Rogier van de Zande
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rogierz.bsky.social
Rogier van de Zande
@rogierz.bsky.social
Dutchman in Chicagoland / Domesticated husband / Number cruncher / Online nomad
Rental Family (2025)
My rating: 8/10

Even with its slightly underdeveloped supporting characters and a Jónsi soundtrack that’s good but not epic, Rental Family is the kind of movie that you think about the next morning and feels like a world you want to stay in.

We need more Brendan Fraser.
Rental Family (2025)
An American actor in Tokyo struggles to find purpose until he lands an unusual gig: working for a Japanese "rental family" agency, playing stand-in roles for strangers. As he immerses himself in his c...
letterboxd.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:31 PM
Eddington (2025)
My rating: 7/10

Ari Aster’s latest movie explores how the rise of AI, hidden behind data centers, could silence humanity while we tear ourselves apart over conspiracies and culture wars.

Deep, unsettling, and painfully relevant.
Eddington (2025)
In May of 2020, a standoff between a small-town sheriff and mayor sparks a powder keg as neighbor is pitted against neighbor in Eddington, New Mexico.
letterboxd.com
July 21, 2025 at 7:31 AM
OpenAI: “We are working with Jony Ive to design revolutionary AI products.”

Google: “Check out our new AI Mode to take Search to the next level.”

Apple: “Look, look! Shiny, see-through icons!”
June 10, 2025 at 2:29 AM
Dogma (1999)
My rating: 4/5

Kevin Smith’s best work is back in theaters after being tied up in licensing limbo for years.

A wild mix of Hollywood stars, comedians, and cult icons like Jay and Silent Bob hilariously skewer modern religion. I miss this kind of bold originality.
Dogma (1999)
An abortion clinic worker with a special heritage is called upon to save the existence of humanity from being negated by two renegade angels trying to exploit a loophole and reenter Heaven.
letterboxd.com
June 9, 2025 at 11:49 AM
Apple better hurry and get its act together. Altman and Ive are planning deeper integration of AI and hardware, with their first products expected in 2026.
luok.ai luokai @luok.ai · May 22
Sam Altman and Jony Ive Team Up to Launch IO Company, Redefining the Future of AI ProductsOpenAI founder Sam Altman and Apple’s former design chief, legendary designer Jony Ive, have joined forces to publicly introduce Ive’s new venture—IO for the first time.

youtu.be/W09bIpc_3ms?...
Sam & Jony introduce io
YouTube video by OpenAI
youtu.be
May 22, 2025 at 9:50 AM
Deep research in ChatGPT suggests there’s a 65% chance the new Bears stadium will be built in Arlington Heights.

And that nearby towns could see a 5 to 10 percent increase in property values as a result.
May 15, 2025 at 11:41 AM
This freaks me out even more than the rapid rise of AI alone. Can you imagine today’s AI combined with this level of physical ability? Soon, we’ll all be living in the sci-fi movies we grew up with.
luok.ai luokai @luok.ai · May 14
Tesla’s Optimus Robot Shows Major Agility Breakthroughs.
May 14, 2025 at 11:10 AM
Chicagoland is in overdrive.
May 9, 2025 at 9:06 PM
I saw it with Thunderbolts as the opening movie. The 2 or 3 scenes that used the full-wall projection created a unique and immersive experience, but each scene only lasted about 5 minutes. ScreenX tickets should clearly advertise how many minutes of the movie actually use the panoramic effect.
New Panoramic Movie Screen In Addison Is ILs First
New Panoramic Movie Screen In Addison Is ILs... - Elmhurst, IL - Moviegoers will have key cinematic moments literally surrounding them in the 270-degree experience at Marcus Addison Cinema.
patch.com
May 4, 2025 at 3:58 AM
This would actually make sense, as a healthy counterweight to OpenAI.
Apple taps Anthropic for AI coding as developers await Swift Assist — 9to5Mac
While Apple works to boost Apple Intelligence, the company is reportedly teaming up with Anthropic to integrate Claude with Xcode, Apple’s integrated development environment. However, Xcode with Claud...
apple.news
May 2, 2025 at 6:56 PM
Two random predictions about AI chatbots:

1. Within a year, OpenAI will rebrand its main app as chat.com.

2. Over time, it will become very common for people to embrace AI chatbots as mental health counselors.
April 23, 2025 at 1:22 PM
We’ve not reached AGI yet.

I invited ChatGPT (advanced model 4o) to challenge me with a logic puzzle. I gave my answer, then it explained the ‘correct’ answer, only to admit the following seconds later…
April 12, 2025 at 12:01 PM
We had to cancel our tickets to Lane 8’s New York show in 2020 because of the pandemic. Almost 5 years later, I finally get to see @lane8music.bsky.social perform live, tomorrow night at Navy Pier in Chicago. #childishtour

Perfect timing with his new mixtape out now.
Lane 8 Spring 2025 Mixtape
Sign up now for Lane 8’s Red Rocks show with Le Youth, Ashibah and Rinzen 'Childish' Tour on sale now. Tickets & info: lane8music.com/tour/ Lane 8 'Childish' Out Now: thisneverhappened.ffm.to/child Mi
soundcloud.com
March 20, 2025 at 9:12 PM
Wonderful new melodic EP by Attom.
Timelines by Attom on Apple Music
Song · 2025 · Duration 4:08
music.apple.com
March 9, 2025 at 10:40 PM
Anora (2024)
My rating: 2/5

Knowing it was going to be a blend of drama and comedy, I expected something like Lost in Translation. It wasn’t. For a movie named after its main character, you hardly get to know her. Two hours in, you finally catch a glimpse into her psyche. Then the credits roll.
Anora (2024)
Anora, a young sex worker from Brooklyn, gets her chance at a Cinderella story when she meets and impulsively marries the son of an oligarch. Once the news reaches Russia, her fairytale is threatened ...
boxd.it
March 9, 2025 at 2:05 PM
Yes! Decide already.
Arlington Heights back in play for the Bears
Will the Bears go back to their original plan to build a stadium in the suburbs?
www.axios.com
March 7, 2025 at 10:40 AM
Funny how Apple Face ID hesitates at 4:30 in the morning, like, “Wait… Rogier? That you?”
March 7, 2025 at 10:35 AM
Haha! After months of crowd-sourced flag redesign submissions, public voting, and the long-awaited reveal of our new state flag… we’re keeping the old one.
In with the old: Current state flag wins big in flag redesign contest, Illinois Secretary of State announces
The people of Illinois have spoken, and they overwhelmingly favor retaining the current state flag. Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias has announced the results of the state flag redesig…
wgntv.com
March 6, 2025 at 9:54 PM
It is true. Apple Intelligence is underwhelming. ChatGPT, accessed through Siri, requires manual setup first and only triggers when explicitly mentioned.

Conclusion: the so-called new Siri is all marketing, no real progress. Let's impatiently wait for Apple's own LLM.
March 1, 2025 at 1:15 PM
If this leads to a one-day postponement of buying items already on your shopping list, then no, it’s not going to make a dent.
Economic blackout: Will a 24-hour boycott make a difference?
An “economic blackout” promoted on social media is underway but with no clear indication of how many people took part or whether retail companies and restaurants will notice any effect from the grassr...
apnews.com
February 28, 2025 at 7:12 PM
I see you…
February 23, 2025 at 10:48 PM
Korean grocery stores in the Chicago suburbs are amazing. This is Joong Boo in Glenview.
February 23, 2025 at 6:47 PM
Clearing your driveway but leaving the sidewalks buried in snow for your neighbors.

A small symbol that shows how, over the decades, we gained more personal freedom, yet struggle to take responsibility for the greater good.
February 22, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Flow (2024)
My rating: 3/5

A mesmerizing adventure story without words. Unique in style and worth a watch. Some may find it slow or a bit uneventful, though.
Flow (2024)
A solitary cat, displaced by a great flood, finds refuge on a boat with various species and must navigate the challenges of adapting to a transformed world together.
boxd.it
February 21, 2025 at 2:06 PM