- Risa Morimoto
- Producer and director of the documentary "Wings of Defeat"
- Posted: 03/15/10 | Recorded at Gel 2009
The documentary film "Wings of Defeat," produced and directed by Risa Morimoto, shatters many myths of Japanese kamikaze pilots by drawing on personal recollections of survivors from both sides of the conflict. Risa also shows how the story took a new turn when American and Japanese veterans met in person.
- Charlie Todd
- Urban prankster and founder, Improv Everywhere
- Posted: 12/08/09 | Recorded at Gel 2005
Having run pranks in subways, stores, and many other places, Charlie Todd is well known through his Improv Everywhere missions. In this presentation from way back in 2005, Charlie shows some footage of early missions - including one of the first no-pants subway rides.
- Steven Heller
- Author, "Iron Fists"
- Posted: 11/05/09 | Recorded at Gel 2009
- 2 comments
Building a strong visual brand is not always good for the world. Exploring the themes in his book Iron Fists, graphic design legend Steven Heller shows how totalitarian regimes of the 20th century consolidated their power through strong visual imagery.
- Zina Saunders
- Artist
- Posted: 11/05/09 | Recorded at Gel 2009
- 2 comments
Great art can come out of frustration, as Zina Saunders shows. Her portraits of overlooked New Yorkers, and American political figures, reflect Zina's passionate view of the world.
See also:
• Zina's recent work on Drawger
• Overlooked New York: Impassioned New Yorkers from an Artist's Perspective
- Robin Nagle
- Anthropologist of New York City's sanitation workers
- Posted: 08/04/09 | Recorded at Gel 2009
- 1 comment
Listening to New York City sanitation workers - and working side-by-side with them - NYU professor Robin Nagle uncovered a wealth of knowledge about the job and the people who keep the city clean.
Nagle also talks about our relationship with trash - and why we might want to respect, maybe even love, what we leave behind. This is an anthropological study well worth learning from.
See also:
• Video featuring Robin Nagle on Fresh Kills landfill
• Chris Jordan at Gel 2007, visualizing the amount of trash generated by modern society
- Erin McKean
- Lexicographer, dictionary editor
- Posted: 05/27/09 | Recorded at Gel 2006
- 1 comment
Words rock. So does this lexicographer. At the time of this talk, Erin was serving as editor-in-chief of The New Oxford American Dictionary - and here she describes the process of making, and editing, the words in the dictionary. Well worth watching.
See also Erin's blog Dress A Day and her online dictionary startup Wordnik. (She also made a brief on-stage appearance at Gel 2007.)
- Natasha Schull
- Asst. Prof., MIT
- Posted: 02/24/09 | Recorded at Gel 2008
- 1 comment
Las Vegas casinos increasingly pay attention to their customers - their likes, dislikes, moods and patterns - in order to create an engaging experience. As Natasha Schull explains, the stated goal of these new designs is "customer extinction" - the moment at which the customer is out of money. This talk, essential viewing for anyone in the design or user experience fields, underlines the neutral nature of customer experience methods: like any tool, they can be used for good or ill.
See also: The flip side of customer experience (Good Experience column)
- Garrett Oliver
- Brewmaster of the Brooklyn Brewery
- Posted: 02/10/09 | Recorded at Gel 2008
- 5 comments
Authenticity plays a central role in brewing good beer. Garrett Oliver, world-renowned brewmaster, explains how beer is like bread - there's a big difference between the real and the fake - and how it's possible to create a great product while growing a responsible, sustainable business.
See also Garrett's book: The Brewmaster's Table
- Ji Lee
- Founder, The Bubble Project
- Posted: 01/29/09 | Recorded at Gel 2006
- 5 comments
(With subtitles now!.. -mh) Not long ago in New York City, cartoon "thought bubbles" began appearing on print advertisements in the subway. Interested passersby wrote in text, beginning a dialogue about the ad, its message, the city, American culture, and with each other. Ji Lee's low-tech, decentralized Bubble Project needed no instructions, no moving parts, no planning, and almost no investment - and yet it yielded a rich set of commentary from and about the people of New York (and now other cities, as the project has spread to four other cities). A brilliant example of good experience in the city.
See also the Good Experience interview of Ji Lee from 2006.
- Chris Jordan
- Photographer
- Posted: 01/13/09 | Recorded at Gel 2007
America's scale of consumption is beyond the reach of any camera... unless Chris Jordan is standing behind it. His work combines photography, information visualization, and wry commentary on the culture and environment. One of the all-time most popular Gel talks.
See more at Chris Jordan's website, or via the Seadragon iPhone app.
- Henning Rübsam
- Choreographer, dancer, Sensedance
- Posted: 11/20/08 | Recorded at Gel 2007
Henning describes the important place that dance occupies in culture today, and shows some of the elements that go into creating a choreographed dance - both for ballet and modern dancers.
See also Henning's interview in Good Experience.
