James Cameron was recently sued yet again for Avatar, the latest in a long line of plagiarism accusations against the director stretching back to Terminator. But is Cameron a serial plagiarist, or just a popular target for copyright lawsuits? There are certainly some cases (Sally Mann’s in particular, and given the similarities between the openings…
Artist Andrew Kolb pays tribute to Calvin and his indefatigable imagination with a pair of seasonal prints. Whether it’s summer or winter, Bill Watterson’s duo can travel through space and meet up with dinosaurs, UFOs, giant robots, and, of course, those mutant snowmen. These pieces are part of the RED gallery show that opened last…
There are currently not one, but two ebook bundles that let you pay what you want for a bunch of science fiction ebooks. Head over to the Humble eBook Bundle and StoryBundle to grab several books for potentially little money. Humble Bundle is running its second ebook bundle with Cory Doctorow’s Little Brother, Cherie Priest’s…
There’s a great paper cutout feel to Thomas Plaete’s short film Nimbus Machina. An engineer in a monstrous steampunk vehicle must flee the storm he created. Plaete uses his monochromatic palette to a nice industrial effect, while employing a limited geometry to create a grand sense of scale. There’s also some rather gorgeous concept art…
As part of his Masters of Branding study at the School of Visual Arts, Tyler Adam Smith is creating 100 covers for books that should be written, from goofy snarks at popular authors to imagined sequels to beloved books. Designer Debbie Millman, who chairs the branding department, charged each student in the program to come…
The Saturday Comic-Con schedule is now up, with panels on Catching Fire, Thor: The Dark World, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Futurama, True Blood, Arrow, The Vampire Diaries, and much, much more.
What do you do with that old unwanted time machine? In this week’s writing prompt, this clunker of a time travel device is going up for sale. This piece is titled, quite directly, “Time Machine For Sale” by Tom Colbie, via Geek Art Gallery. It’s part of Colbie’s surreal series, Shots from a Parallel Dimension,…
Even if World War Z isn’t your cup of undead tea, it’s fascinating to see how the visual effects artists at MPC created the massive zombie crowd in the Jerusalem scene, using a combination of motion-capture performances and AI interactions. Hat tip to Scott!
The latest entry in Jason Heuser‘s badass presidents series sends Richard Nixon back to the ice age, where he takes on a Smilodon with his not-quite-bare fists. Heuser includes this blurb with the image: When Richard Nixon first traveled through time there was a considerable malfunction with his time machine, he was transported back to…
Last weekend, when the casting for Oberyn Martell, the A Song of Ice and Fire character commonly known as the Red Viper of Dorne, was announced, many commented that the actor was fairer skinned than they had anticipated the character would be. On his blog, author George R.R. Martin weighed in on the casting of…
Reformation Church pastor Kevin Swanson recently went on his Generations with Vision radio show to condemn Star Trek Into Darkness because it shows James Kirk in a post-coital bed with members of the “wrong species.” To which we can only respond—has Swanson ever seen Star Trek? On a June episode of Generations with Vision, Swanson…
The king cobra’s favorite food is other snakes, and this week-old snake makes its first meal of a water snake that isn’t much skinnier than it is. It’s fascinating to watch it wolf down the long body of its prey. National Geographic posted this act of snake-on-snake predation. The king cobra’s genus name, Ophiophagus, means…
If you’re not already reading KC Green’s webcomic Gunshow, I recommend tuning in for his latest longform arc, Graveyard Quest. In it, a Gravedigger travels through the underworld on a hunt for his mother’s stolen bones and encounters ghostly hijackers, a wise mole, a village of worms, and the constant disapproval of his long-dead father.…
Remember Game of Thrones Season One, when all the major characters were still alive? The ladies of Not Literally are back with another pop culture-parodying video, this time using Gotye to pay tribute to “A Character I Used to Know.” Spoilers for Season One. Now that we’ve gotten through the Red Wedding, we need a…
San Diego Comic-Con is less than two weeks away, and Comic-Con International has posted the schedule for the first two days. Let’s see what’s on tap for the entertainment extravaganza. For Thursday, we’re psyched about hearing more about Europa Report, Ender’s Game, and Terry Gilliam’s The Zero Theorem. And on Friday, there will be peeks…
Nine years ago, John William Keedy was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. His photo series It’s Hardly Noticeable examines the feelings of discomfort a character with an anxiety-based mental illness experiences and his relationship with the concept of “normalcy.” Keedy refers to many of the photographs in this series as “metaphorical still lifes.” While some…
Wish your kitchen looked more like a laboratory? Well you’ll be able to pour the perfect portion of wine with the Periodic TableWare. Or maybe you’d prefer a video game where combat is optional, a speculative look at New York’s layout, or a handbook on making and publishing webcomics. Continuous City Artist Brian Foo engages…
Do you dare enter the trippy horrors of The Cabin in the Woods? Universal Orlando has announced that it is recreating the cabin—and all of its twists and turns—as a maze attraction in time for Halloween. Talking to Zap2it, Universal Orlando’s Michael Aiello explains that the amusement park is building the cabin for Halloween Horror…
July 1st marks the start of the Gromit Unleashed charity art exhibition in Bristol. Eighty statues of Wallace & Gromit’s beloved stop-motion pooch are appearing all over the city, each custom designed by a different artist. Top image by Matt Cardy/Getty Images. For ten weeks, the Gromit statues will be on public display, letting passersby…
Is good housekeeping important for civil defense? It is according to this 1954 film, produced by with the cooperation of the Federal Civil Defense Administration, which claims that a clean, nicely painted house is more likely to survive a nuclear attack than its dirty, run-down neighbors. The House in the Middle uses footage from the…
