The first AICP Show took place in June of 1992, and with it a 20-year-old pipe dream came true. Early on in the life of the AICP, many members were keen on the idea of an event honoring the production community’s contributions to the making of television commercials. But the young organization had more pressing priorities in the early ’70s and the concept of a show was put on the back burner.
"In the beginning for the bunch of us at that time, there was an idealistic thrust to what we had, why we came together; and real business reasons for forming the AICP, " recalls Jordan Kalfus, formerly with now defunct Harmony Pictures, and chairman of the inaugural AICP Show. (Kalfus currently runs a bakery in Port Chester, N.Y.) "We felt threatened by the proliferation of agency in-house production divisions, and everyone having their own bid sheets. There was also a certain feeling that it would be wonderful if we could have a show about what we do– the art and technique of TV production. I had always been embarrassed at the Clios, because they didn’t seem to be about anything we did. They were more of an agency show. And they fractionate the categories to have more people send in more applications and entry fees. They made you feel sticky. But at that time, a show of our own was a pipe dream. In the beginning, commercial producers were called gypsies."
Against those odds, however, the AICP gained momentum and spread to chapters across the country, eventually becoming a national organization. Then, at an AICP dinner in Los Angeles in the early ’90s, which honored the organization’s founding fathers, Kalfus, a 30-year veteran of the spot business, reintroduced the idea of organizing an annual show: "I proposed having a show of our work, that was controlled by us– that didn’t have a first, second and third prize, but instead, the honor was simply being included in the show." Taking a cue from the Academy Awards, Kalfus also wanted the honors to highlight categories of craft, such as art direction or cinematography. The book The Art and Technique of Color Photography inspired the AICP Show’s defining moniker, The Art and Technique of the American Television Commercial.
Also instrumental in the shaping of the first AICP Show was Jon Kamen, now co-proprietor of bicoastal/international @radical.media. As Kalfus remembers it, Kamen was president of the AICP at the time and suggested contacting the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York to see if it would be interested in such an event. From the start, the curators in the film department were enthusiastic. Recounts Kalfus: "They said this was exactly the type of archive that they wanted to build: a documentation of the visual culture of our society."
When it came to selecting those ads that would become part of MoMA’s archives, Kalfus says they went after a "broad spectrum, so when you’re looking at the Show, you see great craft and effective communication, the enhancement of an idea, the sharpening of it."
Beyond the screening of the year’s best work and the cocktail reception that followed, the event included workshops and symposiums. The first year featured a directors series with Ridley Scott of bicoastal RSA USA; Joe Pytka of PYTKA, Venice, Calif.; and Steve Horn of Steven & Linda Horn Inc., New York, who put together reels and discussed how they work and the work itself.
It was a very proud moment for Kalfus, among others, when at long last the Show came to pass. "For me it was gratifying in a couple of ways," he recalls: "One, to see a vision I had come to fruition, and two, it was a capstone of my career, because I left the business in 1993. I had been in it for 32 years, and I felt very good about getting this thing off the ground. There was a lot of work done by a lot of people over the years, to get it to have clout. And with the Museum behind it, that gave us a significant stamp of approval. The Show really caught on and became the hottest ticket of the year. I’m tremendously gratified that it’s such a hit. It makes for a better [production] community. What AICP and the Show did was raise the stature of our business, which was very welcome."
1993
The fact that the event took hold and became so successful so quickly "wowed" executive producer Frank Stiefel of Stiefel+Company, Santa Monica, who served as chairman of the second AICP Show. "It was a thrilling thing," he said of the experience. "It wasn’t specifically thrilling because I was chair. But so quickly had this become one of the most, if not the most important, industry shows, and the most elegant party. I remember being wowed by what had happened in the course of a year.
"I think on my tombstone would go that I sold the first AICP Show tickets to an agency," Stiefel continues. "I called Phil Dusenberry [chairman of BBDO New York], and he became the first to buy tickets for his agency. Then a couple of others followed suit. In its first year, the Show was a production company party. In its second year it became an industry party, and everyone wanted a piece of it."
Why? According to Stiefel, there were three primary reasons. First, the Show recognized excellence in specific crafts, rather than the best beer or financial or pharmaceutical commercial. "What we all take pride in is how we perform in a craft [regardless of the advertiser’s category of business], and at the AICP Show the awards went to cinematographers, copywriters, actors. It recognized that people had an investment in what they do," he explains. "And it wasn’t organized as a winner thing. It recognized excellence in each category. So I think it had a purity to it that other award shows didn’t have." Beyond that, he adds, the fact that the Show was run by a trade organization rather than by a for-profit company with no investment in the commercial business also meant the show "felt cleaner." Says Stiefel: "Sitting in that room is about admiring a copywriter for what he put down on paper, or a cinematographer for how he lit a scene, and the judging was very broad. In a lot of ways, the AICP Show was brilliantly organized from the very beginning. And the proof is in the fact that it got bigger and bigger each year."
It was at the 1993 board meeting that the AICP board of directors decided to conduct the first-ever statistical survey of the commercial production business, and also to review ad agency contracts. But the specific business accomplishments of that year, as well as any visible trends in the selected work, haven’t stuck in Stiefel’s mind as much as the overall "sense of community" on hand at the Show. "As chairman, I do remember looking out at the audience and thinking, ‘Wow.’ In its second year, to look out at that many tuxedos, people who had paid that much money to be there, was amazing," he recounts. "I’d always felt I’d gotten a lot out of this business. But I never felt particularly proud until that night. We’d pulled off a major deal. I remember looking around that room and thinking, ‘Man, this is huge.’ Then, later, I walked around the museum and saw people that I grew up in the business with, and people I’d seen a week earlier. The Show is very much about that sense of community."
1994-1997
By the mid-1990s, the AICP Show was firmly established. By contrast, however, the spotmaking business was in the "throes of radical change," according to a SHOOT article about the 1994 convention (6/10/94, p. 1). The AICP board discussed ways the spot production business could fully reinvent itself, while panels such as "The Future of Media" explored fundamental shifts in the industry. Likewise, the following year, the AICP board voted to revise its National Guidelines.
"The buzz [at that time] was about technology and where it was going to take us," recalls Scott Ross, president and CEO of Digital Domain, Venice, Calif., who chaired the AICP Show in 1995. "There was still an incredible amount of energy [around the ad business], and around dot-coms and digital technology, regarding what role the Internet would play in advertising. It was the first time that we started to get people outside the core industry of advertising [to participate in the AICP Show]. We started to get people from Hollywood, from tech companies. As chairman, my main thought was to get some high-level people from inside as well as outside the [commercialmaking] industry, as opposed to just having directors and directors, and more directors, as they had done in the past." Among the panelists that year were filmmaker James Cameron (a Digital Domain founding father, who delivered his keynote address via satellite); Peter Sealey, former senior VP of global marketing for Coca-Cola; and John Scully, the former CEO of Apple Computers. Other memorable moments of the Show included a presentation by director Tony Kaye of Tony K, London and Santa Monica, which drew to a close with Kaye’s rendition of "My Way."
(Kamen chaired the AICP Show in 1994, and has returned to that role for the Show’s 10th anniversary. For his reflections on the Show, see separate story, p. 10).
Robert Greenberg, chairman of R/GA Digital Studios, New York, who chaired the 1996 Show, also recalled that by the mid-’90s, new media had crept into the collective subconscious of the ad business. "Frank Scherma [co-proprietor of @radical.media] started calling me Bob.com. He was already on my back for starting a new-media group."
Also prominent in Greenberg’s recollections was working with the Show organizers during the year leading up to the big event. "The group of people that get involved in the Show are some of the most interesting and dynamic people in the media business," he observes. "I have always felt that they really put together a great concept and they execute it flawlessly. They’re dedicated to having the best material in the Show. The original idea was to take the work that so many people have been involved in and really legitimize it in terms of it being an art form, because of its going into the museum archives. The Show is also a reaction to all the other award shows that people in the industry have to enter and attend, which are the polar opposite."
Beyond that, notes Greenberg, "there’s a combination of people on the AICP board of directors, like Kamen, as well as older and younger members, that have an incredible sense of humor and a caustic way [of approaching the task at hand]. So it’s a lot of fun going to the meetings. And when they’re combing through the final work– you know, this is a tough business and you get beaten down a lot. But at the end of the day, in spite of the fact that most of the people in the room are competitive with each other, it’s a lot of fun [preparing the Show]. It’s like our own version of being in Broadway Danny Rose. And everyone’s a comedian. We get a lot done, but a lot of jokes are told by people who go back [in this business] pretty far."
Regarding the caliber of work selected for the 1996 Show, Greenberg comments, "The only thing I remember is that, before the Show, people always say, ‘That year really sucked.’ They always say that, and then the reel is put together and they say, ‘Hey, it’s pretty good.’ Usually, the reel is consistently very good. But people never think it’s going to be as good as in years past– until it’s done. And when you’re sitting in the audience, watching it projected on the big screen, with incredibly good sound, in the [Roy and Niuta] Titus Theater [at MoMA, New York], which is one of the nicest spaces, it’s very exciting. And the party that follows is a great way to network. It’s in the sculpture garden, the food’s great and it’s great to see people. I think a lot of people benefit in so many ways."
Tom Mooney, managing director of bicoastal Headquarters, who chaired the Show in 1997, also felt pressure to put out a strong collection of work. "I remember being worried that the Show’s reel wouldn’t be as good as the reels before me, which you can’t control," he recalls. "But the work was great. The reel speaks for itself, and it’s all about the work, which to me is what makes it a special show. It travels the world, and you’re in the archives forever. That hour-and-ten-minute body of work can show you what was going on in the U.S. in advertising, which is a reflection of our culture."
Greenberg, among other former AICP Show chairmen, also singled out the contributions of AICP president Matt Miller: "Matt is an incredibly good leader of the organization, and the board members that help really put in a tremendous amount of energy." Likewise, Carol Case of Case Giraldi Media Co., New York, who chaired the AICP Show in 1999, says, "Working with Matt Miller was terrific. He was the constant calm."
For Mooney, interacting with industry members was also an important part of chairing the AICP Show. "The people you get a chance to work with are great," he says. Participants that year included feature director Barry Sonnenfeld; Lee Clow, chairman/chief creative officer of TBWA Worldwide; Cheryl Berman, chairman/chief creative officer, Leo Burnett USA; chairman/chief creative officer Cliff Freeman and president/executive creative director Arthur Bijur of Cliff Freeman and Partners, New York; and director Kinka Usher of Santa Monica-based House of Usher. "Freeman and Bijur made a great presentation," Mooney recalls. "They brought their own laugh track in case no one laughed. I heard they also bring that when they present to new clients. And Barry Sonnenfeld showed the first twenty minutes of Men in Black and then said, ‘Wide-angle lenses are funny. Long-angle lenses are not. Any questions?’ He’s a riot."
Mooney also relished the opportunity to "be a ham bone" in front of an audience of his peers. "I never met a microphone I didn’t like," he notes. "My speech was basically about me. And I ribbed on all the people who asked me for free tickets. The Show sells out in about a minute, so [the requests] never stop. You get calls from people you’ve done one job for in 872 years."
In terms of the Show itself, Mooney remembers that "comedy was the scene that year. It was king. My idea– because it seemed that comedy was taking over the business– was to talk about what’s funny, and whether people remember the client in the ad message. I felt that we as an industry were finally admitting that we are in the entertainment business, so we should be funny."
The expansive judging panel also lends the Show a "distinctive class," says Mooney. "The Show is about the craft of production, the directors, DPs, art directors. And it’s voted for by your peers, a large consensus of people– not an elite panel of people who are flown to Morocco. It’s a good mix of people, and the reel always seems to speak for itself. Sometimes it’s stuff that wins at other shows, but not always. And it’s not about an award; it’s about being in the film. You know, being shown in a museum isn’t too shabby. I’m always proud when our work makes it on the reel.
"There’s too many friggin’ awards shows," Mooney continues. "But the AICP Show is really nice. You can come watch what is the best of the craft. And you see everyone. Of course, I was the best chairman they ever had. They haven’t asked me to say a word since. Come to think of it, I’m going to start a new show, the Tommy Awards …"
1998-1999
With six Shows in the can, the chairs of the AICP Shows in 1998, 1999 and 2000 had their work cut out for them. For instance, Case spoke of her desire to chair a Show that would stand out from those previous and also draw a capacity crowd. "It’s not like we’re trying to outdo one another," she says. "But you want to do something different and something that will draw people in. I wanted a full house, and an intelligent, good show."
Similarly, Nick Wollner, who’s partnered in Crossroads Films, bicoastal and Chicago, and who chaired the Show in 1998, notes, "It seems to me that often the shows are a reflection of the state of the industry and the economy. Last year’s winners were great, but the depth of work wasn’t as deep. There were good things, but not a lot of good things. In the lean years, you’re lucky to get a show together. In the better years, you wish you had more categories. The year I chaired the show, I remember that there was a lot of big production, big money jobs. Tony Kaye was at the top of his game, and [bicoastal/international] Propaganda was still cranking it out. What’s important about the Show is that we try to carve out as many things as possible, so that standards from year to year can be consistent, and that the Show would zero in on a certain style and level of sophistication."
The ’98 lecture series that year included presentations by the directing collective Traktor of bicoastal/ international Partizan, and Tim Delaney, group chief executive of Leagas Delaney, London. The series, "Advertising Under the Influence," focused on cross-cultural influences on advertising in the U.S. and abroad.
Case says chairing the Show– a commitment that begins the previous August– was a "wonderful experience," but also something of "a part-time job." She explains, "You’re not just talking about title design, the graphics, and the music. But in looking at Shows previous, which is what I did, I really wanted to be current and ahead of what was. I loved the challenge. All of us have our definitive takes on that year, but on the whole it was great. It was a pivotal time in the business, where the business wasn’t just advertising, but entertainment, and bringing all forms of entertainment together."
To that end, Case set about finding participants for the lecture series whose work transcended various media, such as director Mark Pellington (now of Propaganda), who has worked in various disciplines, from music videos to spots to features. Similarly, Case was keen on involving feature director Spike Lee, who helms spots via his own Forty Acres and a Mule Filmworks, Brooklyn, N.Y.
"Trying to get Spike Lee drove me crazy," recalls Case. "I’d been trying to get to him on the phone but couldn’t get through, and then one morning I’m at the gym and I see him working out on this machine. I said to my trainer, ‘Is that Spike Lee?’ It was six a.m., but I figured no time will be comfortable, so I went over and talked to him. He gave me a name of someone in his office to call. After that, and with a little help from Mitch Kanner [who was with Digital Domain at the time and is now at The Idea Bridge, Santa Monica] and Steve Neely [deputy executive creative director/executive VP at FCB San Francisco], who wrote letters, Spike ended up doing it."
The panels hit home for the conference attendees. "Basically what we were talking about as an industry was that crossover element," Case notes. "What was once frowned upon in the early 1980s– music videos– now it’s completely opposite. Look at Michael Bay. I’m very proud of where the industry has gone," she continues. "It may be more competitive now, but it allows commercial directors to become filmmakers, and vice versa."
2000
Unlike the chairpersons who had preceded him, executive producer Roberto Cecchini of bicoastal/international The Artists Company was faced with a unique predicament during last year’s AICP Show: an actors’ strike against advertisers. Those in attendance won’t soon forget the crowds of Screen Actors Guild protestors that had gathered outside MoMA, but in remembering the event, Cecchini focuses on other matters.
"I felt there were great issues that needed clarification for myself and the AICP membership," he says. "A principal one was what was going to happen when the Internet started to appear on the television screen, and what would it mean for our industry. So the lecture series, I felt, had a huge importance that went beyond advertising. The focus was, what was the future in this world of convergence?" The keynote address was delivered by Mark Kvamme, a partner in Sequoia Capital, Menlo Park, Calif., where he focuses on services and software investments.
In spite of future uncertainties, the strike, and other challenges facing the commercial production business, Cecchini says that the experience of chairing the AICP Show was immensely rewarding. "The Show is very important because it sets our industry and our profession squarely in an artistic framework. By having it at the museum, and having the selected work enter the permanent collection, the artistic aspects of it are put in evidence. It dignifies all of us laboring in the fields.
"At a creative level," he continues, "considering the amount of time I’d been an executive producer, my chairing the Show excited and exhilarated me. To see just how vast the output of good work is in this industry, and how much good work is done in the U.S.– it inspired and repurposed me. It was a powerful experience, and made me want to try to be more excellent and more inspiring in my professional life."
In fact, in his brief address to the audience, Cecchini compared the experience of being chairman to his confirmation as a Catholic– particularly in terms of the generous support and assistance he’d received from the dozens of Show organizers and participants. "I’d received so much assistance from the subcommittees, the judges, everyone, that I wanted to say, ‘Thank you,’ and the way I thought was most appropriate was looking at a comparable life experience," he explains. "After my confirmation, I received so many gifts, and my mother told me I had to write a thank-you note to each and every person who’d given something. This experience was like that. It had been so wonderful that I felt I had to say, ‘Thank you,’ to everyone."
