORS, something is happening here! Making the most of the new Social Media tools and the Foodie Fusion Crowd as well as Los Angeles’ love for being in on something exclusive that you have to wait in a huge line for… these Rolling Gourmets have opened up a line of business that their parents never dreamed possible for their service.

A Social Phenomenon?

People who follow the Food Trucks use the opportunity to socialize with others in line and meet people they normally wouldn’t have a chance or reason to talk to. They use the trucks as a central meeting point with friends from different cities, so they can Eat and then move to other plans for the evening and some people bring folding chairs and sort of tail gate around trucks that have stationary locations like the Tacos trucks in Downtown who are always located in the Alameda/Traction parking lot. Where is the party at? Just follow a food truck!

In an economy where companies are contracting and people are watching every penny, these small businesses have found a way to “sell out” their product on a regular basis and leave their audience begging for more! Much of the Social Media Advertising is bogus and annoying, intrusive and flat, but for these Small Business Owners, it has been a perfect fit and wisely used. BRAVO!

If you are thinking of starting a Gourmet Food Truck, now is the time, but make sure you are Social Media Saavy and offer something either in the Comfort Food arena, Ethnic Goodness or a Fusion that make mouths water. So far I haven’t run across a CUPCAKE truck! So maybe that is an idea! A lot of my readers are out of state, so perhaps starting your own Food Truck Movement in town would be a fun idea!

A Quick List of Food Trucks:

Look here for Food Truck Reviews on YELP, to see what people are saying about them!

kogibbq

Korean BBQ Taco Truck

57,344 followers | Follow

Grilled Cheese Truck

Chef driven grilled cheese… ’cause that’s how we roll…

12,060 followers | Follow

sprinklesmobile

9,749 followers | Follow

COOLHAUS

Making Architecture Digestible! Roaming the streets of LA with gourmet, hand-made ice cream sammies.

7,768 followers | Follow

Nom Nom Truck

Banh Mi Food Truck serving Los Angeles!

5,965 followers | Follow

The Buttermilk Truck

Mobile diner bringing housemade breakfast favorites day and night!

5,837 followers | Follow

Border Grill Truck

Gourmet tacos, quesadillas, ceviches, and more from “Too Hot Tamales” Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger.

4,635 followers | Follow

Frysmith

Truck with fries that eat as a meal

4,439 followers | Follow

Green_Truck

Organic , vegan-friendly mobile food, and production catering.

4,429 followers | Follow

Marked5

Japanese Style Burgers

3,902 followers | Follow

The Sweets Truck

Taking Sweets (and coffee) to the Streets of Los Angeles!

3,689 followers | Follow

Calbi BBQ

Beef, Pork, Chicken or Shrimp?

3,602 followers | Follow

Get Shaved Shave Ice

SoCal’s Finest Shave Ice…You Bet Your Ice It Is!

3,506 followers | Follow

Fish Lips Sushi

REAL SUSHI MAN INSIDE!

3,421 followers | Follow

dosatruck

Brooklyn Born Street Urchin Grew Up Eating STREET FOOD off TRUCKS NOW Bringing You DOSAS my FAV South Indian Street Food But Now I’m Driving The Truck

3,118 followers | Follow

Don Chow Tacos

Where Mexican and Chinese food get together. Home of the Chimale, Ultimate LA Taco, and Carne asada Chow Fun!

3,075 followers | Follow

Babys Badass Burgers

2,983 followers | Follow

SouthPhillyExp

Food truck roaming the streets of L.A. slinging Cheese steaks, Tastykakes, and Herr’s chips.

2,950 followers | Follow

India Jones Truck

Gourmet Indian street food truck !

2,684 followers | Follow

BarbiesQ

A Rollin’ BBQ Joint

2,679 followers | Follow

Flying Pig

Mobile Food – Asian Fusion with French Technique

2,603 followers | Follow

LetsbeFrankLA

Dogs Gone Good, Grass Fed Beef Hot Dogs from our trailer

2,535 followers | Follow

Lomo Arigato

2,494 followers | Follow

Dainty Cakes LA

We’re a cupcake truck but we serve more than just cupcakes! We carry items that cafes have and only use fresh local ingredients & recyclable paper supplies.

2,002 followers | Follow

Bool

Just Awesome Fusion Food!
Email us: BoolBBQ@gmail.com

1,982 followers | Follow

Asian Soul Kitchen

Peace, Love and Asian Soul

1,892 followers | Follow

The Gastrobus

Roadside bistro

1,818 followers | Follow

Grill Em All

GRILLING IS OUR BUSINESS AND BUSINESS IS FINE!!!

In a battle of cheese and sauce, finally burgers and heavy metal unite in harmony.

1,765 followers | Follow

Adam Fleischman

1,550 followers | Follow

Komodo Food

Dangerously Good Food. Not your average taco truck.

1,546 followers | Follow

Mandoline Grill

Traditional and Vegan-Friendly Vietnamese Food Truck

1,537 followers | Follow

Franken’s

Spooky -Theme Mobile Cuisine. Taking Plant-Based Food to the Streets!

1,475 followers | Follow

La FuXion

Latin Asian FuXion

1,371 followers | Follow

Little Spoon Dessert

Little Spoon Desserts is a boutique dessert company that showcases the talents of Los Angeles’ finest pastry chefs, bakers, and chocolatiers.

1,239 followers | Follow

Louks

Greek Gourmet Truck hitting the streets of LA & OC.

1,201 followers | Follow

King Kone

King Kone is a mobile ice parlor providing treats out of a sweet butter yellow truck!! mmmmm

1,190 followers | Follow

Fresser’s Pastrami

Food truck offering fresh hot pastrami and other deli favorites throughout the Los Angeles area.

1,018 followers | Follow

Chris at Mattie’s

Southern Food For All Y’alls

1,014 followers | Follow

SliceTruck

Pizza Truck in L.A.
Deliver 310-944-2474

974 followers | Follow

Gabino

Meat on a STICK/ @Marked5 partners

954 followers | Follow

The Burger Bus

894 followers | Follow

la bbq guy

The BBQ truck is on the move. If you can’t find us or want great bbq any time stop by our restaurant sssmokehouse.com

850 followers | Follow

Uncle Lau’s BBQ

Genuine Smoked BBQ with an Island Flair! Great pulled pork, beef brisket, smoked ribs, shrimp scampi and more. Come find us in Santa Monica, CA.

795 followers | Follow

Crepes Bonaparte

French Crepe Catering + GASTON the Crepe Truck

785 followers | Follow

Vesuvio

LA’s first and only Italian specialty food truck.

774 followers | Follow

bullkogi

633 followers | Follow

The PupusaMobile

mobile pupuseria! still in the works…

609 followers | Follow

Panini On Wheels

Delicious Gourmet Italian Panini

550 followers | Follow

Grill Masters

Best Rotisserie Chicken by Jonathan Gold, L.A. Weekly

484 followers | Follow

Qzillabbq

Qzillabbq truck delivering southern style wood fired bbq.

403 followers | Follow

tacos sinaloa

178 followers | Follow

LA Fuxion

89 followers | Follow

Chefkoch

Hello friends of German food. We will update here our Food Truck schedule and have news about German food and where you can enjoy it!

48 followers | Follow

Credit: List from Listorious / FOR FULL FOLLOW FUNCTIONALITY OF THIS LIST, YOU CAN GO HERE!

You Don’t Own Me!

Corey Tess — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 08:43:33 +0000

I don’t have a blog to go with this post, but I just love this video and wanted to share it with you… something of an anthem.. perhaps not quite Ayn Rand, but certainly a statement I’ve made now and again.. Enjoy!

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Foursquare Players! Here is a list of Badges.

Corey Tess — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 10:31:28 +0000

I Ousted You as Mayor!

This was posted on Wiki, but then seemed to vanish and I found it a few other places.. so here it is for those of you who play Foursquare. Follow me on it, if you do.. http://foursquare.com/user/cinemascribe

id	icon	name	message	active	notes	sponsor
0		BFF	? The only one for me is you, and you for me ? 10 checkins togeeetthhherrrr! ?		Never Activated
1		Newbie	Congrats on your first check-in!	Yes
2		Adventurer	You’ve checked into 10 different venues!	Yes
3		Explorer	You’ve checked into 25 different venues!	Yes
4		Superstar	You’ve checked into 50 different venues!	Yes
5		Bender	That’s 4+ nights in a row for you!	Yes
6		Crunked	That’s 4+ stops in one night for you!	Yes
7		Local	You’ve been at the same place 3x in one week!	Yes
8		Super User	That’s 30 checkins in a month for you!	Yes
9		Player Please!	Look at you, checking-in with 3 members of the opposite sex! Player, please!
10		School Night	Checking-in after 3am on a school night? Well done!	Yes
11		Far Far Away	Welcome to the world above 59th Street!	Yes	NY specific
12		Brooklyn 4 Life	That’s 25+ checkins in Brooklyn for you!	Yes	NY specific
13		Photogenic	You found 3 places with a photobooth!	Yes
14		Gossip Girl	Spotted: A true foursquare socialite. Chuck Bass would be impressed. xoxo		Possibly NY specific
15		Douchebag	Double pop that collar, son!	Yes
16		Animal House	Off the Wagon appreciates your business. COLLEGE!	Yes
17		Socialite	Keep this up and you’re going to end up on Valleywag with Julia Allison
23		Far Far Away	Well done escaping downtown Austin – though $5 bucks says you’re at Salt Lick		SxSW 2009
25		Panel Nerd	Three days at the Convention Center before noon! Your boss would be so proud!		SxSW 2009
26		Slut	Three different hotels! You’re like the Paris Hilton / Bret Michaels of SX!		SxSW 2009
27		Redford	Nice job sneaking off to see some films (one of the best parts of SXSWi). Gold Badges unite!		SxSW 2009
28		Porky	Oink oink, you filthy little BBQ lover!		SxSW 2009
29		Trifecta	Name-Brand Party Trifecta! You hit 3 of the big 6: Frog / Digg / Facebook / Goog / 32-Bit / The Decider		SxSW 2009
30		Entourage	Look at you, checking-in with 10 of your friends in tow! You so popular!		SxSW 2009
31		PV Bender	Three late-nights at the PV House! You working on that Slut badge?		SxSW 2009
32		Overshare	10+ checkins in 12 hours! Next up: tweeting that you unlocked this Overshare badge?	Yes
33		Survival	However-many-days you were at SX, you survived. Well played and see you next year!		SxSW 2009
34		Digg Shindigg	Welcome to the Digg Party. I bet the… OMG!!! KEVIN ROSE JUST TOUCHED MY SHIRT!!!		SxSW 2009
35		Karaoke RV!	You found the Karaoke RV! Now go queue up some GnR! “You know where you are? You’re in the jungle baby!”		SxSW 2009
36		Party Crasher	What else did you expect checking-in with foursquare at the Brightkite party? Anyone down for a dance off?		SxSW 2009
55		Thriving Ivory	You’ve checked-in at Thriving Ivory’s Fillmore show. Head to the merchandise table and show your TI badge to score some free swag!		venue & date specific
56		Internetz Week	Welcome to internet week! Five new badges for the next five days! What, wait.. no free drinks here? NEXT PARTY!		Internet Week
57		Dot Com Baller	Look at you in your fancy suit up on that fancy roof! You’re the Young Jeezy of the NY Tech scene!		Internet Week
58		Trifecta	Name-Brand Party Trifecta! You hit 3 of the big 5: Ignite / Yelp / Digg/ Thrillist / College Humor / Webutante Ball!		Internet Week
59		I’m on a Boat	? I’m riding a dolphin doing flips and shit / This dolphin’s splashing, getting everybody all wet / But this ain’t Seaworld, this is as real as it gets / I’m on a boat, motherfucker, don’t you ever forget! ?		Internet Week
60		Webby	A wise microcelebrity once said: ‘I won a Webby’ is the new ‘I have a website.’ You may not have be named King or Queen tonight, but please accept this Webby as a token of just how special we think you are.		Internet Week
61		Ziggy’s Wagon	Waffles and tacos and dumplings and BBQ and… looks like you’ve found 3 of your city’s legendary food trucks. Enjoy!	Yes
62		Don’t Stop Believin’	? Just a small town girl / Living in a lonely world / She took the midnight train going anywhere! ? That’s 3 karaoke field trips in a month! Treat yourself by slaying a lil’ Bon Jovi.	Yes
63		Gym Rat	10x trips in 30 days? Go reward yourself to the nastiest double cheeseburger you can find (bonus points for cheesy fries and milkshakes). And ps: you look nice today!	Yes
64		Mr. Bill	Oh nooo! Mr. Bill! (and happy bday from Eris + team foursquare!)		venue & date specific
65		Trainspotter	Driving around SF is soooo 2008, hence the special shoutout for your 10th BART checkin. Public transportation is the new Prius!	Yes		BART
66		Boxee Fan	You took the L train to Brooklyn to attend a software party! Pretty hardcore.		venue & date specific	Boxee
67		Road Warrior	You’re making the world a mappier place one checkin at a time!	Yes		Waze
69		Intel Insider	Intel would like to welcome you to CES! Remember, what happens in Vegas ends up on Foursquare, Twitter and Facebook. Drinks on us!		CES 2010	Intel
70		Intel – All Ears	Shhhhhhhhh! Otellini speaks! Intel + CES 2010 FTW!		CES 2010	Intel
71		Intel – Work It	Thanks for joining Intel at CES! Exercise that Core!		CES 2010	Intel
72		CES 2010	Congrats! Your checkin to the Las Vegas Convention Center just unlocked the CES Badge. Welcome to the world’s largest and coolest tech show!		CES 2010
73		JetSetter	Hopping around the world one airport at a time… congrats on your 5th airport checkin and safe travels!	Yes
74		16 Candles	Treat yourself to another cupcake – that’s 5 birthday shoutouts from you!	Yes
75		Zoetrope	That brings you to 10 movie theater checkins! Now, can you pick us up a large popcorn while you’re up?	Yes
76		Pizzaiolo	This badge is reserved only for the true pizza connoisseur: slices from 20 different pizza places. Well done!	Yes
77		Jobs	3 Apple Store checkins! Show this badge to the hipster at the Genius Bar to redeem your new Apple Hoverboard! (… or not)	Yes
78		Warhol	That sure is a nice collection of art gallery checkins (10 different galleries!)	Yes
79		Babysitter	Forget those “Bender” and “Crunked” badges – you’ve conquered the playground circuit! (10 checkins!)	Yes
80		Swarm	50+ people are also checked-in here – it’s a foursquare flashmob!	Yes
83		Super Mayor	A special shoutout for holding down 10 mayorships at once!	Yes
84		I’m on a boat!	? This ain’t Seaworld, this is as real as it gets / I’m on a boat, MF’er, don’t you ever forget! ?	Yes
85		Yard Bird	Congrats on mastering Harvard Yard on Foursquare! You’re looking (and acting) smarter all the time.	Yes	Cambridge	Harvard
86		Metro	Thanks for Waking up with the Metro! You’ve checked in near Metro pickup locations on 3 different mornings!	Yes		Metro News
87		Journal Métro	Merci d’être matinal avec Métro! Félicitations! Vous avez déverrouillé le badge Métro.	Yes		Metro News
88		Bravo Newbie	Congratulations! You’ve taken your first step into the BRAVO world. (It’s not as scary as it sounds!)	Yes		Bravo
89		Real Housewife	Way to drink, eat, shop, and spa like a Real Housewife!	Yes		Bravo
90		Top Chef	You wear the term “foodie” as a badge of honor, and now have BRAVO’s Top Chef Badge to prove it.	Yes		Bravo
91		Hair Aware	For trimming your tresses and loving your locks like a true follicle wiz, you’ve received BRAVO’s Shear Genius Badge.	Yes		Bravo
92		Fashionista	You’ve found the key to BRAVO’s Launch My Line insignia. Now, go find us some sales!	Yes		Bravo
93		Lookin’ for Love	You know all the hottest singles spots and can now proudly wear BRAVO’s Millionaire Matchmaker Badge of Love.	Yes		Bravo
94		Foodie	You eat the best from hot dogs to haute cuisine. That’s 5 checkins at Zagat Rated spots!	Yes		Zagat
95		Transit Champion	Holy moly transit champ, You sure know how to get around Metro Vancouver! Thanks for going green and riding with TransLink!	Yes	Vancouver	TransLink
96		On Location	Get ready for your close up! You’ve just earned the On Location badge by visiting five of Chicago’s iconic movie locations.	Yes		Explore Chicago
97		Celery Salt	Hold the ketchup & drag it through the garden! You’ve earned the Celery Salt badge for visiting 5 places that serve Chicago-style hot dogs!	Yes		Explore Chicago
98		Chicago Blues	Sweet Home Chicago! You’ve earned a Chicago Blues badge by visiting 5 stops on the History of Chicago Blues Tour (downloadchicagotours.com)	Yes		Explore Chicago
99		Valentine’s Day	Ooh la la! This is your 2nd checkin at a great date spot for Valentine’s Day. How romantic! Next up: bring your date to see “Valentine’s Day”, in theaters February 12th!	Yes		Warner Bros.
101		NY Times Olympian	You’ve just checked into a venue recommended by The New York Times during the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Go for the gold!	Yes		New York Times
102		Fashion Victim	Wow! You crossed the line! Your passion for fashion knows no boundaries! Four of you will be given tickets to the MbMJ show in NYC on Tues Feb 16 (we’ll notify you by email!) – Love, Marc	Yes	Fashion Week 2010	Marc Jacobs
103		Show Hopper	5 checkins with Lucky and still going strong – you’re a NYFW machine!	Yes	Fashion Week 2010	Lucky Magazine
104		Nightlife	You stopped by 4 UrbanDaddy-approved spots, unlocked the HBO How To Make It/UD Nightlife Badge, Time to celebrate!	Yes		HBO
105		Tastemaker	You just unlocked Eater and Racked’s HBO How to Make It Tastemaker badge! That’s 3 or more check-ins from Eater or Racked approved venues.	Yes		HBO
106		Cityscape	You’ve just unlocked the Flavorpill and HBO’s How to Make It Culture badge, after scoping out the best cultural venues in the city. Movin’ on up…	Yes		HBO
107		Cocktails	You’ve hit 3 BlackBook and HBO’s How To Make It-approved hotspots — no velvet rope can stop you.	Yes		HBO

If you have ideas for new badges, you can send Foursquare a message here…

Following certain brands can unlock new badges, see here…

Advertising by Design

Corey Tess — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 05:43:31 +0000

Clever, Funny, Cute or Delightful….

Much of the advertising we see on a daily basis does nothing to enrich our lives and provides us with little more than a temporary distraction 80% of the time. Marketers rely heavily on your need to purchase a product or service and simply work to point you in the direction of their offering, but every now and then, you get a glimpse of something more… and that is what I went on the hunt for today… here are some of the delightful ideas I found that illustrate how Marketing can cross over into creativity and entertainment…

HOVER OVER IMAGES FOR MY COMMENTS, CLICK IMAGES FOR A LARGER PREVIEW OR TO DO A SLIDE SHOW:

you know you want to ride on this bus! you know you want to ride on this bus!
This is not an American ad.. but it is so clever, funny and attention grabbing.. great creativity This is not an American ad.. but it is so clever, funny and attention grabbing.. great creativity	free wifi at the mcdonalds.. who knew.. love the simplicity.. for larger brands.. simple is good free wifi at the mcdonalds.. who knew.. love the simplicity.. for larger brands.. simple is good
	an ad for the baby giraffe’s arrival at the zoo.. an ad for the baby giraffe’s arrival at the zoo..
	an ad for the baby giraffe’s arrival at the zoo.. an ad for the baby giraffe’s arrival at the zoo..
force people into your scenario… force people into your scenario…	Public Service Announcements dont have to be dull… Public Service Announcements dont have to be dull…
Mobile Home? Nope.. an IKEA mobile room display… Mobile Home? Nope.. an IKEA mobile room display…	LOL.. Weight bag makes you think about getting back to the gym? logo should be a little bigger tho LOL.. Weight bag makes you think about getting back to the gym? logo should be a little bigger tho
Using elements that HAVE to be present is genius! Bag handle becomes jump rope Using elements that HAVE to be present is genius! Bag handle becomes jump rope	Yoga Straw.. in your smoothie? makes sense! Yoga Straw.. in your smoothie? makes sense!
	hand outs need not be stress balls all the time! make a statement – be cute! hand outs need not be stress balls all the time! make a statement – be cute!
find new ways to make old ideas interesting… find new ways to make old ideas interesting…	facade ads are so freaky and yet once noticed are heavy hitters for word of mouth.. facade ads are so freaky and yet once noticed are heavy hitters for word of mouth..
Turning parking spaces into ads… who wouldnt want to photograph their car on this spot.. Turning parking spaces into ads… who wouldnt want to photograph their car on this spot..	FUN! No other word for it! FUN! No other word for it!
not craving McDonalds.. you will be if you need to wait for the bus! smart placement.. not craving McDonalds.. you will be if you need to wait for the bus! smart placement..	Office Products showcase.. makes coloring the city look fun.. way to get attention! Office Products showcase.. makes coloring the city look fun.. way to get attention!
every day opportunities turned into branding… every day opportunities turned into branding…	Making a point in a subtle and yet, not so subtle way… Making a point in a subtle and yet, not so subtle way…
Dealing with a HUGE ad space can be as daunting as dealing with a small one.. taking your ad over the top can be sheer heaven! Dealing with a HUGE ad space can be as daunting as dealing with a small one.. taking your ad over the top can be sheer heaven!	Good photoshop work can make all the difference.. here you see an ad that speaks to beauty and creativity.. interior designers delight.. Good photoshop work can make all the difference.. here you see an ad that speaks to beauty and creativity.. interior designers delight..
Nobody wants a stuffed nose… funny and unexpected.. nice Nobody wants a stuffed nose… funny and unexpected.. nice	Product Design and Packaging Design that’s so unique, you have to take a closer look. Product Design and Packaging Design that’s so unique, you have to take a closer look.
Who thinks about Paper Towels, you will now! This Bounty ad takes the term "Big Spills" literally… Who thinks about Paper Towels, you will now! This Bounty ad takes the term "Big Spills" literally…	Who can help but be drawn in… Who can help but be drawn in…
Taking advantage of scenarios is a must in marketing.. Taking advantage of scenarios is a must in marketing..	great content and copy can make or break an ad great content and copy can make or break an ad
Great Ad Placement Makes All The Difference! Great Ad Placement Makes All The Difference!	Clever and Funny! Anyone has to respect the smarts of this placement and design! Clever and Funny! Anyone has to respect the smarts of this placement and design!
Attitude… knowing your demographic? Attitude… knowing your demographic?	Keeping Your Mind Where THEY want it! Keeping Your Mind Where THEY want it!
Interactive display lets you be creative. Sharpie knows its core audience. Interactive display lets you be creative. Sharpie knows its core audience.
	Bad Food. Bad Dog! This series is awesome. Humor and Cute pets.. it is a win win! Bad Food. Bad Dog! This series is awesome. Humor and Cute pets.. it is a win win!
More Bad Dogs! More Bad Dogs!	and yet another naughty little pooch.. great series and yet another naughty little pooch.. great series
A creative way to approach an old concept… A creative way to approach an old concept…	Funny, Campy… speaking to the childishness of boys and cars.. yes, it gets to the core audience. Funny, Campy… speaking to the childishness of boys and cars.. yes, it gets to the core audience.
You have to admit, you cannot ignore this one! You have to admit, you cannot ignore this one!	A little photoshop and a good starting photo and there you go.. eye catching, humorous and light hearted A little photoshop and a good starting photo and there you go.. eye catching, humorous and light hearted
the male version of the same ad the male version of the same ad

TED, I love you!

Corey Tess — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 03:13:02 +0000

Some of my favorite TED TALK videos for your enjoyment!

Raymond Did It!

Corey Tess — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 07:25:19 +0000

Whoop Whoop! Support Indie Film Makers! So you are always complaining that there are no real Indie Films anyway.. that Sundance is littered with professionals who bogart all the funds and awards and that no one can get their foot in the door. So help out! I follow this guy on twitter (@TravisLegge) and he has just started work on his first feature length film called Raymond Did It. It is a slasher film in the tradition of Halloween and Prom Night. YAY HORROR!

The storyline?

When twelve-year-old Bryce Rourke is accidentally killed in a playground scuffle, his friends decide to blame Bryce’s developmentally delayed older brother for the accident. Raymond is taken to a state hospital while the true killer walks free. Six years later, Raymond escapes from the hospital to seek bloody revenge for his brother’s death.

OOooOoo reminds me of Halloween for sure! That stuff is scary!

The film is written and directed by Travis Legge (Jimmy’s Basement, Nation Undead: Kept). Travis has written comic books and roleplaying games, including the critically acclaimed Contagion game setting.

Others involved in the production include:

Visual Supervisor and Camera Operator Tim Stotz a professional video producer for over a decade, with hundreds of commercials, several shorts, and a feature under his belt.

Picture Editor Robert J. Williams a freelance assistant editor and aspiring picture editor working mainly out of the Chicago area. He recently cut the trailer for a highly anticipated 2011 feature and assisted on a National PBS Documentary Special.

The film stars Kyle Hoskins (Skeet Shooting, Nation Undead: Kept) as a developmentally delayed man framed for murder and bent on vengeance. Kyle has previously played lovelorn slackers, average joes tormented by zombies, and brings a wide range of ability to the role of Raymond. Standing at 6′5″ tall, with a massive, bulky build, Kyle is among one of the largest, most imposing figures to take on the role of a slasher. Sounds very Michael Myers!

Lindsay Felton (VH1 Scream Queens, Grind) co-stars as Tammy, a young woman tormented by guilt for what she and her friends did to Raymond. With years in front of the camera, having worked with some of the greatest talents in Hollywood, Lindsay brings experience and finely-tuned craft to this demanding role.

Also joining the cast are Valerie Meachum (Cyrus) IMDB: and Linda Cieslik (New Day)

Plastic Age Productions is currently seeking additional investors and distribution forRaymond Did It. Interested parties should contact writer/director Travis Legge at raymonddidit@gmail.com for more information.
Actors interested in available roles should check out the casting call available online at http://www.aegisstudios.com/casting.html
Raymond Did It is slated to begin principal photography in June 2010.

Men in Love with Pillows, Pixels & Plastic!

Corey Tess — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 04:09:48 +0000

In reply to “Love In The 21st Century” post on Guys and Dolls Documentary

In addition to your reactions to “Guys and Dolls” the documentary on men who have chosen to use dolls as mates instead of real women, I had recently read about a few men who had similar replacements for the real thing.

The first one that comes to mind is the man who fell in love with his pillow case:

The pillow case depicts an Anime Character named, Nemutan, from an X-rated PC video game called “Da Capo”. Nisan, the man, takes Nemutan, the pillowcase, with him to restaurants and events as if she were a human. He expresses a deep and passionate love for her as you can see in the photo of him holding her tightly in public and how he has placed her meal in front of her at the restaurant. (actually spending money to set food out that won’t be eaten). I couldn’t help feeling both disgusted, intrigued and then sorrowful as I read the story and thought about what leads to this sort of intense need for love, so intense, that it drives a person to project love and imagine love returned by a PILLOW CASE! Looking into blank eyes and seeing yourself reflected with adoration? How does someone come to this place mentally and emotionally? However, what may seem akin to that Homeless person you see talking to themselves is actually widely accepted in the “2-D” set and referred to as being “moe”. This SAD man has become a bit of an icon to the Otaku (video game obsessed youth) and is a level TEN moe! Nisan doesn’t want to be anyone’s icon though and was quoted as saying““I’m not saying that everyone should throw away hopes of real romance right away. I am simply saying that guys like me who have gotten to a point of no return can be happy living in 2-D.” A very profound statement.. just when does “THE POINT OF NO RETURN” occur?

SAL9000, Boy meets video game…

The case of someone who would clearly know came up just a short time after Nisan… Twitter was lightly a buzz with the story of a man named, SAL9000 (he calls himself) who was playing a popular 2-D game called “LovePlus”. LovePlus offers you a virtual girlfriend who can actually get pissed at you if you don’t give her what she wants and spend enough time with her. Most of these virtual girlfriends are of High School age and range from very compliant to pissy, snobby or even Hard-Ass, as noted in the article “My Husband has a Virtual Girlfriend”. Apparently however, they can also be very loving, kind and amusing….

SAL9000, unlike the hubby in that article, was single and soon found that HIS virtual girly, Nene Anegasaki, was the perfect woman for him. So much so that he decided to marry his SIMULATED lover and take her on a honeymoon to Guam. When people heard about it, they made sure cameras were at the wedding and that his honeymoon was documented as well. In America this would be a PR Stunt to get your own reality show, but when you hear this young man’s adoration for Nene, you wonder if he could be for real… Sadly, I think he may be. His story was covered by BoingBoing, FOX, CNN, and many others and became a case in point for Japanese author Hiroshi Ashizaki who studies Internet addiction, he said many Japanese youths cannot express their true feelings in reality, only in the virtual world. It is a trend that could become increasingly common as the entire globe socializes more online and less in person, but I don’t think this just applies to Japanese youths as we become ever more virtual – talking on Facebook instead of grabbing coffee and texting instead of ringing each other up on the phone.. but that is an entire other blog.. (watch for “Sorry I can’t talk to you right now, I am tweeting!”)

Introducing, ROXY! The Sex (& Conversation) Robot…

So on top of all this, we now have ROXY, the SEX ROBOT, which you HAD to know was going to happen.. but this you may not have expected.. consumer research (would hate to have compiled this data!) showed men wanted the sex robot to TALK- (OH YEA? So you can pretend to listen to her too?) So, the company made Roxy as a life size chatty Kathy, who can talk to men about Sports and respond to touch with phrases like “I love when you hold my hand…” Roxy is surprisingly displayed as a brunette and although I am sure you can order any hair you want on her… the display choice still surprises me… having her look more like one of Heff’s plastics would have been expected on my part, though whatever hair they put on her/it, to me she still looks frighteningly similar to a lingerie clad cadaver which scares me for numerous reasons…

In fact all of this information sends my mind reeling in several directions at once.

ONE: Why do Heterosexual men seem to be the adopters of this 2-D lifestyle, what is the difference between their life experience/view that allows for this to become more easily acceptable (apparently) than for women. I dare not answer… although I have opinions.. I want to hear yours….

TWO: The objects of affection in the video game obsessed 2-D/Moe’s seems to center around “children”. Girls of a tender age, that were they live, would be jail bait and cause for alarm… Why is this acceptable when the objects are not real, and will these loving relationships between men and virtual children ever cross over from fantasy to reality? Would you feel okay about someone you know virtually dating a simulated child (HS freshman)?

THREE: Is there an element of what many women believe to be true about real women being threatening because we are no longer the doting housewives of the 50’s whose childlike fawning was ego-candy for men, that the modern woman is only fit for a man who desires a challenge.. and these men (whose numbers are increasing) prefer fantasy to a challenge… (please don’t read this as man bashing, I am just posing the question).

PLEASE DON’T BE SHY… TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK?

Dear Pat Robertson, Meet Sharon Stone! You have a lot in Common!

Corey Tess — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 03:52:36 +0000

Hello! Pat Robertson AND Sharon Stone too!

IT IS NEVER APPROPRIATE TO SAY THAT A TRAGEDY IS DESERVED.

I fully understand there are differences in our philosophies, religions and faiths, but your beliefs are never NEVER NEVER an excuse to blame others for the terrible suffering that has befallen them through no control of their own. To blame a group of people for an action, whether you say its Devil Worship or Being Mean to your Pal The Dahli Lama, that they perhaps did not even support or participate in and then say that because of said action, God, Karma, The Universe has punished them, is to open yourself up for extreme scrutiny… Apparently the two of you are perfect. I am sure that if God/Nature/Karma or whoever you want to believe is in control played by those rules, there would be not a building left standing on the planet.

By the rules of both of these beliefs, you are called to Love and bring Peace..

Pat: Let God speak for himself, I am sure he can….

Sharon: I doubt the DL is calling you a close friend anymore..