PINBALL WIZARDA young man walks out of a corner market with his purchase, a can of Pepsi, in hand. He pops it open and then suddenly a huge boulder-sized Pepsi logo ball is seen careening towards him. It runs him over, picking him up as a passenger as he bounces all about through the streets of San Francisco. Indeed he’s become at one with this pinball as the wild ride has him initially going down S.F.’s famed winding crooked Lombard Street. Each time it hits the sidewalk “bumper,” the Pepsi ball with guy aboard bounces about in pinball machine fashion.
He and the ball wind up being propelled throughout the city, at one point kept “alive” by “flipper”-like parking lot gates, deflecting off a police car, hitting the Coit Tower, bouncing off of cable cars and various other tourist attractions along the way. We see the cityscape–highlighted by the Transamerica building–illuminated by flashing lights like a pinball machine. The ball stops briefly atop a manhole which then explodes, sending him skyward. He lands for more hyper speed adventure, which includes being hit by an underground BART train which knocks him eventually into a stadium, at which point he is mercifully cast off the pinball. The stadium’s electronic billboard lights up with a Pepsi logo and tally–and the ominous message that he’s earned an extra ball. Sure enough, another ball appears and is about to whisk him away as the fun spot ends with the logo–now on the Pepsi can–accompanied by the slogan, “More happy.”
This :60 was directed by Traktor via bicoastal/international Partizan for BBDO New York. The BBDO ensemble included chief creative officers David Lubars and Bill Bruce, exec creative director Don Schneider, creative director/copywriter Brad Roseberry, creative director/art director John Leu, executive producer Amy Wertheimer and executive music producer Loren Parkins. Matt Libatique was the DP. Method, Santa Monica, handled visual effects. Paul Martinez of bicoastal Lost Planet edited the spot.
THE ONEDave Laden of San Francisco boutique Teak recently saw his film The One, which he wrote and directed, take best short film honors at the San Francisco Independent Film Festival. The short chronicles the bond that forms between a man and a girl he just met, showing us how their relationship evolves–and doesn’t evolve–over time.
PEOPLE IN THE NEWSAric Ackerman has been named CEO of The L.A. Studios, Inc., parent company of Southern California’s audio post houses L.A. Studios, Margarita Mix, Hollywood, and Margarita Mix de Santa Monica. Ackerman, formerly COO for @radical.media, succeeds Jesse Meli in The L.A. Studios post. Meli continues with the company as president emeritus, consulting on business development opportunities….Frank Devlin has been named head of production at New York-based Version2. The move marks his return to the company as he earlier served as executive producer of its visual effects/motion design division (formerly Liquid Light). He most recently was exec producer at New York music/sound design house Tonal and then worked at Mass Market, New York, on assorted projects…..Tabletop director/cameraman Tom Bracone has joined Harpoon Pictures, the New York production house headed by president/executive producer Chester Mayer and exec producer Jose Alvarez….
