In this modern age of infinitely available culture, Twitter and Tumblr have formed important arenas for artists and general creative heads to post their work for wider consumption, and thank God for that. Not only has the advent of social media opened the world to the collected rantings of too many unstable people to mention, it has also served a hugely valuable service for geniuses like Mr Whaite a pop artist who occasionally produces Neon Sign style works. And even better than that, Mr Whaite usually turns his attention to geeky films when looking for reference points, leading to the three awesome pieces below. Each is dedicated to one of the three original films and prove the perfect balance between simplicity, beauty and a major geeky punch. Make sure you check them out on his site, as they are animated, and it adds a whole new level of awesome. You…
May the schwartz be with you
New Shots From Star Wars XXX: A Porn Parody
Thanks to Bleeding Cool, we now have eight new, frankly brilliant-looking stills from hotly-anticipated (come on, admit it!) rudey reimagining Star Wars XXX: A Porn Parody. And I have to say, I am astonished at the quality. I already knew director Axel Braun was committed to making better-than-usual porn parodies, thanks to his already released work, but this is next-level work personified. Look on, Star Wars fans and be blown away… And not a penis-shaped light-saber in sight! In addition to these excellent stills, Head of Production Design on the sci-fi skin-flick Kylie Ireland – who by the way is hot enough to melt all of Hoth herself – has posted the following slideshow of images, charting the whole production of the film, on her blog: (Warning – there is a few NSFW pics near the ending of the slide) Miss Ireland goes on to offer an insight into the…
Fan Films: Ed Johnson Presents: THE CLONE CHRONICLES
Thanks to another creatively minded Star Wars fan with a compulsion to tell his own story from within the universe, it is our pleasure to bring a group of motion comics to your discerning attentions. The online serials – now numbering seven episodes – were created by Ed Johnson, and use Hasbro Star Wars figures to tell the story of a group of Clone troopers who learn of a secret weapon on-board the crashed ship from the Alien movies, and discover that Emperor Dooku is seeking to acquire the weapon for his own and the Separatists’ ends. The troopers, lead by Commander Cody and Captain Rex must head to the downed ship and beat Dooku to the weapon. We spoke to the comics’ creator to find out a bit more about his motivations, and why he chose to go with the action figure approach: I was inspired by both the…
Awesome Star Wars Crayon Art
Just a mini-post to draw attention to this brilliant little bit of Star Wars geekery posted pretty much everywhere on the net in the past week – in case anyone missed it – and discovered by yours truly at Dorkly (kings among geeks, those guys). The sculptures have been credited to an artist called Steve Thompson, who probably has too much time on his hands, but thank God for that!
George Lucas Strikes Back
Thanks to SlickGigolo, we now have a possible explanation for the perceived huge discrepancy in quality between the first three Star Wars films and the prequel trilogy released some sixteen years later. The youtube video, written and directed by SlickGigolo’s usual creative team of Bridge Stuart & Mike Litzenberg offers a slightly more feasible explanation for the unthinkable lapse than George just somehow forgetting how to make impressive, complex sci-fi films… Secret solved.
And The Prize For Most Committed Star Wars Wedding Goes To…
Themed weddings happen every day, and most people don’t bat an eyelid. Whether you want to dress up in full Medieval threads, or commit to an entirely naturist ceremony, no-one really cares as long as no-one gets hurt, so 90% of those themed weddings pass by unnoticed. But thanks to the ultra-modern tradition of Showing Off On The Internet, that gave us such phenomenons as the Dirty Dancing and Baby Got Back first dances and the JK “Forever…” entrance dance, we get to peer into private ceremonies like never before, for good or bad… While I’m not hugely impressed by all this dancing, one thing I do love is a Star Wars themed anything – birthday parties, bah mitzahs, funerals, whatever… And the mother of all Star Wars themed weddings has come to my attention, thanks to Offbeat Bride. Here’s a mouth-watering introduction to the ceremony by the bridge herself…
Fan Art: Szoki’s Princess Leia Trilogy
Today sees the discovery (via GeekTyrant) of more excellent fan art, this time by a Hungarian artist called Szoki (whose Behance page features all of his Star Wars related work), who has created a Princess Leia themed triptych of posters for the original Star Wars trilogy. You should all now by know that I’m something of a fan-made/alternative poster junkie, and it’s little discoveries like this one that make my geeky heart beat faster. If it was possible, I’d buy pretty much all of this guy’s work, though at the minute he seems to only be posting it for his own personal enjoyment, which is fair enough – but what about the addicts like me who want to immediately own a print?! Someone give him the power to sell. Feast your eyes on these… Szoki is obviously a man of some talent, and I’d urge everyone to visit his page…
Horrifyingly Realistic Bust Of Grand Moff Tarkin
I have terrible, haunting memories of when I was younger and watched both Poltergeist and Child’s Play within the space of about a week and then believed that all of my toys, and especially my sister’s dolls were going to murder me in particularly graphic, innovative manner. The reason I mention that is because from that day on, I vowed never to have anything creepily life-like in my home, because everyone knows that they are the most likely to come alive and slay you as you sleep. The only exceptions to the rule are busts, usually of comic book and movie characters (I have spent way too much money on this little habit), which I love like children and for some reason do not fear. But, for the first time, thanks to some stand-out work from sculpture-artist Jordu Schell, (which I discovered thanks to the legends over at Geeks of…
Galactic Noms!
I love food. I love Star Wars. Couldn’t they somehow mesh both of those worlds together in one awesome, and slightly copyright-infringing moment of genius? Well, yes, they already have. The awesome picture below begs two questions: why is there not a whole fleet of these vans operating worldwide, and what went so drastically wrong in Han Solo’s life that he now finds himself flipping grilled cheese for a living? Or is this some sort of variant origin story in which the erstwhile Galactic chancer rose to being one of the most respected pilots in the known universe after casting off his working-class background. Sort of like Rocky, only with more cheese and more full-frontal wookie action…
The Worst Couple in the Universe
If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know how much we love Lars Von Trier OneMinuteGalactica. Back in December last year, we did a short interview with the guy, and we have been following his productions ever since. At this years Cannes film festival Last week we got to see OMG’s latest movie: “Melancholia antichrist” “The Worst Couple in the Universe“. At the following press conference he was good enough to answer questions about his view on Adolf Hitler about the movie and upcoming projects. Check it out below the movie How did you get the idea for this film? Well..This one is going to be my last Nerdy Instructional Film, and I wanted to end the series with another Star Wars video, to sort of make bookends. Because I had started the instructional films with a dating video starring Luke and Leia, I figured it would…
Star Wars Vs. The Royal Wedding
Two huge events happened in the world a couple of weeks back: first off, and most importantly, LucasFilm announced the details of the forthcoming Star Wars complete saga blu-ray release to predictable fanfare (and the even more predictable dissent from some circles). And then there was the piffling matter of the wedding of the UK’s own monarch in waiting Prince William to his commoner beloved Kate Middleton. At one point, as the celebrations neared, and the hysteria that spread across the world reached a crescendo, you couldn’t get moved for garish merchandise, swaths of Union Jacks and all manner of useless tat with the faces of the future King and his bride plastered all over it. So it was only a matter of time until someone brought together the Royal Wedding, and the most famous cross-cultural works of art, like Star Wars for instance. See that? Full circle, almost effortlessly……
Snark Wars: The Most Sarcastic Star Wars Animation Ever
This being May the Fourth, it was always going to be a big day for Star Wars, and as well as that great big announcement that threatened to break the entire internet earlier on today, some new stuff did indeed appear. One of my favourites, which I literally stumbled across on YouTube, is this sarcasm heavy, snarky MS Paint animation that offers a heavily abridged, but actually very funny version of Star Wars VI: A New Hope. Watch below, I think you’ll agree that the sarcasm is strong in this one. Congratulations MechOrangeStudios, you’ve just passed Sarcasm 101.
Michael Myers’ Star Wars Pixel Posters
It’s all about posters for this column recently, and today I have some more for you, thanks to Michael Myers, who has clearly taken a break from slaying teenagers and babysitters in a grubby Captain Kirk mask to turn his hand to some pixellated goodness in the name of Star Wars. The success of any pixel art project is capturing the character (and their spirit somehow) in but a few colourful blocks, and Myers has achieved it without question. Myers, who operates under the artistic name Drawsgood Illustrative Design (and is on Twitter as @drawsgood) was already on my radar thanks to his awesome comic book related art – and chiefly his Avengers Headshots project – and he has once again put a massive smile on my face with the Star Wars posters below. So go on, follow him on Twitter, and show him some love, or even better head…
The Best Alternative Star Wars Movie Posters
Last week or so, I mentioned in a post on Strong Stuff’s new retro Star Wars poster that the culture of fan-made alternate movie posters is one of my favourite developments of the internet era, and the article got me thinking. A while back, over at ObsessedWithFilm (where you can find my movie related ramblings) I compiled a list of the best alternative Pixar posters, and was surprised at the sheer number to be found online. That surprise was nothing compared with what I felt when I started getting down to the serious business of researching this column, as I uncovered and rediscovered hundreds (probably more like thousands in fact) of fan- and artist-made alternative Star Wars movie posters. This then, is the first fruit of that “research”. I plan this to be a regular column looking at the best in alternative Star Wars posters, some infamous, some we’ve seen…
Existential Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope(Lessness)
A couple of days ago we received an email from YouTuber OneMinuteGalactica which was both unassuming and incredibly intriguing at the same time. Here, judge it yourself: Hi. I was just wondering if you’d be interested in linking to a new Star Wars video I posted. It’s sort of what Star Wars would be like if the dialogue had been written by the philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre. Star Wars and Existentialism? I still can’t quite work out whether OMG is a genius or a wierdo, but his video certainly works, adding a typically Satrian darkness and bleakness to proceedings that fits quite well with the Dark Side’s overall ethos. OMG has re-dubbed a section of Episode IV: A New Hope in French, with Sartre’s philosophical musings appearing in English subtitles to accompany it. And the result is surprisingly fun for someone who mourns the pointless nature of existence. Obviously didn’t have…
Angry Star Birds: Episode II: Imperial Pigs
Here, as promised is Part 2 of the Angry Star Birds line-up (brought to you via the excellent Bite.ca), this time dedicated to the Dark Side of the Force, otherwise known as the Imperial Pigs. It is incredibly difficult to resist the charms of these mashed-up characters, or to admire the brains behind their creation. My personal favourite is the Boarba Fett variation, and I have to say I’m more than a little tempted to take up Bite.ca’s offer to purchase it on a T-shirt from RedBubble. Feast your eyes on these…
Angry Star Birds: Episode I: Angry Rebels
Considering the level of unprecedented success that Rovio Mobile’s iPhone App “Angry Birds” has had since flying into Apple App Stores in December 2009, it was only a matter of time before the art transcended the medium it was released to. Forget the 100,000,000 plus downloads and the lucrative related merchandise lines; the moment Angry Birds really became mainstream was earlier this month when Bite.ca created their own Star Wars/Angry Birds mash-up. Because everyone knows that success is only judged by proximity to the Star Wars universe. Anyway, without further ado, below is the first half of Bite.ca’s Angry Star Birds mash-up line-up (split in two because it originally came in two installments, and because doing it all in one go might devalue some of the images, and to do so would be criminal).
The Best Star Wars Twitterers: Empire Edition
Billions of people now use Twitter – sadly, most of them just to massage their own egos and pointlessly try and collect as many followers as possible without using their influence for any good or even for entertainment value, but look hard enough and there are some ripe choices in amongst there. And it seems that the Star Wars universe is as well represented in the land of tweets as the real world is, with an impressive array of characters from every time-period of the many-faceted franchise. A lot of those characters are humorous versions of those we see on screen, and it is my aim to introduce you lot to the cream of the crop of these fictional but very real Twitterers. So, to start with – Series One if you like – are a handful of malignant foes, either fully paid-up members of the Empire or at…
Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back Iconoscope
I love nerdy dedication – it is after all what makes the world go round. And Wayne Dorrington has taken the biscuit with his genius Iconoscope version of The Empire Strikes Back, the scale of which you can see below. Bear in mind that this is only the first half of the Iconoscope, thanks to Dorrington’s assertion that it needed to be lengthy in order to fit in the entire plot of the second of the original trilogy: …You realise how much more complex and in-depth the story was compared to first movie. The narrative is split into several sub-stories and keeps jumping between them – plus, in the first move there were virtually no costume changes for the main characters – but in this one, each had several, all of which are iconic. Anyway, here’s the second half as well… Oh you bloody clever person, you.
Strong Stuff’s Retro Star Wars Poster
I’ve said it before that the culture of fan-made alternate movie posters is one of my favourite developments of the internet era, and when someone like Tom Whalen turns his hand to a particular personal favourite movie my joy is untold. The very clever designer/illustrator who calls himself Strong Stuff on Tumblr, has been producing incredible Star Wars art for the past year or so, and has very recently released another, which you can see below… Whalen has tagged the image as the base card for topps’ upcoming “Star Wars: Galaxy 6” card set, a series which has also inspired some exceptional designs by Russell Walks (one of which is below). This card series now seriously has me excited.
Greedo Didn’t Shoot First! A Petition to George Lucas
Who shot first? Three simple words, and yet they mean so much more. The issue of whether Greedo or Han shot first is one of the most contentious in the Star Wars universe, and has come to represent for some the fractured and frictional relationship between Star Wars purists (i.e. those who wholly invest in the original versions of the original trilogy as the be-all-and-end-all of the franchise) against the new-bloods. In some ways it is also indicative of the love/hate relationship fans have with George Lucas, and an analogy for the two perceived versions of the director (old and new). And one thing is for sure- none of the die hard fans who debate the issue endlessly are going to be quietened on the matter any time soon. And now Paperclip Films have released a video petition via YouTube addressed to Mr Lucas, in a bid to have him…
Total Film’s Epic Vintage Star Wars Images
Flicking through this month’s Total Film magazine (and being wowed by their preview of X-Men: First Class in the process), I came across their website links page and a link to something tantalisingly called Vintage Star Wars Images. My interest naturelly piqued, I logged on as soon as I got home and what I found was some of the greatest manipulated images to feature a Star Wars flavour ever to hit the web. Seriously, they are a bloody gorgeous things. Now, I’m not going to steal their thunder by posting all 14 here, but I thought I’d share three of my favourites (as well as the preview image to the left there), and then direct you all over to the Total Film website to enjoy the others. That is some bloody clever Photshopping right there. Follow me on Twitter: @SiTheMovieGuy
Star Wars/Rebecca Black Parody “Primeday”
You have to admire when inter-net creatives like those behind the TeddieFilms YouTube channel apply their obviously considerable talents to parodying one of the worst songs ever to come out of a human mouth, especially when the result has the kind of impressive production values visible in the video below. And add to that the fact that they have turned their attentions to melding Rebecca Black’s horrendous, ear-bleed-inducing “pop song” with the Star Wars universe, and you have yourself a recipe for much mirth. I’d even suggest that the dude playing Leia has more charisma than Black does in her original version… Seriously, while the original song needs to be exterminated immediately, this spoof is actually pretty damn hilarious- and the lyrics arguably make more sense than Rebecca Black’s obviously chimp-on-a-typewriter version as well (they’re helpfully listed on the video’s Youtube page if you want to sing along). Seeing Boba…
Entire Star Wars “Return of the Jedi” in MS Paint [GIF]
A long, long time ago in a galaxy quite close to here- it was this column actually- we brought you the first two original Star Wars instalments redone in GIF form on MS Paint by a genius with a lot of time and the kind of dedication that inspired the building of the Death Star. Check out A new hope here and Empire strikes back here Part of those links was a promise that the third and final instalment would follow soon, and here (albeit almost a year later) is the fruit of that promise: The creator- FoldsFive (otherwise known as part-time pixel-masher David Court) offered the following response on Digg when the A New Hope GIF found its way back into the collective Geek consciousness that calls itself the Internet: Sometimes I find myself amazed by the internet. How something I made an age ago can suddenly pick up…