COMMERCIAL “INTERRUPTION”A husband and wife are in a hotel room–he’s unpacking a suitcase that’s on the bed, she’s in the bathroom unpacking some cosmetics and other sundry items. He can barely get out a sentence, asking her if she packed his flip-flops, when the sound of a jackhammer drowns out everything. Each time he tries to speak, he utters but a few words only to be interrupted by the sound of heavy machinery during construction. Supered on screen is “Travel Wish #28: Have a quiet, romantic getaway.” The jackhammer chorus continues. You can barely hear yourself or your spouse speak–or for that matter, you can barely think with all the ruckus. He tries to time his words so that they can be heard in between the overpowering noise but to no avail. The spot cuts away from the room for a moment so that a voiceover, which we are able to hear, can explain that Travelocity “will contact you ahead of time if your hotel’s undergoing construction…That’s part of the Travelocity Guarantee.” Cut back to the hubby who halfheartedly says, “It’s gonna be great–a big week.” An end tag carries the slogan, “Travelocity, you’ll never roam alone.” Titled “Interruption,” this spot was directed by Rob Groenwold of Boxer Films, Los Angeles, for McKinney, Durham, N.C. The McKinney team consisted of executive creative director David Baldwin, group creative directors Philip Marchington and Lisa Shimotakahara, art director Owen Tingle, copywriter Mona Hasan and producer Rich Beck….
CYBERBULLYING PSA COMPETITIONCyberbullying is a growing issue among children and teenagers who are defamed and harassed on the Internet. But now cyberbullying is a problem that filmmakers can address and help to solve by entering their finished PSAs into a competition sponsored by Sony Creative Software, the National Crime Prevention Council and the Ad Council. The contest organizers are seeking entries from independent producers and schools. The top submissions may be eligible for national broadcast, and their producer or sponsoring academic institution will receive a complete multimedia editing suite for their facility or school valued at over $18,000. Judges for the competition are slated to include director/producer Barry Sonnenfeld (Men In Black, Addams Family); producer/writer Steve Oedekerk (Bruce Almighty, Barnyard); social networking/cyberbullying authority Justin W. Patchin, Ph.D.; and members of the Ad Council’s Campaign Review Committee. The call for entries is now open and runs through Jan. 11. For more info, log onto www.sonycreativesoftware.com….
PEOPLE IN THE NEWS
Michael Stanish has joined post/efx house Framestore CFC’s Commercials team in London as a senior producer. Stanish has been based in London for the past four years, the last two of which were spent working for TYO Productions, a Tokyo-headquartered film company, line producing all of their international commercials…The New York-headquartered Nice Shoes companies have appointed Tammy Michalek as director of marketing for Nice Shoes, Nice Spots, Guava and Freestyle Collective. In her expanded role, Michalek will develop marketing, sales, press and advertising strategies, sponsor events and create national and global opportunities, develop strategic partnerships and initiate new business opportunities. Prior to this promotion, she headed business development for Nice Spots, an Internet-hosted application that facilitates global collaboration on video projects, as well as archival, distribution and presentation services….
