DDB Chicago and director Jesse Dylan of Wondros tap persuasive celebrities to motivate prospective GED recipients in the comical new :60 PSA “GED Pep Talk Center” for Ad Council, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation and YourGED.org. The PSA, for broadcast and in-cinema release, features celebs working at a fictitious GED Pep Talk Call Center, where they each give test takers their own brand of pep talk.
The pep talkers are Jerry Stiller, Danny Trejo, Ron Perlman, DMC and Chris Lloyd to name a few–all of whom were chosen for their unique communication styles to provide varying levels of encouragement, from subtle to fierce, to those in need of a little motivation. The website allows visitors to adjust a slider to control the strength of their pep talk, varying from “Gentle” to “Extreme.” The range goes from sweet TV mom Debra Jo Rupp (That 70s Show) to tough guy Trejo.
While comedy is the means chosen for this PSA, the subject matter is serious. Some 89 percent of American businesses require applicants to have at least a high school level of education; yet more than 35 million adults do not have their high school diploma. This campaign looks to provide the “push” needed for these people to get their GEDs.
The multi-media campaign provides resources for people find and sign up for free GED classes. In addition to the :60 spot and 13 online pep talks, there is also a hot-line with the option to choose the appropriate level; a special text service to get a celebrity call back and even an option for well-meaning family and friends to send a pep talk via Facebook to their loved ones.
Directing and Editing “Conclave”; Insights From Edward Berger and Nick Emerson
It’s been a bruising election year but this time we’re referring to a ballot box struggle that’s more adult than the one you’d typically first think of in 2024. Rather, on the industry awards front, the election being cited is that of the Pope which takes front and center stage in director Edward Berger’s Conclave (Focus Features), based on the 2016 novel of the same title by Robert Harris. Adapted by screenwriter Peter Straugham, Conclave stars Ralph Fiennes as the cardinal leading the conclave that has convened to select the next Pope. While part political thriller, full of backstabbing and behind-closed-door machinations, Conclave also registers as a thoughtful adult drama dealing with themes such as a crisis of faith, weighing the greater good, and engaging in a struggle that’s as much about spirituality as the attainment of power.
Conclave is Berger’s first feature after his heralded All Quiet on the Western Front, winner of four Oscars in 2023, including for Best International Feature Film. And while Conclave would on the surface seem to be quite a departure from that World War I drama, there’s a shared bond of humanity which courses through both films.
For Berger, the heightened awareness of humanity hit home for him by virtue of where he was--in Rome, primarily at the famed Cinecittà studio--to shoot Conclave, sans any involvement from the Vatican. He recalled waking up in Rome to “soak up” the city. While having his morning espresso, Berger recollected looking out a window and seeing a priest walking about with a cigarette in his mouth, a nun having a cup of coffee, an archbishop carrying a briefcase. It dawned on Berger that these were just people going to... Read More