The Call goes out in late March. That’s when the film of that title will premiere; it features John Malkovich and Naomi Campbell, and was directed by Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, King Arthur). The trailer depicts a gothic thriller: an epic battle between good–Malkovich as a priest–and evil–Naomi Campbell, as what appears to be a fallen angel. The trailer’s tag for the film: “A tale of power. A tale of control.”
The latest Hollywood blockbuster? Not exactly. The Call is the debut film of a new branding effort for Pirelli Tires that will be available at www.pirellifilms.com. Agency Leo Burnett Italy, which has offices in Rome, Milan and Turin, created the film. Fuqua directed the project via bicoastal Anonymous Content, his spotmaking home, and Movie Magic, Milan. The film’s tag actually alludes to the longstanding branding position for the tiremaker: power is nothing without control.
The new online channel, which will be promoted in a multimedia campaign, will offer the tire maker “a strategic platform for brand communications, and not just for the product,” relates Nicola Novellone, the COO for Leo Burnett Italy, and one of the architects of the branded entertainment project. “We told the client, ‘you should consider the Internet as a way to improve your brand image, and really offer entertainment [to consumers], based on your position–power is nothing without control.'”
Novellone relates that the model for Pirelli Films is the Pirelli Calendar, an art piece produced each year. Only 20,000 are printed and distributed to VIPs and influential people globally. The 2006 effort was shot by photographers Mert Alas and Marcus Piggot, and features the likes of Jennifer Lopez, Gisele Bundchen, Guinevere Van Seenus, Kate Moss, Karen Elson, and Natalia Vodianova. The calendar, which has been in existence for 40 years, is a cult favorite. “The idea [behind the films] is exactly the same,” says Novellone, who relates that one film will be released each year.
Aside from the brief teaser, details are scarce on the film’s content. “The story is a gothic thriller,” relates Sergio Rodriguez, executive creative director at the agency, who wrote the film along with Stefano Volpi. Rodriguez relates that the team cast Malkovich as the good axis of the epic showdown in part to cast against type–in much of his feature work, the actor has played the bad guy. Rodriguez jokes that Campbell’s role was “tailor-made” for her, given her reputation for temper tantrums and outsized behavior.
As for the selection of Fuqua, the creative notes, “he is for me one of the most talented directors in the new Hollywood generation. … I read his treatment, and was very inspired. Antoine is very good in directing actors–he does a lot of pre-production. Every single line was rehearsed a thousand times, and we worked a lot with John Malkovich as well in writing the lines.” The film was shot over the course of seven nights in Rome’s Santo Spirito hospital, and in an old industrial warehouse.
Novellone relates that a large, multimedia campaign advertising the film and its Web site will launch next month as part of a major promotional push. He notes that even prior to the announcement of Malkovich and Campbell as the stars of The Call, the Pirelli Films Web site was getting a lot of hits.
Already, the stage is being set for next year’s offering, though the exact genre has yet to be selected. Like the initial offering, it will have as its theme power is nothing without control. Says Novellone: “We are working with a lot of scriptwriters and copywriters worldwide to find the right feel and the right script.”
Apple and Google Face UK Investigation Into Mobile Browser Dominance
Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers, a British watchdog said Friday in a report that recommends they face an investigation under new U.K. digital rules taking effect next year.
The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker's tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. Apple does this by restricting progressive web apps, which don't need to be downloaded from an app store and aren't subject to app store commissions, the report said.
"This technology is not able to fully take off on iOS devices," the watchdog said in a provisional report on its investigation into mobile browsers that it opened after an initial study concluded that Apple and Google effectively have a chokehold on "mobile ecosystems."
The CMA's report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers "the clearest or easiest option."
And it said that the a revenue-sharing deal between the two U.S. Big Tech companies "significantly reduces their financial incentives" to compete in mobile browsers on Apple's iOS operating system for iPhones.
Both companies said they will "engage constructively" with the CMA.
Apple said it disagreed with the findings and said it was concerned that the recommendations would undermine user privacy and security.
Google said the openness of its Android mobile operating system "has helped to expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps" and that it's "committed to open platforms that empower consumers."
It's the latest move by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to crack down on the... Read More