Chris Hardwick's Blog, page 1950
September 24, 2017
Hilarious Twitter Account Tweets Fake Titular Movie Lines from Classic Films
I’ve already publicly admitted this before, so I’m just going to embrace it: I am a huge dork who totally nerds out when a character says the title of a movie. Yes, I am well aware that makes me just like Peter Griffin. Does that mean I am a simpleton? Yes, of course it does. But while I know I might be a huge dweeb, I promise this amazing Twitter account inspired by those very moments will entertain even you super cool people. That’s because it creates hilarious fake screencaps of characters saying a film’s name, no matter how little sense it makes.
JAWS (1975) pic.twitter.com/M0IFhOOODF
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 17, 2017
Titular Lines is full of screengrabs pretending that the film’s name was uttered by someone in the film, no matter how much of a stretch it is. It can make both sad and heavy movies hilarious.
MY GIRL (1991) pic.twitter.com/ZIwJDnG3Tr
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 22, 2017
MARLEY & ME (2008) pic.twitter.com/efVjjcoe35
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 22, 2017
Academy Award Winner- CRASH (2004) pic.twitter.com/aD07rfYCLY
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 22, 2017
It makes us laugh even when we probably shouldn’t.
SCHINDLER'S LIST (1993) pic.twitter.com/eJleXbHjaG
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 17, 2017
It also works for classic films.
CITIZEN KANE (1941) pic.twitter.com/lZqQYMadpo
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 21, 2017
BREATHLESS (1960) pic.twitter.com/AJbln1M5pq
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 20, 2017
You can even send them to your way-too-serious Star Wars and Star Trek friends to ruin their day.
STAR TREK (1979) pic.twitter.com/mB37OaR23g
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 22, 2017
RETURN OF THE JEDI (1983) pic.twitter.com/t6Jjz6zPmb
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 22, 2017
Although my favorites might be when they are oh so close to being legit.
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS (2013) pic.twitter.com/YQJksw9wIo
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 21, 2017
TITANIC (1997) pic.twitter.com/t8QRAdXT5E
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 21, 2017
If you are not on Twitter (because you value your time), you can still follow along at the Titular Lines Instagram account. Where else will you get these daily reminders of iconic cinematic moments like this.
GONE WITH THE WIND (1939) pic.twitter.com/tgvbyEj7nO
— Titular Lines (@Saythetitle) September 19, 2017
Powerful. And way less nerdy than the real thing.
What movie would you love to see them do next? Give us the title of the film you want to see next in our comments below.
Featured Image: MGM
This IRON MAN Underwater Jetpack Makes You Faster Than an Olympian
When I was little, my mom forced me to go to swimming lessons. It was—in a phrase—a humbling experience. And while I’m thrilled to be a grown man who can get into a pool sans floaties, if I had known someone would build something to take the “swim” out of “swimming” for me, I may have waited for the Iron Man Jetpack to get into the water.
Not only that: it makes you go really, really fast.
Discovered by the folks over on Laughing Squid, David and Ryan from Eclectical Engineering have created their own Iron Man suit for the specific purpose of being able to swim without actually learning how. Testing out the motor in their bathtub, the duo calculated the power input that four motors would create, making sure they could sustain the weight of a person. Utilizing the motors as well as a 3D printer for the rest of the apparatus, David and Ryan now have a suit that can not only help them swim, but also makes them faster than Michael Phelps, arguably the greatest swimmer of all time.
The video does a good job of showing you the calculations they used to determine the speed and power the suit is able to achieve. However, science and experimentation aren’t without risks, as they had to do their initial tests in an area with low liability. I know I wouldn’t want to be held responsible for two guys electrocuting themselves “Playing Iron Man.” Although, once they are IN the water, wouldn’t “playing Aquaman” be a little more accurate?
It’s great to see that even the most common of problems (learning to swim) can be solved with some creativity and ingenuity.
You can check out more videos from Eclectical Engineering on their YouTube channel here.
So what do you think? What is another element David and Ryan should try to conquer next? Let me know on Twitter @donnielederer or sound off in the comments below.
Need More Cool Science?
Here’s a video of liquid sand (seriously)!
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And an answer to the question of the ages: could The Flash take a hands-free selfie?
Images: Eclectical Engineering
Hyperrealistic Tyrion Mask is the GAME OF THRONES Halloween Costume You Need
The uncanny valley is the idea that we’re creeped out by anything that looks sort of human, but still not entirely human. This could apply to dolls, wax figures, clowns, and definitely these hyperrealistic masks by Colorado artist Landon Meier.
Landon Meier of Hyperflesh makes some of the most unsettling masks around. They’re not terrifying monsters, like Burbank’s Immortal Masks, but instead take on the form of real people, including celebrities, TV characters, babies (scary), and politicians (very scary). In a recent video profile via Great Big Story’s Human Condition series, Meier explains that he had a variety of odd jobs, including loan officer and pizza delivery driver, before starting his mask-making operation.
“I’ve always been interested in doing something that’s really surreal and nightmarish, so it was more or less an experiment that took off,” he said.
#breakingbad #heisenberg #walterwhite #hyperflesh #monsterpalooza #sonofmonsterpalooza2013
A post shared by Landon Meier (@hyperfleshdude) on May 14, 2016 at 1:33pm PDT
It takes him anywhere from several days to a year to create the 3D-printed sculptures for the mold, then about a week to go from mold to mask. It’s a detailed process that involves meticulously adding eyebrows and hair, as well as painting features. He’s got about 25 different faces, including several babies, Breaking Bad‘s Walter White (Bryan Cranston), Stephen Colbert, Mike Tyson, and Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage). His Tyrion mask—complete with Battle of Blackwater Bay scars—is so realistic, we’re certain Game of Thrones face collector extraordinaire Arya Stark would be seething with envy. Given the amount of time each mask requires, they sell for anywhere from several hundred to several thousand dollars a piece.
Meier told Narrative.ly that social media launched his career. After artist Jillian Mayer wore one of his baby masks in her 2011 video, “I Am Your Grandma,” he started racking up views on another video in which a couple and their child stroll around Denver in equally disturbing baby masks.
“I was on unemployment for two years, and right at the end very tail end of it, overnight, ten people a day were emailing,” he told the outlet.
A post shared by Landon Meier (@hyperfleshdude) on Jul 17, 2015 at 4:45pm PDT
Which mask do you want in your Hall of Faces? Let us know in the comments below.
Images: Landon Meier/Facebook
Batman Takes on Pennywise in This Clever New Fan Trailer
According to the lore of Stephen King‘s It, Pennywise has pretty much had his way in Derry, Maine for the last few centuries. But if this otherworldly being really wants to feast on fear, the main course is in Gotham City with its protector, Batman. Bruce Wayne’s alter ego is the embodiment of his childhood fears, and he’s got some experience when it comes to dealing with malevolent clowns. That makes Batman the natural choice to take on Pennywise in this new Batman vs. It fan-edit trailer.
The Batman vs. It/Pennywise trailer edit was created by YouTube user Adeel of Steel, and it utilizes footage from the recently released remake of It as well as Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. We’re not sure if Ben Affleck’s Batman was chosen because he’s the most recent cinematic version of the character or because Batman v Superman was already a nightmarish vision of superheroes. But either way, it’s very effective. The trailer even manages to incorporate Batman’s nightmare in a way that’s more suited to this trailer than it was to the weirdness that we saw in the actual Batman v Superman!
About the only thing that’s missing from this video is the inevitable team up of Pennywise and the Joker. Either clown can give Batman a run for his money, but the two of them together could really push the Dark Knight to his limits. Even in this trailer, Batman’s sense of desperation carries him into a final showdown with Pennywise. Somehow, we don’t think that “Martha” is going to be the safe word this time!
What did you think about the Batman vs. Pennywise video? Face your fears in the comment section below!
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Images: YouTube, Warner Bros. Pictures, New Line Cinema
Why STAR TREK: DISCOVERY Makes Us Hopeful For the Future
There are times when it feels like the future has never been further away. Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry had a vision for humanity where people had moved past petty divisions as they explored the unknown regions of space. You know the drill: “to boldly go where no one has gone before.” This weekend, Star Trek is returning to television after over a decade, and we’ve never needed it more. Like most sci-fi series, there’s definitely an element of escapism in Star Trek: Discovery. We watch these shows because they’re fun. But as Discovery star, Sonequa Martin-Green told us at the world premiere for the series, it can be so much more. It can be a beacon of hope.
“[Star Trek] shows us a future where we are all one, and it shows us we can get there,” said Martin-Green. “I feel that this is truly a piece of art activism because its simply…a picture of hope. And I think it’s a picture of the solution.”
Nerdist writer and co-star of Shield of Tomorrow, Aliza Pearl, and the Nerdist team were at the red carpet for the Star Trek: Discovery premiere, and we witnessed Trek stars old and new as they mingled together and shared their thoughts about the franchise. “The whole idea was to find new civilizations and embrace them and see what’s going on,” explained William Shatner, who set the tone for Star Trek as Captain James T. Kirk in the original series.
“Star Trek was pointedly a pro-inclusion show then, and it is now,” noted Star Trek: Discovery executive producer Akiva Goldsman. “Cultures that are other, how we find resonance and commonality, and how we learn not to fear that which we don’t understand.”
The first episode of Star Trek: Discovery will premiere on Sunday, September 24 on CBS, before new episodes move to CBS All Access.
How does Star Trek make you feel about the future? Beam down to the comment section and share your thoughts below!
Don’t miss Aliza Pearl in Geek & Sundry’s Star Trek Adventures RPG show, Shield of Tomorrow, Wednesdays at 9:30pm PST on Alpha.
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Images: CBS All Access
HARRY POTTER Stars Tom Felton, Matthew Lewis, and Warwick Davis Take the Patronus Quiz
Within the Wizarding World of J. K. Rowling‘s Harry Potter, the discovery of a Patronus is usually a moment of personal revelation. In fact, not everyone can pull it off, and many wizards and witches have failed to complete the very complex and intense spell to invoke a corporeal Patronus. And the only way you’ll ever really know what your Patronus is by successfully managing to summon it. At least that was true until Rowling’s Pottermore introduced its Patronus quiz last year. This week marks the first anniversary of that feature, and to celebrate, three of the stars from the Harry Potter movies took the quiz themselves to learn which Patronus was theirs.
Via Entertainment Weekly, Draco Malfoy himself, Tom Felton, was the first to take the Patronus Quiz. Felton definitely seemed to be excited about the prospect, while apparently channeling Indiana Jones with his choice of hats.
Click to play video.
Although Felton seemed to initially be disappointed by his Patronus, he quickly warmed up to the idea of rag doll cat as his magical protector.
Next up was Matthew Lewis, the young actor who portrayed Neville Longbottom. Lewis was quick to share that he has been wondering what his Patronus is for years, and we believe him! Both Lewis and Felton grew up making the Harry Potter movies, which is an experience that very few performers will ever have.
Click to play video.
Surprisingly, Lewis’ Patronus was also a cat. To be specific, it was a tortoiseshell cat, which he seemed to immediately take to. That’s so Neville of him!
Finally, Warwick Davis (a.k.a. Professor Flitwick and Griphook) joined in on the fun and took the quiz as well. Like Felton, Davis took a thoughtful approach…so much so that he let the time run out on at least one of his answers!
Click to play video.
Davis was also elated by his chosen Patronus: a weasel, which he appreciated for its “cute and crafty” qualities, as well as its ability to be mean and scary when needed. You can discover your Patronus by visiting Pottermore and taking the quiz yourself.
What’s your Patronus? Share your magical creations in the comment section below!
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Images: Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images; Pottermore
Cartoonist Bianca Xunise on Horror Movies, Halloween, and Her Amazing Art
Bianca Xunise is a comics artist from Chicago, a local goth kid who focuses her work primarily on black womanhood. You may have seen her incredible work at HelloGiggles or The Nib, or you may have caught her rad repertoire on Twitter alongside a lot of great Keanu Reeves content! We were stoked to chat with Bianca about creating comics, her creepy cute art, and her favorite horror movies to celebrate her rad new Halloween capsule collection with Adorned By Chi.
Bianca is an accomplished cartoonist with a fantastic body of work and a clear mission statement for her artistic output. “My mission is to give black women an opportunity to see themselves in stories just as nuanced and complicated as everyone else. I always wanted to see myself in the books I read, so one day I decided to do just that. The fact that so many people see themselves in my work, and not just black women but all types of people, that’s the greatest reward!” Xunise told Nerdist.
Growing up with parents who were artists introduced Bianca to cartooning and comics at a young age. “My mom would write our to-do lists in comic form and that’s how we would communicate with each other. The way my comics are drawn are almost exactly the way my mom would write our task list for the day,” Bianca explained.
Later, discovering Lucy Knisley’s French Milk was a truly formative moment. “It was the first time I’d read a comic about nothing, you know? Especially with a female protagonist. Seeing her comics and especially the relationship between her and her mother–how being raised by a creative person influenced her work–I related to it so much and I thought, ‘I have similar stories to tell,'” she recounted.
Bianca’s personal blog was the first home for her cartoons, but it was her regular column at HelloGiggles where the artist cemented her name. Xunise’s cute, resonant, and creative comics garnered her a strong following, not least from Adorned by Chi, the rad black-owned company she’s collaborating with for her Halloween collection.
After the pair shared their mutual admiration, they just knew they had to collaborate, Finally, this year everything fell into place. “I reached out to her and said, ‘Do you wanna do something for Halloween? Cos I wanna do something that’s spooky and goth and cute.’ It was just like ‘Hey, I admire you!’ and ‘I admire you!’ so let’s do some work together,” said the artist.
As for the collection itself, Bianca had a clear vision for want she wanted. “It was really important for me that these sound like they were written by a black woman because everything on Adorned By Chi is about black positivity. ‘So Goth I Was Born Black’ is a saying that exists in black goth culture, and I just thought that would make such a rad t-shirt. I wanted to have something where people would be proud of their weirdness. They could wear it as an emblem and as a rite of passage. Something I think about a lot is how gothness celebrates whiteness, and I want black goth kids to feel special. So you know what: You’re so goth you were BORN black,” Bianca enthused.
With all her cute and spooky creations, it’s probably no surprise that Bianca’s a huge horror fan. “I love horror movies from the ’80s! Probably my favorite is Fright Night, which I can quote backwards and forwards. The Lost Boys, everyone knows I’m a big fan of Alex Winter and baby Kiefer Sutherland! You got the mohawk, the mullet, and earrings. Shout out to the ladies, Near Dark. I love that movie, love Kathryn Bigelow. The way the movie ends is so deep. I wanna have a roundtable discussion about it,” she exclaimed.
As for the future, Xunise has upcoming work that’s incredibly important to her. “I’m really excited about a few pieces that should be coming out in the next couple of months one is about Rock Against Racism. It’s combining my love of social justice and punk rock, and it’s where I want my voice to be as an artist. I’m also working on a personal essay about mental health. I really put my heart into this one. It’s about bringing attention to the lack of awareness of mental health disabilities in the black community, and I hope that this can start a conversation,” Bianca stated passionately.
The collection is available at Adorned by Chi now! We love it, let us know what you think in the comments!
Images: Bianca Xunise
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How The Science of Space Exploration Influences Disney Storytelling
Last week, Disney Parks Blog held a Galactic Meet-Up for their fans, who were treated to a meeting-of-the-minds between NASA representatives, Imagineers and superhero storytellers. It was a unique panel discussion that explored how the science of space exploration influences storytelling. Turns out that if you love Disney, you may be a budding scientist.
On the panel was retired U.S. Navy pilot and NASA astronaut Capt. Mike Foreman, NASA Astrophysicist Dr. Kimberly Ennico Smith, Marvel Entertainment’s Vice President of Development, TV and New Media, Stephen Wacker, and Walt Disney Imagineers John Mauro and Amy Jupiter. The panel spoke about their various fields and how the intersection of science and storytelling comes together to celebrate both technology and entertainment.
“As a physicist we solve problems,” said Dr. Kimberly Ennico Smith. Having worked at NASA for 17 years she related, “If you’re curious—if you ask questions—you are a scientist. Science is going to make the world a better place, and our future even brighter. In this age of technology, with technology within the Disney Parks, animation, and movies, it gets you to think beyond reality. You can use that thinking to solve problems in science and engineering.”
As the panel pointed out, pop culture and science are intimately intertwined, with one influencing the goals of the other, and vice versa. Comic books, movies, and TV shows facilitate the dreams ascending the gravity well. “In Fantastic Four number one, it’s about the Fantastic Four stealing a spaceship to go into space, and this was before NASA even existed,” said Wacker. Speaking about how the Marvel Universe was built on space storytelling, “The foundation of everything they did was built on hopefulness and wish fulfillment, all based around science.”
“When there’s extra attention to a comic book story in particular, that you know is fantastical and you know it’s beyond reality,” said Dr. Ennico Smith, “If you throw in an element of truth, reality, it makes you wonder, could that happen?” Regarding Iron Man’s creation of his own particle accelerator, Dr. Ennico Smith applauded the realism of creative thinking, “I have been impressed by the engineering thinking behind the Tony Stark character and the way they’ve infused little bits of engineering here and there.”
But pop culture can’t make scientists on its own. Influential and supportive teachers were what pushed Dr. Ennico Smith to want to become a scientist. Stephen Wacker relayed a similar story about Captain Marvel author Kelly Sue DeConnick. DeConnick, having been raised on Army bases with a father in Air Force Intelligence, was familiar with the world, “She was able to bring that experience into the book as we turned that character into more of a Chuck Yeager, a character who would go face first into danger.”
Walt Disney himself was inspired by advances in science and brought his vision into the theme park experience. Mauro reflected on Imagineers influences, saying that “from the early days of Tomorrowland, Mission Space, to EPCOT which celebrates that combination of technology and entertainment—science is used as a tool to tell our stories.”
And you can see science working hand-in-hand with Disney at Disney California Adventure’s new Guardians of the Galaxy-Mission: Breakout! — the first superhero-inspired attraction at a domestic Disney park. Amy Jupiter likened the riders to test pilots, “We use science and technology every day, we use it to put these attractions together,” where the movement and physiological response to the attraction is something that the Imagineers harness to keep the riders focused on the storytelling.
Ending the panel, and speaking on the accuracy of Guardians of the Galaxy — as a man who logged 637 hours in space and flew two Space Shuttle missions — NASA astronaut Captain Foreman joked, “It was spot on.”
Does your favorite ride use science to tell its story? Let us know in the comments and tag @nerdist and @justjenn on twitter to tell us your favorite Disneyland attraction!
Images: Jenn Fujikawa
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September 23, 2017
Sunbeam Snakes Are Little Scaly Rainbows
For most people, snakes probably inspire an Indiana Jones-like terror more so than any other feeling. But there’s one kind of snake with whom you probably wouldn’t mind being caught in a pit. One snake that can even dazzle you like Ruby Rhod or Robin Williams in The Birdcage. And that snake is the aptly named sunbeam snake.
It’s a little scaly rainbow and you’re watching it right now, aren’t you? Already mesmerized.
Custom Digital Dungeons and Dragons Table Lets You Play in 4k
A Dungeons and Dragons Dungeon Master has a profound responsibility to make any given campaign an enjoyable adventure, utilizing imagination and storytelling to bring the classic tabletop game to life. Some DMs take this responsibility to the next level however, like Ken Hinxman, who’s used tech wizardry to make D&D wizardry come to life in 4k magic with a custom table and digital touchscreen setup.
Seriously though, did somebody cast a Flaming Sphere in here? ‘Cause this table is fire.
Hinxman, who goes by the moniker Caethial on Twitter and Tumblr, says that the table — which is displayed further, with some build images, in the image gallery below — was built on New Year’s Eve 2016, with two other players. On top of the table being built in a single day, which is amazing in itself, Hinxman also notes on Tumblr that “there really [were] no plans for the table” and that he and his fellow builders/gamers “made most of the decisions on it the day we built it.”
The product Hinxman and Co. turned out certainly doesn’t look like it only took a day and no real planning though. Which means they fall more in the MacGyver camp rather than the Homer Simpson camp when it comes to by-the-seat-of-one’s-pants building. And the whole table only cost $120 to boot! That is, without the expensive electronics…
Table with screen covered. Image: Ken Hinxman
Speaking of expensive electronics, Hinxman installed a 40″ Samsung smart tv in the center of the table for the players, and a Dell Precision 5720 27” 4K touchscreen for the DM. The setup is powered by Steam’s Fantasy Grounds software, which brings Dungeons and Dragons into the digital gaming world by displaying virtual maps, campaign details, and player tokens. Fantasy Grounds also allows players to play with each other online, but for our sack of coin Hinxman’s setup seems like the perfect blend of technology and in-person play. (You need to be able to , y’know?)
https://caethial.tumblr.com/post/165403161531/the-setup-for-my-home-dd-game-table-was-built-on
All in, the setup cost Hinxman $2,500, which means if you want to build this table for yourself, you’ll need to go on a lot of “Lord Gygax help me, not another day of work” quests first. Or you can just make friends with a really great DM like Hinxman. For putting in an effort like this, we salute him! And also ask if he has room for a couple more people and also can we order pizza or we doing take-out?
What do you think about this digital Dungeons and Dragons table? Do you wish your DM was this devoted? Cast a Spell of Opinion in the comments below!
Images: Ken Hinxman
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