Oreo cookies make their way from the palate to the palette in this black-and-white spec spot, which opens on a female artist eyeing a blank canvas. You can see her contemplating what to create. Then she finds her spark of inspiration.
The woman appears to be sketching with charcoal, making sweeping motions across the canvas, tempered with a touch of white. Gradually, it becomes clear that she’s using atypical artist tools-Oreos, with the charcoal black coming from the cookie, the white from the cream filling. Finally, she completes the project, having virtually exhausted her art supplies, but for one last Oreo which she eats. The camera then reveals that by rubbing the cookies against the white backdrop, she’s sketched her own piece de resistance: a giant Oreo. A supered tagline reads: "The Art of Black and White."
The :30 was directed, produced and co-written by Andrew George, an aspiring spot/music video director. George wrapped this and three other spec spots recently, in hopes that the reel will help him land representation at a production house. George has been directing live theater productions since graduating with an M.F.A. from the Pasadena-based Art Center College of Design in’97.
George won a Kodak Vision Award for his ’97 short film The Blue Hotel. With the Vision honor, he also received a supply of 16mm film, which he put in storage and eventually used for the spec Oreo piece on location in Washington, D.C. George went to D.C. to enlist the services of Allisoun Meehan, the artist featured in the spec ad. George and Meehan wrote the commercial, and Meehan sketched the larger-than-life cookie using 43 Oreos.
"The Art of Black and White" was shot by DP Dennis Boni. Film processing was done at Bono Labs in Arlington, Va. Dailies were transferred at Henninger Capitol in Washington, D.C. The spot was edited by Melissa Shea at Inside/Out, Santa Monica. Colorist was Greg Kibler at HD West, Santa Monica.
Ben Cook of Digital Sound and Picture, Los Angeles, served as the sound designer. The music was a recording of "When Day is Done," performed by guitarist Django Reinhardt.
-Millie Takaki
Endeavor Group Sells Professional Bull Riders, On Location and IMG To Parent of WWE and UFC
The parent company of WWE and UFC is buying Professional Bull Riders, On Location, and IMG from Endeavor Group in an all-stock deal valued at $3.25 billion.
The deal is part of Endeavor's efforts to shed some of its assets as it looks to be taken private in a proposed transaction with private equity firm Silver Lake, which was announced in April. Ariel Emanuel, who serves as CEO of Endeavor, is also executive chair and CEO of TKO.
Professional Bull Riders is a bull riding league that has more than 200 annual live events, approximately 1.25 million fans, and reaches more than 285 million households in more than 65 territories. On Location is live event company for more than 1,200 sporting events, such as the Super Bowl, Ryder Cup and NCAA Final Four. IMG is a distributor and producer of sports content, packages and sells media rights and brand partnerships, and provides consulting, digital services and event management to clients such as the National Football League and National Hockey League.
Parent company TKO Group said Thursday that the acquisition from Endeavor Group will complement its existing businesses as well as broaden its reach in the premium sports market.
"PBR, On Location, and IMG are industry-leading assets that meaningfully enhance TKO's portfolio and strengthen our position in premium sports globally," TKO Chief Operating Officer Mark Shapiro said in a statement. "Within TKO, they will help power the growth of our revenue streams and position us to capture even more upside from some of the most attractive parts of our sports ecosystem: media rights, live events, ticket sales, premium experiences, brand partnerships, and site fees."
As part of the deal, Endeavor will receive about 26.14 million common units of TKO... Read More