Time is Back on My Side

Apologies for having been gone so long. School was really busy, especially during finals. Many all-nighters mixed with energy drinks. The day after I went home, I visited the Miami Ad School in Minneapolis, walked 6.2 miles at the Minnesota AIDS Walk, saw some of the sites, made some friends and met some nice people.

Now it's almost summertime. Thankfully, I've been given the opportunity to work as an intern at an awesome independent advertising agency called Barkley. Monday is the first day of an incredible experience.

Foam City

Sony and Fallon [London] is currently filming the next commercial for Sony electronics in downtown Miami, Florida. The high today was a sunny 75 degrees.

Ruth Speakman, European PR Manager for Sony, has been twittering about the event all day. She also kept live updates of the recent Sony BRAVIA "Play-Doh" shoot filmed in New York last fall.

Simon Ratigan, who has worked with Fallon in the past, is the director of "Foam City". Sony had the biggest foam machine in the world custom built, shooting out 2.5 million liters (660,430 gallons) of foam per minute.

The $1.4 million commercial is believed to be part of a massive campaign centered around the Sony Handycam, Cybershot and Alpha brands. The campaign is expected to be released in June.

According to BrandRepublic, "The ads will show various scenarios in which adults and children play in foam bubbles around the city."

Update (March 10, 2008) The spot may be aimed at the Sony Cyber-shot W170, a digital camera which automatically detects a smile and captures an image of the subject without the need of pressing the shutter. Who wouldn't smile in a sea of foam?

Update (March 11, 2008) For a lot more foamy goodness, check out some pictures taken and more information from a journalist at the shoot here.

(via Shedwa)

Everyone's Invited to Swim

Only the great will make it to the other side.

The annual D&AD Student Awards competition is in full-swing. The British Design and Art Design Award is one of the most coveted and challenging student awards across the pond and around the world.

There's no limit of entries, but they had better be incredible. The best of the best will be grading them. Each entry needs to be signed by your tutor/professor, or you can't enter. Can a 30 year-old grad student enter? You betcha. (Coincidentally, that's the same age as this award.)

Winners receive an oversize pencil whose tree's growth must have been stunted due to the greenhouse effect. But this little stump can be used as a pedestal to reach the next level, or a doorstop to save yourself from having a crushed foot.

The categories are: Advertising, Animation, Furniture Design, Graphic Design, Illustration, Integrated Communication, Music Videos, Open Briefs, Photography, Product Design, Social Design, and What Else Do You Do? Description for the last onereads, "Having already entered one of more of the briefs this year, you are now entitled to now submit an additional piece of work that has nothing to do with this or any other competition..."

Because this blog is about advertising, I will only list the endless possibilities for the Advertising category.

Postcard
Breastfeeding, Sponsored by Best Beginnings
Press Advertising
Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Sponsored by Breakthrough Breast Cancer
Outdoor
HSBC, Sponsored by ClearChannel
Viral
Nando's, Sponsored by Nando's
Ambient
London Fashion Week, Sponsored by Grazia
Writing
If Only I'd Listened More Carefully, Sponsored by Ogilvy
Direct and Online
The Army, Sponsored by TEQUILA\
Poster
The Royal Opera House, Sponsored by This Is Real Art
TV
Belu, Sponsored by Weilands

You can't literally drown if you don't win; you only fill your metaphorical lungs up with water and have to be resuscitated by determination. Or you could change majors (quitter). Before you enter, read this. Did you read it? Okay, the briefs are here.

D&AD will accept entries from students from Jan. 14 – March 20, 2008. The grading takes place in May, and the awards ceremony is in June. All of the 'A' work is accessible in June.

Good luck!

Von Maur Does the Right Thing

After the shooting in Omaha, Nebraska's Westroads Mall on Dec. 5, 2007, which claimed nine lives, Von Maur immediately gave their condolences to friends and family of those involved in the incident. The department store chain is based in Davenport, Iowa, about a four-and-a-half-hour drive away. The shooting has been reported to be on the second and third floors of the Von Maur in Omaha. On the same night, Jim Von Maur, CEO of Von Maur, flew in to offer his personal condolences. I'm not going to say this is a 'great move' by Von Maur, because it sounds rude under these circumstances. But it is by far the right thing, and a very kind thing, for Jim Von Maur to do for his patrons and employees.

Nonsense

Exactly twenty days ago from today, the public chose a Web page concept for Nonsense, a creative agency in London. I cast my ballot in September. After voting, I entered my contact information and chose the "Just tell me when you have finished the entire project, as if I was one of your relatives" option. I am still waiting for them to contact me. It makes me wonder who else is waiting, or worse, who has forgotten about the whole thing.

The idea for their Web site is really smart. Free PR. Get the ad industry involved by having them post about the participatory election in blogs and online news sources. I'm sure there were other people who voted that aren't in the industry or even interested in advertising. A critical role agencies play is communication, and for me, Nonsense failed to communicate. It doesn't matter if the target audience was the ad industry or prospective clientele. Nonsense may have kept up with people who have their e-mail address ending in @ny.ddb.com, @bbdo.com, @ogilvy.com, etc., and not with the regular public. I don't know; maybe I was the only college student who voted. If the agency cannot create a dialogue with their product or brand, they aren't doing their job.

By the way, the winning vote was for 'The Rocking Chair Test'. The difference of 0.3% separated Media: Mixed from winning. On the Board was the big loser, with a 4.4% difference. This information is from their development blog, which Nonsense has created to update us on their progress. Hopefully they'll stay true to their word.

Volvo Interacts with Movie Premiere

Last year, SS+K and Brand Experience Lab came up with Newsbreaker for msnbc.com, a game using human joysticks and a motion sensor camera. Volvo is working in the UK with Brand Experience Lab and Carlton Screen Advertising by using this awesome idea as an interactive advertisement for the XC70 crossover. The audience is directed to move their hands left or right to gather as much luggage as possible within the time limit. I believe the brand recall will be high because the game looks like so much fun to play. I would probably go see the movie again just to interact with the technology, as well as with friends and strangers. At the end of the game, the theater's score is shown against other venues who are putting their hands up in the air like they just don't care. This is a great concept that works well with Volvo's tagline: 'Life is Better Lived Together'.

2006 | Newsbreaker



2007 | Volvo XC70

(Do It) For the Glory of Love

In the latest issue of Communication Arts magazine, Ernie Shenck encourages us to appreciate every day, whether it's the day you get laid off or the day your agency lands an account with your favorite brand. The article is called 'Is There a Shoeless Joe in You?', referencing the baseball player, Shoeless Joe Jackson. Do what you do because you love it unconditionally.

Here's an excerpt of the motivational column. I encourage you to subscribe to CA. If you don't, at least get this issue for Ernie's uplifting words.

"I hope you love it all. Embrace it all. Suck it all in and let it shape and form you into something amazing, something with depth and breadth and subtle variations in texture and color, the likes of which we've never seen. Love what you do. Love the highs and the lows and weave it all into what you are to become. Be blindly in love. Be Shoeless Joe. Hold the bat up to your face. Look at the grain. Feel it on your cheek. Smell the varnish. You'll be better for it. We all will."

Here's a great example.

'Times' Are Changing

What is the future of the newspaper? The New York Times sponsored a luncheon at Kansas State University on Thursday to discuss this, or so I thought. The luncheon was a part of a series for the JMC Mentoring Program at K-State. Susan Edgerley, assistant managing editor for the New York Times, and Steve Wolgast, news design editor for the New York Times, both K-State alum, were the speakers.

First, they showed a YouTube video of "Web 2.0 ... The Machine is Us/ing Us", done by Associate Professor of Cultural Anthropology at Kansas State, Michael Wesch. Not only does he make an incredibly accurate video, Wesch is also a great teacher. I have not yet had the privilege to be in any of his classes, but I hear nothing but high praise from current and past students. My friend, who is currently in his Intro to Cultural Anthropology course, is required to learn 20 student's names in the class; they have to get to know each other via Facebook. Some don't have Facebook (crazy, I know), so they have to register just for the project/quiz.

The Web is changing, obviously. The New York Times pointed out that it's changing their job and their readers. Susan and Steve poignantly used an allegory of the farmer and the lily pad. The farmer goes out to his pond and sees a lily. He thinks nothing of it. A few days pass, and he comes back to the pond. Now there are a few more lily pads. He decides that he needs to get something to remove the lily pads. But he doesn't get around to it. A week goes by, and he comes back to the pond. It's completely filled with lily pads. He didn't act quickly, so now his pond is covered with lily pads. They said we need to recognize the pace of how quickly things are changing. Not only do we need to recognize this, but we need to react.

Next, they showed a video of a young woman (probably in her twenties) who was very connected to her laptop computer and cell phone. During the interview, she was on the couch with her computer, and the cell phone was on the armrest. She's so physically dependant on technology that she adamantly expressed how it's her life, she couldn't live without it. The young woman looked as if she were going to burst into tears at the thought. The New York Times' job, they say, is to find out how to get someone who doesn't read traditional newspaper to read it. But they didn't say how they're going about it.

The speakers often referred to what the New York Times is doing to keep up with technology. "The Lede", a popular blog from the Times' sources, is "something you wouldn't have seen on NYTimes.com even a year ago", said Susan Edgerley. She and Steve told us about when most of the subway flooded -- they (the New York Times) were there. The radio didn't have anything yet, not even the MTA site had any information on alternatives or information of what exactly was going on. This is when the readers became reporters, with their comments on the blog(s). With the blogs come links to other sites unaffiliated with the New York Times, linking to sites they can't edit. The Times expects the average person to understand their inability to moderate the Internet. It's common sense.

"We have to do it all. We can do it all" said Susan. They showed a user photograph from NYTimes.com of lightning striking at the perfect time during a thunderstorm. Other pictures and video they have to be careful with. They verify the user's credibility by talking to them and getting the story. It can be through a thirty-minute conversation on the phone if need be. The blog comments are also moderated by the staff, though never edited. It either stays or goes.

When it was time for Q & A, Tom Palmer, Jr., reporter for the Boston Globe, asked about what the New York Times is doing to show various viewpoints, as it is widely know as a liberal paper. Susan and Steve said that their online editorials give a concentrated effort that all sides are represented. A student asked how the Web is affecting advertising. Susan said, "Web advertising is growing huge, but it's only this big [small percentage]". There is exponential potential, but tiny revenue.

For the most part, we learned what the New York Times is doing to keep up with a rapidly changing business. During discussion at the table with the people I met and during the presentation, there were hints of how print will remain. The tactile importance and simple ingenuity of escaping from the world until you release your captivated eyes from it keeps us wanting more.

новая кофейня

Translation: The New Coffee House

Starbucks opened its doors last Thursday in a Russian mega mall in Khimki (pop. 180,000), about 45 minutes away from Moscow. The mall has 10,000 outlet stores; you know it gets some good foot traffic. As the country's first Starbucks, it will be a suitable fit to warm them up, especially during the extremely cold, long winter months. This is the first of probably thousands to come. But Starbucks is taking their time.

For now, only one more is planned in Moscow by the end of the year. "This is an important step for the company, and we are looking forward to being a part of every day life for Russians," says Cliff Burrows, President of Starbucks Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Hopefully they'll give the Russians a break with free Wi-Fi, but I doubt it.

(via MSNBC)
(Translation via Babelfish)

Starbucks Goes Wi-Fi with iTunes

The iPod touch was released today by Steve Jobs. It's really thin and can play your favorite movies, YouTube, Cover Flow, and you can hop on the Internet with the Safari Web browser. The iPod nano also has received a big face lift with a new design, new colors, a larger display with video, Cover Flow, and enhanced interface.

But now Apple has joined with Starbucks, so the iPod touch user will be able to download the music that is playing in the coffee shop. No more asking the barista what the tune before last was while you were in the bathroom.

Now you can download it with their free wireless connection. Until the release of this news, Starbucks Wi-Fi has only been available to T-Mobile users, and it wasn't free.

According to Apple, New York and Seattle Starbucks should have it integrated sometime next month. The San Francisco area should get it in November. Next year, Los Angeles should have it in February and Chicago in March.

The new iPod touch doesn't have that much memory. There's an 8 GB and a 16GB, in comparison to the 160 GB possibility for the iPod Classic. This should be enough for your duration at Starbucks to watch a movie and listen to some tunes on the walk back home.

Cannes Coverage You Can See

Winners
See the best of the best work in the world at Cannes Lions Live.





New Director's Reel
Today, Saatchi & Saatchi released their 17th New Directors reel, presented by Worldwide Creative Director, Bob Isherwood.

Commercials, music videos and experimental short films are brilliantly displayed, showing great talent from new faces names. Before the release, S&S produced a short act depicting the struggles a new director has getting discovered and getting a job.

Directors (in order presented)

Trish Sie
Vince Squibb
Rozan and Schmeltz
300 ml
MINIVEGAS
Nanda Cohen
Ramon Bloomberg
Lev Yilmaz
Amy Gebhardt
Johnny Green
Josh Raskin
Luciano Quilici
Tom Reilly
Borgato and Berté
Joaquin Baca-Asay
Jonas and François
Conkerco
Tony Barry

Cannes Coverage You Can't See

Arnold has sent four (and picked up one) of their own to explore and report outside of the Cannes International Advertising Festival. Why? Because we Cannes't. It's a pretty humorous and crafty take on Cannes, also adding insight from some pretty cool 'ad people'.

Free Root Beer Float at Sonic!

If you haven't seen the commercial, in 24 hours from now (that would be June 7th), from 8pm - midnight, you can get a free 10 oz. root beer float from Sonic. There's no catch -- no "with the purchase of" -- just free.

Dinosaur, Dinosaur, Where's Your Bone?

Somebody took it on the road.

In celebration for the DVD and Blu-ray disc release of Night At the Museum , The Borden Agency created a promotion for Twentieth Century Fox and Fox Home Entertainment. The mobile marketing and event promo has been announced as the "T-Rex Trek". REXY, a 13-foot tall and 20-foot long T-rex, will be set on a flatbed trailer to run after a yellow Hummer H2 (relative to the little monster), which will be carrying his prized possession - a large bone.

Borden has the right idea by using free publicity. Larry Borden, CEO of The Borden Agency says, "...local media outlets will broadcast live in each market. We've left no stone unturned, and we will even have local traffic helicopters involved." To see the full press release, click (eMediaWire).

Kansas City's seismographs should detect the dino on April 20th, with the epicenter located in the vicinity of Science City at Union Station. Other cities should expect a visit from the voracious reptile from April 17-24. You'll be able to track REXY's cross-country chase via Yahoo! Maps and watch footage from his trip via Yahoo! Movies.