After the huge success of “Inception,” Joseph Gordon-Levitt is now probably best known for sharp suits and kicking ass on ceilings, but that only hints at the start of his talents. Something that’s been taking up a great deal of his time is hitRECord, a social network/production company founded by the actor, which encourages its members to produce open, collaborative, crowdsourced artworks.
The most recent piece to hit the site, directed by Gordon-Levitt himself, is “Morgan and Destiny’s Eleventeeth Date: The Zeppelin Zoo,” which stars the director and his “G.I. Joe” co-star Channing Tatum. The film played at SXSW this year, and is the sequel to the “Morgan M. Morgansen’s Date With Destiny,” which played Sundance only a few months earlier. The films began from a short story from Irish writer Sarah Daly, which was submitted to the site last year, and was discovered by the star, who put up a reading of the story, inspiring others to contribute artwork and music, and Gordon-Levitt to shoot some live action visuals for them.
The finished films feature effects from Scottish artist Lawrie Brewster, and a score from Nathan Johnson (“Brick,” “The Brothers Bloom”), again using contributions from over 50 musicians from hitRECord. It’s a pretty admirable venture, and the films are quite charming (and certainly the best thing that Channing Tatum’s ever been in…), even if it does occasionally feel like being stuck in a room with Don King. Watch both films below, and head over to hitRECord to get involved. [via Just Jared]