Every day I’m Shufflin’ - An A-to-Z Challenge Theme Reveal

“Freddy vs. Jason” scratch art by Scott Dyer, whose latest work includes Mystery Box sculptures made with single playing cards from theory11’s collaboration with STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS director J.J. Abrams. Today is the day where I join hundreds of bloggers who are letting our readers in on what we have in store for the 2015 April A-to-Z Challenge.

Having previously gone with a theme for three consecutive years and also winging it once before, I’m aware of the advantages as well as the drawbacks to both sides of the “theme or no theme?” coin.

Since then, I’ve made a wish, threw that coin in the magical fountain of nonconformity, and here is what washed up on nearby shores:

A Mixed Bag of Tricks

My editorial calendar for April basically consists of me pulling rabbits out of hats while blogging through the alphabet. In other words, my theme is to not have a theme at all and just write about subjects that I would normally post here anyway. While the title of this theme is inspired in part by the randomness of subjects I’ll be writing about, it also serves as a nod to the card shuffling wizards at theory11 who demonstrate that great art can even change the way you eat Oreo cookies. 

It still helps to have a sense of direction, even with no theme. Keeping this in mind, my upcoming A-Z posts are prompted by blogging ideas from Sara Lancaster at No. 2 Pen. Needless to say, I think my handful of years participating in this blog hop makes me pretty well versed in the overall A-to-Z blogging experience. Thus, I do not take the benefits of having a theme for granted. To that end, I’m using the best of both worlds so my blogging can still go according to plan, without me having to do too much of any planning at all…if that makes any sense.

You can expect to read about a myriad of topics including: unorthodox parenting advice, Rocky Balboa, poetry, being a superhero, hacking your movie theater experience, random acts of kindness and switching careers.

Some of my A-to-Z Challenge posts will be lengthy while others come in shorter than a paragraph or two. Most are on the verge of being medium sized blog posts. One thing to count on is they will all be related, in one way or another, to the hypnotic world of motion pictures. I plan to enjoy this versatile ride through the alphabet and I hope you do the same, whether that’s here or on your own blog.

Today as the A-to-Z community discloses our top-secret blogging strategies for April, I’m also happy to announce the release of theory11’s vintage Contraband book lamp!

The Contraband book lamp with a hidden safe is available at theory11.Made with an Edison light bulb, two 50 year-old books and an antique power switch, this functional lamp is full of surprises. Individually handcrafted by illusion engineer Ryan Edwards, the lamp slides open to reveal a wooden storage compartment, filled with four decks of Contraband playing cards.

theory11 also indicates that the deck contains secret imagery hidden within the interior design of its gold and black foil tuck case.

“There isn’t a set of playing cards with this degree of detail and execution,” says Acquire Magazine.

Who do YOU think would win in a street fight, Freddy or Jason?

How much progress have YOU made in YOUR blogging plans for April?

What was the most recent card game YOU played?

A Moment with theory11 – ‘Now You See Me’ Cardist Andrei Jikh on Creating the Best Movie Theater Experience

Andrei Jikh showcases his wizardry using Monarchs playing cards by theory11.We are living in a time where it costs $50 to see Brad Pitt fight zombies and all you come away with is little more than a poster and small bag of popcorn. So it’s no surprise that getting people to show up at theaters on opening weekend has become increasingly hard, given the fact that there’s nothing special about going to the movies anymore.

Now that the opportunity to watch a new flick is just an App away, anyone releasing films in today’s fast-paced world must rely on more than star power, IMAX and CGI tricks, to get audiences’ attention.

Knowing Russian cardist Andrei Jikh at theory11 is among the most sought after performers in a profession that continually finds ways to mesmerize audiences, I asked him what does it take to convince a magician like him (who can cut a banana in half with one single toss of a poker card) to see a film in theaters?

Jikh, who directed the special features and iTunes Extras for the mystery thriller “NOW YOU SEE ME” (starring Morgan Freeman, Woody Harrelson and Mark Ruffalo), is also part of the design team for the Monarchs playing cards seen in this film. For starters, he expresses how virtual reality is a promising endeavor for showcasing films. Going beyond IMAX and 3D, this particular upgrade to the typical theater setting can give every movie goer a front row seat to the action.

Andrei Jikh: I think the Oculus Rift has potential with its immersive capability. Imagine seeing a movie (or wildlife documentary) with a 180 degree field of view (curved screen). You can pick to look anywhere you'd like at any moment. Everyone would experience movies in a truly unique way. As far as 3D goes, perhaps glassless 3D would get people more into theaters (Nintendo 3DS screens use this technology).

As Jikh points out, the gaming industry provides inspiration for utilizing new technology to fill empty seats. Motion-activated solutions are also among the tricks he has up his sleeve for enhancing the theatrical experience.

Andrei Jikh: Another idea might be to incorporate gyroscopic technology into the seats so certain action scenes would trigger each seat to tremble/vibrate or slightly rotate accordingly.

I don't think that's ever been done outside of the cheesy 4D rides *laughs* (which may be a possibility as well if incorporated into certain film genres like perhaps horror films - like a gust of wind on a scary jumpy scene would definitely give me a heart attack *laughs*).

This card flourisher who comes from a family of gymnasts believes we’ll see these ideas in the distant future. For now, he considers that even the subtlest changes can make a difference in how movie goers receive what’s happening in a scene.

Andrei Jikh: As far as improving the movie going experience today, I think simply having surround sound seats in the headrests like Cirque Du Soleil's shows have would tremendously help. [These are] just some outside-the-box thoughts.

Creating the ultimate movie theater experience is important as the film industry tries to maintain the appeal of new releases. Thanks to Andrei Jikh, ways to create that magical viewing experience are being noticed. It’s up to film producers, exhibitors and distributors to utilize these opportunities.

Regal Cinemas' L.A. LIVE Stadium opens the first 4DX theater in the U.S.We have to come better than some free snacks and promotional swag if we want people to fork over their hard-earned money or tanks of gas in exchange for two hours of entertainment. Establishments such as Rooftop Films, Secret Cinema and Couch Fest Films get it. British company Hot Tub Cinema also understands that innovative measures put butts in seats, or in their case, in water.

The time to revolutionize the way people watch movies in the dark is now because that’s what it takes to keep ‘em lining up at the theater.

Andrei Jikh is one of the world’s most raved about artists at theory11, a team of magicians who create new magic tricks, playing cards and instructional DVDs. GENESIS, a video containing over three hours of instruction on cardistry for beginners, is among Jikh’s work. Now available to order at theory11.

What is YOUR definition of a magical movie experience?

How skilled are YOU at shuffling playing cards?

A Moment with theory11 – ‘PURE’ DVD Magician Ekaterina on Her Signature Effects and Rewarding Performances

Magician and card flourisher, Ekaterina Dobrokhotova As a filmmaker who is constantly trying to figure out how my work can sustain itself, I sought out to learn what makes it possible for Ekaterina Dobrokhotova, a Russian Canadian artist who performs card flourishes (skilled visual displays of playing cards such as fans, cuts, shuffles and sleight of hand tricks), to do magic as a profession rather than a hobby.

Documentaries aside, movies are a type of illusion, created out of necessity from the sheer pleasure of seeing figments of our imagination come to life. This is what keeps many of  us going despite the sacrifices that come with such a costly endeavor; where the chances of getting paid to do what we enjoy and see our works play out on the big screen, are pretty slim to none. Based on what Ekaterina has accomplished so far, there are a few things writers, directors, actors, and anyone who works in a creative field, can learn from someone who built a career for herself by manipulating playing cards.

The Madlab Post

asks:

Which area brings in the most revenue for a professional magician – performing, developing new tricks or teaching new techniques?

Ekaterina: Personally, I earn a living by performing my craft. It's a great feeling to leave a legacy in the magic community as the first female magician to release a cardistry DVD and one that creates beautiful magic, but it's not something I do for profit.

Dobrokhotova’s ability to monetize her live performances tells me that, if anything, people do enjoy a good show and they (whether that be presenting companies, venues, audiences or all of these) are willing to pay for said appearance.  Although favorable box office results aren’t what they used to be – unless you’re making something like “AVATAR” or “THE EQUALIZER” – theatrical releases are still worth taking into consideration. The common practice of studios and filmmakers using their final product as loss leaders to support other avenues (i.e. VOD, DVD, Merchandising, Gaming, etc.) where we hope to gain distribution/revenue seems to defeat the whole purpose of going through the hassles that making movies entail.

If we’re creating one thing just to sell something else, we might as well skip the feature presentation and follow the money trail wherever it leads us, which is usually still not very far, given that simply being on Netflix, iTunes or even YouTube won’t make you rich. Zeke Zelker, whose one-night film screening raked in an impressive $10,000 and Jay Craven’s six-figure earning DIY theatrical tour of alternative venues in Vermont prove that profiting from theatrical revenue or related live showings such as concerts or book signings can be done. Yes, getting a return on the investment is hard as hell….but not impossible.

The instructional DVD "PURE" by Ekaterina contains 90 minutes of versatile card flourishes for all skill levels.The trick to making it work appears to lie in how well you can get your main attraction to be as sensational as possible. What you have to offer – be that talent or skills -- is much more valuable when audiences are highly anticipating a particular show.

Ekaterina is well aware that building anticipation involves controlling where and when she demonstrates the skills people respond to most, which helps her keep audiences on the edge of their seats. “Because I am first a performer and second a creator, I keep the best tricks to myself,” says Dobrokhotova.

Just as Ekaterina knows that there is value in not giving all of her tricks away, creative minds could stand to benefit from keeping the finest aspects of our work under wraps. Even award-winning actors Denzel Washington and Daniel Craig believe that sharing the who, what, when, where and why of how our feature presentations came to be not only ruins their magical appeal, it’s also nobody’s business on how a movie was put together. I know that showing audiences some parts of the moviemaking process has its place, especially for educational or promotional purposes where landing distribution/earning revenue is concerned. However, I do understand the need for maintaining the wonder among people who are viewing our work for the first time.

Ekaterina: I recently fooled Penn and Teller on the show “WIZARD WARS” and received a lot of requests to release my card effect. However, I decided to keep this trick as my signature effect and be the only one to perform it. 

Consider the possibility that any disclosure of how we create our motion pictures to people will make them less likely to still pay to see any signature moves these films contain, in action. If this happens, I think we run the risk of having to work much harder to earn a living through our work – unless our primary business or bread-and-butter is teaching other people what we know so they can go out and do it themselves. Still, I believe that to be taken seriously, the best teachers are those who do the work just as much, if not more, than they talk about it. Dobrokhotova’s priority on her performances is a leading example of someone who walks the walk.

Ekaterina: There's a lot of magicians who can indeed make a living out of only creating magic, but for me, if I don't go out there and perform, I don't feel like a magician and entertainer. The real secret is not about how good you are, but how good you make people feel. 

Before learning about Dobrokhotova, I didn’t know female magicians even existed. If asked to name one, in fact, I bet very few of you reading this probably wouldn’t be able to either. It’s pretty cool that a she is succeeding in an art form that has gone unappreciated for a long time.

Available at theory11, Monarchs playing cards can be seen in Ekaterina’s “Love What You Do” video on YouTube.Ekaterina Dobrokhotova is among over a dozen respected magicians and acclaimed artists behind theory11, an elite team of performers, creators and producers who strive to advance the art of magic by producing the latest tricks, instructional DVDs and playing cards, including Monarchs – a regal deck of cards featured in the heist movie “NOW YOU SEE ME” and made in the USA. Now available at theory11.

What are YOUR favorite card games to play?

When was the last time YOU either watched or attended a magic show?