Death of the MPW

Man powered weapon? Multi purpose wrench? Mildly powdered waffle? No! The Movie Promotion Website!

There's a "RomCom" coming out on the 29th called When In Rome. It features the oh-so-hunky Josh Duhamel and the tantalizing Kristen Bell. I am definitely not going to see it. But, something that caught my eye at the end of the commercial was the website provided. It wasn't www.WhenInRome.com nor www.WhenInRomeTheMovie.org, the promotional website for the movie was www.facebook.com/WhenInRome.

Instead of spending money on their own domain name, they can now create a fan page on Facebook absolutely free and market their new movie. It makes it easier for people to visit the site because all it takes is one click on those links that appear on the side of your Facebook page. Actually, now that I think of it, you probably do have to pay to post those small advertisements but the cost is probably a lot cheaper than creating and designing an entire website. Also, it makes it easier for people to share the website. All you have to do is invite your friends to become fans and when you do, this update appears on all your friends' live feeds and that in itself is advertising the movie. Genius.

On the Facebook fan site, they post special promotional videos, real-time updates, behind-the-scenes pictures and there is also a discussion board for fans to debate how hot Josh Duhamel's six-pack is. On top of that, they also have a Twitter account where they countdown the days till the movie comes out as well as ask people that are following, questions like, "What is your favorite song off the soundtrack?"

With the advent of social media and Web 2.0, companies in every industry have such a greater power of reach and ease of accessibility to the mass population. Used correctly, it can be as effective (and even more effective) as traditional styles of promotion as well as easier on the budget.

But again, I am not going to see the movie.




Well, I might.

In the Chamber 2010: Last Men

This past Friday we were assigned to go see Last Men. It consisted of two one-man plays, both about 50 minutes each and put on by Theatre Projects Manitoba.

The first was Last Man in Krakendorf, written and performed by Gordon Tanner. After an incident in which 15 000 pigs were burned alive, Tanner's character decides to record a video to his boss to try and convince him to change the way things in the company are done. The play was set in a motel room which consisted of a bed, side table, a table upon which a laptop and projector were placed. The use of an actual PowerPoint presentation was very effective and used to visually aid humorous remarks he made or show pictures of the devastation that happened to the animals. A small detail which was nice to see was the picture that was placed on the floor so that the wall could be used to project on. Little details like these make even the simplest sets realistic.

The second, Last Man in Punatrenas, written and performed by Steven Ratzlaff. His character talks to his colleagues (represented by balloons tied to chairs) at his retirement dinner only to reveal a lot more than anyone expects. He and his party are sitting around a circular table in an empty restaurant. Director Sarah Constible decided to also set up three other tables to give the impression that it is actually a restaurant. Tanner, plays a waiter who clears the other tables during Ratzlaff's performance which strengthens the believability.

Both plays dealt with an underlying theme. Both characters had experienced a moment in their lives which acted as a catalyst for a 'new' way of thinking, a train of thought that dismissed logic and craved human emotion. Also, both of the events that triggered these epiphanies where a little off base. Tanner's world is changed by the death of pigs and Ratzlaff realizes as he reads the paper in which he wrote because he thought he figured it all out.

The primary issues the plays talk about are clearly visible but there are other levels to the understanding as well. It isn't all about the pigs. It's about each characters journey and decision as they are presented with two paths.

Both actors' performances were convincing and emotional. Tanner's antsy and rushed performance were suitable in the situation he was in and you could see Ratzlaff get choked up after reading a section in his paper and finally understanding someone else's point of view.

Despite being at school for 9 hours previous, uncomfortably angle chairs and a pretentious laughter in the corner who took away from the experience, I was pleased with Last Men.
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A note to peers: I've been hearing that this was the first theatre experience for a lot of people and that some didn't like it because it was 'too long' or the issues were too preachy and didn't make sense. THEATRE IS FUN. Next time you go, go to something you'll like. There are comedies, romances, mysteries! It's a lot tougher to enjoy when it's not about something you're interested in and if it was something you were made to go see.

iPhoney

In late 2009, Swavv iPhone Applications, developer of apps such as Beer Pong and a spin-the-bottle type program, released an app called 'iDroid'.

Now for those of you that don't know, the Motorola Droid is one of the closest competitors to the iPhone. In some cases, it's better than the iPhone. It has a touch screen as well as a sliding QWERTY keyboard which makes texting heaps easier as well as the ability to run multiple programs at once. This is because it runs on Google's Android operating system.



So, in the eyes of an iPhone user, when you see an app called 'iDroid', you would think it would be an app that perhaps enhances your iPhone to be able to do things that a Droid would do. Well, you, kind sir or ma'am, win the prize of being absolutely wrong.

The app looked like this:



Now, when you poked the glowy red eye, did a bright blinding light consume the entire room, and your iPhone magically change into Rosie, the robot maid from The Jetsons? Nope.

A list of bullet points appeared listing superior features that the Motorola Droid possessed compared to the iPhone.

The most useful app in iPhone history? Probably not.

Now, I can't find whether or not Motorola was directly involved with this as a marketing ploy but that's for sure what it was. It was sneaky, snarky and left Apple feeling violated and cold.

Because of this, the app was obviously rejected. It never made it into the store and no one ever got to see it first-hand. You would think this was a failure but it really didn't matter whether or not it was released. People are talking about it. TALKING. That is all you can ask for. It is being written about in blogs and being discussed within technology communites. Sure, if it somehow managed to get approved and distributed among iPhone users, it would have furthered the reach and impact it had, but it still was successful in the respect it became a topic to discuss.

I don't think this information would change existing iPhone users minds, seeing as they've already payed however much it is to purchase the iPhone along with their contract. But, it could be a big decision maker and perhaps the deal breaker to someone who is choosing between getting and iPhone or a Droid.

So, was Apple affected negatively by this app? No. Apple iPhones really didn't take a hit by this except that they might have lost some potential users. The iDroid didn't even make it past the gatekeepers.

In Swavv's case, I'd stop this covert, infiltration business and stick with creating more useful valuable apps like Cow Tip or Monkey Stack.

'Till next time!

"I think I'll have some toast"

I never understood what the big hype about Twitter was.

The majority of the tweets that appear on my homepage are from friends that inform me of their feelings about work, school and their dietary choices for the day. I'm not saying I don't enjoy finding those things out, I just didn't see a supreme use of knowing these things.

I opened up more towards Twitter when I started to follow the Winnipeg Folk Festival's tweets and Pitchfork Media. They both tweet often and with relevance to what their organization is about. They linked to useful information that expanded on their 140 character message and also retweeted messages from other users that they thought might peak interests in their followers. They tweet effectively.

I finally realized what awesome power and reach Twitter possessed until last week. Most of my tweets run along the lines of pointless jibber-jab that really can be looked over since they contribute nothing to any one's existence. Sometime last week, I tweeted that I had an old camera that I would have liked to get fixed. I received a reply from a friend in Vancouver suggesting I try Don's Photo. Later in the day I received a reply from a complete stranger.


There were no hashtags or anything in my tweet, but somehow, this camera shop owner from Minnesota, USA answered my plea for help. I didn't end up sending my camera all the way to the states to get it fixed but I was amazed that my tweets were being heard!

Wow! Twitter sure is useful! Next time you have a question that needs to be answered, take a shot in the dark and tweet it. You might be lucky enough to get an informed answer from someone you don't know!

Oh, and follow me on Twitter!

REMINDER

School starts soon and I have topics I want to blog on.
Can't do them now but I will in the next week or so.

1) My first real encounter with Twitter and it's effectivness in social media.
2) I hate robots.

Stay Tuned!