Shibuya Crosswalkers
This clip was made awhile ago, when ecstasy and raving in the park were the only and best things going on in town. I think that particular scene has waned a bit, but there are still rave/techno parties held in clubs every weekend.. I think ‘house’ is where it’s at now.
I took the sounds of a night rave in Yoyogi Park and combined it with sped-up video of Shibuya’s main crosswalk. This crosswalk provides some of the best eye-candy Tokyo has to offer, with it’s huge video screens, colorful lights, and masses of converging ‘crosswalkers’. It’s been featured in a lot movies and also can be seen in FOMA Debut and Vodafone Barcoding. FG has a thread with some old photos of Shibuya Crossing in the 40s or 50s.
The encoding quality is so-so, but the clip is short so you can move along quickly.. It’s called ‘Shibuya Crosswalkers: My Hobby is Shopping’..
Fuel Cell Vehicles at the Tokyo Motor Show (article)
In a white smock and clutching a stack of notes, Nobutaka Takahashi stares down at the internal skeleton model of Nissan’s X-Trail fuel cell vehicle (FCV) on display at the 2005 Tokyo Motor Show.Since the industrial revolution spawned only the internal combustion engine and not a provision for a $70-a-barrel rate for oil, alternative fuel vehicles are the talk of this year’s show. For Takahashi, a member of Nissan’s research and development team, this is his baby.
Tokyo Motor Show 2001: Mecerdes Benz F400 Carving
My first real clip of effectively mixing sound loops with video. The Mercedes Benz F400 Carving surprised me when I first saw it; it’s a real-life ‘Batmobile’!
About three weeks after I posted the clip, I got an email from Germany. It was one of the engineers who helped design the front-end steering mechanism. He was impressed with the video and wanted to know more about what I saw that day regarding the F400; the crowds, the impressions, the atmosphere, etc..
We exchanged quite a few emails, and I got the first taste of what video could bring to the Internet experience; this was in 2001 and broadband hadn’t yet matured or been utilized properly.. At the time, everyone was ’streaming’ their content. I always thought it was a waste; Downloading small packages of quality video was so much a better ‘browsing’ experience than streaming.. and I always knew what level bit-rate my viewers were watching.
You can find more on the F400 Carving at Edmunds.com: “Incorporating drive-by-wire technology, this ‘Benz controls steering and braking through computer-monitored impulses rather than conventional racks and cables. This allows for quicker responses from the car; after all, these computers are smarter than you. They override human inputs that it deems as incorrect (Hal? Hal?)..”
TokyoDV Models: Anjela
Anjela came over one Autumn day to make a little video collage. The blue sky, vivid sun, and Fall colors added to her striking beauty; Her dark eyes seem to go right in and through you.. I tried capturing this on tape.
“My name is Anjela and I’m from Sakhalin, Russia. I am of Korean blood, but I was born and raised in Russia. I like reading books (especially Russian love stories) travelling, dancing, kids, watching movies, and making friends from around the world. My dream is to become a model. I love having my picture taken and feel very comfortable in front of the camera..â€
I was very comfortable with her in front of the camera..
Vodafone Barcode Demo
Vadofone used to be called J-Phone in Japan; I believe Vadofone bought J-Phone in 2002.. Anyway, I stopped by one of their display booths in Shibuya and tested out their ‘barcode reader’. Actually, it looks more like a ‘mosaic’ code than bar code, but it works in the same way.
David Beckham was huge in Japan at the time, so at the booth you could take a picture of the barcode, send the photo to an email address, and receive a photo of Beckham on your phone.. Whoopee!
I think Vodafone was one of the first to successfully implement the barcode, which now can be found everywhere. Unfortunately, it didn’t help their business model in Japan as it seems they’re flopping like a football player in desperate need of a rest.. 
