COOL NEWS

Grand Theft Auto V trailer

The action this time takes place in Los Santos aka “Los Angeles”. From the scenes in the trailer it looks like there may many different types of play areas instead of just city and beach (mountains?) It also seems like there will be new and interesting types of missions (check out the bug van guys). This could be wishful thinking but hopefully the trailer points to actual things that will happen instead of just setting the theme. One plot point that most likely will happen will revolve around the main character’s family and possibly them being kidnapped. He talks a lot about kids and family in the trailer and this is GTA so the assumption is that someone’s kidnapping someone. Looking forward to Rockstar dropping this!

Once Upon A Time screened the first episode of the new ABC series at NY Comic Con, and I had the privilege to screen it there. I’ve included it above so you can watch what I saw. The creators of Once Upon A Time (also the creators of Lost) followed it up with a panel that gave insight into the series and the rest of season 1. Keep your eyes open through the whole series as there’s little hidden gems similar to Lost, like how the clock was frozen at 8:15. 

Here’s what the creators of Once Upon A Time had to say

On upcoming episodes:

“The series is a back and forth between both worlds. The episodes are much more contained then we thought. Episode 2 is the Evil Queen’s side on how she enacted the curse. Episode 3 is how Snow White met Prince Charming. Episode 5 is how Jiminy Cricket became a cricket. The large big picture conflict is that whole series is about breaking the curse.” 

On how the series came to be:

“We are not really interested in reliving the fairy tales. We had the idea for the series 8 years ago when we were working on Felicity and trying to figure out what we would want to do. We pitched it all around when we were really young. All the time we spent on Lost we were figuring out how to tell the story.”

On the actors chosen:

“We wrote the parts [Mr. Gold, Emma Swan] for Robert [Carlyle] and Jennifer [Morrison]. You’ll also see Emma Caulfield from Buffy as Hansel’s bad witch later on. They really wanted Lady Gaga to be the blue fairy and asked someone at ABC Music to reach out to her. We also asked Disney about the characters that we could use.”

On the competition (Grimm et al):

“Snow white came out at height of depression and for us and it’s no coincidence that all these fairy tales are coming out now with the situation that we’re in. It gives people hope. It’s all specific to who’s making the show. We have our own point of view. Whatever we make will be us for better or worse. We haven’t seen those movies or scripts.”

On Once Upon A Time’s future:

“We have very big ideas about where we want everyone to end up but we have 13 right now so we’re planning for that. 6 years of LOST is amazing but we have to earn it.”

youmightfindyourself: Raf Simons wearing Raf Simons for the latest issue of Fantastic Man. The reclusive and photo abhorrent fashion designer Raf Simons was photographed for Fantastic Maagazine. This is a HUGE step considering he has no public photos of himself anf never comes out at the end of his fashion show. If you Google for a photo of him you may come up with one or two early ones but that’s it.

youmightfindyourself:

Raf Simons wearing Raf Simons for the latest issue of Fantastic Man.

The reclusive and photo abhorrent fashion designer Raf Simons was photographed for Fantastic Maagazine. This is a HUGE step considering he has no public photos of himself anf never comes out at the end of his fashion show. If you Google for a photo of him you may come up with one or two early ones but that’s it.

Star Warsphabet by Fabian Gonzalez If you look beyond the fact that each letter is nicely designed to fit a character from Star Wars into the letter shape, you’ll notice that each character corresponds with the first letter in their name e.g. Y for Yoda, which is probably my favorite, as his ears make up the top portion of the Y. My second favorite is W for Wookie, because it’s fuzzy.

Star Warsphabet by Fabian Gonzalez

If you look beyond the fact that each letter is nicely designed to fit a character from Star Wars into the letter shape, you’ll notice that each character corresponds with the first letter in their name e.g. Y for Yoda, which is probably my favorite, as his ears make up the top portion of the Y. My second favorite is W for Wookie, because it’s fuzzy.

LEGO's DC Superhero Minifigure #NYCC Exclusive! Superman, Batman, Green Lantern + MORE!!

I will buy them all and there will be collateral damage for anyone that gets in my way, just like a woman at a deeply discounted Louboutin sale. Don’t get in my way and there won’t be problems. 

On a more serious note, this is one of the coolest collaborations that I’ve seen in a very long time. DC + Superheroes + LEGOs + NY Comic Con + exclusive = Must have. The only thing that would top this would be if Marvel does something equally as covet-worthy. We’ll just have to wait and see. Coolne.ws will be reporting from the trenches, bringing you all breaking info from NYCC.

via droplab:



LEGO has announced they will be giving away their DC Universe Super Heroes minifigures at this year’s New York Comic-Con. Stop by the LEGO booth to pick them up…Get there EARLY, you know they’ll go FAST. Below is an excerpt from the press release:

The new LEGO DC Universe SUPER HEROES collection will feature 13 iconic super heroes in LEGO minifigure form, including: Batman™, Robin™, Catwoman™, The Joker, The Riddler™, Two-Face, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn™, Bane, Bruce Wayne, Superman™, Lex Luthor™ and Wonder Woman™. Buildable characters will include Batman, The Joker and Green Lantern. 

Map Pillows

From top left: UK, Arctic, Paris, Europe, Iceland, Solar System, Queensland Australia, Copenhagen and North America). Now you can travel the world without ever leaving home. Best to do this when you’re sleeping on on of these beautiful items, lest you start thinking too much about how you’re not actually visiting these places.

Buy each from My Bearded Pigeon for the really odd price of $56.78 here. 

2001: A Floyd Odyssey

Echoes by Pink Floyd synced up with the last scene of 2001: A Space Odyssey, Jupiter And Beyond The Infinite. Truly breathtaking. If you haven’t ever seen it take 25 minutes out of your day to enjoy this. I suggest you watch it on a large screen as I am doing now, as the quality is superb.

The now iconic Apple-Jobs Silhouette logo is designed by Jonathan Mak Long, a 19 year old designer from Hong Kong. The simplicity, minimalism and pure geniusness of the pairing is something that Steve would have approved of. RIP Steve Jobs  jmak: Thanks, Steve. Posting designs like this one makes me paranoid, because I can’t shake the feeling that it’s not original. I enjoyed the process regardless, but please let me know if somebody else beat me to the idea! Thoughts?

The now iconic Apple-Jobs Silhouette logo is designed by Jonathan Mak Long, a 19 year old designer from Hong Kong. The simplicity, minimalism and pure geniusness of the pairing is something that Steve would have approved of.

RIP Steve Jobs 

jmak:

Thanks, Steve.

Posting designs like this one makes me paranoid, because I can’t shake the feeling that it’s not original. I enjoyed the process regardless, but please let me know if somebody else beat me to the idea!

Thoughts?

Graffiti Taxonomy New York Really cool! Evan Roth catalogued different letterforms of graffiti in New York and Paris that’s a part of MoMA’s exhibition “Talk To Me”. This is the letter S from NYC.

Graffiti Taxonomy New York

Really cool! Evan Roth catalogued different letterforms of graffiti in New York and Paris that’s a part of MoMA’s exhibition “Talk To Me”. This is the letter S from NYC.

Heinz Updates Ketchup Packets with New Dip & Squeeze While to many this seems like a no-brainer, you have to remember that ketchup packets were made the way they were for a long time because they’re cost effective. Think about it: you take two pieces of printed plastic, seal them together, squeeze ketchup in it, seal it up and perforate part of it so it can be torn. The new package will combine a hard plastic that needs to be shaped with soft plastic that is an irregular shape. By adding an irregular shape you add more cost to the process because you have to cut more. Before you could just sheet cut the plastic, as it was a uniform 4-sided shape. In addition to that, you now add on more cost by having to shape it into a hard 3D container. The new Dip & Squeeze packet may equal 3 old packets but the cost is most likely significantly higher. That’s the price you pay for a better branded user experience. Guaranteed that people will end up using it more in the long-run and Heinz’s brand affinity goes through the roof which results in sales lift across all Heinz products. Sometimes you have to lose your cents to make dollars. Some interesting tidbits from the Wall Street Journal article: To develop the new packet, Heinz staffers sat behind one-way, mirrored glass, watching consumers in 20 fake minivan interiors putting ketchup on fries, burgers, and chicken nuggets. Heinz believes traditional ketchup packets are so annoying that they stop people from ordering fries at drive-thrus. “Fry inclusion orders” at drive-thrus “have been going down for years,” says John Bennett, VP of food-service ketchup, condiments and sauces for Heinz. Since a supply spat between Heinz and McDonald’s that arose during a 1973 tomato shortage, Heinz, the country’s largest ketchup producer, has been locked out of most McDonald’s U.S. locations.  The new packets cost Heinz several times more to produce than the old rectangular pouches it has been selling for over 40 years. The new containers cost restaurants more than three times the old packets, as well, which could give pause to some chains. Heinz hopes customers learn not to grab more than one or two. President of a package-design firm that worked with Heinz, says the package subtly cues the consumer about the portion. Shaped like a bottle of Heinz ketchup and larger than the traditional packets, the “Dip and Squeeze” packs signal, “This is a serving, this is a bottle of ketchup. You actually don’t need 16 bags of ketchup.”

Heinz Updates Ketchup Packets with New Dip & Squeeze

While to many this seems like a no-brainer, you have to remember that ketchup packets were made the way they were for a long time because they’re cost effective.

Think about it: you take two pieces of printed plastic, seal them together, squeeze ketchup in it, seal it up and perforate part of it so it can be torn.

The new package will combine a hard plastic that needs to be shaped with soft plastic that is an irregular shape. By adding an irregular shape you add more cost to the process because you have to cut more. Before you could just sheet cut the plastic, as it was a uniform 4-sided shape. In addition to that, you now add on more cost by having to shape it into a hard 3D container.

The new Dip & Squeeze packet may equal 3 old packets but the cost is most likely significantly higher. That’s the price you pay for a better branded user experience. Guaranteed that people will end up using it more in the long-run and Heinz’s brand affinity goes through the roof which results in sales lift across all Heinz products. Sometimes you have to lose your cents to make dollars.

Some interesting tidbits from the Wall Street Journal article:

  • To develop the new packet, Heinz staffers sat behind one-way, mirrored glass, watching consumers in 20 fake minivan interiors putting ketchup on fries, burgers, and chicken nuggets.
  • Heinz believes traditional ketchup packets are so annoying that they stop people from ordering fries at drive-thrus. “Fry inclusion orders” at drive-thrus “have been going down for years,” says John Bennett, VP of food-service ketchup, condiments and sauces for Heinz.
  • Since a supply spat between Heinz and McDonald’s that arose during a 1973 tomato shortage, Heinz, the country’s largest ketchup producer, has been locked out of most McDonald’s U.S. locations. 
  • The new packets cost Heinz several times more to produce than the old rectangular pouches it has been selling for over 40 years. The new containers cost restaurants more than three times the old packets, as well, which could give pause to some chains. Heinz hopes customers learn not to grab more than one or two.
  • President of a package-design firm that worked with Heinz, says the package subtly cues the consumer about the portion. Shaped like a bottle of Heinz ketchup and larger than the traditional packets, the “Dip and Squeeze” packs signal, “This is a serving, this is a bottle of ketchup. You actually don’t need 16 bags of ketchup.”
Samuel L Jackson Placeholder Text Ever had the need to use placeholder text when designing something? Is Lorem Ipsum Dolor not doing it for you anymore? Step into the world of Samuel L Ipsum. Instead of taking random latin text to fill a space, it instead takes random text portions from characters that Samuel L Jackson has played. Will you get something from Pulp Fiction or Snakes on a Plane? Who knows. That’s part of the fun. Try out Samuel L Ipsum here.

Samuel L Jackson Placeholder Text

Ever had the need to use placeholder text when designing something? Is Lorem Ipsum Dolor not doing it for you anymore? Step into the world of Samuel L Ipsum. Instead of taking random latin text to fill a space, it instead takes random text portions from characters that Samuel L Jackson has played. Will you get something from Pulp Fiction or Snakes on a Plane? Who knows. That’s part of the fun.

Try out Samuel L Ipsum here.

“These blocks are exceptionally designed to teach Geeklings about the kinds of things one might encounter as a Mad Scientist. The set is made up of five handmade blocks that contains six sides of creative artistry. The detailed illustrations of the laser engraved images are flawlessly rendered to represent the key mad scientist memes that would correspond to each letter in the alphabet.” Get your kid started early on a path to awesome by buying them these cool blocks. From A for Appendages to Z for Zombies that’ll rip off A, teach them how to learn in style by buying these blocks for $26.99 here.

“These blocks are exceptionally designed to teach Geeklings about the kinds of things one might encounter as a Mad Scientist. The set is made up of five handmade blocks that contains six sides of creative artistry. The detailed illustrations of the laser engraved images are flawlessly rendered to represent the key mad scientist memes that would correspond to each letter in the alphabet.”

Get your kid started early on a path to awesome by buying them these cool blocks. From A for Appendages to Z for Zombies that’ll rip off A, teach them how to learn in style by buying these blocks for $26.99 here.

Andreas Englund answers what happens to superheroes when they start to age in a day in the life series of paintings. 

“I want to let people know the full story of the life of this superhero. One part of it is getting old, but he’s also portrayed in other periods of his life.

I think my superhero is like most people. No better no worse. Only his job is to be that great hero who saves the world. In that story is a big drama. He is supposed to live up to everyone’s expectations which is quite stressful and, I think, many can relate to that situation.

Capturing the lives of “perfect people” is boring and predictable. I like the human flaws and weaknesses. I need to see that in a character to believe in him, to care about him and to be interested in him. There is also a drama in putting this extraordinary superhero in an everyday life situation.

But that doesn’t mean I want to portray him as a fool or incompetent in any way. He’s just like anyone else except for his unique powers.”

My Modern Met has the interview and the rest of the paintings here.

Facebook Platform Atlas Carrot Creative created a great interactive atlas of online platforms called Platlas (Platform + Atlas = Platlas. Get it?). To start off, they delved into Facebook by identifying all of the features in a feature key, cross referenced it with a color key and filtered with all of the actions that make the platform interactive (like, share, etc.).  This makes it easy for anyone to understand Facebook, even the most seasoned of professionals. Platlas is a great tool for any communications strategist when trying to give recommendations to their client. I’m looking forward to more iterations of this with other platforms - Twitter, Facebook and so on. Check out a fully interactive Platlas here.

Facebook Platform Atlas

Carrot Creative created a great interactive atlas of online platforms called Platlas (Platform + Atlas = Platlas. Get it?). To start off, they delved into Facebook by identifying all of the features in a feature key, cross referenced it with a color key and filtered with all of the actions that make the platform interactive (like, share, etc.). 

This makes it easy for anyone to understand Facebook, even the most seasoned of professionals. Platlas is a great tool for any communications strategist when trying to give recommendations to their client. I’m looking forward to more iterations of this with other platforms - Twitter, Facebook and so on.

Check out a fully interactive Platlas here.

© Copyright COOL NEWS 2011–2012 | Powered by Tumblr | Theme by paulfosterdesign