When I was a kid, there was this place called Be a Star. Be a Star ironed your hair, gave you fingerless gloves, and propped you up in front of a camera to sulk or dance or whatever while some random '80s hit played overhead.
It would then create a music video, complete with body duplication effects, time freezes, superimposed lettering, and random pools of colour eating away at each other around your inert fishlike body.
That's what REM's video for Hollow Man reminds me of. Produced by Crush, Toronto, it also includes a digital avatar inspired by user input from its performance at SXSW. The band calls it the "symbolic heart" of the video.
Pay no attention to the gorgeous woman used in every shot of this teaser. We're not even sure why she's there. The real star of this promotional series is ... wait for it...
more »
Nip/Tuck's digital agency Ralph has finally jumped aboard the Facebook app train.
Say hello to The Golden Ratio by FX UK. By calculating facial symmetry, it tells users how close to perfection their faces are. You can also compare statistics with friends and add your results to a beauty parade.
The app uploads photos from your Facebook profile. Pick one and mark the image where you're told.
I've been ruled 50 percent perfect. And now that my self esteem's sufficiently shattered, I'm gonna go call my mom and have a crying jag about neo-feminism and The Lie that was Barbie. Or something.
- Big spenders who can't be bothered to attend a fashion show: Prada wants your business. Click on "Prototypes Auction" at Prada.com to see what's bid-worthy.
- Product packaging can be vastly improved with the addition of Braille.
- Twitter, allegedly the 439th largest social networking site, is deemed niche but influential. (The niche aspect is part of what makes something influential in the first place ... right?)
- Yelp.com released a self-serving documentary to showcase its whole anti-Zagat, down-with-the-homies feel. The mini-doc was fast made mockumentary fodder by the anti-Yelp Elite, which seem to think Yelp's all about hair. No arguments here. And apparently Yelpers find the mock more amusing.
more »
- Senior exec Alan Cohen of Interpublic was named US CEO of OMD. Cohen has worked at 20th Century Fox, ABC and NBC.
- Rock stars aren't made. They're mothafuckin' born.
- Here's a Vespa campaign where people's heads are replaced with Vespa S headlights and handlebars. BlotTO gets philosophical about it. And for some reason, we're thinking East London decapitator meets hipster Terminator.
- Think political smear campaigns are bad now? You clearly haven't lived that long. Our favourite: "Millard" is a pussy name. Followed closely by Dykes like Ike. (Look at that smile. How could they not?)
- EPM Comm has published a very expensive brochure to teach marketers about women. Because come on, it's not like you know any real ones.
more »
Did you ever see "Christmas Tree" by Clay Weiner? It's this short online film where a dude, impersonating somebody's ultra-New Jersey mom, hustles an invisible family through the dire process of buying a Christmas tree.
That video got Clay nominated for an Emmy.
To spread the love he put together "Make Your Mom Proud," a promotional video for the 2008 Broadband Emmy Awards. The video was commissioned by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
We laughed. And cried. And flashed back to Moonstruck.
The natural detergent Purex, with help from Night Agency has launched a green t-shirt contest where entrants can create their own "eco-friendly" slogans for the chance to win a Mercedes fortwo, $1,000 prizes and free Purex. That's about it. So if you;re into saving the environment, like t-shirts and want to win a small car, this is the contest for you.
- The new Honda Accord is so lame that RPA had to use an image of its own creative team, gawking at the car, as part of an outdoor wallscape.
- American Express has launched Members Know, an "insider" travel community that, in trademark AmEx style, manages to be both elitist and bland. Also, there are INSIGHTS. And TAG CLOUDS. And the word BETA.
- Interactive firm ROKKAN redid the Gnarls Barkley site to reflect the duo's dynamism and harmony. (You know, like OutKast, but without Andre's mood swings.) The site includes a pretty awesome pop-up video player. In fact, it's pretty awesome all around.
more »
Early today Advertising Age ripped into Starbucks for its Pike Place coupons and throwback cups (in stores for six weeks, a barista told us). All part of an ongoing attempt to rekindle stale sparks with a costly ($100 million) promotional campaign, which is looking more Grocery Chain -- and less Indie Cafe -- by the minute.
Once upon a time, I loved Starbucks more than my hypothetical Firstborn-to-Be. It'll take a lot more than a buttery homebrew and gaudy vouchers to rein in the trouble of a brand that's just become too commercial.
more »
This year I got to visit the exhibit hall at ad:tech. Come share my experience, starting with this winning number from the AKQA /Search booth.
I am hipster. Witness the sulk-age against bleak existential black, and my awful white chairs.
more »
|
|
