Yeah, you heard it right…kicked in the FACE! I recently sat in the screening room at 3ality (said: three-ality) Digital in Burbank, California. A camera swept across the stadium toward Bono and the Edge in a clip from the U23D concert movie, and I brought my fingers to the side of my neck to check my heart, which was pounding! Quick cut to a kickoff in last year’s Super Bowl in 3D. I’m not talking about a layer of one team, a layer of another team, and then everything else. I’m talking about a real three-dimensional image; smooth 3D from the closest player to the very back of the stadium, the way my eyes naturally see it. Absolutely amazing! And still, most of the population is perplexed by all the 3D talk.

Over the past year the press has done little to clear up why some people are talking so much about 3D television. The same questions always come up: Do I really need to buy yet another TV to get 3D? Can’t I watch 3D on my current TV? Do I have to wear those funny glasses? The immediate answer to these questions is always “Yes,” and then the writer goes into tech speak and my eyes roll back into my head as I start thinking about something on another website and click away from the article.

After watching the sample in the screening room, we walked into the lobby, where we watched clips from popular television shows in 3D. Again, the images were incredible. So what’s the big deal? Why can’t I have my 3D TV now? Well, you can…sort of. Get ready for the rich-nerdy-tech-girl down the street to have the coolest, newest TV technology before you do. But it won’t be long before you can have it too!

Acer is coming out with a cool new laptop pimped out with a 3D monitor that’ll run somewhere in the neighborhood of $800. But the real test will be next year when FIFA and Sony team up to produce 25 live sporting events in 3D. What I’ve heard is that the events will feature Manchester United, that 3D monitors will be placed in pubs throughout England, and that 3D glasses will be given out with beverages  (gives a whole new meaning beer goggling!).

So here’s the key for me: blow-your-mind-incredible production values. What made those images of the Super Bowl and the U2 concert and even the nature images in the 3ality Digital screening room so compelling? They were well produced. When I was watching them, I wasn’t thinking, “What great 3D images.” I was thinking, “Wow, what an incredible experience!” The impression was so mind-bending because it wasn’t just about the 3D images, it was about being engaged with and immersed in the content. It would be pure joy to be in a pub in England with a group of happy (um, drunk) fans when that first ball comes flying out of the television at them. Now that’s just good clean fun! Fortunately, James Cameron and Steven Spielberg are leading the charge with 3D films. We can hope that equal heavyweights lead the charge in television.

While I was at the 3ality Digital studio, Angela Gyetvan gave me a brief tour of their system for capturing 3D images, as well as talked about common misconceptions regarding the technology. Please enjoy the tour…and meeting Angela:

When I left 3ality Digital that afternoon, those images kept coming back to me. The experience was unforgettable! Not only do I want to own the latest and greatest technology to view this incredible new content, I want to start shooting in 3D…now!  So, yes, you will need glasses, but the latest versions look more like Raybans. And, Yes, you’ll need a new TV, because, NO!, your current TV absolutely will not play 3D like this. Once you see 3D this way, you won’t want to go back.

Kelsey and I got to go to a preview screening of U2 3D at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, and I blogged about it for my friends at Positively Cleveland. (The movie’s free with admission to the Rock Hall, so we’re already planning to go back so Jenn can see it, too.)

I’ve had an exhilarating 5 days, which includes a total of 10 flights, 45 hours in the air, 1 academic conference on U2, 1 U2 stadium concert, and only 13 hours sleep. The first academic conference on U2 included some really impressive papers from theologians, musicologists, anthropologists, and more – interweaved with keynote speakers Anthony DeCurtis, Neil McCormick, Matt McGee, and Agnes Nyamayarwo. It went off.

The audience was a great mix of academics and U2 fanatics – and these categories were not necessarily, or even often, exclusive. It was all U2 geeky goodness. When for instance, during one question-time, Danielle Rhéaume noted that she was the person who found and returned the long-lost original October lyrics, one could feel a palpable chill come over the entire room.

In the wee hours of Monday morning, and after a few Guinesses, I attempted some ‘Numb-style’ photographs at the Durham Irish pub with a few of the conference attendees. Here are some: my Alaskan co-presenter (Dan), the Discoverer of Bono’s October Journal (Danielle), an Aussie U2 fan who hasn’t missed a concert in quite a while (Gary), and an Aussie film-maker (hmmm… I can’t quite remember her name anymore; I must be sleep-deprived; but you watch: some avid U2 fan will tell me soon; they’re good like that Natalie):

As an indication of some of the papers on offer: Sydneysider Greg Clarke compared Bono’s and Nick Cave’s conceptions of Jesus, and he reckons that while Cave has a lot in common with nineteenth century liberal scholars such as D.F. Strauss, Bono has a lot in common with someone like C.S. Lewis. That wording is more mine than his, though. He also mentioned a new Aussie book by Craig Schuftan and Brad Cook, with an outrageously punny title: Hey! Nietzsche! leave them kids alone (2009). Christopher Endrinal very clearly explained the mechanics of vocal layering in U2 songs such as ‘The Fly.’ The layering of the fly voice and the angelic falsetto was something which I had looked at in my own paper on fallen angels, so it was good to see how we came at this from different angles (and with different conclusions, but hey!). Dan Pinkston’s comparisons between U2 and Stravinsky, in the paper which followed, issued a challenge all those musical snobs who refuse to acknowledge where classical and pop music share important techniques in common.

There were two Kiwis present; Steve Taylor was the other one. I hear there may well be a book following, containing some of the papers.

Here are some other conference blog reports:

@U2 – Matt McGee
Occasio
Interference
Holy Heteroclite – Dave Wainscott
Discover – Sheril Kirshenbaum
Emerging Kiwi – Steve Taylor
U2 Sermons – Beth Maynard

Igår kväll hade jag Bono i knät, det var en ganska angenäm upplevelse! Haha nej skojajde bara. Jag och Rebecca spontansåg på U23D som är OTROLIG!

På tåget på vägen hem!

Jag kan knappt tro att det äntligen är dags!

Vaknade klockan halv sju och kunde inte sova.. hoppas jag får i mig lite frukost! Är som ett barn på julafton. Bilder och rapporter kommer imorrn! D.v.s om jag fortfarande andas då! haha AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Nu är man sedan två dagar tillbaka hemkommen från Skåne (separat inlägg om det kommer nog) och precis hemkommen från biografen. Eftersom Tysken (a.k.a. E-Type) för närvarande befinner sig i Tyskland var det bara jag, Daniel och Nils som var på bio. Vi såg inte en, inte en och en halv, utan två filmer på raken (varför inte?). Först såg vi filmen som man SKA se, Harry Potter och Halvblodsprinsen och efter det Brüno.

Harry Potter var verkligen tokbra. Verkligen tokbra. Har man läst böckerna märker man ju på vilka ställen de har skippat en del grejer och det kan vara lite synd men så måste det ju bli. Det som funkar i boken funkar inte alltid i filmen på ett vettigt sätt. Ändå, en väldigt bra film och jag är glad att David Yates regisserar även de två kommande filmerna (sjunde boken blir i två delar), han kan sitt jobb. En sak jag kom och tänka på är att filmen är väldigt snygg, det är snyggt foto och det är trevligt att titta på. Ibland mörka dystra färger och i nästa scen varma, glada färger. Färger och musik är verkligen effeltiva sätt att skapa en viss stämning.

En imponerande scen i början av filmen var när man gled genom London nästan på gatunivå, att se det på en gigantisk bioduk (vi var i salong 4, den största) var minst sagt snyggt. Nog om det, alla kommer se denna film så jag ids inte säga mer om den.

Brüno, kvällens film nummer två då? Ja, vad ska man säga… Det är nog det mest politiskt inkorrekta man kan se på bio nu. Och det är riktigt roligt och riktigt galet. Här och där kunde man se lite av Borat i Brüno. Men det är inte konstigt. Det stör inte och de spelas ju av samma person och då är det inte konstigt om det blir så. Kul är det också att svensken Gustaf Hammarsten har (en ganska stor) biroll.

Jag läste också att SF senare under året kommer visa en konsert med U2 i 3D, enligt texten jag läste kommer det med surround-ljud och just 3D:n kännas som om man är där, vid scenen. Jag är inte någon U2-fanboy men jag gillar vissa låtar. Dessutom, live (som det nästan blir) är nästan vilken musik som helst bra så man blir ju onekligen sugen på att se det här.

Nog är bio bra alltid.

EDIT: Den första delen av Harry Potter och Dödsrelikerna har svensk biopremiär 19 november 2010 (men frågan är om de inte kommer flytta fram den till sommaren därpå istället, som de gjorde med Halvblodsprinsen). U23D, som den heter, har premiär 29 juli och här är en trailer:

GRAN TORİNO, GRAN TORİNO FİLMİ SEYRET, GRAN TORİNO FRAGMAN GÖRÜNTÜLERİ İZLE, GRAN TORİNO FRAGMAN İZLE, GRAN TORİNO İZLE, vizyondaki filmler, VİZYONDAKİLER GRAN TORİNO FRAGMANI İZLE,U23D, U23D FİLMİ SEYRET, U23D FİLMİNİ İZLE, U23D FRAGMAN GÖRÜNTÜLERİ İZLE, U23D FRAGMAN İZLE, U23D VİDEOLARI İZLE, VİZYONDAKİ FİLMLERİ İZLE, VİZYONDAKİLER U23D FİLMİ FRAGMANI İZLE, vizyondaki filmler, vizyondaki filmler yedi yaşam, vizyondakiler, yedi yaşam, yedi yaşam filmi izle, yedi yaşam fragmanı izle, yedi yaşam fragmanı seyret, yedi yaşam videoları izle,Güneşi Gördüm, Güneşi Gördüm Filim İzle, Güneşi Gördüm Film Fragmanı, Güneşi Gördüm Film İzle, Güneşi Gördüm Filmi, Güneşi Gördüm Filmini İzle,vizyondakiler, vizyondakiler zoraki tatil, zoraki tatil, zoraki tatil film fragmanı izle, zoraki tatil fragmanı izle, dizi izle, fragman, umut, umut film fragmanı izle, umut film fragmanı seyret, umut filmi, umut filmi fragman izle, umut filmi izle, umut sinema, vizyondakiler, vizyondakiler umut filmi,ağacı, limon, limon ağacı, limon ağacı fragman görüntüleri, limon ağacı fragmanı izle, limon ağacı izle, limon ağacı seyret, limon ağacı videoklipleri izle, limon ağacı videoları

İZLEMEK İÇİN TIKLAYINIZ

sıradan bir gündü,sıradan bir gündü fragmanı izle,sıradan bir gündü fragmanı seyret,vizyondakiler sıradan bir gündü,sıradan bir gündü vizyondakiler,fragman izle,watchmen fragmanı izle,watchmen fragmanı seyret,watchmen fragmanı videoları izle,vizyondakiler watchmen fragmanı,vizyondaki filmler watchmen fragmanı,watchmen,vizyondaki filmler,GRAN TORİNO,GRAN TORİNO FRAGMAN İZLE,VİZYONDAKİLER GRAN TORİNO FRAGMANI İZLE,GRAN TORİNO FİLMİ SEYRET,GRAN TORİNO FRAGMAN GÖRÜNTÜLERİ İZLE,GRAN TORİNO İZLE,VİZYONDAKİ FİLMLER İZLE,U23D,U23D FİLMİNİ İZLE,VİZYONDAKİLER U23D FİLMİ FRAGMANI İZLE,U23D FİLMİ SEYRET,U23D FRAGMAN İZLE,U23D FRAGMAN GÖRÜNTÜLERİ İZLE,U23D VİDEOLARI İZLE,VİZYONDAKİ FİLMLERİ İZLE,yedi yaşam,yedi yaşam fragmanı izle,yedi yaşam filmi izle,yedi yaşam videoları izle,yedi yaşam fragmanı seyret,vizyondakiler,vizyondaki filmler,vizyondaki filmler yedi yaşam,Güneşi Gördüm, Güneşi Gördüm Filim İzle, Güneşi Gördüm Film Fragmanı, Güneşi Gördüm Film İzle, Güneşi Gördüm Filmi, Güneşi Gördüm Filmini İzle, Güneşi Gördüm Fragmanı, Güneşi Gördüm Fragmanı İzle, Güneşi Gördüm İndirmeden İzle, Güneşi Gördüm İzle, Güneşi Gördüm Mahsun Kırmızıgül, Güneşi Gördüm Mahsun Kırmızıgül İzle, Güneşi Gördüm Oyuncuları, Güneşi Gördüm Yönetmeni, Güneşi Gördümü İzle, Güneşi Gördümü Seyret,

İZLEMEK İÇİN TIKLAYINIZ

Spre marea mea dezamagire, U2 nu ne viziteaza nici anul acesta. Am inteles ca au inventat un concept nou de scena, unul care va revolutiona concertele live…probabil ca la noi nu au unde sa o instaleze. (

Nu am fost niciodata la un concert de-al lor, nu stiu cum e, am fost in schimb la Rolling Stones. Ca sa imi alin un pic dezamgirea, am mers la U2:3d (din ce-am vazut, am tras concluzia ca sunt mult mai buni ca Stones, poate fiindca sunt si mai tineri). U2:3D a fost filmat in Brazilia  in timpul ultimului lor turneu, atunci cand promovau “How to dismantle an atomic bomb”(bad title, I know).

Repet, nu stiu cum e sa fii efectiv la un concert de-al lor, dar experienta 3d m-a facut sa ma simt ca si cum eram chiar acolo, langa scena. In mod sigur, am avut o vizibilitate mult mai buna decat as fi avut efectiv la un concert adevarat. Fanii au fost si ei filmati si ma simteam de parca ma aflam in mijlocul lor.

Au cantat doar vreo 3 melodii de pe noul, atunci, album al lor dar nu prea conteaza, fiindca u2 e una din putinele trupe a caror muzica e mereu actuala. M-a impresionat pasiunea si daruirea trupei si cat de profesionisti au fost. “Bullet the blue sky” si “Sometimes you can’t make on your own” sunt niste melodii foarte intense, foarte emotionale, ca si momentul “Coexist”-nu zic ce e, ii las pe curiosi sa descopere.

Am fost placut surprinsa sa vad ca unele melodii care nu prea imi plac merg foarte bine live, cum ar fi “Love and peace or else”(da, la penultimul album, u2 nu au fost prea buni la capitolul pus titluri). Nici nu stiu ce sa zic ca mi-a placut mai mult: “One”, “Beautiful Day”, clasicul “Where the streets have no name”. Nu mai tin exact minte ce melodii au mai fost, caci am vazut filmul inainte sa plec la Madrid, dar impresia generala a fost una excelenta. Am plecat din sala foarte optimista si bine dispusa.

Recomandare: mergeti sa vedeti concertul la Liberty, nu la Plaza, caci la Plaza am avut niste surprize neplacute la alte filme 3d pe care le-am vazut. Probabil tehnologia e mai noua la Liberty. (Sper ca nu incalc vreo lege ca scriu asta, nu incerc sa fac publicitate nici unui  mall.)

PS: Cand in sfarsit o sa am timp din nou sa citesc, o sa scriu si review-uri la carti. Deocamdata toate cartile mele au ca tema nationalismul, caci, of, vine licenta!

U23D is U2’s latest foray into the cinematic world.  It’s also a breakthrough film, as it’s the first live-action movie shot and presented in digital 3-D.  It was originally released last year, but since it wasn’t showing in Tallahassee (and the nearest theater with showtimes was four away, plus I was in the throes of getting my dissertation wrapped up) I didn’t get a chance to see it.  Luckily for me (and all the other U2 fans out there), it was re-released this week for a limited run at select IMAX theaters.

I drove down to Boston last night and checked it out.  It was, in a word, incredible, both from a U2 fan’s standpoint and from a general cinematic perspective.  The 3-D effects were amazing, like Adam Clayton was going hit my head with his bass or like I was going to trip over Larry Mullen’s drums.  More impressive than the actual 3-D, however, were the shots the filmmakers got.  Despite the venue being huge, the footage captured on film was quite intimate, with many close-ups of the band and crowd alike.  And the grandiosity of IMAX screen and digital surround sound really immersed the audience in the whole experience.  It was like we were at the concert, only we got better views of the band.

Pre-show snapshot, trying the 3-D glasses.

On my way out of the theater: one last shot of the fancy specs.

Watching the movie also reminded me of the power of music, not just U2’s, but music in general.  The concert footage was from South America, a place where English is not the primary language, yet the entire audience sung along to every word of every song of the show.  It was awesome.  And I’ve heard stories about many other rock bands experiencing the same thing.  The way I see it, the fact that non-English speakers can sing and scream and show along with songs that aren’t even in their native tongue reinforces the universality of music.  It’s an art form that knows no barriers, one that connects with people on basic, almost primal, levels.  That fact makes me proud to do what I do.

Por si alguien no los sabe en el “Norcenter” (Panamericana y San Lorenzo, en diagonal al Unicenter) se encuentra el único IMAX theater de Latinoamérica. Se trata de una sala con pantalla de 7 pisos por 26 metros y 14.000 watts de sonido envolvente. Hasta aquí parece un aviso pero me parece importante aclarar de que estamos hablando.
U23D es el registro de la gira de la banda por Mexico, San Pablo y principalmente Buenos Aires, las imágenes en un gran porcentaje son las del paso de la banda irlandesa por el estadio de River en el marco del Vértigo Tour.
Ya desde el inicio con “Vértigo” y el clásico 1, 2, 3…14 uno tiene la impresión de que va a vivir algo diferente, de ninguna otra manera uno podría ver a Bono a 15 cms. de distancia, ni tomar la dimensión de “stage” que nos muestra esta presentación del Nacional Geographic. El film muestra que el 3D ha evolucionado desde los recordados anteojitos azules y colorados. El sonido es perfecto y la mezcla de planos en 3D hacen que uno se sienta como un espíritu sobrevolando un show de una de las mejores bandas de los últimos 30 años. Las experiencia es soberbia, pasan hits, “Bullet the blue sky” es pura actitud, “One” puro sentimiento, “Pride” una fiesta y siguen los tracks pero uno se queda admirado del profesionalismo de la banda y como “toma” el escenario. En este documental, recital, video testimonio o como quieran llamarlo no es importante la soberbia puesta en escena, que desde ya se disfruta, sino la experiencia que nos lleva por cada uno de los integrantes, por el escenario y por el público. Hay pocos lugares donde se pueda “sentir” y en este caso el IMAX permite un disfrute pleno. Dan ganas de levantarse de las comodísimas butacas reclinables y saltar con el público o bien cantar las canciones.
Mención aparte para el sonido envolvente que “mueve” la voz de Bono sincronizándola con la ubicación en la pantalla.
En definitiva U23D es una experiencia única y milagrosamente repetible en cada función. Nos muestra una banda súper profesional y aceitada que es mucho más que un gran puñado de “buenas canciones” de una manera nunca antes vista. Para los fans de la banda resulta imperdible y para los curiosos de nuevas experiencias (un concierto en IMAX) también.
U23D es simplemente una joya que nos trae una hora veinte minutos de emoción y felicidad, lo cual es más que suficiente.

una experiencia única y repetible

Saturday has been one of those days where I know I could have done more, but for some (sub)conscious decision, I chose not to accomplish all that I could. I didn’t exactly kick off the day right, I will admit. After a long Friday night, I woke up around 11 am. For me, that is late. (How do you do it, afternoon-risers?)

After attempts and finishing my class readings for next week – for which my friend next to me just kindly reminded me that we have a quiz – I headed over to the mall for some retail therapy. However, I think I spent more money on bubble milk tea than on the $20 skirt I picked up.

A food court pizza slice later, I was walking to Paddy’s Market with my fellow BU student Xu. Paddy’s Market is like what all Asians dream about in terms of cheap and good shopping. Picture an empty warehouse, the space expanse and massive, and fill it with rows and rows of stalls. Elaborate stalls. Stalls selling cheap souvenirs, five-dollar sunglasses, kangaroo skins, t-shirts, food, knock-off designer handbags, local jewelry, and everything in between.

After picking up some gifts (maybe for you – person who was dedicated themselves to following my blog) and cheap purple Wayfarers for my next trekking adventure, Xu and I headed to Chinatown. There we found a sweet Chinese restaurant to make a Chinese New Year dinner reservation for Monday night. 10 PM was the earliest we could get.

While Xu was making dining arrangements, I rushed over to Darling Harbour’ s IMAX, self-proclaimed as the world’s largest screen. Sure, why not.
My ultimate purpose? My mecca? My holy grail?

The epic celebration of all things pure >>> U23D.

Now, I know this isn’t something to enhance my Australian cultural experience. Screw that for this post. I have been wanting to see this thing for at least a year. Probably more. Finally, the time had arrived.

Worth every pence of my AUD $25, we were handed 3-D glasses as the long procession of young and old filed into the theater. My overwhelming excitement caused  me to trip up the stairs. No worries, mate. I didn’t care at that point. With Bono singing at 3D at stake, you gotta find the perfect seat.

Positioning myself at prime central row level, the freakishly insane surround sound jolted as a giddy, school-girl smile came on my face. (To all of you who know my deep obsession with U2, you understand how I must have reacted. To those who have yet to grasp this aspect of my persona, I apologize for what is to follow.)

Of course, the first on the set list was Vertigo, the sound pumping and the lights dominating any other seizure-inducing mechanism on the planet.

Now, I had the wonderful experience of seeing U2 on tour about four years ago – that in itself was incredibly amazing. So I wasn’t surprised at Bono’s great theatrics, political statements, and the creative direction of the film.

It was seriously like you were right on stage next to the guys. I wanted to stand up and join the jumping crowd, scream out every lyric, and go crazy.

Let’s just say it was so freakin’ amazing.

That was until in the middle of Bullet the Blue Sky when the IMAX picture goes out and the sound stops. The kids next to me start repeating over and over “Where’d the screen go?” and some guy eventually pulls out his iPod and blasts his Vertigo ringtone as we wait for the problem to be fixed. Luckliy, after about twenty minutes, it was back.

What really got me was the details, the crispness of the film. Being three-dimensions, it was crazy to see Bono’s hand reach out to you and he stared into the camera, or Larry’s drumsticks flailing up into your personal bubble. I couldn’t stop looking at the orange sports drink with ice next to the drum kit that got progressively more empty, the details of Bono’s beautiful jacket wardrobe, and the crispness of The Edge’s scruff.

The quality of the cinematography was insanely wonderful…the set up of shots…the amount of planning and collaboration that the National Geographic filmmakers must have had to undergo with the touring crew, the U2 team and creative staff, the concert designers (especially the graphics and lighting guys), and the stadium people – months and months of planning and charts and diagrams to get these breath-taking shots.

After ooing and ahhing at Bono’s insane talent and passion, I met up with some friends at The Domain in Hyde Park. The Syndey festival is going on, and there was a free symphony concert in the park where hundred of thousands of people showed up to sit on the lawn and chill for the evening. The sky a gorgeous purple-ish hue, it became dotted with what I thought was tons of ravens or birds flying fromt the trees. Then someone informed me that they were bats. Bats.

If you haven’t yet noticed, there are no accompanying pictures. That’s because I forgot my camera. I know. I swear to never committ such an offence again.

On Christmas Day, I posted Tolstoy’s touching story of Martin the Cobbler, Where Love Is, God Is. It basically gives some flesh to Jesus’ saying that whatever we do to the least of people, we do unto Him.

Finding God in the daily life of human existence rather than in some hyper-spirituality—that has come to mean a lot more to me than in previous years.

But I must be honest: I don’t know if that is God. “Where love is, God is.” Maybe. Or maybe where love is, there is just love. A couple of years ago, I really found peace about a lot of things in my life. Have I found God by finding peace or have I just found peace? Peace, love—they are valuable things in themselves, irrespective of whether there is a God. They might well be clues about there being a God, but ultimately I don’t know. And I’ve found peace about not knowing.

That reminds me of the virtual concert I attended at an IMAX the other day, U2 3D. It was an absolutely fantastic 3D experience of U2 live in South America. One reviewer described it as a “cathedral of sound,” and I agree. The experience was similar to (or better than) the best experiences of modern worship sessions I’ve had in Charismatic churches.

In those churches, powerful experiences during worship are usually equated with God’s presence. “Where powerful music is, God is” almost seems to be their dictum. And maybe they are right. But maybe where powerful music is, there is just powerful music. The thing itself is valuable enough even without a Divine Mover in it.

Love, music, peace—some people find God through these. Others find Him through beauty, reason or work. I wonder, though—and many before me have asked the same question—whether finding God is a help or a hindrance in appreciating what are obviously valuable things in themselves. Do I appreciate love, music, peace, beauty, reason, and work more because I see in them a road to God, or do I appreciate them less with God in the mix?

Is a relationship between two people healthier without making it a triangle of which one is a Divinity? Is love better if I do something good for someone simply because I actually want to help that person rather than doing it primarily because “I do it unto Him”? Or does “doing it unto Him” inspire me to do many deeds of love that, left alone with my human nature, I would never do?

What a very nice bonus from my employer. My boss had noticed that I don’t ever drink anything that contains alcohol, so the traditional Christmas gift for the employees would be quite useless for me. Instead they offered me a gift of my own choice to a value of about EUR 25. My choice was instant and 100% clear, gift certificates for U23D. My wish was granted as long as I got the certificates myself to reduce administration. The same night I picked up 3 x 10 EUR gift certificates from the cinema. I also learned that combined with the special “benefit card” that you receive as a subscriber to the local newspaper Sydsvenskan, you get a discount on the ticket price of about 20% (ticket price is then about EUR 9.50). This is a fairly important refund when you’re about catch U23D more than 5 times, like crazy me.

Finally, I got the information from the Swedish fanclub that the premier date had been set to November 28 (final date January 4) and tickets would go on sale November 12. The very same day I got a nice e-mail from the manager at “Spegeln” who personally wanted to notify me that the tickets would go on sale by midnight November 12 via the Internet. Oh lord, this calls for staying up late to make sure I got my trembling hands on the precious tickets. Those butterflies in my stomach, they all seem so familiar when it comes to important ticket releases. Remembering the urge and anxiousness, getting up at 2 am to get in line for U2-tickets, this was more like a walk in the park. When I entered the website at exactly midnight, I was the first to get tickets, clicking seats 104 and 105 for the first show at 6 pm and felt kind of privileged in my solitude by the computer. I went to bed shortly after, just had to make sure I got all the confirmation e-mails and securing the screen dumps of the “my bookings” page.

The following dates were booked (EUR 12 per ticket):

• 2 tickets for Nov 28, 6 pm, seats 75 and 76, row 6/12 (I sold these to my Danish friends)
• 2 tickets for Nov 28, 6 pm, seats 104 and 105, row 8/12 (I kept these for myself)
• 2 tickets for Nov 28, 10 pm, seats 74 and 75, row 6/12 (I discard these after about a week)

I also got tickets for one show in December and another one in January 2009.

A few days later the Swedish fanclub staged a competition for special invitees only admission on November 24. Three easy questions had to be answered and I did, but my bad luck rendered no tickets for me. Of course I realized there would be a lot of competition but I was honestly disappointed. With the information on the special premier November 24 I (again) wrote to the manager of the cinema asking kindly if there was any chance for me to attend. As I had been and certainly would continue promoting the movie among a lot of friends, I stressed that in my mail to make sure she understood that there would be a “return of investment”, it would make sense putting me on the guestlist. I even wrote a mini “U2-CV” to justify my avid interest. I got a reply almost immediately:

“You and a friend are welcome to the grand premier on Monday November 24 at 7 pm. There will be a live band performing U2-covers at 6 pm. I think you deserve this opportunity as you’ve been promoting the movie among friends. Maybe you could help us out by spreading U23D-posters around the city? Anyway, welcome and please note that the tickets are free”.

The sneak preview on Monday November 24 would be attended mostly by the media and the “real premier” on November 28 would be for the fans. Still, the “grand premier” was extremely important, first of all for the honour of being invited and also because I’d be one of the first to see the movie in Sweden.

August 6, a local newspaper published a report from the “sneak premier” of U23D at the cinema “Spegeln” here in Malmö on August 4 . I was devastated. I actually missed out on a big U2-related event and in my home town. I immediately took action, sent off an e-mail to the manager of the cinema asking for the official premier date. Moments later I received a very kind reply that no date had been set and if I’d sign up for the newsletter, I’d be the first to know.

A few weeks later the annual Malmöfestival took place. I passed outside the cinema every night and when the girl behind the counter saw me approaching for the third time the same week, she immediately informed me that she had no news (in a kind voice though). Apparently nothing was going to happen in the near future. All right, August isn’t exactly fall but I assumed that the premier would be late August or maybe the first part of September.

Months passed and I kept e-mailing the manager of the cinema, constantly asking for a premier date. In a very kind way she replied to every single of my mail, they were planning and soon there would be an announcement. By the beginning of October I even offered the manager a small, shall we call it bribe, to get information and maybe also VIP-tickets for the premier date. I was willing to pay dearly but I got no response to that. I told myself that my frequent contact with her would some day be beneficial for me, in some U23D-related way.

It’s been a year since I’ve been working at my current position at the company I work for, and yesterday I was presented with a review of my performance over the last year.

I was also given a pay rise, which is cool, but that’s not what sticked in my mind most. I would’ve never though that my department manager would describe me as a valuable asset to the company.I do think of myself as an OK, above-the-average employee, but definitely not as of ”a valuable asset”. If I was sugar, I’d have melted the moment I was said that. Overall, the performance review was very good, most scoring either “meets requirements” or “exceeds requirements”.

They consider me as such because I’ve been with the company through some hard times (we are in constant lack of people) and I was willing to be trained to different positions to temporarily substitute missing people. I knew that this would reflect only positively on my career in the company (and my pay cheque ).

At the time I was being trained and working at these different positions, there was this one person who told me that in the eyes of others I look ridiculous because of my frequent position changing etc. I hope that now she sees how wrong she was.

Oh, and I also had to give my three career goals. You know what? Those three points were like the hardest piece of writing I’ve ever done. The first one came quite easily – I put down that I want to be trained for any other positions in the department I haven’t yet been trained. The other two, however, weren’t quite as easy. It took me like an hour to put them down. Shit, I hope I didn’t mess up with them two!

Hm… with this pay rise I think I can finally start paying back the credit I took some time ago. Although I may not start paying it back until I study, I better start doing that now. You know, it’s money, credits and such things – very sophisticated stuff and I better get rid of it asap.

And I’m seeing U23D this Friday again! Woo hoo! Can’t wait for it!

Howard Postley é o chefe do Departamento de Operações e chefe do Departamento Técnico da 3ality Digital. Howard é o responsável pela pesquisa, desenvolvimento de produtos, e toda a administração operacional. Ele também projectou e lançou o primeiro dispositivo de pós-produção em tempo real para a 3ality Digital. Para o U23D ele foi essencial nas fases de produção e pós-produção. Postley’s escreve para publicações da indústria cinematográfica, e ele tem uma das instalações das mais complexas para desenvolver produtos de  multimédia.

 veja aqui toda a entrevista

So finally the moment has come, and U23D has reached Riga.
Last night was the night, and it was terrific! When I bought tickets, I didn’t dare to think that I was buying tickets to the premier (after all, there were no premier-ads, like there were for the latest Bond movie).So, where do I begin? There were girls giving away little U23D information booklets, there were girls giving Martini (too bad it wasn’t Guinness though), there were famous people and, most importantly, there were other U2 fans, with which I had the chance to hang out.

The whole experience was just amazing! I liked every single bit about the movie and even more! I loved Bono reaching and touching me, I loved Adam sticking his bass’ grif in my face, I loved the guy in the row behind me who, when “With or Without You” was over shouted “But one more, please”. And he got his “one more”!

I was very, very, fucking very glad about the audience. From the moment U23D started they didn’t feel ashamed to express their emotions – they sang, they clapped their hands, they screaming along the Latin-American crowd. I actually felt like being in the show, and I can only thank you for giving me such a chance.

Have I told anything about the movie? Well, not much to tell – the best I’ve ever seen! Quality, experience, performance – 10 out of 10 points for each! It was so good that I even began to like “Yahweh”, a U2 song I’ve never really liked. Hm…. if I have to give out at least one particular moment in the movie that sticked in my mind the best, that I loved the best, I can’t really do it. I loved the whole damn think, every second of it, every frame of it!

Let’s wait for the next week, when we – me and my new U2 fans, will be seeing the movie again!

Entras en la sala y te facilitan unas gafas megahorteras, que seguro que harían las delicias de Bono. Buscas, con torpeza tu asiento (es lo que tiene si no te quitas las gafas) y te dispones a disfrutar de un espectáculo de los buenos si eres fan de U2, si no… también. Tener la oportunidad de disfrutar de un concierto casi como si estuvieras encima del escenario es alucinante. Si además se trata de uno de los grupos que mayores artificios llevan siempre a cuesta (probablemente sólo los Rolling se les puedan comparar en ese apartado), pues entonces es ya absolutamente brutal.

El concierto documental fue grabado durante el último tramo del Vertigo Tour en Sudamérica, pero a lo largo de sus 85 minutos se ha ido seleccionando prácticamente lo mejor, o más bien, lo más conocido de los irlandases. Si no tuviste la oportunidad de asistir a uno de los conciertos de la última gira, éste es el mejor sucedáneo. Tendrás la ocasión de escuchar canciones míticas como Vertigo, Beautiful Day, Miss Sarajevo, Sunday Bloody Sunday, Where the Streets Have No Name, New Year´s Day o Pride (in the name of love).

Por supuesto el documental acaba, como todos los conciertos de U2, con esa maravilla llamada One. Y después, en el bis, se suceden The Fly (espectaculares los efectos de Motion que se incluyen durante esta melodía, muy en la línea Zooropa) y, por último, otra de las canciones que no necesita presentación: With or Without You. Mientras se sucedían los créditos y la gente comenzaba a abandonar la sala, se podía escuchar una versión acústica de Yahweh, la última melodía de How to dismantle an atomic bomb (sin contar el bonus track de según qué ediciones, Fast Cars). Para mi sorpresa, el público continuó desfilando sin reparar en que se estaban sucediendo en la pantalla algunos de los mejores momentos del evento, comparables a los instantes de “la Mosca”. En fin, cada loco a su tema…

En líneas generales, por la selección de canciones, se trata de un documental que si bien hará las delicias del fan de U2, por sus características parece destinado a cualquier amante de la música. La aplicación del 3D a un concierto completo era algo que no se había hecho hasta ahora (posiblemente porque tal lujo sólo se lo puedan permitir dos o tres grupos en todo el planeta).

En el apartado de lo malo, pues sinceramente la voz de Bono ya no es la que tenía en la gira Zooropa, posiblemente sea de los cuatro (Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton y Larry Mullen Jr.) el que más flojea; pero como es el alma de la banda, casi podríamos decir que del Rock, pues se le perdona todo. Por otro lado, hay una serie de canciones omitidas que me sorprenden: I Will Follow y I Still Haven´t Found What I´m Looking For, son las que más me llamaron la atención que no sonaran (o hubo un momento en el que yo me empané (que también podría ser el caso). Tampoco estuvo Stay, pero esa creo que es ya para muy fan de U2.

Puede que dentro de unos años, esta fórmula se estandarice dentro del mundo de la música; pero mientras tanto, a la espera de que los irlandeses saquen su nuevo disco, tendremos que conformarnos con U23D.

Más información en: http://www.u23d.com.es/

El momento One fue de los más memorables