So many video clips were wasting away, I felt like I needed to do something about it. Thankfully, it wasn’t too difficult to pop them in iMovie with a lovely song.
By ‘brighten your day’ I’m not saying that they are all happy and that they’ll improve your mood. Rather, I find that it can be invigorating to see what creative expression someone can share in such a small space both visually and in terms of length. I’ve been playing around with my old clips – and wishing I had taken more video in the past. I might post some of the things I’ve made at some point, but in the meantime here are some films I’d like to share!
☆
This is an awesome tilt-shift simulated time lapse video of a Sumou match! Cool, right?
☆
Les Escargots by Rene Laloux (1965) has great parallels in terms of construction to the animation in Monty Python films. Also it is a bit of a dystopian story, which is engaging.
☆
Apricot by Ben Briand (Australian)
☆
Breakup Service by Kosai Sekine
☆
Here’s Right Place, also by Kosai Sekine.
I must confess that I love everything he directs. He even makes aesthetically appealingmakeup and photocopy advertisements.
(also reminds me of my own foot-view obsessed photos, as well as the Foot Earth project
☆
Next is a collaborative music project by the morning benders and the echo chamber orchestra. I love this pretense! Also it looks like wicked fun. Bonus: I like the song.
☆
Last but not least is this lovely nightscape video by cat2525jp. It is way similar in both concept and design to Kosai Sekine’s Jemapur music video, but of course they’re both filmed in Tokyo.
“The Earth has enough for everyone’s need, but not for everyone’s greed.”
-M.K. Gandhi
As you probably know, April 22 is Earth Day, but that is by not the only occasion relating to kindness to our planet in this month. While last month we had Earth Hour, this month there is also Pee Outside Day (link). This is part of an effort to reduce water usage, as flushing wastes tons of water each year.
Water is necessary to sustain human life, for consumption, for sanitation, for industry and for transport. Increasingly we rely on non-renewable groundwater supplies for the water-heavy irrigation in regions that are feeding much of the world. These will diminish with time, and more quickly though our current over-consumption habits compounded with the effects of climate change.
One of the Millennium Development goals was to “halve, by 2015, the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation.” This is very important in terms of human health and security, as well as environmental sustainability.
I also recently heard an interview with a Bishop who lead a Carbon fast this Easter season (See Christians told: Give up carbon for Lent). It was a nice interview, and emphasized the was small lifestyle changes can add up to a large difference. Another point that I was glad to see emphasized is that there are multiple benefits to such choices – environmental, financial as well as social. For example lowering your carbon footprint by turing down your thermostat and unplugging unused appliances also lowers your energy bills!
“During Lent, Christians usually give up various things. In the past they’ve given up things like sweets, chocolate, and alcohol. We came up with the idea of giving up carbon rather than giving up those other things, because as you give up carbon not only are you reducing your own carbon footprint, but you’re also doing something which helps people in other parts of the world. Because at the moment, the poor in the poorest parts of the world are suffering because of climate change and if we can reduce our carbon footprint we, then in in the end we help the world and we help the poor.”
-Bishop James Jones (2010)
Here are some links or particularly easy water related tips:
Of course, there is so much more we can do, such as scrutinize the choices we make in terms of what products and foods we consume. In my opinion being conscious of our choices is the most important thing that will put a dent in our total impact. Being zero impact is difficult, but being as low impact as you can is something everyone can achieve. What are you doing in terms of your water use?
