Register

    The Best Work You May Never See: Authentic Films Captures A Slice Of Teen Life – In A Hospital Room

    By SHOOT StaffUpdated:No Comments1574 Views

    By Robert Goldrich

    --

    Hospital advertising isn’t likely to garner creative kudos. Much of it fails to ring true and often seems downright offensive to our intelligence. Even the most well intentioned ad is viewed with skepticism given the sorry state of healthcare for so many who are either uninsured or who find their insurance insufficient in a time of need.
        Yet breaking through these all too real barriers is a campaign for Akron Children’s Hospital directed by Kevin Kerwin of Authentic Films, Cleveland, for agency Marcus Thomas LLC, also in Cleveland. The production house moniker Authentic is most fitting in that this campaign consists of simple real-world video portraits of two teenage patients, Nick and Roxanne, who both have cancer and are undergoing treatment at Akron Children’s Hospital. The commercials have no announcer or logos, just some brief supers conveying certain facts–and tags that either read, “See Nick’s story” or “See Roxanne’s story.” This is followed by a supered invite to “Tell us yours” accompanied by the URL akronchildrens.org/nick or akronchildrens.org/roxanne.
        Nick, who’s 15 years old, is fighting a rare, aggressive cancer that only 400 people a year develop. In this “Best Work” gallery spot titled “Nick/Dr. Hord,” we see Nick in his hospital bed as Dr. Sarah Friebert enters the room. A small super in the corner of the screen identifies her and informs us that this is week 38 of 54 in Nick’s chemo treatment. What makes these slices of life special is that they convey the hope and humor of the young patients–and show us first and foremost that they are just teenagers. However they are teens who happen to be coping with a life-threatening illness.
        Nick says to Dr. Friebert, “I should tell you what I want to do for my last day of chemo. You can’t tell Dr. Hord.”
        The spot cuts away to show us Dr. Jeffrey Hord, another Akron Children’s Hospital specialist, as he visits Nick’s room on a separate occasion.
        We then return to the original scene in which Nick reveals his plans for his final round of chemotherapy treatment. “I want to be able to call Dr. Hord ‘Jeff’ the whole day.”
        Both Nick and Dr. Friebert laugh as a tag invites us to find out more about Nick’s story.
        An earlier video portrait shows Nick playing around with a trumpet, declaring his love for different kinds of music, from that of jazz virtuoso Miles Davis to Jamaican Ska to even swing music. He then talks of his dislike for 1980s music which his parents forced him to listen to. “I compare chemo to ’80s music,” says Nick. “It’s nasty.”
        Like Nick, Roxanne talks directly as the camera peers into her life. There are four TV :30s–two featuring Nick and two centered on Roxanne.

    Brief silence    The campaign brief called for building awareness of the caring and clinical excellence at Akron Children’s Hospital. Neither claim is ever stated in the spots. Nor is there any mention of Akron Children’s Hospital being one of the largest pediatric care providers in Northeast Ohio.
        Instead we just see and hear Nick and Roxanne in moments from their daily lives at the hospital. The URLs lead to additional videos that are similar in spirit and tone. Via the URL, we can also access each patient’s case history.
        Nick and Roxanne are the spokes-patients for the Hematology and Oncology departments in the currently running campaign. Coming expansions for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and for Orthopedics and Sports Medicine, will appear in July and October, respectively.
        The Nick and Roxanne campaign targets women 18–49, who are deemed the primary researchers and decision-makers for their children’s healthcare. It runs on Northeast Ohio broadcast TV, including local and national morning newscasts, Oprah, and Dr. Phil, and on 15 cable networks such as HGTV, Lifetime, and Food Network. Additional supporting media include neighborhood billboards, and geo-targeted Internet banners (rich media and Flash) on websites such as about.com, yahoo.com, parentcenter.com, and parentsconnect.com.
       
    Creative ensemble    The core creative trio at Marcus Thomas consisted of creative director/copywriter Joanne Kim, art director Laura Seidel and producer Nikki Di Franco.
        Director Kerwin’s support team at Authentic Films included executive producer Kate O’Neil, DP Rod Lamborn and 2nd camera operator Jon LaGuardia.
        Mike O’Brien of The Carson Group in Hudson, Ohio, served in the dual role of editor/digital artist.

    Category:The Best Work You May Never See



    Does “Hundreds of Beavers” Reflect A New Path Forward In Cinema?

    Monday, November 25, 2024

    Hard as it may be to believe, changing the future of cinema was not on Mike Cheslik's mind when he was making "Hundreds of Beavers." Cheslik was in the Northwoods of Wisconsin with a crew of four, sometimes six, standing in snow and making his friend, Ryland Tews, fall down funny.

    "When we were shooting, I kept thinking: It would be so stupid if this got mythologized," says Cheslik.

    And yet, "Hundreds of Beavers" has accrued the stuff of, if not quite myth, then certainly lo-fi legend. Cheslik's film, made for just $150,000 and self-distributed in theaters, has managed to gnaw its way into a movie culture largely dominated by big-budget sequels.

    "Hundreds of Beavers" is a wordless black-and-white bonanza of slapstick antics about a stranded 19th century applejack salesman (Tews) at war with a bevy of beavers, all of whom are played by actors in mascot costumes.

    No one would call "Hundreds of Beavers" expensive looking, but it's far more inventive than much of what Hollywood produces. With some 1,500 effects shots Cheslik slaved over on his home computer, he crafted something like the human version of Donald Duck's snowball fight, and a low-budget heir to the waning tradition of Buster Keaton and "Naked Gun."

    At a time when independent filmmaking is more challenged than ever, "Hundreds of Beavers" has, maybe, suggested a new path forward, albeit a particularly beaver-festooned path.

    After no major distributor stepped forward, the filmmakers opted to launch the movie themselves, beginning with carnivalesque roadshow screenings. Since opening in January, "Hundreds of Beavers" has played in at least one theater every week of the year, though never more than 33 at once. (Blockbusters typically play in around 4,000 locations.)... Read More

    MySHOOT Profiles


    Add A Comment