Photographer Howard Schatz had an idea: place actors in a series of roles and dramatic situations to reveal the essence of their characters. Such was the premise behind his book, In Character: Actors Acting, which captures some of Hollywood’s most emotive stars in the act of, well, making faces. Luckily for us, he continued the tradition for Vanity Fair. Here are some of the best.

The materialisation of this house is a dream come true for the owner. This house was built in Germany, in the town called Zell and what is the most astonishing about it is the stone used in the whole design. It was built by Walter Andre and it looks as if it just got out from a fairytale, and everything from its fantastic roof to it’s sandstone windows points in that direction.

Felice Varini is a Swiss artist who was nominated for the 2000/2001 Marcel Duchamp Prize, known for his geometric perspective-localized paintings in rooms and other spaces, using projector-stencil techniques. According to mathematics professor and art critic Joël Koskas, “A work of Varini is an anti-Mona Lisa”.

35-year old farmer Rammehar Punia has been named as ‘Rubber Man’. Thanks to his remarkable ability to make his shoulders meet in front of his chest. He has used his flex!bil!ty to smash the Guinness World record for the number of CD’s broken between the shoulders. He broke 60 CDs in just a minute.

SpaceX, the space transportation company built from scratch by visionary billionaire Elon Musk, has the grand goal of space travel evolution through the use of re-usable rockets. Its technology – which has proven its worth several times – can reduce the costs of space transportation to its fraction, making it a more affordable way of reaching orbit or traveling beyond.

Japanese artist Hikaru Cho is already well-known for her bizarre and realistic body paintings, but now the Tokyo-based artist has applied her talent to everyday food items as well. In her playful “It’s Not What It Seems” series, she turns common foods into other kinds of food using only acrylic paint and her extraordinary talent.

“KRANG from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! This oversized belt buckle is BIG, but more comfortable and wearable than you would expect. Cast in urethane resin from an original clay sculpture, hand-painted, and hard-coated with polyurethane clear coat, it's durable too. The best part is with just a few more items, this buckle is the perfect size to be used as part of a Krang costume for toddlers on Halloween or at comic conventions”.

Zaria Forman is a Brooklyn-based artist who creates life-like works of art by using pastel colors to draw. The representations you see here are all created delicately by finger. Photo: “Greenland #63” 50x75, soft pastel on paper. (Photo by Zaria Forman)