This slice of apartment life seems like a voyeur’s fantasy come true. A woman turns on her stereo and then begins to draw a bath. In the adjacent apartment, a young man swings into action upon hearing the music and the sound of running water.
As the woman unbuttons her blouse and prepares to luxuriate in the tub, the man approaches the wall dividing his apartment from hers. He carefully removes a framed picture from their shared wall, revealing a small peephole that offers a see-all view of his neighbor.
The unsuspecting woman continues about her business. Then the man provides the spot’s punch line. Instead of his eye, the man places his ear against the hole in the wall so that he can better hear the music. The tagline then fills the screen: "Cambridge SoundWorks. Hear it. Live it."
The :30 for the audio systems manufacturer was conceived by a creative team at Boston agency Pagano Schenck & Kay: creative director Woody Kay, copywriter Tim Cawley and art director Kevin Daley. Jeannie Priest served as agency producer.
The spot was directed by Phil Morrison of bicoastal Epoch Films. Jerry Solomon and Doug Halbert served as executive producer and line producer, respectively. DP was Harris Savides. Production designer was Dave Doernberg.
"Neighbors" was edited by Steve Hamilton of Mad Mad Judy, New York. Chris Ryan of Nice Shoes, New York, was the colorist. Audio mixer was Tom Efinger of Dig It Audio, New York.
The music heard playing in the apartment was the aptly titled "Opportune Moment," performed by The Sheila Divine.
-Millie Takaki
Endeavor Group Sells Professional Bull Riders, On Location and IMG To Parent of WWE and UFC
The parent company of WWE and UFC is buying Professional Bull Riders, On Location, and IMG from Endeavor Group in an all-stock deal valued at $3.25 billion.
The deal is part of Endeavor's efforts to shed some of its assets as it looks to be taken private in a proposed transaction with private equity firm Silver Lake, which was announced in April. Ariel Emanuel, who serves as CEO of Endeavor, is also executive chair and CEO of TKO.
Professional Bull Riders is a bull riding league that has more than 200 annual live events, approximately 1.25 million fans, and reaches more than 285 million households in more than 65 territories. On Location is live event company for more than 1,200 sporting events, such as the Super Bowl, Ryder Cup and NCAA Final Four. IMG is a distributor and producer of sports content, packages and sells media rights and brand partnerships, and provides consulting, digital services and event management to clients such as the National Football League and National Hockey League.
Parent company TKO Group said Thursday that the acquisition from Endeavor Group will complement its existing businesses as well as broaden its reach in the premium sports market.
"PBR, On Location, and IMG are industry-leading assets that meaningfully enhance TKO's portfolio and strengthen our position in premium sports globally," TKO Chief Operating Officer Mark Shapiro said in a statement. "Within TKO, they will help power the growth of our revenue streams and position us to capture even more upside from some of the most attractive parts of our sports ecosystem: media rights, live events, ticket sales, premium experiences, brand partnerships, and site fees."
As part of the deal, Endeavor will receive about 26.14 million common units of TKO... Read More