A Link A Day # 2: What piqued Ridley Scott

When Walter Parks, the head of Dreamworks, wanted to get Ridley Scott interested in doing Gladiator, he gave him the bound script. And a painting titled Pollice Verso (by French artist Jean-Leon Jerome). Scott took one look at the painting and said YES without even reading the script. So what was the piece of art that piqued the ace director? See it for yourself.

Posted by Anantha.

A Link A Day # 1 - Mangaattha Matteru

I knew teen-patti was called Mangaattha in Tamil, but I never knew its etymology. I discovered this and a lot more here. If you're a Peter or Mary who's curious to know the meaning of Laard Labakkdas, Manjaa Soru, Gokka-Makka & Gilfaans, you better odify there.

Posted by Anantha.

How advertising can affect the meltdown.

The meltdown feeds on negative sentiment. It gains in strength every time someone spreads gloom and doom. The only way to fight it is by perception management. This is where advertising can help. We need more campaigns that spread cheer. More commercials that kindle hope. More ads that inspire. More copy with wit. More art with soul. These are the times for stand-up comedians, the jokers and the clowns. So get out your gags and get ready to gag the naysayers.

Posted by Anantha.

How the meltdown will affect advertising.

If the M-word hasn’t entered your vocabulary yet, you probably live in another planet. Or may be you’ve just been plain lucky.Either ways, allow me to spill a national secret: the only reason India hasn’t bombed Pakistan is the domino effect it will have on the Aam Aadmi’s India.

The meltdown has already started wreaking havoc on the advertising industry. Budgets have been slashed. Pay cuts are being contemplated. The bloodbath has begun. Even heads have started to roll.

Is this the end, then? No mate, this is just the beginning. It’s gonna get worse. Now, before you accuse me of scaremongering, I shall analyze the market threadbare and show you why I am bearish about the future...

1. All the IPO-obsessed clients have seen their dreams take a deep tumble. They’ve realized that the life-saving public issue is not going to happen for at least six months. This has caused a funding jam which in turn has resulted in a liquidity crunch. No working capital means, no money to pay suppliers. By definition, that includes ad agencies. Now do yourself a favor. Think of the client list of your ad agency. Jot down the names of those who were talking of an IPO. Make a note of the money they owe you. Safely assume that that money won’t flow in, even after 3 months.

2. I can see that ‘uh-oh’ expression in your face. WAIT. There’s more bad news. One sinking company can drag six other companies down. So a chain of negativity will get transmitted all around. A pall of gloom will pervade the economy and soon even champions of recession advertising will get into a shell. What that means reason will take a backseat and silly sentiment will take over.

3. How does one stay afloat in these choppy waters? Simple. Steal clients from the other agency. And how does one manage this? Under cutting. No brainer, no? So an Agency War will ensue - where the winner will again be the clients.

4. Retainer fees and media commissions will experience a free fall.

5. Clients will use this as an excuse and squeeze even more juice from their agencies. To avoid this squeeze, the account management will become more and more pliant. Therefore pandering will become the official agency policy. Options will rule!

6. With their new found freedom, clients will start dictating the course of their brand. Panic Sales will be announced. Every brand will use this as a recession-busting tactic. Jaw dropping discounts will become the order of the day. Expect more 70% offs.

7. Those sagacious clients who’ve saved for a rainy day, will be the only ones with any money to do commercials. Even they will be tempted to ask for shorter durations, lower budgets and harder working TVCs.

8. Celebrity endorsement contracts will be reviewed. Most celebrities will face the hatchet.

9. Lack of celebrities will force the client to be more alert about the scripts they approve. Some edgy scripts that never found expression might find takers. To me, that’s the BIG NEWS. Wouldn’t all you hungry buggers want a good low-budget film on your show reel? If you’ve always wanted some nice films, then 2009 will be your year.

10. The sad bit is, even though you might make some good films you will never be able to enter the films for awards as the awards budget will be pared. The upside is, Ad Clubs will be forced to lower the entry fee to attract more entries.

11. Without awards, what does one do? The pitch will be your new saviour. More pitches will happen in 2009 to find agency suitors who are willing to charge lesser. So your portfolio is bound to look great.

12. And which categories are bound to see more pitches? Condoms (as people have more sex to bust stress), Underwear (everyone has to wear them), Indian government banks (as they will never collapse), Fuel Efficient Cars and Bikes, Astrologers, Shrinks, Lawyers, Agarbattis, Pain relievers, Yoga Classes, Hospitals (stress related diseases will experience a spike) and FMCGs that use celebrities. Value brands in all these categories will rock.

13. Lastly, the meltdown will consume many small agencies. Mergers will become the preferred survival strategy.

I’ll leave it at the ominous 13 as I want you to worry more. After all, it’s a question of our survival.

Posted by Anantha

How do they do it together?

Before your imagination runs wild, let me quickly stop you.
Because I’m referring to the celluloid magic that the Coen Brothers manage to create together.
They think together. Write the script together. Direct together. (And of course, share the laurels together.)
Wondering how that’s possible?

Click on the link below and figure out how they create magic. Together.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLbelyl7UxI

Posted by Murali

Youtube Gems: World's first viral film?

Electrocuting an Elephant was filmed by Thomas Alva Edison in 1903. Wikipedia gives us a little background on the film: Topsy (born circa 1875, died January 4, 1903), was a domesticated elephant with the Forepaugh Circus at Coney Island's Luna Park. Because she had killed three men in as many years (including a severely abusive trainer who attempted to feed her a lit cigarette), Topsy was deemed a threat to people by her owners and killed by electrocution on January 4, 1903. Inventor Thomas Edison captured the event on film. He would release it later that year under the title Electrocuting an Elephant.

A means of execution initially discussed was hanging. However, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals protested and other ways were considered. Edison then suggested electrocution with alternating current, which had been used for the execution of humans since 1890.

To reinforce the execution, Topsy was fed carrots laced with 460 grams of potassium cyanide before the deadly current from a 6,600-volt AC source was sent coursing through her body. She was dead in seconds.The event was witnessed by an estimated 1,500 people and Edison's film of the event was seen by audiences throughout the United States.

The reason why I feel it's the world's first viral is the hidden persuasion aspect of this film. Apparently, animal executions was a strategy used by Edison to discredit alternating current as an unsafe electricity system for powering homes. This film strengthened his case for the Edison Power Company's Direct Current (DC).

Posted by Anantha.

The Bullshit Interview with Dabitch

The Bullshit Interview is an interview with a twist. The idea is to shoot unexpected queries at ad people and see how well they bullshit their way out of it. The first soul on Earth who's volunteered to take the interview is the one and only Dabitch.

Dabitch - or as her passport reads, Åsk Wäppling - is the founder of Adland the commercial archive, obsessively collecting ads since 1996 hosting the worlds largest superbowl collection. She likes turtles, cats, Vespas and hates walks on the beach. An art director by day and maverick ad-commentator by night - when she's not at her computer she's likely dead. Now let's see how she fared...

How do you explain art direction to a blind man?
The same way I explain music to a deaf person and the female orgasm to a man. I let them feel it.

Why do women like pink?
Why do men assume that we do? Women don't like pink. Little girls like pink. The two shouldn't be confused else you might end up in jail.

If a good friend of yours won a Cannes Grand Prix for a plagiarized ad, would you carry that scoop in your blog?
Yes of course, unlike my good friends in advertising my website has actually been with me for the past twelve years. Ad-pals come and go. Tossers.

But seriously, I'd point the similarities out but I could only prove plagiarism if I was there when they used tracing paper on top of the other ad. We all know this doesn't happen (well, it probably did in this case) - ideas do pop up in two peoples heads independent of one another. People do build on things that they have seen in real life. Coincidences do happen. Scam ads, knowingly competing with an ad that no client has ever approved - are a much bigger sin than accidental similarities between two different campaigns in my book. It's like being a steroid body builder competing against a natural body builder. I know that I began Adland by only talking about Badland ads (that is coincidental and similar ideas) but I don't think people copy on purpose as often as people seem to think, I think that similar ads happen when lazy creatives don't push to the next level and execute the very first decent idea that they thought of - which just happens to be the very first decent idea another creative team thought of for another client across the globe. Also there's been quite a few "OMG PLAGIARISM" yelled at people when they simply use the same new media as another campaign, as if every poster in the world communicates the same exact idea. You have to recognize what the idea is in each ad, and please remember that it's not the font, not the media and not the tone of voice that is the idea – they just communicate the idea. They're the execution.

Having said all that I still think it's fun to show twin ads when they happen, even if by accident, just because it's kinda freaky. Like we all share the same brain. Maybe we do?

Also, there's been more than one story where a large brand takes interest in non commercial artists work, and then creates a commercial or similar which is heavily influenced by said work and not a penny goes to the artists for this free inspiration. If a photographer, animator, illustrator or musician is the perfect fit for your advert at least have the decency of hiring the people you're ripping off. Here rip-off means something else.

What's your conspiracy theory on why Neil French started the World Press Awards?
He wanted to see his name in print more often.

If you were to be reborn as a font, which font would you choose to be? And why?
Helvetica. Classically stylish, discreet, versatile, and annoyingly every-damn-where you can't escape me!

What are the three things you will change about Luerzer's Archive if you were made its editor?
Format, paper, website.

If you were to do an ad campaign for the Mumbai Terrorists, what would be your communication strategy?
For media, I'd definitely use guerrilla.

Why is Thai advertising wacky?
Same reason the Thai people are. Too much Sambal Oelek makes you a little unpredictable. They've exported this national feature to The Netherlands where it takes on a new form as it's mellowed out by smoke. All hail Sambal Oelek, the best thing since the birth of chili itself.

If ad agencies were movie titles, what would the apt choice be for a)Crispin Porter Bogusky b) Kessels Kramer c) Wieden+Kennedy?
a) The Dark Knight
b) The Incredibles
c) The Matrix

Which is the most over-hyped campaign of 2008?
Crispin Porter’s VW Routan campaign with Brooke Shields. They missed the funny by half a mile. Runner up: The Whopper Virgins campaign and all other Crispin campaigns - they had a terrible year where they seemed to go out of their way to offend people rather than amuse.

The D-List of Advertising Reality

Deadline – The final time / date for accepting a piece of work.
The Truth – An elastic time zone which ends up getting stretched or snapped.

Director – The person with whom the agency works closely to direct their TVC.
The Truth – Someone who twists your script under the pretext of ‘lifting it to the next level’.

D&AD – Design and Art Direction (D&AD formerly known as British Design & Art Direction) is a British educational charity which exists to promote excellence in design and advertising. (Source: Wikipedia)

The Truth – If you’ve got it, be prepared to be worshipped.

Doodle – A type of sketch, an unfocused drawing made while a person's attention is otherwise occupied. (Source: Wikipedia)

The Truth – An art perfected by the agency and client during presentations.

December – The last month of the year in the Gregorian calendar.
The Truth – Scam. Scam. Scam. Scam. And more Scam.

Posted by Murali

Breakin in my brand new shoes.

Story about a Journey from K to B (Kamanahalli to Brigades).

So there they were lying on my couch, still in a box, with a bunch of clothes piled on top. Took em' out. Slipped em' on and went "Daaaaaamn! These things are comfortable." God bless Reebok!

The bike has been surrendered for a service. So i'm thinkin, I should put these lazy legs to work. More than the work they put in to facilitate tasty trips to the fridge.

"Hey you know what you should walk to brigades!", I said to myself in the mirror. To which my reflection promptly nodded in approval. The little hand on the clock tells me it's 8:45. So i'm Brigade bound and thinkin...Really? You haven’t walked in like.....like....you can’t even remember how long? An argument with myself that ends with, Cummon', let’s put some miles in these bad boys, let’s see how far they'll go!

Ah! The joy of being 24, our bodies can get away with anything. So i'm half way there and all of a sudden a drizzlelette is upon me, that's like the midget of drizzles, the smallest one in the rain family that got picked on a lot. The most famous member of the rain family being a quirky looking chap that stars on the Hit Show 'The Office' and goes by the name of Rain Wilson. You know him, he's the weird-funny one they call 'Dwight'.

But a little drizelette and a drippy nose ain't gona rain on my parade. I had made up my mind, it was brigade or bust. If the word bust would come into play, it would only be the KFC crusty, delicious, deep fried kind.

Walked up to the counter and ordered the monster of Meal Combos...The King Kong Combo. Scarfed it down in 10 min flat. Talk about finger lickin' good. Well, that combined with nail-biting anticipation leads to...... Let's just say that, I now possess only 9 and a 1/2 fingers. Yep, fraid' so.

Incinerated some serious calories on the way there, but made up for the loss in calories, by wolfing down that monstrous Combo. But fret not, I didn’t stop there, I walked some more...digested my meal on foot.

These ‘New’ Shoes took one sweaty fella from The Big Bright Brigades to Shivaji Nagar. Yep, these shoes were meant for walkin, and that’s just what they did.

You should try it sometime; it’s an excellent way of relieving stress, and spending the next week recuperating in a wheel chair. If you aren’t as lucky as me. But who cares? Go for it. You’ll be glad you did.

Well, I can safely say that I got rid of that blasted new shoe smell, quite successfully.

I must confess however, that I can no longer do the bunny hop.

Posted by Shane

Why should everybody advertise?

TV, press, outdoor, radio, posters, internet, ambient ideas…these usual suspects show up in every media plan to a potential client. Makes me wonder, where is the creativity in our job? Even if you train a chimpanzee to be a media planner it would have thrown up the same options. How are we different? Why should the lead medium for all brands be either TV or press? Who said outdoor is a reminder medium? Who dinned into our heads that ambient media is not scalable? Can't a brand be built purely with posters? Why should viral always be one more activity to get eyeballs? Why can't it be the medium? Who stopped us from imagining new media? It's time, we put on our thinking cap.

Posted by Anantha

Orchard Bangalore celebrates Orchard Day - Nov 22, 2008

The C-List of Advertising Reality

Client – Refers to someone who purchases something from someone else.

The Truth – The prodigal son who has one hand on the agency’s neck and the other on the agency’s b@#%$.

Creatives – People who belong to the art and copy department in an agency.

The Truth – A fancy term for a bunch of disillusioned writers and whining artists.

Copy – The written word in an advertisement.

The Truth – The chink in the armour of the visual advertising supporter.

Creative Director – The man / woman responsible for the creative output of the agency.

The Truth – A title given to a self-obsessed ego tripper for possessing the ability of practicing slavery among his forces, while being on a permanent paid vacation.

Consumer – A person who uses a product or service.

The Truth – The only reason why research guys get their salaries.

Posted by Murali

50 stock expressions of a creative person

1. Where's the brief?
2. You call this a brief?
3. I like the font you've used in the brief.
4. Where's the insight?
5. When do you need it?
6. F*ck off.
7. Go take a jump.
8. This is unacceptable.
9. I think I've cracked it…
10. I have a fantastic idea…
11. The scene opens in a beach in Australia…
12. Is it hot?
13. Will it win?
14. It's been done before.
15. I did this some ten years ago.
16. There's a thought there…
17. I have a better idea…
18. It's a good idea but will it work?
19. I think it will get a nomination.
20. Fabulous idea. We should park it for some other client…
21. We have the idea. We just need a logo.
22. Can we get this released before December 31st^t?
23. Is the font size too big?
24. Let's not put our key number on this ad.
25. Let's upload it to the Archive.
26. I think I've earned my salary for the year.
27. I'll buy you a beer if you can sell this ad.
28. I am not coming for the meeting…
29. We've looked at it from all angles…
30. We are quite excited with the work…
31. I am sure you'll love it…
32. Of course, your customers will get it!
33. Trust me, the campaign will work.
34. Bastards they killed it.
35. The joker didn't get the ad.
36. He can't tell his arse from his elbow.
37. I am not gonna work on it
38. You have two options. Take it or leave it.
39. Come let's go for a smoke.
40. What are you doing for lunch?
41. Let's sleep over it.
42. We've started brainstorming.
43. We are working on it.
44. We are not happy with the idea.
45. Call up the client and postpone the meeting.
46. I think I deserve a break.
47. Let's hire some good looking chicks.
48. Did you see that commercial? It was terrible.
49. How many metals did O&M get?
50. I am quitting.

Posted by Anantha

A Vehicle for Carvertising

Car advertising has arrived in India. A start up named Cash Ur Drive is leading the charge. If the company's claims are to be believed, nearly 12,800 cars have signed up for the exercise including 1900 MERU cars and 250 Spot Taxis in Bangalore. The private cars who've jumped into this brandwagon are primarily Hyundai Santro, Chevrolet Spark and the Alto types. The deal offered is simple: put an ad on your car, we'll pay your petrol bill. Raghu Khanna, the founder of CUD, is plugging it as an eco-friendly innovative on-wheels media for generating brand awareness and creating a buzz around promos. Plans are afoot to put in place a GPS tracking system to make the medium more accountable. Me thinks, Cash Ur Drive is a boon to visibility-starved advertisers in billboard-free cities like Chennai & Delhi. What do you think?

Posted by Anantha.

And Now, Live-in Billboards.

Brendan O'Grady has given a new twist to billboards - he's actually created billboards with a built-in home! Called The Aeroform, these behind-the-billboard shell homes have been designed keeping principles of aerodynamics in mind. Brendan's creation has just maxed the Ken Roberts Memorial Delineation (architectural rendering) Competition. The concept will be a huge hit in all metropolises with bill boards. The first brand to appropriate this idea will generate enormous buzz. Who's gonna seize the initiative?

Posted by Anantha.

Great Speeches

After Barack Obama’s rivetting victory speech, I just thought of putting together some of the speeches that I have liked. I’ll begin with Steve Jobs’ “Stay hungry, stay foolish,” Stanford Address which was covered in Fortune.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc

Next is JK Rowling’s (which I began to view very doubtfully) at Harvard. Her line, “There is an expiry date to blaming parents for steering you in the wrong direction.”
Watch it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pucdJHjZaqs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIbTqNrxSV0

You can watch it with transcript here:
http://harvardmagazine.com/commencement/the-fringe-benefits-failure-the-importance-imagination

Ali G at Harvard. You can’t miss this one.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBqz_Ivy9jA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jg97Wfac1Y0

Will add to the list when I can. Till then, hear, here.

Posted by Ajay Menon.

Breaking News

“The Iraq War has ended” screamed the New York Times on a cool November morning. Moments of euphoria later, people were bludgeoned to the corners of foolishness: the date read July 4. An elaborate network of pranksters have succeeded in releasing 1.4 million copies of “special edition” copies of the New York Times, replete with fake headlines. These pranksters who call themselves the Yes Men, spoofed the NYT’s baseline “All the news that’s fit to print” and called it “ All the news we hope to print”

Check out the story here

Posted by Deepan

Your blog is your resume.

To blog or not to blog, that is the question.
At least in the minds of avid netizens today.
While the blogger finds innumerable reasons, to punch in his thoughts,
the non-blogger is saddled with pure inertia.
And in some cases complete disinterest too.
Now if you were to believe Joseph Jaffe,
your blog could be the most formidable armour for your career.
It’s a pat on the back to all my blogging friends.
And a wake-up call to my non-blogging mates.

Posted by Murali

Meet Rovio. Meet the 2009 Black Pencil Winner.

Blistering Barnacles! That's the first thing you'll say when you see the demo of the WiFi-enabled robotic cam named Rovio. It's a webcam capable of omni-directional movement and believe it or not, it's not been designed by Apple. Rovio can be controlled using the browser on your laptop, mobile phone or game console (provided it's hooked to the internet). If Thomas installed it in your office, sitting in Bangalore, he can have a dog-eye view of the studio, take pictures of slackers, capture sound-bytes of the choicest gossip and keep a watch on the prettiest folks seated in the reception. After watching the product in action, I am of the view, that this is easily the product of the year. Rovio certainly deserves the D&AD Black Pencil it will go onto win in 2009.

Posted by Anantha.

I swear, it’s f***ing good!

Stumbled across this completely hilarious viral for Budweiser. Banned on TV, but it got more than 10 million hits on the net. Enjoy!
P.S. Don’t you think we should try it at our offices.
Enthusiastic participation assured.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJJL5dxgVaM

Posted by Nirupama