Ken Block’s DiRT 3™ Battersea Tilt-Shift Edition Video Launches

Sydney, AUSTRALIA – Monday, 20th June – Following the 500k+view success of Ken Block’s DiRT 3 Battersea Gymkhana video, Codemasters® has released stunning new footage of his spectacular run at Battersea Power Station, as filmed through tilt-shift cameras. Tilt-shift technology creates the illusion of a miniaturised world in the video as Ken Block performs a masterclass in car control around the iconic London landmark – which was turned into the DC Compound, a level from the critically acclaimed DiRT 3™ – for Codemasters’ recent Gymkhana Uncovered event.

DiRT 3 boasts more cars, more locations, more routes and more events than any other game in the series. Players can push their car control to the limit in all-new, Gymkhana inspired showpiece challenges and enjoy a career of an elite professional driver, competing in off-road racing events on the intense, weather-beaten Rally stages of Europe, Africa and the US.

DiRT 3 is now available for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft®, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system and PC Games For Windows® LIVE.

This year’s Sydney film festival’s Rouben Mamoulian Award for Best Director went to Craig Irvin for the film, “Tethered”.

Craig Irvin, director-screenwriter of Tethered, says the timing of his short film release has been interesting, just as the growing controversy with Australia’s cattle exports industry has exploded.

“There’s certainly some alignment with this film which is set in an abattoir – at times confronting the viewer, but with purpose. The film relies on that grit to help highlight the harsh reality that the character faces in his process of growing up, when his heroes suddenly fail and he finds he’s alone, needing to find his own way to adulthood in spite of the disappointments around him.”

Tethered’s central character, Tobin (Steven Fleming), is 17 and alone in a new town. It’s the first day of his new job at the local abattoir. In this macho, visceral environment the teen is humiliated by his workmates (John Brumpton and Richard Cawthorne). If he wants to belong he must learn to destroy.

“The film confronts the viewer with the grim truth of a slaughterhouse; the way our meat is processed and domination of man over beast. We shy away from this because we don’t want to face facts about  how our meat is processed to end up on our plate. The vulnerability of this boy is juxtaposed with a harsh, masculine environment as both he, and the viewer, struggle to come to terms with their responsibility.

“While there have been some walkouts and people feeling divided about the content, we didn’t harm animals to make the film, we just used the cameras to capture what actually happens.

“Making a film is a very intimate and challenging experience. Any acknowledgment is amazing, and this accolade of Best Director is an incredible honour,” says Mr Irvin. 

In awarding the prize the for Best Director, the Jury stated that “Tethered, while dealing with dark and confronting material, showed the emergence of a significant new Aussie talent in Craig Irvin.” 

Festival Director Clare Stewart says, “the Dendy Awards celebrate the creativity of the short form and recognise that short films provide a significant development pathway for our filmmakers.

“These awards are Academy Award® eligible and we are thrilled that last year’s winner of the Yoram Gross Animation Award, The Lost Thing, went on to win an Oscar® this year”, she said.

2011 H1 study reveals France and United States were countries most affected

SYDNEY & AUCKLAND – June 20, 2011 – BitDefender, an award-winning provider of innovative Internet security solutions, announces the publication of its H1 2011 E-Threat Landscape Report, a comprehensive study regarding worldwide malware, spam and phishing trends. In terms of producing and hosting malware, China is found to be number one, accounting for more than 31 percent, followed by Russia with almost 22 percent and Brazil with more than 8 percent.

The report presents an in-depth analysis of the security threat landscape over the last six months, between January and June 2011, and also provides predictions for the coming months. The countries that were most affected by online threats were France and the United States, which accounted for more than 25 percent of the global malware incidents logged by BitDefender.

During the first six months of 2011, more than 500,000 computers in France have been exposed to various families of malware, ranging from average rogue antivirus scanners to devastating malware such as the Sality or Downadup families.

“BitDefender predicts that mobile malware will increase by 400 percent throughout the remainder of 2011. On top of that, we estimate a 30 percent increase of unique samples of PC malware. Most of these e-threats will be related to the emergence of the first technical previews of Windows 8,” said Catalin Cosoi, head BitDefender’s online threats lab. “In terms of botnets and corporate security, we are expecting at least one major data breach to transpire somewhere around the world each month.”

Another important conclusion of the research is that 50 percent of the most important malware threats distributed worldwide consisted of Trojans. Furthermore, casino spam is on the rise as the Sality-supported Maazben botnet increases. In terms of social engineering scams, the top phished institutions and services during the first half of the year were PayPal, eBay and World of Warcraft.

The study was conducted through BitDefender’s worldwide users, and surveyed the most critical aspects of data security in conjunction with internet use, social networking and recent major corporate breaches.

The full report is available here.

All product and company names mentioned herein are for identification purposes only and are the property of, and may be trademarks of, their respective owners.

Cementing its place as Australia’s hottest horror of 2011, “The Tunnel” took out a triple victory at the Bloodfest Fantastique Film Festival in Melbourne on June 18 2011.

Winning for Best Film, Best Cinematography and Best Supporting Actor (Steve Davis), “The Tunnel” was also the festival’s closing night film.

Recently released on Bit Torrent’s online network, as a 2 disc DVD and with an exclusive theatrical run in Sydney, the film is also Australia’s first movie to be available as an i-Pad application download. It is also showing on Showtime Premiere.

ABOUT “THE TUNNEL” – directed by Carlo Ledesma

Starring Andy Rodoreda, Bel Delia, Steve Davis and Luke Arnold, “The Tunnel” is set amidst abandoned underground train tunnels beneath Sydney’s CBD. In 2008, chasing rumours of a government cover-up and urban legends surrounding the sudden back-flip, investigative journalist Natasha Warner led a crew of four into the underground labyrinth.

They went down into the tunnels looking for a story – until the story found them.

“The Tunnel” chronicles their harrowing ordeal. With unprecedented access to the recently declassified tapes the crew shot in the claustrophobic subway tunnels, as well as a series of candid interviews with the survivors, viewers come face to face with the terrifying truth.

This never before seen footage takes viewers deep inside the tunnels bringing the darkness to life and capturing the raw fear that threatens to tear the crew apart, leaving each one of them fighting for their lives.

www.thetunnelmovie.net

Visit www.worldofplanesgame.com for game news to request access to the closed beta coming in September.

June 17 – Award winning Gaijin Entertainment is announcing the launch of the official World of Planes website at www.worldofplanesgame.com. This MMO flying simulation game, based on World War II history, coming to PC and MAC.

What had been taken as April fool joke after initial presentation on April is in fact a very real and advanced project. «We decided to use this special date to open the curtains a little on what we had secretly been working on for the last two years. But of course we kept some things secret, for instance that we’re also bringing this new game to the MAC» says Kirill Yudintsev, Chief Creative Officer of Gaijin Entertainment.

At the website, players will find World of Planes news, screenshots, new game details, community features, and more! Players may also apply to participate in the World of Planes closed beta test. A small group of lucky players will be selected to receive early access to the game’s alpha version in July. Everyone else who applies will get to join in with the game’s beta version in September.

About Gaijin Entertainment: learn more at http://www.gaijinent.com

MONKEYBALL

LARRY CROWNE – EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH

COWBOYS & ALIENS

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2

OUR IDIOT BROTHER

THE MUPPETS BEING GREEN TRAILER

ATTACK THE BLOCK TRAILER

DOLPHIN TALE

ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS – CHIP WRECKED

Official launch a huge success

Markham, Canada 16 June 2011 – Rock Hippo Productions Ltd is pleased to announce that the official launch MicroVolts, the fast and furious MMO-TPS (Massively Multiplayer Online Third Person Shooter), has been a huge success.

The player base of the fun shooter is growing immensely every day and the players’ characters are already sporting many of the newly released items such as Naomi’s Cupcake Dress or Knox’s Skeleton Jacket. The new weaponry such as the Mimic rocket launcher and the DareDev gatling gun are fan favourites as well. And all these goodies are being put to good use by waging war in The Studio, the latest addition to the playable maps. To celebrate this success, Rock Hippo is sharing the Official Release Wallpaper with their fans.

The newly added Clan Feature is very popular with players as well, as is showcased by clans that have been created already. In the Clan Hall, MicroVolters can create or manage their clans, request membership into coveted clans, or recruit elite members to join their ranks. Ultimately, players compete with other clans for MicroWorld domination and ranking on the Clan Leaderboard which will be relaunched this Friday along with some other updates to clan functionality.

The Web and In-Game Shop have also seen heavy use by the players who are enjoying the access to exclusive items provided by this feature. Rock Hippo are is planning to expand the payment options and availability to more countries in order to better support the growing MicroVolts community.

On Saturday, June 18th, the “Free the Hippo: Free For All Tournament” is being held for all players eager to show off their combat prowess and grab some cool prizes. These include up to 135k Micro Points and a Hippo In Style costume set.

Join in the fun by visiting the game’s website at http://www.MicroVolts.com/. The website is updated on a regular basis, giving players an insight into the game and information on forthcoming in-game events. Tournaments and other surprise events will be unveiled so make sure to keep a daily check on the site.

The Sims 3 Town Life Stuff Pack
GIVE YOUR TOWN A MAKEOVER WITH THE SIMS 3 TOWN LIFE STUFF PACK

Build New Venues Like a Chic Library, High-Tech Gym, a Sunny BungalowPlayground or a State-of-the-Art Laundromat

Update your neighborhood and your Sim’s style with items and venues for their house and town. The Sims Studio proudly announces The Sims 3 Town Life Stuff pack, designed for you to update your neighborhood and spend the day around town, will be available on July 28, 2011 in Australia and July 27, 2011 in New Zealand.

Does your Sim love books? Build them a library where they can mix and mingle with their neighbors (but remember to keep it down!) or add one of the new retro library sets to their home. If your Sim prefers to pump iron then build them a high-tech gym with treadmills, weight machines and more. For those Sims who are family oriented, create new playgrounds filled witha sandbox, slide, tree house and other fun items. Additionally, with The Sims 3 Town Life Stuff packyou’ll also get washer and dryers for your home, new casual outfits and hairstyles to enhance your Sim’s look, as well as community lots like the Fresh and Frozen Express Grocer, Par Excellence Preparatory School and Scrumptious Nibbles Café.

The Sims 3 Town Life Stuff pack is currently available for pre-order at the EA Store. For more information on this title and all of The Sims 3 games, visit: http://au.thesim3.com

PATCH 4.2: RAGE OF THE FIRELANDS TRAILER REVEALED

Across the breadth of Azeroth, the Horde and the Alliance have dealt crushing blows to Deathwing’s elemental minions and fanatic Twilight’s Hammer cultists. Through it all, the Earthen Ring has never wavered from its tireless charge, holding Azeroth itself together amid the tidal fury and errant magical energies that churn at the Maelstrom. Yet as the elements continue their chaotic upheaval, it seems that the noble shamanic order might finally be on the verge of breaking beneath the great weight that rests on its shoulders. Even Thrall, for all of his wisdom and skill, has grown aggravated by his failure to effectively communicate with Azeroth’s elements. Recently, his calls were acknowledged, but the malevolent entity that responded has only intensified Thrall’s fears and doubts….

World of Warcraft: Cataclysm patch 4.2 is just on the horizon. Building off of our preview of the Rage of the Firelands content introduced in this patch, we’re pleased to present you with the official patch trailer! You can view the trailer on the World of Warcraft Community site, or via the World of Warcraft YouTube channel.