Idealog
- Business Magazine of the Year MPA Awards 2007, 2008 & 2009 Business Website of the Year MPA Awards 2009
Free and easy
Welcome to Idealog Weekly, the free email newsletter for New Zealand commercial creatives, entrepreneurs and anyone rich with ideas.
Free & easy
For we cosseted journalists and publishers, these are interesting times. The action is online, but the money is in print. Readers always have alternative sources of news and, rather than hunting out news and information, many people are trying to cut down on the amount of information they’re subjected to each day. So the message from readers to big media is make it free, make it better, make it briefer, make it faster—but don’t even think of trying to make a buck. Publishers’ plans to charge for content have been met with scepticism, derision and some very colourful insults (just ask Barry Colman).
Okay, so Big Media deserves much of the abuse, but those who plan on gleefully watching the mighty finally tumble should be watching their backs. A few years ago it was the music biz, now it’s the Fourth Estate, but almost everyone is going to find their core business hit by technological and social disruption. (Yeah, that’s right, we’ll take you down with us.)
So when everything is supposed to be free, what can you actually charge for? Find out in the latest issue of Idealog, in print and on our website.
The freeze-framed Mr Fox
Is it just me, or are the most interesting films these days inspired from childrens’ books? Last month we posted a trailer for the upcoming Where The Wild Things Are, Spike Jonze’s version of Maurice Sendak’s famous book.
Now Wes Anderson is weighing in with his own version of Roald Dahl’s The Fantastic Mr Fox, and it’s getting rave reviews.
Interestingly, neither of these films are using traditional animation: Jonze decided to shoot a live action version of Wild Things, and Anderson has chosen an even more unlikely method to bring Fox to screen: stop motion.
It’s hard to imagine a more awkward way of shooting a feature-length film, but it certainly looks like a winner. And both these films look like they’ll match Pixar’s huge feat: movies that appeal to kids and adults alike.
Check out the making-of featurette at YouTube, too.
Wild Wellingtonians
Congratulations to Ponoko’s Pokomen for their starring role in the current issue of Inc magazine, inventing "the wild, abstract future", no less! Ponoko deserves the plaudits; check out the feature at the Inc website and remind yourself of the back story in our feature from March last year, or earlier story in 2007 when Ponoko was just getting started.
Literary science
Get your bookmark ready: over two dozen scientists and science writers are collaborating to bring us Sciblogs.co.nz, a fantastic insight into the science community and scientific thinking in New Zealand today. Congratulations to the team at the Science Media Centre and to Marker Studio for producing a blog that manages to be busy, inviting and readable all at the same time.
Surely other sectors could consider doing something similar? I’d love to know what our teachers are doing. How about the police? Journalists? Entrepreneurs? The trick is to find an independent third party, like the Science Media Centre, to provide the forum. Let’s hear your ideas.
Pretty soon you’re talking real money
You can tell a lot about yourself just by looking at this chart at the endlessly-fascinating Information is Beautiful blog. What do you see? A world of possibility, with educated, healthy kids, bootprints on Mars, a truly sustainable economy and Africa’s debts wiped? Or a miserable indictment of our mixed-up priorities, carelessness and selfishness?
Me, I see a third possibility: redemption. If the porn industry decides tomorrow that it will feed every child in the world for a year—would that change your opinion of porn? What if corrupt Russian officials decided to save the Amazon and match the money that Americans give to charity? What if the world’s drug dealers agreed to bankroll a manned mission to Mars?
An idea whose time should never come
We’ve all had them: business ideas that are batshit crazy and will never work, but we like them anyway. So let’s hand it to the proprietors of Kashiwa’s Ogori Cafe: giving each customer’s order to the next guy is going to upset as many people as it pleases, but how fantastic that someone would give it a spin anyway. And that logo!
In the fast lane
There are still a few places open in The Icehouse’s FAST Pitch 2009 series. Get your entry in now and get free coaching and the opportunity to pitch your ideas to a gallery of prominent angel investors, venture capitalists, business people and journalists. The first coaching session is next Thursday so don’t delay. Sign up now at The Icehouse website. It’s just $85 and if your pitch wows the judges you could win cash, software and services worth over $5,000. There are great prizes for category winners too.
Do da Da Vinci
If you’ll be in Auckland some time over the next two months, make sure you plan a trip to catch the Da Vinci Machines Exhibition, which opens tomorrow at 75 Customs St (next to the Rose & Crown). It is what it sounds like: reproductions of Da Vinci’s brilliant designs and inventions, bringing his ideas to life. There are over 60 machines in the exhibition, many are life-size and some are interactive. Da Vinci-sized genius doesn’t come to town too often so catch it while you can.
Quote of the week
"While I can get as excited as the next man about a new stretch of tarseal or a sympathetically-placed sewage treatment plant, I’m sure that these are not quite the bait that the Minister of Tourism has in mind when he dreams of New Zealand being the number-one destination of the South Pacific."
–Hamish Coney reckons there’s more to super cities than roads and rubbish collection
More at Idealog online
Read more on our website: web exclusives, opinion, creative directory, Idealog TV, the Idealog blogs and the Idealog podcast. See you at idealog.co.nz.
Matt Cooney
Editor
{What the world wants} Previous
Next {The secret of the songbook}
Previously in Idealog Weekly …
October 30, 2009: Man of the moment
October 23, 2009: By the numbers
October 16, 2009: Pavlova principles
October 9, 2009: The secret of the songbook
October 2, 2009: Free and easy
September 25, 2009: What the world wants
September 18, 2009: A slice of the pie
September 11, 2009: Walking man
September 6, 2009: A calmer kind of business
August 28, 2009: We have issues
August 21, 2009: Mincing about in waistcoats
August 14, 2009: Wired on pop culture
August 7, 2009: Trust is not a commodity
July 31, 2009: Fuzzy logic
July 24, 2009: Game of life
July 17, 2009: Grape expectations
July 10, 2009: Blade runners
July 3, 2009: Free: another word for nothing left to lose
June 26, 2009: Poorly pleased
June 19, 2009: The giver
June 12, 2009: Buggy on down
June 5, 2009: Brand Cambo
May 29, 2009: When the going gets tough, go proactive
May 22, 2009: Bayerische Wasserstoffmotorenwerke
May 15, 2009: Rugger blogger
May 8, 2009: Get on our cloud
May 1, 2009: Easy Tiger
April 24, 2009: Tiki tacky
April 17, 2009: The not-so-great indoors
April 3, 2009: A site for sore eyes
March 27, 2009: Dual control
March 20, 2009: Worth their Alt
March 13, 2009: Biofuels or bio-fools?
March 6, 2009: It's electrifying
February 27, 2009: Experience-rich and theory-poor
February 20, 2009: It's a hundred-and-fourteen-pager
February 13, 2009: Own your mistakes
February 5, 2009: Rules—made to be broken
January 30, 2009: Money: that's what I want
December 5, 2008: Framed by the thousands
November 28, 2008: Spank-branding novelty next week
November 21, 2008: In the Loop
November 14, 2008: Your good health
November 7, 2008: Misfits of science
October 31, 2008: No absence of colour
October 24, 2008: Plain-speaking Peri
October 17, 2008: Rebels with a cause
October 10, 2008: Seoulipsism
October 3, 2008: Fall seven times and stand up eight
September 26, 2008: Don't label us
September 19, 2008: Bloody Graham
September 19, 2008: Dream proposition
September 5, 2008: Taxi!!!
August 29, 2008: Up-Skilling on Idealog TV
August 22, 2008: 144 pages of pure pleasure, plus politics
August 15, 2008: Wash down that Lovemark with a Steinie
August 8, 2008: Strange journey
August 1, 2008: SMElly and happy
July 25, 2008: What a dive
July 18, 2008: Softly and woolly does it
July 11, 2008: The saviour from Timaru
July 4, 2008: Last laugh
June 27, 2008: King Kev
June 20, 2008: Slow ART
June 13, 2008: Killing two birds with methane
June 6, 2008: A combine harvester
May 30, 2008: Gold paint
May 23, 2008: Rock, out
May 16, 2008: Goodwill hunting
May 9, 2008: No wine jokes please
May 2, 2008: Who's bad?
April 24, 2008: Succession success
April 18, 2008: Out now or thereabouts
April 11, 2008: Paint by numbers
April 4, 2008: Reincarnated good
March 28, 2008: Making it
March 20, 2008: Knock three times
March 14, 2008: The customer is always tight
March 7, 2008: Beautiful words
February 28, 2008: Goodnight, I'm off to work
February 22, 2008: The art issue
February 15, 2008: Straight to the top
February 8, 2008: H for hot
December 13, 2007: Nothing in common? Perfect
December 6, 2007: Who needs a beer?
November 30, 2007: Dirty secret goes public
November 23, 2007: Don't speak
November 16, 2007: Worthy work (and free beer)
November 2, 2007: East meets best
October 25, 2007: Raid the fridge
October 19, 2007: Looking good
October 13, 2007: Can't miss it
October 5, 2007: Fresh meat delivery
September 28, 2007: If the walls had eyes
September 21, 2007: Phoenix rising
September 15, 2007: Can we fix it? Yes we can
September 6, 2007: Feats of social engineering
August 31, 2007: Doesn't bite
August 24, 2007: Telling us where to go
August 16, 2007: Tomorrow time
August 10, 2007: Going West
August 3, 2007: How to ... be your business
July 27, 2007: Freaky food
July 20, 2007: Meet the neighbours
July 12, 2007: Free Hollie
July 6, 2007: Green queen
June 29, 2007: The truth about youth
June 21, 2007: Walk this way
June 14, 2007: Times ten
June 7, 2007: The ape woman needs a label
June 1, 2007: Impossible is something
May 25, 2007: Yeah, we're still here
May 11, 2007: Trophy time
May 3, 2007: Friends with the band
April 23, 2007: Why worry?
April 19, 2007: Done by the big jobs
April 12, 2007: A rockin' good read
April 5, 2007: No fear
March 29, 2007: Out to pasture
March 22, 2007: Hip-hop and The Human Touch
March 15, 2007: Crazy Frog and Billy T
March 10, 2007: The Benadryl edition
March 1, 2007: We can be Xero
February 22, 2007: Back on board
December 15, 2006: Free beer
December 8, 2006: December 8, 2006
December 1, 2006: December 1, 2006
November 24, 2006: November 24, 2006
November 16, 2006: November 16, 2006
November 9, 2006: November 9, 2006
November 3, 2006: November 3, 2006
October 26, 2006: October 26, 2006
October 19, 2006: October 19, 2006
October 12, 2006: October 12, 2006
October 6, 2006: October 6, 2006
September 28, 2006: September 28, 2006
September 21, 2006: September 21, 2006
September 14, 2006: September 14, 2006
September 7, 2006: September 7, 2006
August 31, 2006: August 31, 2006
August 24, 2006: August 24, 2006
August 17, 2006: August 17, 2006
August 11, 2006: August 11, 2006
August 3, 2006: August 3, 2006
July 27, 2006: July 27, 2006
July 21, 2006: July 21, 2006
July 13, 2006: July 13, 2006
July 6, 2006: July 6, 2006
June 29, 2006: June 29, 2006
June 22, 2006: June 22, 2006
June 15, 2006: June 15, 2006
Share this on
Delicious
Digg
Facebook
FriendFeed
Google Bookmarks
MySpace
Reddit
Twitter
Audi designer Wolfgang Egger brings the A5 Sportback to life right in front of our eyes. It’s all about three lines, apparently, but those three lines have been obsessed over. Enjoy the autospeak: the rear comes complete with both accent and elbow.
Latest issue: Under the sea
Tweeted
- Fetching tweets …
Overheard
- Mark on Bigger, faster, more productive:
Fantastic! Finally some vision in establishing a key infrastructure to support New Zealand's future prosperity and commercial competitiveness. Good work Rod, Sam and Steve - your country thanks you for your patriotism! … - Margaret Holmes on NZ Institute thumbs down Key's agenda:
Unfortunately it is not just red tape - it is also the laid back kiwi attitude, compounded by educators who think achieving national standards is a bad thing. - Tim Marshall on Smile, you’re in New Zealistan:
The target of higher GDP per capita is all wrong. Aiming for it encourages more production and consumption, often at the expense of quality of life. We need to construct a Genuine Progress Index (GPI) to guide policy. Fr … - Peter McL on New note:
"You got caught up in events at EMI.." and yet shes STILL with EMI - their local branch is distributing her new album. Wonder why?
I blogged some more of Hollies comments on the details behind the fallout … - Phil Wollerman on Smile, you’re in New Zealistan:
Brilliant, insightful article, VH.
This situation has principally arisen because - simplistically - the world no longer wants what we are intrinsically advantaged in supplying.
And yeah, it doesn't look like our co … - Anon on Smile, you’re in New Zealistan:
The answer lies in a) increasing the returns to capital and b) decreasing the cost of capital. To do a) we need to reduce corporate and income taxes and replace them with land, resource, pollution and infrastructure char …
-
Steve Bicknell Photographer
I am an advertising photographer. First in London, Amsterdam and Singapore. Had a break after a few years in Auckland, and had a fishing lodge in the South Island. Then spent two years on the road photographing New Zealand, The result is eyeballnz.com -
aVara Consulting
TRANSFORMATIONAL COACHING: making a difference to people and business -
Urban Voyage
Screen based marketing technology -
Totel Ltd
NZ made, reusable and recyclable shopping bags - More in the Idealog Directory
Idealog is published by
Idealog is supported by
Most useful
About
Idealog
Subscribe
to Idealog
Advertise
in Idealog
Where to buy
Idealog
Contact
the Ideologues
Most read
Daydream believer
by Sally Blundell in Idealog magazine
The data tell the story
by Julie Starr in Idealog blog
Pimp my bike
by Lauren Bartlett in Idealog magazine
On the road to nowhere
by Vincent Heeringa in Idealog magazine
Unpainted
by Gena Tuffery in Idealog magazine
Most commented
New Zealand, meet the new you (31)
by Jake Pearce in Idealog magazine
Oh no, please don't, bro (26)
by Vincent Heeringa in Idealog blog
Suited up at the CEO Summit (19)
by Simon Young in Idealog blog
On the road to nowhere (17)
by Vincent Heeringa in Idealog magazine
A challenge for Fay Richwhite (16)
by Matt Cooney in Idealog blog
Add your comment
HTML will be removed. Web addresses will be automatically hyperlinked.
Anonymous comments are queued before publishing and may take some time to appear. Or you can create an account and your comment will bypass our bureaucracy.