It might seem weird to write about the passing of Jean Luc Godard in a blog about Eve Online, but I am an admitted film fan and I've certainly written about weirder things in these pages.
The inspiration for our Alliance A Band Apart stemmed from that love of cinema. Not only is it one of Jean Luc Godard's (self-admitted) worst films, but it is also the name of Quentin Tarantino's production company. Or technically, was the name of his original production company. And while I didn't choose the name based solely on those inspirations, it was important in the decision making process.
A Band Apart was just too perfect to pass up frankly. As an Alliance originally conceived as merely a vehicle to house Stay Frosty inside of so we could compete in the AT, it wasn't something I spent a lot of time contemplating. But naming things is a huge part of my job in the real world, from products, services, entire companies - branding is the name of my game. Or used to be at least. So A Band Apart perfectly captured the spirit of what we were trying to be. Back then, almost a decade ago, it was all hypothetical anyway.
I'm pleased to report that nearly a decade later and I believe we've certainly continued to aspire towards earning the moniker. ABA continues to do things in a decidedly different way, in our own unique style, and perhaps - a tad ahead of our time. Let's just call us Avant Garde and be done with it.
And so I encourage you to take this as an opportunity to seek out and watch the great films of Jean Luc Godard. Especially the ground-breaking films of the 50s and 60s. You'll quickly notice that so much of what you watch today is heavily influenced by this man's work, yes even the QuickTime and TikTok world we live in now. I recommend Breathless, Alphaville, Vivre Sa Vie, Masculin Feminin to get started. If you do watch Alphaville make sure it is the recently restored version.
And then find some Truffaut films to help balance things out.
Godspeed Godard.