Suppose I could offer you a choice of two technologies for watching TV online. Behind Door Number One sits a free-to-watch service that uses off-the-shelf technology and that buffers just enough of each show to put the live stream on the Internet. Behind Door Number Two lies a subscription service that requires custom-designed hardware and makes dozens of copies of each show. Which sounds easier to build—and to use? More importantly, which is more likely to be legal?

If you went with Door Number One, then you are a sane person, untainted by the depravity of modern copyright law. But you…

Believe it or not, some of us have managed to breed successfully. Even Steve Lutz. So we talk about what media we provide for our kids. Topics include dealing with the Star Wars prequels, Spongebob Squarepants, how young you need to be to watch “Apocalypse Now” or “The Exorcist,” why “Tron: Legacy” cost Ben dearly, why John became a master weaponsmith in his childhood, Jason’s debates with his son over whether Spider-Man or Batman is better, Lisa’s childhood reading of “The Godfather,” picking video games for your kids, and how your children’s peers will just ruin them anyway.

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The newest entrant, “Kubrick // One-Point Perspective,” masterfully weaves shots from the director’s oeuvre, pulsing along to a soundtrack of Clint Mansell’s “Lux Aeterna,” a track best known as “that Requiem for a Dream song.” Each shot utilizes the same framing technique: a wide angle with everything in focus, directed at a single point in space in the dead center of the frame. It’s difficult to explain, which is why one should give it a look.

It is very interesting, stylistically. It’s not something you see much in modern film making. I know that when filming or photographing I…

Now I’m starting up a TV show, which is something I really wanted to do, but I thought it wasn’t going to be a part of my life for the next several years. It’s like a tapas menus of projects that excite me, in addition to the Avengers sequel, which I’m excited for because I’m incredibly excited about the next story that I’m going to tell. For me, it’s a huge win.

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The important thing to me is that we know what the show is. We love what it is. It came together very organically, so when we went in to pitch [to Marvel], it wasn’t like, We’re trying to find this because you want a TV…

People with smart phones capable of doing so will shoot video. Some shoot a lot of video. Some of them have Vertical Video Syndrome (VVS). That is, they hold the phone vertically while recording. It is a blight upon the face of the earth (or YouTube anyway) and you should not do it. Ever.

VVS is real, and it’s a danger. Just think if George Lucas had the opportunity to re-release Star Wars: The Skinny Edition. I shudder at the possibility. I’d hate to give him the ability to ruin more childhoods.

Just watch the video, it’s funny.

New Jersey-based iOS app developer Andrew Fernandez just published the V2.0 of his social TV app Renewed, which takes on other apps in this space with an interesting twist. Renewed says it knows which shows are going to get canceled, and which ones will get picked up for another season, simply based on the data it gathers from check-ins.

The app displays a health meter for each and every show. These predictions may be based on a small user base for now, but Fernandez told me that he has bigger plans for this kind of data. “My big goal for the data is to make it available to networks and…

“I’ll… free… your… slaves! I’LL FREE THEM ALL!” Okay, we probably shouldn’t expect the eccentric genius of Daniel Day-Lewis’ Oscar winning role in There Will Be Blood, but the acclaimed actor is certain to light to screen this Christmas in Steven Spielberg’s biopic Lincoln. Below is the first official still from the film, and no it doesn’t show him slaying vampires. On a side note, it was also reported today that Day-Lewis never once stepped out of character while on the film’s set. Whether he spent most of that time bemused by the modern technology has not yet been confirmed.

First of…

This is such great fun. As I mentioned and linked to a couple days ago, Joss Whedon did a tongue-in-cheek video “asking” everyone to “boycott” a film called Sleepwalk With Me. In the snarky, sarcastic way that only Joss can do, he gave the film several comments (disguised as insults and reasons for boycotting). Whedon even asked fans to request the movie be screened in their local theatre so they could boycott the film as well (side note, my favorite part of the Joss Whedon video is the very end when he says, “remember when I made The Avengers?” Hilarious!).

Now the film-makers, Mike…

For all the high expectations we place on feature films it is easy to overlook shorts films stand to impress as well. Independents everywhere are responsible for various production values for TV shows, advertising, and often times are snatched up for new talent at the bigger studios. It’s no wonder that professional independents have a creative itch with simple and clever narratives to tell.

If you love film shorts and what they may inspire for the future of greater filmmaking, you will want to watch this highly creative and fun piece from the developers of the Red Giant film crew.