Make Pretty

Muffin Buds on Kickstarter

2011-10-13T12:08:00.000-04:00

Why, HELLO! Been quite a while since I've posted. The last several months took my attention away from blogging and toward work, classes, and extra-curricular projects. See above for information on one said extra-curricular- an indie animated short called Muffin Buds. Me and some pals are trying to raise the funds to make it happen. I plan on taking just a few weeks out of the freelance grind to do some wacky cel-style animation, since these days I find that the opportunities to do it in a professional setting are sadly dwindling. It's also always been a dream of mine to have something to enter into film festivals, and thats just one of the things we plan to do with it.

We have all kinds of fun rewards for people who kick in some dough on our kickstarter, and even if all you can do is help spread the word, we'd be FOREVER grateful!

As a side note, I will most likely return to blogging here shortly after production on Muffin Buds wraps in late November. Stay tuned! :)

Crystalline : Björk and Michel Gondry

2011-07-26T14:18:00.000-04:00

New Björk video by none other than Michel Gondry! Looks just like what it sounds like, a crazy stop-motion space disco ball meteor adventure.

On a different note, sorry for the sudden hiatus here at Make Pretty. I'm currently trying to decide on a new format here. I may switch to posting a round-up of stuff I find once or twice a week instead of every day. I'd like to create more original posts here, since the blog-o-sphere really has all of it's bases covered with inspiration blogs that repost each other all day long. Stand by for Make Pretty 2.0.

Oh, and Comic Con was a dream come true.

I don't even eat bacon!

Musical Wonders Vol. 38

2011-07-12T20:15:00.000-04:00

Posts will probably continue to be sparse and sporadic around here until after Comic Con, however, this is an absolute gem. A music video featuring Chloë Sevigny, spotted on the always awesome blog The Fox Is Black.

The song is I Feel Like the Mother of The World by musician Bill Callahan. I'm kinda psyched at the discovery because I've never listened to him, and after spotting his label-mate Johanna Newsom on the credits for the album that this song is from, looks like I've got another artist to get to know.

Scouting NY

2011-07-11T18:25:00.000-04:00

I don't know if I've mentioned Scouting NY before, but it is one of my very favorite blogs. The author is an absolute expert at documenting his adventures as a film location scout, so in turn his stories/photos have, for me, become a wealth of inspiration. Pictured above is a mansion in Westchester he recently explored, but visit his site and you'll discover that he's photographed such a wide variety of settings that any time you're in need of environmental/interior reference, you might just be heading to his Flickr. Super educational and highly recommended!

Happy Friday

2011-07-08T13:46:00.002-04:00

image from benyonda's flickr photostream

2011-07-07T12:14:00.000-04:00

Morro Bay, CA

So many apologies for the unannounced hiatus this week! July will be a bit of a scattered month for posts here on Make Pretty, however things may get a little more interesting as I'll be attending Comic Con in less than two weeks, which I will share about here. Besides that, there's a wedding to attend and camping to be done, so needless to say, I'll be a little off the grid. Meanwhile, enjoy these images we recently took while on the road and things will be back to normal shortly!

Hearst Castle, CA

Happy Friday

2011-07-01T13:03:00.000-04:00

image from benyonda's flickr photostream

Roussillon, southern France.

Learn To Make Radio With Transom

2011-06-30T17:26:00.000-04:00

Exciting news in the world of creativity and storytelling! Announced today via the This American Life blog, the Transom Story Workshop is the pilot of a program created to offer education for those seeking it in the world of radio. Transom itself is a separate organization from TAL or NPR, but from what I can tell it operates as a sort of launching pad, supplying those organizations with talented people who are pursuing careers in radio. The application deadline for this workshop is July 25th, and oh man, if I only had an extra 5500 bucks and a seven weeks off this fall to spend living and learning in Cape Cod, MA...

I get excited every time I hear of workshops/seminars/classes like this popping up, because these things can't necessarily be taught anywhere else. It doesn't totally pertain to my job and what I do, but I'm a huge fan of public radio and I derive so many ideas from the stories they tell on air. This workshop will hopefully strengthen the community of radio and produce some awesome new talent!

And yes....Ira Glass is one of the guest teachers.

Photography by David Ryle

2011-06-29T16:05:00.000-04:00

David Ryle's landscape photography has been stuck in my mind after spotting it a few days ago. The compositions are fantastic, and seem almost familiar to me. Actually, the first two look a lot like the land surrounding the 15 freeway between Barstow and Las Vegas...either way, many of his images suggest quite a calming sense of depth.

(via Design Work Life)

Musical Wonders Vol. 37

2011-06-28T14:09:00.000-04:00

A new single from Wilco is now streaming on Let's Just Get to the Good Part. Its release coincides with the Solid Sound Music Festival, an event curated by the band itself which took place just recently in North Adams, MA. Festival goers were able to purchase the 7" release early, as it becomes available to the rest of us on July 19th.

As the geniuses behind an album like Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (I love the extensive wikipedia article), they deserve a permanent, ever-respected spot on the list of ground breaking bands that have paved the way for an entire genre.

Other notable happenings:

Bjork's new album, Biophelia, comes out Sept. 26th of this year. Listen to Crystalline + view a little preview video here.

Rumors abound on the subject of the 1950/60s New York folk scene and the Coen Brothers' next film.

Fire Records is set to re-release Neutral Milk Hotel's debut album On Avery Island on vinyl this August.

Beirut's headlining at The Greek Theatre.

Pixar's Brave

2011-06-27T14:24:00.000-04:00

Our first glimpse at Pixar's next original, Brave. It seems incredibly different from anything they've ever done before, can't wait to see it! (...it's not coming out until 2012!)

(via /Film)

Happy Friday + The IOU Project

2011-06-24T12:14:00.001-04:00

image from benyonda's flickr photostream

Happy Friday!

Also, The IOU Project. The movement for sustainable clothing is gathering speed, and the message couldn't be more sensible. The awareness raised by these small projects is the only way we can get people to look away from the copyright-infringing, mass producing, human rights abusing, monster retail stores that are consuming so much of the worlds energy and resources. If this issue is something that has grabbed your curiosity like it has mine, check out IOU's statement below, Elizabeth Cline's blog The Good Closet, and Jessi Arrington's TED Talk.

Pottermore

2011-06-23T14:46:00.000-04:00

Well I'm not really trying to keep my total nerdiness a secret here, so I may as well post this fun little promo for J.K. Rowling's newest venture, Pottermore. Although I'm still not really sure if Pottermore is something I will use myself (no one seems totally sure of what it is yet!), I really like the way they are introducing the idea via the cutout paper animations. Any one have any idea who made them?

Looking forward to seeing how this affects the world of story telling + publishing in the future. Also, I've gotta hand it to her- this site, whatever it is, sounds a million times better than writing more books to continue the series. Keep the end on a high note, I say!

SisTeMu by Laia Clos

2011-06-22T12:14:00.000-04:00

As a person who grew up playing music in bands and orchestras, this project blows my mind. Once I get past the 'Why didn't I think of that?!?' moment, and I can't stop thinking about how perfectly this visual system simplifies the music. It's so closely related to how actual music is read by a musician, however, it translates that sound into these visual abstractions that could represent it just as well...you can 'read' the music without having to know how to read music. Check out the other songs/prints that are for sale here.

Designs by Laia Clos, founder of Barcelona-based Mot Studio.

(via Computerlove)

Musical Wonders Vol. 36

2011-06-21T12:17:00.000-04:00

This week's music-themed post centers around an event- The Sasquatch! Music Festival (held in George, WA). This year their banding has hit an absolute high and was too awesome not to be talked about!

From the looks of it, the event was an all-out inspiration extravaganza, and what with the knock-out line up, it might have been easy to overlook the fact that there is some incredible art and design now floating around... and all music-inspired at that! From the gallery of 2011 Festival Posters, to this animated promo below, I think I've been convinced to try and attend next year.

Excellent work on the trailer by World Famous, and credit for a few of the other things I've mentioned here goes to Invisible Creature.

(via The Fox Is Black)

Belle and Sebastian Animated Video

2011-06-20T14:02:00.000-04:00

Check out this totally wacky-weird (perhaps Mary Blair inspired?) new music video for Belle & Sebastian. This remix of 'I Didn't See it Coming' by Richard X comes out on vinyl July 18th from Rough Trade.

Animated by Bruce Cameron, Matt Saunders, & Lesley Barnes.

Happy Friday

2011-06-17T12:19:00.000-04:00

image from benyonda's flickr photostream

The Mill 2011

2011-06-16T15:06:00.000-04:00

Seems like as good a day as any to aim high and seek inspiration from the best! The Mill just put out their 2011 reel and it's reminding me how good I want to be... and how much work it takes to get there. My favorite commercial to date is still the spot they did for AT&T last year, embedded below.

Film on Paper

2011-06-15T14:16:00.001-04:00

I sense I'll probably just be adding to the existing chatter currently going on about the new site Film On Paper, but I've always drawn a lot of inspiration from movie posters so I can't resist a post here. Back in high school my bedroom walls were pretty populated with posters like these, so often a mid-homework space out meant staring at them for minutes on end.

This very well selected and photographed archive is the work of London-based "interaction designer, cat owner and film fan" Eddie Shannon. Read more about his objectives and how the project came to be.

Musical Wonders Vol. 35

2011-06-14T12:45:00.000-04:00

This isn't new, but I was just clued into its existence thanks to a post on Cartoon Brew. A nice stop motion/experimental/mixed media piece, made all the better by the musical accompaniment of T.V. On The Radio. Usually when I think of abstract stop motion, I think of the more "arts and crafts" look, something that often looks childish and elementary (not that that's always a bad thing!). However, here director Michael Please (with Agile Films) executed a really unique atmosphere, using the mixed media alongside some sophisticated character animation in a way that doesn't distract or look out of place. Instead it looks polished, and composes an entire world.

Alright thanks for letting me post something old...now something new...so new it's a debut album! John Gold is an artist on on of my favorite labels, Vagrant, so I think I'll take their word for it and give it a listen. Stream it below!

John Gold (Album Stream) by VagrantRecords

X Games by Jordan Metcalf

2011-06-13T14:14:00.000-04:00

Jordan Metcalf totally knocked it out the of the park with this new artwork commissioned for the promotion of the X Games 2011. Love the way it captures the rebel attitude of the games, while at the same time keeping things fun, playful, and inviting. More on his Behance gallery.

(via the blog of designer Jonathan Moore)

Happy Friday

2011-06-10T19:24:00.000-04:00

image from benyonda's flickr photostream

Believer by Jen Stark

2011-06-09T14:46:00.000-04:00

I saw this a while ago and have been meaning to post it ever since- this stop motion by Jen Stark is part of Double Rainbow Rainbow, a gallery exhibition in Toronto featuring work by her and her colleague Maya Hayuk. I'm usually sort of a simpleton when it comes to sculpture or mixed media installations (as in I basically love em or hate em, depending on what they are). Both of these artists have awesome work that I'd love to see in person. More pieces below!

Maya Hayuk

Jen Stark

Fired Earth Tiles

2011-06-09T14:27:00.000-04:00

Inspired by this blog post from illustrator Kris Atomic. So many pretty things at Fired Earth.

The Arctic Light by Terje Sørgjred

2011-06-08T14:01:00.000-04:00

Check out this time lapse of Norwegian skies and landscapes by Terje Sørgjred. Sometimes the day can be so busy that it's hard to stop even for a few minutes to watch something like this, but if you do take the time, you'll be so glad you did. In the realm of time lapse photography, I'm sure that Sørgjred is among the very best.

Find more info on the background of this film on the video's vimeo page.

(via Computerlove)