After a very long time I'm decided to take out my camera gear again. I used to carry it around with me everywhere, not so much lately.
I have more, but this is my basic 'on the go' kit.
My Camera Gear
in Photographs
Wednesday's Nuhdle: Being Nosey
in Nuhdles
Don't ask...don't tell.
Breaking Down A Franchise: Mass Appeal & Ninja Turtles
in Articles
Let me start off by clearing the air and saying I love the Ninja Turtles.
I’m obsessed with them. Even sitting here writing this, I’ve got my Playmates 2012 Nickelodeon Raphael seated next to me (thus far, my favorite Raphael figure), and, of course, the brothers aren’t too far off either.
The heroes in a half shell were a staple in my household when I was growing up, to the point where my 50-year-old mother knows more about the franchise than I can remember (she recalls a tale where I cried my eyes out, accusing Bebop and Rocksteady of kidnapping her when I was three).
Toys, role-playing items, VHS tapes, bed sheets, the works; the TMNT were as important in my upbringing as learning to read and write.
Recently, having had this discussion with a friend, I asked the question: Out of every franchise that spawned itself in the 80’s, why has TMNT remained so stable?
Masters of the Universe, Thundercats, GI Joe, Silverhawks, M.A.S.K., Tigersharks, just to name a few, are all franchises that were part of my upbringing, and part of many of my generations'. Through the years, some of the aforementioned franchises have all had attempted revivals and/or reboots, while some have had none at all.
Even my beloved Transformers, without a doubt my favorite animated franchise, or series for that matter, had its ups and downs, and currently, thanks to a set of films and stellar comic series, the franchise has stabilized once again.
And in contrast to all of the above, the TMNT have had a stable run of three animated series in the US, five feature films, a fantastic on-going toy property by Playmates, and several comic book franchises, all of which were met with great success. The only low point I can think of in the franchise is the live-action ‘Next Mutation’.
The title alone shouldn’t have let the series survive. ‘Teenage’. ‘Mutant’. ‘Ninja’. ‘Turtles’.
Look at ‘Masters of the Universe’. That’s one hell of a strong title. ‘Thundercats’. ‘Silverhawks’. Yet, from the get go, the mouthful that is the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, as absurd as that title is, remains strong.
The premise should be even worse: Four mutated turtles are raised in the New York City sewers by a mutated rat (or human, depending on the series), who names them after his favorite renaissance artists, and trains them as ninjas to fight against a secret organization of evil ninjas.
Yet in the 30 years since its inception, the TMNT endure.
The above premise is usually thrown at you within the first episode or issue of any new series. And that’s all you need to know. This is what you’re getting into. Enjoy.
What brought the franchise into its own was the original animated series. By today’s standards, it was ridiculously goofy, something the crossover film that ended the 2003 series really made a point of putting across.
The originally Mirage comics, which can be harkened to the grittiness of a classic 80’s Frank Miller comic, are good. Really good, and if you haven’t read them, I recommend picking them up.
What made the animated series so special, in a time where other franchises were touting the smart, serious, strong-jawed leader as the hero (here’s looking at you Duke), here was a group of mutated freaks that said it’s okay to be weird. It’s okay to be kooky. It’s okay to be the serious leader. It’s okay to be the brainy one. It’s okay to be a sarcastic hot-head. It’s okay to be a goofball.
The Turtles were just brothers being who they were. No one was given any more importance than the other. They represented the freedom to be whoever you are. They were what all good storytellers know makes a good character.
They were relatable.
I have yet to find a group of people who all agreed on which was their favorite turtle.
My favorite is Raphael. I could relate to his sarcastic and raging nature, particularly in my teens. My friend loves Leonardo because of his role as the team’s backbone; another thinks Donatello’s intelligence makes him the real driving force behind the foursome.
My sister cannot get over how cute she thinks Michelangelo is, to the point where I’ll often find my Michelangelo figures missing because she’s taking selfies with them.
And the scary part of all this is, they are still relatable, the stories have matured, and the core of each character remains the same.
No single franchise has gone out of its way to appeal to every corner of the masses, and to this day continues to make the effort to do so.
Even the toys weren’t afraid to break barriers. Astronaut Turtles, Farmer Turtles, Universal Monster Turtles, Star Trek Turtles, ‘unofficial’ Ghostbuster Turtles, and as of a month or two ago, LARP Turtles.
Yes, LARP Turtles.
The green mean fighting machines were whoever you wanted to be.
This is why Playmates claims it was the best selling boys toy in 2013, and I believe it. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the stock of a toy line change so frequently in any store, there are very few shelf warmers in the Nickelodeon toy line, in fact you’ll generally find the toys are sold out.
It’s this one of multiple reasons, this nature of the franchise, in this writer’s opinion, that makes the series such a solid staple of culture.
I grew up on the adventures of Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo. I continue to support them. My children will probably do the same.
Finally, to sum up how important the mass appeal of the franchise is, having spent time in a 3rd world country, these are the rare characters you’ll often hear the under-privileged refer to:
Batman. Superman. Spider-Man.
Ninja Turtles.
Wednesday's Nuhdle: Cosplay is getting ridiculous.
in Nuhdles
Just felt like drawing Spidey. The black outfit has always been a favorite of mine.
How things can change within a few days.
Due to some personal commitments, Travis Francis has had to step down from his position as artist on my comic book, I'm Here.
Yes, this delays the first issue, but all hope is not lost! I am now on the look out for a new artist, for as we say in show business, the show must go on.
Best of luck Travis!
More announcements to follow, I can tell this is going to be a busy, yet fun, year.
Wednesday's Nuhdle: Scary Monsters - Spotcano
in Nuhdles
I don't know why I like drawing doodle-monsters.
What's happening in 2015?
With issue #1 of my comic safely in the hands of artistic genius Travis Francis, I'd like to take a New-York-Minute to go over some things happening this year for me.
Today is the 5th day of 2015, the number 5 happens to be my lucky number, so it's time for some news.
Besides the comic, ongoing for the next one year, currently on my plate are two other projects; and very soon I'll be announcing the next of this duo. What I can reveal thus far is the next one is a short film, and I'm very 'happy' to finally put this project into production. There's a hint in there somewhere.
So if you're following me stay tuned for some exciting news happening in the coming days.
My Top Five Films
in Articles
Usually I want to use the article space here, or as I affectionately baptized it ‘The Science of Film’ section, to consider certain aspects of film.
However, since it’s New Years Day, and my website is still budding, I thought today I would get to explaining my Top Five film picks out of the way.
Now, my Top Five doesn’t mean I consider these the best motion pictures produced by humankind (because alien developed pictures could be superior, right?). For instance, I think #2 on my list is the greatest film ever made; yet it’s not #1.
The reason my list is structured in this way is for the sake of the influence that film has on me. I will admit that there are far better movies than the ones listed here (except #2, see last paragraph/ below), so this is singularly my list of my Top Five Films.
Click on the titles to link to IMDb for more info on the films.
So without further ado:
"I'm simply saying that life, uh... finds a way."
Why is this my favorite film?
It’s the motion picture that started it all. 5-year-old me took the blood oath and pledged my mind, body and soul to the film industry after seeing this movie.
This movie has everything I love, and as I age I’ve found more reasons to cherish it, be they good, bad, or flat out ridiculous.
I can honestly tell you I’ve seen this one well over 100 times, including watching it frame-by-frame in my teens with my sister. Overall, I just love the film and it’s just plain old fun.
"I'm not hurt at all. Didn't you know? They can only kill me with a golden bullet."
Oh boy, what can I say about the greatest-movie-ever-made that hasn’t already been said?
This movie has influenced more filmmakers than I can count, including Spielberg. This is David Lean’s magnum opus, and you don’t see movies like this anymore. Experiencing it for the first time in my teens revolutionized everything I knew about storytelling.
I decided for a long time after seeing this film that every movie or script I churn out should live up to this one’s standards, and I recommend indulging in this film for yourself at least once.
A bonus is that I got to see it in 70mm around my birthday one year.
"Is it showing off if somebody's doing the things he's capable of doing? Is a bird showing off when it flies?"
The poster for this one summarizes it all: You’ll Believe A Man Can Fly.
Richard Donner’s Superman made me believe. It is funny, exciting, heartbreaking, beautifully filmed and told. I don’t think any superhero film has achieved the panoramic sensations of this flick’s world. It felt big. It felt real. And as a comic book fan, this movie will always exhibit the case that you don’t need state-of-the-art graphics or over-the-top action sequences to tell an inspiring and heartwarming superhero film.
This is my rainy day movie.
4. Hook (1991)
"He's just been away from Neverland so long, his mind's been junk-tified. He's forgotten everything."
My feel-good movie. It’s a fantasy swashbuckler, and a story of fathers and sons, a classic Spielberg motif, that just elates the audience.
Robin Williams, Dustin Hoffman and Bob Hoskins really bring this film together, and it’s one of the few movies that still makes me cry, in a good way. I can always rely on this film to cheer me up, watching it makes me want to stride to live more adventurous, and it’s filled with a ton of Easter Eggs that I’ll let you spot yourself.
Plus, Hook’s suicide attempt has to be the best moment in a film ever. Even my mother quotes this scene.
5. Indiana Jones & The Last Crusade (1989)
"The quest for the grail is not archeology, it's a race against evil."
Indy is the hero I believe every young entrepreneur wants to be, and I think this adventure is not only personal for Spielberg and Indy, but for the audience as well. It’s a father/ son exploit about unearthing what you’re truly pursing.
This film has that intimate touch that you see in Steven’s finest. It’s the core of the story, the reflective, or rather metaphoric use of religious themes to characterize the journey of our heroes that makes this film stellar.
Out of all four Indiana Jones films, this one resonates the most with me. I even started writing in diaries because I wanted my own Grail Journal.
Honorable Mentions:
This isn’t necessarily in any order; just two movies I want to mention that didn’t make it to the Top Five.
"You yell barracuda, everybody says, "Huh? What?" You yell shark, we've got a panic on our hands on the Fourth of July."
I remember watching this movie with my dad at 4-years-old and swearing never to enter the water again. It was my first exposure to Steven Spielberg, whose films would, a year later, lead me down the path I’m on now. It’s my July 4th flick, so I watch it pretty regularly.
Some years later, when I dwelled deeper into the bosom of filmmaking, this was the movie I spent most of my time breaking down. I have a notebook somewhere from my teens where I actually storyboarded shots from the film that I thought stood out so I could master the theory behind them.
The Transformers: The Movie (1986)
"And nothing. You belong to me... now."
I have watched this movie annually since I was a child and it’s a big part of my life. Transformers is my ‘thing’. It’s my fandom, and this film is probably what I think most people pre-2007 remember about the franchise.
It introduced The Matrix, Unicron, Galvatron, and many other things that are now part of the Transformers Mythology, including the first of the many deaths of Optimus Prime. It’s so influential that nearly every Transformers franchise that followed either quotes from or homages this film, including the Bay-verse movies.
I had this movie memorized word-for-word at one point, and in 2011 I got to see it on the big screen at the Aero Theater in Santa Monica, on my birthday, which might make that my best birthday ever. It has, and will always, hold a special place in my heart as my favorite animated film.
Also, it’s basically Star Wars, but with Grimlock, how can you not love that?