A woman deep in slumber hears her alarm clock and sits up, revealing that she’s a winged fairy. She goes through the same rituals we wingless folks endure in the morning, but with a slightly different twist–showering but in fairy dust, making breakfast, feeding her dog who is also winged, getting dressed but instantaneously with the aid of a magic wand, and then stepping out for work.
She meets her winged colleagues and they go off on their commute, which consists of being picked up by two giants who gently blow the fairies into the wind and on their way.
An on-screen message then puts what we’ve seen into context. It reads, “This is how magical I feel when I offer my customers an affordable mobile plan.”
The quote is attributed to a woman in customer service for French carrier Bouygues Telecom.
Baker Smith of harvest directed this spot and two others in the campaign for Bouygues. Harvest and Paris-based Wanda Productions teamed to produce the job for DDB Paris.
Chris Soos served as DP. Editor was Herve Schneid whose film credits include Amelie and City of Lost Children. VFX house was BUF, Paris.
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