Cupid And Fate Go AWOL
Cupid And Fate Go AWOLMatch.com has kicked off the new year with a major U.K. ad campaign–from New York agency hanft raboy and partners (HRP)–in which Cupid and Fate, as played, respectively, by actors Glenn Hirst and Spencer Jones, constitute a lazy, hapless comedic duo. Instead of connecting two star-crossed lovers, Cupid and Fate shirk their responsibilities, wasting their time on such activities as doing their hair, cavorting at a playground (with Cupid and Fate skateboarding, the former belly down on a slide), and quasi-aerobics while watching television.
The tagline to the multiple TV spots: “Don’t wait for Cupid & Fate. Find love for yourself at Match.com.”
Jason Stockwood, managing director of Match.com International, said, “At Match.com we aim to ‘Make Love Happen’ and yet time and time again we hear singles say they are holding out for that chance meeting with the ‘One.’ That may well happen but our new campaign says you just might need a helping hand to open the door to your perfect match.”
Complementing hanft raboy’s creative efforts were London outfit Monkey Communications with creative communications planning, and M2M which handled the media buying.
Nick Jones–known for his work with comedians Simon Pegg and Mitchell & Web, as well as the 118 118 commercial campaigns–directed the spots via bicoastal/international Partizan. The hanft raboy creative contingent included creative managing partner Doug Raboy, creative director John Tumelty, copywriter Heather English, art director Beth Wetzel, producer Emma Johnston and associate producer Namik Minter.
The main editor on the campaign was Adam Jenkins of Cut+Run, bicoastal and London.
NATAS GAME FOR AUTODESK
Autodesk’s 3ds Max software and Autodesk Maya software for 3D modeling, animation and rendering have won Technology and Engineering Awards from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) in the gaming category of visual digital content creation tools and their impact. Now in its fourth year, this category award recognizes pioneering efforts and breakthroughs in the gaming world. Maya and 3ds received the honors earlier this month at the 59th annual Technology and Engineering Awards ceremony held in Las Vegas.
PEOPLE IN THE NEWS
Mike Levy has been upped from VP of long form post services to executive VP at The Post Group, Hollywood. In his new capacity Levy will supervise business development and marketing for The Post Group and its sister companies known collectively as the Post Start2Finish family of companies: iO Film, Runway Edit, Novastar Sound, and Lightning Media. Levy brings more than 25 years of postproduction experience to the role, including previous stints as VP/general manager at Matchframe Video and The Post Group….The Martin Agency, Richmond, Va., has promoted producer Kerry Berkbigler Ayers from producer to senior producer/production supervisor, and Amy Trenz from broadcast business manager to senior business manager. Ayers joined the ad agency in April 2001 and works in the broadcast department on the Wal-Mart account. Trenz has been with The Martin Agency for nearly five years….
First-Time Feature Directors Make Major Splash At AFI Fest, Generate Oscar Buzz
Two first-time feature directors who are generating Oscar buzz this awards season were front and center this past weekend at AFI Fest in Hollywood. Rachel Morrison, who made history as the first woman nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar---on the strength of Mudbound in 2018--brought her feature directorial debut, The Fire Inside (Amazon MGM Studios), to the festival on Sunday (10/27), and shared insights into the film during a conversation session immediately following the screening. This came a day after William Goldenberg, an Oscar-winning editor for Argo in 2013, had his initial foray into feature directing, Unstoppable (Amazon MGM Studios), showcased at the AFI proceedings. He too spoke after the screening during a panel discussion. The Fire Inside--which made its world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival--tells the story of Claressa “T-Rex” Shields (portrayed by Ryan Destiny), a Black boxer from Flint, Mich., who trained to become the first woman in U.S. history to win an Olympic Gold Medal in the sport. She achieved this feat--with the help of coach Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry)--only to find that her victory at the Summer Games came with relatively little fanfare and no endorsement deals. So much for the hope that the historic accomplishment would be a ticket out of socioeconomic purgatory for Shields and her family. It seemed like yet another setback in a cycle of adversity throughout Shields’ life but she persevered, going on to win her second Gold Medal at the next Olympics and becoming a champion for gender equality and equitable pay for women in sports. Shields has served as a source of inspiration for woman athletes worldwide--as well as to the community of... Read More