This starts out like a cliche holiday commercial as a husband walks his wife, her eyes closed, out from their house to the garage. A light snow is falling as the gent clicks the remote control he’s holding to open the garage door. At the same time, his spouse opens her eyes to see her present. The camera then reveals not a bow-topped luxury car, but a bow-topped sheep.
Surprisingly the woman is thrilled with the gift of livestock as a voiceover instructs us to “Give a gift that matters,” at which point we see an animated box open with descriptions of gifts emerging such as sheep for impoverished farmers, tutoring deaf children, building a shelter or clearing landmines.
An end tag carries the website address changingthepresent.org.
Jeff Cooney of Moon, New York, directed this and another similarly themed TV/web spot for Changing The Present, a U.S. nonprofit philanthropic organization that offers a variety of gifts that can do good for those in need. Via contributions to assorted causes–often at a relatively modest cost–gift givers can make the world a better place, one holiday present at a time.
Creating the pro bono spots was New York agency StrawberryFrog with an ensemble that included creative director Scott Goodson, writer Mike Folino, art director Karl Haddad and exec producer Rob Farber.
George Weiser was the DP. John Posimato and Tom Mooney served as executive producers for Moon.
Editor was Dustin Stephens of PS260, New York.
Disney Pledges $15 million In L.A. Fire Aid As More Celebs Learn They’ve Lost Their Homes
The Pacific Palisades wildfires torched the home of "This Is Us" star Milo Ventimiglia, perhaps most poignantly destroying the father-to-be's newly installed crib.
CBS cameras caught the actor walking through his charred house for the first time, standing in what was once his kitchen and looking at a neighborhood in ruin. "Your heart just breaks."
He and his pregnant wife, Jarah Mariano, evacuated Tuesday with their dog and they watched on security cameras as the flames ripped through the house, destroying everything, including a new crib.
"There's a kind of shock moment where you're going, 'Oh, this is real. This is happening.' What good is it to continue watching?' And then at a certain point we just turned it off, like 'What good is it to continue watching?'"
Firefighters sought to make gains Friday during a respite in the heavy winds that fanned the flames as numerous groups pledged aid to help victims and rebuild, including a $15 million donation pledge from the Walt Disney Co.
More stars learn their homes are gone
While seeing the remains of his home, Ventimiglia was struck by a connection to his "This Is Us" character, Jack Pearson, who died after inhaling smoke in a house fire. "It's not lost on me life imitating art."
Mandy Moore, who played Ventimiglia's wife on "This Is Us," nearly lost her home in the Eaton fire, which scorched large areas of the Altadena neighborhood. She said Thursday that part of her house is standing but is unlivable, and her husband lost his music studio and all his instruments.
Mel Gibson's home is "completely gone," his publicist Alan Nierob confirmed Friday. The Oscar winner revealed the loss of his home earlier Friday while appearing on Joe Rogan's... Read More