Earlier this week, election day (6/8) in California yielded a woefully low turnout–a far cry from November 2008 when the presidential election and a controversial ballot initiative had voters flocking to their polling places in the Golden State. The ballot initiative was California’s Proposition 8, which defined marriage as solely being between opposite-sex couples. Proposition 8 narrowly won, overturning a California Supreme Court ruling that same sex couples had the constitutional right to marry. Appeals were filed in state and federal court–the state appeal, heard by the California Supreme Court, upheld Proposition 8 but allowed existing same-sex marriages to stand. The federal lawsuits are pending.
But rather than wait for the next judicial shoe to drop, creatives from Saatchi & Saatchi New York, and the directing duo Speck/Gordon (Will Speck and Josh Gordon) of production house Furlined have teamed on Devin & Glenn, a short film which argues tongue-in-cheek that the boredom, complacency, petty bickering, and falling out of romance that plagues marriage shouldn’t be confined to heterosexual couples.
The short introduces us to the title characters, two gay men who fall in love. We see their initial meeting and attraction which escalates into passionate romance and eventually marriage. However, keeping the flames of love hot is a daunting proposition as Devin and Glenn–portrayed by Justin Long and Mike White, respectively–get a bit bored with one another, exhibiting the classic symptoms of a couple that gets too comfortable and complacent. Add in some meddling in-laws and married life clearly isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
Among the slices of life shown are Devin getting in the mood for romance only to find Glenn dead asleep in bed with the TV on. We see Glenn ask Devin out to the gym, an invite which is taken as an insult with Devin interpreting it as implying that he’s gained weight and thus needs to work out. We even get to the point where Devin is secretly looking at Internet porn to satisfy himself since his love life leaves much to be desired–only to have Devin discover him in the act.
Finally our “old married couple” is seen loading groceries into their car when a pickup truck drives by in which two guys are full mouth kissing, obviously hot and heavy for one another. They’re exactly where our married folks once were in their relationship.
A voiceover then hits us with the pitch: “If you disagree with the homosexual lifestyle, support overturning Prop. 8 and make them get married–like the rest of us.” A super guides us to MakeHomosexualsMarry.org.
The lead creatives on the job have since exited Saatchi–chief creative officer/copywriter Gerry Graf who is reportedly launching his own venture, and creative director/writer Chris Beresford-Hill who has moved onto BBDO. Speck/Gordon were directors and writers on the job, with Tami Reiker serving as the DP.
Editor was Haines Hall of Spot Welders.
Music composers were Andrew Feltenstein and John Nau of Beacon Street Studios.
Apple and Google Face UK Investigation Into Mobile Browser Dominance
Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers, a British watchdog said Friday in a report that recommends they face an investigation under new U.K. digital rules taking effect next year.
The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker's tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. Apple does this by restricting progressive web apps, which don't need to be downloaded from an app store and aren't subject to app store commissions, the report said.
"This technology is not able to fully take off on iOS devices," the watchdog said in a provisional report on its investigation into mobile browsers that it opened after an initial study concluded that Apple and Google effectively have a chokehold on "mobile ecosystems."
The CMA's report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers "the clearest or easiest option."
And it said that the a revenue-sharing deal between the two U.S. Big Tech companies "significantly reduces their financial incentives" to compete in mobile browsers on Apple's iOS operating system for iPhones.
Both companies said they will "engage constructively" with the CMA.
Apple said it disagreed with the findings and said it was concerned that the recommendations would undermine user privacy and security.
Google said the openness of its Android mobile operating system "has helped to expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps" and that it's "committed to open platforms that empower consumers."
It's the latest move by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to crack down on the... Read More