Designers should be Objectified

Objectified movie poster, image from http://www.wired.com

For the past days since starting this Extra Kanin blog, I was trying to write an article that will give our readers the basic definition of industrial design. Many people don’t even know what industrial design is and what the profession is for. We always come across friends and acquaintances back in college asking us what we do, and what makes us different from more popular courses like architecture, interior design and fine arts. From a point of view of an outsider, industrial design is an unknown degree with no solid future. However, for those who practice it, the profession is prestigious.

Just last night, I finished watching this 2009-released documentary about industrial design (much thanks to Nian Suministrado for referring this to me). The movie is entitled Objectified, directed by Gary Hustwit, the same man who created the Helvetica movie (next on my to-watch list). For the people who don’t have a clue, now you will get the chance to better understand the nature of our profession. Objectified is the 90-minute tour to the world of simplicity, common sense, modernism and creativity as ingredients for design.

Every Guitar Has A Story

It Might Get Loud (2010)
Music Documentary

Every guitar has a name, and every name has a story behind it. Stories of adventure through music land, of clashing notes and sweet riffs. What’s more amazing are the musicians behind them, their masters, the geniuses that make the guitar moan and cry. It doesn’t matter how loud it gets, because that’s not the sole purpose of it. Just music and music alone.

One day in January of 2008, three of the greatest rock guitarists of this modern time came together to discuss the electric guitar. One came from Dublin, one from Tennessee, and the most veteran came from London. The Edge from U2, Mr. Jack White of White Stripes and The Raconteurs, and Mr. Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin and the Yardbirds, respectively. When this kind of men come together to talk about the one passion they all share, you know stories of inspiration and motivation will surface and amaze you. I know, because that’s how it turned out for me.

Flipped: Love As Told From Both Sides

Flipped (2010)

Flipped poster. from www.tribute.ca. 

It all started on their first meeting, when second-grader Julianna Baker instantly fell in love with second-grader Bryce. What comes next was predictable to tell, but after watching both sides of the story, you may want to think over those memories you had in your childhood puppy love years.

Here’s the quick rundown on the story (skip if you have plans on watching the it first): Bryce and his family moves in to a new house in the village, where Julie lives across the street. He felt annoyed on the troublesome girl, but on the girl’s side, it was love at first sight. First time I saw him, I flipped, she said. Right then on, Julie never ceased to express her love for young Bryce. It became her ultimate goal to have that special kiss from her first love. Bryce on the other hand tried everything to keep the girl out of the way. That lasted for the next few years, until Bryce committed some foul mistakes that hurt Julie. Then the story, umm, flipped. Now the boy began going for the girl, and that made little Miss Julianna confused over her feelings. It even made her angrier at some point. There came a moment when the anticipated kiss was almost there, but then it was all wrong timing. Then she walked out away. Then there were tears. Then there was a tree planted in the front yard of the Bakers. They were smiling. End of story. Haha, just go watch the movie. Reserve the sweet feeling and know why you should feel it after watching the flick.

Industrial Design Websites For Your Inspiration

As an industrial designer, it has always been a part of our design process to include research as a partner of every step. There is research done before the project starts, while idealization commences, laying out the mechanism, internal functions and the ergonomics of the initial design, the marketability of the product, and even the right way to deliver the product’s message. The hardest way of dealing with this is the lack of visuals and commentaries about how the ideas will run and be born. So the quickest place to go for a design study besides the library is the Internet, although industrial design is still not that popular of a topic to look for on the web. As to help the students and others of the same profession, I compiled a list of wonderful industrial websites that will give any designers ease on where to get ideas, backgrounds, methods, and of course motivation and inspiration while working on their designs.

CORE77
http://www.core77.com/
http://challenges.core77.com/

Every industrial design student knows about Core77. It’s like the “House of ID”, the one website where every design ideas converge. And that’s exactly how the website presents its contents. Core77 shows the readers what they need to know, in terms of latest designs, commentary columns, news, information, hotlinks, what’s coming, and a lot more. Designers that write about designs, so you can be sure of what you read were experienced firsthand and understood by the writers. Plus, they hold competitions in what they call the Design Arena for amateurs and professionals to participate in (with most cash prizes enough to make you start a business or design firm already). It is truly a haven for us industrial designers.

Three Sundays of Summer

Sunday Morning I

A red car. We were sitting inside the red car, on which the doors were flung open for the 2AM breeze to blow in. A red car under the large mango tree, the mango tree under the vast starry sky above. It was a very fantastical scenario.

We were sitting inside the red car. Me and her. I was on the passenger seat, and she was at the back, probably curled up to lay. Or was sitting, perhaps. I wasn’t looking at her, I was just amazed at the star-dusted velvet blanket. We were talking of stuffs. Candid, sensual, funny stuff. If you think this is a love story, then you guessed wrong. This ain’t another 500 days of summer-theme as well. Though I was busy spotting the different alignment of the heavenly bodies, I was listening to her story. Her love story.

Oh wait. Excuse me. His love story.

Bad as it may seem, but we were having delight talking about this guy who’s silently courting her. Yet we can’t judge situation. I on my part had no right to judge as well. She, perhaps can, but it was heartbreaking too to break another heart. And seemingly, the breezy evening was not paying attention either.

“Victoria. Your choice, your life.“

The doors were flung open for the 2AM breeze to blow in. A cold summer mid-morning.

Malaysia on Film - July 2010

Photos from Malaysia trip last July 2010.
from my Flickr account.

Love Theory According to Writer Lucas

Para Kay B (o kung paano dinevastate ng pag-ibig ang 4 out of 5 sa atin)
Ricky Lee, 2008

A friend of mine showed me her latest collection of newly bought books one August night. One of the items had the faded red and some caricatures as a book cover. She told me it was a Filipino novel. I was expecting it to be something serious, since all Filipino novels I come across on bookstores are hardcore literary-fancy books. Well this one was something new. Para Kay B, written by Ricky Lee, it says. So it was Ricky Lee’s new book. Oh, Ricky Lee the infamous scriptwriter? My friend said yes, and also told me it was a light comedy kind of novel. So it intrigued me more. The last time I read something from Ricky Lee’s written stuff was almost a decade ago, when I was still drooling over Trip to Quiapo and almost serious in choosing Journalism as a course just to write scripts. And the last time I read something light and comedy in Filipino literature was the Ang Paboritong Libro ni Hudas-Bob Ong days more than five years ago. So why not give it a try, I thought, and maybe I’ll be having a good laugh from this book. Or some few tips for a more exciting love affair. Set aside those Stephen King books and dwell on funny slice of life stories.

Pinback and Their Simple Magic Tunes

PinbackGenre: Indie Rock
Years Active: 1998-Present

Pinback: Armistead Burwell Smith IV (left), Rob Crow. Image from aweekatthemost.com. 

If you’re aiming for a smooth Friday night with melodic and clean rock sounds on the background, then this band’s music is definitely right for you. Pinback is an indie rock band from San Diego, California formed in 1998. According to Wikipedia, The band's moniker is a reference to a character in the sci-fi horror film Dark Star, directed by John Carpenter. So far, they have released four studio albums, a couple of EP's through the years, and one compilation.