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Oh, no! I see what you did there! Weird Science, right? 

Very nice little game! Quite impressive in it's variety and tight design, even more so given that it's a MAGS entry.

I really liked how every puzzle is unique in one way or another, and how there are many non-standard systems and elements. Graphics are nice and pleasantly stylish too, with all the additional screens and GUIs making the game feel slightly bigger than it actually is, and establishing the cyberpunky aspects of the setting a bit more. A short game well worth playing, great job!

As someone on the other side of the question (in a very literal way ), I have to add... No, I've got nothing much to add, really. It indeed varies a lot - depending on the artist's skills, personality, attitude towards his/her craft (hobbyist, amateur, professional - established or beginner), interest in this particular project/medium, where he/she lives etc.

The main thing that can help you estimate the costs of hiring an artist, in my opinion, is keeping in mind that being an artist is like every other job - at the end of the day you have to be able to pay the bills. So if you're hiring an artist to do a month's worth of work - be ready to pay a month's worth salary. Low salary for beginner artists and a hefty one for highly skilled professional.

Regarding the payment method - it would be 'per background' in most cases, given how it's very hard to keep an eye on whethter someone is doing their job or not over the internet, apart from seeing the results.
As for the rates - I can't safely say, but I think it would fall somewhere in the area of 50-150$ for a commercial-quality(for AGS devs) background.

The 13th Floor? World On A Wire? Dark City? Cypher? I don't know.

Yes, one of those. I would rather you pick one, not provide a list of suitable candidates, but well done anyway. It's Cypher, your turn, sir!

Don't you think Batman movies are much better recently than the older ones but the actresses are less hotter now?

Actors too - where are all the modern day Adam Wests? They just don't make them like that anymore...

And no, it's not any of the Batman movies, although I can see why one can think it is.

Here's another clue:

Nope, still not Blade Runner.

Not Blade Science or Weird Runner either, in case you were wondering.

The movie guessing is going pretty fast today, isn't it?

Looks like "Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" to me.

Why haven't anyone mentioned Persona 3 and 4 yet? Those are absolutely delightful and very likeable games about going to school, making friends, hearing their sad life stories, shooting yourself in the face , fighting weird demons that may or may not be twisted reflections of the characters' inner selves and collecting Pokemons cards. I wholeheartedly recommend both of them, with Persona 4 being the slightly better one, although playing it first might make it harder to enjoy Persona 3 because of the small interface and gameplay improvements in the 4th game.

Well, clearly, it was easy enough. I was basing my assumption on the fact that it was rated by less people on IMDb than "Henry Fool", and they have been released almost in the same year, but I guess it's different for animated films. And speaking of iMDB, it tells me there was a new Kirikou film released in late 2012. Did anyone get a chance to see it yet or is it french festivals only so far?

Aww, man, I think I know/love this one, but no way I'm making Ponch happy taking this turn! Also, isn't it pretty obscure and not actually that easy, apart from being a quite obvious shot for those who've seen it?

Oh shoot! I haven't seen that movie in a decade. That is James Urbaniak, isn't it?

Yep, that's him! The one that's not Parker Posey, that is.

Untitled Parker Posey Project

Good enough for me! No point in stalling the thread by making you people google it using the information at hand (which is quite easy now, actually). Your turn, Snarky, whether you like it or not! 

The movie was Hal Hartley's "Henry Fool".

Oh no! I've gone too obscure and no one even wants to come up with silly joke titles now! (Except for Trampoline, thank you) I'm sorry.

Well, at least this might help indie movie lovers to narrow it down to about a hundred titles 

Ponch,
I've missed "Solaris" and "The Man Who Would Be King" already, so I'm glad I at least got to guess this morsel of cheesy 80s post-apocalyptic delight.

Okay, guess:

That is totally "Night of the Comet"!

[Idea]

A very strong turnout again, each entry is really cool in it's own way, very hard to pick a winner here. Well done!

Idea: Miez - because using interesting references is always a good idea. And because ziggurats are awesome.
Atmosphere: Kastchey - very strong mood on this one. The grainy style and the purposefully chaotic composition help to create this truly creepy piece. Thumbs up!
Design: Miez - again - great reference, and a great use of it
Composition: Kastchey - As I've already mentioned - the composition plays off the subject matter very well here, which is a rare treat and more than makes up for the not very good readability, in my opinion.
Functionality: Kasander - a lovely and very adventure-gamey entry, with some beautifully impressionistic walkable areas (or ground, as regular people call it).
Technique: Miez - excellently rendered and detailed, not much to add here.

CaptainD's background is again full of slightly trashy FMV charm and makes me nostalgic for the FMV era, which is quite an achievement, given how badly the FMV era sucked.
Lasca's entry reminds me of Jagged Alliance, which is a good thing, and I like that it's a more grounded, subtle take on the topic.

Congratulations to all the winners (to everyone on the Resonance team, basically )! And thanks to the organizers, it was fun!
Hope the next year brings even more amazing AGS games, cheers!

Congratulations!

I've also finally listened to the piece itself - and it's pretty great! I love piano music of Bartok, Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Milhaud and the like, so this is right up my alley! It's lovely - diverse, inventive, encompassing a wide range of influences, yet having it's own tone, not at all extreme avant-gard, but not reactionary either, which is often the best route for contemporary music to take, in my opinion. Excellent work, sir!

YES to this! Great to see this moving forward and even better to have loominous onboard again! Very much looking forward to, if not participating from start to finish, then at least contributing something and learning from others. I like the idea that this is supposed to be more of a Critic's Lounge activity rather than a competition from the start, since that's what our competitions are all about anyway - improving our skills and trying new things. Best of luck with organizing this thing, I'm sure it will turn out great.

Oh, and I for one am really interested in a similar Sprite/Character design workshop as well. I'm sure it'll prove to be just as educational, since character design is just as important for adventure games, but involves a pretty different set of skills and techniques. Make this happen! (Although probably not at the same time )