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.
“Mufasa: The Lion King” and “Sonic 3” Rule Box Office For 1st Weekend Of 2025
The Walt Disney Co.'s "Mufasa: The Lion King" claimed the No. 1 spot on the North American box office charts over the first weekend of 2025.
The photorealistic "Lion King" prequel earned $23.8 million in its third weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. Paramount's "Sonic the Hedgehog 3," which has dominated the past two weekends, wasn't far behind.
"Sonic 3" stayed close with a 3-day estimate of $21.2 million, bringing its total domestic earnings to $187.5 million and helping the overall franchise cross $1 billion worldwide. "Mufasa's" running total is slightly less, with $169.2 million.
In third place, Focus Features' "Nosferatu" remake defied the fate of so many of its genre predecessors and fell only 39% in its second weekend. Horror films typically fall sharply after the first weekend and anything less than a 50% decline is notable. "Nosferatu," which added 140 screens, claimed $13.2 million in ticket sales, bringing its running total to $69.4 million since its Christmas debut. The film, directed by Robert Eggers, already surpassed its reported production budget of $50 million, though that figure does not account for marketing and promotion expenses).
No new wide releases opened this weekend, leaving the box office top 10 once again to holdovers from previous weeks. Several have been in theaters since Thanksgiving. One of those, "Moana 2," claimed the No. 4 spot for Disney in its sixth weekend in theaters. The animated sequel earned another $12.4 million, bumping its global total to $960.5 million.
The Bob Dylan biopic "A Complete Unknown," dipped only slightly in its second weekend, bringing in $8.1 million. With $41.7 million total, it's Searchlight's highest grossing film since Disney acquired the company in... Read More