Blog Archives
The Imagination Whisperer
A picture is not only worth a thousand words, but now it can inspire millions of people of all ages.
Exhibit A: Robin van Persie’s diving header against Spain in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil was the best goal of the tournament. Surprisingly, this moment nearly/does rise to the same level as the imagery of the Germans triumphantly lifting the World Cup trophy. That’s powerful. When that goal is replayed on television, it instantly encapsulates the top-level talent of the players and teams in that glorious tournament last summer.
This goal was the sports highlight of 2014.
Exhibit B: The highly-anticipated Jurassic World was expected to be a summer blockbuster, reinvigorating the franchise that started with the 1993 cinematic masterpiece Jurassic Park. The 2015 film will be remembered for many things, including its dinosaur-sized, record-breaking box office domination. Or how about how John Williams was welcomed back into our hearts, as well as to the top of the Billboard charts after 22 years. Jurassic World was the sequel everyone had been waiting for since watching the helicopter safely fly into the sunset over the oceanic horizon in June of 1993.
Enter Chris Pratt/Owen Grady.
As seen in the film and the trailers, Owen’s prowess for cautiously wrangling velociraptors is a spectacular sight of a person trying to control nature. There are several memorable scenes from the movie, but none like the raptor whisperer. However, the photograph after the screenshot is not directly from the film, but is instead of a child’s interpretation of the aforementioned scene with some parental coordination. And this pose has been done by many, however, this adaption showcases the dinosaur-loving kid in all of us.
This is the pose of 2015.
(Wired)
“Thank you to the parents of this little one. You’ve made my day” (Chris Pratt’s Facebook)
The image gets your attention, like a certain cup of trembling water…
The Pursuit of Levitation
Apparently, now is the right time to hover.
Scheduling my ride on the first-ever hoverboard last Friday was born out of availability and great airfare. It never dawned on me that the subsequent week would reveal the first glimpse of the world’s second hoverboard: SLIDE.
Utilizing similar principals of magnetism, the specialized design group at Lexus has dipped its toe into the water (well, technically in the air) of hover technology following Arx Pax and their pioneering Hendo Hoverboard. Still, the specific components between the Hendo and Lexus hoverboards are distinguishable enough.
“Lexus said the test hoverboard in its “Amazing in Motion” campaign generates magnetic levitation by combining the effects of liquid nitrogen-cooled superconductors and permanent magnets” (USA Today).
Appearance wise, the hoverboard by Lexus is sleek and appears consumer-ready. Functionality wise, however, is still a lingering question. Looks like October 21st of this year will reveal that verdict, the same day Marty McFly quickly found out the answer to this question. Also, Hendo does not use liquid nitrogen-cooled superconductors, which is important to note for a couple reasons. First, both companies have legitimate claims to creating original hovering technologies, however similar the role magnets are to flotation. Second, it’s wonderful to see there is more than one way to build a hoverboard.
The creative minds at Hendo and Lexus, developing this desired mode of transportation out of nostalgia for the future (it makes sense), are in the alpha stage. Envisioning what the beta stage and beyond will produce is exciting as reductions in cost (Hendo’s board costs $10,000), battery life improvements and infrastructure will undoubtedly become focal points of business plans going forward. Perhaps this leads to a small skate park with magnets built underneath in the next few years (Lexus did that for the video above), then a long pathway around a park and then Marty’s daring and boundless flight throughout a town square will be reality soon thereafter.
Except over water.
The power of movies (and love for the BTTF fan) is inspiring for many reasons. Despite living in 2015 without most of the cool advancements featured in Back to the Future Part II, those scenes have clearly made a permanent impression on fans and innovators alike as a future to strive for and build towards. That’s incredible. The sparks of innovation can literally come from anywhere.
And Lexus seems to be opening a future debate: Will consumers buy a luxury car or a luxury hoverboard?
They may be surprised by the answer.
Hovering Above
Kickstarter is modern venture capitalism in a nutshell.
“In a nutshell” could very easily be a company name on Kickstarter, which only underscores the imaginative space this website gives its aspiring businessmen and businesswomen to pursue. After searching through its digital catalog of ideas that need a preset minimum investment to formally charge its voluntary investors and proceed with producing a particular product(s), it’s evident that people have passions and consumer goods that are both logical and illogical.
And that’s fantastic.
Why?
Because only the marketplace validates or denies value. It’s up to consumers and this is where the excitement lies. People no longer have to be employed on Wall Street or understand the complexities of the stock exchange to fund start-ups. All you need is a laptop, a tablet or a smartphone and a little money. And depending on the monetary donation, there’s a corresponding reward. A person’s support could be as minimal as $5 or as large as thousands of dollars.
Fortunately, the pop culture geniuses at Hendo Hoverboards created a Kickstarter campaign last year that centered on the world’s first hoverboard in the year 2015. Movie buffs will remember that this is the year Marty McFly rode that famous hoverboard in Back to the Future Part II, which was the nostalgic effect they hoped to have on visitors to their fundraising page. It worked with viral-like popularity.
They were funded.
Stories were written about the Hendo Hoverboard in major publications, like Fortune, Smithsonian, Business Insider, the Today Show and more. The mission was to give investors of varying ages and backgrounds the thrill of a lifetime and to introduce people to its multipurpose hovering technologies being developed by Arx Pax, the company behind Hendo Hoverboards. While their primary focuses beyond the hoverboard are not yet ready for the public, their ambitions are certainly within the realm of a future reality.
Luckily, I found this Kickstarter campaign and made a modest investment that included a ride on the aforementioned hoverboard. The entire experience (from researching the company’s mission to its supremely clever marketing to the crazy awesome ride) was first-class. Beginning the morning in their office with a handshake from its co-founder Greg Henderson and discussions with their enthusiastic (and thankful) employees, my time spent in the unassuming Los Gatos, California business park last Friday was eye-opening into the exciting dynamics of a genuine tech start-up.
The marketing strategies are changing in exciting ways, the storytelling aspect of a company is becoming more prevalent and the value of viral content through social media is extending the reach of before unknown firms to individuals who may not have joined together on a business venture otherwise.
Here is the Hendo Hoverboard Kickstarter video.
Welcome to the future.
There’s No Independence Day After Earth
Now this is what I call a close encounter…of the sequel kind.
The follow-up to Independence Day was announced a few months back, but during a recent forum in the secret alien hotbed of Albuquerque, New Mexico with the stars (including Jeff Goldblum and Bill Pullman) and director Roland Emmerich, the most pressing question was discussed:
Why didn’t Captain Steven Hiller Will Smith return?
Emmerich shed some light on this issue.
In the very beginning, I wanted to work with him and he was excited to be in it but then after a while he was tired of sequels, and he did another science fiction film, which was his father-son story, so he opted out.”
Keep in mind that the science-fiction film with the literal father-son story was a movie called After Earth, which was heavily panned and was a box office flop. Still, an Independence Day sequel would have revived a favored father-son relationship, while being just one of many character plot lines. The scale of this science-fiction saga stretches far and wide, both with its story and characters. It would not have been “the Will Smith movie,” yet he is a critical part of this newly created franchise. Plus, the 1996 alien summer blockbuster is still loved by fans and Will Smith is a major reason for that.
Smith’s excuse, therefore, is weak and unacceptable. He is one of the few actors in Hollywood that earns a fresh look from the audience with each new project. Arriving in theaters next year, it’s probably safe to say that Smith will regret passing on this movie. It’s essentially impossible to bring something back from yesteryear and for it to be as good as the original. Except, with this movie and its original director, all of its big name stars returning and the initial plot (it’s 20 years later and David Levinson is/has been leading a global initiative to prepare for any future alien attacks), the potential is high for a fun return to some exciting 1996 cinematic nostalgia.
As a bonus for fans, the official title was revealed:
Independence Day: Resurgence.
The aliens will try to blow up Jurassic World’s box office records next summer starting June 24th.
Jimmy's Daily Planet 