Friday, December 29, 2006

::Blessings (and laughter) for the New Year::

A New Years Blessing (Sarod Lang Syne) ::&:: New Years (By Ze Frank)
Run Time: 1min 04sec :: 2min 54 sec
Creator's Page: New Years Blessing is by me, Alli of gALLIxSEE::media:: with music performed by James Whetzel of Funketabla. New Years created by Ze Frank, of The Show infamy...




Well, 2007 is indeed upon us. And the time has come to make those dreaded resolutions, eh? I guess I'm already a bit ahead of the game, since I've been making my resolutions every day, year round. heheh. Naw, I'm making my list of what I want to change this year like all the rest of y'all. One of those goals is to produce more original video for the sake of my sanity and creative outlet. The one above that you (hopefully) just watched is just such a project: it's a collaboration between myself and mister James Whetzel. We shot all of the performance footage in the last three days and I collaged it with some of the highlights from my trip to India and Thailand this past spring. A sort of year in review, if you will.

What's that? You want to know the rest of my intentions for 2007? Oh alright. In 2007 I'm going to:
* Produce at least one new, original video every month (yay!)
* Make at least one pod for Current TV (I know, I know...)
* Get the Smiling Flower series up and running
* Practice yoga every day
* Travel to at least 7 new countries (hey, it's 2007, right?!)
* Buy a new camera (ooooh I've been eying the new Canon Hx-A1)
* Be great~full for all that I have, in each and every day.
* Laugh more and bring laughter to others

Of course, good ol' Ze Frank is lightyears ahead of me on the last one. Here's a piece he did in the spirit of New Year's that's sure to inspire smiles and smug nods all around:



Thursday, December 14, 2006

::how tiny we truly are::

The Hubble Deep Field: The Most Important Image Ever Taken
Run Time: 6min 39sec
Creator's Page: Put together by Tony Darnell: the imagery, obviously, comes from NASA






I really don't need to say anything, do I? "We live on a planet, one of eight (?) in our solar system. These planets orbit a rather unremarkable star. Our star is in a gallixsee, one of five hundred thousand million in the milky way (!)... looking at this image, the idea that earth may be the only planet in the entire universe that harbors life seems almost absurd."

I studied astronomy in high school and college. I was riveted by the idea that we are just a tiny piece of an inconceivably large universe- I was drawn into the field of astronomy by the idea that there is no way we could even begin to pretend to know what's out there. The unknown is exciting, ya know?

Having left that all behind in college to focus on film school, this video re-ignited that childlike delight and awe for the infinite universe that we are merely a tiny speck of. Did you think that the whole gALLIxSEE thing was just a silly play on words?

Dream of vastness and the unimaginable becoming reality...

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

::Smiling Flower Wisdom::

James Figurine: "Apologies" music video
Run Time: 3min 52sec
Creator's Page: The Song is by James Figurine, Video By Die Versilberte Eitelkeit Animation Studio




This sweet little song got me humming along today whilst enjoying the eclectic grooves of my new favorite internet radio stream, dublab. The song comes from the brilliant James Figurine, one of the creative forces behind the groups Figurine and The Postal Service. When I found James on Myspace, I was delighted to discover his video was equally as cheering on this dark, blustery day. Music videos don't normally make the cut here. This one, however, features sweet & simple animation and... one of my own personal heroes, the Smiling Flower, and I just couldn't resist. Hope this one brings a little sunshine to your day as it did to mine!

If you didn't know, the Smiling Flower is one of the greatest Taoist teachers on this planet today. I have been working with the Flower and a cast of its closest friends in an attempt to capture a bit of the flowery wisdom. After losing a number of my crew members to various causes (all of them noble, I assure you), I have re-opened the Smiling Flower project and will be posting episodes from the series throughout the winter. ::stay tuned::

Tuesday, December 05, 2006

:: what is YOUR prophetic persuasion? ::

2012, The Odyssey
Run Time: 3min 48sec
Creator's Info: Produced by Sacred Mysteries Films
Related Links: The homepage for the feature doc with cast bios and all that jazz is here

If you're interested in experiencing or discussing prophecies, I suggest you check out the Oracle Gatherings' website, as their next event focuses solely on the archetype of Prophecy.



proph·e·cy
[prof-uh-see] (from dictionary.com)
1.the foretelling or prediction of what is to come.
2.something that is declared by a prophet, esp. a divinely inspired prediction, instruction, or exhortation.
3.a divinely inspired utterance or revelation: oracular prophecies.
4.the action, function, or faculty of a prophet.




With the definition out of the way, I have been pondering quite a bit lately on the nature of prophecies. Nostradamus predicted many things, and most of his prophecies have never come to pass. But the few that did (arguably) have received much attention. When I was 9, I found myself watching a TV documentary on the Mayan civilization. It was a bit disturbing for my young mind, but I do remember vividly that, just before the break, the announcer said something to the effect of: "when we return, we will explore the prophecies of the Mayan calendar, which appears to end on December 21st, 2012." I remember calculating that I would be 32 years old and telling myself that I needed to remember that date. I didn't know why , but I was nine, and sending messages to my future self seemed like something that nine year olds did.

That message lay dormant in my subconscious for 12 years. In 2000, I was working on a documentary and was interviewing an expert on permaculture in B.C. He mentioned something about 2012 and the Mayan calendar and all of a sudden that little sticky note I had posted in the astral plane for my future self came flying out of the air and landed smack dab in the middle of my conscious mind. I felt a cold chill run through my entire body. I remembered and I sat up and paid particular attention to what this man was speaking of.

Now, nearly seven years later, I've talked to a whole lot of people about their visions of the future, especially as they relate to prophecies from all the world's cultures. I've explored Jose Arguelles' Dreamspell interpretation of the Mayan Calendar and decided I'm not too keen on it (i.e. it doesn't really resonate for me); I've participated in a five-day New Year ceremony with a Mayan Shaman in Guatemala; I've interviewed countless people about their dreary and hopefull visions of an apocalyptic/utopian future; I've had visions of my own, and I've spent countless sleepless nights wrestling with integrating all that I've seen/heard/observed/felt/watched. I don't have a definitive answer, of course, but the one thing that has become clear to me is that prophecies are only true if we collectively believe them and thus, give them power. With all the talk recently, then, about 2012 and what that means for our society, I feel compelled to be very clear about what I want to create for the future. I feel hope~full that we can create whatever it is we wish to see in this world. It will take hard work and dedication to a vision, but I know from my own experiences in life that anything... ANYTHING is possible.

That said, I haven't seen this film in its entirety. I am planning to see it next Saturday, but I may have to work... so I figured I'd post this and see what the rest of y'all think. I'm not a huge fan of Arguelles, as I said, but I am willing to put that aside and listen to what this film has to say with an open mind. It doesn't look like a particularly visually stimulating film, but who knows- maybe the trailer editor was having a bad day. heh.

Anywho. Thoughts and musings from my world. I want to know what you think about prophecies and prophets and about the whole 2012 experience. What do YOU want to create for the future?