Hasta La Ideas

After years of producing video behind the wheel of everything from a 15-passenger van to a cube truck, and shooting out the windows of innumerable Caravan and Town & Country minivans, we thought it might be interesting to see how some of the luxury-brand vehicles we often feature in…

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Sweden’s legendary video director talks story-to-screen at Liberatum’s recent stop in Berlin

Liberatum, the global series of summits and seminars that celebrate creativity in its many forms, made a stop in Berlin to celebrate the opening of the new Soho House apartments. The program brought together great minds and big names like Stephen Frears, Jonas Åkerlund, James Franco, Kim Cattrall, Marianne Faithfull and Carmen Dell’Orefice to discuss their respective areas of expertise in film, music and fashion. Curated by Britain’s industrious young entrepreneur Pablo Ganguli, Liberatum focuses on connecting leading cultural minds in major cities of the world.

Soho House Berlin has opened 20 apartments for short-term or long-term living in its historic building in Mitte, the rooms adding more booking options to the in-demand accommodations in the massive building. Guests are treated to hip Berlin living while enjoying first-class service and access to all Soho House amenities such as a pool, spa, room service and full-size Cowshed products in the bathrooms. Soho House Berlin plans to launch more housing options in the upcoming year, including a handful of sprawling loft apartments.

Liberatum made full use of the various spaces to host the summit. In addition to artist talks, dinners and general enjoyment of Soho House’s lush cocktail spaces, Liberatum screened recent work from the directors, including “Tiny Apartments,” Jonas Åkerlund’s third feature-length film. The Swedish director is best known for making iconic videos for 25 years for the likes of Prodigy’s “Smack my Bitch Up,” Lady Gaga’s “Telephone,” Metallica’s “Turn the Page,” Madonna’s “Ray of Light” and “Mein Land” by Rammstein, a band he frequently collaborates with when in Berlin. As of late, Åkerlund has been increasingly focused on longer-form storytelling. “Small Apartments“—a black comedy set in the less-glamorous side of Hollywood—premiered this year at SXSW.

Åkerlund, who got his start as a drummer in the Swedish black metal band Bathory, can trace his signature editing style back to his own drumming style. With quick cuts or sped-up characters, Åkerlund believes the story is best told through the editing process. He still takes a very hands-on approach to editing, working late into the night once the shooting wraps.

He explained to a gathered group in the Soho House’s Red Room how his skills in making music videos and commercials translated into longer works. “You use everything you can to make an impression in a very short amount of time,” he said. “Of course, if you translate that into a movie it becomes very in your face. I have that in my blood. There’s no other way I can do it.”

The talk ended with a screening of Åkerlund’s nine-minute video for Duran Duran’s “Girl Panic.” “The video reunites the world’s top supermodels, Naomi Campbell, Helena Christensen, Cindy Crawford and Eva Herzigova, to play Duran Duran in a typical night of concert and behind-the-scenes debauchery. Åkerlund explained that he is often influenced by fashion, because it’s an industry where trends change by the minute.

Åkerlund reminisced about the early days of music videos when the brief was to simply break all the rules and do whatever necessary to get attention for the band. Then with shows like “Total Request Live,” that changed to do whatever necessary to get a spot on the charts, thus copying the other videos. Today, with the rebirth of the Internet, where the music video is used less for pure promotion, the allowance for creativity is coming back in a big way. Åkerlund is focused on the stories to come, long and short. “The first 10 years are the most fun,” he said. “Everything is fun. Then it loses its fun. Then your body of work becomes what you’re most proud of, and you keep working.”

Show support for two new supportive undergarments

Kickstarter helps get an array of independent endeavors off the ground every day. While many of these entrepreneurial projects revolve around the arts, we recently found two creative minds using the funding platform to up the underwear game. Each with a different motive, both JoeyBra and Flint and Tinder aim to enhance our lives with a new take on the ubiquitous undergarment. Check out the “kickstapants” projects below.

A concept sure to be a hit among ladies who love to go out and dance or go for a run, the JoeyBra gives women the advantage of a hidden pocket in their bra. The small side compartments are big enough to fit an iPhone, but the elastic seams keep it all conveniently secure. The JoeyBra is the brainchild of two business students at the University of Washington who will use the funding to first create an adjustable sexy push-up style with a sports bra to follow.

Former FHM Magazine editor and Buckyballs founder Jake Bronstein would simply like to bring men’s underwear production back to the US. His idea is Flint and Tinder, a line of premium Supima cotton skivvies made in a family-run factory. Comfort and function are key components to the three styles in his collection, but another driving force is job creation—for every 1,000 pairs sold, one full-time job is generated.

Our interview with minds behind the Italian company making products for the “urban nomad”

With backgrounds in architecture, landscape and graphic design, the minds behind DDP design studio have spent their respective careers observing the very intimate impact their work has on our everyday lives. From these undertakings DDP joined with italian manufacturing company Elmec to create Almove, a product design company making goods for the demanding life of an urban nomad. By sticking to clean lines, essential forms and lightweight materials, Almove’s products each solve a different singular need.

We were drawn in by the intriguing simplicity of wares like the contracting coat hanger while attending the Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair, and spoke with co-founder Gabriele Diamanti to learn more about what he and partners Lorenzo De Bartolomeis and Filippo Poli are doing with Almove.

Your products are for the urban nomad. Are they inspired by your own trips and experiences as design-hopping individuals?

When we invented this brand, we started from the philosophy of the urban nomad, trying to find a concept that would be very up-to-date with the daily life of the modern society, which is deeply influenced by the 2.0 culture: travels, interaction, mobile work, connection with friends and colleagues things are not only immaterial experiences, but also tangible objects.

As young people always in motion, and also passionate about traveling in our free time, we thought that the “new nomadism” was the ideal concept for the brand, continuing the reality of “liquid modernity”. That’s why we even put the concept of movement in the brand name.

It is a strong concept and it’s also very inspirational for new designs and innovations because the life-in-movement presents a lot of unsolved issues that are a very good starting point for a designer’s mind.

How does the kind of design you create differ from other forms of design—furniture for example?

Every designer always tries to invent something new. But there’s more in our products: we try to create new typologies. If one designs a new chair, it will be mostly recognizable as a chair. Of course an innovative one, but it still is clearly a chair.

With the Almove brand, we mostly try to invent new kinds of objects, something that didn’t exist before. This is very exciting, but it also carries a drawback: sometimes people don’t understand a product until we show them how to use it. So we have to spend a lot of effort explaining and communicating our simple innovations.

Material choice seems to be a key factor in your work. What are you using and why?

We use aluminum as the main material for the Almove products. This is for two reasons: the first one is the lightness and strength of the material that make it ideal for carrying in suitcases, pockets, backpacks, etc. Secondly, the company we collaborate with is really highly skilled in the cutting, bending and milling of metals… so we want to show off this talent and turn it into beautiful things.

Of course, we don’t preclude the possibility to use other materials, but the visual language of our products is mainly based on aluminum, with details and other parts made of textiles.

Lots of your products, like the business card holder, are multi-functional. Is this a focal point when you’re creating your items?

Definitely. This is always in our minds because we really want to create a new user experience when we design a new object. So when we think about a problem to be solved, we always think about it in a global way, keeping in mind that with design, it’s not about the object itself but it’s about the needs of its user.

Who are you aiming your products at?

The urban nomads, as described in the first answer, are people of very different age, culture and gender. Many times we discovered that fresh and smart objects, like the walk around bookmark, that we initially intended for young people, are also really appreciated by people in their 60s and reach a wide range of users.

So we can say that Almove items are for young people of every age. Whatever their age, our clients are always people that are careful to details and high quality products.

For the contemporary nomad, what are the biggest things you think they need to make their traveling easier?

In the past the biggest needs of a nomad were related to surviving. For example, the need for eating, drinking and shelter. The needs of the new urban nomad are more related to the social life: to communicate with other people, to work out of the office, to enjoy travel in the lightest possible way, or simply to solve more ephemeral problems encountered in the nightlife of the city, moving from a place to another.

Almove’s products are all made in Italy—any reason why you’ve kept things Italian?

Well, we are Italian! Joking apart, the Almove adventure is born in close collaboration with the Italy-based company Elmec, which decided to trust us as art directors. Moreover, this partnership rapidly turned into a friendship, so we would never want to go elsewhere to propose our ideas. We believe in the values of quality and highly skilled craftsmanship, and this company, like our country, is permeated by those values. Of course, that implies higher costs and higher prices, but we think the Almove client can understand this added value very well.

Where will you be traveling next?

Yesterday we were in Stockholm, today we are answering your questions from Barcelona. The day after tomorrow we will be back in Milan. So, who knows?

Our behind-the-scenes video at one of the world’s biggest and oldest knife factories

Zwilling J.A. Henckels recently gave us the opportunity to stop by the factory in Solingen, Germany to see the production process behind their new Zwilling Pro knife series. The Pro, created by architect and designer Matteo Thun, signals the brand’s move to bring high-design elements into an affordable kitchen accessory. Using lower-grade steel on bodies similar to the knives of the higher-end series, the new knife offers a superior culinary experience with its specialized bolster (the curve where your hand sits). We spoke with Chief Technical Officer, Dr. Joachim K. Droese to learn more about the production process and get a taste of the lasting power of properly-constructed steel tools.