zero1 2012

An art & technology fusion isn’t complete without a giant luchador head.  It was pretty awesome seeing it while we went to get fried chicken & beer.

There’s dancing in the streets.  Without music.  Well, music we can’t hear as they wore headphones.

There are some cool robotic installations on the street from plotting earthquakes (not the crazy kind that want to wipe out humanity, Bazinga!) to these little guys on the street that were rocking themselves.

 
A tiny fun house like maze, made out of reflective space fabric, minus the killer klowns from space .

Some of the coolest stuff was in the zero1 garage where we saw a stupendously mesmerizing piece where the motors vibrated strings with loops that bounced back & forth.  The loops moved in such a manner that it seemed to pass through each other.

Finally, we hung out at the last stage listening to electronica music & where they had a giant pink gym like cushiony thingy for people to sit on or to lie down on, as the shag carpeting was quite nice.

Anyways, exhibits will continue to run for a while so drop by their site & check out the schedule.  Maybe we'll see you there.

ArtBox SJ

from Phantom Galleries by Cherri Lakey

Kori Thompson


Micah Bariteau

The ArtBox Project has completed 30 utility boxes painted with original works of art by local artists in neighborhoods all over San Jose with more locations in the works. If you'd like to help us beautify neighborhoods with your personal talents, please email us at info[at]PhantomGalleries[dot]com and we'll get you submission info.

More photos of completed boxes here.

Blockbuster partnership: Cinequest to produce inspiring films for The Tech Museum’s international awards program The Tech Awards

SAN JOSE, CA – A dozen top-flight international filmmakers today were dispatched to capture stories of the people who use technology to benefit humanity around the world, marking a new partnership between The Tech Awards and international film powerhouse Cinequest.

The 90-second films will be shown as part of Silicon Valley’s foremost technology awards program, The Tech Awards, presented by Applied Materials, in association with the Center for Science, Technology, and Society. A signature program of The Tech Museum, The Tech Awards recognizes 12 brilliant innovators who are changing the world with their technologies to eliminate hunger, do away with disease and combat illiteracy, among other global challenges.

The Cinequest partnership is neatly aligned with the goals of The Tech Awards, which seeks to raise awareness about the life-changing work that affects people from Uganda to Uruguay. Over the years, the 257 laureates of The Tech Awards have worked hard to erase stubborn global problems. Thanks to the international reach of Cinequest, these gripping stories will be relayed around the world.

“As we explored different ways to introduce The Tech Awards laureates this year, Cinequest's Film Festival and its Picture the Possibilities project caught our attention—and a new idea emerged,” David Whitman, vice president The Tech Awards.  “Why not convey the compelling stories of the laureates this year through the lenses of 12 diverse, imaginative, and daring filmmakers associated with Cinequest? We pictured the possibilities. And now we're making them into a reality.”

Cinequest has paired a filmmaker with each of the 12 laureates to feature the laureates’ fieldwork and illustrate how their innovations help people most in need. The films will serve as a creative introduction for the nearly 1,500 attendees at the annual The Tech Awards gala November 15 at the Santa Clara Convention Center. After the gala, the films will be available for the laureates to share with media, potential partners and donors or those simply interested in learning more about their work. The films will also be posted on the museum’s website, along with those of past laureates. The top three will be screened during the Cinequest Film Festival, February 26 – March 10, 2013.

“Cinequest and The Tech Museum share a commitment to integrating creativity and innovation. It’s a pleasure to engage Cinequest filmmakers to honor the innovation and powerful work of this year’s laureates,” Halfdan Hussey, director and co-founder on Cinequest, said.

The inspiring work of the laureates has included designing earthquake-resistant construction technology to creating a heat-sensitive label for vaccine vials to make sure children receive potent immunizations to building a simple, low-cost, mobile phone-based device that allows remote monitoring and operation of irrigation pumps.

This year, the laureates will be honored in six categories: Intel Environment Award; Microsoft Education Award; The Swanson Foundation Young Innovator Award; Nokia Health Award; Flextronics Economic Development Award, and The Sustainable Energy Award. The James C. Morgan Global Humanitarian Award will be presented to Indian philanthropist N.R. Narayana Murthy, who founded tech services giant Infosys along with six colleagues and went on to become one of India’s most influential advocates for health care and rural development.
 
The following lists the filmmakers’ names and short biographies:

* Abbey Luck, Awesome + Modest
Abbey is a director and animator whose work has been featured at the Slamdance and Cinequest film festivals and in the feature film, Waiting for Superman. She produced music videos and commercials for General Electric, Gerber, Scion, Nokia, and AOL

*Lee Lanier, BeezleBug Bit
Lee is a leading animator and visual effects designer who has served as a senior animator at PDI/Dreamworks, taught at the Gnomon School of Visual Effects in Hollywood, authored six high-end animation and visual effects books, was featured at 200+ venues worldwide, and is the executive director of the Dam Short Film Festival

*Landon Zakheim, filmmaker
Landon is a short-film programmer for the Sundance Film Festival and a filmmaker whose short films, Delmer Builds A Machine and Another Bullet Dodged, have been featured at over 60 international film festivals around the world

*Mike Blum, Pipsquek Films & Blumayan Films
Mike is an Emmy-nominated and award-wining director, writer, and producer who owns and operates the Pipsquek Films animation studio and Blumayan Films. Mike’s projects include the Emmy-nominated series, The Adventures of Baxter & McGuire (Comedy Central); live-action feature, The Playback Singer; and recent series, Samurai! Daycare (SMOSH/Alloy Digital)

*Evan Mather, filmmaker
Evan is an independent filmmaker and landscape architect based in Los Angeles. His 2007 film,So What?, received the 2008 Communications Award of Honor from the American Society of Landscape Architects and he is a Graham Foundation recipient for his 2009 documentary, A Necessary Ruin

*Mary Skinner, 2B Productions
Mary directs and produces documentary films and corporate media. Her most recent project Irena Sendler: In the Name of Their Mothers, an official selection at this year’s UN Film Festival, was broadcast nationally on PBS and won the 2012 Gracie Award for outstanding documentary for, by, and about women

*Oliver Cukor, Sleeveless Productions, Inc
Oliver has combined his passions for film, music and new technologies to create stunningly visual and immersive experiences. He has produced, edited, and directed several award-winning films, two of which, Sleeveless Heart and Blue Road, have been shown at the Cinequest Film Festival

*Kavi Raz, K.R. Films Hollywood
Kavi is an award-winning actor, writer, producer, and director as well as the founder of his production company. His directorial debut film The Gold Bracelet has been screened at many prestigious film festivals and has garnered several awards

*Vijay Vanniarajan, Siren Song Creations
Vijay is a co-owner of Siren Song Creations, whose work has been featured on national television, Oprah.com, Deepak Chopra’s website, several film festivals, and has produced for companies such as Adobe, ESPN, NBC, Sentilla, Cinequest and Plug and Play. Paramount Pictures also distributed his documentary.

*Sean McCarthy, Guerilla Wanderers Films
Sean McCarthy is the founder and director of Guerilla Wanderers Films, an award-winning, full-service production company that specializes in film, commercials, corporate videos, and music videos. His short films, Superhero, Boxed Up and Raging Cyclist have received high recognition and awards at various film festivals throughout the United States

*Sidney Sherman with Cliff Schmidt
Sidney is the founder and CEO of Rosa Entertainment, an independent film/television production and management company. Sherman produced the IFC Films released Go Tigers!, which had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival and was an Academy Award Finalist and Independent Spirit Award nominee for Best Documentary Feature

*Thomas Mignone, filmmaker
Thomas is a leading filmmaker and music video director who has directed over 150 award-winning music videos for top industry artists and feature film, On the Doll, Thomas utilizes his electrical engineering background to fuse digital audio and video systems and technologies in his filmmaking

For learn more about The Tech Awards, click: http://thetechawards.thetech.org/

For more information about Cinequest, click: http://www.cinequest.org/indexCQ.php

About The Tech Museum
The Tech Museum is a hands-on technology and science museum for people of all ages and backgrounds. The museum—located in the Capital of Silicon Valley —is a non-profit learning resource established to engage people in exploring and experiencing technologies affecting their lives. Through programs such as The Tech Challenge presented by Cisco, our annual team-design competition for youth, and internationally renowned programs such as The Tech Awards presented by Applied Materials, The Tech Museum endeavors to inspire the innovator in everyone.

About Cinequest
CINEQUEST is a leading organization that fuses creativity with technological
innovation to empower, improve, and transform the lives of people and communities,
through Cinequest Picture the Possibilities (PTP), Cinequest Film Festival and Cinequest Mavericks Studio.
• CINEQUEST Film Festival (CQFF): showcases premier films, renowned
and emerging artists, and breakthrough technology—empowering global
connectivity between creators and innovators.
• CINEQUEST Picture The Possibilities (PTP): a transformative leadership
movement, where empowered youth create films expressing visions of a better
tomorrow that inspire global leaders to ignite change.
• PTP World Premiere Event during CQFF: multiple, simultaneous, worldwide
connections between media, business, entertainment, and political leaders where
interaction with PTP films and each other jump-start the ultimate realization of
these youthful visions for a better tomorrow.
Cinequest’s sister company, Cinequest Mavericks Studio LLC, produces, distributes
and markets innovative and transformative motion pictures.

[e]MERGE ZER01 Street Festival Today!!!

The largest ZER01 event is going on tonight in SoFA! You can look forward to nonstop entertainment, art, and San Jose culture from 6pm to midnight. If there was ever a day to grab all your friends and show them what Downtown could be like, this is it. All of the information is below and hope to see all of you there!




Join us in re-imagining San Jose’s SoFA District to look and feel how people imagine Silicon Valley to be. (e)MERGE is the ZERO1 Biennial street festival featuring outdoor projects by over 100 emerging artists whose innovative and experimental works engage with a range of exciting new technologies.

(e)MERGE Street Festival:
Friday September 14, 2012 from 6pm-Midnight
and Saturday September 15th from 11am-6pm
SoFA district in downtown San Jose
(on South First Street between San Carlos & Reed Streets)
Free Open to the public

FRIDAY SEPT 14th 
12:00pm – Nick Lally's 1st bike tour of Silicon Valley leaves from Menlo Park Caltrain Station

6:45pm – Nick Lally's celebratory bicycle tour arrives in SoFA

6:50pm - Mike Lai's Sonic Kung Fu 2 begins on the street

7:00pm – Three Bodies Performance #1, 500 block, at MACLA Theater

7:15pm - UC Berkeley's Ashley Ferro-Murray & Erin Johnson perform Tulle/Tool in front of the San Jose Stage Company

7:50pm - Mike Lai's Sonic Kung Fu 2 performance begins on the Music Stage at Gore Park

 8:00pm – Amy Alexander & Annina Rust's Discotrope: The Secret Nightlife of Solar Cells Set #1, junction of S. 1st Street & San Salvador

8:00pm – Three Bodies performance #2, 500 block at MACLA Theater

8:30pm – Micha Cardenas, Karen Anzoategui, Bianca Molina & Allison Wyper perform Local Autonomy Networks/Autonets, 400 block throughout S. 1st Street

9:00pm – Three Bodies performance #3, 500 block at MACLA Theater

9:15pm – Eve Warnock, Colin McDonald & Tina Matthews perform Denizen, from 300 S. 1st Street

9:30pm – Amy Alexander & Annina Rust SolarDisco 2nd set, intersection of S. 1st St. & San Carlos St.

10:00pm – Three Bodies performance #4, 500 block at MACLA Theater

10:15pm – UC Berkeley's Ashley Ferro-Murray and Erin Johnson performance #2, S. 1st Street in front of San Jose Stage Company

11:00pm – UCSD Disco 3nd set, junction of S. 1st Street & San Salvador

LIVE MUSIC SCHEDULE:
6:45pm April Chase http://www.facebook.com/aprilchasemusic

8:00pm French Cassettes http://frenchcassettes.bandcamp.com/

9:00pm The Blank Tapes http://www.theblanktapes.com/

10:00pm Seventeen Evergreen http://www.seventeenevergreen.com/

SATURDAY SEPT 15th
11:00am – 2nd bike tour of Silicon Valley with artist Nick Lally at his installation space at (e)MERGE

2:30pm – Slow Mail Mail Call at (e)MERGE Performance (Horses arrive at 2pm)

Learn More about the (e)MERGE Artists!

Also open late! Come see Biennial art exhibitions at the ZERO1 Garage (439 S. 1st Street) plus the Tech Museum,  ICA, MACLA, San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles, WORKS/San Jose and more!

ZER01 is Here!

Tonight officially kicks off ZER01 and you won't want to miss it! To see the full list of events, check out the events calendar over here. The largest event by far is going to be the street festival in SoFA tomorrow. It's going to be like a South First Friday injected with a steroid cannon and will no doubt be one of the best Downtown events of 2012!

Review: The Death of the Novel @ The San Jose Rep

The 2012-2013 show season at the San Jose Repertory Theatre has begun! And what a great show to start it off with!

I attended opening night of The Death of the Novel by Jonathan Marc Feldman and directed by the Rep's Rick Lombardo and for me, it was quite the treat. 

The play is about a young author who has experienced several heartbreaking losses throughout his life. Set shortly post-9/11 (with references within the play) New York, this man, Sebastian Justice, suffers from agoraphobia - he doesn't leave his New York apartment. Despite not leaving, thanks to his long time friend, he is able to meet an exotic and seemingly interesting woman, Sheba. Mixed in with words of sound logical advice (he chooses not to take, stubborn one that he is) from his psychologist, Samantha Cray, the story takes an interesting turn. 

My husband and I talked more about this show than we have over the last handful we've seen together. We're in our thirties and can relate to some of the topics brought up. I for one, felt a strong connection to the feelings Justice discussed as he reflected on the losses he had, one after another. A quote stuck in my head… "a clown car of tragedies". I'm sure many can relate… 

The Set: 

I love the set; design was a sleek furnished New York apartment with stylish modern furniture. Technically speaking - once again the Rep added their flair - the set rotated! Perfect way to bring you into another room. One of the other technical aspects (perhaps more along the lines of the sound department) that stood out for me was when someone opened the sliding glass door to the balcony, you'd hear the sounds of the New York streets below. Light horns honking, people talking, a whispy breeze -- great touches, Rep. They didn't go unnoticed!

The Music:

The music?! Wait this wasn't a musical - however, in a surprising moment, it played a lot like a music video or a montage in the middle of a film or television show. I don't want to give it all way, but it was an interesting touch and got the message across perfectly. 

The Actors:

Saving the best for last! The entire cast consisted of just five actors; and they were all captivating and moving in their own way. Vincent Kartheiser and Vaishnavi Sharma wowed the audience with their energy and outstanding ability to deliver lines upon lines of fast moving dialogue. There was a scene right after intermission that literally had me holding my breath because Sharma was talking so fast!

My husband and I lingered about during the Afters! party in hopes to meet some of the actors in the show. Fangirl confession: I'm a huge Buffy/Angel fan, and Vincent portrayed Angel's son in a couple of seasons. I was determined to meet him and hopefully get a photo. Another fangirl confession: Amy Pietz! I was so excited to find out she was going to be part of this production. Why? Because back in the day, I used to watch Caroline in the City. It was an adorable and hilarious little sitcom in the 90s. Anyway.. silliness aside, I really wanted to meet her too.

We chatted for a bit with an older couple about the show, about the topics of death and our shared enthusiasm for the powerful acting. They noted that often the audience is a little older group, but they've been seeing a change. I agree -- I think the topical shows that The San Jose Repertory are choosing have started to attract new, younger audiences. 

I think the mix of the Hollywood ties (Kartheiser and Pietz) along with the topics explored in this show, a younger crowd would definitely find themselves being entertained. That of course, applies to those that don't normally attend this avenue of entertainment.

Well after a few minutes my inner fangirl was pleased! I got to meet Amy Pietz and Vincent Kartheiser, chat with them a smidge and get some photos. 

Adam (hubby) and I with Amy Pietz

Vincent Kartheiser and me

Now it's your turn - go see the show!

The Death of the Novel

Runs through September 22, 2012

Downtown San Jose Restaurant List Updates! (Q3 2012 Edition)

It has been a while since I updated the Downtown San Jose Restaurants database, but I now think everything is up to date (if not please let me know). We are now up to 227 eateries, which is Downtown's new record!

First off, some bad news. Morocco's--which used to be my favorite restaurant Downtown--is now only open in Mountain View. They are looking for a new location in the San Jose area but don't have any sort of timeline. Blendz is also closed.

Now the good news. 5 brand new eateries with 4.5 star yelp reviews!

• Original Gravity House - OMG, epic new addition Downtown. 20 craft beers on tab that are constantly changing, home-made gourmet sausages, duck-fat fries, gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches... oh did I mention the 20 craft beers on tap?
• Back A Yard - Carribean restaurant where Gumbo Jumbo used to be, over 100 Yelp reviews already.
• Dosa & Curry - New Indian/Pakistani restaurant where Los Gallos De Villa used to be, right by SJSU.
• Zenon's Place - Reinvention of Nazca Peruvian on San Fernando
• Devine Grind - New Coffee Shop and breakfast place on Devine and 2nd Streets

Oh but there is more. Little Cheese Shop is now open in the San Pedro Square Market, offering the best cheeses you can find in the South Bay along with gourmet spreads, crackers, and exotic beverages. Whipps is now Cafe Bonne Terre, they still have frozen fruit desserts but have added crepes to the menu. Shellena's Cafe in SoFA is now Just Hot Dogs.

As for the latest status update on my mission to eat at every single restaurant in Downtown San Jose... I'm at 209 out of 227, or 92%. It is now becoming very difficult to try new places with so many amazing restaurants I want to go back to again and again.

Below is the changelog from the Downtown San Jose Restaurants Database:

• 2/26/2012 Added Sa-By Thai in SoFA
• 2/26/2012 Replaced Miro's with the Hyatt Place Bakery Cafe
• 4/7/2012 Added Cre-Paris and Blush to the list (new San Pedro Square Market restaurants)
• 9/9/2012 Added Morocco's to the Closed DTSJ Restaurants list (rent was too high).
• 9/9/2012 Added Blendz to the Closed DTSJ Restaurants list
• 9/9/2012 Added Back a Yard Restaurant
• 9/9/2012 Added Yelp information to Original Gravity Public House
• 9/9/2012 Added Devine Grind on Devine and 2nd Streets
• 9/9/2012 Added Little Cheese Shoppe in the San Pedro Square Market
• 9/9/2012 Replaced Nazca with Zenon's Place
• 9/9/2012 Replaced Whipps with Cafe Bonne Terre
• 9/9/2012 Replaced Los Gallos De Villa with Doza & Curry
• 9/9/2012 Replaced Shellena's Cafe with Just Hot Dogs

If you haven't bookmarked it yet, here's the link to the spreadsheet! There is also a permanent link over to the right entitled Downtown San Jose Restaurants.

9/11 Memorial and Flame-Lighting Ceremony, 9am @ Memorial Park

Memorial and Flame-Lighting Ceremony

Tuesday, September 11 beginning at 9 a.m.

Oak Hill Funeral Home and Memorial Park

Oak Hill Memorial Park will host a memorial flame-lighting ceremony on Tuesday, September 11  at 9 a.m. and again at 6 p.m. at the 9/11 monument inside Oak Hill Memorial Park. The two ceremonies will signify the events of that day eleven years ago.

The memorial flame will be lighted for this day only at ceremonies close to the exact time of the fall of the twin towers on that day in New York City.  The first tower was hit at exactly 8:46 a.m. and burned for 103 minutes, collapsing at 9:59 a.m. The second tower collapsed at 10:28 a.m. Almost simultaneously in Shanksville, PA, Flight 93 went down at 10:08 a.m.  Within 30 minutes the Pentagon in Washington D.C. was hit by an aircraft.

“The defining moments of September 11 deserve to be honored and respected in perpetuity,” said Brian Kestenblatt, General Manager of Oak Hill Funeral Home and Memorial Park. “It is appropriate that the heroism from that day be forever remembered, and that we pause and reflect how people came together on that day eleven years ago.” 

The 9/11 monument at Oak Hill Cemetery was designed in remembrance of loved ones lost during the 9/11 tragedy and includes a depiction of Flight 93 that went down in Pennsylvania, as well as a pentagon, depicting the damage done on that day in Washington D.C. 

The public is invited to honor, support and love those who sacrificed their lives, who had the courage to help others and the strength to live on. Both ceremonies are free and open to the public, at 9 a.m. or 6 p.m.

The theme of coming together as a community will be reflected in this ceremony. The lighting of the ceremonial flame will occur at the 9/11 memorial at Oak Hill Cemetery for all to salute.

Oak Hill Funeral Home and Memorial Park is located at 300 Curtner Avenue at Monterey Highway in San José.  For more information call 408.297. 2447. Parking will be available throughout the park.