Alfian Sa'at analyses this year's National Day Parade theme song video

This is hilarious! Singaporean writer, poet and playwright, Alfian Sa'at analyses the music video of Love At First Sight, this year's NDP theme song:

1) The whole video is shot with pastel palettes beloved of high-end condo ads. There's genteel lens flares, hazy light through white curtains and panoramic shots of the kinds of views that 1% of Singaporeans enjoy.

2) We see the two singers at the beginning--Olivia Ong and Natanya Tan--with their backs facing each other. Not sure why this estranged posture, but it could be inspired by the Merlion and the baby Merlion--whose backs are also facing each other--at the Merlion Park. Quite nationalistic.

3) We see a couple, just rousing in bed, making eye contact. They're wearing quite thick clothing (the woman also wears smearproof makeup, because her pillows and sheets are pristine white) and are smothered in a duvet. It is obvious that they sleep with the aircon on. And it's OK because whatever carbon footprint this wasteful couple leaves behind is offset by the fact that there's a lot of nature shots (reservoirs, greenery, dewdrops) in the video.

4) We next see a girl, in a reclining chair. She could be Indian, or Malay...or maybe Indian-Muslim...or whatever, the token minority box is checked. Next!

5) The next shot is of a guy, holding a guitar, and penning the lyrics to a song. By the way, the girl in the previous shot was also writing something (poetry, maybe?) in her notebook. Singaporeans are so creative and inspired!

 6) We see the couple again, and they're having a playful pillowfight. Are they not creative? They probably were, the night before, but you can't show *that* in the video.

7) We next see another token minority--a guy, this time, at a park, with his laptop. He spots something in the distance and closes his laptop. This something is an old Chinese man, who has brought along his pet bird, in its birdcage. The guy asks the old man what he is doing. "Oh, I am teaching my bird to read this information plaque here." The guy replies "I, on the other hand, am trying to get Wifi connection in this park." The old man says, "What a strange person you are," and the guy replies, "You too!" The two lonely eccentrics bond.

8) Poet girl walks across the frame, and in the background, an LRT carriage travels across an elevated track. At the same pace at which she walks. Which should be about right.

9) Wasteful couple decide to 'see how other people in Singapore live' and thus visit a wet market.

10) If you thought the park scene was bizarre, this next scene raises the bar. We see the Singapore skyline at night, and then we realise it's an image in a crystal ball. Two young women are looking at it. They're in some kind of a library/study, and they've switched on lamps and lit candles. What kind of occult shenanigans is going on? Who are these wiccans with rebonded hair? What ill-will do they harbour towards the Central Business District? Or is this just the future of HDTV?

More here.

Join us at the Fabulous You Audition and you could be a star in our show and its TVC!

Come to Cathay Cineleisure Orchard (Level 5) at 12.30pm tomorrow (Saturday) and be a part of the new web TV reality show that I'm directing called Fabulous You and its TVC. Casting is open to anyone who wishes to lose weight and look fabulous!

Go to the Fabulous You Casting Call page on Facebook to fill up the form. Or you can email me at izreloaded at gmail dot com with the following details: Name, Age, Height, Weight, Occupation and a recent photograph. Or you can just head over to Cineleisure (Level 5) on the actual casting day.



Watch the judges photoshoot and audition promo video!

Our 3 judges, Mr Singapore 2010 Kevin Chiak, Miss Singapore Intercontinental 2011 Valentane Huang and martial artist and TV celebrity Vincent Ng will be picking 3 contestants to go through a journey with us to slim down, look beautiful and feel fabulous! At the end of the 8 episode series, 1 of the 3 contestants will win the crown and walk away with 12 months worth of services, valued up to SGD20,000!!!

Fabulous You is produced by R3LOAD Network for Fabulous Group. It is directed by yours truly and hosted by Sabrina Wang.

R3LOAD Network (pronounced as Reload Network) is a unique hybrid web TV network and a full-service viral video agency and online branded entertainment production studio that combines creativity and technical know-how to produce, distribute, market and track branded video content and viral videos for companies that want to engage their customers and generate buzz about their services and products on emerging new media platforms.

Mother dolphin carries dead baby on her back

Watch this video of a heart-broken Chinese White dolphin mom carrying her dead baby dolphin into the sea. The baby dolphin has a 30 cm long wound along its abdomen. The dead calf slipped off its mother's back several times but the dolphin mom would dive down and lift the baby onto its back as it continued swimming forward.

(via R3LOAD.net)

The Dark Knight Rises starring voices of Batman: The Animated Series

The Dark Knight Rises trailer featuring the original voice talent from the 1990's Batman: The Animated Series. Yes that's Kevin Conroy, the original voice for the Batman cartoon, doing the voice for Christian Bale's Bruce Wayne/Batman!

(via R3LOAD.net)

PM Lee please save me! Someone's trying to rape me!

A viewer calls Channel 8's talk-show 'Hello, Good Morning!' and shocks everyone by asking Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to save her: "PM Lee, please save me, somebody is trying to rape me!" Check out the stunned look on the faces of the hosts.

Star Wars collection for sale on eBay only for Singaporeans

Singaporean dude is clearing his personal Star Wars toy collection at a very reasonable starting bid of only $199 on eBay! Up for auction are 55 Star Wars Premium figures & items. The collection has been kept in temperature-controlled, clean storage since production. Auction is only for Singaporeans.

Post Apocalyptic Art of Singapore and other cities in ruins

Jonas De Ro is a Concept Artist at Warner Brothers. Over at his deviantART site, he paints apocalyptic images of cities such as Dubai, Toronto, Hong Kong and Singapore in ruins. Pictured here is his Singapore Ruins art. You can easily spot the very run down Marina Bay Sands.

(Thanks Mr Big)

Eco-amp is environmentally friendly iPhone speaker

Eco-amp is a truly environmentally friendly iPhone speaker amplifier that is sold in flat packages. Made out of recycled paper, it is easily assembled and used on the fly to amplify the music in your iPhone. It is highly durable and can fold up even after being assembled.

(Thanks TwelvePacks)

Mechs vs Humans game predict the future of human race

It is the year 2112. Rogue service robots called Mechs have declared war on the human race. The Mechs have created drones called Meaters build to hunt down and destroy all humans. Your mission is to destroy all Mechs and Meaters before they destroy you. Go play the game. It's quite fun but you need to be quick!

Nifty MiniDrive is a quick way to increase Macbook memory

The Nifty MiniDrive is an easy to use device that allows anyone to quickly and simply increase the available memory in their MacBook computer. Each MiniDrive is designed to fit securely into the SD slot and will sit completely flush with the body of the MacBook, becoming a semi permanent part of your computer.

Dragon Skateboards don't breath out fire but are damn cool

AE Skateboards make skateboards that combine traditional Norwegian woodcraft. Their Dragon Skateboards are inspired by Norse mythology and incorporate dragons carved out of birch-wood. I can see skateboard makers elsewhere incorporating woodcraft designs of other mythology creatures into their skateboards too.

Thomas The Tank Engine Pre-Cut Model Books

W. Awdry’s The Railway Series Pre-Cut Model Engine Books contain a story and the parts and instructions for making Thomas The Tank Engine toys out of the card. Characters and stories from the books formed the basis of the children's television series Thomas and Friends.

Back To The Future II Hoverboard Birthday Cake

Small Town Girl Bakery makes this incredible Back to The Future II birthday cake. The cake features the hoverboard made popular by Michael J Fox in the movie and his Nike shoes which unfortunately does not come with automatic shoe-laces.

(Thanks GeekGod)

Illustrated catalogue of the 68 competitive designs for the Great Tower for London

Inspired the the Eiffel Tower in Paris, a company was formed in UK back in 1890s to look at the possibility of building a similar tower for London. They then invited designs to be submitted for this tower. You can take a look at all 68 competitive designs for the Great Tower for London.

Listen to the entire Dark Knight soundtrack

The folks at Empire magazine have a special treat for all Batman fans! Go to their site and you can listen to The Dark Knight soundtrack by Hans Zimmer in its entirety! Zimmer is one of my favourite film composers. He also did the soundtrack for the previous 2 Batman films.

Epic-scale action comic Telikos Protocol looks breathtaking

Go back Peter Cooper and Adam Burn's project on Kickstarter. The writer-artist team based in the United Kingdom is creating a comic book called Telikos Protocol with an epic-scale, action-intensive storyline spanning from the vast underground cities across Earth to the far-flung reaches of space, all rendered in dramatic digital artwork.

Life as a Secretary in 1960's Playboy Magazine

Jessica interviews her mother about life as a secretary at Playboy magazine in 1960s New York City: "Sexual overtones were in the air, like breathing. It was the culture, not just at Playboy. Women were objects of desire, period. However, this was the office of a highly successful magazine and we were expected to work well and professionally and we all did."

How to make an Altoids Tin Pocket Abacus

Here's how you can make a pocket abacus from an empty Altoids tin: "This abacus will have 9 columns (9 digits). You can calculate up to 9,999,999.99 if you use decimals, or up to 999,999,999 if you only use whole numbers. For this you will need to poke 9 holes, to string 9 wires."

(Thanks Albert)

Official Handbook of Marvel Universe Reduxe Edition

The Official Handbook to the Marvel Universe REDUXE Edition invites a select group of cartoonists and artist to recreate every single character entry in the original Official Handbook to the Marvel Universe (Deluxe Edition) in their own inimitable style. This version of Thor is done by Erica Henderson.

(Thanks AgentC237)

Star Wars Theater rivals George Lucas' own LucasArts Ranch

Some very passionate Star Wars fans have constructed their very own Star Wars theater in their home! Designed to appear like the command deck of the Death Star, the theater comes complete with three rows of seating and life sized Star Wars characters such as C-3PO, Boba Fett and Han Solo frozen in carbonite.

Captain America and Batman Hooded Backpacks

Now you can carry your backpack and dress up as your favourite superhero at the same time! Hot Topic is selling this Captain America backpack that comes with a matching hood. Also available is the Batman backpack with a hood and Bat ears!

(Thanks Vincent)

Loki Cupcake so delicious, even Hulk will not smash it

Ant likes superheroes and she bakes. So it's not surprising that she did this delicious Loki Cupcake! She writes: "Loki’s helmet is made from 24 separate fondant pieces, and took over 3 days to put together. It’s pretty screen accurate- besides it being edible! His horns are actually carved pieces of fondant that started as solid rectangles."

Transformer-style Wine Rack made from car parts

Standing at 6 feet tall and weighing approx 1,000lbs, this awesome Transformer Wine Rack made from used transmission parts from automobiles and motorcycles, can carry 32 wine bottles! And it looks extremely bad ass of course. More pics here. No mention how much it costs but I reckon it will not be cheap.

How to make a Star Wars Stormtrooper Pimp Cake

Kristy shows us how she made this Stormtrooper Pimp Cake for her husband who loves Stormtroopers. She writes: "To make the Stormtrooper, I was inspired by the fortune cookie sitting on the counter. Basically, I covered it with a ball of fondant and made sure to build upon it, shaping it along the way."