Olympic Moms

This commercial was so heartwarming that it brought tears to the eyes of so many viewers. It once again displayed a great example of storytelling. The only thing I would want to change about it is how long it was. The storyline of childhood bonding with parents through sports culminating at the Olympics is really powerful. Kids in the beginning go through the struggle of training for sports and are largely supported by their moms. Their hard work pays off by them being at the Olympics and their moms are still there cheering them on. 

Why are women always saying sorry?

This commercial began with familiar  moments of women apologizing unnecessarily. They went through a series of scenes from women at work, to in a relationship, to an interaction with a stranger. Then it displayed the question at hand - Why are women always apologizing? I think the ad is very effective in that it portays a common truth in life and brings it all back to the brand, P&G to empower women. I find it very positive. There was also a lot of diversity used in the ad. I can't think of anything I would want to change in this ad. 

http://www.forbes.com/sites/ruchikatulshyan/2014/06/18/why-are-women-always-apologizing/

Beats by Dre, Kevin Garnett Commercial

Beats by Dre - Kevin Garnett, Hear What You Want

The Beats by Dr. Dre 'Hear What You Want' campaign is visually impactful. The commercial staring Kevin Garnett begins with Garnett watching a television program where people are criticizing his team and his demeanor during games. The plot follows him to the bus on game day where fans jeer, yell, and hackle him as he rides the bus to the game. The chaotic fans are wildly noticeable, and are silenced as Garnett puts on his Beats headphones. The music that starts playing from his headphones is positive and encouraging and changes the mood of the commercial entirely. After putting on his headphones, Garnett is able to focus on getting ready for the game. Parts of the commercial is shot in slow motion, and the music in the beginning sets a more dramatic tone that is later contrasted with Garnett finding peace in his music. Beats uses music video directors to film their commercials which I feel helps align the brand with the ideas associated with music videos - modern, young, crisp and dreamy. The music video commercial also correlates with the product at hand well. The fact that Beats is advertising noise canceling headphones seamlessly reinforces the storyline. Garnett shows the perfect facial expressions and demeanor to portray what the commercial intends to convey to the viewer. This commercial sends a very relatable story to the audience. Everyone experiences negativity in life that needs to be ignored in order to focus on a greater goal. This 'Hear What You Want' commercial depicts this theme it in a powerful and direct way. Music can be a useful outlet for people, and Beats has positioned themselves as the headphone of choice for just that. I have found that brands can get lost in the storytelling of advertisements, but I admire how Beats managed to effectively represent their brand while also telling a very relatable story. An improvement that could be made for this commercial would be to have the newscasters more specifically target Garnett during the opening part of the commercial on TV. The scene right before Garnett walks out to the game could have been a bit more interesting than Garnett wrapping his finger, but I really enjoyed almost every aspect of this commercial.

Commercial link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yUj0Ta44DI

Cannes Lions Innovation Winners 2014

The Grand Prix winner for 2014 was the Megafaces Pavilion at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games. This pavilion placed an interesting twist on the casual selfie and used advanced technology to create larger than life 3D face monuments available for anyone to use. The participants simply scanned their photo in the 3D photo booth and their image later appeared on the large LED screen made of 11,000 actuators. This setup was created by JSC Megafon and was placed in many cities across Russia during the 2014 Winter Olympic games. The pavilion helped personalize the olympic experience. This project made history as the world's first 3D selfie. With people's widespread insistence on sharing their photos, this became a great way to spread the message of the 2014 Winter Olympics to large numbers of people. The Megafaces campaign also attracted a lot of media attention due to its one of a kind nature.

The Innovation Lion winners was the Points signs, the Fiat Live Store and Babolat Play. The Points sign was an interesting concept that turned street signs into advertising. Created by Breakfast New York, this sign's interconnectivity allows it to move and change its message based on who is around and where they have been. The fact that it can be self sustainable due to advertising payments and support from its creators makes the sign even more unique. I would have to say that the sign could make things a bit confusing if it continuously changes its message or doesn't convey the correct information when someone simply wants to know the street name and not where Ben&Jerry's is located. The Fiat live store seems really interesting, but a bit over the top. I feel that if someone is really looking to purchase a car, no matter how great technology is to recreate the experience, they would want to see the car and drive the car in person. The idea seems especially silly because it wouldn't really save any time or energy because the buyer would still need to visit the store to make a purchase. This campaign was created by Agenciaclick Isobar São Paulo, Brazil. Ogilvy France developed the Babolat Play initiative, the first tennis racket to connect a player's game to their phone via the racket. Every part of the game is recorded on the player's phone. The app collects data from games and develops an average pulse of the player's performance which combines different aspects the game. The app even allows users to compete with users around the world. This is an amazing concept that takes the increasing interconnectivity of our world to a new level.

All of the Innovation awards came from different parts of the world. The winning campaigns included Russia, the US, France, and Brazil. Each initiative differed in method, theme and technology. I feel that the Babolat Play racket helps bring people together through technology, while the Fiat Live Store helps nurture anti-socialism. The Megafaces is more similar to the Points sign in that they both engage users in new ways making ordinary experiences more personable.

 

June 21st, 2014

Audio Network: Synaesthesia - A Creativity Showcase

This innovation seminar was mind boggling. They opened with Philip Sheppard, a virtuoso cellist, who made a song based on what people called out from the audience. Sheppard is definitely talented, he could make car and animal noises with his cello. He spoke of the term Synaesthesia, which is sensing nouns in other forms such as colors in terms of taste or music in terms of color. Listening to this music made me realize yet another component of advertisements - music. Creatives have so much to think about when working on commercials and campaigns. Neil Harbisson was on an entirely other level of synaesthesia as he requested that a doctor implant an antennae into his skull. Since Harbisson was born only able to see in black and white, he wanted to find a way to understand color, so he invented this antennae that allows him to hear it. He is working on a flew of inventions that enhance the body's normal senses. He has even enhanced his own antennae invention to detect colors people cannot see such as ultra violet light. He claims to feel closer to nature due to his antennae because he is now more like other animals and is now more aware of what is happening on earth. There are also four people with his antennae number who can send him pictures from around the world to let him experience color in other places. He has discovered interesting facts of life since having his antennae attatched. For example, white and black people don't actually exist in the human race. Everyone is just a different shade of orange. 

Virool: Win a trip to space

I came in towards the end of this session, but I saw the magic show. It was really impressive and ended with a ball of paper catching fire and turning into a rose. I do not know how they did it. 

MDC: Creatives in charge - why more creative people should be running companies 

The speaker provided more depth to being a creative. He basically said that creative talent have just as many useful skills to run a company as someone with a business or accounting degree. I feel that this was a really positive spin on things because I don't think that many people feel this way, but I agree with it. He said that as a CEO, you need both vertical and horizontal skills. Vertical skills being your area of expertise, horizontal being surface knowledge about a plethora of other subjects. 

VCCP Partnership: The (Emotional) Revolution will not be Televised

This session uncovered the truths of how people behave unnaturally when they know they are being watched, which makes studies that do such research inaccurate. The session also displayed the same ad twice using a different background song each time. The two songs were similar and had been used in a study that recorded the average listener's emotional arousal as they watched the commercial. The speaker showed how an unknown song outscored a well known song in arousal rate and could save a company a ton of money if used instead of the well known song. I personally liked the commercial that used the popular song version so

I'm not sure of the accuracy of this study. They claimed that emotional arousal helps with memory, which means you should try to arouse your audience emotionally so that they will be more likely to remember your commercial.  

DigitasLBi: Tales from the Accident Factory

The biggest takeaway from this session was how video games have the ability to aid the process of healing when children are in isolation. A young girl who had gone through chemotherapy told us her story via live stream on Skype. She told of how video games helped keep her mind off of cancer and sadness during her treatment. The speakers had her play a video game debuted on site which allows people to donate money towards cancer research. Each donation appears within the game as a bonus feature allowing the player to go further along in the game. Unfortunately, their game didn't work properly during the session, but the game idea was an interesting concept. 

(RED): A conversation with Bono and Jony Ive 

I really enjoyed hearing about the process it took to develop the (RED) brand. I learned that some of the development process created friction between the organizing members. For instance, Apple's insistence for all things simple and clean cut opposed (RED)'s use of parenthesis. According to Bono, he insisted that the parenthesis be there. Somehow (RED) and Apple came to a workable compromise where (RED) could keep it's parenthesis. I was really surprised how involved Bono is and has been with the brand. I don't feel that his partnership is widely publicized. I also found their tactic for getting politicians on board quite unique in method. Bono explained that as politicians saw the cause being supported in the shopping malls, they began to care about (RED) as opposed to them fleeing the somewhat taboo topic. The choice of using the word and color red was a deliberate one in that it signifies emergency, and eradicating AIDS is just that. The (RED) goal is to cultivate an AIDless generation. There was an emphasis placed on geographic location not being the determining factor between life and death. Overall, after hearing this seminar, I will be a more informed and supportive buyer of (RED) products.  

June 20th, 2014

Procter&Gamble: The Creative Canvas

Proctor&Gamble develop a diverse set of advertisements. From heart warming ads that make you reflect on life, as shown in the, 'Why are women always apologizing?' advertisement, to the funny Old Spice commercial with muscle drumming. The speaker said that he prefers to think of advertisements as a creative pallet as opposed to a campaign. Based on the creative work shown during this seminar, I believe him, all of the ads were really well done. The speaker went through a short history of media and advertising. He ended on the idea that "constant change is our new reality." He said that we will never be able to reach everyone on one platform again, which rings so strong and so true. The speaker provided three tips for creating great media. 1) Start with something true 2) Consider why anyone would care 3) Make your brand matter. I would like to say that some of the commercials they presented at the festival are much better than the Procter&Gamble commercials I see at home. For example, their Covergirl commercial about what girls can do was inspiring and eye catching. I am really happy with the Procter&Gamble presentation. 

Mirriad: From BPM to CPM

This forum discussed how music videos are the perfect way to reach a large audience with riveting media. I really like the saying from this forum, "You have to fish where the fish are". I can understand this concept, because I think that celebs and artists can be really influential to a younger demographic, and could help increase sales if the celeb is seen using a product in a music video. With this in mind, one would need to consider the demographic they are attempting to reach, because not all people of all ages are watching music videos or care what type of speakers Miley Cyrus uses on television. 

McDonalds: What really is the antidote to client promiscuity?

I would have liked to take the speakers in this forum a bit more seriously, but I really felt that they were overly proud of the food served at McDonalds. While I was quite attentive to their free McCafe stand almost every day of the festival, I really don't think their food is of such great quality to be so highly esteemed by its constituents. But honestly, this was an advertising conference, not a health conscious one, so I will say that I think it is amazing to have a team that really believes in the product because that is the only way to really sell a product well. Despite all the negative rumors about McDonalds due to movies such as Super Size Me, they have managed to maintain a state of excellence that allows them to win honors such as Creative Marketer of the Year at The Cannes Lions Advertising Festival, so kudos to McDonalds. 

June 19, 2014

Saatchi&Saatchi: New Directors' Showcase

This seminar was my favorite session from Thursday. They completely set the atmosphere for a great time. We were met by serious nurses at the door who handed out excitement trackers for your wrist that would light up and change colors depending on your reaction to what you saw on the screen. All of the nurses stayed in character the entire time and set the stage for excitement as the audience anticipated what would be next. The seminar showed a series of creative work that ranged from commercials to seemingly pure nonsense. A tracker of the audience's emotions was projected on each side of the screen. A few commercials really stuck out to me. One was an entire set made of yarn. There was a sick yarn woman who was dying who had a loved one at her bedside. She was slowly unraveling while her loved one attmepted to put her back together. This didn't work, so the sick woman told her loved one to let it be. The visual showed her slowly unravel until only a single strand was left and then this last strand was taken as well. Just as the woman was unraveling, a baby was being raveled to life in another scene. Some of the clips were sad, some were really touching and some were simply weird. I definitely have to say that the entire seminar was engaging, entertaining and enjoyable. 

IAB: Small size, big impact - when beautiful creative meets mobile screens

This seminar emphasized what makes a difference in mobile media. The use of vivid colors and ditching banner ads was emphasized. The speaker, Christine Cook, said that they take advantage of the entire ad and use a full page for it instead of disturbing the media the user actually wants to see with a banner ad. Her advice for students was to stay on top of media trends and to follow big brands on Flipboard. 

Pulse Films: Fashion Content Remixed

The speakers who were suppose to lead this were not present, which I feel changed the dynamics of the forum entirely. The question the speakers posed was "Is fashion content just like any other branded content?". These speakers find the storyline so important that they think story first and branding second. This forum really supported experimentation and trying new things to represent your brand. I'm not sure that they are on to something so great with their story first, brand second idea though. The video they showed did not direct me to their brand at all. Right now I can remember the entire plot, but not the name of their fashion brand. This doesn't seem like the best marketing strategy to me. I do think that being creative and attempting new strategies to sell can be good for branding, but the results should be quantified. 

BBDO: Nice is the new black 

This was a really interesting seminar as BBDO showcased some of their best work. They discussed how to balance not being sappy while also tugging at the hearts of the public. I really like this quote from the seminar, "Decent people are desperate to hang onto something decent". They showed the commercial of the Olympian moms helping their children train in a sport as they are young and still be there for them as Olympians. This commercial was a big tear jerker throughout the entire festival. The seminar discussed how sometimes having less going on in a commercial helps get your point across better.