T-minus 10 Days...
Posted on August 10, 2008 by Carolyn Maughan
I can't wait to go to the BAM film screening and see all of the student films, music videos, and stop animation movies. I'll be the only person in the theater, however, who has read the script to all three movies. That's right: I can recite the lines in my sleep. I know how they begin. I know how they end. I know which characters: like poetry, have an affinity for glasses, and resist brainwashing. So I might not be entirely surprised come August 20th, but I won't be shocked when....
Behind the Scenes: Children of the Iron Monkey
Posted on August 10, 2008 by Gabriella Miyares & Chris Roberti
Deep in the dark sycamore forests of Figeria, the land that once belonged to the infamous Shadow Tiger, the palace is in ruins -- broken numchucks litter the dirty floor, and all of the ice cream in the freezer is frosted over. No one has tread these paths for years. On a lacquered table in one corner sits a battered journal. Its pages are torn and tattered, covered with drips of sweat, inkblots, and what would appear to be traces of caramel nougat. The entries, in a frantically scrawled hand, end on the fateful day of the Shadow Tiger's defeat by Iron Monkey and his child followers. What follows? The final thoughts of a henchman on the wrong side of kung-fu justice, that's what...
Continue reading "Behind the Scenes: Children of the Iron Monkey"
Stop the Madness!
Posted on July 16, 2008 by Rosa Schneider
In this workshop we learned how to do Stop-Motion animation, which is a technique where the animator takes pictures, moving his or her subject slightly and taking lots of frames (it takes 30 pictures to make up a second of video!). The workshop was a ton of fun, as I have never done film-making or animation before. I worked with Wes Price (the workshop leader) on an animation using Chinese Checkers. It ended up looking really great (we had lots of patterns, including one where all the pieces moved across the board), but it was really hard moving the pieces around--we chased an especially slippery blue piece two or three times across the room. I also worked with Christine, the other instructor, who was making an animation with play-doh, which formed a face that morphed into a ton of different expressions and hair styles. Okay, to be honest, the students and Christine made a face, I tried to, but ended up playing with play-doh. It was my first experience with animation of any sort, and I definitely want to do it again!
Everybody Poops
Posted on February 04, 2008 by Laura Kittrell
Check out the Wikipedia page for parrotfish. It will tell you that the parrotfish gets its name from its "parrot-like" beak. It will also tell you that the parrotfish changes its gender during its lifetime. It will not, however, tell you about the wonderful world of parrotfish poop. Wikipedia isn't exactly known for being the world's best resource on, well, anything, but poop is the most interesting thing the parrotfish has going for it. A more thorough Googling will tell you that a large portion of the world's sand is, in fact, parrotfish poop. Seriously. That castle you just made? Poop. Those buckets of sand you just poured over your friend? Poop. That thing you just swallowed underwater that's making you gag a little? Sand? No, poop.
Saving the Day Pretty Regularly
Posted on November 11, 2007 by Stephen Piccarella
The day I became a superhero was July 11th, 2007, the day I came to my first workshop at 826NYC. Since then, I've been fighting crime and saving the day pretty regularly. I'm sure you've seen me in the papers under headlines like, "CRIME FOUGHT!" or, "DAY SAVED!" I don't have my own series of comic books yet, because I've only been on the scene for a few months, but I've appeared in comics alongside my close friends Daredevil and Dr. Strange several times. Daredevil's a nice guy. He's lived through some rough stuff, so he's not all there all the time, but he's good company. I think he makes appearances here once in a while. If you're reading this, look into it. He's somebody you should meet, no matter who you are. I don't know about Strange, though. Dr. Strange is a really crazy dude. I mean really crazy.
What They Were Thinking
Posted on July 17, 2007 by Dante, age 11
I am Dante, taking the summer filmmakers workshop. This guy is Ben, who plays Jordan, one of the main characters. In this shot he just found a cave in prehistoric times and he took a giant millipede egg, which he thinks is a dinosaur egg. Actually, it's neither: It's an avocado! If you want to know why he's in prehistoric times, it's because he and his sister went into their grandfather's laboratory and accidentally turned on a time machine and went to the past!!
Being in the film workshop is crazy. We're standing on ladders with the cameras, the light is so hot you can cook on it, and the avocado is making me hungry!
Life in the Ring
Posted on February 14, 2007 by Alex, age 8
You know what I think we should have? I think we should have fake wrestling tournaments. We'll call it KWE (Kids' Wrestling Entertainment). It's about all these kids who love to watch wrestling. They could come up with wrestling names, and then become fake wrestlers.
The reason why I came up with this idea is because I love wrestling. I have loved wrestling since I was a little baby, even if I didn't understand some of the words. Wrestling might be a little inappropriate, but sometimes it can be fun to watch. So I think kids could do it, but not actually punch anybody's face or break any noses.
Tales of the 826NYC Super-Fish
Posted on January 31, 2007 by Ellie Horowitz
Long ago in a 40-gallon tank, fish swam blissfully through clear water and plastic plants. They lazed in their ceramic castle and burrowed in white pebbles. "This is the life," they said. "This is the life."
Soon after, the tank grew opaque and the fish began to die. What was turning the tank green? Bacteria? Photosynthesis? Nobody knows.
Two interns were sent on a mission to the pet store in order to save the six fish left. "It's the pH level!" The pet-store workers exclaimed. The interns returned to 826, emptied and filled ten gallons from the tank, and waited.
Blog Entry 0021
Posted on January 23, 2007 by Brendan, age 10
This is my first blog in like 4ever. Today I'm talking about my newest comic, Super Ultimate Book O'Fun. I really can't think of anything to talk about other than the fact that this comic is around 110 pages and that it might be downloaded on this blog (or in the writing gallery). But this is my first day back at after-school, so I'm pretty happy. Unfortunately, I have nothing else to say. Oh well.
Over and out.
Just Your Average Buisnnes Man
Posted on December 20, 2006 by Ted Thompson
For the first time since we opened our doors, the 826NYC staff has business cards. We have mixed emotions about this. On the one hand it's rather convenient to be able to hand someone our information when they ask without having to explain that our name comes from a street address in San Francisco. On the other hand there's something beautiful about being card-free—it means that we get to know people on a community level rather than a business one, that we know them primarily by their first names and from face-to-face interactions. I know it seems absurd to complain about the organization growing. We just hired our sixth (!) staffer and that means we're able to serve many more people beyond our community. It's just that when I asked Alex, age 8, to fill in the details of my card yesterday, it's funny that "Buisnnes Man" was the first thing that came to his mind. I always thought of us more as "Comunnitee Membrs".