NAS Art Exhibition poster (March 2016)

At short notice, I was asked to design the poster advertising the art exhibition that is displaying a work of mine. Because it was short notice, I had to redesign it.

Here's the original version.

And here's the final version. 

(They forgot to say that I had to include the artwork that won the competition on it.)

The "roses and kittens" illustration is a reference to the artwork I have on exhibit.

Is This Probably The Best Beer Ad in the World?

Mock-up of Carlsberg Free Beer Dispensing Billboard (2015)

On 8th April 2015, near to the Old Truman Bewery in Shoreditch, London, Carlsberg (the beer that claims to be "probably the best beer in the world") set up what is probably the best beer poster in the world - a poster that gives out FREE BEER!

Yes, Carlsberg made a billborad that gives out free beer. 

I know. It sounds like something from the 20th century (maybe 1970s America?), but this has happened. A brewer has done a publicity campaign giving out free beer. Carlsberg must have a lot of balls, doing this in a time when the very idea sounds like (to a notable percentage of the population) the anti-smoking ad giving away free cigarettes I made last year. But, so far, I have heard no news of  large drunken riots in London.

Carlsberg do plan to roll this out across the UK. Is this a good idea? I don't know, considering the British's reputation when it comes to drink. I bet the usual people (The Salvation Army, the AA (and the other AA as well), etc) will protest this in the usual reactionary way, but I don't think it'll do anything. In fact (judging from the history books), it will make more people drink from the billboard.

So, people who are appalled by the idea who want to protest - don't protest. It'll make things worse! One of the lessons from history people repeatably fail to learn is that as soon as someone makes a fuzz about something (a book, a film, an ad campaign, etc) others will wonder why that person is making a fuzz and be curious enough to do the very thing you didn't want them to do!

Think of when many Romans became Christians when it was a persecuted cult in Rome.

Think of the many people in 1979 who travelled vast distances to see Monty Python's Life of Brian, because their council or country had banned that film, because the powers at be thought it was blasphemous.

And think of the many things that happened in recent years that have resulted from injunctions or someone trying to act their "right to be forgotten"....

The "Right to be Forgotten" discussion on Last Week Tonight (May 2014)

My call to not protest can apply to all forms of cultural protest. That's movies, books, video games with questionable content, or crazes that don't do physical harm (crazes that do should be protested against).

I know, my definition can sound ambiguous, like a tax law with an unintended loophole, but.... 

I think its better if I explain in another blog. 

But for now, I say it applies to questionable ad campaigns, like this one.

And maybe, it will become (probably) the best ad campaign ever - for not causing a drunken brawl.

Would that be great?

Act of Cultural Vandalism - 25 Years and they haven't aged a bit - Why?

Unless you have been living in an nuclear fallout shelter in the past 25 years because you really thought the bomb will drop (like Brendan Fraser in the movie Blast from the Past) you will have heard about The Simpsons plus the fact its their 25th anniversary (well, 27th if you count the shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show).

Since "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", the show has become a pillar of American TV culture (particularly the one holding up the Fox network, due to its shoddy foundations). It's success has led to a series of comics books, a number of video games, a few music albums, a number 1 hit single, a movie, a wheelbarrow's worth of Emmys, and even the ultimate accolade - a ride in Universal Studios (and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame).
It has gained a lot of cultural power. It has introduced a number of words and phrases in the dictionary, most notably D'oh! and the idea that the French are "Cheese-eating surrender monkeys."

(I like to point out that, according to history (and Stephen Fry), the French have had a successful battle record in the 19th century. According to another source of historical accuracy (the Hetalia: Axis Powers web manga series) its the Italians who deserve to be called cheese-eating.. I mean, pasta-eating surrender monkeys. Don't blame me, blame Hidekaz Himaruya for pointing this out.)

The Simpsons are everywhere (in over 200 countries in fact). They have been seen on T-shirts, slippers, fridge magnets, TV ads for butterfingers, Even Marge made an appearance on the cover of Playboy magazine. You have really made it when you appear on the cover of Playboy (like Drew Barrymore and the Commodore PET).

With such cultural power The Simpsons has had a huge influence on TV. The show is credited for resurrecting animation as a medium on prime-time television. It's thanks to The Simpsons we have Family Guy, South Park, The Critic, King of the Hill, and (especially) Futurama. There's even a Georgian "copy" of The Simpsons (the ultimate accolade for a successful show - been copied by another country).

"The Simpsons created an audience for prime-time animation that had not been there for many, many years ... As far as I'm concerned, they basically re-invented the wheel. They created what is in many ways—you could classify it as—a wholly new medium." - Seth MacFarlane, Vanity Fair (2008)

But its influence isn't limited to to animation. It has influenced live-action show too. British director Edgar Wright (for example) has admitted that his sitcom Spaced was "an attempt to do a live-action The Simpsons."

One reason for its influence is its longevity. The show has been a staple on Fox's schedules since December 1989. This has earned the show the world record for world's longest running animated TV show. However, this actually depends on what you mean by "long-running". The show first gained the world record when it's episode count surpassed The Flintstones in 1997. In 2004 it gained the longest running sitcom title by surpassing the episode count of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. But then it briefly lost the longest animated show title to Scooby-Doo, but got it back when execs cancelled the dog show (for a while). In 2009 it gained the record for longest running scripted prime-time show on US TV - chronologically. It took the record from Gunsmoke by been on TV for more years than the western did. But if The Simpsons manage to stay on screen every year until 2018 it will been Gunsmoke in episode count. 

That is, if you exclude the "non-American" parts of TV land. The record for longest-running animated TV show outside the US is the Japanese weekly anime Sazae-san, which is as old as Monty Python (Really, they both began broadcasting in the same month - October 1969). I highly doubt The Simpsons will beat Sazae-san's 20-year head start. I can't think of over 3,000 possible plots for The Simpsons (Sazae-san aired its 3,000 episode in 2008), despite the claim of this episode of South Park. But the longevity of Sazae-san does prove a point I remember been said by either Jimmy Perry  or David Croft (the creators BBC sitcoms Dad's Army and Hi-de-Hi!) about how to achieve a long successful comedy show - set it in the past. The jokes will last long as they will be already dated. 

On the subject of aging jokes, despite been on for 25 years, the Simpson family themselves have never aged. Its the classic cliche about animated cartoons, as observed in this classic clip...

Bart watches Pokemon while doing homework in "Postcards from the Wedge" (2010)

There's even a Doctor Who crossover fan fiction that tackles this very issue. It's worth reading (despite been unfinished by the time of writing). 

However, as The Simpsons continue to appear on our TV screens, I am aware that there is a huge debate that the quality of the show has fallen since the late-1990s, with a noticeable shift from character-led plots to crazy antics. Admittedly, I am a fan of crazy stuff, which is why unlike a number of early fans, I have endured the show's later years, including the Family Guy crossover show. But even I know everything can't last forever.

So, how come a show set in the present lasted for so long? This video may provide an answer....

The Simpsons explain why they are still on the air (1992)

History note - In 1990 Fox (seeing the success of their yellow family show) decided to create headlines by moving the show to the same time The Cosby Show was on NBC (which was the highest rated programme on the US TV at the time), thus creating  ratings war. Because of this, they are a number of references to The Cosby Show in the show, most notability the character of Dr Hibbert. 

I thought you like to know this, so you can (while reading this) ignore what has happened to Bill recently, as it is IRREVERENT TO WHAT I'M SAYING HERE.

So, what can we learn from The Simpsons longevity? Mike Scully has said this in an interview in 2007 "Lower your quality standards. Once you've done that you can go on forever." Enough said.

But things can't last forever, no matter how low its quality quality, which is why I like to say this. I have a feeling that the show's end is coming soon. I have no concrete evidence of this. I haven't got access to North Korean hackers who could break into Fox's computer systems and get validation of this. I'm basing my gut feeling on one observation - the plot of this episode (airing in January 2015) was first written by Judd Apatow back in 1990. The writers must have been desperate for ideas to salvage this one from their "ideas bin." What better sign you can get for a long-running TV show coming to an end than recycling an idea they had once rejected back during their "pre-shark-jump" years. 

Fortunately, if the end is coming soon, Al Jean has a plan for the perfect ending of this long-running show. 

So there you have it. 25 years of Do'h!s, Mmmmm!s, Aye Curumba!s, suckle suckle's and... "If anyone needs me, I'll be in my room."

And now the final sketch, and its a sketch with a story...

Back in 2009 (during the show's 20th anniversary) their was a competition to design a poster celebrating it. I had a great idea for it, but because, at the time, I was in college creating two interactive apps for my multimedia course, I wasn't able to make it. I did plan to have it made as an Illustrator gif by Christmas that year as a gift to all my friends, but time caught up with me and it laid unfinished... until now. I had been busy this year so their was a chance this couldn't have been made in time for Christmas. But I did it, thanks to a big decision - its not an Illustrator gif (that will have taken forever to make). It is in my classic hand-drawn style (kind of like when The Simpsons were first made back in 1989, long before computers took over). I admit it is a bit rushed, but its a bit more fitting don't you think? Adds authenticity (if you consider Photoshop as a hand-tool).

Happy Holidays everyone!

Acts of Cultural Vandalism #8 - 10 years of Mythbusting, and They Finally Got That Chevy to Fly

On the 1st of May an iconic TV show that aims to find the truth tackled a big thorn that has kind of bugged them since the show began. In fact, it was the subject matter of their very first pilot episode back on 23rd January 2003. They tried to deal with it in November 2007, but the thorn "exploded" on them when it hit the ramp. Now, they finally sorted it out and that thorn was trimmed off their minds (actually, it it sort of somersaulted and turned onto itself in a large cloud of dust and black smoke).

For the readers who are wondering "WTF is this guy writing about?" I'm talking about the Discovery Channel's famous crusaders of truth (and mayhem), the MythBusters, and  the "thorn" in question is in the form of a 1967 Chevrolet Impala with rockets attached.

Mythbusters 2013 season premiere 

Its one of the most famous 20th century myths, next to watching TV too close to the set can cause damage to your eyes (which is true until 1968, when leaded glass was used to make CRTs, so its OK to do so now (especially if you got a flat-screen)) and that subliminal messaging works (The classic form of this (the split second flash of text on a screen) doesn't really please read my blog work as popular belief suggest.). It could only have come from the wide-open, car-loving, everything-is-better-with-rockets-attached country that is America. One day, an Air force man or a guy exploring a dump or military surplus retailer, got their hands on a JATO rocket and decided (for a bit of fun) attach it to the roof of his car. He floored his car down a straight road and let it rip! It allegedly reached over 300mph before the car hit a small bump on the road, which caused it to launch into the air for a huge distance, until it hit a rocky mountain face.

Since the 1980s, this story has circulated the internet (along with the concept of the Darwin Awards) and had a few mentions and references outside the WebSphere, including a paragraph in Craig Charles' The Log: A Dwarfer's Guide to Everything (1997) (where I first heard if this story (I didn't go online a lot then (too little accessible content due to my age then)).


It's such a great story that (years later) I even used it in a poster design during my time studying graphics design in Glasgow Metropolitan College (before it became part of the City of Glasgow College group). The class had a competition for a poster about the college's literacy help service. I made two full-size A3 posters for my portfolio and this is one of them. I only made it to show what kind of ideas I could come up with. It wasn't entered the competition (the other was and it got in the final three!). I wasn't as savvy with computer graphics as I am now, hence its quality (and the errors in the text).

Literacy poster made in college, featuring the JATO car myth (2006-7)

It's no surprise that this myth got chosen as the subject for the first ever episode of MythBusters. In fact, because they re-tried this myth twice with a four-five year gap in-between tries its possible to observe how the show as evolved just by examining how they tried to examine this myth. 

Let's start from the very beginning.

No. Not THAT beginning. I mean, the first show in 2003.

The First Attempt

Believe it or not, MythBusters is an Australian invention. The producers of the show are Beyond Television Productions, which formed in 1985 to produce the science and tech mag show Beyond 2000, which was a commercial reworking of Towards 2000 which appeared from 1981-3 on ABC. The idea of MythBusters was devised by Aussie writer and producer Peter Rees in 2002. Initially, it was going to be another "this is what allegedly happened" show, but Discovery rejected it (as they already commissioned such a show at the time), so Rees turned the emphasis towards the experiments on the myth's aspects, which turned out to be a stroke of TV genius. Discovery agreed to develop and co-produce a three-episode pilot series. For a presenter(s), the obvious choice is a special effects artist, as they work in many disciplines (and try to make the impossible happen for a living). A number of these artist sent casing tapes to Discovery, but one of them had an added advantage, because Rees interviewed him on Beyond 2000 on the segment about  Robot Wars. He got the role. The man in question was former pet shop owner, diving instructor, wilderness survival and Russian literature expert Jamie "I am the early-20th century walrus" Hyneman. 

Before MythBusters, Jamie's biggest claim to fame was his combat robot Blendo, which was once classified as too dangerous for competition (which may be why he got the job). But Jamie felt he needed a co-host, thinking he was too "uninteresting" to host alone. Fortunately  the perfect co-host was near him (as he did the wiring from Blendo). He had a lot of previous experience performing as a child actor, been a voice for animated characters on Sesame Street, a stock boy on a Charmin toilet roll commercial and a drowning boy in the music video for Billy Joel's You're Only Human (Second Wind). Then, abandoning acting in favor of activities that used his hands, he dazzled in model making, animation, carpentry, set design and worked as a film developer, a projectionist, and a gallery owner. The perfect co-host for an already "uninteresting" guy. That guy was Adam "I reject reality and substitute my own" Savage. 

With the presenters (Who also had their own premises for experimentation called M5 Industries) found and ready, it was time to begin the business of busting myths. Eight myths were tested in the three original pilots, and from the beginning they tried to be ambitious, with these first myths including the Larry Walters lawn chair stunt of 1982 and the supposedly deadly Goldfinger body paint myth. 

Jamie Hyneman bearing all for science.

But the most ambitious (and most crucially  their first failure) was the very first one they tried to do - the JATO car. Just looking back at this myth alone shows how difficult those early years were for the MythBusters. Getting access to an actual JATO was impossible (despite phoning the military to get their involvement in it - PERMISSION DENIED) so they had to settle with off-the-shelf rockets, as used by professional rocket enthusiasts. Also, they had trouble finding the car. Despite the fourth generation Chevy Impala holding the record of annual sells of 1million when it was new, Adam and Jamie had massive trouble finding just one of them. Eventually, they found a 1966 Impala (with tripped suspension). The main reason why they had this trouble was that they were the guys on the scene. No reputation - let. Back then, Jamie and Adam were just two special effects guys who just got a job presenting a TV show.

Jamie and Adam with the first JATO Chevy (2002)

The first JATO Chevy (2002) and look at the size of that camera rig

A series of three hobby rockets (providing a bigger thrust than a JATO) were attached to the roof. The car was rigged to be remote controlled. It was taken to the Mojave Desert and let rip (Actually, the car had a fuel filter problem that prevented the car from initially going. They spent so much time on the rackets they neglected the car.). Because of the possible speeds it could reach, a fast helicopter was hired to take the controller to follow the rocketing fast car. When it did let rip the car went well pass the helicopter's top speed with spectacular spectacle (but no carnage). In their primitive set up of 2003, the remote controller only had his eyes on the car as it went along as reference and their was no speed measuring equipment to confirm the speed of the rocketing car, but the fact it went just beyond the top speed of their helicopter meant that it reached a speed was not the mythical 300mph the myth required, busting the original circumstances. They didn't try to "duplicate the results" then (only could afford one set of rockets as it was the pilot).

The first JATO Chevy cruising along very quickly. How quickly? 

No one bothered to measure it, but you can tell it was beyond its original top speed.

It may have looked like another low-budget science show found on the cable networks then, but this proved to be the start of something big. Within a few years their quest to find the truth in the many "myths" most proper academic scientists ignore investigating (due to social pressure from other academics) gained Jamie and Adam recognizable fame with the populace. With such fame, they have received high praise from the academia and journal-writing elite in making science popular, with guest editings and writings in various magazines and some film and TV appearances, including CSI, The Simpsons and in the 2006 movie The Darwin Awards as the Army surplus vendors who sold the rockets to the guy who attached them to his car.

But, no one could have seen this back in 2003. Even Jamie sold the original Chevy, which turned out to be a bad decision as they needed a Chevy for the retake in 2007. Fortunately, by 2007, the show's popularity with the science community and the American public meant that many troubles they had obtaining hard-to-get stuff were a thing of the past. Fans (and junkyards) were willing to give the show vehicles for them to test their myths with. They gained contacts from many places, including one retired FBI officer with access to powerful explosives (who's became a regular guest on the show).

But the biggest changes to the show during the early seasons was the increase of man power. With lots of myths to examine, Adam and Jamie didn't have the time to do them all. That is why, for season two, a separate "build team" made from other members of staff of M5 Industries was set up to examine separate myths from the ones examined by the main duo. This dynamic trio was made up of artist Kari Byron (who managed to get an appearance on one of the pilots as a model for the large imitation backside needed for the fat lady sucked into the aeroplane toilet myth), former amateur pyrotechnican and resident fall guy Tory Belleci, and electronic whizz kid Grant Imahara (although, for the their first year, Grant disguised himself as a blonde female welder and called himself Scottie Chapman (JOKE)). 

From left to right, Grant Imahara, Tory Belleci, and Kari Byron.

With additional support and experience, they decided on the "Super-size Myth" special to retry the rocket Chevy myth - with bigger rockets! They returned to the Mojave Desert, made a large ramp out of old shipping containers, rigged the car to be remote controlled (again) and fitted $20,000 worth of rockets on the back of the car (placing them on the roof like the last time wasn't ideal for stability). Of course some experts had to be there to prime the rockets. What could possibly go wrong....

The camera rig has shrunk since 2003.

The second JATO Chevy (2007)

The Chevy never got to be airborne. 

What happened.

The rockets were too tightly packed. As the car approached the ramp, when they were meant to ignite (providing thrust) the rockets blew up, taking the Chevy with it (although, the car still kept going up the ramp and over the edge). With such a failure, the experts who provided the rockets said that the MythBusters could get free rockets off them if they plan to redo this myth.

Here goes 20 grand!

Despite this setback, the MythBusters continued on strongly. The myths got bigger (and the viewers got to see them been "busted" in HD). The myths got so big in fact sometimes the two teams had to join forces to deal with it. In fact, one myth so so big the President of the United States had to summon them.

The MythBusters been summoned to the President  

So what was the myth in question that go Obama involved? It was the Archimedes Death Ray myth (again). The MythBusters celebrity status was growing. The number of resources available to them was growing...

Cloning facilities, like on The 6th Day?

A time machine?

Magic? 

(OK that is a joke. They are masters of SFX so they can fake it.)

But it was becoming more difficult to film due to the presence of fans and the press (especially for Kari).

The press intrude on the MythBusters (especially Kari).

In fact, it got so bad they had take the law in their own hands.

And that's just the conventional weapons. With years of special effects experience the weapons got more elaborate (and unusual).

The photographer of this photo was later hospitalized for multiple stab wounds 

from projectile plastic cutlery.

Two conspiracy theorists (who thought Jamie was an alien and tried to capture him on motorbikes) were hospitalized for concision from this soda cup air gun. 

And that was just in the real world. The inclusion also went virtual. Fortunately, M5 Industries had resident hacker Grant to deal with this.

Grant hacking away in a battle against cyber spies (with his actions recorded on video just in case).

However, like all hackers, Grant has had brushings with the law (and the Chinese).

Grant trying to explain himself to the Chinese.

Despite the press inclusion (and the cyber attacks), the business of busting myths continued.

It's now 2013. Ten years had passed since that day in the Mojave Desert. Fro their tenth anniversary  the MythBusters decide to return and redo "the myth that got away" - the rocket Chevy. And this time, all their resources were put into it. An entire episode was dedicated to it and build team got involved, providing a blast-proof dumper truck with blast shields that are lifted and lowered over the cab by the same mechanism that lifted the bucket (now that's ingenuity!).

JATO Chevy 3.0 (2013)

In the first test, the car was driven over a line of sand bags to simulate hitting a bump on the road (As the original myth suggested).

The first run, with sand bags to create a small bump 

(as the original myth suggest)

The first test was a success (and they had proper carnage in the end as well). As suspected, the Chevy never got airborne (as the myth said it did) so the original myth was BUSTED. With the circumstances replicated, it was now time to "replicate the results." Another Chevy (painted red) was set up and a large ramp was built to make it airborne. Only pictures describe this test.

Not even Mr Magoo can miss this ramp!

The Chevy hits the ramp at full thrust (battering the ramp)

IT FLIES! (sort of)

They did it! After ten years of experience (and contacts) they rocket Chevy had finally got the treatment it deserved - been a busted massive pile of twisted scrap metal.

The full team with Jamie triumphantly "owning" the myth

What a way to celebrate a birthday. And speaking of birthdays, it was my 25th just recently, so its fitting that this blog entry got loaded on the blog-sphere just after my birthday (a lot things at my end delayed it). 

MythBusters is one of the best shows ever created in this century. And thanks to them we now know that putting metal in a microwave does not break it or make it explode (a myth that once made Adam fetch the cost of a new microwave, became a roommate thought he broke their microwave because he left a spoon in a mug he put in it) and we can see the proof! I know they are other science shows out there, such as Brainiac: Science Abuse on UK Sky TV, but a lot of them has little proper experimentation method (they don't set up control experiments) and are just mayhem for mayhem's sake (and for the case of Brainiac, an excuse to destroy caravans in as many creative ways as possible). That is why, of all the science shows that have been made since TV began, MythBusters is the one I most recommend. Not only because it deals with things in the proper scientific method, it also does the experiments we all wanted to do but can't, due to lack of know-how,  access to facilities and resources (and cash to fund them). Admit it, we all always wanted to attach rockets to our cars, put metal in microwaves and use a cellphone while on a jet plane to see what happens. Admit it! We all curious, and those warning signs are just adverts insisting it (its unintentional reverse physiology).

And now a tribute final sketch... (IN COLOUR!)

   

KEEP ON BUSTING MYTHBUSTERS

Posters - 2012

These three posters were for an exhibition for 4th year work at the Paisley campus at the University of the West of Scotland in June 2012.

(These images have been reduced in resolution for loading onto this blog. 

The original images were made for printing on A2.)

The Pile

Information Overload

The Jam