Kim Schmitz. Billionaire, Computer Programmer, Businessman, Call of Duty Champion, Racing Driver and now prisoner.

Schmitz is the founder of the now FBI seized, Megaupload website. The website started in 2005 and quickly became the 13th most popular site on the internet. It hosted and payed uploaders for film and television material. This was free to watch by whole world, the only caveat being if you wanted to watch more than 72 minutes, a premium payed for account was required. It was estimated that at the height of his success, Schmitz made on average $118,000 per day from Megaupload alone.

Users who uploaded content to the site were paid well too. A Vietnamese man was paid $55,000 for uploading a Italian television series and some Vietnamese films. The site had over 150 employees, working to keep the 50 million daily users happy. It is estimated that at it’s peak, Megaupload accounted for 4% of all internet traffic globally.

Known for his decadent lifestyle, which included a lavish collection of sports cars, yachts, and mansions, there’s a virtual prize Schmitz also greatly treasured, of which most are unaware. And which he also recently lost. Schmitz was, up until a few days ago, the top ranked player of “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3″  in the world, at least among Xbox 360 players; As MEGARACER, yet another alias of his, on Xbox Live.

As much hard work, skill, and dedication as it takes to claim such a coveted spot, it requires just as much to keep it secure. Which, unfortunately for Schmitz, is not quite possible when you’re spending time in a New Zealand prison cell. During the week in which he wasn’t been able to log into Live (and he may not again for a very long time), MEGARACER was overtaken by another player who goes by the handle Arazos.

Schmitz and the site’s founders have been charged with violating piracy laws. Federal prosecutors have accused it of costing copyright holders more than $500m (£320m) in lost revenue. The firm says it was diligent in responding to complaints about pirated material. Almost immediately after Megaupload was shut down, the hacker group Anonymous responded by crashing the websites of the FBI, MPAA, RIAA and Universal Music Group.

Schmitz is certainly an interesting character both in business and privately. His case is one that will be watched with interest, and will set a precedent for all internet piracy.

Is he a James Bondesque villain? Well Schmitz owned a Rolls Royce Phantom with a license plate that read “GOD”. Some of the plates on his other cars included: GUILTY, STONED, GOOD, CEO, MAFIA and HACKER. So, yes, possibly the closest thing to a real life one…

Two things that played a huge part in my cultural development as a kid were the most iconic toy and the most iconic film of that era: Lego and Star Wars.

Unlike myself, my eldest son is a big fan of video games and it wasn’t until someone bought him the Lego Star Wars game for his birthday that we bonded over this genre of entertainment and played long into the night. The game seemed to capture a new charm in the story by rendering the characters ridiculously, with huge heads and impractical limbs, giving even Darth Vader the huggable appeal of a puppy. Adding to this was the fact that in controlling the characters you have the power to humiliate them further still.

It was around this time that I became aware of a Youtube clip voiced with an Eddie Izzard monologue about the Death Star canteen from his  2002 ‘Circle’ show. The clip featured crude animations of Lego Star Wars figures in a very basic Lego canteen. The voice over itself was amazing, but the realisation in Lego breathed new life into it and made it more preposterous and funny.

This all happened ages ago so you may well ask what prompted me to mention it now? Well, funnily enough, it was actually David Cameron’s profound insights into the British film industry. David thinks we should be more “Hollywood” and create vapid CGI implanted blockbusters to cater for the inept masses.

I was reminded of David’s comments when I sat down to watch the thoroughly disappointing ‘Padawan Menace’ with my son. It had everything! Lego and Star Wars, and even the endorsement of George Lucas who made a Lego cameo appearance. The story was weak, the characters insipid and the humour cringe worthy. In short they had manage to suck the soul out of Star Wars and even Lego.

Alongside Eddie Izzard and the Death Star canteen, in terms of all round entertainment ‘Padawan Menace’ draws no comparison. The Youtube hit will stand the test of time and remain genius no matter how many times you watch it, with zero production, great writing and inspired execution.

British films aren’t always box office smashes and are on the whole underfunded which means that the art of storytelling, belief in the creative vision and commitment to the cause are essential, underpinning any film which finds a platform here. If it’s good enough it will find a global stage and become a classic, because it’s special.

Surely our Prime Minister should be flying the flag for British film, championing its eccentricities and the unique talent it throws up. Hell, he could even try funding it.

Chris Watson is a unique artistic talent. As a musician, sound recordist and artist he has uses CDs, radio, site-specific venues (Palm House in Kew Gardens, Alder Hey Children‘s Hospital Liverpool and Holy Trinity Church in New York) and galleries throughout the world to present his breath-taking sonic cinematic landscapes. According to producer/DJ Andrew Weatherall, ‘trying to describe Watson’s work would be like sharing last night’s dreams.’ Chris is probably best known for his sound recordings for BBC TV’s ‘Life of…’ and more recently the ‘Frozen Plant’ series written and hosted by Sir David Attenborough. I have been lucky enough to work with Chris when he was creating work for an outdoor exhibition in Mexico that I curated, and which I am proud to say contributed to the ‘El Tren Fantasma’.

Chris is one of the world’s leading recorders of wildlife and natural phenomena, where he edits his field recordings into a filmic narrative. The unearthly groaning of ice in an Icelandic glacier is a classic example of, in Watson’s words, putting a microphone where you can’t put your ears. He was one of the founding members of the highly influential Sheffield-based experimental music group Cabaret Voltaire. With Rough Trade (records) they released several acclaimed musically experimental singles and EPs, including Extended Play, “Nag Nag Nag” and “Three Mantras”.

His sound recording career began in 1981 when he joined Tyne Tees Television. Since then he has developed a particular and passionate interest in recording the wildlife sounds of animals, habitats and atmospheres from around the world. He has specialises in natural history and documentary location sound, together with track assembly and sound design in post production.

Chris’s previous CD, Weather Report, was listed as one of 1,000 to listen to before you die by The Guardian. Weather Report was Chris’s first foray into composition using his location recordings of wildlife and habitats – previously he has been concerned with describing and revealing the special atmosphere of a place by site specific, untreated location recordings. For the first time he constructed collages of sounds, which evolved from a series of recordings made at the specific locations over varying periods of time. ‘Ol-Olool-O’ – a fourteen hour recording in Kenya’s Masai Mara between 0500h – 1900h condescended into 18 minutes.

His latest recording is ‘El Tren Fantasma’ (The Ghost Train) whose title is borrowed from a 1927 silent Mexican film and was started 10 years ago when he was commissioned working on the BBC show Great Railway Journeys, and he took a ride on one of the very last passenger trains across Mexico. Described by radio producer Sarah Blunt as “a thrilling acoustic journey across the heart of Mexico from Pacific to Atlantic coast using archive recordings to recreate a rail passenger service which no longer exists’.

Andrew Weatherall described his experience of listening to ‘El Tren Fantasma’ as follows: ‘I’ve taken the trip, courtesy of Mr Watson, on a number of occasions but like any rail journey one undertakes regularly, although physically and geographically the same, in terms of evocation, memory and feeling they differ greatly each time…. (it can) change, morph and crystallize into a million thoughts and memories every time you leave the station. That’s how evocative this piece of work is.’ As you follow the journey you encounter the ghosts from Mexico’s history and forgotten landscapes, tracing a fascinating track into Mexico’s industrial history.

BBCi awarded it CD of the month and went on to say ‘in his book Civilizations, historian Felipe Fernández-Armesto focuses on man’s overriding impulse to impose its will on the world, “a relationship to the natural environment, recrafted, by the civilising impulse, to meet human demands”. This process lies at the very heart of ‘El Tren Fantasma’, a composite document of a train ride across Mexico, describing a passage “from Los Mochis to Veracruz, [from] coast to coast, Pacific to Atlantic… But it’s during the points of human absence that El Tren Fantasma works best. Hear Watson’s ability to create whole worlds, entire lifetimes in the listener’s imagination, beyond the moment of recording.’

I would encourage the reader to go and buy it or listen to it on Spotify. It needs to be closely listened to, it can not be rushed because the listener will get so much more from it if they pay attention to the sounds. I understand how this sounds, a little too chin stroking, but every now and again, music and sounds we listen to demand more love and attention. As Weatherall puts it, this piece is ‘a benchmark in field recording, not to mention a map of the soul, an insight into the human condition and a key to dreams.’

How does a designer explore the idea of imperfection in objects, environments or even experiences?  This was the challenge presented to the finalists who had applied for the 2011 Designers in Residence program at the Design Museum in London, and the successful applicants have spent the last year doing exactly that.

The program provides a bursary aiding selected emerging designers, enabling them to develop their work, and supporting the development of new pieces for the exhibition.

One of the designers in residence is Simon Hasan, who’s mission is to capture qualities such as texture, richness and the sense of story attached to historically researched craft techniques. He then strives to apply these elements to volume production. His work in the exhibition explores methods of achieving irreversible plasticity in leather by treating it with boiling water. These beautiful organic forms are then married with straight edged brass and aluminium frames to form functional stools.

Hye-Yeon Park explores our perception of time and the inaccuracies therein, beautifully summed up in this Tobias Dantzig quote on her website:


‘ The harmony of the universe knows only one musical form – the legato;
while the symphony of number knows only its opposite – the staccato.
All attempts to reconcile this discrepancy are based on the hope that an accelerated staccato may appear to our sensed as a legato. ‘

Park develops abstracted digital representations of time (such as ‘Mr Clock’ pictured above), some of which react to the viewer and some which morph from one character to the next. She describes the clocks as cute, possibly due to the naivety of their belief in the idea that time can be controlled and metered digitally.

Another resident is Will Shannon, who claims his approach is irrational and intuitive. For Will, aesthetic is secondary to function and the story of the waste he re-appropriates for his work. He breaks down found objects into their elements before rebuilding for a new purpose, hoping that along the way he might stumble upon new aesthetic values. His work at the design museum is the ‘Particle board factory’ which chews up old furniture into the raw material to form sheets of chipboard

Last but not least is Jade Folawiyo. Jade took her inspiration from nature and the way in which it rarely throws up the same pattern. She looks at rust as something which people see as a flaw, and uses it to create beautiful design work. She explores ways of distressing metal using different chemicals. In this way she nurtures imperfection to become something of beauty. She would like to see manufacturing processes output less uniform products, so that each piece could be something unique and responsive to the individual. Her ‘Pendant Lights’ can be seen at the exhibition.

This weekend is the last opportunity to visit the Designers in Residence exhibition at the Design Museum, marking the end of its 2011 residency, and fourth year.

Over 200 million Apps were downloaded over the Christmas period from the iTunes store. Apple’s 12 days of Christmas promotion and time spent at home would have surely boosted sales. However, if you were anything like my family, Apps were being gifted.

In the iTunes store, you can gift an App very easily. The recipient receives a code which can be redeemed in the iTunes store through their device.

My Mum received a few Word Search and Crossword Apps. These are ideal for her iPad, which offers an intuitive interactive interface for the Word Search and some nice backgrounds and sound effects. The Crossword App benefits from interactive clues.

My sister was the recipient of two rather more interesting Apps, one being the Harden’s Restaurant Guide, the paper edition having been a gift staple for many years. The digital version is enhanced by a Map Search, which can pinpoint your location and show local restaurants. The usual Harden’s categorisation of price and rating is much quicker to navigate than the book.

The second was The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore. This unique App is a meeting of book and animated film. Each page of the book is accompanied by an interactive animation illustrating the story beautifully. Some of these require a simple task to move to the next page, such as playing a tune on a piano or flying a kite. This really was a special App and like nothing I have seen before. Although aged 4 years up, it had the whole family gathered round.

I received a really innovative combination of App and Hardware – The Ion Piano Apprentice.  Consisting of a piano keyboard, iPad dock and App, the setup aims to teach you piano in a way never seen before. The iPad acts as a screen and instructor, with video demonstration, while the accompanying keyboard’s keys light up in sequence. Overall a great system. When I get a chance to use it I will give it a full review!

Overall, Apps were a well appreciated gift for my Christmas. It also avoids the stores and can be quite economical. A 21st century stocking filler!

Last week we had the pleasure of a two-day music video shoot in London for the Dublin-based trio “S.w.o.r.d.S” and their forthcoming single “The Reason”. We packed an unfeasible amount of shots into our schedule covering four locations – something that would have pained even the most seasoned producer, if we did not have technology on our side. As well as the band we enlisted our lead actor Andrew Fitch, supported by a cast of ditto friends and family, for what can be only described as a ‘Very Disturbing’ slice of modern cinema. We are in the edit right now, but here’s a taste of what’s to come…

Needless to say ditto Film & Video are loving it…

With Awards season fast approaching the front-runners are starting to appear. Similar to the previous two years, (Avatar vs. The Hurt Locker in 2010 and The Social Network vs. The King’s Speech in 2011) two films are emerging as hotly tipped for Best picture: The Descendants and The Artist.

The Artist is a step back in time, a silent, black and white French romance set in the late twenties and early thirties. Based around the story of a silent film star George Valentin, with a gorgeous dog Uggy as a close companion, and an aspiring actress Peppy Miller. Set in the time where production on silent films came to an end and new sound film “talkies” began to take over Hollywood. It follows the story of Valentin who believes ‘talkies’ are just a craze, which however then means he gets left behind in the film industry, whereas Peppy Miller rises to stardom being the face of one of the first “talkies”.

The Artist is a romantic, charming and interesting film but not your typical Hollywood Romantic comedy. With pantomime, muted gestures and the occasional title card, it is incredible to see how much The Artist has captivated 21st century film critics all over the world. Though the film didn’t win in Cannes (Jean Dujardin did win Best Actor, and Uggy the Palme Dog), The Artist has been nominated for six Golden Globes, and is tipped to clean up at the Oscars, so you’ll be hearing much more about it as we enter the awards’ season later this year.

The Artist is out now in selected Cinemas.

After a few months of hard graft the final version of the ditto 2011 Compendium has been sent to the printers and everyone here at the studio is eagerly awaiting the arrival of the printed copies in about a weeks time.

Coming in at an impressive 104 pages the compendium is packed full of great articles from the likes of Greg Wilson (DJ, Producer and Musical Pioneer), Phil Cheeseman (Journalist, A&R, Producer, Head UK Strictly Rhythm) and Shane Walter (Co-Founder and Creative Director onedotzero) to name but a few. As well as an article for each campfire of 2011 there are also double page spreads on all of the ditto doors exhibitions and all of the wine fuelled Really O’Reilly Fireside Favourites sessions.

If you’re wondering how it might look here are a few pages to whet your appetite.

It’s always great to put together a book like this as it visualises what a varied and interesting year we have had here at ditto. Here’s to more Campfires in 2012 and next year’s Compendium!