The best video NASA has ever produced – ‘7 minutes of terror’ – landing a robot on Mars

  On Aug. 5 or Aug. 6, depending on which part of the country you’re in, the Curiosity spacecraft careening toward Mars will hit the Red Planet’s atmosphere, deploy a supersonic parachute and either land safely on the planet’s surface or perish. It’s dramatic stuff, and NASA has produced this Hollywood-style YouTube video, complete with …

What is Machinima and why do I need to know about it?

If not for Machinima, you might be unaware that gamers are terrified of zombies and Return of the Jedi, when you really think about it, has a lot of plot holes. At this point, most of you are probably wondering: What is Machinima? An online programming company boasting a fanatical following among young males and a …

Pixar created a whole new “hair simulator” for curly hair in Brave

In the ’80s, when you wanted big hair you whipped out the Aqua Net. But it wasn’t so easy for animators. The Little Mermaid‘s Princess Ariel was meant to sport curls, but the technology just wasn’t there in 1989—rendering that kind of bounce and frizz, cel after hand-drawn cel, was all but impossible. Now, though, …

The stop-motion story of a bookmark that comes alive – Much Better Now

Narrative: The main character is a bookmark, stuck in a forgotten book. Both are connected by chance, in a life marked by standstill in a deserted room. One day a window is pressed open by a gust of wind, knocking over the book and blowing the bookmark onto the table. As they become separated, the …

Sneak preview of “La Luna” – Pixar’s Oscar nominated short premiering with Brave

Pixar’s Oscar nominated short, “La Luna,” will premiere in front of Brave — in US theaters June 22. La Luna is the timeless fable of a young boy who is coming of age in the most peculiar of circumstances. Tonight is the very first time his Papa and Grandpa are taking him to work. In …

Pixar’s best kept secret – the Cereal Bar

If you happen to own Toy Story 3, one of the bonus features is a short video entitled “Pixar’s Cereal Bar.” In the video you’ll hear Pixar employees like Tia Kratter, Pete Doctor, and Andrew Stanton talking about the importance of cereal during a workday, and showing off an animated representation of how the Pixar …

Pixar’s newest movie – Día de los Muertos

Pixar’s “Toy Story 3” is the highest-grossing movie of all time in Mexico, where the animated adventure tale collected $59 million at the box office in 2010. The follow-up from “Toy Story 3” director Lee Unkrich and producer Darla K. Anderson is also likely to have strong appeal with Mexican audiences — and to boast …

The Scale of the Universe – a fun, educational animation

An interactive Flash animation titled “Scale Of The Universe 2“, covering everything in the universe from the fabric of space-time to the estimated size of the universe, was posted earlier this year, and it is awesome. A month or so later, it went viral, but why…so popular? First, the actual scale of the universe is mind blowing …