How’s this for a misdirect? We see adult males jumping about like toddlers in large disposable diapers. For a moment, it seems like we’ve been placed in a time warp–or we’re in store for a warped time–as these guys act like babies prancing about the house, getting into all kinds of mischief. And the product supposedly being promoted in this strange spot is Comfeze disposable diapers.
The payoff comes when three of the gents are seated on the couch, watching TV–actually what appears on the screen is the famed scary scene from the movie Alien in which a grotesque alien monster emerges out of a person’s body.
Clearly it’s a good thing the guys were wearing absorbent diapers as the scene caused each to have a bit of a bladder accident.
A message reads, “Get scared more often” as song lyrics relate that “because of Comfeze, I can watch Scream TV,” a Canadian specialty television service dedicated to the thriller, suspense and horror genres.
Titled “Comfeze,” the Scream TV promo spot was directed by Craig Brownrigg of Radke Film Group, Toronto, for agency Zig, Toronto.
Scott Mackenzie exec produced for Radke with Ken Eggett serving as line producer. The DP was Glen Keenan.
Zig’s creative ensemble consisted of creative director/art director Stephen Leps, creative director/copywriter Aaron Starkman, creative director Martin Beauvais and producer Sharon Nelson.
Editor was John Evans of Panic & Bob, Toronto.
Does “Hundreds of Beavers” Reflect A New Path Forward In Cinema?
Hard as it may be to believe, changing the future of cinema was not on Mike Cheslik's mind when he was making "Hundreds of Beavers." Cheslik was in the Northwoods of Wisconsin with a crew of four, sometimes six, standing in snow and making his friend, Ryland Tews, fall down funny.
"When we were shooting, I kept thinking: It would be so stupid if this got mythologized," says Cheslik.
And yet, "Hundreds of Beavers" has accrued the stuff of, if not quite myth, then certainly lo-fi legend. Cheslik's film, made for just $150,000 and self-distributed in theaters, has managed to gnaw its way into a movie culture largely dominated by big-budget sequels.
"Hundreds of Beavers" is a wordless black-and-white bonanza of slapstick antics about a stranded 19th century applejack salesman (Tews) at war with a bevy of beavers, all of whom are played by actors in mascot costumes.
No one would call "Hundreds of Beavers" expensive looking, but it's far more inventive than much of what Hollywood produces. With some 1,500 effects shots Cheslik slaved over on his home computer, he crafted something like the human version of Donald Duck's snowball fight, and a low-budget heir to the waning tradition of Buster Keaton and "Naked Gun."
At a time when independent filmmaking is more challenged than ever, "Hundreds of Beavers" has, maybe, suggested a new path forward, albeit a particularly beaver-festooned path.
After no major distributor stepped forward, the filmmakers opted to launch the movie themselves, beginning with carnivalesque roadshow screenings. Since opening in January, "Hundreds of Beavers" has played in at least one theater every week of the year, though never more than 33 at once. (Blockbusters typically play in around 4,000 locations.)... Read More