I made this video to help people distinguish between fake rabito phone cases and the real ones. I have a year of experience related to rabito, having worked with the designer: Mina Kwag. I have seen many variations of rabito cases. After the design first became popular, numerous companies produced similar rabbit-shaped cases as well as other animal cases (penguins, bears, cats, etc.) They continue to do so today. Some are direct copies, while others have their own unique characters. But I think it is important to acknowledge the starting point and original inspiration: rabitoTM.
Ms. Kwag pushed the limits of phone case design at the time. Why should all cases be flat and boring? Why should they have no personality? Why can’t they be more three-dimensional? She recognized the importance of personal expression in technology and that cell phones have increasingly become more life-like and precious to us, similar to a pet or a friend. Her design was both expressive and functional. The ears and tail have purpose. She continues to think progressively and has already released bold new designs. These new products may be less well-known in comparison to the rabbit-shaped case, but they push design limits in their own regard.
Ms. Kwag continues to envision and produce new designs with her talented, youthful team at rabito Co., Ltd. I feel fortunate to have been able to witness much of their creative process. I would not be surprised if one of her upcoming designs starts a new trend or changes the “rules” of personal expression once again.
FAQ:
Why does the speaker’s voice and accent change at the end of this video?
This is because the first part of the video was filmed in Vancouver, Canada and the final part was filmed in Seoul, South Korea. So there were two different models and two different narrators. I hope this also helps provide a more clear distinction between the rabito bling bling and other cases. I recommend the bling bling case the most, simply because it is the result of much testing to eliminate any problems from the the previous cases.
Are there any other ways to distinguish fake rabito cases?
Yes. Rabito Co., Ltd. currently only produces cases for the iPhone 4, 4s, and Samsung Galaxy S2. Cases for other phones are fake. Real case colors include: White, Black, Hot Pink, Baby Pink, Green, Yellow, Transparent Pink, and Transparent Black. Other case colors (e.g., red, brown, orange) are fake. Most cases sold from AMAZON or EBAY are also fake. If the contact info for the seller is from China, then it is fake. Rabito Co., Ltd. is located in South Korea.
Why don’t they make cases for more phone models?
Producing a new mold for a new phone shape is a very costly process. To cover the costs of producing the mold, they would have to sell hundreds of cases. So it is risky to produce cases for less popular phones. However, the design team is planning to release cases for other phones in the future.
What new designs can we expect from rabito Co., Ltd.?
I’m currently producing videos to showcase the new designs. But I can’t reveal details yet! They’re top secret.
This is the 7th and final video in my series of “How to be…(insert positive adjective)” videos for the rabito iPhone 4 case. It is the 2nd video to feature a rabito elemento case and the 2nd video to be filmed on my own Canon DSLR. (I borrowed cameras from friends for the previous videos). It is my 10th video for rabito Co., Ltd. I hope you enjoy it!
This video was filmed in Vancouver, Canada, over a period of 2 days in the summer of 2011. I feel quite fortunate to have been able to work actress/action superstar/gymnast: Ms. Momona Komagata. Not only is she talented and professional, but she is also kind, supportive, and easy-going. I said it at the audition and I will say it here it again: I really hope she succeeds in her acting career, because she certainly deserves it. You can learn more from her website: http://www.MomonaKomagata.com
For me, making this video has been a long journey. I imagined a story, researched yoga poses, printed out images, made a collage, and drew rabito next to the human figures. Then I posted a casting notice online and invited several actresses to an audition. Liz Cha and I (along with Mina Kwag, the rabito designer) selected Ms. Momona Komagata for the role. I took photos of the locations I was considering. We filmed in 2 locations and had a mini-photo shoot. Then the video remained untouched for about a month while I finished others. I printed out images from the video and brought those images on a visit to California, where I made notes about how to structure the video. These notes traveled back with me to Canada, and then to South Korea (together with the video footage). I edited this video on-and-off during the past 3 months. The version you see is my 5th final draft.
With each rabito video, I’ve tried to do things I have never done before in a film. It makes it every video a true challenge, but I also learn many things each time.
So is this my last video for rabito??? Certainly not. More videos are in the works and on their way! : )
My editing process is constantly evolving to become more efficient and precise. (I think I have learned a lot, but I still learn more every time!) I’m not going to say which editing software I use, because I think that question is not important. I feel the same way about cameras. Good videos and bad videos can come out of them; what matters is what you do with them. Choose the tool which you are most comfortable with using.
After learning how to use photoshop (not every feature) about 2 years ago, I became more picky about every frame of my videos. I treat them as moving images, each with their own value. If a shot exists ONLY for another shot, having no individual importance, I’ll probably delete it. Often this involves an internal struggle, as I may be very attached to that shot. But I’m getting better at letting go for the sake of the overall film.
I may start with the ending of the film and work backwards. Why? Because I care most about the “bookends”, the beginning and ending shots. Here’s a quick look at my process:
1. Watch all of the footage. Take notes. Choose the best takes of every shot.
2. Edit a rough cut, focusing only on order and pacing of video.
3. Revise. Trim. Try variations to try to improve the flow.
4. Sound editing. Balance audio levels, remove peaks and fill in the gaps, add sound effects (sometimes recording them myself). ADR/narration is sometimes involved in this stage.
5. Send rough cut to composer. Wait. Receive music and match to video. Make changes in timing (if necessary), add fading, and balance overall sound mix.
Throughout this entire process, I also show my work-in-progress to people whose opinion I respect (even if it differs from mine) to gain feedback. It still amazes me how often people underestimate the time and effort that goes into video editing. For me, each project is a major commitment. I’m not sure if this is interesting to anyone, but I felt like recording my thoughts.
While I was a student at UBC, I took a course called “Contemporary Korean Culture.” At the end of the course, the students had to write an essay about some aspect of modern Korean culture. I chose to write about the Animation Industry because I find it fascinating. It’s actually quite a huge industry, yet sadly it is not well known in the West. A few days ago, I even saw a High School here in Seoul which specializes in Animation. Ironically, many American cartoons are produced and drawn in Korea (both in 2D and 3D). Yet Korea also produces its own animated films, with stories and visual styles that differ from those made in the US or Japan. Yesterday, I went to the movie theatre to watch a new Korean animation.
As always, I love going to the movies in South Korea. You can reserve your seats in advance, pick up free brochures/posters in the lobby, and the rooms are clean and comfy. The audio and picture quality is crisp and clear. In this particular film, the vibrant colours were especially breath-taking, even from the last row. It was an entertaining and well-made film. Here is the trailer, with English subtitles.
For this video, we were lucky enough to capture a beautiful sunny day in Vancouver. I planned for the yellow rabito video to be filmed on a beach with an actress also wearing yellow. But the actual storyline changed 3 times. Though I would like to take credit for all of it, that would be dishonest. The beach ball and ping-pong ball addition was my Mother’s idea; she is responsible for making you laugh. (Eric Buelow was a true sport for doing multiple takes of that shot). For those of you with an eye for detail, the rabito tan line on the model’s midsection came from the mind of my friend, Lesley Liu. This idea was realized by Carmen Tse, a professional makeup artist. Her experience, knowledge, and warm personality made her the best choice for this unique task.
Finding the right swimsuit proved to a huge challenge! Yellow is not a popular swimsuit colour, and it tends to be a neon shade or mixed with other patterns and colours. But we wanted a bikini to match the rabito. FIVE different people shopped online or visited stores to try to find the right swimsuit. On the day before shooting, my friend Ju-Young Park helped me choose the bikini that you see in the video. I am grateful to her and to the 2 ladies working at “The Just Cruisin’ Shoppe” for their assistance.
Everyone worked together very efficiently and our filming finished ahead of schedule. It did take a few hours under the sun, so unfortunately a few of us were sunburned. I still remember Jenny Song (photographer) and Liz Cha (producer) hiding under the bounce board to avoid direct sunlight between takes. My crew is usually smarter than me.
The editing of this video took me many days. I learned more about image stabilization and rotoscoping through online research and experimentation. There were days when I just had to give up: my eyes became useless from exhaustion and my old methods weren’t working. But I would revisit the problem with fresh eyes the next day. My advice to other filmmakers is to take breaks from using the computer to think over the problems you’ve encountered. It’s also helpful to search online to see if other editors have encountered similar problems and found solutions.
Hope you all enjoyed the video and are looking forward to the next one! It’s for the green rabito.
So concludes our video series for the first 5 rabito case colours. Without a doubt, this particular video took the most time to complete. While most of the videos took only 1 day to film, “How to be Loyal” took 3 days. (Actually the 10-second rabito dance sequence was also filmed on 3 separate days).
The first day of filming for “How to be Loyal” was on February 15th, the day before I shot “How to be Sexy”. It was my first time to work with Liz Cha, whom I had wanted to work with after discovering her passion for acting. The day was successful and Liz did a great job. However, I was deeply dissatisfied with much of the footage. I felt like the story’s middle section and half of the shots weren’t engaging, and I couldn’t edit them together in a way that flowed. Around this time, I was able to meet with Andy Cheung and share my difficulties. He had wanted to work on the previous videos ever since we met at that start of the year to discuss ideas. But had been away from Canada and unable to join us until now. We met multiple times to plan and review footage. However, he was unable to attend Day 2 of our filming: May 23rd. This was actually my birthday!
Day 2 was an especially fun day of filming and Liz contributed greater emotional range to her character. I didn’t want to try to film too much in 1 day (my mistake on Day 1), so a third day was planned. Andy Cheung was our guest cinematographer for Day 3 (June 7th). While I had filmed using a Canon T1i, Andy Cheung used a Canon 5D. Both of us borrowed these cameras from our friends. On this day, Liz had only 1 scene in front of the camera, but she also helped us behind the scenes. Andy and I had many tricky shots planned involving rabito. A scene where a car drives by and splashes rabito was replaced by someone running by (my cameo) to get the best splash.
Even during the writing of the story, I knew I wanted to use part of the song “Angel” by my friend Alvin Pingol. The video you see here has gone through more than 10 different “final” drafts and much has been cut out. But Alvin’s song made it through all of those drafts. Sometimes such “digital surgery” is necessary to keep the story moving and focused. So please enjoy this video, as a great deal of work went into every aspect of it, including the tiny details. From the magazine Liz is reading in the first scene to the appearance of the grey rabito tail; many things were carefully planned to add more depth to the story.
Remember this line from the trailer: “Let’s finish this how we started… TOGETHER!”? Harry says this before embracing Voldemort as they leap over the edge of a cliff. Out of context, it sounds a lot like a line from a buddy-comedy. Maybe a hug was all Voldemort needed. If Harry could be saved by the power of love, why can’t Voldemort?
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (2011) is visually more impressive than all of its predecessors. It’s also nice to see how much the three main actors have improved in their emotional range, believability, and expressiveness on screen. In terms of the story, don’t expect anything very different. All of the films are based on the books of one author: J.K. Rowling, and the screenwriter (Steve Kolves) has also been the same on all of the films, except for the 5th. Your opinion of Harry Potter probably won’t change from the start to the end of this film.
The Deathly Hallows Part 1 was incredibly dark, moody, slow, and boring (in my humble opinion). It was basically a lengthy first act to set up this film: a very long second act with a brief conclusion. I remember reading the 7th book and imagining the epic battle scenes. I’m sure the author was envisioning a film version as well when she was writing. This film does deliver plenty of action, apparently derived mostly from Amusement Parks, as the characters frequently get drenched in water (when they’re not being chased by fire).
The audience I saw the film with applauded at the end. However, I heard complaints afterwards too. During several scenes that seemed meant to be taken seriously, the audience broke into laughter at the cheesiness or the oddness of these moments. But perhaps we’ve come to expect too much from these films.
Harry Potter’s world is certainly an intriguing one to bring to the screen, but I think the narratives themselves work better in book format. Although they are usually referred to as works of Fantasy, I think these stories are essentially Mysteries. There is always that moment at the end of the mystery, where the detective explains how the mysterious events took place, answering all of our questions. In Film or Television, it is usually more interesting to show these events then simply describe them. Alas, this series is dialogue-driven and much of the plot is furthered simply by people talking to teach other. They can magically transport to most places, which gives them even MORE time to talk. It’s a lot like watching a play with changing sets and lots of pyrotechnics.
These stories grapple with an important and timeless issue: human mortality. (Harry is “the boy who lived.” Voldermort means “Flight of Death” or “Cheater/Stealer of Death” in French). Harry learns about sacrifice, life, and death. If this had been a series of classical Chinese novels, the heroic Harry would have already sacrificed himself for the good of others and the story would be following another character. But following in the Western Tradition (or the Hollywood tradition), Harry remains our protagonist and the character of greatest importance. This has always somewhat annoyed me, because I find him to be one of the least interesting characters. He seems to exist by necessity. Uh oh… maybe I’m starting to sound like Voldemort?
Alan Rickman as “Snape” steals the show in this movie once again. His performance in each film significantly affects the tone, as he freely wanders from comedic to darkly dramatic.
This film is good, but not great. The kind of craftsmanship that went into the Lord of the Rings books and films far surpasses Harry Potter in terms on complexity and depth. But I do give J.K. Rowling credit for inspiring many young people to discover the joy of reading. Let’s hope the films don’t kill the books.
I give this movie 5 out of 5 stars. It was THAT good. Within 1 minute after the film began, I was already smiling. Both kids AND adults in the theatre laughed a lot throughout the movie. There was applause at the end. This is the kind of film that you take your loved ones and friends to see, because you want to share the experience together. I plan to go again. Here’s a short clip of one funny scene:
In a time of overly elaborate and expensive IN-YOUR-FACE 3D animation, “Winnie the Pooh” is a refreshing throwback to classic 2D animation. Yet the film still pushes boundaries of the film/animation medium. For example, the way the characters interact with pages and words of the book they exist within is something I’ve never seen before.
The voice actors aren’t people whose faces you will know, (except maybe for John Cleese, but he is the offscreen narrator). I think that’s a good thing. These voice actors are experienced and talented professionals. Winnie the Pooh AND Tigger are voiced by the same man: Jim Cummings, who has voiced hundreds of animated characters. Tom Kenny, the voice of SpongeBob SquarePants, performs the voice of “Rabbit”. Bud Luckey, a Disney/Pixar animator who provided the voice of “Chuckes the Clown” in Toy Story 3 among others, voices Eeyore. The casting of the voices was perfect, and it adds a lot to these already expressively drawn characters.
Do you need to be familiar with the characters or the books to enjoy this film? No. The characters are easily relatable; you feel as if you’ve known them all your life. We all know someone who’s often depressed or negative, or someone who thinks they’re a genius… and sometimes that person is us! Pooh is a slow-witted character with a good heart: a character people naturally love. He wants to do the right thing, but his struggles make us laugh.
The plot is simple, in a good way. It remains interesting because the characters make choices that surprise us. It’s a wonderful escape from the problems of “the world of Grown-Up’s”, yet still representative of that world too. There are valuable moral lessons to be learned in this story, as there were in the original books.
This short video advertisment for the film is an example of one such positive message. I recommend sharing it with someone you love.
Note: The film opens with an animated short about Scottish Folklore and the Loch Ness Monster. (It’s a cute monster in this version). Also, stay through the end credits. There is an amusing scene at the end!
I’d like to talk about a film released today: “Snow Flower Falling on Cedars”. I’m sorry, I confused the title with: “Snow Falling on Cedars” (1999), which shares one of the same screenwriters. Let me try again. Today I watched: “Curse of the Golden Snow Flower”. Nope. There I go again, this time confusing it with another Chinese film aimed at a Hollywood audience: “Curse of the Golden Flower” (2006). The correct title is above, but it’s long. I think “Snow Flower” or “The Secret Fan” would have been sufficient.
I went to see this film because it contains four things that interest me: Chinese History, Current Chinese Life, Women, and a Beautiful Korean Actress. Yes, the film stars Gianna Jun, 전지현: star of “My Sassy Girl” (2001), who despite being born in 1981, can still somehow convincingly play a High School student! It also stars Bingbing Li, 李冰冰, born in 1973, looking a little bit mature as a High School student. However, I won’t deny that both women are beautiful.
The film is based on a book of the same name. Both tell the story of 2 women in 19th century China that form a lifelong friendship. The film differs in one major aspect. It was an ambitious choice by the screenwriters, producers, and director to include an additional parallel storyline, taking place in present day Shanghai. As a result, the 2 lead actresses play dual roles in different time periods. While both of them handle this challenge with ease, the film’s editor clearly has trouble linking both stories. The screen fades to black dozens of times in this movie. It would have been nice to see more shots lead into each other.
The 19th century story is also far more interesting and dramatic than the modern-day tale, which is essentially a TV soap opera. (One of the protagonists ends up in a coma from a car crash in the opening scene. This acts as a catalyst to bring them back together, so the other protagonist can cry, reminisce, and fill in all of the plot holes with narration. If this accident had happened later in the film, I might have felt more empathy, since by then we start to know the characters).
Halfway through the film, I started to suspect that Gianna’s voice had been dubbed over by another voice actress. Her Mandarin sounded too much like a native speaker, and the audio quality/background noise even seemed to change sometimes when she spoke. I wonder if viewers who don’t speak Mandarin will notice this as well? It’s a surprising fault for a movie of this size, but Mandarin isn’t an easy language to learn rapidly before a film. Gianna does have one scene where she speaks in Korean with her character’s father in the modern story, and it is an acting gem. Both she and Li Bingbing excel at conveying emotion through their eyes, subtle movements, gestures, posture, and facial expressions. The child actors in the film are also quite engaging, though they have little screen time.
Overall, the quality of the film is very inconsistent, with some scenes being quite artistic and others feeling very unnatural. This is reflected mostly in the shot composition, dialogue, and staging of the actors. The plots of both stories become too similar, and the original story doesn’t adapt well to modern Shanghai. It makes you wish you could see these 2 talented actresses in a less jumbled and melodramatic story. And from what I heard of audience reactions: the book is better than the film. Seeing this film on the big screen isn’t necessary; rent it if you’re still interested.
SPOILER ALERT: This is another 2011 summer movie with a memorable surprise cameo by Hugh Jackman. In this film, the lucky Wolverine gets to kiss Gianna Jun, and also attempts to sing in Mandarin!