Automata Pistols - Birds in Disguise

We like surprises... and we like very clever bits of engineering. Here is something that combines both!

The auction house Christies has recently sold a pair of early 19th Century Pistols for five and a half million dollars.

On the outside the craftmanship is exquistie with detials picked out in gold, enamel, agate, pearl and diamond. But for SHUB the real beauty is inside.

Watch this:

These are the only complete pair of these pistols in the world - and there are only six pistols still known to exist. We want them.

Confrerie Horlogere : La Clef du Temps Tourbillon Watch

Just wow its like Steam Boy, Ray Steam, has created a watch for us. This watch is limited edition as in 24 will only be created, One for each time zone. This chunky piece of tech will be made predominately from titanium with a rubber strap. Whilst the exclusivity of this time piece cannot be brought into question its practicality as a time piece may subsequently need to be taken with a pinch of salt.

In this case the outlandish aesthetics of the thing probably need to be taken into consideration, it just looks wicked really. It is a hair brained and just downright bizarre moment of extravagance and technological wizardry.

For more information on the manufacturer i would say visit Confrerie Horlogere Online however their website at the time of writing seems to be down. Apologies for that but none the less I hope you enjoy the provided images.

Film of the Week : 28 Days Later

From the director of Trainspotting and The Beach, Danny Boyal, comes "28 Days Later".

The film starts with a Green Peace esq lab science lab raid [thanks for all the Mink in the UK Green Peace] except in the raid a dangerous virus known only as RAGE is released into the UK populous. Within 28 days the whole country is overwhelmed and the story follows a handful of people trying to survive.



Staring Cillian Murphy this film is notorious for being shot on an absolute budget, and using empty early morning central London for many of its scenes. A terrifying look at a pandemic, not only a awesome thriller but an extremely entertaining one at that.

How NASA retrieves shuttle boosters

This video was posted on YouTube by NASA. This is how they retrieve the huge solid state rocket boosters used to propel missions into space.

In the second stage of missions flying into space the two solid fueled roket boosters ar jetisoned and fall back to earth landing in the sea this is how NASA gets them back.

This Short Video follow the 2 ships and diving teams who install the pumps on the empty rocket booster to remove all water from theam and make them float. The boosters are then towed behind ships back to NASA head quaters and reaused in other missions.

Overall this is just a brilliant video to watch.

Film of the Week : The Abyss

Contrary to current popular belief James Cameron did not just make Avatar! 1989's "The Abyss" Oscar winning saw Ed Harris star in a story taking place 25,000 feet below the ocean's surface. As a civilian diving team are enlisted to conduct a search and rescue operation after a nuclear submarine mysteriously sinks. The film also stars, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio and Micheal Biehn.

This film totes a now exhausted and repetitive message of James Cameron's films, that nature cannot and should not be over powered and we are ultimately helpless to stand in its path. Also as quoted on www.amazon.co.uk that this "deep-sea close-encounter epic reaffirms one of the oldest first principles of cinema: everything moves a lot more slowly underwater".

None of this takes away the fact that this is an ace film and a great watch, Enjoy!

Thor : Trailer 2

I cant really say Ive been a devout fan of the comic series of Thor throughout my life. I also can't say that i was particularly excited by the concept of a seemingly procedural Thor movie by Marvel seemingly to facilitate the Avengers. However now i am converted, particularly with two scenes in this trailer, with quotes of "You dare threaten me, Thor with so pewney a, weapon!" and "This drink I like it; Another!". We will have to see whether or not the son of Odin makes a welcome entrance to the silver screen. But certainly at this point it looks allot better than first expected.

Nova the film

A one hour fifteen minuet documentary on the topic and about modern and contemporary art from young contemporaries in Rio de Janeiro, Los Angeles and São Paulo.


NOVA the film from ROJO on Vimeo.

The NOVA website states :

A DIY documentary film on new art and the young artists behind it. Directed by Isaac Niemand, and produced by ROJO® in collaboration with BossaNovaFilms, it was all filmed on the heat of live action at ®Nova Contemporary Culture which happened in July and August 2010, in the Museum of Image and Sound, São Paulo, Brazil.

Starring: Yoshi Sodeoka, Rebecca Ward, Tofer Chin, KRINK, Base V, Yochai Matos, Max Hattler, Highraff, Lucy McRae, Kit Webster, Jimmy Joe Roche, Flavio Samelo, Felipe Brait & Maria Valente, Shima, Matt W Moore, Zeitguised, Mulheres Barbadas, Gustavo Gagliardo aka Defi, Filippo Minelli, Quayola, Javier Longobardo, This Time, Renaud Hallée, Mark Jenkins, Ljudbilden & Piloten, Lolo, Sosaku Miyazaki, Anna Taratiel aka Ovni, Robert Seidel, Heiko Tippelt, B.Fleischmann, Koen Delaere, Taras Hrabowsky, Cristopher Cichocki, MOMO, Yusk Imai. Music by: Bradien, Roll The Dice, NOIA, B.Fleischmann, Ljudbilden & Piloten, Fase, Isan, Fuck Buttons. Curated by: David Quiles Guilló. Filmed, Edited and Directed by: Isaac Niemand.

For more info or videos check out the main NOVA webpage at www.rojo-nova.com

Film of the Week: Total Recall

After the shock horror announcement that there is to be a remake of this classic with Colin Farrell as Quaid, we thought it was time to look at what made this movie such as classic.

Although it was released in 1990, it slips neatly into the the plethora of great sci-fi that were produced in the 1980s and carries with it some of the humour that charactarises that decade. Directed by Paul Verhoeven (who later did Starship Troopers.) It's a comic book gore-fest with a neat twist, probing into the murky world of reality vs fantasy.

It's easy to see how the screenplay was based on story "We Can Remember It For You, Wholesale." by science fiction superstar Philip K Dick - who also gave us, Blade Runner, A Scanner Darkly and Minority Report (in fact the script for the film Minority Report started out as a sequel to Total Recall.)

The film should be remembered for its eye-popping special effects: a womans head opening to reveal Quaid hidden inside, the effects of the low pressure atmosphere on Quaid as he battles Cohaagen on the slopes of the red planet and of course *that* woman in the bar.

With Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sharon Stone, Michael Ironside, Rachel Ticotin... it's a cast to be proud of.

And it also gave us, in my opinion, one of the most under rated lines in film: 

Film of the Week : The Thing

1982 saw one of the best sci-fi film remakes of all time John Carpenters "The Thing", staring Kurt Russell, Keith David and Wilford Brimly.



Featuring the brilliant special effects work of the late Stan Winston, and some amazing matte paintings from his studio. This film was a chilling and beautiful look into the creators minds. A story of mistrust and inquisition in Antarctica. Without films like this we would not have been able to experience things like the modern day cult remake classic Battlestar Gallactica. A fantastic piece of cinema and a Genre classic, Enjoy!

Mathias Buttet's La Clé du Time : The Key of Time

Mathias Buttet's La Clé du Time or for the English The Key of Time is an absolutely wonderful looking time piece. Incredibly stylish in it's technological and futuristic design this Watch really does speak for itself.



To check out the Hublot website click the link HERE, or for more pictures of La Clé du Time follow the jump.

LED Solar-Powered Watch

The Solaris v1 is the perfect blend of eco-power and cool design. Running from a minimal solar panel and using low power LED's to show the time, this really is a step in the right direction. Also pushing this achingly cool design how could this watch not do well.

For more images and a full explanation of how the watch actually tells the time, catch the Jump below.