Matzah Response

I would have approved this creative short as an official Video Response to our "20 Things To Do With Matzah" video, but it would scare my niece Lola if she saw it.

Honorable Mention

After just a few days online, our "20 Things To Do With Matzah" Passover music video is definitely making the rounds: It was a featured Viral Video Hit on Yahoo! Video and even made it to the main Yahoo.com home page, bringing in over 120,000 views to date. And on YouTube, with about 90,000 views, the video has received the honor of being the #40 Most Viewed Music Video This Week (#49 Most Viewed in Canada, and #78 in Australia).


You can also find mention of the Matzah Song in The Jewish Daily Forward, YNet News, and CNET News.com!

20 Things To Do With Matzah

Passover's over, and wouldn't it be neat
If you could use all the matzah ... that you didn't eat?

I am pleased to present "20 Things To Do With Matzah", the new Post-Passover music video I produced with Michelle Citrin, a.k.a. Rosh Hashanah Girl! We're just a couple of crazy matzah-eating kids who grew up on Streit's Matzos for Pesach, so when Streit's learned we were making a video for the holiday, they were more than happy to give us 35 boxes of the stuff to use in our video.

Music and Lyrics by me and Michelle Citrin, video editing by Simon, and camerawork by Jesse Epstein.

Like the tight tees we wore in the video? You can get them at PopJudaica.com

Lyrics and more at MatzahSong.com

Also available on Facebook, MySpace, and Yahoo! Video

Chag Sameach!

Let My People Vote

Back in January you may have seen the promotional video I did for Taglit Birthright Israel's "Let My Parents Go" video contest, in which the winners' parents get a trip to Israel. Now the finalists have been chosen, and you can vote on your favorite videos to help decide whose parents win the trip.

So take a look at these great videos and vote today!

Let My Parents Go!

Attention Birthright Israel alumni: Do you wish your parents could experience Israel the way you did? Now is your chance. Enter the Taglit-Birthright Israel "Let My Parents Go" video contest, and your parents might win a free trip to Israel!

This is the promotional video I produced for Taglit-Birthright Israel, to encourage Birthright alumni to participate in the contest. It was by far the most fun project I've worked on so far, having my friends with me in front of and behind the camera. I even rented a green screen and professional lighting to make the Israel scenes possible.

Cast and Crew in front of the green screen: "Daddy-O" Meir Taub, "Ema" Esther Kustanowitz, and camerawoman Lindsay Litowitz

When I wasn't in front of the camera, I was playing the role of teleprompter.

Cast:
Josh - William Levin
Mom - Esther Kustanowitz
Dad - Meir Taub
Nice Jewish Girl - Michelle Citrin
Dog - Cooper

Camerawork by Lindsay Litowitz
Edited by Simon Weaver at Snip-Snip

Written and directed by William Levin

"Home" by Shi 360
other music by William Levin

Special thanks to Paul Barnett for the use of his apartment, and Ariel Beery for Israel background video footage.

Produced by JewishRobot

Standard News

We made our mark in 2007! "I Gotta' Love You Rosh Hashanah", the music video I produced together with Michelle "Rosh Hashanah Girl" Citrin for Taglit-birthright israel, made it on the New Jersey Jewish Standard list of Newsmakers of 2007:

Amber Lee Ettinger’s "Obama Girl," a tribute to Democratic presidential hopeful Barak Obama, was already a parody of music videos about unrequited love. But Will Levin and Michelle Citrin decided the genre needed a little Yiddishkeit. [..] As for the future, Citrin says more Jewish videos "are in the making. Expect more."

Looking forward to making more music and videos with Michelle in the new year!

The Adventures of Todd and God

Ladies and gentlemensches, I am pleased to present The Adventures of Todd and God, a new educational cartoon I developed for MyJewishLearning.com. This first episode is a Hanukkah special on how to light the menorah, and if all goes well, hopefully we can develop Todd and God into a series. So please share with your friends and let MyJewishLearning.com know what you think!

All art, animation, voices, sound design, and theme song by William Levin of JewishRobot.com. Special thanks to Daniel Septimus of MyJewishLearning.com for entrusting me with this project, and buddy Berger Boy for helping me brainstorm!

Visit Todd and God at their special home at ToddAndGod.com

8 Nights of Hanukkah

I am pleased to present "8 Nights of Hanukkah"! a new musical cartoon that I produced for my friend Sara Schwimmer of PopJudaica.com, formerly known as ChosenCouture.com. Conceived by Sara, illustration and animation and music and voices by me, and featuring a Fran Drescher, Natalie Portman, and a dead-on Madonna impression by friend Andrea Praet!

Barely Political Party

Team Obama Girl (creator Ben Relles and vocalist Leah Kauffman) with Team Rosh Hashanah Girl (me and Michelle)
Having been inspired by BarelyPolitical's Obama Girl, we were flattered to learn that the Obama Girl team are mutually fans of our own Rosh Hashanah Girl production. So last night, Rosh Hashanah Girl a.k.a. Michelle Citrin and I attended Barely Political's launch party for their new music video, I Like A Boy ..., featuring Leah Kauffman, the voice behind Obama Girl.

Flanked by two of three Romney Girl Triplets
Unfortunately we didn't get to meet Amber Lee Ettinger a.k.a. Obama Girl as she was a bit under the weather (and seemingly preoccupied with a very lucky boyfriend), but I did get to meet many of the talented folks behind BarelyPolitical.com's videos, including two of three Romney Girl Triplets.

Huffington Post reporter Rachel Sklar, vocalist Leah Kauffman, and Michelle Citrin
New BFFs, the voices of Obama Girl and Rosh Hashanah Girl
Many business cards were exchanged that night, and as we were all promptly ushered out of the Canal Room at 9pm so they could get ready for the next event, we all wished each other an easy fast, because, as it turns out, almost everyone involved in these projects was Jewish.

Rosh Hashanah Girl

I am pleased to bring you my first non-cartoon video production, "I Gotta' Love You Rosh Hashanah"! Fellow ROI120 participant and music co-writer Michelle Citrin stars as Rosh Hashanah Girl in this musical parody of the popular "I Got A Crush...On Obama" video that came to fame on YouTube this summer.

The Rosh Hashanah Girl concept was originally pitched to client Taglit-birthright israel as another animated holiday e-card, but as I was recording the music with Michelle, I began to realize it would be so much better as a real live video, and with Michelle as Rosh Hashanah Girl. Reluctant at first, Michelle graciously accepted the star role, and we set out to shoot on location throughout New York City. Once we had enough footage, friend Simon Weaver lived up to his name and weaved the tapestry of video goodness you see above.

If you watch the video closely, you'll spy Leading Up North Fly Girls Danielle Cohen, Sydney Henning, Esther Kustanowitz, Lindsay Litowitz, and Gabby Sirner; Grey co-worker Jim Heekin; even notable Union Square 6'7" Jewish faith healer Te'DeVan.

We hope you enjoy the video and will share it with your friends and family ... Even Obama Girl herself is helping to spread the word!

For lyrics and more information visit Rosh Hashanah Girl on our website, rhgirl.com!

Holy American Jewry, Batman!

Fellow cartoonist Eli Valley has posted his new comic parody online, Holy American Jewry, Batman! posing the question, "What if the Caped Crusader worked in the American Jewish community?"

Not surprisingly, EV's message reminds me of a cartoon I did for JSU, Where in the World?

Teh History of Israel

Please join me in wishing Israel a happy birthday! "Teh History of Israel", is a new cartoon I produced for birthright israel in celebration of Yom Ha'atzmaut, or Israel Independence Day.

(Oddly, YouTube happened to chose the most boring frame of the entire cartoon as the preview screen.) The style of pictorial animation I used for this cartoon was inspired by Brad Neely's excellent Professor Brothers series.

Feel free to share with your friends, and have a wonderful celebration!

This cartoon is a product of JewishRobot!

The Jewish Robot Has Landed

I am pleased to announce that JewishRobot.com, my new animation service brand, has officially launched! Visit the site to see my animation portfolio, and witness the Autosemitic Animation Assembly Line in action, with a bunch of cool new robots on my Roboteam, like our accountant, Payos Prompley (left).

I Heart Israel

Inspired by my recent trip to Israel, I am please to announce a new cartoon I produced for Taglit-birthright israel, appropriately named I Heart Israel. When you love Israel so much, what is the next step? Aliyah? Sure, you can move in with each other, but what if you want to show an even greater commitment? This cartoon takes a relationship with Israel to an even higher level.

You can also watch and share the YouTube video version on the birthright israel site.

Coming Soon ...

I have a new home for my cartoon animation services. Visit JewishRobot.com for a sneak preview.

MySpace ParTAY!

Why be a part of a Jewish community when you have thousands of friends on MySpace? This is the premise of MySpace ParTAY, a new cartoon I produced for BCI at the Brandeis-Bardin Institute.

Check out the cartoon, let me know what you think. And if you like it, let BCI know, maybe they'll hire me to make some more!

Flash Mirrored at The BBI, video on MySpace and YouTube

Sam's ShaBot Mitzvah

It isn't every day that a robot gets invited to a bar mitzvah. So when Sam's mom told me that ShaBot 6000 is her son's favorite funny (second only to Ali G), I was happy to produce this animated short, which played on the big screen at Sam's bar mitzvah party on December 9, 2006. The cartoon was presented as part of a video compilation of all Sam's friends who could not attend. See Shabot, Moti, a special guest appearance by 50 Cent, and even that delivery boy from A Very ShaBot Christmas, in Sam's ShaBot-Mitzvah!

If you are interested in having ShaBot and gang featured in a personalized animated greeting for your special occasion, bar mitzvah, wedding, birthday, anniversary, engagement announcement, birth announcement, or anything, really, please contact me.

Go Sam! It's your bar mitzvah!

Well, Gali!

I am pleased to present "The Best Chanukah Gift Ever", the latest Flash cartoon produced by Jewish Robot for Gali Girls!

Gali Girls, created by Aliza Stein, are dolls for young Jewish girls. Unlike their underdressed counterparts, like Barbie and Bratz, Gali Girls keep the laws of tznius, dressing modestly and representing positive Jewish values and tradition.

This cute cartoon commercial, being released in time for the Chanukah rush, is appropriate for all ages, and features the voice talent of Jessica Wachsman, music by Shlock Rock, and character design and illustration by Sara Weissman. Concept by Aliza Stein of Gali Girls, and everything else—backgrounds, voices, sound design, and animation—by the Jewish Robot.

Mirrored at GaliGirls.com