Most people are familiar with the iconic look of the side mounted Graflex flash, the one that's always attached to those bellow-bodied folding Graflex cameras in old movies and TV shows.

This bright flash was often used as a comedic element, something that would blind the characters and deliver a laugh, but did you know it was also used to make movie history?

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This video by DigitalRev In-Focus reveals how crafty prop builders used the battery tube from the Graflex flash to create the iconic lightsaber Obi Wan passed on to Luke and inadvertantly made movie history.

-Via Boing Boing

The Secret Of NIMH might not be Don Bluth's highest grossing film (that honor goes to Anastasia), nor is it his most popular film of all time (that's split between An American Tail and The Land Before Time).

But the animated adaptation of Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH was Don's first film after he, John Pomeroy and Gary Goldman left Disney in 1979 to form Don Bluth Productions, and it totally blew 80s kids away.

The Secret of NIMH had suspense, intrigue and mice in mortal danger. There were sword fights, an old wizard and a magic amulet, and the characters are so sympathetic viewers can't help but hiss at the wicked rats led by Jenner and root for the Brisby family.

Speaking of the Brisbys- their name in the book is "Frisby" but Wham-O, makers of the Frisbee, made them change the name because it was too similar.

(YouTube Link)

There's also the matter of Jenner's reluctant sidekick going nameless in the film, and since he's the one who puts an end to Jenner he deserves his name to be known, so here's to you Sullivan!

But what's up with the name NIMH? It stands for National Institute of Mental Health, which was only mentioned by the Farmer's Wife once in the film, but explains a lot about those rodents going psycho!

Read 12 Facts About 'The Secret Of NIMH' at mental_floss

The next movie in the "A Star Wars Story" series will tell the adventures of Han Solo in his younger days. The yet-untitled film is expected to be in theaters on on May 25, 2018, although that may change. Principle photography began this week, and Disney/Lucasfilm has released details and a photograph of the cast.



The movie will star Alden Ehrenreich as Solo, Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian, and Joonas Suotamo as Chewbacca. The 6' 10" Suotamo played Peter Mayhew's body double in episodes VII and VIII. Mayhew may return for episode IX, depending on his health (he is 72). Suotamo posted a tribute to Mayhew on the official announcement of his Han Solo movie role.

I'm ecstatic. It's official. And here is my statement to this terrific piece of news https://t.co/a1DPsNDb2P pic.twitter.com/r4EUZ2r17V

— Joonas Suotamo (@JoonasSuotamo) February 21, 2017

-via Uproxx

Zombie lore has changed quite a bit since the first Night Of The Living Dead film, and zombies have gone from being strictly undead eating machines to humans afflicted with a life-altering virus.

That means if and when a cure is found for their condition zombies may be able to rejoin human society, that is, if they're no longer seen as a threat:

In the aftermath of a zombie outbreak, zombies are cured and exiled to secluded camps. There has been talk about rehabilitating post-zombies back into society. Steve, the journalist reporting on the case, thinks the zombies still pose a threat to society. He ventures into one of these camps to prove to the world that rehabilitation is out the question.

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"Less Than Human" was created by a team of students at The Animation Workshop in Denmark, and it has certainly left me hungry to see more!

-Via Laughing Squid

In the world of sports trading cards professional athletes get all the love, but what about all those professional actors who play athletes in movies and TV shows? Don't they deserve their own commemorative trading cards too?

Illustrator Cuyler Smith clearly agrees, because he has created artwork for two different sets of trading cards starring the stars in their sportiest roles.

There's a card for Danny McBride as Kenny Powers, Keanu Reeves as Shane Falco, Michael J. Fox as "Teen Wolf" Scott Howard, and Chevy Chase as Ty Webb in Caddyshack 1 and 2 too.

Na-na-na-na indeed sir! Cuyler's way too cool illustrations for Trading Cards 2, the trading card set of my unathletic dreams, is currently being shown at Gallery 1988 now through March 7th.

They'll sweep you off your feet!

-Via Laughing Squid

When cartoons were wholly crafted by hand animators used all kinds of tricks to speed up the process, and one of their tricks made a character's hands more visible, emotive and easier to animate-they put gloves on 'em.

This small change made a world of difference for early animators who were discovering rounder was better in a character design, and simplification saved precious time during production.

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This toon-tastic video by Vox shows how gloves became an iconic part of a cartoon's character design, and how Mickey's gloves started it all.

-Via DesignTAXI

Ever since he made his last big screen appearance in Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith Jar Jar Binks has been the butt of many jokes, and a few fan theories even speculate the Gungan may be a Sith Lord in disguise.

Mashable received an advanced copy of Chuck Wendig's new novel Star Wars Aftermath: Empire's End and found out that fan theory hit the Meesa right on the Binks- because Jar Jar was working for the Empire after all.

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In Empire's End a young refugee runs into Jar Jar, who is now a street performer, and the Gungan opens up to the kid about his dark past:

"Jar Jar makin some uh-oh mistakens," the Gungan says, explaining why he isn't wanted anywhere either. "Desa hisen Naboo tink I help the uh-oh Empire." He stares into the distance, suggesting he knows more than he's saying.

I knew that little bastard stank worse than Dagobah!

-Via The Verge

When Star Trek went to the big screen in 1979, audiences were excited, but Star Trek: The Motion Picture was too long and slowly-paced to stand the test of time. It was also extremely expensive, causing Paramount to rethink making a sequel. So changes were made: Gene Roddenberry was fired, a budget-conscious director was brought in, and the script for The Wrath of Khan was written by a writer who'd never seen a Star Trek episode. The production staff not only learned from the mistakes of the first movie, but used the existing sets and unused footage to save money. The changes had repercussions beyond Star Trek.

The cumbersome large model on wires approach was shelved for Star Trek’s motion control, and new models were built with usability and cost in mind, rather than screen presence. The only thing not cut back on was the aforementioned CGI. The large terraforming sequence could only be done in animation, and much like the sequence in the finished film it was presented as an advert for the skills of Lucasfilm Computer Imaging. And like in the film, the CGI video succeeded in its marketing purpose. The clip impressed a young Steve Jobs enough to part with $5 million to buy out the division, which renamed itself Pixar.

But what really made the The Wrath of Khan a hit was a plot that focused on the original cast and a villain that harked back to the TV series (to be fair, V'ger did, too, but not as charismatically as Khan). Read about the process of bringing The Wrath of Khan to theaters at Den of Geek.

#StarWars : #LesDerniersJedi, décembre 2017 au cinéma. pic.twitter.com/Qzgoy5Aq5e

— Star Wars France (@StarWarsFR) February 17, 2017

When the name of the new Star Wars film was announced in January as The Last Jedi, we all wondered what that meant. As the story stands, Luke Skywalker is the last Jedi. But will he remain the last Jedi? Will he be killed off? Will someone else become the last Jedi? Then we realized that the word "Jedi" is both singular and plural. Which does the title mean? We were resigned to wait until the movie is released in December to find out. But the title is more complicated in other languages, where a definite article indicates a singular or plural. As the movie gets it title translated around the world, we have the answer, courtesy of Star Wars France. It's plural, as in more than one Jedi. Other European countries with languages that indicate plurality have announced the movie title using the plural form, as you can see at Slate.

Clowning is a comedic artform that dates back centuries, and although clowning has become less circus and more cirque over the years clowns are still doing classic bits and carrying on an ancient tradition.

Those who embrace the role of the clown have many skills to master, such as makeup, slapstick and miming, but most importantly they must develop a character the audience connects with and make 'em laugh.

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This wonderful episode of the American Theatre Wing series Working In The Theatre focuses on the art of clowning and reveals the true power of the clown- universal appeal.

-Via Nerdist

Artistically inclined parents love to bring their kid's artwork to life in some way, either by translating it to a different medium or creating a more polished version.

It's a charming activity that gives parent and child the chance to work on an art project together, which kids really appreciate when their parent has a really a cool job in the animation industry.

親子イラスト[その2]
原案:次男
イラスト:パパ

1980年代っぱいサイボーグ。懐かしい感じ。

Cyborg.
Concept design : son
Illustration : father pic.twitter.com/9SnVMSRslK

— ThomasRomain ロマン・トマ (@Thomasintokyo) January 8, 2017

French artist Thomas Romain works as an anime creator in Tokyo, and after having worked on shows like Space Dandy and Basquash! he has learned how to translate doodles into awesome anime characters.

原案:息子
イラスト:パパ
親子共同作品が楽しい。子供のアイデア発送が素晴らしい。 pic.twitter.com/zFLeDGlJ0M

— ThomasRomain ロマン・トマ (@Thomasintokyo) December 24, 2016

So he started working with his kids on what he calls his "Father and Sons Design Workshop", turning their simple and extremely loose sketches into tight, ready to use character designs.

親子デザイン工房 (No.07)
サンドゴーレム
原案:長男
イラスト:パパ

Sand golem
Original design: son
Illustration : dad

Without ideas, skills are useless. Be creative! pic.twitter.com/7hvYW8STUY

— ThomasRomain ロマン・トマ (@Thomasintokyo) February 11, 2017

Someone needs to give this talented dad and his sons their own cartoon show!

-Via Nerd Approved

Video games that involve a lot of stealth are the bane of my existence, because I want to play the badass game I've been hearing about but can't get past that one part because the guy KEEPS HEARING ME FOR SOME REASON!

But, as this comic by Julia Lepetit shows, there's a hidden danger that is worse than wrecked nerves, a danger gamers don't consider while they're sneaking their way through an entire game- stealth knees. Keep the crouching to a minimum, people!

-Via Dorkly

Thanks to the LEGO Batman franchise Will Arnett gets to be Batman's voice, and he's enjoying the gig so much he'll start being the Bat at the drop of a hat.

Will was on BBC Radio 1's The Matt Edmondson Show promoting The LEGO Batman Movie when he decided to try his hand, err voice, at Matt's AlphabetiCall challenge by prank calling a toy store. 

Each sentence Will says during the call has to start with the next letter of the alphabet, so will he be up to the challenge?

And will the toy store clerk even get that he's doing a bit, or will they just say "...okay?" like a total space cadet? Tune in and find out!

(YouTube Link)

-Via Laughing Squid

Keanu Reeves is still kicking ass in Hollywood thirty one years after his debut in Youngblood, and during that time he has played so many different types of characters it's hard to pin him down.

Keanu played an iconic stoner dude in the Bill & Ted's franchise, a hacker turned cyberwarrior in The Matrix franchise, a cop, a detective, a fancypants, a junkie and even Lord Buddha himself! (Video is NSFW due to language)

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This video by Burger Fiction takes you through the evolution of Keanu Reeves one clip at a time, from those early mellow dude days to the aggressive action hero we love to watch today.

-Via GeekTyrant

The artists involved with the Marvel movie Doctor Strange wanted the villain Kaecilius to be faithful to the comic book concept while also bringing something fresh to the character. They tried a variety of looks before they settled on the villain you saw in the film, portrayed by Mads Mikkelsen. You can see a half-dozen of those early ideas at TVOM. Which would you have chosen?