The Newsroom

I am not a TV watcher. I have actually not watched a TV show in about 20 years now. But I do like watching movies, and good programming is always welcome. I have watched a few of the top shows on DVD, like The Wire. That blew my mind. I have not seen The Newsroom but I think Aaron Sorkin is a writing wizard.

Check out this clip I found on the Web from the opening episode of The Newsroom : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16K6m3Ua2nw

How is this dialog ... amazing!

After I saw this I initially thought this was part of some pro-America campaign. It took me a bit of digging to discover it was actually a snippet from a TV show.

The Newsroom is now on my never-ending list of content to go through. One day I will get stuck in and watch this series. It sounds brilliant.

We will always need compelling content. It is what makes the journey worthwhile.

Posted by Ronnie Apteker

The numbers

The numbers don’t add up. Watch this video and then just stare into space : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPKKQnijnsM&sns=em

There are too many people in the world trading in money. All these genius fund managers, trading numbers, and not adding any tangible value to our lives … now, if we were all fund managers, then who would be making the money for these mumsers to manage.

Think about it. If we were all psychologists then we would all have therapies and analysis, but what about new problems. We can’t all be chefs. Someone needs to grow the food. We can’t all be doctors. Sad to say it, but people need to get sick.

That is how it works. We can’t all be managing money. Whether this video clip here is correct or not is less important than the fact that the gap between the "haves" and the "have nots" is getting way too big. Mother nature is going to bite us all soon. That is a given.

Posted by Ronnie Apteker

Nothing for Mahala

Next week Tuesday the Heartlines feature film "Nothing for Mahala" goes into production. I am thrilled to be playing a role on this journey and I am confident that something positive is coming together here. IS can make a valuable contribution here.

Heartlines is an inspired NGO that is making a difference in South Africa. A media intervention that is innovative and smart, the brainchild of Soul City co-founder Dr. Garth Japhet. I have known Garth for 10 years now, and he is the real deal. A more special soul is hard to find.

Heartlines is trying to challenge our thinking, and to get us to embrace the fundamentals. The premise of the film is that people are more important than money. Yes we all know this, but we don’t live it.

Overspending, unsecured lending and money troubles seem to be the order of the day. Living up to the Joneses has become a growing phenomenon in Mzansi – often to the detriment of family life and even to the point of compromising the law. Too many of us are spending more than we earn, leading to a debt crisis. Too many of us want to get rich quick, leading to a rise in corruption. It’s evident our nation needs some real conversations about values and money. This is the motivation behind this film; Nothing for Mahala - a campaign on values and money. 

What are our objectives with this campaign?

Get the nation talking about values and money

Positively change our behaviours around how we earn, save and spend our money – and how we give it away 

Highlight organisations offering practical skills on money management

Our hope is to see individuals, families and society transformed about social issues such as petty crime, corruption, overspending and job creation.

Follow the mission on Facebook : www.facebook.com/nothingformahala 

If you’d like your organisation or community to be part of this campaign, contact Heartlines on info@heartlines.org.za

Posted by Ronnie Apteker

Ctyo

This week we launched our stunning game "Cyto" on the App Store - download it to your iPhone or iPad. Watch this demo here : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unDiOzxU-pw - this is stunning !!!

Cyto is a new puzzle game with speculator graphics, unique game play and brilliant music. You need to help the main character collect lost memories and discover mysterious truth about his past. You will love it.

Our mobiles games studio in Eastern Europe called Room 8, together with leading game publisher Chillingo, are very excited about this new game. Cyto is an incredibly cute and lovable hero protected by a bubble-like envelope that can stretch and stick to larger objects. He has lost all of his memories and looks for them in a fun and mysterious world full of increasingly challenging puzzles scattered through 81 beautifully designed levels.

Gamers can change Cyto's shape and explore some of the unusual ways in which it works. You will need your puzzle solving skills and an accurate flinging finger to overcome all dangers on Cyto's path.

The main goal of the game is to help Cyto recover his memories about himself and his home. Help him remember by collecting memory fragments throughout all the levels, then watch his story unfold. Each atmospheric stage is loaded with clever dangers, so watch your moves or else Cyto's story will be lost forever. Paired with a phenomenal soundtrack from Emmy nominated composer David Ari Leon and dreamlike graphics, Cyto is the perfect play for puzzle fans looking for their next obsession.

Download it today ... if this does not capture your imagination then you get your money back.

Posted by Ronnie Apteker

Zeitgeist: Moving Forward

Last weekend I sat down and watched this 2 hour 40 minute documentary film ... this weekend I am going to watch something different. Something that won't make me anxious. But, anxiety aside, this is a must see - have a look here for some more details  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1781069/

Here is an extract from a transcript I found online:

When we reflect on the original concept of the so-called free market capitalist system as initiated by early economic philosophers such as Adam Smith we see that the original intent of a “market” was based around real, tangible, life supporting goods for trade. Adam Smith never fathomed that the most profitable economic sector on the planet would eventually be in the arena of financial trading or so-called investment, where money itself is simply gained by the movement of other money in an arbitrary game which holds zero productive merit to society.

I thought an economy was meant to, I don't know... “Economize”? Doesn't the very term have to do with preservation and efficiency and a reduction of waste?

So how does our system, which demands consumption and the more the better, efficiently preserve or “Economize” at all? Well... it doesn't. The intent of the market system is, in fact, the exact opposite of what a real economy is supposed to do, which is efficiently and conservatively orient the materials for production and distribution of life supporting goods.

In our lifetimes we are going to see incredible change. Drastic, hectic, intense change. It is history repeating itself. Yes, nature is the ultimate dictator.

Posted by Ronnie Apteker

Miracles Rising

Nelson Mandela : If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.

Miracle Rising: South Africa, marks the 23rd anniversary of Nelson Mandela's release from prison in 1990. This extraordinary documentary debuts tonight, this Sunday at 8:30 pm, on the HISTORY channel around the globe - this is an inspired piece of work and was sponsored by Dimension Data and Internet Solutions. Don't miss it!

Posted by Ronnie Apteker

Magic !!!

Sometimes you just see and hear something that captures your imagination right off the bat. This TED presentation is a combination of good old fashioned magic with a high-tech twist. A conspiracy of old and new, of analog and digital. A must must see!

http://www.ted.com/talks/marco_tempest_a_cyber_magic_card_trick_like_no_other.html

I am loving magic more and more. And the imagination and creativity at play here is just extraordinary.

Posted by Ronnie Apteker