V. Scott Balcerek’s film Satan & Adam opens today in New York. I’ve known Scott for more than 20 years and he’s been working on this project since we met. Scott is a great filmmaker and I’m so excited to see all his years of work finally come to fruition. Satan & Adam is a fantastic and incredibly moving music biopic that breaks the mold. The film premieres theatrically tonight at the Village East Cinema. Go see it if you’re in NYC. Way back in the 1990’s I shot some footage for Scott when he was just getting started on the project that ended up in the final film. I’m so proud of Scott’s work and feel lucky to have had a small hand in the film.
Beyond the Playlist
Recently I had the opportunity to chat with Hammond Chamberlain on his show Beyond the Playlist. Click on the image below to listen online.
Amazon MARS 2019
Just back from a week at the fourth Amazon MARS conference in Palm Springs, California. MARS (Machine Learning, Automation, Robotics, and Space) is the brainchild of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. I was invited to serve as moderator at one of three evening talks, chatting on stage with two former colleagues from Industrial Light and Magic, Chief Creative Officer, John Knoll (also the co-creator of Photoshop) and eight time Academy Award winner for Best Visual Effects, Dennis Muren (Star Wars, ET, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Terminator 2, Jurassic Park). I also chatted with surprise guest Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker) on stage to the conference attendees that included, leaders in robotics, machine learning, former and current astronauts (Story Musgrave, Pamela Melroy, Mike Massimino), filmmakers Ron Howard and Darren Aronofsky, HBO’s Westworld creator Jonathan Nolan, & Jeff Bezos.
The three day conference was an incredible, mind-blowing, evolutionary event unlike any I’ve ever attended. Daytime presentations were given by leading scientists, researchers, and academics. Some of the talk titles: Innovation to Enable Off-World Exploration, Ocean Drones for a Quantified Planet, Bio-Inspired Flying Robots, Bio-hybrid Robotics, The Coldest Most Sensitive Camera in the World, Soft Robotic Skins, and Parker Solar Probe: A NASA Mission to Touch the Sun. I met so many fascinating people doing incredible work. It was an honor to be invited to participate and was mind-expanding in ways I could not have imagined.
VFX Show 239: Spiderman - Into the Spiderverse
Mike Seymour, Jason Diamond, and Matt Wallin return to discuss Sony Pictures Animation’s animated feature, Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse. We discuss the look, style, techniques, and carve out a little time to speculate on the Oscars. Listen online at FX Guide or click on an image below.
VFX Show 238: Venom
Emmy Award Winner Jason Diamond, Emmy nominee Mike Seymour, and the humble Matt Wallin have a symbiotic discussion about Venom, visual effects, First Man, Ang Lee’s Hulk, Tex Avery, and Tom Hardy’s difficulty speaking clearly. Click on the image below to listen for free at FX Guide.
