The watchword is “caution” when it comes to watching TV. That became evident during some water cooler conversation I recently overheard on the Raleigh Studios lot in Los Angeles, home to SHOOT’s new West Coast office.
A couple of people were discussing the most recent episode of Lost. Unfortunately, another nearby coworker heard a bit too much about the episode, which she hadn’t yet watched but was looking forward to since she TiVoed the installment for viewing later that week.
Indeed there’s no more proverbial shared, safe water cooler banter when it comes to television–except for the rare event like the Super Bowl where everyone is watching at the same time. Just what we needed–another reason to jack up the price tag of a 30-second time slot during the Big Game.
With iPods, cell phones, laptops, VOD and TiVo, a growing number of people are tuning into TV programs whenever it suits them–making discussions about TV shows the day after traditional broadcast a bit perilous.
Speaking of peril, what of the commercials during that Lost episode. Did the woman who TiVoed Lost bother watching the show after hearing the plot and its outcome? More importantly for our audience, if she did watch the show, did she watch any of the commercials?
The irony is that the safest water cooler topic might be the commercials airing during the show since many TiVo users have no plans to watch the spots anyway so you won’t be ruining that experience for them. But seriously, the changing viewing habits and dynamics underscore the fact that it’s essential that commercials be more entertaining and relevant than ever if they stand a chance of breaking through to prospective consumers.
The ability to do just that is what led SHOOT staffers to select TBWAChiatDay as its Agency of the Year. The ’06 body of work out of TBWAChiatDay’s New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco offices was stellar.
While it’s a daunting task to somehow weave ad messages into pop culture, TBWAChiatDay has attained that nirvana in several instances this year, the prime example being its human embodiments of Apple’s Mac versus the PC. This year I’ve heard more water cooler buzz about the creative, artistic Mac guy and the buttoned-down, business suit-clad PC man than perhaps any other TV topic. Related Web site fare, chat room fodder, blogs and text messaging have taken on lives of their own–all to the branding benefit of Apple.
Even during last month’s inaugural Hollywood Post Alliance Awards show, the hit of the evening was a bit where two presenters–one in a tuxedo, the other in shorts and surf wear–introduced themselves as PC and Mac, respectively.
Everyone in the audience got the joke, showing how thoughtful, clever brand messages can spread like wildfire and become an accepted part of the universal lexicon.
That’s the challenge to agencies and marketers alike.
To embrace and accomplish this is paradise found. To not realize or worse ignore this can only result in paradise Lost.
Oscar Nominees Delve Into The Art Of Editing At ACE Session
You couldn’t miss Sean Baker at this past Sunday’s Oscar ceremony where he won for Best Picture, Directing, Original Screenplay and Editing on the strength of Anora. However, earlier that weekend he was in transit from the Cesar Awards in Paris and thus couldn’t attend the American Cinema Editors (ACE) 25th annual panel of Academy Award-nominated film editors held at the Regal LA Live Auditorium on Saturday (3/1) in Los Angeles. While the eventual Oscar winner in the editing category was missed by those who turned out for the ACE “Invisible Art, Visible Artists” session, three of Baker’s fellow nominees were on hand--Dávid Jancsó, HSE for The Brutalist; Nick Emerson for Conclave; and Myron Kerstein, ACE for Wicked. Additionally, Juliette Welfling, who couldn’t appear in person due to the Cesar Awards, was present via an earlier recorded video interview to discuss her work on Emilia Pérez. The interview was conducted by ACE president and editor Sabrina Plisco, ACE who also moderated the live panel discussion. Kerstein said that he was the beneficiary of brilliant and generous collaborators, citing, among others, director Jon M. Chu, cinematographer Alice Brooks, and visual effects supervisor Pablo Helman. The editor added it always helps to have stellar acting performances, noting that hearing Cynthia Erivo, for example, sing live was a revelation. Kerstein recalled meeting Chu some eight years ago on a “blind Skype date” and it was an instant “bromance”--which began on Crazy Rich Asians, and then continued on such projects as the streaming series Home Before Dark and the feature In The Heights. Kerstein observed that Chu is expert in providing collaborators with... Read More