Great to know: Steven Masur

Exactly twenty-two years ago, during my employment with Ivan Tors Entertainment, I was hunkered down writing my first screenplay, which was for “Flipper: The Movie.” Delivered early in January, 1992, that script helped the firm move forward in all of its development discussions, and I was given a small sum and a contract stating that the majority of my compensation as the screenwriter was contingent upon the film being made.

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Trojan Horse was a Unicorn 2013

Trojan Horse was a Unicorn (THU) is a four-day Digital Entertainment Festival set for 18-21 September in sunny Troia, Portugal, promising unique opportunities to learn and network in paradise. If you’re not already planning to attend, consider putting it on your 2014 calendar. A premier event for producers, animators, game developers, concept artists, 3D generalists, VFX and CG professionals and the curious, passionate, restless and fearless, this first edition of THU will unite at least 700 professionals and students from around the world for four days of talks, demo-classes, roundtables, investment pitches, recruitment sessions, recruitment challenges and much more.

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Future forward with production studio Leviathan

As the principals of design-focused production studio Leviathan begin their fourth year in business together, their impacts are growing in virtually every dimension. While the montage featured here and at www.lvthn.com presents most of their latest large-scale visual experiences crossing all media, many new achievements are currently in the works as well.

At each new turn, projects like these for The North Face and Callaway via Factory Design Labs, for Kelley Blue Book via Doner, for Western Digital via R&R Partners, for Dodge via Union AdWorks, for HP via Designkitchen, and for musical artists Amon Tobin, Skrillex and others are leading in new directions.

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Adapting to the unknown with R/GA

R/GA is a full-service digital agency that transforms the way people interact with brands. The slideshow embedded above was part of a March 2013 talk from R/GA Chicago’s Abraham Velázquez Tello and Joseph Delhommer revealing how designers and technologists are redefining the creative process through close – and frequent – collaboration. Recently at the One … Read moreAdapting to the unknown with R/GA

“Kickstarted” documentary feature gives back

From “Kickstarted” – the first documentary film for, by and about crowdfunding – comes “Funded in 60 Seconds.” This is a special series of crowdfunding tips, insights and best practices all delivered in under a minute. Help us keep making more content – and support “Kickstarted,” the first documentary about crowdfunding: http://bit.ly/KickKS

Creative Entrepreneurs: Jose Sebastian Gomez

Over the past year, creative production company Shilo and director Jose Sebastian Gomez took on the challenge of creating a great deal of stunning cinematic content for Qatar TV, as you can see in the montage featured above. After traveling to Qatar to learn more about the culture and people – and make a lot of new friends – Shilo crafted this original HD content and much more for Qatar TV’s on-air identity.

“We were asked to make each promo a metaphor for different aspirational subjects such as education, business, environment and family,” Jose explains. “The main creative challenge was to render these stories in artistic and simple ways that didn’t require further explanation or language. We focused on conveying a feeling and tone for each subject in ways that are abstract and metaphorical but still understandable.”

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Transcending dimensions with The D4D

Hoping you will enjoy this behind-the-scenes look at how The Department of the 4th Dimension designed the experience, content and technology for the Lucid Dreams exhibit in Sephora & Firmenich’s Sensorium, the world’s first pop-up fragrance museum.

“In the Lucid Dreams interactive installation, visitors can affect floating holographic dream images inspired by Firmenich’s master perfumers. Using a high tech flower sculpture, the images transform based on the power of the individual’s sniff – triggered by the unique sound transmitted by the physical act of smelling. The multidisciplinary team at The D4D designed the complete Lucid Dreams experience including each room’s architecture, short films, floor-to-ceiling motion graphics, glowing sniff-registering flowers and the software that drives the interaction. Every step of the creative process was taken hand-in-hand with the perfumers at Firmenich to ensure a truly integrated and multisensory experience the brings their fragrances to life.”

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Thornberg & Forester’s time

It has been almost two years since fate connected me with Elizabeth Kiehner, Scott Matz, Justin Meredith and their colleagues at the award-winning NYC-based design and digital production company Thornberg & Forester, and as time marches on, their story just keeps getting better. Most recently, they collaborated with the gentlemen behind Paris-based creative agency VERSUS for a new global campaign for Bisquit Cognac.

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A Transparent House Seen Around the World

When the international next-generation creative studio Transparent House launched in 2004, it began as a design visualization firm, creating 3D architectural renderings and animated walkthroughs of residential and commercial buildings. That led to 3D renderings of products, and producing videos for launch events and keynotes, which led to the studio offering complete branding services to … Read moreA Transparent House Seen Around the World