The Friday Fix is picture perfect: Star Trek Into Darkness goes global, The Met Ball goes punk, The Sketchbook Project hits the road, Oscillation shakes things up, Buzzfeed and Starbucks get quite a reaction, ASTR are smooth ‘Operators’ and The Lonely Island party like rock stars on Between Two Ferns. Take your best shot…
May marks the official kickoff to summer blockbuster season, and the culmination of one of the most exciting campaigns we’ve ever had the pleasure to work on. Star Trek Into Darkness has continued to roll out the red carpet (in this case, the white carpet) for the globe-trotting international release tour, beaming into Australia, Russia, Germany and Mexico, culminating with the global premiere in London. The star-studded, multinational cast and visionary director J.J. Abrams suited up and reported for duty.
Into Darkness opens in 7 major territories today (including the UK), with another 25 the following weekend (including the US). The franchise continues the tradition of breaking new ground and boldly going where it’s never gone before, as for the first time Star Trek makes its way to the big screen in China. 2D, 3D and IMAX formats let audiences decide how much they want to supersize their epic experience. Following his successful reboot of Star Trek in 2009 and forthcoming Star Wars Episode VII that has the entire galaxy buzzing, all eyes are on Abrams.
Early tracking indicates that the second installment of Abrams’ series is headed for a $90+ million domestic opening weekend - the highest in franchise history. Take it from us… Star Trek Into Darkness is unmissable.
Speaking of shattering, the man behind the darkness is none other than Benedict Cumberbatch, the titular star of BBC’s Sherlock and voice talent in the forthcoming Hobbit sequel The Desolation of Smaug. A newcomer to the Enterprise ensemble, his role as the menacing psychological terrorist John Harrison is striking a chord with critics and sparking heated “conspiracy theories” amongst speculative fans. The concept of a crew torn apart by this maniacal mastermind is illustrated beautifully in this animated 9-frame “Cinemosaic”:
And speaking of speaking, audiences everywhere can’t get enough of his villainous voice, from his ominous trailer narrations to his chilling Starfleet Disruptions. British talk show host Graham Norton decided to playfully take advantage of Cumberbatch’s attention-grabbing voice, showing the actor’s lighter side:
Anticipation for the film is so high that stateside fans can hardly wait until Friday to see it. Fortunately, they won’t have to – Into Darkness has been (graciously) moved one day early in the U.S. Find your nearest IMAX theatre and book your tickets here.
From visual effects master J.J. Abrams, we turn our attention to School of Visual Arts student Daniel Sierra, who has created a masterpiece of a thesis project: Oscillate. The hypnotically stunning piece represents his desire to “create a mesmerizing audio-visual experience in which sight and sound work in unison.” A+ work!
Here’s some more art in motion: the Brooklyn-based Sketchbook Project is a mobile library exhibition, transporting over 4,000 artist notebooks across North America. They gear up for their biggest tour yet, stopping throughout the US and Canada to share art and inspiration. Visit their site to find out when they’ll be in your neighborhood and how you can contribute a sketchbook of your own.
The art of self expression is at the heart of this year’s Met Ball theme Punk: Chaos to Couture. Celebrities and fashionistas ensured that Monday night was full of bold statements – from Anne Hathaway‘s ‘for one night only’ platinum blonde do, to Cara Delevingne‘s studded Burberry - even a white-haired Nicole Richie in custom Topshop.
Yet the night’s real show stopper wasn’t a dress – it was the chandelier. Made from 25,000 razor blades, it hung in the museum’s atrium like a sharply shimmering silver beacon and stopped everyone in their tracks. Bold statements and a rebellious attitude form the backbone of the Punk movement, and the Met‘s exhibition (open until August 14th) explores the impact that it’s had on fashion.
Internet videos are designed to be short and sweet, trying anything and everything to make you laugh, smile or freak out. Yet commenting, emoticon sharing and simply writing “LOL” fail to capture the human quality behind the responses they elicit. That’s why the pop culture purveyors at Buzzfeed have partnered with Starbucks to introduce the “Reaction Cam” feature on their blog, allowing users to record and upload a 3-second GIF and give comments a more human touch. Try it for yourself – it will have you saying “OMG!”
Here’s a song that’s bound to get a reaction: New York-based duo ASTR presents their smooth and satisfying indie pop tune, “Operate.” Don’t be surprised if you give it a listen and find yourself humming it all throughout the weekend.
It’s been too long since we’ve found ourselves Between Two Ferns, watching our ever-gracious host Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover trilogy) talking to – and offending – some of our favorite celebrities in his low-budget, cult classic web series. After a lengthy hiatus he returns with flying colors, chatting with Oscar-nominated actor James Franco (Oz The Great and Powerful). The interview takes an unexpected and outrageous turn when the musical comedy trio The Lonely Island crashes the Spring Break party, debuting another instant classic. This video is Not Safe For Work, but it is safe for play:
Sharing is caring: pass along the Friday Fix, and be sure to keep up with FIVE33 for all of pop culture’s greatest hits.
The Friday Fix delivers the payload: Coca Cola’s free ATM pays it forward, Madeon rocks the stocks, Mercedes-Benz launches Instagram #Untamed, and EW dives into Oblivion. Plus new music from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Little Boots – looks like you hit the jackpot.
We start with an incredible social experiment that tests greed and generosity in these trying economic times. In Spain and handful of other countries, Coca Cola planted an ATM (or should we say, “Happiness Dispenser”) that gives free money to passers by – no bank card required, no questions asked. The €100 payout was dispensed with just one proviso: share the wealth. Though there was nothing to stop recipients from spending the cash on themselves, a majority of the participants spread the good fortune, setting off a chain reaction of ‘random acts of kindness.’ Looks like the investment in humanity paid off:
Also stirring up unorthodox financial headlines, French teen DJ and friend of the Fix Madeon made history this week, becoming the first artist to perform at a most unlikely venue: The New York Stock Exchange.Headlining an event celebrating the 50 most innovative student-run businesses in the world, Madeon rocked the stock market floor and had the financial sector their moneymakers!
Elsewhere in the world of sound, Little Boots is back on the musical “Motorway,” debuting the first track off their forthcoming album ‘Noctournes,’ due out in May. A spectral black-and-white video complements the ethereal vocals perfectly.
Another female-fronted FIVE33 favorite has returned in spectacular fashion. Yeah Yeah Yeahs will have you shouting in your seat by the end of their anthemic new single ‘Sacrilege.’ Pre-order their album ‘Mosquito’ now and get bit by the YYY bug.
Oblivion reaches theaters in the not-so-distant future, and Entertainment Weekly unveiled two new portals into this mind-bending vision of our world. Tom Cruise is suited up for action — after all, Earth is a memory worth fighting for. And he can’t do it alone…
Instagram has become as much a part of the social spectrum as Facebook or Twitter – flicking through countless sunsets and ‘selfies’ to find out what’s going on in your world. As enemies of the average, Mercedes-Benz is challenging Instagram users to smash the status quo and embrace the unusual. #Untamed will be a unique exhibition of digital photography presented in Paris, showcasing shots the social media community has deemed the most daring and different. In other words, they’ll feature the best and ‘filter’ the rest. Submit your stuff if you live life untamed:
With that in mind, have a thoroughly un-boring weekend. See you next Friday!
The Friday Fix celebrates its 100th edition: Mini pulls off a Monster backflip, G-Star and Skrillex mix dubstep and denim, Louis Vuitton gets street smart, Beck brings incredible ‘Sound’ to David Bowie’s ‘Vision’ and the Next Generation of gaming begins. We give it a perfect 100!
We flipped out when we saw Mini motorcars team up with Monster energy to pull off a high-flying automotive stunt you have to see to believe. Whatever you do, don’t try this at home:
The fashion trailblazers at G-Star unlock ‘The Unlimited Possibilities of Denim’ in their new video, “The Art of RAW.” Grammy winning dubstep DJ Skrillex boosts the bass levels in this beautifully-shot promo with his new track, “Puppy.” Call it puppy love, but we’re infatuated:
Louis Vuitton has taken to the street, tapping the spray paint stylings of Aiko, Retna and Os Gemeos to give their new collection a burst of energy. We hope the cold weather lingers around a while longer so we have an excuse to flaunt these pieces ourselves! In this clip, see a silk scarf go from valuable to priceless:
Beck has always been a genre-blending mastermind, but this time he may have topped himself. Playing his homage to David Bowie’s “Sound and Vision,” the musical tour-de-force recruited more than 160 musicians for one visionary performance, playing everything from classical strings and marching band brass to a musical saw and a theremin. Talk about a wild Beck-speriment.
Quickening the pulse of the interactive entertainment industry this week was Sony’s Playstation 4 reveal event, live streamed to innovation-hungry gamers the world over. We were among them, wowed by the smart new ideas, laughing at the comically awkward presenters and loving the big game reveals. The best news of all? It’s out this holiday season. That’s our Christmas gift sorted.
So what’s new? Well, first up the visuals are amazing. Whilst the announcement of yet another iteration in the tired Killzone series may have brought groans from the Twittersphere, the visual impact of the first demo was undeniable. But even more impressive was the new ‘Share’ feature, which enabled the play-through to be uploaded to Facebook within minutes:
By entering into a partnership with Ustream and adding a dedicated ‘Share’ button to the controller itself, Sony are really embracing the tools needed by the YouTube stars of tomorrow — or maybe just opening the door to a whole new generation of glitch videos.
Despite the somewhat pretentious introduction, it was a pleasure to see one of our most anticipated games out of E3 last year returning for a thrilling live demo on a confirmed platform: Watch_Dogs. That oh-so-modern underscore aside, this game exemplifies where we hope gaming is going in the next few years:
But the most exciting reveal of all was Bungie’s Destiny. Aside from the fanboy-baiting excitement of seeing Bungie on stage during a Playstation presentation (it felt as though some kind of world-ending reality paradox was about happen at any moment) the glimpses of gameplay footage viewed during the new teaser went a long way to convince us the masters of cinematic action are going to deliver the goods with this ambitious MMOFPS.
So the Next Generation of gaming has begun. For us, it is long overdue!
Thank you for 100 fabulous Fridays – be sure to Follow us on Twitter, Like us on Facebook and Share the Fix with friends. We’ll see you next Friday for #101.
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Early tracking indicates that the second installment of Abrams’ series is headed for a $90+ million domestic opening weekend - the highest in franchise history. Take it from us… Star Trek Into Darkness is unmissable.
