By MILLIE TAKAKI
The beauty shot in automotive advertising has become almost cliche. But it takes on a different, refreshingly charming dimension in Shoeshine, a :30 for the Volkswagen Passat out of DDB Needham Worldwide, Dsseldorf. A street-smart youngsterashoeshine kit in handaknows exactly where to position himself for optimum business: On a sidewalk next to a curbside-parked, sleek, black Passat. Pedestrians walk by and admire not only the car but themselves as they see their reflections almost mirrored on the vehicles surface.
Invariably the male pedestrians notice that their shoes pale in comparison to the ebony Passat. They thus see the need to get their shoes shined by the nearby kid entrepreneur.
But unfortunately, even the most savvy businessman is at risk today. A man walks toward the youngster only to veer off to the drivers side of the Passat; he gets into the car and whisks off.
The youngster objects and gives brief chase but to no avail. His opportune business location has been rendered obsolete.
The taleadirected by Anouk Besson of bicoastal/international The Endaplays like a charming foreign film except no subtitles and/or dialogue are needed in this soft sell for the Passat.
Shot on location in Barcelona, Spain, Shoeshine is slated to air only in Germany. The DDB Dsseldorf team included executive creative director Paul Steentjes, creative director Carlos Ferreira and producer Marion Lange.
Bessons support team at The End consisted of executive producers Liz Silver and Luke Thornton, head of production Roger Hunt and producer Nicole Hirsch. In Barcelona, this core was complemented by exec. producer Buiak Helplevent and line producer Paloma Lopez Vazques. The spot was lensed by DP Marco Mazzei.
Shoeshine was edited by Soren Gorth at Image Makers, London. Telecine and online was completed at VTR, also in London.
Music was composed by Walter Werzowa of Musikvergnuegen, Hollywood.
Damon Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr. Explore Generations, Old School vs. New School, In “Poppa’s House”
Boundaries between work and family don't just blur in the new CBS sitcom "Poppa's House" starring father-and-son comedy duo Damon Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr. They shatter.
"It's wonderful to come to work every day and see him and some of his kids and my sister and my brother and nieces and nephews. They all work on this show. They all contribute," says the senior Wayans. "I don't think there are words to express how joyful I am."
Wayans plays the titular Poppa, a curmudgeonly radio DJ who's more than comfortable doing it his way, while Wayans Jr. plays his son, Damon, a budding filmmaker who's stuck in a job he hates.
"My character, Pop, is just an old school guy who's kind of stuck in his ways," says Wayans, who starred in "In Living Color" and "My Wife and Kids."
Pop yearns for the days when a handshake was a binding contract and Michael Jordan didn't complain if he got fouled on the court. Pop laughs at the younger generation's participation trophies.
"It's old school versus new school and them teaching each other lessons from both sides," says Wayans Jr., who played Coach in the Fox sitcom "New Girl."
"They (the characters) bring the best out in each other and they're resistant initially. But then throughout the episode they have revelations and these revelations help them become better people," he adds.
The two have worked together before — dad made an appearance on son's "Happy Endings" and "Happy Together," while son was a writer and guest star on dad's "My Wife and Kids." But this is the first time they have headlined a series together.
The half-hour comedy — premiering Monday and co-starring Essence Atkins and Tetona Jackson — smartly leaves places in the script where father and son can let... Read More