iphone + sound machine = blade runner

Pictured above, Deckard swipes his iPhone and orders some Chinese.  Now you can use your precious iDevice to immerse yourself in the world of Blade Runner with an app called Sleep Machine, a neat little program meant to help you sleep by generating ambient sounds like wind, rain, surf and crickets.  Now that’s great if you want to pretend you live out in the middle of nowhere, but can it relax the futuristic city dweller, looking to close his eyes and get lost in the soothing sounds of a dark, yet shimmering urban landscape?

Happy Birthday Battlestar Galactica!

Thirty Two years ago today, ABC rocked the house with the first-ever airing of Battlestar Galactica.  Killer robots, thrusting spaceships and Lorne Green’s toupe would forever change my world.  It also marked the official start of the 25 year countdown to Ron Moore’s epic re-imagining of the series, which breathed new life into the Galactica franchise and showed the world that you can take science fiction seriously. So, on this fine Friday evening, why not grab a friend (Cylon or otherwise) and tip a glass of Ambrosia in honor of Glen Larson’s little wagon train to the stars that could.

Voting extended!

It seems like yesterday’s post has “inspired” a lot of you, as the voting has gone topsy turvy.  I find this most interesting.  I think I’ll let you guys run with this over the weekend – the voting will end Sunday night/Monday morning at midnight.  You have until then to “be creative.”  The image posted above is Daren’s idea of how to win this contest – just combine the most popular images!  Well, at least they were the most popular until today.  We’ll have the winner and an in-depth analysis of the voting come Monday.  Have a great weekend!

 

contest cheaters exposed!

One of the cool things about WordPress is they provide you with all kinds of useful data about your blog; not only do you get an accurate count of how many people are visiting and what they’re reading, but it also lets you know where they are coming from.  With one click, I can see which sites are linking to me and how many people visited Darth Mojo as a result of those links.  Naturally, if I see an unfamiliar site suddenly pointing hundreds of people my way, I click over to them to see what all the fuss is about (usually it’s someone telling his or her readers to check out a post).  Today I noticed a few dozen people had been referred to my blog from a discussion group I’d never heard of, so I clicked the link to investigate.  And that’s when I discovered the cheaters.

halloween star trek mystery

Friday I was assembling a few odds and ends for my last minute costume when I encountered the above abomination at the Halloween store. Generally speaking, they choose a model for the packaging that at least bears some vague physical similarity to the person or character they’re trying to market – but in this case, WTF?!  Obviously they weren’t even trying to go for a Chris Pine lookalike, and he’s fatter than Shatner ever was, so, all I can come up with is they wanted a model that made men say “hell, I’d be a better looking Captain Kirk than this guy!”  Unless the costume is supposed to be bloated Kirk after McCoy injected him with the comedy virus. What was my costume, you ask?

you know you’re a nerd when…

… you stare at a urinal puck and you see the primary hull of the USS Enterprise.

 

secret easter egg hiding in “the plan”

Today is the big day, ladies and gentlemen!  Battlestar Galactica: The Plan  hits the shelves on DVD and Blu-ray, and with it so ends the final chapter of the new BSG.  I’m just as sad to see the show come to and end as the rest of you, but don’t get too misty-eyed on me, your old uncle Mojo has a little ‘going away’ present in store!  Of course, each and every one of you should pick up “The Plan” simply because it’s an intriguing film and features a juicy performance by the best bad guy in years, Dean “Cavil” Stockwell – but just in case you were looking for further motivation to add this DVD to your collection, it’s also hiding a very special easter egg…

phillips, mccreary wow crowd, eat cake

Saturday night in San Pedro, California was heaven on Earth for the nearly one thousand nerds who packed the historic Warner Grand theater to listen to an evening of music from Battlestar Galactica and other sci-fi favorites as part of a big ol’ birthday bash for legendary composer Stu Phillips.  Special guest Bear McCreary (seen above sharing a hug with Mr. Phillips after the final encore) also took the stage and shook the theater to its very foundation with his new BSG composition, proving once and for all that both versions of the series can not only peacefully coexist, but can actually rock the house together! 

report from concert rehearsal – holy frak!

Tuesday night was the rehearsal for this Saturday’s upcoming sci-fi music concert paying special tribute to composer Stu Phillips.  All I can say is wow.  Hearing a live orchestra belt out those first few notes of “Exploration” from the Battlestar Galactica soundtrack sent a shockwave through me!  I’ve listened to that music gods know how many times but last night it really pounded through my soul – in a good way.  It was also a treat to watch Stu conduct and give direction to the musicians – he may have written this music three decades ago but the passion, energy and dedication on display last night were that of a proud father making sure his newborn child is in good hands.  The guy may be 80 but he demonstrated more gusto that anyone in the house!  In addition to getting a preview of Stu’s set, we heard the suite from Star Trek: First Contact and a piece from composer John Ottmans’s upcoming Astro Boy, but it was Bear McCreary who provided total shock and awe with his newest composition…

omg! stu phillips plays the galactica theme just for us! (with video)

I recently had the privilege of visiting Mr. Stu Phillips at his home in Studio City where we went over last-minute particulars for his upcoming concert (i’m helping out with a few behind the scenes details).  Regular readers of this blog – and any fan worth his salt – should recall that Phillips is the maestro behind the music from the original Battlestar Galactica, as well as Buck Rogers, Knight Rider and countless other hours of entertainment that has undoubtedly made the world a better place.  As we wrapped things up, I headed for the door and walked past a piano… the very piano that was used to compose the theme music that defined my childhood; the theme that I’ve probably listened to more than any other piece of music in my life (yes, even the theme from Star Wars).  I couldn’t help myself.  “Stu,” I nervously asked.  ”Would you be willing to give a fan the ultimate thrill and personally play the theme to Galactica on this piano?”  With his trademark humility and humor, he suggested that I should have higher standards for thrills – but he kindly obliged – and let me make a video of the impromptu performance to share with all of you…

coolest CGI shot of all time (with video)

A few months back we showed you how we created a brand-new CGI Viper from the original 1979 Battlestar Galactica.  Using a model built by the talented Derek Smith, I painstakingly recreated the lighting and studio look of the TV classic just to see how close a match we could get to the original.  But what about the Galactica herself?  Not too long ago, FX veteran Lee Stringer enlisted a few cohorts and spent quite a bit of personal time building an exact replica of the original filming miniature (as seen above – yes, he did this on his own time) so I thought I’d take a crack at creating a brand new shot of the girl and see how close I could get it to looking like a scene from the original series…

more lightsaber madness (plus photo contest)!

 

How do visual effects artists spend their New Year’s Eve?  Lightsaber dueling, of course!  After the international success of yesterday’s lightsaber post, I spent a little time digging through the Mojoplex archives and unearthed these gems from a 2006 New Year’s Eve party – where we offer proof that you’re never too old to not grow up (on the other hand, if you’re easily embarassed, the alternate lesson learned here is that booze and lightsabers don’t mix if you’ve got a digital camera laying around and a friend with a blog). Click through for more pics and the identities of the revelers!

BSG birthday bash continues…

Perhaps the greatest gift for fans of the original series has just gone live over at GALACTICA.TV (if you’ve never checked it out, it’s easily the best BSG site on the web – especially for original series fans).  Curators Marcel Damen & Mike Egnor have put together a huge post of never before seen interviews,  images and info about the making of the show and they deserve three cheers for their tireless effort in continuing to unearth great material.  If seeing that above image of the tiny landing bay matte painting gives you a stiffy, you better have a change of shorts on hand before you click over!  

 

happy birthday battlestar galactica (audio post)

On September 17, 1978, ABC television first aired “Battlestar Galactica” and in doing so (damn them), sealed my fate.  Ever since then I’ve had a special place in my heart for the show and, for reasons still unclear, my enthusiasm for the beast simply will not wane.  For a while there, being a Galactica fan was something you kept to yourself (even the Star Wars and Star Trek fans looked down on us), but, thanks to Ron Moore, BSG fans can once again wear their T-shirts proudly and in public.  To help celebrate this auspicious occasion, I’ve dusted off a rare piece of Galactica memorabilia that each and every one of you can download and enjoy on this special day…

start the countown: the greatest concert of all time

Simply put, if you enjoy hearing sci-fi film & television music performed by a full orchestra – and if you have a particular fondness for Battlestar Galactica – you’ll want to be at the Warner Grand theater in San Pedro, California on October 24th…

free 3D glasses from verizon

For a limited time, you can get several pairs of free 3D glasses from Verizon!  Just follow this link, fill out the form and wait for the postman to deliver the goods.  Then you’ll be able to enjoy all the cool pictures I’ll be posting in the weeks (and years) to come.  Be sure to get on board and join the 3D party, you can’t beat free glasses!  [special thanks to Double-O-Five for the heads up]

introducing: 3d Trek

They say that the secret to success is to simply please yourself.  Since it’s impossible to predict what people are going to love or hate, people are often told “make the movie you want to see, or invent the thing you want to buy.”  Recently, I was approached to come up with an idea for a new Star Trek product; as part of the process, I found myself wondering, “what would I be interested in?”  Sadly, the programmable Orion Slave Girl Clone  didn’t quite pan out, but I came up with something else that I think is even sexier…