Defining the experience of New York City in 60 seconds may seem like an impossible challenge, but directors Mathew Cullen and Jesus de Francisco of Los Angeles-based Motion Theory rose to the occasion when they were tapped to helm a spot for NYC’s first ever global marketing campaign. The broadcast spot serves as the centerpiece for the international tourism outreach, designed to share the experience of the city and attract 50 million visitors by 2015. The campaign, created by NYC and Company with Bartle Bogle Hegarty, New York, includes television, print, online and outdoor advertising in 10 countries on four continents. The spot will air in Spain, Ireland, France and the United Kingdom, and domestically it will air across the country as part of the city’s partnership with The History Channel and other cable partners. The ad will also air on other channels in Boston and Philadelphia.
“A challenge was that this needed to transcend languages. It needed to be a concept that anybody in any country can understand. It’s hard doing something that transcends language like that because we couldn’t speak in words but through images and ideas,” explained Cullen.
The concept was to reflect as much of the energy and excitement of the New York experience through one family’s journey through the five boroughs. As their journey unfolds, the spot uses live action and animation to bring to life iconic images, including Yankee Stadium, Times Square, Coney Island, the Staten Island Ferry and the Unisphere.
“We wanted to really focus on the live action being very deliberate and refined and representing the beauty that already exists in the city–the real New York–and then use the animation, illustration and visual effects as a way to represent the great things about the city that visitors feel and experience, the things that they can’t directly see–the city’s energy, history, style, influences, music. There’s so much. What New York is is endless,” Cullen said.
“When we were trying to find the appropriate look of the spot, the most important thing at the end of the day was that it reflected and honored the city.”
Before Motion Theory’s visual effects teams got to work bringing some of those iconic images to life, the directors shot for four days throughout the five boroughs.
Cullen said they used film because they wanted to make sure they captured the color and texture of New York.
“Film gave us the more cinematic portrait of New York that we were looking for.”
Taking the A train
To achieve the sound the creative team was looking for, New York-based Search Party was enlisted to identify a song. Search Party opted to present “Take the A Train,” a song that celebrates Harlem and the subway line that takes you there, performed by Ella Fitzgerald, because of its quintessential New York City vibe.
“Ella’s exuberance in the song truly captures the energy and vitality of New York City,” said Search Party’s Music Supervisor, Stephanie Diaz-Matos. “The song is rooted in the rich and distinct musical tradition of jazz that New York City was instrumental in honing.”
To secure this piece of music, Search Party worked with Verve Records offering a trade to remix the ad for their Verve Remix 4 album. Search Party then enlisted Mint Royale, whose recent Sinatra remix, “This Town,” was featured in Oceans 13.
Website gets a facelift On the web, NYC & Company has revamped its website, nycvisit.com, to make a trip to the city more manageable. The enhanced website features an interactive customization tool that lets users create a New York City experience to match their personal interests.
The tool generates hotel, dining, shopping, culture, event and nightlife options–content provided by Time Out New York–for each user based on the results of a seven-question quiz. Users can then select options and save them to a personalized page that features an interactive map.
“This is an important moment for New York City, with the creation of the City’s first true global communications campaign,” said George Fertitta, NYC & Company CEO.
“Our goal was to create a campaign that would show visitors all the vibrancy, joy, energy and excitement that sets New York City apart from other destinations. We believe the multi-layered media elements–particularly the television spot–will create a feeling that will resonate with people worldwide and inspire them to come experience this remarkable city for themselves.”
Getting to shoot some of the city’s remarkable landmarks was an experience de Francisco won’t soon forget. He told SHOOT, “It was rewarding to be shooting in cultural landmarks that are not often portrayed in commercials. Not everyone has a chance to go shoot “Starry Night” at the MOMA. It gives you an incredible perspective of the city.”
Review: Director/Co-Writer Kyle Hausmann-Stokes’ “My Dead Friend Zoe”
Even for a film titled "My Dead Friend Zoe," the opening scenes of Kyle Hausmann-Stokes' movie have a startling rhythm. First, two female American soldiers are riding in a Humvee in Afghanistan 2016 blasting Rihanna's "Umbrella." They are clearly friends, and more concerned with the music coming through loudly than enemy fire. Zoe (Natalie Morales) tells Merit (Sonequa Martin-Green) tells that if they ever set foot in "some dopy group therapy," to please kill her. Cut to years later, they're sitting in a counseling meeting for veterans and Morales' character has a sour look at her face. She turns to her friend: "Did we survive the dumbest war of all time just to sit here all broken and kumbaya and ouchie-my-feelings?" But after this rush of cavalier soldiering and bitter sarcasm comes a sobering moment. Merit blinks her eyes and is instead staring at an empty chair. Zoe isn't there at all. "My Dead Friend Zoe," co-starring Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris, confronts a dark reality of post-combat struggle with as much humor and playfulness as it does trauma and sorrow. It comes from a real place, and you can tell. Hausmann-Stoke is himself a veteran and "My Dead Friend Zoe" is dedicated to a pair of his platoon mates who killed themselves. The opening titles note the film was "inspired by a true story." Audience disinterest has characterized many, though not all, of the films about the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, and the output has pretty much dried up over the years. "My Dead Friend Zoe" feels like it was made with an awareness of that trend and as a rebuke to it. This is an often breezy and funny movie for what, on paper, is a difficult and dark story. But the comic tone of "My Dead Friend Zoe" is, itself, a spirited rejection to not just the heaviness... Read More