Recent Videos and News

Innovation does not mean "catching up".

It means rethinking how things are typically done and imagining something entirely new and different
. - G. Aguilar



Online since 1996, this website showcases my innovative work with cin(e)-poetry or
cinematic(electronic)-poetry, with machinima and mashups and webvideos and films designed using unorthodox approaches to new media technologies. (See Videos)

One feature is the award-winning cinematic mashup Diary of Niclas Gheiler, written, edited and produced by me highlighting alternative, new media methods in storytelling.

You can also view media works I've created and curated for arts groups and business clients via my YOUTUBE page.

At heart, I am a new media "one-man-band", capable of writing, directing and producing in a variety of different artforms in a wide range of genres and styles including film, animation, machinima and music. (See Bio)

Much of my work is regularly presented in universities and arts centers around the world and the subject of several academic books and articles.


Major Innovations and Accomplishments:
1994 - Built and designed one of the first websites for a non-profit literary arts organization. Encyclopedia Britannica called it “one of the best websites”

1995 - Streamed video poems via the Internet with early adoptees NetVideo and Blue Wolf Network.

1994 - Created and built the LTV archive of videos and films (over 600 titles)

1996 - Developed and coined the term "Cin(E)-Poetry", a growing new genre taught in universities globally.

1998 - Employed early video webcasting technology for literary/arts presentations.

1999- Sponsored the SF National Poetry Slam Champions featured on '60 Minutes'.

2000 - Produced major live literary event at Masonic Theater in San Francisco headlined by Maya Angelou.

2001 - Traveled to North America and Europe teaching educators how to create edited videos via laptop.

2003 - Established on-demand video streaming for major cultural center in San Francisco

2003-2005 Produced and edited over 50 half hour shows titled SomArtsMedia for Cable tv.

2008 - Created the first virtual reality replica of a major San Francisco cultural center and developed "mirror" exhibitions for global audiences via Second Life. Architect and curator for the ground-breaking "Synthetic Masquerade" mixed reality.


2009 - Wrote, directed and produced mixed-reality film THE SUNFISHER.

Testimonials:
"To My Beloved" is an outstanding machinima. All aspects (light, camera angles, costumes, story, etc) worked together to create a piece of art. -Pia Klaar,Teacher Aug. 17,2009, Machinima Award 2009

"
I admire your work and want to bring larger attention to it." - Kevin Stein, Poet Laureate of Illinois

"Your second life gallery is one of the most unique presentations of art I've seen in a while."
-Robert Berry, Curator Ico Gallery, New York City

Wow! The videos are GREAT! I'm amazed at your turn around time on this. Thank you so much!!
-Jessica Brown, Event Organizer, Expo for Independent Arts 2009

"I really appreciate all of  your efforts on behalf of Visual Aid and your support of many others in the community." -Julie Blankenship


"George Aguilar’s Second Life pursuits, challenge our precepts of how films may be created in the future." -Glendale Daily Planet

"George Aguilar’s DIARY OF NICLAS GHEILER was one of the best films of 2008" -Berkeley Daily Planet

"You have provided many struggling artists a magnificent service and opportunity for art, that would otherwise have gone relatively unnoticed." -Rebecca Woolis, Berkeley Creative Living Center

"I have been browsing your movies and am enjoying them. I am very impressed." -Henry Lowood, Curator of History of Science & Technology, Stanford.

"The EIGHTH annual Expo for the Artist & Musician went off in grand style in Sept. 15 at SomArts. Thanks to George Aguilar of SomArts Media for making this great video of the event.." -Expo for the Artist and Musician

"George, I will always be grateful to you for your wisdom, talent and kindness.." -Helen Greico, former Pres. N.O.W., CEO SheInstitute.

"Dear Mr. Aguilar,
Thank you for the lovely Jack Davis tribute. I had been a fan of his since the early SCR days but lost track of him. I was in San Francisco doing 'Phantom' back in the 90s and I was over at SOMA several times, not realizing that Jack was there. Thanks again...wonderful work."

-Richard Gould, Actor


Thanks for stopping by. Email me or check back often to see what's new. George Aguilar


Site and media by George Aguilar. Background paintings
courtesy of A. Paul









































































































2012 - George Aguilar has been invited to speak at the:
I International Symposion of Videopoetry
(Dialogs between image, sound and verbal language)

Nov-Dec 2012, Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA
Dear George,
You are very important tor us as one of the first artists in videopoetry. It will be great if you can come to Argentina.
-Javier Robledo, Conference Organizer


2012 - George Aguilar has been invited to speak and give a workshop on
'Machinima/Mash-ups and the New Storytelling Frontier'
at the:

MIX: A Conference Exploring Transmedia Writing & Digital Creativity, 16th-18th July 2012 @ Bath Spa University, England

A PLACID OCEAN OF UNCERTAIN LIBERTIES:
Machinima by G. Aguilar aka C. Hirvi
Words by G. Aguilar aka C. Hirvi

Awards 2011
-MachinimUWA IV ANTON MESMER Special Award
-OPEN THIS END AWARD OF EXCELLENCE FOR FILM NARRATIVE









WARRIORS OF ALIVENESS:
Machinima by G. Aguilar aka C. Hirvi
Poetry by Martina Pfeiler, Title inspiration courtesy of Adam Shames

Awards 2011
-Official Selection MaMachinima Festival 2011
-Grand Prize Winner: Berkeley Video and Film Festival 2011
-Open This End' Award of Excellence in Film 2011
- MachinimUWA III Special Award for
INTERPRETATION AND DELIVERY 2011

OFFICIAL SELECTION:
International Society forTechnology in Educatio
n
Community of Practice Machinima
"After reviewing the wonderful diversity of machinima that was submitted, we realized that we needed to create an additional category to celebrate machinima that inspires us. Rarely do we get a front row seat to watch the development of a new art form. These pioneers are showing us the way by illuminating what is possible!" - ISTE 2011


COMMENTS

"Wow, this is amazing work, the detail is so rich. You have such a talent for writing script and storyboarding. I'm going to integrate this somewhere in my teaching."
-Lisa Dawley, Ph.D., Professor & Chair, Dept. of Educational Technology,Boise State University, Chair, ARVEL SIG, Co-Chair, Mobile Learning SIG
"Wow!!! Such an incredible range—of stunning images, of imaginative perspectives, of very serious drama and offbeat humor." -Adam Shames, CEO, The Kreativity Network: www.kreativity.net, Helping organizations build cultures of innovation and collaboration
I showed 'Warriors" to a number of students in my office and they were stunned by it:"
Martina Pfeiler, Ph.D., University of Dortmund, Germany--American Studies Department
"The imagination and the professionalism shows. Good to see the return of the diagetic.
-Sally Caves , Professor of English, University of Rochester
"Beautifully done Cecil" -Jay Jay Jegathesan, School Manager, UWA Festval Producer, School of Physics, The University of Western Australia
"Thank you George for all your support, the time you spent with me, your ideas, encouragement, resources, references etc". -T. Konyves 2011
2010- "Perhaps no one has done more to fuel the interaction of poetry and film than digital artist and filmmaker George Aguilar." -Kevin Stein, Poetry’s Afterlife:  Verse in the Digital Age (University of Michigan Press, 2010).  This volume surveys the current state of American poetry, traces how we arrived at this point, and suggests where we’re going given technological innovations in the ways poetry is written as well as distributed.
Kevin Stein is former poet laureate of Illinois,, National Endowment for the Arts Poetry Fellow and Professor of English and Director of Creative Writing Program at Bradley University .
2010- Featuring several Cin(E)-Poems by the American Filmmaker and Artist George Aguilar. Poetry Goes Intermedia is a new German publication by Dr. Martina Pfeiler and encompass intersections of American Studies, Cultural Studies and Media Studies. It also presents how U.S. literary works have been (co-) emerging in and with all kinds of print and electronic media throughout the 19th, 20th  and 21st centuries.
"A must read for any educator/student!" -G. Aguilar

Cin(E)-Poetry:
Engaging the Digital Generation in 21st-Century Response
2010- "It was the work of Cin(E)-Poet George Aguilar and teacher David Bengston, co-presenters of a session at NCTE's annual convention in 2001, that inspired the project I report here." - D. Stuart. Cin(E)-Poetry: Engaging the Digital Generation in 21st-Century Response is a journal article by Prof. Denise Stuart and published by the National Council of Teachers of English.
Leo Baeck Institute 2010 -The Library of the Leo Baeck Institute of New York adds film Diary of Niclas Gheiler to its permanent collection for future generations to study.
"I Am Evolution" 2010- "A hauntingly beautiful primordial poem of evolution....and visually well done!!!!" "I Am Evolution", is a NOVA/WGBH Lab favorite created by George Aguilar in collaboration w/ poet M. Ricciardi.

BERKELEY FILM & VIDEO FESTIVAL 2009

"Aguilar continues his series of virtual films, unleashing his avatar alter ego Cecil Hirvi in Second Life for another installment of “Machinima Poetry.” This episode finds Hirvi finding himself as he gazes into the media mirror, watching old Hollywood footage of young soldier’s uncertain return from the battlefield to the open fields of Wyoming."

Berkeley, CA
"The SunFisher"
GRAND PRIZE WINNER
ANIMATION-MACHINIMA
BERKELEY FILM & VIDEO FESTIVAL 2009
DEC09: Elegantly Forbidden, The Sunfisher, Future O, The Biggest Grief of All, To My Beloved has been shortlisted as one of the Singapore Shooot Awards Finalists! SHOOOT.COM
OCT09"Elegantly Forbidden," has been selected for screening @ the 2009 Machinima Expo in Second Life

Winners of SHOOOT Awards 2009 would be announced on 6 Dec 2009 at the Awards Ceremony at *SCAPE Youth Centre, Singapore, and SHOOOT.COM
NOV09 Diary of Niclas Gheiler has been selected for screening at the next UKJFF, which will take place 10th of November 2009 OCT09 THE SUNFISHER has been selected by the VAD International Video and Digital Arts
Festival 2009 competition.

The Festival will be celebrated from Oct. 15-25th in
Girona (Spain). http://www.vadfestival.net/
OCT09: "Diary of Niclas Gheiler" accepted to the 6th World Jewish Film Festival in Ashkelon, Israel 2009

JUN09: "Blending Media:"Defining Film in the Modernist Period June 9-10 - Innsbruck , Austria. Major Conference includes Aguilar's work for "Panel 6: American Cinematic Modernism". Presented by M. Pfeiler Phd.
APRIL09: "Elegantly Forbidden" to Screen in U.K FEB09: MaMachinima International Festival
JAN09: Social Networking, Virtual spaces and Art Synthetic Masquerade:
Mixed Reality Exhibition Curated by G. Aguilar

Digital Storytelling & Machinimas
on Youtube
by George Aguilar
LAShorts Fest 2008 Selects "Gheiler Jack Davis Documentary Dec. 08
Berkeley Article on BVFF 08 SLEDcc 2008 Machinima Festival
UC Prof. works with Aguilar Berkeley Daily Planet Praises "Diary"
Exhibitions/
Installations
by George Aguilar
Exhibition History Videomaker Magazine Profile