Had i own a jet plane,i'd fly to L.A this instant to attend the opening  exhibition the retrospective work of Stanley Kubrick, one of the most remarkable filmmakers of our time, at Los Angelas County Museum of Art. An influence to filmmakers of his generations and the next,he's what they call a Director's Director.

I did an extensive research on him and his films as part of my thesis work.And yet have no idea where to begin to write about him or whether i'm done with the research.Because the more i read about him or watch his films, the more new things i discover that i've not a crossed before.Thats when you know he's a master, you keep learning about the artist and his work even after death.

Perhaps i'll write something about Stanley Kubrick and his work in another entry. For now i just wanted to share this event. If you're in L.A or somewhere within the U.S, I'd recommend you check out the exhibition.

Do it for me :)

If you want to know more about the exhibition:

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118061207.html?cmpid=RSS%7CNews%7CLatestNews

A friend of mine posted this really amazing animation 'Heart'  by Erick Oh on my Timeline and i was blown away!! It's been awhile since i've seen a brilliant piece of work like this. It has all elements that makes a good animation; style,pacing,action sequences ,great cinematography and most of all, great music. This is something a lot people take for granted; sound. I don't have a lot of info about the music composer ,but i can you that it compliments the animation.

Anyway, what i enjoy about 'Heart' is the style. Visually it borrowed elements from Surrealism.First thing that ran through my mind was Salvador Dali's 'La Persistencia de la Memoiria' orThe Persistance of Memory, which happen to my favorite artist. 
Its interesting to note that Salvador Dali collaborated with Walt Disney back in 50s to produce a short animation base on Dali's work.It was quite an extraordianry venture for the two giants of the visual world but unfortunately, the project was shelved due to financial difficulty as a result of WWII. 
The project was resurrected in 2003 by Walt's nephew Roy E. Disney  after having stumbled upon Dali's sketches and drawings in the Disney Archives. Directed by French Director Dominque Monfrey, the animation short was called 'Destino', music written by Mexican songwriter Armando Dominguez and performed by Dora Luz.

It was a brilliant piece. A beautiful convergence of music and visual art.
 
Despite the dominance of 3D technology in today's world, both 'Heart' and 'Destino' proves there is still something beautiful about 2D art that can't be achieve  through a stylus. The art of drawing frame by frame,is a form of expression that has its own language and aesthetic. It's Timeless.   

As far as i can remember, i started drawing at the age of  7 ( i  think ) when i began attending primary school. The real reason for that is because,well, everyone in my class drew. So not to feel left out,i'd join in the crowd and draw my way around.It was on/off at first for couple of years...until i came across a music video which blew me away. That music video was 'Take on me' by A-Ha.

But here's the reason why that particular video made such impact:

When i was about 8, my family moved to Tehran,Iran where my father was posted,working for the Embassy of Malaysia. At the time,Iran was going through a period of mourning, having just ended the Iran-Iraq War as well as the death of their spiritual leader,the Ayatollah Khomeini. Blaming U.S and the West for everything ,the Iranian Government banned anything that has to do with western culture/influence; music,fashion,television programs,magazines,books,movies and even VHS players!!! That means for a period of time,i missed out on a bunch of movies,television series,music and many other.So me and my siblings were only entertained by the stuff we brought from Malaysia. It wasn't a lot.

But once in awhile ,when my dad had to attend conferences outside Iran he'd return home bringing with him tons of goodies for the family; toys,branded cloths,books and magazine,handbag for mom, chocolate treats, music cds and some latest VHS movie flicks. 
That was when i got hold of a VHS Collection of the latest music video of that time ( 80s).
I've seen it all; Pink Floyd'S the Wall, Michael Jackson's videos, Talking Head's video,Peter Gabriel's 'Sledgehammer' video and most impressive of them all; 'Take on Me'. I loved their rotoscope penciled music video so much that i took drawing classes and really began to draw for the sake of drawing.
It really made an impact on me and opened the doors to creativity.

The rest is history.

I still think its one of the best piece of work ever produced that transcends both artistry and commercial. 

Enjoy the video!