So it’s come to this: The commercialmaking business is so strapped for cash that a group of industry professionals must stage a bake sale to raise enough money to produce a project.
That’s the tongue-firmly-planted-in-cheek premise of this spot that director Brian Belefant of Santa Monica-based Belefant made to promote himself and his shop.
Shot Candid Camera style, the commercial opens on an outdoor shopping mall. Four people are seated behind a table; an amateur-looking hand-painted "Bake Sale" sign hangs in front of it. A passerby queries in disbelief, "A hundred and twenty dollars?" The potential customer, an elderly man, is already satisfying his sweet tooth with an ice cream cone, so he won’t be tempted to overpay for a muffin, donut or cake. A camera pans the table to reveal baked goodies with price tags of $60, $120 and similarly exorbitant sums.
"Well, it’s for a good cause, though," explains a bake salesman.
"What’s the cause?" asks the passerby.
"We’re trying to get a commercial shot with a really good director," replies the baked goods promoter. "And hopefully make television better for people like you."
We cut away from the mall to upbeat music and a brightly colored card, which fills the screen. On it is the question, "How badly do you want to work with Belefant?"
The spot then returns to the bake sale table. The camera captures an actual mall storeowner who casually walks up to ask, "What are you doing here?"
"Bake sale," responds one of the salespeople.
"Did you get permission from somebody?" inquires the storekeeper.
As the bake sale team tries to explain its way out of that quandary, the spot ends with a Belefant company logo.
In an inspired bit of casting, Belefant chose agency creatives, including Deidre McQuaide and Eric Spiegler of FCB in Irvine, Calif., to man the bake sale table. Belefant told SHOOT that McQuaide and Spiegler had a campaign they’d wanted him to direct, but the client hadn’t wanted to commit the necessary funds. "So I suggested we hold a bake sale. Next thing you know, an advertising campaign was born," laughed Belefant, who both helmed and shot "Bake Sale."
The spot was cut by freelance editor Matt Williams. Audio mixer was Bob Lacivita of Intersound, West Hollywood.
