Lecture: The Essence of Humanity

"Hayao Miyazaki - The Essence of Humanity" by Channel Criswell

Filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki detests being referred to as the Japanese Walt Disney. The legendary  animator has voiced his admiration for Disney's classic films, but he's frequently gone on record to criticize their lack of emotional complexity, the element of storytelling he prizes above all else.

Miyazaki's films may feature supernatural elements, but they center around human characters.  Miyazaki doesn't construct a film's plot until after he's figured out what desires drive his characters.  The director doesn’t believe in tidy, unearned endings, and choosing spiritual growth over wish fulfillment.

Such growth rarely happens without time for reflection, and Miyazaki films are notable for their frequent use of non-verbal scenes featuring characters performing the small rituals of everyday life. 

Bond’s documentary examines these moments and the emotional depths they lend Miyazaki's films.

Lecture: Kubrick In Color

"Kubrick In Color" by Marc Anthony Figueras

Vimeo user Marc Anthony Figueras assembled this intriguing video examining director Stanley Kubrick's use of color in his films. Starting as a black & white photographer for Look Magazine, Kubrick’s first few films continued the trend, but after replacing Anthony Mann on Spartacus, he made the switch to color and never looked back. The director’s eye for fine detail incorporated the color spectrum in remarkable ways.

"Rishi Kaneria put together a brilliant supercut based completely around Stanley Kubrick's use of the color red.  You can watch that here: vimeo.com/112129153

After seeing that, I wanted to create a display of the whole color spectrum through most of Kubrick's films. I truly believe that color is one of the most powerful factors in someone's psychological build.  This video was solely made for the purpose of paying tribute to one of the greatest filmmakers of all time."

Lecture: Composition In Storytelling

"Composition In Storytelling" by Channel Criswell

Channel Criswell takes an in depth look at how directors compose their films.

Video: The Star Wars Formula

"The Force Awakens and Star Wars Formula" by Chris Stuckmann

An in-depth analysis of The Force Awakens, and the formula of the entire Star Wars saga.

Video: VFX Breakdown of The Force Awakens

"Star Wars The Force Awakens VFX Before & After" by Disneyland Experience

It seems "The Force Awakens" learned a lot from the overwhelming flatness in the prequels and landed on a perfect blend of practical and digital.

Lecture: The Problem with Trailers

"The Problem with Trailers" by Now You See It

In his wonderful cinematic theory series “Now You See It“, host Jack Nugent analyzes the anatomy of a film trailer, dissects each method and uses specific examples to prove his point.

"Why do all trailers feel the same? How do great trailers stand out? Let’s look at the structure of trailers over time and see how they’ve grown, and why some are practically identical."

Lecture: How Art Can Transform The Internet

"How Art Can Transform The Internet" by Nerdwriter1

In “How Art Transforms the Internet,” Nerdwriter host Evan Puschak takes a rather academic look at how art impacts the Internet, and perhaps more importantly how the Internet impacts art. The video shares the work of Internet artist Darius Kazemi and how its unique qualities make use of the Internet in ways not possible in other media.

Video: The Hero's Journey

"The Hero's Journey" Directed & Animated by Iskander Krayenbosch

If you've ever studied creative writing, you're likely familiar with the work of Joseph Campbell, the architect of the Monomyth, better known as "the hero's journey."  In his work, Campbell lays out the 17 narrative stages every heroes  walks in the course of his story.  As part of his University graduation project, Iskander Krayenbosch put together this excellent video explaining those stages.

"Since the beginning of time people are fascinated by stories of hero’s. But did you know there is a fundamental structure that's lies beneath all these tales of fantasy. Joseph Campbell, a famous mythologist, was the first to discover similarities within all ancient myths. He called it the Monomyth. According to him there are 17 stages in which every hero has to walk through one way or the other. In the hero’s journey 12 of these stages are visualized by using iconic blockbuster movies that follow the same structure of storytelling."

Lecture: How Technology Shapes Story

"Margaret Atwood – A State of Wonder: How Technology Shapes Story" by Future Of StoryTelling

The Future Of StoryTelling video series has released an animated lecture from Margaret Atwood on how technology shapes the way we tell stories.  As was the case with the advent of the Gutenberg Press nearly 600 years ago, modern digital platforms such as the internet and ebooks have created new ways for us to distribute and share stories.  Atwood is one author who has never shied away from new technologies, publishing past works on Wattpad and Twitter.  This video is part of a marketing campaign to raise awareness that Atwood will be participating in The Future of Storytelling Summit on October 7 and 8.

"As a critic, activist, and award-winning author of speculative fiction, Margaret Atwood has always been looking ahead. In her glances toward the future, she’s often searching for how technology influences content. The digital transition has already run through an entire era of online evolution, fossilizing a first round of experiments that failed to catch on. But serial stories, online collaborations, and sites like Wattpad, which connects tens of millions of new authors, are leading the way in a new wave of innovation. We’ve always told stories—it’s part of our humanity—but how those stories are created and shared is changing all the time, and Atwood’s looking to share her excitement about it at this year’s FoST."

Lecture: Why Akira Matters

"Why Akira Matters" by Joe Peacock

Katsuhiro Otomo’s anime masterpiece Akira is widely regarded as one of the most groundbreaking and influential films of all time. Based on the artist’s own landmark manga series of the same name, the film not only shattered box office records around the world but has retained a fiercely dedicated audience of animators and aficionados for more than twenty years – and for good reason. Akira revolutionized animation and arguably saved the Japanese film industry, paving the way for a new generation of artists and spawning a worldwide acceptance of animation as high art.  In this brief video, Joe Peacock explains some of the many reasons why Akira matters.

Lecture: Do We Live In The Future?

"Do We Live In The Future?" by PBS Idea Channel

PBS Idea Channel host Mike Rugnetta explores whether we live in the future, er, now. Rugnetta looks at what our concepts of “The Future” mean for the present, and whether we’re missing out by documenting and preparing for it.

"We spend a lot of time thinking about THE FUTURE. But spoilers, maybe the future is now! Forget hoverboards, flying cars, jetpacks, and structures made of bubbles — the future is here, and your notion of the one you were “promised” was probably a lie. Look around you! Computers the size of pennies, instant communication across the oceans. The Future is now! But why still do we defer to an idea of “The Future”? And what happens to Now when we’re living in the future? Watch this week’s episode of PBS Idea Channel and find out!"

Commencement Speech: Bill Nye

"Bill Nye Rutgers 2015 Commencement Speech" by Mikeisreallyneat

Via: Time

On Sunday, Bill Nye the Science Guy, delivered the Rutgers University Commencement speech to the graduating class of 2015. Nye's words came with a strong message: Climate change is a very real threat that we can no longer ignore.

In fact, according to Nye, the threat of climate change should be taken as seriously as previous generations took the threat of World War II. The world faces "the most serious environmental crisis in human history," Nye told the graduating students.

While his message was stern, he also offered optimism, saying he firmly believed the upcoming generation could tackle the problem if they address it in a focused way, whether through voting in politicians who take the issue seriously or by developing new technologies.

Commencement Speech: You're F*cked

"Robert De Niro gives amazing graduation speech to NYU grads" by Miting TV

Actor Robert De Niro provided a comical yet motivating commentary at the recent graduation ceremony for students of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

"When it comes to the arts, passion should always trump commonsense," De Niro says. "You weren’t just following dreams, you were reaching for your destiny. You’re a dancer, a singer, a choreographer, musician, a filmmaker, a writer, a photographer, a director, a producer, an actor, an artist. Yeah, you’re f**ked." 

De Niro’s startling and salty commencement speech was greeted with loud applause as the grinning actor gave the graduates a reality check.  The actor went on to elaborate on the less rosy career prospects his young audience had in store for them, as compared to peers who had opted for more stable and rational career choices, including medicine and accounting.  Wrapping up, De Niro said he intends to pass out his resume and head shots to newly graduated directors in the room.

Video: How to Do Visual Comedy

"Edgar Wright - How to Do Visual Comedy" by Tony Zhou

Tony Zhou is the creator of a series of excellent video essays he calls "Every Frame a Painting."  Among other pieces, he once offered an insightful look at movement in the films of Akira Kurosawa. In this video, he delves into the work of British director Edgar Wright, who has directed such cult masterpieces as Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.

Zhou begins with the assertion that most of today's Hollywood comedies are just plain boring.  Box office hits like Bridesmaids and The Hangover are often little more than a recording of actors riffing on dialog.  These movies' humor is almost entirely contingent on that dialogue, and, while that certainly yields some laughs (at least one Oscar's worth), in purely cinematic terms, Hollywood's comedies are woefully uninspiring.  After all, film is a visual medium, it's humor should be delivered visually.

Lecture: LEGO Movie Anti-Copyright?

"Is The LEGO Movie Anti-Copyright?" by PBS Idea Channel

Mike Rugnetta returns with another great theory.  This time, he explores whether The LEGO Movie is actually making a case against copyright!  (Not bloodly likely given the studios backing the film, but it's an intriguing though exercise.)  Rugnetta takes a look at how copyright effects every part of culture and how it affects the creation of something new out of something old – themes that The LEGO Movie grapples with at every turn.

"EVERYTHING IS AWESOME in the LEGO™ movie, except when it isn’t and LORD BUSINESS gets in the way and wants to control everything and stifle creativity™! Emmet, Wyldstyle, Batman, and others in the movie seem completely opposed to the imposition of any sort of structure that dictates what will be built and how, which to us at Idea Channel sounds really similar to discussions around copyright law and intellectual property (IP). Are master builders just artists who make good use of the public domain? Can the LEGO movie advocate for open culture even if LEGO itself is historically opposed to it? Find out in this week’s episode of Idea Channel!"

Lecture: Fan Fiction with Korra

"Love Bending and Fan Fiction with Korra" by PBS Idea Channel

"FAN FICTION! The wonderful domain of art and creativity where all of our dreams about all of our favorite characters come true. Harry and Draco, Luigi and Peach, and more recently Korra and Asami! Korrasami, colloquially, is a popular fandom that has sprung up in the wake of The Legend of Korra. It's popularity may be indebted to a lot of different factors, but, more importantly, it's popularity demonstrates the NEED and WANT for meaningful female relationships in media! Join Mike in this week's Idea Channel as he goes into this and more. And Happy Valentine's!"

Lecture: You Are Not a Content Creator

"You Are Not A Content Creator" by Jonathan Mann

Here's a video rant from Jonathan Mann on the topic of why he hates the term “content” and what it means to be an artist. Mann is probably best known for his song per day YouTube project, and he stresses in the video that those songs are more than just “content” that YouTube can use to sell ads.

Lecture: Style vs Function in The Hobbit

"Style vs Function in The Hobbit" by DBS Film Society

Remember when you saw one of The Hobbit films (which should’ve been only recently) and you thought “there’s something about this that doesn’t really work, but I don’t know what it is”? Well,  Dublin Business School film student Sean Hickey put together this engaging video essay comparing the The Lord of the Rings trilogy with the more recent The Hobbit trilogy.  His  argument in a nutshell is that, between style and substance, substance will always wins.

Lecture: Gay in Videogames

"The Value of Playing Gay in Videogames" by PBS Game/Show

In the latest episode of the series, PBS Game/Show host Jamin Warren explores empathy and the importance of gay characters in video games. Specifically, Warren points to the mage Dorian Pavus in Dragon Age: Inquisition as an example of such a character that helps breed empathy in those who may not share his more realistic experiences.

"As games mature, they are sometimes tasked with tackling issues and themes in the greater realms of society at large. The portrayal of gay characters in games is one of these such issues, and one that games all too often fail to portray in a light that doesn’t condemn or mock. However, there are some bright lights! Bioware, in their expansive RPG series’ like Mass Effect and Dragon Age, exist on the opposite side of the spectrum in that their portrayal of gay characters is done in a way that makes them neither stand out or disappear, but instead appear like normal parts of the universe. But why is it so important for us to have the option to play as gay characters in videogames, and why is it that Bioware is one of the few companies to provide that option?"

Lecture: This is Water

"This is Water" 2005 Commencement Speech by Water David Foster Wallace

Via: Reddit

"This Is Water: Some Thoughts, Delivered on a Significant Occasion, about Living a Compassionate Life is an essay by David Foster Wallace, first published in book form by Little, Brown and Company in 2009. The text originates from a commencement speech given by Wallace at Kenyon College on May 21, 2005. Before Little, Brown's publication, a transcript of the speech circulated around the Internet. The essay was also published in The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2006."