CONSUME That Lemonade, Bey!
Written by Creator Hal Hefner on Creators.co
Beyonce kicked off her new album LEMONADE with a movie style artistic expression that premiered on HBO. Immediately after it was released the online fighting and commentary began. Commentary about commentary. WTF? Yep. I'm serious.
Commentary about Commentary
The hype machine of Tidal produced a powerful wave that created a backlash against any criticism or commentary on Lemonade. As this unfolded across many social media networks it was fascinating to watch.
Regardless if you think Beyonce is good or bad or love her or hate her, Lemonade has clearly stoked a racial debate on who is allowed to comment or understand black culture---if you don't belong to black culture. Basically who can give commentary and who can't based on race and in some cases gender.
Now as we know from all internet debates driven by emotion, they eventually die down and go away. But will this? Will this be something different altogether? Is this a needed conversation and if so what TRULY is the conversation?
IMHO---It's a very interesting topic that actually calls into question, not as much of a cultural and racial divide when you dig deeper beyond the emotion, but it's drawing a line in the sand that stifles art.
For me as an artist, that's where I go first--looking at it form a humanist, artist's point of view. I don't see color. I see human beings and I just want everyone to get along. Art is and always will be made to bring about an emotion, ask a question or engage in commentary--regardless of your race, age and gender. That's art. That's what it's supposed to do. It will invoke different opinions from different people from different ages to different cultural backgrounds. That's art. That's what it's supposed to do. So if what Beyonce is truly doing--- making art, then why can only a select few who relate to her physically and racially be able to comment on it? To me that is a disservice to any artistic expression that Bey is proposing here in Lemonade. So my advice to everyone who has chosen sides, gotten mad about the critical response to Lemonade---Who cares what anyone else thinks, just think for yourself! That's art. That's what it's supposed to do.
Hate it or love it, it doesn't matter. Hype is why we consume whether for good or bad reasons. This is a prime example of commercial media thriving off of hype both positive & negative--and people just CONSUMING it.
This art inspired by John Carpenter's THEY LIVE is a commentary on this commentary on the commentary of Beyonce's Lemonade. It is the newest piece in my #CONSUME pop art series, which is a social commentary on greed, corruption, bigotry, racism, consumerism, materialism and narcissism in the age of the selfie.
[Prints of the tart are available here on Society6]
[Click here to see more of my CONSUME series]
The Punisher
Art Created by Karan Gupta on Creators.co
STAR WARS EPISODE VII | REY
Art created by Creator Pedro Fernandes on Creators.co
Stag Vader by Creator Gabriel Dishaw
Daenerys Doll by Creator Lelleco
Lord of the Rings Monopoly Board by Creator Sonja Batušić
Wood Burned Davy Jones by Creator Rick Merian
If Presidents Became Heroes and Villains: My Digital Defacing of Dollars
by Creator Allan Johnson
For years I've always been drawn to money art and knew eventually I would contribute to the trend. After leaving behind my graphite pencils back in early 2014, I made it my goal to start my digital art journey with some money makeovers. With the help of my Wacom tablet and Manga Studio 5 programmed on my MacBook Pro, popular heroes, villains, and other well-known fictional characters made their way to the bills in a digital fashion. Once I received the awesome feedback after the first couple of transformations, I made them available for prints on my site. For more of my artwork, feel free to browse my Instagram. Thanks for looking and hope you enjoy!
Return to the Melancholia Planet
by Creator Edvin Puzinkevich
CONSUME: POP CULTURE by Hal Hefner
CONSUME is a funny yet critical look at modern society through the eyes of John Carpenter's cult classic film, THEY LIVE, starring Roddy Piper. The whole concept behind this film is that blue skinned aliens secretly rule the world dressed up in human skin and posing as influential entertainment, political and media figures. These figures then manipulate the human race to be willingly enslaved by them. Roddy Piper's character Nada, leads a rebellion against these aliens by acquiring special sunglasses that allows people to see the aliens in their true form.
At heart, in the spirt of THEY LIVE, CONSUME is a social commentary on greed, corruption, narcissism, materialism, consumerism, hatred & bigotry. Below, please find a sample of some of my most prominent pieces from the CONSUME series, which has garnered recognition around the globe.
So put on your glasses and have some fun!
My work has a lot of influences, most of which developed while I was in college, and the year directly after. I really love video games, movies, art, and music. I would say my style developed from the exposure to all the artists I saw while in college. I am constantly trying to find new artists to get inspired by. Creator Daniel Shaffer
ROGUE ONE To be the Darkest Star Wars Film Yet!
Written by Creator Ryan Crain
As December 16th gets closer everyday, fans are speculating whether Darth Vader will be in the movie and if so, how much? Majority of the industry sources believe the greatest baddie of all time will be in the film and he will be ruthless. He is rumored to be extremely dark in this movie (even more so than in previous films), cutting off heads and killing Rebel scum with no remorse.
I think this is going to be the Star Wars film the die hard fans like me have been waiting for. Seeing how well Deadpool has done at the box office, I think the industry can now see their is a market for dark gritty films and that includes the Star Wars universe. But how dark the "Mouse" will let the film go is yet to be determined, but I sure hope they do it justice. Allowing these spin off films to be something the franchise movies can't be, due to the mass appeal of the saga.
This poster depicts the true darkness that lies within Vader, showing him as almost the grim reaper. As a die hard fan I hope they let him off the chain and really allow the Sith Lord to be truly evil & mercy less.
This was another great collaboration from Ryan Crain Design and Mark Edwards Photography.
Oh No! Looks Like Some of Our Favorite Movie Icons Have Fallen on Hard Times
I'm a photographer and street artist who travels the country placing my artwork on the streets for all to see. I am bit of a nerd when it comes to anything related to comic books, toys and movies. In this series, I photograph toys/action figures from my collection and make them appear as if they have fallen on hard times. While some can't get any more acting gigs, others resort to selling out to corporate America or just want to fit in. If you would like to see what I am currently up to you can check out my website here or find me on instagram @crummygummy.
Written by Creator Crummy Gummy
The Force Awakens in These Merry Old Fan Portraits of a Galaxy Far, Far Away
Now be honest: you know you've always craved seeing what Star Wars: The Force Awakens might've looked like in the early 1800s. No? Well, that's a shame, because now we can courtesy of The Real McGee on Tumblr.
Star Wars isn't the first series to be reimagined by McGee, nor will it likely be the last. McGee's work already spans the Dragon Age and Mass Effect series. Thanks to McGee, a galaxy far, far away never seemed so close to home.
The paintings below reflect the artistic style of England's Regency era according to McGee, a period which lasted from 1795 to 1837. If I didn't know any better, these portraits may very well have been staring back at us from a museum.
Warning: mild spoilers may follow for Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Rebels with a cause – and fine duds
Ah, Poe and Finn, Finn and Poe, how the Internet just loves to ship you so. And it's a fine ship that The Force Awakens' two strapping lads seem to be commanding here. We still don't know just how good Finn is with a proper sword in hand, but you couldn't ask for two finer space farers to be swabbing your poop deck.
A weapon for a more civilized age
A wise old hermit always did say that the lightsaber was a weapon from a more civilized age, and indeed it is in the hands of McGee's remarkably dashing Kylo Ren. Someone said the suit makes the man – and this suit certainly makes a fine young gentleman out of Kylo. So do the scars, no doubt.
I can't imagine Kylo ever posing long enough for a gentleman's portrait of this quality, but I can bet he'd have an easy time maintaining that same dour expression for a good week.
Do you want to build a lightsaber?
And we can't forget our swashbuckling leading lady, Rey. It would've been a much more difficult time for her running around in such a flowing dress, but McGee does an admirable job at painting her regal attire – though I doubt she could have found pearls on Jakku.
At a glance, I can't help but think she looks like she just stepped off the set ofPride and Prejudice and Zombies. Come to think of it, that movie would've been a lot shorter with a lightsaber or two.
McGee confirms that portraits for Captain Phasma and General Hux are on their way "as time allows" as well as another mystery character. I think we all know what to say to that.
Creators.Co: Here's What You Need To Know!
Creators.co is officially live! If you've been avoiding our subtle hints, perhaps this is the first you've heard of your new destination site for all things Creators. Allow me then to introduce you to your brand new platform, designed to help you create the best content, make connections with other like-minded fans, and easily collaborate on ideas and geeky projects.
Creators.co is the brainchild of moviepilot.com; we wanted to build you a new home dedicated to promoting fan-driven content. This platform is your place to post about ANY geeky topic or idea that you're passionate about; creators.co is expanding way beyond the confines of the movie world (although you can still post about movies if that's where your heart lies).
So whether you're a fan artist, a Youtuber, a theorist, or just someone looking for a creative outlet to share their ideas - creators.co welcomes you!
What's Coming?
We've mentioned before that we're building creators.co in stages. What you're currently looking at is Stage 1. In the coming days, weeks and months we will be building on top of this basic structure, adding new tools and article formats, features and exciting opportunities for everyone to get involved in.
What you can expect right away is more ways to connect with us (the Community Team) and one another, support and feedback layers, revenue opportunities ($$), writing courses, and better tools to create awesome content. Here's what we have for you so far:
Your new post editor is called the 'Canvas'; we've removed all of the unnecessary clutter and built a simple, yet powerful editor so you can focus on the task at hand: creating awesome content.
Creators Chat
Now you can find and connect with friends and fans without ever having to leave the site. Looking for fellow lovers of anime? Create a private group and add them to the chat! Want a little help with your latest article? Chat to your Community Team using the 'Community Support' channel. Just want to geek out about the Oscars? Start the conversation in the 'general' channel. You can private message the Creators Team and your fellow creators, too. Add images, GIFs, and video with ease, upload files and 'star' your important messages to store them for later.
Notifications, revamped!
From your dashboard you can either create an article by clicking on one of the format options (more coming very soon), or check out your latest notifications. These include your new followers, comments, promoted articles and general notifications from the Community Team with important updates.
Profiles
We're building 2 types of profiles: 1 updated version of our standard creator profiles, and Premium profiles for our Verified Creators.
Verified Creators
What's a 'Verified Creator', you ask? Check out this article which explores everything you need to know and how you can apply.
Questions?
If you have ANY questions about creators.co, or are experiencing any issues or bugs - please contact us at [email protected] or via our Community Support chat and we'll be happy to help you out.
How Marvel Knights: Spider-Man Is A Game Changer for Fan-Made Content
Greetings fine people of the internet! If you do not know who I am and happened to stumble across this article in a search for something "Spider-Man" or "Marvel" related, good to meet you. My name is John. There, now that introductions are out of the way, I have a bit of exciting news to bring. Almost a full year ago, a "Pilot Episode" Spidey Fan Film was released on YouTube courtesy of Made Legit Media. Soon after followed a teaser/trailer for a full-fledged web-series! If you haven't heard of, or seen it I encourage you to watch it here before moving forward in this article.
Did you watch it? Yes? No? Oh well, I shall continue regardless. Today, my friends, is the day that Episode One has graced the internet with its presence. It is definitely a "world establisher", but it is still wonderful nonetheless. It definitely stands as a beautifully shot and crafted piece of film.
Creator/Director Jesse Scimeca was able to accomplish what seems to be well on its way to something truly special. This project, moving forward appears as though it will be a game changer for fan-made content.
Why do I use the phrase "game changer"? Simply because in comparison to fan-endeavors of similar caliber, this in particular looks like it will follow a very thought-out, and well-put-together plot. For a not-for-profit Five Episodic Series I believe that this will indeed be something special for anybody who loves Spider-Man or superhero shows in general.
The quips and humor brought to life by actor Samuel Scimeca along with the emotion-driven grieving sequence at the end advance this even further. Added to the incredible sound design and cinematography by Jesse Scimeca, music by Braden Deal, and screenplay by yours truly, I would argue that this could be one of the truest adaptations of Spider-Man fans will have seen to date.
Episode Two will be arriving on YouTube in March! Let me know what you think about "Marvel Knights: Spider-Man" in the comments section below! I want to know what YOU think! Don't forget to subscribe to madeLEGITmedia on YouTube to stay up-to-date!
Written by Creator John Martin Maund
Adventure Time ladies by illustrator Creator Dayana Wischral