“Big Picture: You In Japan”
A 1957 US Army training film intended for American servicemen in Japan.
Pop Culture Propaganda
Peter Gutiérrez looks at the pop culture propaganda of Ender’s Game, Pacific Rim and G.I. Joe marketing campaigns. “The interesting, if obvious, thing about these marketing posters is that they seem to rely on the viewer’s familiarity with propaganda. Does that mean that the audience for blockbuster movies […]
“We can do better”
At Gamasutra, Game Developer David Gallant writes about how the indie game developer community can do better. “Shaking up the status quo invites anger as you threaten the privilege you share with your privileged peers. But in our fear, we are politely allowing our communities to be less. […]
Greil Marcus SVA Commencement Speech
At the School of Visual Art, Greil Marcus delivers a commencement speech discussing “high art” vs. “low art,” art, and influence. (Thanks, Andrew!)
The Good Outnumber You: A Look at Heroism in Storytelling
When I was a mere lad, I picked up a battered newsstand copy of Power Man and Iron Fist. I had grown up with superheroes in Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, The Incredible Hulk, and The Herculoids on the television, but my comics reading prior to that issue […]
“Persepolis is aimed in part at kids”
“[Persepolis is] aimed in part at kids–not despite the fact that it includes charged material, but because it does. Satrapi shows herself, as a child and then as a young woman, dealing with violence, with sexuality–with moving away from her parents, and failing, and trying again….But even if […]
The Cultural Gutter 