When it comes to an upstart prankster, the rebranding division of TrustoCorp Intl has to be one of the best. Dedicated to highlighting the hypocrisy and hilarity of human behavior through sarcasm and satire, this mysterious artist (or is it artists?) recently went all out and dropped hundreds of subversively branded products on the shelves of New York’s delis and supermarkets. Not only was this their ambush sheer brilliance, it’s also a timely reminder that sometimes it’s easy to look but not see.
With our ever-growing desire to eliminate the cashier from the retail equation, Vending Machines: Coined Consumerism documents the journey vending machines have made from technologically humble beginnings to the flashy consumer environments of today. The introductory essay frames these automated dispensers in the ideas of Marshall McLuhan and Philip K. Dick. The interviews with Michael Keferl of CScout, a global trend research firm, and Clark Whittington, founder of Art-o-mat, provide further context for the photographs of vending machines from all over the world – with a special emphasis on Japan – that sell an astounding array of products, from beverages to pornography. Vending Machines: Coined Consumerism serves as a visual point of reference for every consumer on the go.
Designers Rahul Mahtani & Yofred Moik from the Industrial Design program at Syracuse University came up with this concept called Google Envelopes. Wouldn’t it be great to be able to map the course of mail and how it can tell a story? Google Envelopes can be sent through G-Mail itself. It’s only a concept, but totally viable and something people can immediately understand.
This short film, called “The Gift,” is about a box whose contents seduce both humans and robots. It’s directed by newcomer Carl Erik Rinsch, a Ridley Scott protege, and [update] several studios are bidding to make it into a feature film. Rinsch, a commercial director who was originally tapped to do the Alien prequel, scored big with this short, according to THA today: “On Wednesday, the day the short came out, a bidding war broke out between several studios — longtime rivals Warner Bros. and Fox are in the mix, according to sources — who see feature potential in the short. Some speculate the project will end up at Fox, because Rinsch is part of the stable of RSA, Ridley Scott’s commercial house that produced the short, and Scott’s longtime association with Fox.” [THA Today]
This is a short film that was directed by the French animation collective H5, François Alaux, Hervé de Crécy + Ludovic Houplain. It was presented at the Cannes Film Festival 2009. It opened the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and won a 2010 academy award under the category of animated short.
Stunning and provocative new TV spot by Daniel Cox and Sarah Alexander, “Embrace Life” has exploded following its release onto YouTube on Friday 29 January. At the time of writing, ‘Embrace Life’ has been viewed over 1.25 million times on YouTube, is the 4th most viewed film this month, the 7th ‘Top Rated’ film this month and the 84th #Top Rated’ YouTube film of all time. Since launch it has become a truly world-wide phenomenon.
It’s not as if one decides to wake up one day, argue existentialism with livestock, and fly a spaceship to the center of the galaxy to meet, greet — and eat — God. it just sort of happens. At least it does in the world of Goats, the cult-hit webcomic wherein a clutch of brave-if-baffled barflies (including humans, chickens and a cyborg goldfish) hit the interdimensional bricks to save the multiverse from certain doom kicked off by a cosmic computer glitch.
Each month the industry produces hundreds of great sites and Design Fridge (our favorite web design directory) proudly showcases them in it’s css gallery. Some designs standout from the mix for original concept and the quality in their production.
Check out the complete selection for March 2010: [Design Fridge]
Tourism Australia has replaced its failed “Where the bloody hell are you?” campaign with the simpler, and more easily translatable, “There’s nothing like Australia” slogan. Disappointed.
