Thursday, May 28, 2009

FREE CIGARETTES - LOW COST HELP FOR YOUR FRIENDS

his shocking documentary is quite real. Being a non-smoker empowers me to do things others would be embarrassed to do. In fact, I enjoy embarrassing my friends scrounging for butts. I'm famous for being a butt scrounger. Here we have an exciting documentary about how I help my friends. It was my little pocket camera & I've never done this type of self-expose before...but what do you expect from a butt scrounger.
Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

Friday, May 22, 2009

VICTIM GOES TO JAIL - A TRUE LIFE STORY

Sometimes the victim of a crime ends up being the one sent to jail. That's especially true when dealing with gangs, drugs & the "honor codes" of the street. Likewise, inmates have their own "laws of the jungle". This video captures the way "justice" is handled by the law, street gangs & inmates themselves. Michael, the person who tells this story has stayed off drugs for years with methadone & has recently successfully quit methadone (with huge difficulty). He is in love with a woman whom he dreams of marrying and having a family with. She has motivated him to build a better life for the two of them together. Life is not easy for some people. Hopefully, we are learn from our mistakes & ultimately manage to overcome them.
Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

Monday, May 18, 2009

DANCE PARADE NYC 2009 - RANDOM CLIPS

The Dance Parade is NYC's most exciting new cultural event.  After a brief explanation & introduction, the dancing really gets "hot" in many different senses of that word.  It is inspiring, uplifting, makes you glad to be alive.  This is just the first of many clips I'll share as I edit a 28-minute show (or two) for Time Warner Public Access Channel 67 in Manhattan from the two hours of footage I filmed.  These clips are fabulous !  Those to come are equally so.

Check out Dance Parade (dot) Org website for more information.  Enroll for their infrequent emails.

Don't miss this event again next year!  Any Japanese dancing rock or pop groups out there who want to get involved?  Be the first!  Dance on !
Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

ANTI-GAY DAY BEAUTIFUL MUSIC

"Gay Atheist Valentine to The People of The Religious Right" would better describe this video. If I don't get burned at the stake in Hoboken by the politicians, I'll probably be crucified somewhere by either a mob of fanatical hate-filled fundamental Christians and/or a band of hate-filled militant atheists. I would really appreciate someone posting a translation of the lyrics of this beautiful song as a comment and/or email them to me & I will add them to this description. Peace & love to all of you.
Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

HOBOKEN ELECTION EVE MAY 12,2009

I really got turned off to local Hoboken politics years ago.  I almost didn't vote for the first time in 33 years this time because I really didn't know the candidates or issues that well.  Coming out of the Path Underground Train Station, I noticed some pretty young white girls looking awfully bored as they held signs & passed out literature.  They looked more like H.S. cheerleaders than political activists.  Elsewhere I saw others, both young & old, excitedly promoting their candidates.  On impulse, I ran home, grabbed the camera & went out to ask some leafleters why they were involved.  The bored cheer leaders had gone home but there were a variety of other people to interview.  I want to thank each & every person in this video for simply being who they were--including the man who threatened to sue me. There will probably be a run off.  I'm more interested now & hope to make my mind up on my own after a little more research this time.

Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

Saturday, May 09, 2009

MOTHER BOUGHT MY LOVE !

Most men love their mothers. A few actually hate their mothers. Talking to a bunch of young LGBT youth (15-18), I just let it all hang out & explained the complicated feelings I have regarding my genuinely hateful (but perhaps ultimately lovable) mother. Aren't all our relationships with our parents "bipolar" (a mixture of love/hate emotions)? This is my politically-incorrect "Mother's Day Card" to my own Mother & others out there struggling with conflicted emotions regarding their own Mother. Hope it truly speaks to & touches some viewers. Conformists & ordinary people will hate it.
Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

Friday, May 08, 2009

CHERRY BLOSSOM FESTIVALS: POLITICALLY-CORRECT PINK ?

Dressing in pink for cherry blossom festivals is a daunting challenge since cherry blossoms range from white to deep pink. Randy Wicker explains with examples from Brooklyn Botanical Garden's Sakura Matsuri celebration.
Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

CHERRY BLOSSOM FESTIVALS: POLITICALLY-CORRECT PINK ?

Dressing in pink for cherry blossom festivals is a daunting challenge since cherry blossoms range from white to deep pink. Randy Wicker explains with examples from Brooklyn Botanical Garden's Sakura Matsuri celebration.
Formats available: Microsoft Video (.avi)

Tuesday, May 05, 2009

ANIME STORMS AMERICA !

Anime videos & munga books are the latest Japanese infusion into American mass culture. Americans invented the automobile. Then the Japanese produced the better car. Disney created anime. Then the Japanese took everything to a higher artistic/cultural level. This interview with a spokesperson for NYAnimeFestival(dot)com explores this latest cultural wave.
Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

Monday, May 04, 2009

Ai Kawashima Talks

Expedia says: "Ai had the dream of becoming a singer since she was little. The dream was made by her and her mother together. Her mother was her only family since she had lost her father when she was just a child. However, Ai's mother died before she became a famous singer. Now she is singing not only for her mother, who has died, but also for people who listen to her song, wishing world peace. She has helped establish schools in poor countries. Before she became a famous singer, she established a goal--to perform 1000 times on the street--and accomplished it after she became a great singer. Her voice is called "angel's voice". At first, there were only a few people listening to her song on the street, however, gradually she attracted a lot of people. Ultimately, her last street performance in Shibuya attracted a great number of people. At some point she and "Nao" formed the duo I WiSH and had a decent level of success, but the band was dissolved in 2005 so that Ai and Nao could concentrate on solo projects. Some of Ai's songs have been used as theme songs for anime and videogames. Zetsubou to Kibou ( ?) is the theme song of Shining Force Neo; "Compass" was is the theme song of the eighth One Piece movie Episode of Alabasta: The Desert Princess and the Pirates, and "Kimi No Koe" is the ending theme song of The Place Promised in our Early Days. One of her newest songs, "Door Crawl", is the theme song of Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon."
Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)