Very quick review: “Get Smart”

“Get Smart” is basically “The Office” with machine guns. If this sounds good to you, go see it. I wasn’t expecting much but was pleasantly surprised.

In other news the costume for Possumus Man 2: Possumus Woman (working title) is almost done and will be at least 3 times better than the original costume + working jaw. Stay tuned….

Atari 7800 Portable

I thought about doing one of these years ago, right after my first Atari 2600 portable actually, but after taking a look at the motherboard (which is a lot more complex than the Atari 2600’s) I got cold feet.

My feet are much warmer now and thus here is an Atari 7800 portable I’ve done by request. For some reason I am just not that intimidated by “complex looking” electronics anymore, I don’t know why! The 7800 motherboard is a bit larger than the 2600, thus the unit is larger, but I slapped on a bigger 7″ widescreen to make up for it. (Kind of like the iPhone ads that allegedly use giant hands) Quick specs:

  • Rechargeable batteries built-in
  • Combination driving / paddle controller
  • Weighs less than a gallon of milk
  • A/V output jack, like all my old portables used to have
  • Black paint

For the making-of story and more pics than I usually post, click below. There’s also a video where I describe the functions. Now that this is done I can allot more of my time to “Possumus Man 2: Possumus Woman!” (Working title)


Unfortunately the flashback scene in Possumus Man 2 now takes place in the 60’s, rendering my bumper sticker props useless.

Continue reading Atari 7800 Portable

Possumus Man 2 Begins

Long ago, before I was an internet celebrity, my hobby was independent filmmaking, with some modding on the side. Then of course the modding hobby took over my life and became my job, while other hobbies faded away… As of 2008 it’s been 6 years since we’ve done a movie – which might not sound like a lot but in the old days the biggest gap between our indy productions was maybe 11 months.

Snake? Snake! SNNNAAAAKKKEEEE!!!!!!
This snake slithered onto our filming location so I put it in the movie. Hopefully it’s not SAG because I didn’t pay it…

Not content with this state of affairs I set out to make a movie this summer, dammit. On a couple occasions we’ve almost made a sequel to our “amazing” 1995 effort Possumus Man and I decided this time we’d actually do it. Also it’s somewhat easy to film, compared to say Port Washington, as it takes place mostly in the woods. We’re shooting in hi-def using the Panasonic P2 camera – no more manual tape capture!


Mike Adsit and Jason Jones standing by a campsite where a horrific battle is about to ensue. Mike co-stars in this movie, while Jones thus far is mostly cameraman. Hi-def requires more emphasis on good focus, and he’s doing a bang-up job.

We started filming this last weekend and expect to continue about every other weekend this summer. Locations are mostly south central Wisconsin, though we may also do some shots up north around the Rice Lake / Birchwood area.

For up-to-date info, or to just check out another Benheck blog, visit The Official Possumus Man 2 blog.

Benheck podcast episode 45

Once again we planned to do a podcast about Egypt and space… this time we got about halfway there at least. We probably would have had time for a space discussion had we not gotten off-topic about six billion times while talking about Egypt… sorry!

Some tangents we go off on – like talking about the Mummy movies, union pyramid builders or Moses – are understandable and somewhat related, but how we segue Egypt to Carrie Underwood, Tom Cruise and Michael Jackson’s nose are beyond mortal comprehension. But we found the way.

The podcast ends with us discussing The Fifth Element for a while, so yeah, basically it’s all over the map but should be enjoyable! Also I hope to get intros back on the front of the podcasts but Possumus Man 2: Possumus Woman might eat into my “creative time”.

Listen to Benheck.com Podcast Episode 45

www.benheckpodcast.com

You can now pre-order the Access Controller!

Blue is the new white
Rendering of Access Controller product box. (Click image for large version)

We’re finally close enough in production to start taking pre-orders for the Access Controller. Please click here to visit the eDimensional site and proceed. You’ll also notice a permanent link on the right side of the site that you can use, as well as one for my headset.

The Access Controller is intended as a solution for those who have difficulty using a standard gaming pad because of a physical limitation or other factors. All of the gamepad controls are on one surface, allowing easy access, and the curved bottom and feet lets the user place the unit on their leg or flat surface, removing the issue of having to hold it. On top of this, each of the modules can be placed in any of the 6 slots in the unit, allowing a myriad of configurations to best suit the user and/or specific game.


Description of the 5 modules, shown in a sample configuration.

It has been a long process (a solid year) but I’m glad we’ve finally reached this point, and I’d like to offer my most sincere thanks to Michael Epstein at eDimensional for supporting this idea and bringing it to fruition.