28th Sketchcrawl and other stuff

admin — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 02:35:08 +0000

My blog posts have been less frequent… but, can’t help that because I write more articles now for Examiner.com. My most recent film I saw was Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. Quite entertaining. I was recently at Comic Con, had some car-stuck-in-parking-lot issues that made me stay overnight until Saturday. It was a great adventure, but one I would prefer not to repeat. I had to room at Holiday Inn Express for $200 because the only room they had left was for two beds. Well, if anything, it inspired me to draw this nice little pic on my sketchbook:

My most recently event I have been to was yesterday’s international Sketch Crawl, which is basically bunch of artists getting together just to sketch. We do this about every 2-3 months or so. This time we sketched at Hollywood and Highland. I took the Metrorail, using an all-day pass. The all-day pass appears to be $6 now. It was $5 last time. Price is going up, I guess.

I also recently became an uncle, which was really cool. My brother and his wife just had a little girl. Her name is Christine.

This past Thursday was Comedy Zen. It was pretty fun. I got some sketches done near J-Town while I was there.

Movie Reviews:

On Examiner.com, here are some movie reviews so far since last time….

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
Inception
Despicable Me
Predators
The Girl Who Played With Fire
Knight and Day
Toy Story 3
The A-Team
Mac Gruber
Splice

27th Sketchcrawl and such…

admin — Tue, 18 May 2010 18:31:40 +0000

Wow, it’s been about two months since the last time I posted something here!

Not much going around. I’ve been to lots of weddings so far and there’s two more coming up just this weekend. Just this past Saturday, I was at the 27th World Wide Sketcrawl. People just meeting up to sketch in different parts of the world just for that day. I went to the LA meetup like I did back in March or so, where I did those animal sketches. This time we met up in Redondo Beach pier in Torrance, CA. I’ve always been a fan of this area as I grew up in Torrance until beginnnig of high school.

You can also see a good chunk of the rest of my sketchbook here.

Film Reviews

Here are some of my Film Reviews I wrote on Examiner.com:
Robin Hood
Looking for Eric (UK)
Princess Kailulani
Iron Man 2
Nightmare on Elm Street
Private Eye (Korean)
My Run
The Losers
Kick-Ass
Date Night
Clash of the Titans 3-D
Hot Tub Time Machine
How to train your Dragon

Off to the Zoo! Sketches and Things…and stuff

admin — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 10:40:59 +0000

It’s been a while since the last time I’ve updated. I’ve been busy working on a website, setting up an online comic, as well as writing articles.

My Facebook Graffiti!

My weekend and excerpts from my sketchbook….

So, I went to LA Zoo over the weekend, and was able to do some sketches of animals. Because of the pouring rain, I took an umbrella. A nice change of pace and a venue for my sketching.

Everybody’s lookin’ for somethin~	These mountain goat types were called “markhors”
They refused to do the see/hear/speak no evil pose for me.	Baja Fresh for lunch– lobster and shrimp tacos.

My Sketches…

After lunch, I met up with the Sketch-Crawlers (www.sketchcrawl.com), bunch of artists who sketch, at LA Public Library–really nice people with great skills. One of the artists had some of her pieces at the art show opening at Gallery Nucleus that day in the evening. I told her that I might be able to make the show after dinner. That night, I was invited by a friend for a free dinner at Hollywood Park Casino. It was some customer appreciation party that I was invited as a guest–it’s was… interesting. I didn’t stay long as I head on over to the art show.

LA Public Library…

The rotunda was where the Sketch-Crawl met up.

The artshow at Gallery Nucleus at Alhambra had the Alice in Wonderland theme called “Curiouser & Curiouser.” It was really cool as many people dressed up for the event (there was a raffle) and many works from the upcoming movie was also displayed as well as many works inspired by the original story. Lots of great works there. Once a year, I’ve heard they have a ninja-themed art show. I’ll try to attend that one too.

Gallery Nucleus!	Many got into the spirit of the story. She was my fav.
Curiouser indeed…	Lots and lots..view from 2nd floor section
Sculptures from the movie.	Apparently even Alice had a great fall….
Reminds me of Totoro…	This was created by a Sketch-Crawler, Alina Chau! Nice!
Many pieces were bought.	Time to get back home…

Here are some of my Movie Reviews….

I’ve been writing a lot of movie reviews on Examiner.com since last time. Here are some of them. Hope you enjoy! (I get paid very little for these articles, so I write mostly because I enjoy it–and I love movies, of course!)

The Crazies

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Shutter Island

Brothers

The Wolfman

Everybody’s Fine

Frozen

Edge of Darkness

Ninja Assassin

Book of Eli

Daybreakers

You can follow my review updates on Twitter as well.

Woah…. Been a while…

admin — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 01:06:55 +0000

Yikes… it’s been a while since I’ve been on Xanga. It’s been raining a lot lately…

Well, been writing some articles on Examiner.com.. mostly about movies and such.

Certainly, with all the rain lately, it probably fits the topic:

10 Movies You Can Watch on a Rainy Day

Also, I’m part of 2010 Yelp Elite! Cool!

Recent reviews by win k.

What’s this?

Digital Pic!

Here’s a digital painting I woked on over last month…

Here was the general progress of the work…

Progress 1

Progress 2

Progress 3

This and That and things of that nature…

admin — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 08:00:19 +0000

So, the last couple weeks, I’ve been sending my resumes out as usual. At the same time, I’m doing some freelance work doing a bit of web design for the upcoming Comedy Zen, Asian American standup comedy event… I’ve got the logo down pat.. it’ll pretty much be the theme of “The Year of the Tiger.” I myself was born on the year of the tiger, which sort of made me feel more of a kinship to the project. Here are some logo images I had made for the event. I used Illustrator and Photoshop. Last year’s webpage (which I had worked on) was for the Year of the Ox.

Meanwhile, I’ve also updated my online comic website, Ninjas on Motorcycles with a format to make my comics easier to view, and also added Armadillo, a 15 pager comic based on a weekly serial I had made back in the day.

On other news, I’ve recently joined examiner.com as kind of a contract writer on the side. I had recently visited the LA Auto Show on Friday, so I wrote my general experience of it. The article can be read here. Please visit! I’ll be writing about mostly movies from now on.

Metro-Sketch Day #2

admin — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 19:18:04 +0000

So, last Wednesday, I had another whole day of sketching while riding the Metrorail. It’s cheap transportation and you don’t waste much time…driving, that is, or with traffic. Only downside may be that it’s a bit ghetto and you meet people of all backgrounds. Luckily, I have no problem with that. With that said, I had decided to go over to LA, toward East..and eventually toward Pasadena. My first stop was the Los Angeles City Hall. I’ve often seen this building in police badges and movies, like Dragnet, but never been inside. So, this time, I decided to check it out.

I really liked this shot.

Los Angeles City Hall

There was a metal detector inside, I think to make sure I’m not anyone suspicious. I was mostly there to learn a little something about the City Hall (as a tourist), not to get documents notorized, get married, or anything like that. Well, luckily, there was a big group of elementary kids going in there as a tour group, so I decided to join them (kind of like Ferris Bueller in the art museum). As I was sitting down at the Council Chambers as the tour guide was explaining how laws are passed to the kids, I sketched as I talked a bit to some of the young adults there. I found out that they were art teachers (at LACMA, I think) and they said, “Hey, you should come with us to the top floor–you can sketch the cityscape from there!” So, yes, I was able to get to the top of the building (where the pillars were). I got a grand view of LA. Funny how things all sort of work together.

This is where the laws and ordinances are passed.

L.A. !!!

My next stop of Olvera Street, which is right by the Grand Central Station, and is sort of a historical landmark and a famous Mexican marketplace. It is almost like a Farmers Market, but not really that much produce, but plenty of souvenirs and food. The taquitos I had there were excellent–I rarely get taquitos, but these were very tasty. I walked around the area until I decided I should ride deeper into Pasadena, to see how far I could go on the Metrorail.

Olvera Street… lots of good Taquitos here.

Many cool souvenirs of various colors.

Kiosko at El Pueblo De L.A. Historical Monument.

My final stop was Pasadena City Hall, which had a Roman church-style architecture. I mostly hung around the area, but I didn’t really explore the City Hall. I wanted to get back before dark, so I took off for home afterwards. Overall, another good Metro-Sketch Day!

The Pasadena City Hall

Metrorail Station…on the way back..

Non-related, but I was sketching while sitting outside Borders yesteday. I have this ball-point pen (with four colors) that I got from Disneyland, so I got bored and started sketching. Here’s what I got.

Halloween Fireworks at Disneyland

Recently, I was at Disneyland (I’m there often to make use of my Annual Pass), and was quite surprised at the new fireworks they’ve had lately. Pretty cool! Here’s a clip I recorded from the event.

Metro Sketch Day…. and Yelp!

admin — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 08:29:40 +0000

I recently started a new sketch book (I recently finished the previous one). It is, ultimately, my sketch diary. I write down and draw what I observe and format it in the style of comic panels.

Last Friday, I was able to have what I call a “Metro Sketch Day.” Generally, what I would do is to buy a Metrorail ticket for the whole day (only $5) and ride to various landmarks and simply sketch on my book. Whatever interesting things I see, I would write and sketch about it. Because I frequently go to many places, including Disneyland (I have annual pass), by the time my book is done, it’ll have tons of different sketches of various places, events, people, and situations.

Ultimately, the point of the sketchbook is to keep me drawing frequently and create better sketching habits, and keep my ideas fresh and moving. With that said, here are some photos I took, along with my sketches from my book.

Metro Sketch Day!!!

Pershing Square

Grand Central Market

Bradbury Building, where they filmed Blade Runner (as Sebastion’s Apartment).

One of the Metrorail Stations in LA.

Mann Chinese Theater in Hollywood

Sketches being done overlooking Mann Chinese Theater from Baja Fresh.

Pictures from my Sketch Book

The following images were what I drew on my sketchbook. These were all drawn on the spot. As a result, I had to sketch as fast as I could, (especially if it involved moving people). One rule I made when I started this sketchbook (as well as the previous one) is to not use the pencil, or erase or make corrections–thus, all the drawings were done in pen.

Woot!!! Woot!!! I am now YELP Elite ‘09!!!

Time to start going to them YELP meetings! Sweeeet!!! Free food (hopefully), here I come!

My YELP Site!

Recent reviews by Win K.

What’s this?

Movie Thoughts: Pixar’s Up (and its themes)

admin — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 01:08:26 +0000

Below this paragraph is generally the review I wrote on IMDB, but I’m sure I could’ve gone on and written a more thorough review on it, but really, it’s one of those movies I’d rather have people just go see it first. After this review, I’ll move onto more details about concepts I noticed and so forth, and may give some spoilers.

This is a movie, in a nutshell, about death vs. life, young vs. old, personal status vs. personal relationships, inner vs. outer journey, friends vs. enemies. Oh, and it was very good too.

Pixar has now made their tenth movie, and still going strong.. and boy, are they! That’s 10 for 10, which is an amazing feat. Each of their stories are original, different, and shows us that these guys were not out to merely settle for retreads of the same lessons, formulas, stories, and jokes. Pixar films have the danger of being timeless. In fact, I have a sneaking suspicion they already are! For those who don’t know the general story, it’s about an old man (who sold balloons) who is about to be evicted, decides that he is better off away, ties tons of balloons to his house and off he goes toward a place in South America called Paradise Falls, to fulfill a promise he made to his late wife. Along comes a kid who hitches along for the ride. To say more would be a disservice to the viewers, as the story unfolds to many great moments, adventures, dangers, and humor.

“Up,” as mentioned, is yet another classic, and personally, I felt this movie went boldly beyond what one may categorize as merely kids’ entertainment. In fact, there were moments of great emotion that only adults will fully appreciate. Among the Pixar movies, this movie probably moved me the most at a deep, emotional level, which is saying a lot given that it’s an animation. They manage to do things with their skillful use of music, imagery, and story, that is both subtle and powerful. There are many things I can say about this movie and how it has many layers and themes and such, but those will be left for discussion boards and essays and talks over coffee. (**** out of ****)

Now, since I’ve shown the review, I’ll add some general thoughts on it, with some possible spoilers along the way. This is certainly among Pixar’s best work and I felt it probably was the most meaningful, layered, mature, and most emotionally resonant among their work. My favorite Pixar film, however, is still Ratatouille, but not because Up is any less of a great piece of work–in fact, if I had to recommend one film among those two to a good friend, it would be Up. My enjoyment of Ratatouille was certainly a more personal one and more particular to myself, as it appealed to my love of wine, food, cooking, art, humor, architecture, culture, and great attention to detail. The characters were beautifully designed, action was exciting, and I never could predict where the plot was going, and at every surprising turn, I was at the edge of my seat, yet it wasn’t because it was about saving the world or getting killed.

With Up, it takes its time setting up the story, the characters, and situations in such a way that it was not the events that surprised me, but the effectiveness of what the makers were trying to convey. Never had some of the characters (especially being animated) seemed as true to life as it did now. I’ve also noticed that it was mostly men that I’ve talked to that seemed to have been so moved by this film. Certainly, much of what Carl goes thought in the film are things most guys will understand. When I was watching this film in 3-D (I had seen it before in 2-D), I went with a buddy of mine who came with his 4 year old son. He asked me, “Is this movie sad?” I said, “Yes, very. But, only sad for adults. Kids just won’t get it.” Interestingly enough, it was his son who was asking him, “Why are you crying, Dad?”

As mentioned, this movie tackled many interesting concepts… so I’ll go over some of them. There were various uses of contrasts in the film. Certainly a film, particularly animation, can be appreciated at face value, however, it is always great when one finds little layers of themes beyond the surface. I should note that people who haven’t seen the movie yet might get lost.

Life vs. Death. First 10 minutes of the film perhaps brings this idea to the forefront in the most obvious way, especially with Carl’s wife, who started off so full of life, passing on in the montage sequence. Carl, now a widower, must now cope with his own life… alone. It is rare for Pixar to deal with death in such a significant way as it was here. In the later parts of the movie, life and death contrast is further displayed between Carl and his enemy. Through two different life choices made by Carl and Charles Mutz, one lived, while the other died. One eventually lived as he chose a path beyond himself and one lived for selfish ambition. It is interesting that Carl, much like the ambitious Muntz, at an earlier point in the movie, says something to the effect of “I’ll reach my [destination] even if it kills me!” Of course, his priorities change later on, while Muntz’s remain the same (to get the bird), which led to his doom.

Young vs. Old. Carl is an old man. Russel is a boy. Even in the 10 minute montage early on, you get to see a transition from “Young Carl” and the “Old Carl.” As a young kid, Carl had grand dreams of adventure. As an old man, he got pretty cynical after all the pains of life. Russel’s enthusiasm for such dreams annoyed Carl because he probably knew those dreams probably wouldn’t come true or was fleeting. Russel, in a sense, is like a mirror to his younger self. I believe once Carl realized he hadn’t really failed miserably as he felt he had, he was able to embrace his younger self (Russel, if you will) for all the grand dreams he had. More importantly, though, he, as an older, and wiser, person, had something to offer that would be invaluable to someone like Russel, a boy who was lacking a father figure.

Personal Status vs. Personal Relationships. Muntz chose the way of life for personal gain and status. Except for his dogs, he probably killed some people to get what he wanted. In the end, his social life and relationships were probably very shallow and/or non-existant, as his life goal was to be famous or respected. While Carl, not liked by society, started off on a personal, ambitious mission of his own (to get his house to Paradise Falls), he goes through a change near the end. In other words, his realization was that it was “relationships” with his wife (or Russel) that had more value in the grand scheme of things compared to ambitious dreams that may wind up being hollow. Russel tells Carl at one point, “[What I'm talking about] may be boring to you, but those are the moments I remember the most [that had meaning].” It’s often said people won’t remember the achievements as much as the relationships they had with the person.

Inner Journey vs. Outer Journey. This idea is most poignantly realized near the end. When his wife, through the book, showed him that the true “adventure” wasn’t going out there and doing stuff, but personal relationships, inner journey, or a life of quality that is lived. As often said, it takes more to change a person or their behavior than change things outside of themselves. Carl in the end goes through that inner change and decides that his next “adventure” isn’t about him finding something new, but to pass on something that is of value to Russel–a good father figure.

Friends vs. Enemies. In this movie, the relationships become quite complicated. What one may consider annoying becomes a friend. What one considers a friend, such as Muntz, became an enemy. Certain dogs were good guys, some were not. Some became good guys…temporarily. I remember one dog saying, “I like you…temporarily” to Carl at one point. Muntz is probably one of the most sinister bad guys in Pixar history. Perhaps his ambition got the better of him…as he was considered a “hero” in the beginning. A path Carl may have taken if he had gone the wrong way. Not all “so-called” friends are trust-worthy especially if their actions prove otherwise. Many times, you will have to face your enemies head-on to protect your friends. Doug the Dog was an interesting character. I can’t say if it was his integrity or or his lack of intellect that made him consistently loyal to Carl, Russel, and the bird, Kevin. One must however, admire the fact that, unlike the other dogs, he didn’t switch sides so quickly at one command from Muntz. One can make an argument that this was because he knew Muntz just wasn’t a good (although “smart”) person, thus his loyalty may have been based on higher ideals.

Now, as I make these points, it is not to point out whether the intentions of the filmmakers had these things in mind. It is more like appreciation of an art (like enjoyment of good wine) to show that it has many different things going on in it that I found interesting. Ultimately, what I love about Pixar is that much of the “lesson” that I find in their movies, aren’t particularly something kids will necessarily get–in fact, some of them probably appy more for adults. Like Toy Story 2, which dealt with issues of mortality, the final lesson seems to be something more suitable for adults– that it is what you do with the time you have that’s more important. Finding Nemo was about allowing your kids to take risks, or not be overprotective. Cars was about pride vs. humbleness. Incredibles was about the importance of different gifts and the family unit. They certainly aren’t more simple lessons like “don’t take candy from strangers” or “be nice to people.” The movie Up, in the end, was able to give a universal lesson that applies to old people (who may feel useless in terms of what they can offer), as well as young people who are overly ambitious over shallow stuff, as well as a new appreciation and importance of human interaction (esp. in this increasingly digital age) as an adventure in itself.

Oh, and the movie was very good, too.

Memorial Day and Pics….

admin — Fri, 29 May 2009 08:32:26 +0000

Weekly Pics!

So, couple Mondays ago, friends from Sarang had some boolgogi tacos at not Kogi, but at Bool. This particular food truck was a business a friend of ours was starting , so we wanted to show some support. Some seriously good tacos. I haven’t tried Kogi tacos before, but my friends tell me Bool tacos are better and has more meat. It also has a bit of a Brazilian flava since out friend is a Korean from Brazil. Good stuff!

Most excellent tacos!

I forgot the name of this dish, but it’s gooood stuff.

Popular amongst us as well….

Mouth-watering goodness!

On Saturday we celebrated Caroline’s (who’s also the leader of our book club) birthday at California Adventure and Banana Bay. Since I was there, got an annual pass (Disneyland’s Southern California pass). Sweet!

Our Thursday book club!

Waitin’ for Alex…the guy with the sweet hookups.

Nifty little camera effect on my Canon.. Replacing all greens with reds.

No outing’s complete without the turkey leg!

Time to soar over California!

At Banana Bay… excellent for large parties.

A special birthday song for Caroline!

Time for cake!

Gotta show proof I was there!

So, on Memorial Day was Sarang Church Bonfire at Bolsa Chica. Before that, I stopped by the Strawberry Festival in Garden Grove. I bumped into my friend Audrey and her friend from middle school.

I won a goldfish!

Lots of rides at the Strawberry Festival…but not enough strawberry booths!

Yikes… even looking at the rides make me dizzy….

Any day’s good day for bonfire!

I like em’ hot and spicy!

Most excellent!

Mmmm Mmmmmmmm

Sand sculpture contest!

My goldfish, Richie, gettin’ some sun.

Takin’ off…

Love them marshmellows!

Fire…. good!

Digital Pics!

Here’s something I worked on this week…For those who may be interested in my process… here’s a progression of my work…

And finally….

Mansion in Progress

admin — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 03:57:48 +0000

Here’s my current progress on my mansion I’ve been doing in 3-D (as part of my 3-D portfolio)…. So, I’ve been doing some more gardening, if you will,to give a more of a natural look. It’s certainly on its way. While much of the focus on the reel won’t be on the outer areas, but more on the mansion, I felt I couldn’t really do the more detailed work if I didn’t have the overal feel of the surroundings… I’ve also had some part blend more naturally. Properlighting will improve this image, of course, but that’s usually the last part of the model. Yes, I do notice that the mountain area looks skewed.

And, then a few fixes here and there…