I caught the YouTube video of the Space X - Falcon 1 spacecraft. The first privately developed spacecraft to orbit the Earth. I ripped the video to a quicktime, and edited it in Adobe After Effects. I took a cue from Pink Floyd’s Echoes to give it that ethereal feel, I can’t get enough of that song. If you notice, the choir sings their ghostly tune just as the rocket booster is heating up. It just so happened to line up that way. Enjoy.

[ CGS: Live - Podcast Variant Vertical Composition ]

Currently, I’m freelancing for ‘theCGS‘ - they are in the middle of developing a web-show based around their gaming league and players. I was tasked to develop the branding for the show, then apply that look and feel to a motion graphics show package design and eventually a web site.

Below is an initial sketch of a bunch of logo ideas I came up with.

[ Initial Logo Concepts ]

The Basque are a Northern-Spain / Southern-France region of peoples who consider themselves neither Spaniards nor French. I randomly came upon a numbering system used by millers.

I was immediately fascinated by the graphical / visual nature of the numbering system. It all seems fairly logical, and easy to ‘add up’ - so to speak. A cool idea would be to make a concert poster with the number information displayed this way with a ‘legend’ or ‘key’ on the corner of the poster / invitation.

I came up with the ‘Connect Four’ idea a few years ago. I remember reading news articles about Syria, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan & Lebanon. I thought to myself, “hmm, wouldn’t it be funny if all of these country’s were in a line, like tic-tac-toe or connect four?”

So I look up a map of the middle east, lo and behold the 4 country’s are lined up geographically! I’m like “HOLY SHIT! That’s hilarious!” - So I thought it would be funny to take the audio of the old school 80s commercial and animating the four country’s being gobbled up by the war on terrorism. It makes logical sense, if you build an oil pipeline across the four contry’s, there’s no need to go around Africa, thereby making things a helluva lot more efficient.

That turned out to be too daunting for me to tackle, in terms of animation know-how and my own personal self-doubt. Cut to a few years later, after having met someone with the same passion & fascination with typography & graphic-design, inspired me to start drawing and illustrating. I decided to pair down the animation and illustrate a frame with the same idea.

Everything came together a lot easier than I anticipated, the whole process was a blast and I can’t wait to start on the next piece in the series. Below is a progression of how I refined the piece down.

[ Initial Concept Sketch ]

[ Refined Line Art & Initial Composition ]

[ Initial Color Sketch ]

[ Tweaking Colors & Composition ]

At this point, I felt like the composition was working, but something was lacking. I didn’t like the colors, it felt ‘dead’ to me. There was a certain jovial sense of celebration the initial concept sketch had that this current version of the piece did not. I considered shelving it and just moving on to some other project, but I decided to buckle down and see if I could get a finished piece out of it. I realized I hadn’t drawn out the dollar bills festively flying through the air! I sketched out the dollar bills over a cup of coffee and laid them in. Presto! The ol’ man now had a reason for his, ‘hallelujah’ brother!

[ 2nd to last Final Piece ]

I Added some texture overlays in Photoshop, I originally had them in Illustrator, but I thought that if you scale down the texture overlays, they get all blurry and you ‘lose’ the organic noise of it all. So I decided to comp it in Photoshop.

At this point, I called the piece ‘done’ and decided to move on. I posted a printed piece up next to my desk and something about it still felt, ‘off’ to me. I still felt the original sketch had a certain, “jovial” celebration that this one still lacked.

It’s almost like the punchline is in the middle instead of at the end. After having spent a few days mulling it over…

[ Re-Worked Layout ]

I decided to lay out the elements more along the lines of the original sketch.I feel this is a lesson in, “blink” - first gut instinct thinking. The original layout had the kicker at the end. Now I feel like I’ll need to give this a few days and see how I feel about it later on.

My first instinct on quotes of love are that they’re sappy, mushy and overly-romantic. I felt compelled to chronicle this piece, because it speaks of love so simply and most importantly, realistically.

Clearly, running my own fan club shows I’m no stranger to narcissism. In these contemporary, rush, rush, rush times, we’re constantly looking for that - what can you do for me? type ‘instant fix.’ I do not discount myself from the group. Plastic persona’s are a fact of life, this quote cuts through all of that bullshit.

This quote shows what love truly is all about, the moment you think about that person, they make you take a step back and you’re truly grateful to have met someone who you know for a fact is just as ‘real’ of a human being as you are.

[ Luis on his Motorcycle a day before the accident ]

“No broken bones!” Is the phrase I keep repeating to myself as I pop up from the asphalt as if I’m rooting for “No Wammys!” on that 80s game show, rotating limbs to check for anything broken or hurt.

It may sound cliche, but it definitely holds true, “it all happened so fast.” I was merging around a group of cars when the lead car merges into my lane and hits their brakes.

I’m giving it throttle when I realize I’m not going to be able to get myself out of this situation. I buckle down and grab a fistful of brake, preparing to screech to a panic stop.

Not a moment goes by and I find myself sliding on the pavement at 40 mph. My first thought is, “How the hell did I get here?”

I see my motorcycle bouncing, writhing in pain right in front of me and I’m cursing myself for having dropped my bike. “Damn it! I dropped the bike!” Is all I think to myself while sliding along, as if this happens ALL the time.

That’s when I realized there was an SUV behind me. I look behind me and there’s a gray Jeep Grand Cherokee hurdling towards me. Luckily it’s already slowing down.

As I’m checking for any broken bones, a group of people rush towards me all asking if I’m alright. “I’m O.K! No broken bones!” Is all I can muster at the moment.

“We thought you were surely dead! We weren’t expecting to find anyone inside the helmet when we came running up!” WOW! That’s when I started to panic, I was in such a state of shock I started to think perhaps it had been more serious than I originally made it out to be.

A few of the guys grab my motorcycle and wheel it to the side of the road. I look at my clothes as I’m walking to the sidewalk and realize it looks like I’ve gone through a shredder. My shirt, Chuck’s, and jeans are in complete tatters.

I felt the need to create some normalcy to the situation so I started introducing myself to everyone, “Hi how are you? My name is Luis, what’s your name?” People looked at me like I had had a concussion, but I was trying to keep myself sane by focusing on something other than the fact that I had just almost killed myself.

Everyone really pulled together and looked out for me, completely random people too. I wasn’t even a half a block down the street from where I live. I had just pulled out of my driveway.

This great couple who will remain nameless as I feel they may want to be seen as good samaritans and nothing more, definitely took me under their wing. They insisted on taking me to an urgent care center, taking many hours out of their Saturday afternoon to make sure I was given the A-OK.

In fact, while I was being checked out, the doctor at the urgent care center asked if I wanted him to talk to my family members outside. I just rolled with it and said, “yes, that would be great.” The doctor was surprised to find out they were random people who picked me up on the side of the street.

On the way back from the urgent care center, the woman in the couple asked to have me touch the ‘ten-ner’ she had so she could put it down on 10 california lottery quickpiks.

I’ll have road rash for the next 6-9 months, but hey, I don’t want to die without any scars.

[ WARNING ] Graphic Images on Next Page

Taliesin West - Scottdale, AZ.

Frank Lloyd Wright

Firstly, a little primer on Frank Lloyd Wright. Born in Oak Park, Illinois on June 8th, 1867. A completely self taught architect. Lover of sports cars, fiercely independent, critical thinker, hilariously arrogant and giant ego. Playboy & yo-yo champ. The man was awesome.

Taliesin in Wisconsin

After a few reoccurring bouts with pneumonia in the harsh winters of Wisconsin, his doctor asked him to no longer spend his winters at his studio and home then nicknamed, “Taliesin“. Later to be nicknamed Taliesin East. He decided to look for land in warmer climate.

Having already spent a few weeks in Scottsdale for a commission on a hotel in 1939 when Scottsdale had a mere 250 residents. He bought roughly 120 acres for $4.00 an acre 12 miles north of Scottsdale. When word was heard that he expressed interest in buying land there, prices shot up to $16.00 an acre. He came away with roughly 640 acres.

Ol’ Franky had 3 wives and a mistress or so. Allegedly, the mistress was the wife of a client. His last wife, Olgivanna Milanov was the one who inspired him to invite young people out to his house and watch him work. He said he disliked young people, She responded he could use their young vigor as manpower for his projects around the compound. That decision set the course for what we have today.

His welsh mother is to credit for the “Taliesin” name, literally meaning “Gleaming Brow,” Therefore, Taliesin West was built at the “brow” of the hill, about a 1/3 of the way up the hillside, because Frank Lloyd Wright thought that if a house is built up on the top of the hill, the hill is lost forever, no longer blending into its natural surroundings and sense of organic intermingling with its environment.

Meeting Room for Clients

First thing I noticed when I started taking in the look and feel of the architecture was the feeling of modern Japanese pagoda’s out in the Arizona desert.

Frank Lloyd Wright never being a wealthy man, always spending more than he made, but being a creative genius, used as cheap of materials as he could find. Using the rocks and stones on his own land and eager youngsters to work them.

First thing to take note is the roof. They’re detachable pieces of canvas. In fact, the entire compound, except for a few key buildings (storage and such) can be broken down and “given back to the desert” as it was every spring when Frank Lloyd Wright was in his heyday in the 40s through the 50s. No night watchman was ever hired. It was literally abandoned every spring.

There were no glass in the windows until his wife finally pleaded enough for him to change his mind. He thought glass was expensive, and it removed you from the elements. She didn’t want sand in her sandwich.

Secondly, all the doorways are unnaturally small and awkward. He was using a theory called, “compression / expansion.” According to him, one should not linger in doorways and hallways, so you should be compressed in these spaces and open up to something grandiose. Which he did every time in every building and room.

The Grand Room

Lastly, abstract triangles forms are definitely a reoccurring theme throughout the architecture and interior design. Back in 1939, this was one of the first applications of a contemporary “living room / den” Some people may say this room has a timeless quality to it. I think it looks more like 1970s to me, but it could be the yellow shag carpeting.

Stage View of the Auditorium

Every apprentice studying at the school was expected to be practiced in the arts and be a well-rounded artist. Concerts, plays, and formal dining events occurred often at the compound and encouraged the students to delve into more than just architecture. In keeping with the theme of the buildings being able to be easily broken down, the seats were just cushions laying on a bed of cement.

Theater Seats

Movie Theater

This movie theater was the first documented interpretation of track lighting to show patrons to their seats. It was a hexagonal room in order to not have any right angles which would dampen the acoustics of the room.

His Bedroom

Frank Lloyd Wright was such a consummate designer he even devised a system for his sleeping priority. If he were sleeping on the right hand side of the bed, he would be napping and be able to be disturbed, if he were sleeping on the left, he would wish to remain undisturbed.

His Bathroom

This bathroom is the first documented application of stainless aluminum used in bathrooms. It was selected for its modern aesthetic appeal, and is definitely what is being used nowadays, way back in 1939.

Sculpture Garden

Always being the staunch independent, he decided to not have ugly power lines constructed out to his compound, instead he had generators on site and even struck water at 400 feet deep. He achieved what most creative types would ever want. A self-sustainable art colony. I have been forever changed by the notion that this was once possible, and achieved by one man’s will.

Adium

Being that I used to work for G4tv and Attack of the Show, I get a ton of 14 year old fans of G4 adding me on MySpace.

I got tired of ignoring them or sending them tersely worded MySpace messages about how it’s not in my personal MySpace policy to add people I don’t know…so I just started adding them instead. My how times have changed, This is my latest random IM’er.

r_e_4: dude who is this anyway and why r u my friend???
Hurtado: huh?
Hurtado: http://www.myspace.com/xjohnnybbadx
r_e_4: who r u???? whats ur name???
Hurtado: if you dont want to be my friend feel free to delete me i have no idea who you are either
r_e_4: lol ok well whats ur name???
Hurtado: click on the link, it’ll explain everything
r_e_4: um okkkk
Hurtado: Luis Hurtado
Hurtado: if you’re too lazy to click on the link
r_e_4: nope dont know u at all nvm
Hurtado: right…this has been splendid
Hurtado: i take it you’re about 12 years old?
r_e_4: lol thought u were someone i actually new
r_e_4: um no bro im 17!
Hurtado: oh well then! excuse me mr. senior citizen
r_e_4: fuk u dude suk it asswipe!
Hurtado: …too easy.
r_e_4: there a reason u have 2 be a total fukker 2 people askin you who u are???
r_e_4: how old r u???12???
Hurtado: lol you’re the one that was antagonistic
Hurtado: from the get go
Hurtado: i’m 26…you probably added me because you’re a fan of G4, or Attack of the Show
Hurtado: and now you dont know who i am
r_e_4: no not really just askin who u were dude….but u had 2 be a dick about it and say im like 10 yrs old do i fukkin sound 10???? no i dont u r a fukkin nerd and u r never gonna get laid!!!
Hurtado: lol.
Hurtado: you sound 10, the way you write.
r_e_4: u probably sit on your ass all day and fuck with lil kids on da compouter u fukkin kid molester
Hurtado: you messaged me!!
r_e_4: so eat shit mother fucker!!!
Hurtado: lol. thanks for the tip maestro.
r_e_4: and your not 26 your fuckin 45 and still a virgin!!!
Hurtado: oh you’re so right….
r_e_4: you get your sick pleasures from masturbating to lil boys who like dirtbikes
Hurtado: oh sweet, you like dirt bikes?
Hurtado: do you ride?
r_e_4: i know im fuckin right
r_e_4: ya see ya fukkin sicko!!!
r_e_4: im probably bigger than you and u touch my junk ill beat u lil beaner fukkin ass or what the fuck ever
Hurtado: lol. you’re so self-righteous. how does it feel to be so delusional?
Hurtado: ooof…you don’t have to get racist
Hurtado: that’s just uncool.
r_e_4: you dont even know how 2 spell dilussional!!!! dumb fuck!!!
Hurtado: lol, i think you’re the one who misspelt it
Hurtado: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delusion
r_e_4: suck it bro leave me the fuck alone!!!!
Hurtado: ok, bye!
have fun being a fucktard your entire life. dont get any girls pregnant because i don’t want you procreating. later!

During the holidays Smorgasbord Productions asked me to help them out with their Flash cartoon. Much props goes out to Smorgasboard for pulling it all off in such a short period of time.

Credits:
Casey Schreiner: Writer
Mike Shaw: Producer
Dahveed Kolodny-Nagy: Animation Director