It was quite the curious coincidence seeing Fred and his TotalNY co-horts at Jamie's party, considering I just saw them all on Thursday night, March 5, at the "Let's raise a toast to a fine job done but we're closing" party at the Screening Room after John Borthwick killed Total NY, ada'web and The Spanker. Despite this shocking news, most people seemed politely at peace with life's lot they were just dealt. (At least to me they were polite). They should be very proud of all the fine work they all produced and it is sad to see such a mainstay and cornerstone of Silicon Alley go the way of the cobweb.
Some people say its just the cost of doing business, some say its the way things go, but I say its a shame when big gorrillas like AOL and ICON can't find a way to keep valuable interesting content alive on the web.
And yet, in the face of all this, Clay Shirky produced a fabulous new initiative to gather and foster Animators in new media. The Animators Ball, on Thursday March 5th in the Digital Sandbox at 55 Broad Street was a smashing success by almost all accounts. Many excited people showed up and enjoyed themselves thanks to a handful of generous sponsors including InterActivity Magazine. Microwaves were set up for cooking sausages, popcorn, Mexican burritos, good cheap bar, and tables everywhere covered in paper and marked up with artists' creations. Computers and monitors displayed some animators works including Brad Paley with his (in)famous Monkey (as also seen in Wired). Clay said that he wants to build on the momentum of the Ball, and has have three projects going forward. Keep posted at my Upcoming Events section and on the Animators Ball website of future goings-on. http://www.AnimatorsBall.org
(Appeared originally in @The Scene in the @NY newsletter)
A chronicle of the people and events in technology, internet and media since 1997, mixed in with snapshots of musings and observations.
