Latest news with #2001:ASpaceOdyssey
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
VIENNA CELEBRATES AT BRYANT PARK AS THE BLUE DANUBE WALTZ IS SENT INTO SPACE
VIENNA, May 28, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Vienna Tourist Board is hosting a unique free event in New York's Bryant Park on May 31 to celebrate a historic transmission into deep space. In partnership with the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Wiener Symphoniker (Vienna Symphony Orchestra), Vienna will launch Johann Strauss II's "The Blue Danube" waltz towards NASA's Voyager 1. This interstellar broadcast is part of a larger celebration marking the 200th anniversary of Strauss's birth and rectifies its omission from the original Voyager Golden Records. Norbert Kettner, Director of the Vienna Tourist Board, said: "Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey made the 'Danube Waltz' the anthem of space – the omission of the most famous of all waltzes from the 1977 Voyager Golden Record is a cosmic mistake that we are correcting." The event is the culmination of Vienna's "Waltz Space" campaign, which invited fans to symbolically send a note of the song into space, with 13,743 note sponsors. The campaign aims not just to commemorate Strauss's birth, but to reinforce Vienna's status as the music capital of the world, positioning it as a destination full of rich musical experiences. The free event will take place in Manhattan's Bryant Park from 1:00 to 5:00 PM: 1:00 PM: Pre-show festivities with DJ Kyra Caruso, waltz lessons by Aga Bohun, and opportunities to claim a "SpaceNote"—a unique note from "The Blue Danube"—for a chance to win a trip to Vienna. 2:30 PM: Live broadcast of the "Waltz into Space" concert from Vienna's Museum of Applied Arts (MAK), featuring works by Dvořák, Ligeti, Mozart, Josef Strauss, and Ives. 3:30 PM: Real-time transmission of "The Blue Danube" into deep space via ESA's Deep Space Antenna in Cebreros, Spain. 3:45 PM: Post-event wind-down with music and refreshments. The event is free and open to the public. Representatives from the Vienna Tourist Board will be available for interviews. For press photos, visit this Dropbox-Page. For more information on the "Waltz into Space" campaign, Vienna Tourist Board Newsroom or For the event's website visit SOURCE Vienna Tourist Board Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Miami Herald
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Miami Herald
Inside Google's plan to have Hollywood make AI look less doomsday
For decades, Hollywood directors including Stanley Kubrick, James Cameron and Alex Garland have cast artificial intelligence as a villain that can turn into a killing machine. Even Steven Spielberg's relatively hopeful "A.I.: Artificial Intelligence" had a pessimistic edge to its vision of the future. Now Google - a leading developer in AI technology - wants to move the cultural conversations away from the technology as seen in "The Terminator," "2001: A Space Odyssey" and "Ex Machina." To do so, the tech giant is funding short films about AI that portray the technology in a less nightmarish light. The Google initiative, called "AI on Screen," is a partnership with Santa Monica, California-based Range Media Partners, a talent management and production company that represents a wide variety of entertainment clients, including actors and writers. Range is producing the films. So far, two short films have been greenlit through the project: One, titled "Sweetwater," tells the story of a man who visits his childhood home and discovers a hologram of his dead celebrity mother. Michael Keaton will direct and appear in the film, which was written by his son, Sean Douglas. It is the first project they are working on together. The other, "Lucid," examines a couple who want to escape their suffocating reality and risk everything on a device that allows them to share the same dream. "They were looking for stories that were not doomsday tales about AI, which I was fine with, because I think we've seen so many of those," Douglas told The Los Angeles Times. "It's nice to see the more - not overly positive - but sort of middle-ground stories." The effort comes at a time when many Americans have mixed feelings about AI. A 2024 survey from Bentley University and Gallup showed that 56% of Americans see AI as doing "equal amounts of harm and good," while 31% believe AI does "more harm than good." Shifting the way AI is depicted in popular culture could help shift those perceptions, or at least that's what some techies and AI enthusiasts hope. Google has much riding on convincing consumers that AI can be a force for good, or at least not evil. The hot space is increasingly crowded with startups and established players such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Apple and Facebook parent company Meta. The Google-funded shorts, which are 15 to 20 minutes long, aren't commercials for AI, per se. Rather, Google is looking to fund films that explore the intersection of humanity and technology, said Mira Lane, vice president of technology and society at Google. Google is not pushing their products in the movies, and the films are not made with AI, she added. "Narratives about technology in films are overwhelmingly characterized by a dystopian perspective," Lane said. "When we think about AI, there's so much nuance to consider, which is what this program is about. How might we tell more deeply human stories? What does it look like to coexist? What are some of those dilemmas that are going to come up?" Google did not disclose how much they are investing in the films. The company said it wants to fund many more movies, but it does not have a target number. Some of the shorts could eventually become full-length features, Google said. Creators who work with Google are given access to tech experts at the company who can share more information about the technology. Does the technology in the script already exist, for example? How would it work in real life? "We're living with this technology and AI - the questions arise include: How does it affect us and how can we emotionally connect via this type of technology?" said Rachel Douglas, a partner at Range, who is married to Sean Douglas. AI has been a controversial topic in Hollywood, playing a major part in the 2023 writers' and actors' strikes. Actors fear their likenesses and voices being replicated and manipulated without permission or payment. Writers worry their work is being used without their permission to create AI-generated scripts and story outlines. Animation and special effects jobs could be gutted. Publishers and record labels have sued to protect their intellectual property. Negative public perceptions about AI could put tech companies at a disadvantage when such cases go before juries of laypeople. That's one reason why firms are motivated to makeover AI's reputation. "There's an incredible amount of skepticism in the public world about what AI is and what AI will do in the future," said Sean Pak, an intellectual property lawyer at Quinn Emanuel, on a conference panel. "We, as an industry, have to do a better job of communicating the public benefits and explaining in simple, clear language what it is that we're doing and what it is that we're not doing." AI companies, including OpenAI, Google and Meta, have demoed or shared their tools with movie and TV studios and directors. Meta has partnered with horror studio Blumhouse and Cameron's venture Lightstorm Vision on AI-related initiatives. On Tuesday, Google announced a partnership with "The Whale" director Darren Aronofsky's venture Primordial Soup, which will work with three filmmakers on short films and give them access to Google's AI video generator Veo. Proponents say the tech can make filmmaking cheaper and give artists more flexibility at a time when the movie business is struggling. "If we want to continue to see the kinds of movies that I've always loved and that I like to make and that I will go to see ... we got to figure out how to cut the cost of that in half," Cameron said on a podcast last month with Meta's chief technology officer. Cameron sits on the board of startup Stability AI. AI companies are finding other creative ways to make the technology more approachable. In one example, major artificial intelligence firm Anthropic is sponsoring an upcoming exhibit at the Exploratorium, a science and art museum in San Francisco. Eric Dimond, senior director of exhibits, said he hopes the exhibit, called "Adventures in AI," will cause more people to explore the costs and benefits of AI. Anthropic was not involved in the conceptualization of the exhibit, Dimond said, though visitors can interact with its AI model Claude, as well as AI tools from OpenAI and ElevenLabs. As Google and others try to put a softer focus around technology, moviegoers are still getting plenty of stories about the dangers of robots run amok. Recent tales of AI gone wrong include Blumhouse's 2023 horror film "M3GAN," about a robot who becomes so protective of a young girl that she starts wreaking havoc. Last year, another Blumhouse horror film, "Afraid," followed a family terrorized by an AI-powered assistant. This summer, "M3GAN" is getting a sequel, released in theaters by Universal Pictures. It's expected to be a box office hit. Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
Tatler Asia
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Tatler Asia
Home tour: Inside Bar Leone boss Lorenzo Antinori's new Hong Kong home
The layout is unusual—'basically a massive living room', as he describes it—with plenty of space to host friends. 'For the first time, I can have a communal dining table [at home] and invite friends over; the space definitely has this very liveable sort of vibe,' he says. Everywhere you turn, there are treasures to be spotted. Posters of Wong Kar-wai's seminal 2000 film In the Mood For Love ('my favourite Hong Kong movie') and the 1968 sci-fi classic 2001: A Space Odyssey ('Stanley Kubrick is one of my favourite directors') are part of a collection of framed prints in the living area. A shelf acts as a divider between the space and the bedroom. It houses both books—one volume is an Italian translation of The Art of War by Sun Tzu, the Chinese military text dating back to the 5th century BC that Antinori says offers advice applicable for modern-day business—and paintings by family members; several relatives on his mother's side of the family are artists. By his bed are photos of his parents and a frame depicting a religious icon, a gift from his mother, who's a devout Catholic. 'I'm very close to my family—wherever I have lived, in Hong Kong or South Korea, I always have [these items].' Don't miss: Home tour: Inside an Italian farmhouse-inspired retreat in Happy Valley, Hong Kong Above Antinori with 'The Savoy Cocktail Book'—he worked at the famed London hotel's American Bar—and 'The South American Gentleman's Companion', a cocktail guide originally published in 1951 (Photo: Zed Leets/Tatler Hong Kong) Above A close-up of knick-knacks in the home (Photo: Zed Leets/Tatler Hong Kong) Antinori wanted to give the home what he calls a vintage, nostalgic edge. Some of his favourite things—art, film, music—come from the Seventies. His favourite movie, the 1997 indie flick Boogie Nights, is set in the era, and its aesthetics strongly inspired his decorating choices. 'I love the Seventies—they were a cool time because pop culture was extremely loud and visually impactful,' he says. 'There are a lot of elements from that period that I tried to bring into this space.' That influence is evident in the palette: think burnt orange, forest green and acrylic accents. Above Lorenzo Antinori (Photo: Zed Leets/Tatler Hong Kong) Above A view of the coffee in the dining room (Photo: Zed Leets/Tatler Hong Kong) A neon sign that reads 'Bar Leone' lights up the space with a bright tangerine hue; the sofas are in the same shade; a Tiffany-style stained glass lamp, an emulation of the prized originals produced by the American artist and designer Louis Comfort Tiffany in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with green, orange and yellow glass, glows softly in the corner. Now read: Step inside 3 Hong Kong chefs' and restaurateurs' kitchens at home Above Photo: Zed Leets/Tatler Hong Kong Above A close-up of books in the home (Photo: Zed Leets/Tatler Hong Kong) Antinori has applied the same design philosophy behind his bar to his home. 'We wanted Bar Leone to be a nostalgic space, almost like a trip back to a time in the past. We got a lot of references from the Seventies and Eighties. That's why some people feel like it has been there for a while. When I was thinking about this space, it was the same idea.' He wanted the home to feel 'a little bit chaotic', he adds, 'almost like it's coming out of a movie by [ Boogie Nights ' director] Paul Thomas Anderson or Wes Anderson.' To bring this vision to life, he enlisted Tiffany Kwan, founder of the interior design firm Studio TK, who also worked with him on Bar Leone. Above Photo: Zed Leets/Tatler Hong Kong Above Photo: Zed Leets/Tatler Hong Kong We wanted Bar Leone to be almost like a trip back to a time in the past. When I was thinking about this space, it was the same idea - Lorenzo Antinori - Above Photo: Zed Leets/Tatler Hong Kong After finally settling in, there are still 'a few other pieces that I need to put up'. A home is a place where one never stands still, he says. 'It's almost a dynamic place. I will always think of new elements that I want to introduce.' Much like the bar, the home has become a reflection of Antinori's personality. 'Bar Leone is a very personal project. I managed to fill it with things that I love, the things that remind me of home, the things that are connected to my roots. It's the same here; there are certain pieces that I have had in my apartment in Rome with my family, like the religious icon by my bed, the books, frames and prints. 'I think it's important to preserve this element of heritage that showcases our background and who we are. Otherwise, we just live in an empty box.'
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Live performance of famous waltz to be beamed into space
VIENNA – A classical masterpiece with deep ties to spaceflight pop culture will finally reach the stars next week when the European Space Agency beams a live performance of "The Blue Danube" waltz by the Vienna Symphony Orchestra into the universe. Many considered "By the Beautiful Blue Danube" an anthem of space after it was featured in Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. However, when Nasa's Voyager 1 and 2 probes launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, in 1977, the waltz was not included among the songs on the two Voyager Golden Records. The Vienna Tourist Board partnered with ESA to host the interstellar "Waltz Into Space" event to mark the 200th birthday of the late composer Johann Strauss II and the 50th birthday of the European Space Agency. Nasa Works To Extend Voyager Spacecraft Mission Again: 'Every Day Could Be Our Last' While it's unclear why the Waltz King's most famous piece wasn't included on the Golden Records, the Vienna Tourist Board made a spoof video suggesting that maybe a mission manager "forgot" to give the record back in time to make the launch because they were too busy enjoying the beautiful music. The European initiative is "using modern technology to correct a historical mistake." "This demonstrates that our technology can transmit not only scientific data but also human art over long distances," ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher said. "This year also marks the 50th anniversary of our global ground station network. This broadcast will be a special moment that will show that music – just like space – connects all of humanity." On Saturday, Wiener Symphoniker (the Vienna Symphony) will play Strauss's waltz live as ESA uses its 35-meter-diameter deep-space dish antenna in Spain to transmit the song into the stars, beyond even NASA's interstellar Voyager spacecraft. Voyager 1 And 2 Continue Offering New Mysteries From Interstellar Space The concert from the MAK Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna will also be broadcast around the world, and there will be an in-person viewing event at Bryant Park in New York City. The live broadcast and event will happen at 2:30 p.m. ET and 8:30 p.m. local time in Vienna. According to the Symphony, the signal will be sent into space at the speed of light, passing the Moon in over a second, Mars in 4 minutes and the outer limits of our solar system in 17 hours. After 24 hours, the final chords of the Danube Waltz will reach the Voyager 1 spacecraft more than 15 billion miles from Earth. Both Voyager 1 and 2 continue operating in interstellar space more than 47 years after article source: Live performance of famous waltz to be beamed into space
Mint
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Mint
Johann Strauss' The Blue Danube, famously used in Squid Game, will be beamed to space to mark its 50th anniversary
Johann Strauss II's iconic orchestral waltz The Blue Danube, once the sonic backdrop for both Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey and the Netflix megahit Squid Game, is about to reach its most literal destination yet: outer space. In a bold and poetic gesture, the European Space Agency (ESA) will beam The Blue Danube into the cosmos this Saturday to mark two landmark anniversaries—the 50th year since ESA's formation and 200 years since the birth of the Austrian composer Strauss himself. The Vienna Symphony Orchestra will perform the piece live in Austria, while a powerful radio antenna based in Spain simultaneously broadcasts it beyond Earth's atmosphere. Despite its deep cultural association with space—most memorably accompanying a balletic docking scene in 2001: A Space Odyssey—The Blue Danube was glaringly absent from NASA's 1977 Voyager Golden Records. These interstellar time capsules included 27 musical tracks from around the world, but no waltz from Strauss made the cut. 'The absence of the most famous of all waltzes from the 1977 Voyager Golden Record is a cosmic mistake,' said Norbert Kettner, director of the Vienna Tourist Board, which is partnering with ESA for the occasion. 'We are delighted to correct it—better late than never.' The waltz has recently found a new generation of admirers thanks to the Emmy-winning Korean drama Squid Game, where it underscored key moments with eerie calm in contrast to the brutal on-screen events. Its use in the hit series has reignited interest in the piece, especially among younger audiences who may have never encountered it in concert halls or cinema before. While there's no alien audience confirmed (yet), the symbolic act of broadcasting The Blue Danube carries both cultural and scientific weight. As the waltz floats once again among stars - this time literally - Strauss' dreamy melodies will serve as a sonic ambassador for Earth's elegance and creativity.
