The Origins of Pixelated Ideas

Before we ever called it a company, Pixelated Ideas was just a group of close friends: Matt Bockleman, Andy Mills, Mike Reilly, Patrick Hosmer, Will Deloney, and Ricky de Laveaga - filmmakers, artists, and roommates in New York City. We made a lot of things. Music videos. Behind-the-scenes docs. Posters. Zines. Music. Jingles. Tai Chi DVDs with Lou Reed.

Here we see Mikey standing on an apple box in order to Mic Eli Manning for a March of Dimes promo.

And here we see Matt Batt’s on a very important phone call in New Jersey.

Will at the Pink Pop festival in Landgraaf, Netherlands in 2005. And a suspicious couple.

Patrick was always messing with the logo, usually somewhere between brilliant design and inside joke. This was one of his early experiments.

This one was Patrick’s “luxury perfume ad” era. If Pixelated Ideas had a scent back then, it would probably be a mix of chicken wings, jewel cases, and ambition.

Warped Tour 2005. Mikey and Will smiling because they hadn’t yet been inside one of those porta potties. Innocence really is beautiful.

The Pixelated Zine & DVD

Back in 2005, before streaming was everywhere and when handing someone a burned DVD still felt like giving them a treasure map, we made our own magazine. It was a DIY print zine that came bundled with a hand-authored DVD — packed with short films, music videos, behind-the-scenes experiments, and whatever else we were messing around with at the time.

We made it for our friends, roommates, collaborators and anyone who shared our love for weird media, inventive storytelling, and late-night creative missions.

The whole project was inspired by RES Magazine, a now-legendary print publication that was the first in the U.S. to include a DVD in every issue. There was BTS footage of filmmakers like Michel Gondry and Spike Jonze and it opened our eyes to the idea that distribution could be just as punk and personal as the art itself.

By 2005, we’d already shared sets, stories, and way too many late nights with everyone listed here:

Feels like a lifetime ago… and just yesterday.

We took a lot of pictures. Patrick was one of the first people we knew with a phone that could shoot panoramic photos (this was 2006, mind you), and we were always documenting our lives.

Behind the Scenes

One of our first big swings was “Drawing the Line”, a behind-the-scenes documentary for the action-drama Crossing the Line. The film followed two battling ex-spouses turned police partners (played by Albert J. Allie and Angela Barnett) as they took on a powerful drug lord. Our BTS doc, included as a DVD extra, revealed the headache, hustle, and heart that went into making this indie action flick.

Patrick once said, “This is what a real DP looks like.” Sleeveless, mulleted, and fully armed with tape stock and C-47s.

Tai Chi, Lou Reed, and Master Ren

We also teamed up with Lou Reed, the legendary frontman of The Velvet Underground and a pioneer of American art rock, and Master Ren GuangYi, Kung Fu Magazine’s 2011 “Instructor of the Year,” to produce an instructional Tai Chi DVD. The project featured demonstrations of Silk Reeling and the 19 Form, blending Lou’s meditative presence with Master Ren’s powerful clarity. A true collision of rock, ritual, and rooted energy.

Push Hands

You can still order a copy of the DVD

Designed in 2005, this was Patrick’s love letter to “The Greatest City In The World”. Inspired by bodega coffee and bacon, egg, and cheesers.

Origami Lobe-Boy

A Superhero With Super Ears and Super Issues

Welcome to Auralwaxia—a tiny city inside a record player where guacamole is currency, crime runs rampant, and one foldable-eared hero stands between chaos and slightly-less-chaos.

🦻 The Birth of a Legend (and a Series Pitch)

Origami Lobe-Boy was the fever dream of Mike Reilly, who not only created the concept but illustrated the entire weird, wonderful world of Auralwaxia. The project was pitched as a cartoon series, complete with a wild script, a video pitch, and an unforgettable jingle written and voiced by Andy Mills.

Our pitch followed Origami Lobe-Boy, a conflicted, big-hearted vigilante whose super-powered ears fold into whatever shape the situation demands—diamond cutter, grappling hook, possibly-but-definitely-not a buttplug. When the evil YouBlow Corporation unleashes a horde of avocado junkies, Origami is forced to rise from obscurity and protect his bootilicious girlfriend Bootifera, the city, and his own tangled emotions.

What We Made

  • A video pitch with full voiceover and jingle

  • Illustrated character art and storyboards

  • Full scripts and a full-color one-sheet

  • An entire episode 2 draft, because we believed this world needed expanding

    Credits

  • Concept, Art, & Writing: Mike Reilly

  • Jingle & Voiceover: Andy Mills

  • Produced by: Pixelated Ideas

Want to fold this energy into your next animated project?

In 2005, Patrick briefly pivoted the brand toward the lucrative world of Christmas trees. No one asked for it. No one bought one. But the logo? Nailed it.

Got a story worth preserving?
Whether it's bonus features, archival deep-dives, or behind-the-scenes magic, we know how to capture the stuff that usually gets left on the cutting room floor. If you’re looking for a crew that knows how to find the soul of a story and make it look good on screen, get in touch. We still believe in the power of physical media, well-documented chaos, and good food. Let’s make something memorable.