Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Dirty Balls aren't funny...
Hmmm. Didn't I see something like this before...
Yeah, I thought so.
Cheap laughs and even cheaper jokes. Though this ad may not be the most clever, or had the most thought put into it, it still managed to get an award at this year's Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival. I can see why though, it's a simple idea that would be understood by the mass public. Everyone understands dirty humour and, like it or not, will giggle at it. During the viewing, a majority of the audience laughed. Solid, audible, undeniable proof that this ad works. Good job, AXE.
I wonder though, if this ad had run years and years ago, when the Alec Baldwin skit was still at its popularity, would the AXE spot be praised or dismissed for its unoriginality?
I had the pleasure of watching it at the Winnipeg Art Gallery this evening and it will be running from Dec. 1st to 10th. Check it out, there were some great spots this year! I will be blogging about one of my favorite picks from this year's batch later on this week.
See ya 'round.
Monday, November 22, 2010
BABIES EVERYWHERE!
Watch this:
I know. Amazing.
Now, I've tried to do some research on this commercial, whether it actually aired or not (I don't recall ever seeing it), and didn't find much. Here's the run down of what I did find:
1) Made by an independent film studio, Turnpike Films, in 2003.
2) Directed by Justin Reardon, whom apparently worked at DDB and also worked on the "Whassup" campaign.
3) Was not produced for Kellogg's, but merely produced to put in their demo reel.
4) Four other, equally as funny and well-produced, spots were produced for their demo reel. Again, not for the actual companies themselves.
5) The spots got really popular on the net, but then Turnpike Films just disappeared.
Why they disappeared? I do not know. The humour used in this, I feel, would bust guts today. It has the off-the-wall humour that a lot of spots try to unsuccessfully incorporate right now. After watching it, I got the message that if I eat Nutri-Grain bars, I will feel great. Really great. The spot stuck with me because I remembered what product it was for, and I remembered the benefit it offered me. The whole package. I wasn't left telling my friends about a commercial and trying to remember whether it was for a energy drink or cereal.
I know I always say this, but a lot of ads today aren't doing their job. Their messages get lost in the creative and no one on either side really gets anything in the end.
Take this for example:
Sure, it's definitely off-the-wall, to-the-max, but what does it mean? I understand there's a new flavour, but how does that make my life better? The only thing that I'm getting from it is nightmares. Terrible, terrible nightmares. After an awkward laugh, which only comes out of confusion, the commercial passes.
Okay, maybe I'm being stuck up. I agree that if watch the commercials objectively, they're both funny. So that's all that matters in the end. I just think that one works better than the other.
What do you think?
I know. Amazing.
Now, I've tried to do some research on this commercial, whether it actually aired or not (I don't recall ever seeing it), and didn't find much. Here's the run down of what I did find:
1) Made by an independent film studio, Turnpike Films, in 2003.
2) Directed by Justin Reardon, whom apparently worked at DDB and also worked on the "Whassup" campaign.
3) Was not produced for Kellogg's, but merely produced to put in their demo reel.
4) Four other, equally as funny and well-produced, spots were produced for their demo reel. Again, not for the actual companies themselves.
5) The spots got really popular on the net, but then Turnpike Films just disappeared.
Why they disappeared? I do not know. The humour used in this, I feel, would bust guts today. It has the off-the-wall humour that a lot of spots try to unsuccessfully incorporate right now. After watching it, I got the message that if I eat Nutri-Grain bars, I will feel great. Really great. The spot stuck with me because I remembered what product it was for, and I remembered the benefit it offered me. The whole package. I wasn't left telling my friends about a commercial and trying to remember whether it was for a energy drink or cereal.
I know I always say this, but a lot of ads today aren't doing their job. Their messages get lost in the creative and no one on either side really gets anything in the end.
Take this for example:
Sure, it's definitely off-the-wall, to-the-max, but what does it mean? I understand there's a new flavour, but how does that make my life better? The only thing that I'm getting from it is nightmares. Terrible, terrible nightmares. After an awkward laugh, which only comes out of confusion, the commercial passes.
Okay, maybe I'm being stuck up. I agree that if watch the commercials objectively, they're both funny. So that's all that matters in the end. I just think that one works better than the other.
What do you think?
PS. If you're interested in their other "fake" spots, check them out here:
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
My night with Strombo.
Social media works.
I was at school this past Saturday night when, in a moment of procrastination, I logged onto Facebook to see what was up and happening that night whilst I slaved away at an ad campaign. This caught my attention:
Hmmm. I decided to investigate this claim by going over to Twitter to see if anyone could confirm this.
It was then I saw this tweet from none other than George Stroumboulopoulos himself:
The rumours must have been true considering that place looked awfully like the King's Head Pub. I felt as though I needed to offer Strombo some sound advice about the pub:
Minutes later, I received one new tweet:
Huzzah, an @mention from Strombo himself. I felt blessed and burdened. Burdened by the question he posed me. Unsure of myself, I posted the question as my status on Facebook. Within seconds I received 14 responses. Here are some of my personal favorites:
Using my better judgement I decided to reply with this:
Playing it cool, I decided to leave it at that and return to my campaign. After getting nothing accomplished, I felt faint and parched. The cure? A beer at the King's Head. While I was there, I might as well peek around to see if George did in fact take my advice, right?
I strode over a street and entered the overflowing King's Head. Surely this wasn't because of George. Alas, it wasn't. Some band was playing. Anyways, I went up to the bar, purchased a beer, and poked my head around the corner. Strombo and friends. Wait, what? Those are my friends! As I stood, dumbfounded by this coincidence, Esther, Jamie and Liz waved me over to sit. Uh, yes.
"Hey man, are you Mike Choi?" is the first thing he said to me. I watch Strombo Tonight and listen to his radio show whenever I get the chance, so it didn't surprise me that he knew my name without me having told him. A telltale sign of a prepared and professional interviewer: knowing everything about the person you're about to talk to. Turns out they had just returned from an adventure in Churchill, and had one night to kill in Winnipeg before returning home to do the show Sunday.
We chatted about how Twitter was a great communication tool, and the effectiveness of social media in general. He then offered insights to professional relationships and how keeping a positive and cooperative attitude in any work place benefits you in the long run. He also told me that he had touched some polar bears.
I then had an opportunity to speak with Darby Wheeler, producer and video journalist extraordinaire. He was very warm and amiable as well, telling me about his career experiences and offering some great advice. I also learned that he recently broke his tailbone from an incident with his bike which led to him having to sit on a donut at a friend's wedding.
From Twitter mention to having a beer, this story proves that social media works.
Cheers boys!
UPDATE: He read my blog
I was at school this past Saturday night when, in a moment of procrastination, I logged onto Facebook to see what was up and happening that night whilst I slaved away at an ad campaign. This caught my attention:
Hmmm. I decided to investigate this claim by going over to Twitter to see if anyone could confirm this.
It was then I saw this tweet from none other than George Stroumboulopoulos himself:
The rumours must have been true considering that place looked awfully like the King's Head Pub. I felt as though I needed to offer Strombo some sound advice about the pub:
Minutes later, I received one new tweet:
Huzzah, an @mention from Strombo himself. I felt blessed and burdened. Burdened by the question he posed me. Unsure of myself, I posted the question as my status on Facebook. Within seconds I received 14 responses. Here are some of my personal favorites:
Using my better judgement I decided to reply with this:
Playing it cool, I decided to leave it at that and return to my campaign. After getting nothing accomplished, I felt faint and parched. The cure? A beer at the King's Head. While I was there, I might as well peek around to see if George did in fact take my advice, right?
I strode over a street and entered the overflowing King's Head. Surely this wasn't because of George. Alas, it wasn't. Some band was playing. Anyways, I went up to the bar, purchased a beer, and poked my head around the corner. Strombo and friends. Wait, what? Those are my friends! As I stood, dumbfounded by this coincidence, Esther, Jamie and Liz waved me over to sit. Uh, yes.
"Hey man, are you Mike Choi?" is the first thing he said to me. I watch Strombo Tonight and listen to his radio show whenever I get the chance, so it didn't surprise me that he knew my name without me having told him. A telltale sign of a prepared and professional interviewer: knowing everything about the person you're about to talk to. Turns out they had just returned from an adventure in Churchill, and had one night to kill in Winnipeg before returning home to do the show Sunday.
We chatted about how Twitter was a great communication tool, and the effectiveness of social media in general. He then offered insights to professional relationships and how keeping a positive and cooperative attitude in any work place benefits you in the long run. He also told me that he had touched some polar bears.
I then had an opportunity to speak with Darby Wheeler, producer and video journalist extraordinaire. He was very warm and amiable as well, telling me about his career experiences and offering some great advice. I also learned that he recently broke his tailbone from an incident with his bike which led to him having to sit on a donut at a friend's wedding.
From Twitter mention to having a beer, this story proves that social media works.
Cheers boys!
George Stroumboulopoulos:
Darby Wheeler:
UPDATE: He read my blog
Friday, November 5, 2010
Mad Tunes
Do you watch Mad Men? If you answered "no", please stop reading.
Seriously, you're not going to get anything out of this.
Fine, but I warned you!
Seriously, you're not going to get anything out of this.
Fine, but I warned you!
For those of you that do watch Mad Men, and maybe some that don't, you'd probably be able to recognize the iconic opening title sequence anywhere.
Here it is for those of you who don't watch it. Tsk.
According to a source (Wikipedia), it was inspired by Hitchcock.
His movie poster for Vertigo:
And the opening sequence for North by Northwest:
His movie poster for Vertigo:
And the opening sequence for North by Northwest:
I think that one of the biggest reasons why the opening is so good is because of the music. The song is called "A Beautiful Mine" by RJD2, an American hip hop producer. It sets a mischievous tone, making us ask ourselves whether we are about to be hoodwinked a group of chain smoking, whiskey shlucking ad men.
You can listen to the full, unedited version of the song here if you'd like. If you play percussion, you'll definitely appreciate it!
A group of folks loved it so much, that they decided to cover the song themselves. When trying to think of lyrics for it, they realized that a famous melody could be sung over top of the music. So, they rounded up a bunch of talented musicians, a studio, and a full crew to do a full out production of this. It's really something else, so check it out.
Nat King Cole? Yes, please. Hot lady singer with pretty voice? Yup.
Watch Mad Men! Season 4 ended just a couple weeks ago, so now is a great time to catch up!
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Dear Captain Long
Dear Captain Long,
You are quite a well-spoken individual. Thank you for approaching me in the manner that you did. If you were to have any other way, I would have probably just deleted your e-mail immediately.
Ba'qubah? I've never been. Do they have donairs there? They're quite similar to the Arabic shawarma or Greek gyro, but with a Canadian twist. If you do find a donair place there, please let me know how it is.
Wow! That sure is a big number. With that kind of money, you could probably eat donairs for the rest of your life! Unless you got married of course. Then you would have to consider your wife's tastes. She might not like donairs.
I am honoured and quite surprised that you want me to help you receive this sum, seeing as I have no experience in handling business relating to crude oil. I deducted that you must have been sitting in your canvas tent in Ba'qubah when the short Halloween radio drama two other peers and I produced, came on your radio, which was coincidentally tuned in to KICK-FM, my college's radio station. You were so impressed with the quality of radio drama, that you immediately stood up from your seat and announced, "I've finally found the man who will help us recieve this sum of money that we made off a crude oil deal!"
Alas, though I am extremely interested, I am a full-time student and am not able to assist you at this time. I'm sorry to hear you cannot "keep this funds", because you are there on "Official capacity". I wish you the best and hope that things go smoothly there.
Respectfully yours,
Mike Choi
PS. This is what I imagine you look like:
You will remain in my prayers and dreams.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
