This is the same basic idea I had about 10 years ago, but didn't have the necessary knowledge or resources to attempt (being in high school at the time). It's something I've always wanted to play with, and this is a really nice proof of concept.

If this is done through compositing, someone get the editor a job in Hollywood!

I don't disagree that doing this is probably stupid, but as a video professional, I seriously doubt that it was done via compositing.

The way the flame moves through and around the guy's fingers is pretty complex, and no matter what angle the camera is at, the flame appears to be shot at the correct angle. Throw in how the light from the flame reacts with the camera's automatic gain control, and you have a hell of a lot of complicated compositing to do.

As for the lighter fluid not sticking to his fingers, at about 8 seconds in, he pulls his thumb back and a tiny flame remains briefly on his thumb. Something similar happens at about 2:15, and again at 3:21.

The segment where the lighter fluid is being squirted onto the ball does look suspicious, but after watching it about 20 times, I think our eyes are being fooled by the angle and the fact that the lighter fluid is clear.

It reminds me of Eddie Izzard's bit about the Death Star.

"This one's wet. And this one's wet. And this one's wet. This one is wet, this one is wet, this one is wet, this one is wet, this one is wet, this one is wet, this one is wet, this one is wet. Why, with the power of the Death Star do we not have a tray that is fucking dry?"

I also thought of this years ago, without realizing that it had been done, of course.

I'm sad that it's a clip-on, but that didn't stop me from ordering one yesterday.

Excuse me while I go buy a short-sleeved dress shirt.

Last year, I had to stop press releases from being sent via a contact form on a website I used to administer. I used the string "for immediate release" and that stopped 100% of them.

So yes, it's outmoded, but helpful for this purpose. -)

I agree with Charles. Read them in whatever order you like, but just be aware you could be setting yourself up for a let-down later on.

It may sound paid, but I read Pratchett, and would probably say the same thing.

I agree with Santos, I'll take the Nightwatch over the witches any day. Susan and Death are definite favorites. The wizards, Rincewind in particular, can be quite entertaining.

My intro book was Soul Music, which had me hooked. As someone who got a degree in filmmaking, Moving Pictures had me laughing every step of the way.

I saw this on my Flickr screen saver a few days ago and immediately wanted one! It's funny to see it here. -)

I recall reading a story that I found on Digg about a guy who worked for a porn company. He said his boss' girlfriend only did one off, special order videos wherein she would act out fetishes for horny guys. Some of the fetishes included stomping on ants in high heels and getting stuck in a puddle of something sticky. Interestingly enough, she wasn't naked in any of these videos.

It also reminds me of that episode of King of the Hill where Peggy meets a guy (voiced by Sydney Pollack, no less) who shoots videos of him doing weird things to her feet and puts them online (much to Bill's delight).