We figured we’d put together a most awesome list of all the spectacular presenters we’ll have for the evening of the Philly Geek Awards. Some names you’ll recognize, some of them you may not. They’re all great and we’re so darned proud to have them in front of our audience, all dolled up and dapper.
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A few months back we featured the Kickstarter for A Cloudy Adventure from local indie game dev SkyKey.
Good news everyone! Thanks to your help, the Kickstarter was successful and the game is now out. I was lucky enough to check out the game; read on for a brief overview and details on how you can score a free copy.
Billed by its creator as an iPhone game made with happiness, hugs, and joy, A Cloudy Adventure is the first release from Philly local Emmanuel Petti. The Cheddar Bandits have struck the Cloud Kingdom, made off with all the cheese, and taken poor young Prince Cloudy hostage. After dumping him in the unfamiliar Pinelands, Cloudy has to find his way back home and get as much of the cheese back as he can along the way. There’s just one small problem – Cloudy hasn’t yet learned to fly. That’s where his buddies the Band of Blocks (and you) come in. (more…)
I cannot express how excited I am for our first Philly Geek Awards. Rehearsal with our presenters the other evening was a blast.
Without the help of our friends from Academy of Natural Sciences, none of this would have been possible. They’re helping co-host the entire event and have provided the venue as well as countless of hours of coordination and assistance. Not to mention, our primary contact, Jill Sybesma is one awesome person. I’m not sure if I can say her last name. But I can vouch for the fact that she’s absolutely fantastic.
Drink Philly and Victory Brewing Company: we knew who to turn to when we wanted beverages at our event. These beer geeks know what’s up. Be sure to check out their site, their sister site (DrinkJerseyShore.com) and attend one of their fantastic First Friday events. They helped us with getting drinks provided by local brewer, Victory Brewing Company.
What would this geeky event be without a presence from the unofficial geek bar of Philadelphia? National Mechanics. I hope they bring their Frito chili and jalapeno margaritas. I will eat and drink it all.
To all the nominees and winners, when you try to find wall space for that plaque you’ll be hanging up, be sure to thank appRenaissance for that. They’ve got a nice little studio in Old City, where they toil endlessly on their mobile craft. The winner of the announced best dressed contest are going away with a little something from Chevy. It’s yours for a week, enjoy it. Hint hint.
Neuro: they’ve got a drink for every mood and purpose and we’re glad to have them supporting us. Big thanks to Stephanie H. for bringing some of her folks out.
To me, no event with fun people and good things to eat and drink is complete without Yelp. Special thanks to Michelle C. for including us in their newsletter and backing this endeavor. Wish you could make it out to the event!
The Philadelphia Film Society, thank you for the awesome tickets that we will be including in our programs. And SPEAKING of programs, LiveNation, thank you for stepping it up and offering to print them for us. Elizabeth, you are a Goddess among women.
And lastly but not least, a really big thanks to Genna Delgado over at Jobspring Partners (Philly office). We met just recently but she totally hit the ground running when she assisted her company in purchasing a red carpet which they donated to the Academy of Natural Sciences to be used for this Philly Geek Awards, future ones and just about any event the Academy will find a use for.
On behalf of the blog, we’re so absolutely thrilled for the first ever Philly Geek Awards. Judging by the sell-out, it’ll be an incredibly epic good time.
Few writers/directors have the same geek cred as Guillermo Del Toro, whose newest film Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (a remake of the 1973 ABC made-for-television horror film of the same name ) hits cinemas Friday August 26th. Probably one of the busiest guys in Hollywood right now, he wrote the script for the film, which is directed by first timer and comic book artist Troy Nixey.
The film tells the story a young girl who, after being sent to live with her father and his new girlfriend, discovers creatures in her home that want to claim her as one of their own. This looks to be familiar territory for one the best minds working in genre films today and I am definitely looking forward to checking this out.
We have 30 passes for 2 to an advance screening of the film Thursday August 25th at UA King of Prussia. We also have a prize pack consisting of: mini posters, a variety of bath salts (plays a part in the film), a flashlight, a rubber ducky (also in the film) and gum. Want to win a pass to see the film and a chance at the prize pack?
Simply comment by Sunday, August 21st with your favorite Del Toro film and why. The best answer will win the price pack and the runners up will be checking out the film for free. In the meantime check out the trailer below!
Members of the Philadelphia Chapter of the U.S. Campaign for Burma are raising awareness on an important issue regarding censorship in the art community.
A poet names Saw Wei was imprisoned for two and a half years after hiding an anti-government message in one of his poems. Mao Thawka, also a poet, died while serving 20 years for writing a poem that criticized the Burma military. Burmese comedian Zarganar is serving a 35-year sentence for publicly criticizing the government’s failure to assist (more…)
Welcome to this week’s Geek of the Week, where we highlight the fun and creative people of our city. This week we share a few words with Jenn Hall, local artist. By day, she’s a pastry artist at Geekadelphia favorite, Whipped Bakeshop. Though, her work spans multiple mediums.
So, Jenn, we happened upon you on account of your awesome R2D2 helmet (which we’ll touch upon later) but what can you tell me about yourself in general?
I think I’m really just like any other nerd out there; holed up at home waiting patiently for the zombie apocalypse, day dreaming about how bad ass it’s going to look when I kill like 27 zombies in less than a minute. You know, pretty typical stuff.
Presently, I’m a 25 year-old artist who calls Philadelphia home. I majored in printmaking at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and then went on to study art and geology at the University of Pennsylvania. If there’s an educational path that primes one better for a nerd-tacular artistic career, I don’t know of it.
I work at Whipped as a pastry artist, which has been a great avenue for all my creative energy. I love coming to work and being pleasantly surprised with a chance to make such things as a Buzz Lightyear fondant cake topper, for example.
Tell me a little bit more about that sweet R2D2 helmet you’ve got. How did you make it? Did you start off with some sort of simple one and paint it?
Initially, it was the ugly duckling of helmets. It looked pretty jacked up before I did my fairy godmother thing to it. It was an odd, dark maroon color and it had been used as a rental helmet, so it had sustained damage over time. Long story short, I did a lot of spray painting and clear coating. (more…)
Love camping? Live in Philadelphia? Then you might want to check out this Kickstarter, launched by a group of Philadelphia-based camping lovers, notably product designers Ben Ashpole and Jay Olman.
Meet the Pocket Grill, the world’s most compact, full-size camping grill that can, as you can imagine, fit right in your pocket. And just like most cookware you’d take on a camping trip, this little guy is made out of stainless steel.
Their goal is a lofty one, set at $40,000. But with the sort of perks these guys are dishing out, I can definitely see them reaching it. Donate a mere $40, and you’ll get a grill in the mail when they go into production. Kick in an extra $10, and they’ll throw in a cookbook made just for the Pocket Grill.
So! Hit up the Kickstarter, check out their official website, and follow them on Twitter for updates regarding the product. Best of luck, guys!
The Pocket Grill
www.kck.st/qrLcLq
www.pocketgrill.com
After a successful run earlier this year Unknown Japan is back for another 6 weeks of hidden gems from the land of the rising sun, thanks to Cinedelphia and the Japan America Society of Greater Philadelphia.
The series started up again last Wednesday with Age of Assassins and closes with The Man Who Stole the Sun September 14th. All screenings are free and will be presented digitally in Japanese with English subtitles.
Scope out the full schedule.
Check out trailers and full descriptions on the Unknown Japan website at unknown-japan.com
This week in the Comic Roundup I review the latest issue of Marvel’s megaevent Fear Itself, the first issue of the new Spider Island tie-in miniseries Cloak & Dagger and the final issue of Booster Gold.
Fear Itself #5
By Matt Fraction and Stuart Immonen
Since issue #1, Fear Itself has proven to be the highlight of my comic book reading summer. Each month the miniseries has gotten a bit better and a bit better, all leading to these last few issues and the big payoff. Issue #5 follows the trend, as it is filled with huge spectacle, heroes at the end of their rope and the best Hulk/Thor battle I’ve seen in years.
Fraction has been ratcheting up the tension for months (more…)
The American Terrorist team has a great pedigree, from creating award winning film scores to hosting a radio show that interviewed celebs like Chrisopher Titus. Now, John Stall (a nom de guerre) and his crew are putting together their hilarious take on the American revolutionaries. I’ll let John take it from here:
“American Terrorist” is an epic concept album based on the American Revolution, and the basic idea that the Founding Fathers of the USA were terrorists… I think everyone has heard the saying “one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter,” and that’s exactly where the idea for this album came from.
I know that “epic” is a popular adjective nowadays, and this album definitely fits the definition. We wrote very dramatic songs to accurately portray the major historical events that led to the American Revolution from 1763 thru 1776… but we took some liberties for the sake of comedy. To be honest though, Bruce, Dick, and I did spend ridiculous amounts of time doing research while we wrote the storyline and the lyrics for these songs.
Even though it’s clear from the start that this album isn’t serious by any stretch, we wanted the storyline to take itself somewhat seriously. We hope that people will appreciate all of the trivia and references to places, people, and events from that era — and anyone that spends unhealthy amounts of time on the Internet will appreciate all of the references to memes, gross websites, derpy humor, nerdy books, you name it.
And my hope is that once this album is done, we can perform it as a rock opera musical in the Philly area: costumes, props, a projector screen, a really campy production. The storyline and the music are very over-the-top, which lend themselves well to a ridiculous, bombastic live show (pun intended).
The guys have just one day to go to fund the project. Ask yourself this: Isn’t it about time you heard the truth about Ben Franklin building a time machine? (more…)
GirlDevelopIt Philly is about to start their first series of classes, and they want you to sign up!
The course is called Intro to HTML/CSS, and teaches all the basics of HTML and CSS in four two-hour classes. It also gives you additional knowledge to continue maintaining your site, allowing you to have complete control. The course is $80 and runs on Thursdays starting on August 25th.
GirlDevelopIt was started in New York City by Sara Chipps and Vanessa Hurst, with a goal to “build their answer to the gender game in software development.” Their plan, they wrote, is to help get women to ship their own software and gain a better presence on the web. After attending some of their classes, local geek Yasmine Mustafa decided to start her own chapter in Philadelphia, and so GirlDevelopIt Philly was born.
Sign up for their Intro to CSS/HTML class on their Meetup page here.
GirlDevelopIt Philly
Intro to HTML/CSS – August/Sept 2011 Section
Thursday, August 25, $80
Two Liberty Place
50 South 16th St #57, Philadelphia, PA
Final Destination 5 could very well be my favorite entry in the series since part 2, when David R. Ellis gave us one of the greatest car crash sequences ever committed to celluloid. Don’t get me wrong, this newest entry is definitely a return to tried and true formula of the franchise, but it does so while breathing some new life into a series that (thanks to the 3D of part 4) had cheated death itself.
The story follows the pattern of the others, this time with a group of employees that are on their way to a weekend company retreat. While passing over a bridge comes the centerpiece of all Final Destination films the gruesome look at the possible fates of the group as the bridge begins to collapse. But 8 of the co-workers cheat death and now must kill or be killed, to save their lives as death begins to hunts them down one by one.
