This spot spoofs hair restoration commercials, comparing the embarrassment of balding to that of having a lawn with thin, patchy grass.
We open on a guy who is clearly frustrated, admitting that he suffers from thinning grass just like his father and grandfather. He tried everything, including watering more, but to no avail.
Finally he tried Scotts Canada’s Turf Builder Lawn Fertilizer, transforming his patchy lawn into one boasting thick, luxuriant grass, as before and after pictures attest. And because of Turf Builder’s absorbent qualities, he was able to fill out his lawn using less water.
His happy wife is laid out on the front lawn, running her hands through the thick grass.
“Water Smart” is one of three spots in the campaign directed by Craig Brownrigg of Radke Film Group, Toronto, for agency zig, Toronto.
The zig creative team included executive creative director Martin Beauvais, art director Allan Mah, copywriter Jason Buback, team leader Natalie Calderon and producer Dena Thompson.
Scott Mackenzie exec produced for Radke with Kevin Hinds serving as line producer. The DP was Stoeps Langensteiner.
Editor Was Brian Williams of Panic & Bob, Toronto.
Does “Hundreds of Beavers” Reflect A New Path Forward In Cinema?
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