In some respects, it feels like we’ve been thrust into a Norman Rockwell painting on the 4th of July. We are in broad daylight with people carrying lawn chairs and picnic baskets, kids pulling a red wagon, all congregating around a field. What appears odd is that many of the people are carrying bowls of varied sizes.
We see a farmer pull a potato from the ground while in the midst of the giant potato field surrounded by the congregants. Suddenly, though, it’s as if he’s in a minefield as potato after potato explodes from the ground, launching skyward like rockets, leaving behind a trail of smoke.
The potatoes explode high in the sky, raining down in the form of potato chips. So that’s why those folks are holding bowls. These festive fireworks are happening in the light of day–no need to wait until nightfall to enjoy the show.
A parting tag in which a potato turns into chips and then into the Lay’s logo is accompanied by a voiceover which reads, “Just potatoes, all natural oil and a dash of salt.”
“Fireworks” was directed by Mike Long of Suneeva, Toronto, for agency Juniper Park, Toronto.
The Juniper Park team included chief creative officers Terry Drummond, Alan Madill and Barry Quinn, copywriter Andy Linardatos, art director Hylton Mann and executive producer Janice Bisson.
The DP was Stephen Blackman.
Animation was done by The Mill, New York.
Editor was Griff Henderson of School, Toronto.
Netflix Series “The Leopard” Spots Classic Italian Novel, Remakes It As A Sumptuous Period Drama
"The Leopard," a new Netflix series, takes the classic Italian novel by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa and transforms it into a sumptuous period piece showing the struggles of the aristocracy in 19th-century Sicily, during tumultuous social upheavals as their way of life is crumbling around them.
Tom Shankland, who directs four of the eight episodes, had the courage to attempt his own version of what is one of the most popular films in Italian history. The 1963 movie "The Leopard," directed by Luchino Visconti, starring Burt Lancaster, Alain Delon and Claudia Cardinale, won the Palme d'Or in Cannes.
One Italian critic said that it would be the equivalent of a director in the United States taking "Gone with the Wind" and turning it into a series, but Shankland wasn't the least bit intimidated.
He said that he didn't think of anything other than his own passion for the project, which grew out of his love of the book. His father was a university professor of Italian literature in England, and as a child, he loved the book and traveling to Sicily with his family.
The book tells the story of Don Fabrizio Corbera, the Prince of Salina, a tall, handsome, wealthy aristocrat who owns palaces and land across Sicily.
His comfortable world is shaken with the invasion of Sicily in 1860 by Giuseppe Garibaldi, who was to overthrow the Bourbon king in Naples and bring about the Unification of Italy.
The prince's family leads an opulent life in their magnificent palaces with servants and peasants kowtowing to their every need. They spend their time at opulent banquets and lavish balls with their fellow aristocrats.
Shankland has made the series into a visual feast with tables heaped with food, elaborate gardens and sensuous costumes.... Read More