The opening close-up focuses on a man’s Adam’s Apple in profile. But that jutting piece of anatomy starts to descend. In a longer shot, a frontal view of the young guy shows him seated at a kitchen table: His head falls forward, landing with a plop into a bowl of cereal and milk.
Next we see, presumably, the same sleepy fellow laid out, face down, on his front walk. He’s holding a leash; the small dog at the other end has given up on getting a much-needed walk—though you could almost picture Fido earlier tugging at the leash, trying unsuccessfully to wake his master. The lawn sprinkler comes on, dousing but not rousing the man.
In the next scene, somehow our dozing protagonist has gotten into the driver’s seat of a car. Talk about being asleep at the wheel—literally. The automobile aimlessly backs out of a driveway, only to be stopped by the facing street curb. A pedestrian looks on in amazement.
His earlier attempt at breakfast having proved unsatisfying, our young Rip Van Winkle is now literally in the midst of another meal, his face resting in a gooey cheese pizza.
Next we find the man at what appears to be a glassed-in movie theater ticket booth, his face pressed up against it. The booth is what’s holding him up—as his face slides off the glass, he falls to the floor.
A super against a green background then reads, "Overcoming narcolepsy since 1964."
We cut to a scene where, amazingly, now the man is fully awake. He’s seated in a darkened movie theater, focused and alert. Though we don’t see what’s dancing across the cinema screen, clearly whatever it is has captivated him—his eyes are wide open.
A second super against a green background identifies the apparent cure for narcolepsy: "The Chicago International Film Festival," and displays its dates (10/4-10/18), a phone number and the logos of sponsors Showtime and AT&T Broadband.
A concluding super, with a film-clip logo, simply states, "For the love of film."
Titled "So Tired," the spot is part of a package marking the directorial debut of actress Julia Ormond, who recently came aboard Santa Monica-based Independent Media for exclusive representation as a spot helmer (SHOOT, 9/7, p. 1). Susanne Preissler, founder of production company Independent Media, served as executive producer of the two-spot Chicago Film Festival campaign, which also consists of "Poodle."
Ormond—whose credits as an actress include such feature films as Legends of the Fall, Sabrina, Smilla’s Sense of Snow and The Prime Gig—described the directing experience on the Chicago Film Festival spots as gratifying. She cited a positive collaborative relationship with the DDB creative team, noted that DP Rodrigo Prieto was "generous and giving," and acknowledged Preissler’s ongoing support and encouragement. "The entire process—preparation and storyboarding scenes, dealing with the agency, working with the crew—whetted my appetite even more for directing," related Ormond.
The DDB Chicago ensemble consisted of chief creative officer Bob Scarpelli, group creative director Paul Brourman, creative director John Lindsey, art director Mark Westman, copywriter Chuck Rachford and producer Kevin James.
The two :30s were edited by Carlos Lowenstein of Cutters, Chicago. Online editor was Shane Walker of SOL designfx, Chicago. Mike Pethel of Company 3, Santa Monica, was the colorist. Audio mixer was Mark Devos of SOL designfx.
Sam Retzer and Kelly Fuller of bicoastal tomandandy served as music composer and producer, respectively.
