with winter moving in and crowds heading indoors here’s a few options to get involved. whatever the outlet may be get your opinion together and get it out there.

youtube: project direct – upto 5 minutes of pure independent short film with little more than a red telephone to get you started. like to go head to head with out video jockey … then jump on this. deadline is only two+ weeks off.

rowell award – the 2008 award for outstanding accomplishments in the field of outdoor photography. last year’s winner was jim balog so the bar is high for this go round. nominations due 12.31.

and this is my favorite visual in a long time. whatever you do, be inspired. shoot what you know. what you see. what you feel slipping between your fingers. in the case of phillip toledano this is dayswithmyfather. perhaps one of the most powerful hidden gems on the entire online universe, this story moves me, the layout by portland wunderkind’s fashionbuddha leaves you with a stipped down experience perfectly suited to the material. dig in.

recently have heard the rumbling of several changes that are currently or soon to occur with significant impacts on issues that are close / directly related to visual media. while unclear now as to the outcome i think that each of these changes will have far reaching affects.

copyright :: talking with a german journalist lately she was filling me in on royalties she gets through a government program there. asking what the hell she was talking about she filled me in on the concept. basically, on behalf of writers throughout the country (you have to prove that your published, how many words your write, etc) the government asses a tax on all copy machine manufacturers. it’s a type of royalty for her based on the use, or possible use, of her work.

in this same respect, asmp released a bulletin late last week detailing a ‘landmark’ settlement between google and the authors guild. the ag “has been the published writer’s advocate for effective copyright, fair contracts, and free expression since 1912.” in that capacity they went after the google monster for putting page after page of millions of books online thereby infringing on copyright. this is my favorite clip from that bulletin,

Many of these were older books in the public domain, but millions of others were still under copyright protection. Nick Taylor, then the president of the Guild, saw Google

•