Highlights From The Second Annual Minneapolis Internet Cat Video Film Festival

Grumpy Cat Takes The Golden Kitty

Thousands of feline fans gathered on Wednesday night at the Minneapolis State Fair Grandstand, for the second annual Cat Vid Fest, presented by Walker Art Center.

After attracting over 10,000 fans last year, a reported 13,000 people bought tickets to sit around and watch cat videos together last night, and celebrate internet cat culture in real life. The event was also streamed live online by Animal Planet, for unfortunate souls (like myself) who weren't able to attend in purrson.

The cat people of Minnesota are legion. #catvidfest: pic.twitter.com/Wmp9FxOp2d
— Tom Horgen (@tomhorgen) August 29, 2013

The three hour long program kicked-off with a (loooong) two hour introduction that included performances by Twin Cities band Brian Laidlaw & the Family Trade, and quirky dance duo, Koo Koo Kanga Roo. 


Brian Laidlaw

Comedian Julie Klausner served as the night's emcee, introducing appearances by noted feline viral video hit-makers such as Will Braden (Henri, Le Chat Noir), Charlie Schmidt (Keyboard Cat), Chris Torres (Nyan Cat), and Maddie Kelly (Kittens Inspired by Kittens), who all received Hall of Fame awards later in the evening.

 
From l to r; Charlie Schmidt, Maddie Kelly, Mike Bridavsky and Lil Bub, Chris Torres, The Bundesen's and Grumpy Cat, Will Braden.

In celebration of "the Great Minnesota Get-Together tradition," Animal Planet commissioned a butter cat sculpture, inspired by royalty (rumor has it that Tardar Sauce licked its ear).


Tardar Sauce cozying up to the butter cat sculpture.



No pets were allowed on the grounds per fair rules, but spectators were greeted to surprise appearances by some of the most famous cats in the world, including Minneapolis's own Pudge the Cat.

"@PudgeTheKitten do you have anything to say?" #myheart #catvidfest pic.twitter.com/jI4IZDcSxY
— Erin Good (@eringood02) August 29, 2013

The highlight of the event, however, was an epic meeting of the minds between Grumpy Cat and Lil Bub.

BUB and @RealGrumpyCat sharing stories. Telepathically. pic.twitter.com/ngzMuHsTJk
— Lil BUB (@IAMLILBUB) August 28, 2013

@RealGrumpyCat and @iamlilbub chatting at #CatVidFest https://t.co/dvlXFPiJB9
— Grumpy Cat (@RealGrumpyCat) August 28, 2013

Over 7,000 nominations were submitted for this year's festival, and a team of 70 jurors narrowed the field down to 65+ cat video clips that were shown in categories like Comedy, Drama, Foreign, Animated, and Musical. 

People's Choice award winners included the now classic Cat In A Shark Costume Chases A Duck While Riding A Roomba and Cat Licking Vacuum Cleaner, but the coveted 2013 Golden Kitty Award ultimately went to Grumpy Cat, who took home the Monopoly cat game piece inspired cat-uette, basically just for being her grumpy self.


Go Grumpy!

Of course, no event such as this would be complete without cat fashion, and people had no reservations about letting their feline freak flags fly. 

We found @RealGrumpyCat's biggest fan @ #CatVidFest! Watch our live stream NOW! http://t.co/4yUtEb6HiV #Meow pic.twitter.com/7u9x9oWHdu
— AnimalPlanet (@AnimalPlanet) August 29, 2013

#CatVidFest https://t.co/IrFOIpWgAc
— Brian Schroeder (@BrianTheVirgil) August 29, 2013

The night's festivities concluded with a fireworks celebration, which most cats probably would have hated.

And the #catvidfest goes out with a bang. https://t.co/eFGduR5IW4
— Ben Lashes (@BenLashes) August 29, 2013

In case you missed it, Cat Vid Fest is hitting the road again this year. The full tour schedule will be posted tomorrow, August 30 on the Walker Art Center website.

Highlights From The Second Annual Minneapolis Internet Cat Video Film Festival

Keyboard Cat Comes To Life With Animatronic Plush Toy

Keyboard Cat Animatronic Plush from ThinkGeek

It's been nearly two years in the making, but the highly anticipated Keyboard Cat Animatronic Plush has finally come to fruition, thanks to a little help from ThinkGeek. The 8" tall orange tabby comes with his own little tee and piano, and is a great gift for friends, family, significant others, coworkers, and anyone else who needs to be played off.



The famous musical feline rose to fame in 2009, after a 20+ year old video of Charlie Schmidt's cat, Fatso, found its ways on to YouTube. The original clip has over 31 million views to date, and remains one of the most beloved viral cat videos of all time.



The Keyboard Cat Animtronic Plush, a ThinkGeek exclusive, is available now for $34.99. A relatively small price to pay to own a little a piece of internet cat history.

Via ThinkGeek

Keyboard Cat Comes To Life With Animatronic Plush Toy

Maru, Grumpy, Henri & More Internet Famous Cats Made Out Of Shattered Glass

Maru

It's not unusual to come across fan art inspired by some of the internet's most famous feline video stars, but I've never seen anything quite like the thought-provoking work of Valeria Montana, who transforms shattered glass into haunting cat portraits.

Grumpy Cat

The Frágil. Fuerte (Fragile. Strong) project began after Valeria was out riding her bike one day, and came across a car accident. She starts off with a wood canvas, and then paints her subject, before painstakingly covering the finished piece with an eerie layer of broken glass, culled from less-than-fortunate circumstances. 

Keyboard Cat

When asked to elaborate on the project, Montana tells me: 

"Cats are my inspiration because they have 7 lives (other people think that they have 9): All are a unique life.

This artwork is made of safety glass (from accidents) on wood. This is a very tragic material that I transform into art to show the paradox of something strong also being fragile. 

I am obsessed with how a free-falling cat can turn itself right-side-up as it falls, no matter which way up it was initially. Cats are the strongest animals that I can think of. They are so free, so independent and so lovely: This "feline spirit" is also part of my inspiration."


Henri, le Chat Noir

So far, her subjects have included viral video stars such as Maru, Grumpy Cat, OMG Cat, Keyboard Cat, and Two Talking Cats. She's also tackled feline philosopher, Henri, le Chat Noir, who I'm sure would have something to say about the impermanence of life in relation to a shattered portrait.


OMG Cat

Visit the project's Tumblr, Frágil. Fuerte, for more.

Maru, Grumpy, Henri & More Internet Famous Cats Made Out Of Shattered Glass

Pawtographed Keyboard Cat Pics Hit The Auction Block

Keyboard Cat Autographed Glossy Head Shot

Charlie Schmidt is giving fans the chance to own a piece of internet history, by offering up "pawtographed" copies of Keyboard Cat's glossy headshot on eBay. While the photo appears to be of the original Keyboard Cat, Fatso, it bears the stamp of approval from Bento, the heir to the Keyboard Cat throne. Fatso reportedly passed away in 1987, nearly 25 years before gaining internet stardom.

The suggestive headshot is the same one the talented tabby uses for auditions - those Wonderful Pistachios commercials don't book themselves, you know - and can be yours for the Buy it Now price of $14.99. Word has it, he'll also purrsonalize it if you send in your name!

Via Facebook (Keyboard Cat - Official)

Pawtographed Keyboard Cat Pics Hit The Auction Block

The Musical Keyboard Cat Toy You Didn't Even Know You Wanted

Keyboard Cat - The Toy!

Get ready to play your friends, family, and even your self off when the musical Keyboard Cat plush makes it way to a store near you!! Charlie Schmidt debuted the new Keyboard Cat toy on his YouTube account yesterday, but offered nothing more than a cryptic "Coming Soon" about the possibility of its upcoming release. Keyboard Cat joins a host of other popular cat memes such as Happy Cat, Nyan Cat, and Longcat who have already been translated into plush form.

Via The Daily What

The Musical Keyboard Cat Toy You Didn't Even Know You Wanted

Kids React To Keyboard Cat

The "Kids React to Viral Videos" YouTube series exposes a group of youngsters to the world of online media, and then captures their candid responses to various viral videos on film for the amusement of the most jaded internet junkies among us.

The latest installment features kids watching the original Keyboard Cat video for the first time, and the general consensus among them is that Keyboard Cat is a puppet, and that kitties can't play the piano. As Best Week Ever also points out, "a little girl who wants to dress up the cat in a “summery dress” fully acknowledges that “cats don’t like dresses.” You don’t often see such an advanced understanding of clothed animals in a child."

Via Best Week Ever

Kids React To Keyboard Cat

Meow Mix: All The Latest Cat News You Can Use (April Fool's Edition)

Charlie Sheen Brands Face with Eye of the Tiger? - Pawesome

Keyboard Cat signs to ARK Music Factory, the same label behind teen sensation, Rebecca Black!

YouTube is counting down the 'Top 5 Viral Pictures of 1911.' Fast forward to 1:38 to see the grandaddy of Keyboard Cat, "Flugelhorn Feline," play him off!

New from ThinkGeek: The Bonsai Kitty Plush. Kitteh in Bottle = Amazing Internet Meme or One Squashed Cat?

April Fools! You are now a cat. - Catatar

Meow Mix: All The Latest Cat News You Can Use (April Fool's Edition)

Urlesque Unleashes A Revealing New Interview With Bento, The New Keyboard Cat

Urlesque's intrepid kitty cat reporter, Buster Reeves, landed the interview of nine lifetimes when he recently sat down for a video chat with Bento, successor to the original Keyboard Cat. I learned a lot from their candid talk, including that Fatso, the first keyboard playing kitty, was a actually a girl! I was also surprised to learn that although it didn't go viral until 2009, the original Keyboard Cat video was shot over 20 years ago!

Head over to Urlesque to learn more fun facts, and to check out some of Buster's past interviews, including my favorite - an adorable sit down with Duck the Cat of Catroulette.

Urlesque Unleashes A Revealing New Interview With Bento, The New Keyboard Cat

Is Keyboard Cat The Next Great Street Artist?

If you haven't seen it, Exit Through The Gift Shop is the acclaimed 2010 indie documentary shot by famed street artist, Banksy. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and if you have any interest in Banksy, street art, or interesting documentaries in general, I highly recommend you check it out!

Keyboard Cat is currently involved in a new project called Exit Through The Pet Shop, a one-part video, one-part art exhibit experience, inspired by the film.

In this video, which will probably make more sense to you if you've seen the original documentary, we get a look into Bento the cat's life as a graffiti artist on the run.

In addition to the video, the project also includes a real-life collection of Keyboard Cat paintings by Charlie Schmidt, done in the style of famous pop and street art icons such as Andy Warhol and Shepard Fairey.

Below are just a few of my favorites from the collection, which are for sale along with a host of other Keyboard Cat works of art.

Click here to check out the rest of the paintings in the online gallery, and for info on how to buy!

Is Keyboard Cat The Next Great Street Artist?

Keyboard Cat Plays Off 2010

This YouTube comment says it all: "BEST 43 SECs of my life."

Keyboard Cat Plays Off 2010

Deck The Halls With Keyboard Cat

The self proclaimed "greatest musician of all time" is back, and this time he's taking on Christmas! Hot off the heels of a successful pistachios commercial (I still get excited every time it comes on tv), Keyboard Cat is playing his little paws out of your holiday favorites on a new 5 song EP.

Old standards like Jingle Bells, Joy to the World, and Deck the Halls all get the Keyboard Cat treatment on this Christmas album that's destined to become a kitty classic.

"It's a Keyboard Cat Christmas" is available now on iTunes for $4.95.

Deck The Halls With Keyboard Cat

Daily Kitty Links

Kim Kardashian, Gwen Stefani, Brooke Burke, and Ashanti all got catty this Halloween. - Twitter

Keyboard Cat debuts his new Wonderful Pistachios commercial. - Wonderful Pistachios

Olympic figure skater Johnny Weir dines with Hello Kitty for Japanese Vogue. - On Top Magazine

Firefighters in NJ refuse to rescue kitten stuck in tree. - The Trentonian

The Animal Rescue League in Iowa is debuting a club for black cats. - 13WHOtv.com

Hello Kitty goes down the rabbit-hole for her new Alice in Wonderland inspired makeover. - Hello Kitty Minutiae

Daily Kitty Links

Cats Vs. Technology

Last week's Cat Vs. Printer - The Translation video was certainly not the first incident of a cat battling the perils of technology, and losing. In honor of our fallen kitty heroes, I present a collection of brave feline souls who dared to battle electronics..and won!

Round 1: Cat Vs. iPad

Winner: Keyboard Cat always wins.

Round 2: Cat Vs. iPhone

Winner: Fluffy ginger kitten with a bell!!

Round 3: Cat Vs. iPod

Winner: Did you hear that tiny meow at the beginning?

Round 4: Cat Vs. Roomba

Winner: That kitty hooked his Roomba up!

Round 5: Cat Vs. Laptop

Winner:

source

Cats Vs. Technology

Keyboard Cat Gets Rickrolled!

Via Snuzzy

Keyboard Cat Gets Rickrolled!

When Keyboard Cat Met Perez Hilton

What do Perez Hilton, Keyboard Cat, and pistachios have in common? I'm still trying to figure that out, but here's some candid pics from @theKeyboardCat's twitter account chronicling an elusive meeting between the two pop culture phenoms.

Via

When Keyboard Cat Met Perez Hilton

Cat Cupcake Tuesdays: Keyboard Cat Edition

Keyboard Cat Cupcake via jessicat.

Cat Cupcake Tuesdays: Keyboard Cat Edition