You are invited to the Volksbühne on 2nd February, 2012, to witness the budding young designers determine their destiny. It's all moderated by Germany's Beatbox Champion Mando, who will beatbox around the stage.

It's the rare chance to see brave talented designers take the stage and show off their lightning speed shortcut skills and wow you with their exquisite and superb designs in 2D, 3D, and Motion Design categories. Oh did we mention they must complete their task within the given 15 to 20 minute time limit?

You are certain to be amazed by what the brilliant designers can produce within their allotted time, and it's guaranteed to be full of energy; emotions will run high and there will be a contagious sense of adrenaline in the air. 

You will witness in awe as the competitors race against the clock to determine their own design destiny and watch as the winners in each category are awarded a trip to NYC to compete at the Cut&Paste Global Championship in March.

As well as the live competition, there will be a public audience design challenge for anyone wanting to participate, and to seek out audience members harboring any hidden design talents!

Once the winners are chosen, an unforgettable afterparty kicks in first with Vjs Pfadfinderei for a dazzling light show, followed by electro-pop experts Notic Nastic leading the night with freaky beats. Socialize with Berlin's top professional designers, media brands, and agencies who also turn up to interact and network with today's young talented designers.

One of the main motivations behind Cut&Paste is to demystify the often invisible design process - and at the same time make it more exciting. What really happens when working on "the creatives" behind an idea? Cut&Paste shows that it is a mixture of tools and courage that count most in successful design.

The live competition takes place on 02.02.2012 at the Volksbühne in Berlin. Doors open at 7pm. Tickets are now on sale HERE!

Come out to support the brave designers, mix with distinguished professionals and media, and bring your friends for an unforgettable night.

Cut&Paste is organized by PLATOON Cultural Development and sponsored by Cine Plus, supported by to Novum, Berlin Design Blog, and Slanted.

FACEBOOK // TWITTER

congratulations to the people at Gidsy, including members Edial Dekker #4769 & Philipp Wassibauer #4158. to be honest, we weren't terribly surprised at the news considering we knew the Gidsy group was destined for big things. 

but it nonetheless impressed us that Ashton Kutcher, Sunstone Capital, Index Ventures, Werner Vogels, and Peter Read funded Gisdy with $1.2 million in seed funding. Gidsy already operate tours in Berlin, New York, and Amsterdam.

and now it's official: San Fransicso is getting Gidsy too!

according to the site 'Gidsy is a marketplace for authentic experiences', meaning that individuals can decide to host a tour on any topic they choose, adding authenticity to any activity they are knowledgeable about. 

it hosts guided tours that break away from the sometimes drab tourist industry that dominates big cities, and some non-conventional tours too that are also of interest to any locals. coffee tasting tours, burger tour experiences, and nightlife introductions are not just for the visiting backpackers!

equally Gidsy give more than just an authentic experience, it also offers gems to the locals and gives them ways to experience their city and connect with likeminded adventurers. it doesn't stop at tours, but expands into lunchtime yoga classes, collective drawing workshops and even a Berlin startup how-to discussion. 

and tours themselves are not your everyday ordinary tour in that most hosts come from the Gidsy community, the groups are small and the prices extremely low. so check out a tour, before Gidsy takes over the world!

next up: London.

SEOUL · another year has gone by and CUT&PASTE has returned. after having a successful digital design tournament for the first time last year in SEOUL, the second tournament took place on DECEMBER 10 at PLATOON KUNSTHALLE.

after 2 qualifier rounds in november, 16 challenging designers were picked to compete, including some familiar faces: SOONKYU JANG (2010 2D CHAMPION) and SUBONG PARK (2010 2D PARTICIPANT) — if you were at the tournament in 2010.

the design feast wasn't only a stage for the designers. GROLSCH & ADOBE's audience design contests were open to anyone interested in designing and winning fun prizes.

this year's SHOW&TELL featured GRAFFITI RESEARCH LAB (GRL), SUE LEE (editor in chief at 3D ARTISAN MAGAZINE), and SEONGGON PARK (COM2US). after the presentation, SEUNGHYUN CHOI, development manager from ADOBE KOREA showed the features of ADOBE iPAD application and entertained the crowd with his witty comments.

as soon as the he stepped down from the stage, the main competition was opened by MC KIRIN, supported by DJ UDO LEE. each round took place and captivated the attention of the audience with the contestants' skills. after all the live battling, champions were announced for the global championship in NYC in 2012: GISEOK CHO (2D), MOONJUNG JANG (3D) and SUJIN YANG (motion design) with grand excitement!

this year's 2D competition was quite intense. with the starting bell for the 2D round, GISEOK CHO was accompanied by his friend on stage. his friend did an eye-catching dance performance for the crowd until GISEOK CHO started putting on make-up on his friend's face with a black pen. he then took a photo of the face using it as foundation his graphic design. despite of all the original pieces by other designers, GISEOK CHO grabbed the ticket to go to NYC after applying his impressive design asset to his artwork.

with new design talents emerging every year, our expectations are getting higher. click HERE to get to know more about CUT&PASTE SEOUL 2011. find out HERE to see if it's happening in your town and get involved. also, keep an eye on the NYC GLOBAL CHAMPIONSHIP in 2012!

CUT&PASTE is coming to Berlin on FEB 2, 2012. the second qualifying round is going on now, so get your applications to compete in before JAN 8!!!

PICTOPLASMA has been working with monsters for years. original members Lars Denicke #5466 & Peter Thaler #5467 are acclaimed for their focus on contemporary character design and figurative art. they find monsters to be friendly creatures when given the right coloring, visuals and motion. they're characters in their own right, not always the traditional monster that lived under our beds when we were kids.

in 2004, PICTOPLASMA started an annual festival where designers come to talk about families of characters and creatures. and they were lucky enough to curate their PARIS exhibition 'PICTOPLASMA PARIS'. of course, the annual conference and festival features monsters of all types and many that you might not even consider a monster. Hello Kitty? she's definitely a monster! and probably one of the biggest with a long character history (and plenty of merchandise).

the latest exhibition for the PICTOPLASMA people is at la Gaîté lyrique in PARIS. it traces the graphic history and heritage of character monsters, taking their personas beyond the graphic stages into the post-digital environment where graphics live outside the computer. with posters, sculptures, videos and more, you can discover your own favorite creature at the exhibition. it runs until DEC 31, so if you're in the area check it out. more details here!

and stay posted for updates regarding the PICTOPLASMA CONFERENCE & FESTIVAL that is happening here in BERLIN in APRIL, 2012.

read a great interview with Lars and Peter from the CREATORS PROJECT here.

Konrad was part of the first BAR 25 crew, and his first project, the film BAR 25, was possible through crowdfunding where it raised thousands of euros and the crew were able to see their film completed. since then, he's been hooked on a platform of supporting and funding that comes for the bottom up.

over the summer, he attended our PLATOON BOOTCAMP session the future of money to discuss how the relationship between art projects and money is changing thanks to platforms like his own INKUBATO and anything kickstarter-related. he's always looking for new projects to support and new people to participate in INKUBATO.DE, so check out the site and get involved!

we'd recommend the latest dream of member Lucian Busse #3637 who is working on his film project 'BERLINIZED - Sexy an Eis'. it's a beautiful attempt to understand Berlin and Berliners' relationship with the underground basement clubbing scene of the 90's and reflect that back to today's Berlin, one at the crossroads of nostalgia for the underground Berlin and one that embraces money, tourism and a better way of life for many.

from the project: 'Berlin in the 1990s: amongst great political change and in the shadow of ultra-commercialized Techno culture, there existed a parallel universe, now mostly forgotten, but defining for the feeling and lifestyle of the city: the world of basement bars and off-creatives /-> or subculture.....

the film BERLINIZED - Sexy on Ice takes you on a tour to 1990s’ Berlin-Mitte, both capturing and reflecting on this very unique feeling at a certain place in time. Filmmaker Lucian Busse, an active protagonist of this era, took his camera everywhere to document the changing cityscape, the art scene, clubs, concerts, and also the many construction sites where free space was filled up with ever-new, ever-the-same, faceless office buildings.'

now the project is looking for the extra support to finalize the film with color matching, Dolby mix, and mastering as well as the added steps involved in transporting the film to the big screen, where it belongs for all Berliners to see.

this is not a nostalgic project, rather one that can help us understand who were are and what this city symbolizes for each of us.check out INKUBATO and support Lucian's 'Berlinized - Sexy an Eis' - and maybe you'll find more projects that spark your interest.

links: INKUBATO // 'BERLINIZED - Sexy an Eis'