The hiring of creative director Geoff McGann (see story in this week’s News section) underscores the growth and new found independence at Public Interest as it has evolved over the past several months. For the first seven-and-a-half years of its existence, the shop was headquartered on the Santa Monica premises of bicoastal/international @radical.media, which helped nurture the operation. But in early 2006, Public Interest, which is dedicated to producing public service advertising and messaging for social change, established its own separate Santa Monica quarters, opened an office in Washington, D.C., and has added to its creative resources.
Indeed since its inception in 1998, Public Interest has increased from a four-person staff to a collective of more than 30, with most of those positions being in creative capacities. “We’ve evolved from being a small hybrid production company/ad shop and moved much closer to being a standalone nonprofit advertising agency,” said Public Interest’s executive creative director Michael Franzini. This evolution, he explained, made it a natural progression for Public Interest to go out on its own, though it continues to collaborate with @radical on projects. “Our becoming a full-fledged ad agency was another factor that went into the decision to separate ourselves from any [production] company,” added Franzini.
While Franzini and McGann each figure to occasionally direct Public Interest projects, the agency will look to outside helmers frequently. A case in point is Public Interest’s soon-to-be-released follow-up campaign for the Stand Up program (designed to address the escalating dropout rate among high school students) on behalf of The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Now the Eli Broad Foundation has gotten involved in the Stand-Up education initiative, with Public Interest creating three new spots, one directed by Franzini and two by Vance Malone of bicoastal/international Hungry Man.
Furthermore, Public Interest is open to partnering with other agencies. For example it is teaming with Droga5, New York, on an Allstate Foundation campaign designed to promote teen driving safety.
Public Interest made a major splash this year with its “Born Different” campaign directed by @radical’s Brett Froomer for The Gill Foundation. Created to raise attention in the politically conservative bastion of Colorado Springs, particularly among those who don’t normally give gay rights much thought, the spots tell the story of an adorable puppy named Norman who just happens to moo instead of bark. In the introductory ads, there’s no mention of the gay issue–just the fact that Norman is different, with traffic being driven to the Web site borndifferent.org. The spots show Norman being ostracized for mooing, even though he can’t help it. The campaign created a buzz in Colorado, sparking dialogue on whether or not people are born gay. “It’s been a most gratifying campaign,” said Franzini.
House Calls Via TV and Streamers: A Rundown of The Season’s Doctor Dramas
No matter your ailment, there are plenty of TV doctors waiting to treat you right now on a selection of channels and streamers.
Whether it's Noah Wyle putting on his stethoscope for the first time since "ER," Morris Chestnut graduating to head doctor, Molly Parker making her debut in scrubs or Joshua Jackson trading death for life on a luxury cruise, new American hospital dramas have something for everyone.
There's also an outsider trying to make a difference in "Berlin ER," as Haley Louise Jones plays the new boss of a struggling German hospital's emergency department. The show's doors slide open to patients Wednesday on Apple TV+.
These shows all contain the DNA of classic hospital dramas โ and this guide will help you get the TV treatment you need.
"Berlin ER"
Dr. Suzanna "Zanna" Parker has been sent to run the Krank, which is only just being held together by hardened โ and authority-resistant โ medical staff and supplies from a sex shop. The result is an unflinching drama set in an underfunded, underappreciated and understaffed emergency department, where the staff is as traumatized as the patients, but hide it much better.
From former real-life ER doc Samuel Jefferson and also starring Slavko Popadiฤ, ลafak ลengรผl, Aram Tafreshian and Samirah Breuer, the German-language show is not for the faint of heart.
Jones says she eventually got used to the blood and gore on the set.
"It's gruesome in the beginning, highly unnerving. And then at some point, it's just the most normal thing in the world," she explains. "That's flesh. That's the rest of someone's leg, you know, let's just move on and have coffee or whatever."
As it's set in the German clubbing capital, the whole city... Read More