Belligerent Rejectamenta

NextFest 2007. Four days of futurists, photographs, and fatigue. Wearing my day-job hat, I spread the good word about Ares, and during my breaks, I wandered the show floor, soaking in the insanity. The festival was an amazing showcase of invention, ranging from the eminently pragmatic (a chemical analysis unit no larger than the average laser printer) to the purely frivolous (a 3-D full-body motion capture stage that plays a kung fu game, wherein one beat the crap out of Bruce Lee and a variety of popular political targets).

I also got a chance to talk to some of the men and women who make the future their business, and found them a most agreeable sort to the last. Alas, the Hitachi salarymen in their impeccable suits weren’t much for talk on the smoking deck, but as this was their sponsored event, perhaps they were too busy being all-business. Or maybe their English wasn’t very good. Who knows?

Hanson Robotics gets my vote for best in show, not for their badass little robots (which are tres cool), but for the wigs, funny hats, and lab coats. They were clearly in love with what they were doing, and loving the crowd, and intent on enjoying every single second of the show. Props to J.M. for slinging back a few drinks and bullshitting with me at the WIRED afterparty. Hope to see you next year in Chicago.

For those interested in playing “Where’s Doc?”, scope out the WIRED exhibitor photo at Carel Struycken’s web site. You may remember Carel as the bow tie-wearing Giant with important information for FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper, or perhaps from his turn as Lurch in the Addams Family movies, or his recurring role on Star Trek: TNG. Very nice dude.

Now I’m in sunny Long Beach, which is almost as different from Los Angeles as it is from my home stomping grounds. It’s amazing what a difference a 30-minute drive makes. As beautiful a place as Long Beach is, I’m ready to be done with the not-home portion of the program.

My Picasa Web Album:

WIRED NextFest 2007