To promote its Bud Select brand, Anheuser Busch wanted to hit a nerve with beer drinkers in their late 20s and early 30s who are experiencing that oh so sweet time in life–they have a real job, disposable income and are not necessarily married, so they can go out and not have to worry about obligations. The company tapped DDB Chicago to create a Web-based animated series called “Crowntown” (www.crowntown.tv) featuring five friends who get into situations this age group can relate to. Instead of using real people, stick figure-like characters were derived from the five main spikes of the Bud Select logo and New York-based animation company PSYOP/Blacklist brought them to life.
“We wanted to figure out a way to make it so that no other beer could do what we were trying to do,” said Don Pogany, group creative director at DDB, adding that they also tried to consider Bud Select within the family of its two brethren–Budweiser and Bud Light.
“We wanted to create a little separation and distinction and make Bud Select a little bit more special. The same drinker might enjoy all three brands but at different times. Our way of looking at Bud Select was going from the notion of ‘hanging out’ to ‘going out.'”
The team had to be careful not to speak down to people or seem aloof. “We tried to develop situations that they might get into that would be a little more upscale like a Saturday night at a club, but still have some humor and realness,” said Pogany.
Take the “Bathroom” episode for example. Who couldn’t relate to the awkwardness that can come from being assisted by a bathroom attendant at a nightclub? Do you tip every time you go in the bathroom, and how much do you tip? In “Elevator,” Boone, one of the characters, gets stuck in an elevator with a beautiful redhead. The situation is less than ideal because he has an upset stomach and needs to use the restroom. He text messages his friends that if he doesn’t get out in 10 minutes, the unthinkable is going to happen. The irony is they are at the grocery store in the toilet paper aisle when they get his text.
Boone’s friends include Tee, Dutch, Jennie and Larry. Each has a distinct personality and background that exemplifies their life in Crowntown. The website also features mini profiles of each character and a map of Crowntown highlighting the spots where they spend most of their time, like the Flop Bar and Mixolydian, the music studio where a few of them work.
Pogany chose PSYOP/Blacklist to bring the characters to life because he liked how they maintained the character of the brushstrokes in the original crown logo. “They really kept it minimalist. You’ll see a key prop here and there, like the awning on the club, or get the sense of them being in the hot tub, but we wanted to be able to do that through negative space wherever we could,” he said.
To give animation director Pistachios a visual reference that might trigger some ideas, Pogany said they actually went to a stage and filmed actors performing the material. New episodes are currently in development. He said the next “season” will delve deeper into the back stories of the characters. The campaign is being promoted on YouTube and in banner ads.
Director Dag Johan Haugerud’s “Dreams (Sex Love)” Wins Top Prize At The Berlin Film Festival
A Norwegian film about love, desire and self-discovery won top honors at the 75th Berlin International Film Festival on Saturday.
A jury headed by American director Todd Haynes awarded the Golden Bear trophy to "Dreams (Sex Love)" by director Dag Johan Haugerud.
Haynes called it a "meditation on love" that "cuts you to the quick with its keen intelligence."
The film focuses on a teenager played by Ella Øverbyer, infatuated with her female French teacher, and the reactions of her mother and grandmother when they discover her private writings. It's the third part of a trilogy Haugerud has completed in the past year. "Sex" premiered at Berlin in 2024, and "Love" was screened at the 2024 Venice Film Festival.
The runner-up Silver Bear prize went to Brazilian director Gabriel Mascaro's dystopian drama "The Blue Trail." Argentine director Ivan Fund's rural saga "The Message" won the third-place Jury Prize.
The best director prize went to Huo Meng for "Living the Land," set in fast-changing 1990s China.
Rose Byrne was named best performer for her role as an overwhelmed mother in the Mary Bronstein-directed "If I Had Legs, I'd Kick You." Andrew Scott won the supporting performer trophy for playing composer Richard Rodgers in Richard Linklater's "Blue Moon."
The climax of the festival known as the Berlinale came on the eve of Germany's parliamentary elections after a campaign dominated by migration and the economy.
The national election is being held seven months early, after Chancellor Olaf Scholz's governing coalition collapsed in a dispute about how to revitalize the country's economy.
Efforts to curb migration have emerged as a central issue in the campaign — along with the question of how to handle the... Read More