Tonight! Your Geekanerd Editors, Live on Stage!

In case you missed the news on our Facebook, Twitter, and the Weekanerd sidebar of this very page, your Geekanerd editors will be tonight's guests at Comic Book Club, a live talk show all about comics. It's a long-running New York nerd institution hosted by the dudes from The Stack, and we're pretty psyched about it.

The show is at 8pm at the PIT in midtown Manhattan (154 W 29th St, between 6th and 7th ave), $5 at the door. I can pretty much guarentee it'll be worth a fiver to see us talk about the week's comics without the aid of rewrites, wikipedia, or spellcheck.

Weekanerd NYC: Comics Sell, Hulk Smashes, Lou Reed Waffles, and So It Goes

Monday, January 28

• 30% Off Everything in the Universe
  
• Jim Hanley's Universe, 4 W 33rd St, Manhattan
  

Usually comic shop sales stall out at 20-25%, so take notice of this 30% off sale for "customer appreciation month." It's a better deal than you may ever get again, so get to JHU and stock up on all those sexy hardcovers you can't afford. The sale runs through Tuesday, and it also applies to their Staten Island location, if you are so... inclined.

Hit the jump for a sitdown with Greg Pak, a meditation with Lou Reed, and a stage adaptation of some book you read in high school...

Tuesday, January 29

• Comic Book Club w/ Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente
  
• $5, 8pm @ The People's Improv Theater, 154 W 29th St, Manhattan
  

The boys that host this show are getting more press attention everyday, so go see 'em while their still in a cramped room for five bucks. This week's show features Greg Pak, mastermind of the recent World War Hulk saga, which was brilliant in concept but fell apart in execution. Ask him about that. Also on the extremely saggy couch is Fred Van Lente, founder of Evil Twin Comics.

Wednesday, January 30

• Lou Reed Discusses Hudson River Wind Meditations
  
• $25, 7pm @ Rubin Museum of Art, 150 W 17th St, Manhattan
  

"Lou Reed introduces his latest meditation compositions and discusses them with mind science scholar Rob Hogendoorn." I think that if you attended this talk and thought of Lou Reed as a Jedi Master coaching you in the ways of the Force (transcending the body and all that), you will come away with a greater understanding of yourself and the energy that surrounds us, penetrates us, and binds the galaxy together.

Thursday, January 31

• Slaughterhouse-Five or: The Children's Crusade
  
• $25, 8:30pm @ 59E59, 59 E 59th St, Manhattan
  

Kurt Vonnegut's time traveling anti-war opus has been brought to the stage by Godlight Theater Company, the same folks that brought you stage adaptations of Fahrenheit 451 and A Clockwork Orange. Get some tickets and prepare yourself for what The New York Times calls "a pressure-cooker production, an intense, kaleidoscopic 90-minute tour without intermission through Vonnegut’s nonlinear narrative." Runs through February 17.

Bring MC Chris' Rhymes to Life or: The Rise of Music Video Contests

Geek rap stalwart MC Chris is having a you-make-the-video contest for his new ode to the ladies, Nrrrd Girl. If the lyrics touch your heart (and they will) and you feel you can further illuminate the song's meaning with your video/animation mastery, enter the contest by February 29th for a chance to....what exactly? It's not clear, but probably the honor of having made an official MC Chris video, and possibly something else. There's no prize like a su-prize!

In related news, Chris will be a guest on Comic Book Club at the People's Improv Theater in NYC this Tuesday, January 22nd. He'll talk comics with the CBC hosts and classic comic artist Jim Starlin, and do a song or two to seal the deal. Tickets are surprisingly still available, only five bucks plus a dollar service charge.

In the wild west of user-generated new media, fan-made video contests have been embraced by a lot of mainstream artists in recent years. The winning entries vary widely in originality and profesionalism, but one tends to get what one pays for.

After the jump, we review high-profile winners and evaluate what it takes to give away your filmmaking talents for no royalties or monetary payment whatsoever. Take that, striking writers!

Kurt Nishimura won the infamous Decemberist Video Contest, one of the first challenges that promised the prize of a broadcast debut. Fans were challenged to build a video around footage of the band playing in front of a green screen, an idea Stephen Colbert contends was shamelessly stolen from his own Green Screen Challenge. The controversy culminated in a guitar battle between the Decemberist guy and Mr. Colbert, the humor of which was somewhat diminished when the Decemberists guy performed a yawner of a solo, which there's really no excuse for in the age of Guitar Hero. You might have gotten away with that in like, the 90s, but post-2005 nerds have been re-educated in the ways of the shred.

The winning video is something of a snooze itself, with a simple storyline stretched thin over the song's near four minute runtime. However, Nishimura did come up with the rather ingenious idea of encasing the pre-existing footage within a television set inside the world of the video, allowing total freedom to develop a storyline with original footage without having to use cutaways to get back to the band. More kudos for the muted cinematography, which makes everything feel a bit more professional, despite limited locations and not so polished actors.



By the way, here's the winner of the Colbert Contest, which can always use a second viewing.


From a pool of around 100 entries, Incubus selected both a Grand Prize Winner and a Band/Fan Pick. Wait, so who chose the Grand Prize Winner, the record company? Ooh, I hate those guys! The Grand Prize went to a film schoolie rape nightmare/fantasy with a generous helping of After Effects filters. The fan/band pick by Carlos Oliveira featured no band footage but instead a super emo-cartoon. Again, the problem here is a good idea stretched out to interminable lengths, achieved in case by having the characters move around verrrry slowly. But the art itself grabs you, and the story has a nice mix of literal lyric interpretation and angsty big eyed cartoons people. This entry did end up getting broadcast after all, though with cuts of the band interspliced. It's actually an improvement, and does a lot to improve the pacing issues.

Original Version

Broadcast Version


Bjork fans got the chance to create a video for Innocence, off the phenomenal Volta EP. The winning entry (chosen out of a whopping 500 submissions) was by Fred & Annabelle of France. Now THIS is a video. Perhaps there was a higher incentive for serious artists to submit their work, since Bjork has a rich history of groundbreaking music videos by the likes of Michel Gondry and Chris Cunningham. This video fits snugly into that proud lineage, even including some familiar bear and robot imagery. The breadth of CG techniques on display here sometimes venture a tiny bit into demo territory, they come on so abruptly, but over all the images match the feel of the music perfectly. Also, please note this video features not footage of Bjork, but a computer generated Bjork. Amazing stuff.



Here's Levi Ahmu's winning video for the Smashing Pumpkins song, Tarantula. When did they get back together? Chosen from a mere 60-something entries, this is another After Effects party that looks like Ray of Light meets some of the newer iPod Commercials, with some disaster porn thrown in about 1:45 in. At least it's relatively short.


You may notice all of these winners heavily feature band members. This is due to the fact that these are all commercially distributed artists, and music videos are basically commercials in one form or another. MC Chris, however, is self-distributing his new album, so I'd guess the pressure to advertise his image may not be necessary for the win. You never know though, there's little Chris cartoons all over his merch. I'm guess there will be a lot of flash cartoon entries, given the web savviness and abundance of time I'd expect his fan base to have.

Personal Epilogue:

I'm entertaining the idea of pulling a Nrrrd Girl video together myself. I only heard the song a few days ago while aimlessly browsing my way further into late night depression, and the song helped put me in better spirits. Lyrics like "She might seem shy in person, it's no lie/She's always nervous/But the verdict is she's worth it/She gets crap but don't deserve it" and "She's romantic, known to panic/With anxiety attacks/Literary, it's so scary/Reading Brontes back to back/" really hit home, because some of those qualities hit home personally, and others remind me of the kind of girl I fall for. The whole thing got me a little choked up, and maybe a reaction like that is worth mining for video ideas.

Weekanerd NYC: A Brand New Day for Pee-Wee to Get Back the Rock

Monday, January 14

• Rock Band Night
  
• 9pm @ Angels and Kings, 500 East 11th St, Manhattan

There have been a number of Guitar Hero nights at bars around town, but this is the first Rock Band weekly event I've heard of so far. Word is it'll be tournament style in upcoming weeks, but here's your chance to play for fun and work on your act. Because this game is more about exuding rock stardom than anything else.

Tuesday, January 15

• Comic Book Club Brand New Day Special: All Four Amazing Spider-Man Writers and Editor Steve Wacker
  
• 8pm @ The People's Improv Theater, 154 West 29th St, Manhattan
  

Do you have an opinion about this whole Brand New Day Spider-Man Boyslut thing that I hear is happening in the Marvel Universe? This is your chance to express it to those who make the magic happen. Or maybe not - the show is toootally sold out, but last time they sold out a limited number of tickets were available when the box office opened on Tuesday. Check 212-563-7488 for availability. And of course, you can always just wait on the dark, desolate street outside the theater and yell out your questions as the writers leave....that's still like half a step above posting on a message-board.

Wednesday, January 16

• Pee-Wee's Big Adventure
  
• 2:30pm @ The Donnell Library Center, 20 W. 53rd St, Manhattan
  

Does the dark as night Sweeney Todd make you yearn for a bygone age when Tim Burton films were whimsical and hilarious? Well you're in luck because the New York Public Library is showing the masterpiece known as Pee-Wee's Big Adventure FOR FREE, preceded by the animated short The Wizard of Speed and Time.

Thursday, January 17

• Borders Manga Book Club: The Get Backers
  
• 5pm @ Park Avenue Borders, 461 Park Ave, Manhattan
  

The GetBackers is a manga and anime about a two-man repossession service who use supernatural powers to do their repo work. Their motto is: "We get back what is being taken or lost." HELL YEAH. Of course if you are actually interested in this event, you know all this. The club meets the second Thursday of every month, all are welcome.

Weekanerd NYC: DC vs Marvel, DJ vs DJ, Torture Porn vs Artistry, You vs Vampires

Monday, October 15th

• Funny Games (w/ intro by Michael Haneke)
  
• 7pm @ @ The Museum of Modern Art (Titus Theater ), 11 W. 53rd St, Manhattan

Personal Confession: While I cannot actually sit through a horror movie of the torture porn variety, I am frequently obsessed with them for reasons probably best left unexplored. Unlike some TP directors, Michael Haneke fully acknowledges the pornographic/obscene aspects of his ultra-brutal 1997 film, Funny Games; he'll be introducing it at MOMA, and will probably talk a bit about the upcoming remake with Naomi Watts. Can't wait to not see it!

Tuesday, October 16th

• Comic Book Club: Steve Wacker and Mike Marts
  
• 8pm @ The P.I.T, 154 West 29th St, Manhattan
  

Uh oh - this week the CBC boys have Marvel editor Steve Wacker on the couch, and DC editor Mike Marts. EDITOR DEATH MATCH 2007! $5 at the door.

Wednesday, October 17th

• The 2007 US Gong DJ Finals
  
• 8pm (battle at 10pm) @ The Knitting Factory, 74 Leonard St, Manhattan
  

It seems like everyone I know has a friend who DJs, but when they say DJ they mean they play records at a bad club while wearing giant headphones. This is not that. This is a contest in which the country's most talented turntablists go head to head before a "jury of persnickity, battle-scarred judges". Plus the pre-show entertainment includes a set by a group of DJ supergroup called The X-Men, who I assume will be displaying some sort of rhythm based mutant power. Tickets are $12 bucks if you buy in advance, but music geeks with a CMJ Badge can get in free.

Thursday, October 18th

• 30 Days of Night Preview Screening
  
• 7pm @ TBA (FREE!)
  

Wanna see this for free a day before it opens? I know I do. Time Out NY is giving away passes on October 16th, but you have to register on their site so you can get a notification email when the tickets become available. They'll probably go fast, so stay frosty.

Weekanerd NYC - Free Hold Steady, Comic Book Pundit Explosion, Pirate Bowling

Monday, September 17, 2007

• The Hold Steady
  
• 5:30 @ 7 World Trade Center, Manhattan
  

Did you know that the Hold Steady produced a comic book that illustrated lyrics from their brilliant 2006 release, The Boys And Girls In America? See them for FREE at this outdoor show, along with The Old 97s and Illinois. Admission on a First-Come basis.

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

• Comic Book Club feat. iFanboy
  
• 8pm @ The PIT, 154 W. 29th Street, NYC
  

How much comic book fandom can you handle? This meeting of minds between NYC's hottest trios of comic criticism is likely to create some sort inter-dimensional black hole, or will possibly usher forth some matter of uber-nerd. So you'll want to be there for that.

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

• Bowl Like A Pirate
  
• Laurel Lanes, 2825 Rt 73 South, Maple Shade, New Jersey(!)
  

ARR! Any scoundrel with his wits about him knows the 19th o' Sieptembree be International Talk Like A Pirate day. Gather a crew and a stout vessel, for this port lie in the black uncharted waters of Nova Jersii. Fer yer trouble ye get bowling, costume contests, and piratey drink specials at the local tavern. Hail (856) 778-7467 to make sure this actually be happening. Pirates be a notoriously unreliable lot.