May 2013
3 posts
Businessmen Invent Culture
I do not believe in conspiracy theories since most of them seem to be really poorly thought out plans relying heavily on coincidence. If you are in a position of power it stands to reason your planning skills are acute enough to not leave things to chance. That’s why most actual conspiracies are just straightforward crimes, a big pay off if you avoid getting caught.[[MORE]]
Most...
April 2013
2 posts
March 2013
1 post
WatchPOOR ASTRONAUT!!!
February 2013
1 post
Community IS back you Ingrates!
If you’re one of the faithful then your patience was rewarded when Community finally returned to the ailing peacock’s airwaves last night. Was it the greatest thing that ever happened in the history of ever as recorded by human beings? No, but why would you expect it to be something like that and when exactly did this sense of entitlement take over the pop culture landscape? I have no...
January 2013
8 posts
5 tags
The Need for Myth: Star Wars vs. Star Trek No More
I am not a fan of science fiction. This does not mean that I don’t like science fiction or won’t watch it. Just that I’m not a fan. Growing up there was little room left in my little fan heart for anything other than superheroes and as a fan I felt it was my duty to ignore anything else that wasn’t my singular obsession.[[MORE]]
That’s why there was a little room...
December 2012
6 posts
6 tags
Top Ten Old Movies Watched During 2012
If you’re anything like me you hate top ten lists. More so, you hate how critics bemoan having to do top ten lists at the end of every year. [[MORE]]They hate it because, if they’re any good, they know that qualifying or quantifying art is pointless. There is no “best movie of 2012”. There is no “best movie of all time”. It’s art, not sport. ...
MY ROLLING STONE KEYNOTE ADDRESS (VIDEO)
timheidecker:
Last night I had the honor of speaking at the LA Food Bank Charity Event. I spoke about my plans for the Future of Rolling Stone. (also stay tuned for a surprise ending!)
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!
FULL TRANSCRIPT OF SPEECH
Thank You Scott.
Good Evening Ladies and Gentleman and thanks for having me at this really wonderful and very funny event… I’ll tell ya -...
November 2012
4 posts
4 tags
Peter Pan and Children of the 90's
We’re too clever for our own good. Who, you ask? Why us! Children of the 80’s and 90’s who grew up more placated than any previous generation. Where a kid could be a kid, I don’t wanna grow up, Kidz rule, etc. This was the marketing of our youth that we mistook and continue to mistake for fond nostalgia fodder. In essence, we were lied to over the course of a decade...
WatchListen to Crash Land by Power Fantasy.
Three songs, Free songs, Love songs. Fantasy!
October 2012
4 posts
5 tags
CGI Sucks
CGI has yet to define itself as a vibrant new color in the cinematic palette. This is an idea or attitude I’ve been carrying around for a little while now. The way I see it, what is now possible in cinema is really only a cheat. Lauding a modern film’s effects, with phrases like mind-blowing or spectacular, seems sad to me because it all happened in a computer. A cold piece of...
September 2012
5 posts
6 tags
On Self-Criticism: Can an Artist Review his Own...
As some of you may know I make short movies. Some I would call short films, others are more like skits, and even more are some weird combination of the two. I’ve found the process of making these things fun and taxing but most of all informative. The only way to learn how to do something is to do it as the old axiom goes and doing it in a way that is at once completely out in the open and...
6 tags
The Master: On Crazy Beliefs and Being Well Drunk
I just want to say that I loved The Master because it was the first film in a long time that I left feeling…well, I wasn’t sure exactly. The movie stuck with me for a few days after and I still find myself sifting through…something. I’ve seen critics commenting upon this bewilderment, mostly to decry other critics’ raves that seemed like PTA bandwagon jumping, but I...
New 51 Deep Short Film: Six Pack →
dangatorium:
John Keefer
Six Pack, or as we like to call it, the 76th 51deep film, is the story of a lonely young man, his angry neighbors, and a six pack of beer. Filmed on a cool August evening, it was hoped that the featured actor would not need to actually imbibe too much alcohol during filming….
August 2012
5 posts
6 tags
On Transference and the Death of Cinema
If there were no birds, mankind would never have wanted to fly nor, possibly, have been able to conceive of the idea of flight. The stars and planets visible in our night sky call us to explore. And in the current state of cinema we see reflected the modern preoccupation with the have’s and the have-not’s. It’s either bloated spectacle licking the carcasses of older, far...
8 tags
Louis CK on Marc Maron on Louie on...
I stay away from reviewing things that are new. I’m not a critic, more of a dabler, and if I want to talk about a film or TV show I want to talk about it because it means something to me or there’s some aspect I feel needs highlighting. The newness of a thing is a detriment to this type of appreciation, but such is the luxury of the amateur. In other words, shit is new but who gives...
4 tags
On the Denial of Death and Transcendental...
I am tired. Rest now seems to serve only to make me more tired. Uninspired. Uninspiration. A state of being tired. - anonymous
Every once in a while you will find yourself in a funk. Do not fear these wanning periods. They can often be a good opportunity for reflection. As long as the reflection doesn’t veer into morbidity. But maybe we should dwell on the morbid more often, from a...
July 2012
7 posts
6 tags
The Great Nerd Deception
I’ll let you in on a little secret: nerd culture is a direct reaction to mainstream culture. This may seem obvious but let’s extrapolate that for the purposes of examining the modern mainstream.[[MORE]]
Nerd Culture is the domain of retreat. Other kids, “normal” kids, play sports, go to dances, interact with the world. Nerds, historically, do not. There are a multitude...
Watch: Press Play Deconstructs Batman With a Trio... →
You love Batman and so do we! So check out these three awesome video essays on the Dark Knight before you see The Dark Knight. And when you see him tell him he owes me five bucks.
4 tags
After Film: the New Dogme '95
We live in a pre-post-film world and for anybody who loves movies these are dark days indeed. Why does film matter so much? Because the clarity of digital removes the otherworldly chemical process of celluloid. There must be some distortion to the image so you can get lost in it. It can’t be like looking out your window. That’s why the most beautiful pictures in the world are Black...
VIDEO ESSAY: Batman: The Animated Series | Press... →
Here’s a video essay I did on Batman: The Animated Series. Watch it, why not? I did it because I know how much you like that Batman guy…and I guess I like him too. Enjoy!
June 2012
13 posts
4 tags
After Catholicism
In the days of Catholicism there was puke running down the back of my pew. The fat girl in class who the girls didn’t make fun of was overcome by the incense and the heat. We were sitting 40 hours devotion. This is when the Monstrance that holds the Body of Christ is on display in the church for 40 hours. As a Catholic school student, it was your responsibility during the Theology...
How Does the Film Industry Actually Make Money? →
I find the idea of the death of the film industry oddly comforting. This may be due to the fact that it’s hard to break into and also that we seem to have taken the movies for granted. Add the fact that Mad Men and Breaking Bad exist and I can foresee a future in which Made for TV Movies are the only things that resemble movies, a short form idea only 90 minutes as opposed to the regular...
6 tags
Empty Spectacle is Where We Find Ourselves
Blockbusters. Big Budget. No Holds Barred. Empty spectacle is where we would find ourselves if we bothered to stop and look around the media landscape. The phrase less is more has become a sick joke.[[MORE]]
How it works: pump money into a thing and the thing takes on a life of its own. Advertisers are the modern Dr. Frankensteins. Where there was once a bloated corpse, or rather a three...
