The digital Renaissance Man of Eastern Iowa [Chris Hanel] has finally decided to leave the midwest for the potential glory  on the East Coast (Orange County, no doubt). Chris’s departure weighs heavy upon the many friends he’s made here in Iowa City. Noboy wants to see Chris and Kori leave, but we fully support their decision. A man’s gotta do, what you gotta do. Here’s a man with talent: Exceptional Artist, Video Effects Editor, Coordinatior, Writer, Director, Actor, Improv Comedy Aficionado.

In the three years since he’s been back in Iowa, we’ve been able to put-forth an audience/fan script-submitted MST3K-Style Movie Heckling experience with Riff Raff Theater. When Chris had the time, he’d jump in to a Comics In Action gig… like the one at Coe Collage…

Of coure, this was not the ONLY time he’d worked with Comics In Action.

Then again, there is the multitude of movie we skewered under the guise of Riff Raff Theater. Here’s a clip.

You will be sorely missed, Mr. Hanel. Stay in touch. We’ll always have your back.

Once again, it is time to reflect on 2009 and the the hilarity that ensued with these viral videos. I will not presume to have compiled the ultimate list, but these are the clips that gave me the most sincerest laughs of 2009.

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If there is one thing I distaste about most blogs, is the rambling front page with endless entries. I like my websites to be concise, organized but interesting to the eye. That’s one of the biggest reasons I am using the Gridlock theme. It has that… magazine style of front end that appeals to me. So, when my previous ‘Art of Wasting Time’ entry, I was rather upset with myself for letting it get it get so long.

So, I have decided to continue along the the ‘Best of Online Video’ theme, and continue with what I consider to be some of the greatest clips I have found.

It took me some time to think back to previous clips that I had noticed and laughed considerably afterwards (or during, if it was particularly amusing). I have to give my ‘props’ to SNL… you’ll see why.

You know… I haven’t seen ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’. I have, however, read the book. I like most Sci-Fi moral tales…. except Harry Potter. I guess it’s just me. I’m more of a ‘Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy‘ kind of guy.

Last summer, my two kids (Jared and Haley) and myself worked on a digital-short which they had written themselves. It was a pretty novel idea. It was spawned from the ‘Intro to Film and Video’ class that I took over a year ago here at the University of Iowa.

Yes. It’s a shameless plug. But, hey, it’s my kids. They are pretty stinkin’ smart… obviously they get it from me…. maybe.

Some of the funniest clips are those that should never have been leaked out to the general public. If you know what I mean, then you’ve seen the ‘Star Wars Kid’ clips. If not… where have you BEEN!

Begin Short Break-Down: Some kid at school used their equipment to film himself doing light-saber stunts using some kind of long pole as his weapon. Someone else grabbed the footage and posted it online. It spurned a whole series of clips that placed him in odd situations, usually super-imposing him atop of ‘Neo’ of the Matrix or Uma Thurman in ‘Kill Bill’. This is my favorite clip… the Star Wars version. For more info on the whole story, read about it here. Here is more on from Wired.com.

For some time, I have been collecting links to the latest viral videos on the web. These videos have come from various people: family, friends, co-workers and fellow students. As viral video savvy as I think I am, there is far to many awesome videos out there on the Word Wide Web for even I to track.

This post will be a continually updated post. I have grown tired of trying to remember the various links when I am not sitting at my on computer, so I have decided to collect them all into a single post. But, it will be impossible for me to do all in one sitting. This won’t be a Top 10 or a Best of the Best list of stuff. This will simply be a continually updated post that will detail what I think is the best of what I think a good viral video is all about.

I remember rolling on the floor for HOURS after watching this short movie. Many of my friends are Star Wars fans and after watching Pink Five, I had forwarded the link to nearly everyone I could think of. I then proceeded to force all my co-workers to watch, including my boss. Maybe that’s why I got laid-off. Pink Five has grown into a trilogy that follows the efforts of ‘Stacey’ and the boyfriend (Han Solo) she keeps on the ‘down-low’. It’s a pretty intricate series and it winds its way and tells the back-story to nearly every Star Wars character. I can’t believe my friend, Chris Hanel, is actually working with Trey Stokes and Amy Earhart on this series. It ‘like, totally blows my mind.’ OK. Now, I am truly embarrassing myself.

What can be said about this spin on Budweiser’s ‘Whassup!” series of commercials. Of course, the ‘old granny’ version was just as funny as the first. But, these guys took that concept to a completely different level. This is by far my favorite.

There over a billion versions of this animated video on Google and YouTube. This is probably the cleanest of them all, which makes determining the original author’s name, Victor Navone, easier to determine. This clip was originally built in 1999, making it one of the longest running viral videos on the internet. This one is short and sweet and the real bonus is for those that can figure out how he trimmed Gloria Gaynor’s hit ‘I Will Survive’ to fit.

What could be funnier than watching bear Kung Fu? This would be one.

Speaking of bears, it seems I’ve seen this before. Perhaps in a Funniest Home Video contest.

This animated short takes some time to fully develop and it surprised me with its depth and story line. Not only is the digital animation top notch, the soundtrack adds just the right touch of poignancy. Look it up.