mindblob

The sky is... NOT the limit !

   

For those of you who really thought I was kidnapped by Aliens when I was out of blogging for  while, here is the story. As a matter of fact, I was the one trying to make contact with them. And guess what... I found them. This is quite a long story. So I made a little pdf file to summarize and share this extra-ordinary encounter with you. All I can tell you is that although they may seem scary, Aliens are very nice beings. Hopefully they were open minded, and so really appreciated the Age of Conversation. Actually, with their help now, we may even reach Gavin Heaton's secret dream... and make the incredible come true (right Drew?).

 

Well, I'm afraid the sky is NOT the limit anymore... so if you have not bought a copy yet, here is another reason for you to do it : it'll help you engage conversation with Aliens (how about that?) and help a good cause. Talking about Aliens, did you know that they eat tangerine (I mean, just like "us"), dream about Big Macs (they do, they do), and use Twitter  (yeah, without any device, actually) to communicate? But please... know that they are not waiting for planes anymore... they use flying saucers, I mean... tractors (woops! Call me "lunatic").

 

PS : This picture  is not a Photoshop job... my Alien friend holds a printed copy of the AoC, because at that time I had not yet received a hardback book.  : )

PPS : Huge thanks to Gareth the Alien, without his passion and trust telling you this story would have never been possible. If you ever are looking for an Alien... I do recommend calling him -and unfortunately I can't show you the film we made out of this as it is not "on air" yet-

 

Fight for Kisses

   

It is time for men to use a new secret weapon. But beware... it is also time for babies to revenge. Are you ready to "Fight for Kisses"? Who do you think is gonna win? Wilkinson, maybe.

 

Fantastic work of JWT Paris, winner of a Silver Lion for their "Dare" Wilkinson outdoor campaign (*), at the Cannes Advertising Festival in 2006. Too bad their site is "under construction" right now, though.

   

Now, how do you see the development of a microsite? One company does it all or on the contrary, collaborative synergy between the best specialists?  Check the credits of the microsite and you'll get a hint on their recipe. I bet Ally McBeal is gonna love it!

   

(*) Mini case study on the "Dare" campaign provided on the Mediaedge:cia site, here.

The Good Stuff jumps... "open"

Originally uploaded by shamshahrin

   
Introducing The Good Stuff, "a weblog about good stuff to spend time with from Craig Davis, JWT's Chief Creative Officer Worldwide".

Now, is this just another blog about advertising? No it isn't. I think there is something really interesting about this blog. As a matter of fact, the blog was launched a few months ago with restricted access to the JWT network members only. Today after a touching post from Craig Davis himself, the blog is now going public. I think this is a major POSITIVE move for an international agency like JWT. Here is Craig's announcement on his post "Jump" :

"When this blog began a couple of months ago, I was for some insane reason paranoid about security. What if the outside world could see what we’re up to on the inside? What if they knew our patent pending secrets, could see our work, our day old laundry, our people? What if they could listen in (even chip in) on our conversation?

Yes, exactly, what?

The good stuff is going public. No user-names, no passwords, no security - we’re jumping into the maelstrom of the blogosphere.

Another reason for this being, well - have a poke around - windows and doors, the end of monologue, the age of dialogue. The themes we’re exploring here seem incompatible with a site that has a virtual rottweiler patrolling the fences. This is a place for people to spend a little time everyday, to live JWT up close and personal.

Sounds a little risky to be the first agency to open up an internal blog to Joe Public. It is. But this is a small step taken with optimism, enthusiasm, a desire to explore this wild world further and, more than anything, to offer stimulation and spark conversations in and around the work we create. Feel free to overwhelm the server with your comments. Eavesdroppers are welcome too. That’s the risky part. Whatever’s said I hope it’s without anonymity and shares the positive spirit in which we go into this.

Off we go."

 

I can't agree more when it comes to "the age of dialogue", and I believe it is less risky than keeping the gates closed. Changing the core strategy of a huge structure is definitely not as easy as one could think. It takes more time to open the tank than it does for a small business. Just like changing the stereotyped ideas we (public opinion) may have on some brands. I'm thinking about Microsoft here... the name itself carries lots of "outdated" false ideas. Does it mean that people within Microsoft are not willing to change that? No! What if the intentions behind are good? What if the intentions of the teams (people actually working there) are good?

   
How can people contribute to change positively the structure/image/icon they belong to?
What's your take on this?

   

Smoke outside!

Guerrilla campaign from the Belgian advertising agency LG&F to encourage smokers not to smoke indoor and increase awareness of second-hand smoke. The flyers look like cigarettes when rolled up. Simple and smart idea.

(via "Advertising is Good")
   

Breaking the structure

If you have the patience to wait a little bit while watching a politician speak french for a while, I encourage you to check this site. No focus on content here, although the promises made by this guy who introduces a new political party are quite funny, like extremely low tax rates, free buses and cabs, free gasoline for all... The name of the fake party itself is a "cliché" since “MDR” is the french equivalent of “LOL”.

 

Check the way the web designers treated the integration between text and video. At the end as there is no possible interaction... (besides one link to the party communicating this), this micro site works just like an ad. Quite interesting, isn't it?

 

Imagination booster

 
As some of you might know, I am now in Cape town again, preparing another shooting (shoot day tomorrow).

Today on our pre-production program: location recce, wardrobe fitting, belly casting (now... come on guys, can't show pictures here - we just need it to shoot a gentle demo, really - yes, I'll post the film when on air) and set building check. While at the set builder studio, I made a strange encounter... the huge head of a dragon (picture above)... just, laying there in the middle of the room. Wow! Absolutely unexpected.

In a fraction of a second,  imagination flew me away. I was ridding on the "Neverending story" dragon, on a trip "Finding Neverland", where "Big fish" can be found. Some films lift you up when you see them. They make you "believe" in dragons, Tinkerbell and giant fishes. They boost your mood and bring you good... vibrations. They make a smile "pop" on your face.

Do you believe in the magic of imagination? I do. Now if you would excuse me, my "Happy feet" are moving too much. Fellow penguins calling... obviously.  : )

 

PS: Yes, I do recommend the above films... and eventually some imagination in your everyday life, to be different and most of all to "believe".

 

Thalys speed day in Paris

Originaly uploaded  by Pat's Piks

Yesterday return ticket to Paris. Post-production facility : Mikros image. At least 10 people working on our project. Action and speed all day to reach conference call with client and integrate all the elements post-produced separately. I'm pleased to see how the limits of CGI and compositing can be pushed. Great professionals around me. Wizzards of Oz making our dreams come true.

 

Morning: agency (us) feedback to post-producers. Midday: Mikros team in action: corrections. Afternoon: continuous agency feedback. Email dispatching and FTP site of work in progress. End of the day: conference call with client in Brussels. Agency introduction to work in progress and client feedback. End of the day: launch more corrections. Jump in taxi to catch Thalys. Evening: return to Brussels, past 10 PM, home. Tomorrow music briefing at sound studio.

 

Paradox of the day... feeling the "speed of the day" slow down, while travelling at 300 km/h (+/- 190 mph).

 

BACK from Cape Town

   

"BACK" (yes, again!)... I realize this could now almost be a new name for mindblob. Sorry (yes, again!) for being so much out of blogging. As I explained in my previous posts, this is indeed a heavy production time of the year, and I am definitely running like Forrest Gump... besides not running in a film... but running for films.

   

So, the shooting I told you about is now done. All I can tell you at this stage is that I’ve seen many really odd things there, like... flying Christmas trees, flying pans and TVs, (fake) snow on African walkways, and even a (real and unexpected) wind storm, chasing film crew between the buildings of the Capetonian streets (promise I'll post the film as soon as it is on air). I’m back from Cape Town and all is fine.

   

The off-line editing (basically the very first edit, the “structure” of a film) was accepted by our client, which is an important step in the making of a commercial. We are currently right in the middle of post-production. Now, for those of you who don’t know what this is, post-production is a term that describes all the steps coming after the actual shooting of a film: from the development of the 35mm film to the delivery of the broadcast copies. Understand : offline editing, special effects (CGI), on-line editing, soundtrack, music, voice recordings, etc.

We are now working with a post-production facility from Paris, Mikros Image (check there showreel here), one of the leading companies in France (who did the CGI on this great ad you might have seen - incredible making off here). So, after the plane, I get to travel with speed train Thalys from Brussels to Paris. No jet lag here either, Roger... just an hour and a half away from town to town.  ; )

 

 

And by the way... yes, there are penguins in Cape Town... I wanted to check it out by myself and I found them on Boulders beach (False Bay) just before leaving. An amazing site to witness. Apparently the only place in the world where penguins and people can swim together. Learn more about it here. Too bad I didn’t have enough time to try that! Maybe next time... Did I tell you? Another shooting in South Africa has just been confirmed mid April. Wait a minute, noooo... not that plane again! Now, please Scottie... beam me up this time, seriously!

 

Marshmallow Camps Bay day

 

After a long and bumpy flight we arrived in Cape Town with the rising sun of the early morning. Getting off the airplane was like a double relief : walking (again) and discovering the warm and dry climate of South Africa.

 

I’ll make this post short. Because I’m completely exhausted. Air conditioning of the airplane (=cold), lack of sleep, and now a day being driven around town to check pre-production elements (stylism, life SFX, etc.) burnt all the energy I had left. No, no... no feet into the water or even on the beach. But I must admit that it feels good just to see landscapes, palm trees and blue (surfable) waves of the Atlantic sea.

   

Melting pot of thoughts of the day : people send you energizing smiles here and it feels good – waiting to get (simple) things make us wonder if we do things fast(er) or if they are done really slow here – coffee, fish and food are delicious – agency life doesn’t care about people being on a shooting (office mail box is already filled with cc. mails and “urgent – we know you’re out, probably can’t read your mails, but still please read and answer immediately” kind of messages) – just can’t read RSS and comment your posts tonight, sorry guys – I still think I could walk on these marshmallow clouds I saw from the window of the plane (thought coming back on every flight I’ve taken so far)   ; ) - oh boy... it’s really time to sleep now!

   

Flying to Cape Town

Originally uploaded by flamed

Tomorrow, I’m flying to Cape Town. I’m going there for a week on a TV production mission together with a creative team and Creative Director of the agency I work for. We’ll be shooting a commercial for one client of the agency. The heavy preparation process of this film is one of the reasons I’ve been a little slow on posts lately.

Although this project is still quite confidential (unfortunately I can’t reveal either name of client or product now), I can tell you this one is going to be a real technical challenge, full of live SFX, post-produced 3D SFX, extras, props... yep, the full package. A real producer’s challenge. Quite exciting indeed. On the other hand, I’m leaving my family and little (13 months old) daughter-princess Ness for the first time. Yes... must confess I’ll miss them a lot!

I’m not sure about free time once I’ll get there, but I will definitely try to share a few South African pictures and thoughts with you. In the meantime, the starters: I found this link on Flickr with lots of pictures of Cape Town. So, enjoy... and stay tuned.

Did you know there were penguins in South Africa?  ; )