The 30 most awaited movies for 2017

A new year is also a sign that we have a lot of new movies closing in, and there are more than a dozen that will be a "must-see" when they finally pop up on movie theaters in 2017.

Why Hollywood studios never make "profitable" movies

Big Hollywood Studios are always complaining about illegal downloads and how that ruins actors' lives. What they seem to forget is that they're already doing a great job at it... for decades.

The supressor/silencer myth in movies and videogames

Movies and videogames are responsible for "teaching" us lots of things. We all know that a car going down a ravine will explode in a giant fireball; agents can pick a lock in just a few seconds with any wire they can find (except when there's a small child inside a locked burning building); and... silencers make weapons... silent. Well... you'd be surprised.

The secret A113 code seen in movies and TV

If you're the kind of people that notices every tiny detail in movies and TV series, you might have noticed a mysterious code that pops up frequently in animation movies and a few live-action ones as well. What is this mysterious A113 code that shows up in license plates, addresses, product references, and many other places? Is is just a coincidence or is there something else behind it?

Indeed there is, but it's kind of a private joke/easter egg among students of the California Institute of the Arts where A113 is a classroom number used by graphic design and character animation students where people like John Lasseter (Toy Story, Cars), Brad Bird (The Incredible, Impossible Mission Ghost Protocol), Pete Docter (Up), Andrew Stanton (Finding Nemo, Wall.E), and others have spent a lot of their time.

This reference can be found in dozens of movies, mostly animation but also a few live-action movies as well, and Brad Bird says he put it into every single one of his films, including his Simpsons episodes.

So, next time you spot a A113 in a movie, be sure to share with your friends this curious tidbit of less known movie trivia. :)

Popcorn Time - Free streaming movies for all

Some of you may have friends that have elaborate media center setups that allow them to watch torrent and streaming internet movies. You probably think it's cool... but the mere thought of all the hassle in installing and configuring all the programs, plugins, etc. makes you think it's not something you should try at home. Well, now you can, as all it takes is a few clicks when using this Popcorn Time.

The Popcorn Time simply turns all the things advanced users currently do to stream bittorrent movies from the internet into something that is easily accessible for all. You can think of it as a free, and hassle-free, Netflix for all. Sure there are the copyright issues to deal with, as many (most?) of the content you'll be able to stream may not be legal in your country. The developers say they don't expect any issues with it, as they don't actually host any content - their program simply uses whatever it's available on the internet, gathering data from multiple services - movie info, posters, etc. - and presenting it all to the user. They also say they're not profiting form it, as the software is free (and open-source) and doesn't even include ads.

If you find it suspicious, you can even check it out on GitHub to make sure there's no hidden code doing some nasty stuff in your computer.

It's a pity studios and distributors don't redirect all the effort they waste pursuing IPs of alleged downloaders to providing a similar but legal service. Maybe some day they'll learn it's better to treat their customers as actual customers instead of criminals.

The Zombies of World War Z

If you've watched World War Z (or simply seen its trailer) you'll know just how different its zombies are. Long gone are the slow walking dead bodies we've seen in classics like the Night of the Living Dead - now replaced by hordes of swarming, fast-moving (really fast, might I add) zombies that look like fire ants on a frenzy. As you'd might expect, that's something that became possible thanks to the magic of CGI (computer generated images) that we can see in most movies these days. But to manage such a high number of zombies on screen, they've used some clever techniques inspired by video games.

Instead of manually animating each and every zombie by hand - which would be unfeasible for such a alarge number if them; they developed an artificial intelligence that allowed each one of them to act as an individual, with its own goals and unique features. Then, they had a more evolved system called "Alice" that allowed artists to better shape the kind of action they desired - and once it was good enough, then the animators came in to give the final touch.

Once again... movies and videogames are become more and more alike by the day...


[via Wired]

Movies vs Real Life

We all know most movies take certain "creative liberties" when it comes to portraying what life is on film. Some of them have now become so common that we don't even dare question it's feasability in the real world. But that's exactly what you'll see in the following (funny) video, where several common movie sequences are show as they are on film... and as they would most probably be in real life.

Having seen this... I do wish every movie would have a "realistic version" of it in the extras section of the DVD/Bluray! :)

Toy Story in Live Action

Movies are the stuff dreams are made of... or so some say. And if it's true that we have seen lots of movies that began as live action and then received the animated version treatment (as well as the other way around), that doesn't make it any less deserving having a couple of friends remaking Toy Story in live action.

This project was carried out by Jesse Perrotta and Jonason Pauley, from Arizona - and considering it took them 2 years to complete this project, you might begin to give them some real credit for all the work they've done, recreating the original Toy Story, shot by shot using real life physical toys.

I think this will - at the very least - open them some doors to work in any animation studio out there.

The Lord of the Rings "One Ring" can Be Yours

If you're a fan of the Lord of the Rings universe or the latest Peter Jackson movies (he'll soon be back again with The Hobbit), you might have grown a special attraction by its "precious" ring: The One Ring to rule them all... And if you have yet to satisfy your cravings, you might want to know that you can simpley order  one of those original Lord of the Ring rings from Weta - if you're fast, as these items tend to sold out almost immediately.

This ring is gold plated and made of tungsten carbide - which is several times harder than titanium - and should make it nealy indestructible; and it can be yours for just $99.99.


... But, if you're really a big fan of the series and want the real deal, you can also consider having the solid gold The One Ring which can be your for "only" $3,300 US dollars (without inscriptions) or $3,500 with the elvish inscriptions (as it should, might I add!)

A really precious item, that unfortunately is out of my budget range... But if you happen to feel the urge to offer me something for Christmas, this would definitely make me a very happy man! :)

Fantasporto 2011

Once again, Porto becomes the movie capital of Portugal. The Porto Film Festival Fantasporto begins today its 31st edition, with over 300 movies that bring the "fantastic" element to town (but not only, as Fantasporto has since tried to diversify its offerings to a much broader range of movies.)

If you happen to have a chance, don't miss the opportunity to visit us from Feb 25th to March 5th, and breathe the amazing atmosphere this movie fest creates... and, of course, be sure to watch a couple of movies... or more! :)

As always, I'll be there every single day!

Why people Pirate Movies?

It's completely ridiculous how paying customers are treated these days. Whenever you buy a DVD/Bluray/Video Game/etc. you're treated like you're a criminal - even though you just paid good money for it.

To make it even more absurd, anyone choosing to "pirate" that content gets a much friendlier user experience, being able to just use it without any such concerns.

There will always be pirates; but if companies decided to treat the paying customers better, I'm sure a lot more people would be willing to buy their stuff!

Click on the image below to see it in its full glory:

Airplane Stunts - Flying without Canopy

Why spend millions of dollars in digital effects when you can simply ask some crazy russian pilots to do some unbelievable air stunts?

What if someone told you there were some guys willing to fly in a fighter plane without a canopy? After the back-seat pilot was ejected in mid-flight, the pilot in front claims we even managed to speed up to Mach 2.0 - (and I remind you: in an open plane!!!) at which time he tried to put his hand a couple of inches outside the cockpit:

 "While on this speed I even managed to pull out my fingers in glove for an inch or two outside - it became heated very fast because of immense friction force plane undergoes with the air."

... All that is left is to find which movie it is, to make sure we don't miss it! :)

Michael Jackson's Arcade Lair

It's no secret most of us would like to be able to have a room to keep their "stuff". A select few can have something even better, something most people can only dream of.

Be amazed by Michael Jackson's arcade lair, with lots of memorabilia from movies, arcade machine, flippers, and lots other.

Click the image to be taken to a "virtual reality" style panoramic site where you can look around and know more details about it.

RunPee - the best time to run during a movie

Although I'm a very big fan of watching a movie without any interruptions - and thankfully, most of the movie theaters I attend have no intermissions - for others, that's almost impossible.
Of course, I'm referring to all those people who can't stand away from the WC for more than 1h.

So... what can we do? How can you ensure you're not missing one of the most important scenes while you're running to the WC for a quick pee?

Easy: RunPee.

For each movie, this site will tell you the best moments for you to quickly run to the WC without worrying about missing an important part of the movie.

 

You don't even have to worry about spoilers, the text is garbled at first - and even afterwards, it tells you just as little as possible for you to recognize when you have to leave.


A recommended site for everyone with a small bladder. :)

IMSDb - The Internet Movie Script Database

Most of you have certainly heard of IMDB before. Whenever you need to check some thing about a movie this is the first site to visit.

Today, I present you IMSBb - The Internet Movie Script Database - that will also appeal to most movie lovers. This IMSDb offers you the largest collection of movie scripts on the web.

Ideal for anyome wanting to plunge into the sordid details of movie making and read every tiny little detail about a movie.

Chuck Norris - or should I say: Carlos Ray?

Who would have guessed?

Everyone knows him...
The entire Internet (and probably the entire Universe) fears him...
Some know him as Col. James Braddock, others as J.J. McQuade, and other's still, as Ranger Walker.

So, what do you think about Chuck Norris' real name being... (roll drums)...

Carlos Ray!

He has my first name!

Now, just be sure you don't tell him where you found out about it, or else... I might not live long enough to finish this sent...

[50 Celebrities' Real Names]

MacGyver Returns

Lee Davif Zlotoff (curious how after all these years, that name is still embedded in our brains) has just confirmed that there's a big budget MacGyver movie in the works.

What did you expect? If Knight Rider can come back, doesn't MacGyver deserve the same chance?

Count me in!

Now, we're just missing a renewed A-Team... but I'm sure there's someone working on that one as well, as we speak..

Besides Zlotoff's name, I guess there are a few other things we really can't ever forget... such as MacGyver's intro song:

Iron Man gets Dressed

Want to checkout how Tony Stark (a.k.a Iron Man) gets dressed?



Be sure not to miss it on the big screen. :)

Real Time 3D Facial Animation and Capture

If you want to see what you can accomplish - today - in facial expression capture and rendering, check this out:


Mova Contour Reality Capture in Unreal Engine 3

This capture system, from Mova - here shown using the Unreal Engine 3 and two NVIDIA 8800 GTXs in SLI for real time rendering - uses a camera array to create a 3D model from someone's face with 100,000 polygons accurate to one tenth of a millimete, without requiring reflective markers like other motion capture systems.

Pretty impressive. We're definitely on the right track for lifelike computer models for videogames and CGI movies alike.

If they can do this in realtime right now, what should we expect from James Cameron's Avatar? :)

via [Joystiq]

10 Best SciFi Movies ever

The American Film Institute has come up with a list of the best 50 SF films ever. Ten will be picked as the best of the best will air on a TV special on CBS in June.

If you don't want o bother with registering on the AFI site, don't forget to use BugMeNot ;)

The AFI defines "science fiction" as a genre that marries a scientific or technological premise with imaginative speculation.

And the list is:

1. A.I. Artificial Intelligence
2. Alien
3. Altered States
4. The Andromeda Strain
5. Back to the Future
6. The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms
7. Blade Runner
8. Children of Men
9. A Clockwork Orange
10. Close Encounters of the Third Kind
11. Cocoon
12. Contact
13. The Day the Earth Stood Still
14. Destination Moon
15. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
16. Escape From New York
17. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
18. Fantastic Voyage
19. The Fly (1986)
20. Forbidden Planet
21. Frankenstein (1931)
22. The Incredible Shrinking Man
23. Independence Day
24. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
25. The Invisible Man (1933)
26. It Came From Outer Space
27. Jurassic Park
28. Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
29. The Matrix
30. Men in Black
31. Minority Report
32. Planet of the Apes (1968)
33. Repo Man
34. RoboCop
35. Rollerball (1975)
36. Silent Running
37. Soylent Green
38. Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan
39. Star Wars: Episode IV--A New Hope
40. Starman
41. The Stepford Wives (1975)
42. Terminator 2: Judgment Day
43. Them!
44. The Thing From Another World
45. The Time Machine (1960)
46. Total Recall
47. Tron
48. 2001: A Space Odyssey
49. The War of the Worlds (1953)
50. Westworld

I don't know if I could pick just 10 of them - though I would replace that Mad Max Thunderdome for the Mad Max II.
Besides, there are still a lot of movies that deserved to show up in there: Waterworld, Postman, Twelve Monkeys, Metropolis, Sunshine, Brazil, and even Serenity - and I could go on all day long...

What about you? What movies would you add to that list?