Monday, August 31, 2009

A Link A Day # 251: Stasi Pop



Here's Tainted Love as performed by The Lost Fingers.

Posted by Anantha

Album Art # 6


Artist Neon Park painted this cool cover for Frank Zappa, way back in 1970. Apparently, Neon Park was paid $250 to come up with this cover for The Mothers of Invention's record Weasels ripped my flesh.

But the story goes that it almost didn't see the light of the day. But for Zappa, who pushed the design through the guys at Warner Bros. Even after Warner Bros. finally consented to use it, there were problems. Here's how Neon Park puts it: "The printer was greatly offended," says Park. "The girl who worked for him, his assistant, she wouldn't touch the painting. She wouldn't pick it up with her hands." Zappa and Park, meanwhile, were tickled silly by the brouhaha: "I was greatly amused by the cover, and so was Frank," says Park. "I mean, we giggled a lot."

Courtesy: Superseventies.com

Posted by Murali.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Trailer Watch: Christopher Nolan's Inception



Posted by Anantha.

A Link A Day # 250: Rukkumaniye Chakkara Pennae & O Little Flower See Your Lover

Shashank Ghosh may not have lived up to the expectations he raised with his QGM trailers, but he certainly brought two gems from the past to national limelight. The Rukkumaniye song from Oli Vilakku and the O Little Flower song from Neela Vaanam. Both numbers were scored by MS Viswanathan. Neela Vaanam was composed in 1965. While Oli Vilakku, in 1968. Click on the Raaga.com links I've provided, enjoy the songs and then think: Doesn't Rukkumaniye sound very RD Burmanish? Doesn't O Little Flower seem OP Nayyarish? Did RDB ever listen to MSV? Did MSV ever listen to OPN? If so, then why isn't our generation celebrating true blue originals like MSV and OPN?

Saturday, August 29, 2009

A Link A Day # 249: New Math

New Math is an interesting series of funny equations that sum up life...Created by Craig Damrauer, the site is certainly worth a visit. Here are a few to seduce you to do more new math...





Posted by Anantha.

Spot of the Week: Knorr Salty

Simple concept. Perhaps a little inspired by the Ikea Lamp commercial. Yet, it's truly adorable because of the characterisation. Good fx by Axyz.



Posted by Anantha.

A Link A Day # 248: The Playface



Posted by Anantha.

Friday, August 28, 2009

Thursday, August 27, 2009

A Link A Day # 246: Axe Musicstar



Posted by Anantha.

Social Networks don't actually find favour with the young

According to a report in Times, teens who fueled the early growth of social networks don't necessarily stay on. This debunks the huge myth that youngsters are essential for the success of new technologies. (That's a cue for all marketers and advertisers.)

Specifically, teens account for only 14% of MySpace's users and 9% of Facebook's users. The reason cited by analysts as to why they shift so fast is lack of privacy. For instance, the public nature of Twitter doesn't interest 18-19 year olds as they don't want their private lives to be privy to parents, elders etc.

Adults meanwhile, are catching up fast. They are populating social networking sites so quickly that most of these companies have started to credit them for their popularity and success.

Posted by Murali.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

A Link A Day # 245: BabyLove 3s



Posted by Anantha.

A Link A Day # 244: Adidas Veronica



Posted by Anantha.

Advertising's revenge of the nerds

Slogan-spewing creative directors once ruled Madison Avenue, but the ability to track which ads actually swayed consumers may give the number crunchers the upper hand.
Intrigued? Go here to read the whole article.

Posted by Niru.

Can't get a girlfriend? Settle for a pillow!

A cuddly girlfriend who doesn’t answer back. Who never suffers a headache? Who laughs at all your jokes? Guess what, the Japanese have invented her. Body pillow girlfriends. Yes, body pillow girlfriends. Go here if you don’t believe me.

Posted by Niru.

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Spot of the Week: Double Life



Created by Publicis Mojo Melbourne. Made by EXIT Films.

Posted by Anantha.

A Link A Day # 243: Castrol Bald



Posted by Anantha.

A Link A Day # 242: Coca Cola Luchador



Posted by Anantha.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

A Link A Day # 241: Art with Menstual Blood



Artist Vanessa Tiggs has created 88 paintings using menstrual blood collected over 36 menstrual cycles. The stunning series is titled Menstrala. Go have a dekko here.

Posted by Anantha.

Friday, August 21, 2009

A Link A Day # 240: Simpsons now in Angola.



Cute one. From Executive Center, Luanda. Via Ibelieveinadv.

Posted by Anantha.

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Inglorious Basterds gets a disappointing review

Quentin Tarantino's Inglorious Basterds has got shafted by the critics. I'm disappointed but I choose to see the film and form an opinion. Meanwhile, here's what Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian had to say about the film.

Posted by Murali.

A Link A Day # 239: Borderline Talent



Posted by Anantha.

A Link A Day # 238: Barclay's Premier League



Posted by Anantha.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Trailer Watch: Art & Copy

ART & COPY is a powerful new film about advertising and inspiration. Directed by Doug Pray (SURFWISE, SCRATCH, HYPE!), it reveals the work and wisdom of some of the most influential advertising creatives of our time. Here's what Doug has to say about his film, "Yes, I've made a positive film about ads. I'd once believed that our systems of commerce might go away, and with them, all unwanted commercial messaging, but they haven't yet, and won't soon. Advertising, in fact, may actually be an innately human act itself. But like all creative endeavors (books, paintings, movies, architecture) most of it is mediocre. Ultimately, I hope “ART & COPY” inspires artists and writers to strive to make more meaningful, more entertaining, or more socially uplifting ads. With so much advertising surrounding us these days, it would be great to get that 2% figure a bit higher."



Posted by Anantha.

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Campaign of the Week: Scientology Know Yourself

We all have seen how religions sell themselves. We've felt the subtle hand of the missionary in charity. We've heard the muezzin's call fill the air. We've watched a bearded man propogate the word through breathing sessions, Now everything's gonna change. Soft sell will give way to hard sell. Because a new kid on the block has just upped the ante. Scientology has embraced TV advertising like never before. Yes, Tom Cruise's cult has just unleashed 3 slickly produced commercials on CNN. It's religion packaged like a brand. I was very tickled when I saw it. I am curious to see how the cross, the crescent and the lotus reacts. Creatively it's no hot shakes. Just well-edited visuals with a philosophical narration. But what I liked is the sheer gall to cause a stir.



More commercials here and here.

Posted by Anantha

The 'My Name is Cannes' Award

Ok. Assuming you are jobless and have all the time in the world to jog your memory, who, according to you, is the one Indian who can legitimately claim to have the maximum number of metals at Cannes? I am not talking of borrowed glory metals here (where the creative director's name appears without physically contributing to the piece). My gut feel is it's Kash Sree. It could even be Ali Shahbaz (now in Singapore) or Santosh Padhi. Kash Sree's website says, "1 Grand Prix, 3 Golds, 1 Silver, 3 Bronzes". So can we announce him as the winner of the 'My name is Cannes' award? Or do you have any juicy insider info to challenge this claim?

Posted by Anantha.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Viral Watch: Butt Catcher

For Msi Laptops. A weird take on the old Ray Ban trick. These virals get eyeballs. But if Msi were my brand, I'd give these guys a kick in their butt for ruining my brand name....



Posted by Anantha.

Has Vishal given credits to Cajetan Boy in Kaminey?

Kaminey is releasing today with most papers already calling it a cool flick with a neat story. According to knowledgeble sources, the story is said to be written originally by Kenyan Playwright and Short-Filmmaker Cajetan Boy.

Apparently, Vishal met Cajetan in a film workshop organized by Mira Nair. He was so enamoured with the story that he paid Cajetan a sum of Rs. 2 lacs (when converted to Indian rupees) and bought the rights to make it as a film.

So, 3 questions. Has Vishal Bharadwaj given Cajetan Boy the due credit? And how will Cajetan feel when he gets to know the movie budget was Rs. 44 crore, considering the piddly amount he was paid? Finally, why do writers always get the raw deal?

Posted by Murali.

Thursday, August 13, 2009

A Link A Day # 237: WWF Woman

A truly lovely piece from Ogilvy Delhi. Art Director & illustrator Puran Choudary has done a fab job.



Image taken from Ibelieveinadv.com.

Posted by Anantha.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

A Link A Day # 236: Wii Sports Resort TVC

Some lovely shots in there...please watch...



Posted by Anantha.

A Link A Day # 235: The tragedy of the Internet

A stiumlating piece by Garrison Keillor in The Salon. This is what he says...

"The Internet is a powerful tide that is washing away some enormous castles and releasing a lovely sense of independence and playfulness in the American people. Millions of people have discovered the joys of seeing yourself in print -- your own words! the unique essence of yourself, your stories, your jokes, your own peculiar take on the world -- out there where anybody can see it! Wowser.

Unfortunately, nobody is earning a dime from this. So much work, so little pay. It's tragic."

Link Alert by Avinash Subramaniam. Posted by Anantha.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

A Link A Day # 234: Aviva Compilation

70% of this compilation is good. A few are a little contrived. Anyways, simple thought. Neat payoff.



Posted by Anantha.

And now Official Attyachar...

Super cool viral for makemytrip.com

Fundu lyrics and voices that stick in your head.

Check it out here.

Posted by Niru.

Album Art # 5


Abbey Road - released in 1969 was a landmark album both in terms of production and album art for The Beatles. The cover was designed by the creative director of Apple Records, Mr. Kosh. The photograph was shot by Iain Macmillan.

"Macmillan was given only ten minutes around 11:30 that morning to take the photo on a zebra crossing in Abbey Road. That cover photograph has since become one of the most famous and most imitated album covers in recording history. McCartney is bare-footed and out of step with the other three. The man standing on the pavement in the background is Paul Cole, an American tourist unaware he had been photographed until he saw the album cover months later. The zebra crossing today remains a popular destination for Beatles fans.

The Volkswagen Beetle parked next to the zebra crossing belonged to one of the people living in the apartment across from the recording studio. After the album came out, the number plate was stolen repeatedly from the car. In 1986, the car was sold at an auction for $23,000 and is currently on display at the Volkswagen museum in Wolfsburg, Germany." - Wikipedia.

Posted by Murali.

Monday, August 10, 2009

Sunday, August 9, 2009

A Link A Day # 232: Sprint Now Network Campaign

This one's for all you people who handle a mobile service provider account. Sprint has unveiled its 4G Wireless network with 'the now network' campaign. I think they've done full justice to the idea with some mindboggling number crunching TVCs. Check out their work...



Posted by Anantha.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Spot of the Week: Melbourne Writer's Festival

Brilliant use of typography by JWT. Animation by Mighty Nice, Sydney.



Posted by Anantha.

A Link A Day # 231: Kozel Goat



Posted by Anantha

Friday, August 7, 2009

A Link A Day # 230: The Man Who Walked Around The World

Nice corporate film. Takes six minutes of your time. But is never boring...



Posted by Anantha.

A Link A Day # 229: Guardian says oldies are driving out cyberkids from facebook to twitter

"From uncles wearing skinny jeans to mothers investing in ra-ra skirts and fathers nodding awkwardly along to the latest grime record, the older generation has long known that the surest way to kill a youth trend is to adopt it as its own. The cyberworld, it seems, is no exception.

The proliferation of parents and teachers trawling the pages of Facebook trying to poke old schoolfriends and lovers, and traversing the outer reaches of MySpace is causing an adolescent exodus from the social networking sites, according to research from the media regulator Ofcom.

The sites, once the virtual streetcorners, pubs and clubs for millions of 15- to 24-year-olds, have now been over-run by 25- to 34-year-olds whose presence is driving their younger peers away."

For more, read on.

Posted by Anantha.

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Jaffe says it again - The 30-sec tv spot is dead



Courtesy: Jaffejuice.tv

Posted by Murali.

Album Art # 4


Micheal Jackson's album 'Dangerous', apart from being one of the biggest selling albums of all time, also had a sensational cover design. Designed by Mark Ryden, it carried symbolism that pertained to the occult. The bald man at the bottom is evidently Aleister Crowley who indulged in occult practices. And some say, there are references to Freemasonic imagery too. Whatever be it, it's art in its purest form. Enjoy.

Posted by Murali.

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

A Link A Day # 228: Panasonic Skim



Posted by Anantha.

Youtube Gems: Bud Light Opera



Posted by Anantha.

So, who’s sponsoring God?

Advertising scores! And right in the highest quarters. Radio Vatican after 80 years of staying away from advertising of any sort is now offering slots to interested advertisers. But, all ads are to be screened for “appropriateness”. Go here to read the full story.

Posted by Niru.

How to get your fill of good stuff

Brand proposition nicely captured for the radio medium. As they would say in Tamil ‘ensai’. Click here.

Posted by Niru.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Sylvia Plath reads her poem 'Daddy'



Posted by Murali.

A Link A Day # 227: Absolut Anthem



Created by TBWA/Chiat/Day. Produced by MJZ. Directed by Rupert Sanders.

Posted by Anantha

A Link A Day # 226: Hyundai A-League



Posted by Anantha.

Sunday, August 2, 2009

A Link A Day # 225: Free Short Stories

What does a man who doesn't read books, read? Anything on the world wide web. And when he wants to feel literary, he spends 15 minutes on short stories. That's what he did, on a yawnful Sunday. And he discovered the Story website, a repository of short fiction, from published authors who participated in the BBC National Short Story Award contest. The man who posted this link, lazily read one story. And thought it was worthy of a recommendation.

Posted by Anantha.