As a super sets the stage, informing us that it is “November 1st, ” we see a man atop a ladder. He’s taking down Halloween decorations that are hanging off the roof of his house. He reaches to pluck one of the miniature skulls from a long row of such spooky decors, but in the process loses his footing and the ladder falls to the ground, leaving him hanging precariously. Luckily a young boy named Bobby witnesses the mishap.
The adult screams out for help. “Bobby, I’m a little stuck here buddy.”
As Bobby runs off, the man sounds relieved. “That’s it,” he says. “Go get your dad.”
But instead Bobby comes back with a large group of kids in the neighborhood who look up at the man, see his plight and do absolutely nothing.
“Bobby, where’s your dad?” asks the dangling man with trepidation in his voice.
The kids continue to stare at him.
“Won’t somebody help me?” yells the pleading, now panic-stricken guy.
A message then appears on screen which explains the kids’ inaction. It simply reads, “Next Halloween, give out the good stuff.”
It seems the trick-or-treating kids from the night before remember that the man whose fingernails are now embedded in his rooftop chose to hand out some pretty chintzy candy on Oct. 31. The spot ends with the appearance of a Snickers bar. If the man lives to learn his lesson, he will undoubtedly remember that he better be passing out Snickers treats next year.
This darkly comedic spec spot was directed by David Jellison of Santa Monica-based TWC. The ad was conceived by art director Dave Sakamoto and copywriter Heather Stiteler. The latter is a freelancer, while Sakamoto is at Merkley+Partners, New York. They did this spec piece independent of their day jobs, marking a reunion in that they were partnered as a creative team early in their careers at GSD+M, Austin, Texas.
“I started out as a director doing darker humor, dating back to when the dot-com ad business was booming in the late 1990s,” related Jellison, citing his commercials for fogdog.com, among others. “Back then, the Internet companies were simply interested in getting noticed and having their names remembered. They were aggressively funny, selling an idea and an attitude.”
But when the dot-com bubble burst, that brand of humor fell out of favor with Jellison garnering assignments calling for tamer, more traditional “straight-ahead” comedy. “Now, though,” said the director, “dark comedy has made a comeback and my new reel didn’t reflect what I had done years ago. So I decided to do some spec work so that I could return to my roots and show that I can handle darker humor.”
In that pursuit, he sought out Stiteler and Sakamoto, who came up with a dozen concepts. The day-after-Halloween, trick-or-treaters concept “jumped off the page at me,” said the director. “It made me remember Halloween when I was a kid. As trick or treaters you’d always hear about the house that was passing out the full-size candy bars. You made it a point to check out that house. On the flip side, the house that was giving out popcorn in a plastic bag wasn’t worth going to.”
Jellison noted that the Snickers spec piece also appealed to him because it is in line with the client’s real-world approach of doing aggressively fun advertising. “So many spec spots look like spec spots because they are totally different from what the advertiser has actually done,” observed Jellison. “They’re simply outside what has been the client’s campaign and strategy. That’s another reason I liked this work because it was true to the spirit of Snickers advertising.” In that regard, he hopes that the spec work might see the light of day on Snickers’ Web site as plans call for the spot to be pitched to the client.
John Mullins was line producer on “November 1st.” The spot was shot on location at a house in Los Angeles’ Adams District by DP Sean O’Dey.
Editor was Shira Ankori of Red Car, Santa Monica. Ankori also served as audio post mixer. Visual effects artisan on the job was Red Car’s Chris Homel.
Principal actor was Dan Warner.
Review: Director Jon M. Chu’s “Wicked”
It's the ultimate celebrity redemption tour, two decades in the making. In the annals of pop culture, few characters have undergone an image makeover quite like the Wicked Witch of the West.
Oh, she may have been vengeful and scary in "The Wizard of Oz." But something changed — like, REALLY changed — on the way from the yellow brick road to the Great White Way. Since 2003, crowds have packed nightly into "Wicked" at Broadway's Gershwin Theatre to cheer as the green-skinned, misunderstood Elphaba rises up on her broomstick to belt "Defying Gravity," that enduring girl-power anthem.
How many people have seen "Wicked"? Rudimentary math suggests more than 15 million on Broadway alone. And now we have "Wicked" the movie, director Jon M. Chu's lavish, faithful, impeccably crafted (and nearly three-hour) ode to this origin story of Elphaba and her (eventual) bestie — Glinda, the very good and very blonde. Welcome to Hollywood, ladies.
Before we get to what this movie does well (Those big numbers! Those costumes!), just a couple thornier issues to ponder. Will this "Wicked," powered by a soulful Cynthia Erivo (owner of one of the best singing voices on the planet) and a sprightly, comedic, hair-tossing Ariana Grande, turn even musical theater haters into lovers?
Tricky question. Some people just don't buy into the musical thing, and they should be allowed to live freely amongst us. But if people breaking into song delights rather than flummoxes you, if elaborate dance numbers in village squares and fantastical nightclubs and emerald-hued cities make perfect sense to you, and especially if you already love "Wicked," well then, you will likely love this film. If it feels like they made the best "Wicked" movie money could buy — well, it's... Read More