Thursday, December 16, 2010

The Virtual Canvas of Labuat

Interactive web visuals have become more and more creative and clever. Take this one from the Spanish band Labuat. Soytuaire.Labuat.com. At first I thought it was a beer commercial. Couldn't be further from. I loved Lady Gaga's last vid but this is totally unique; a unique way to be engaged and to engage. It's interactive allowing users to experience the song Soy tu aire/I'm your air in a fluid, masterful way by moving the cursor along the virtual canvas to the flowing, romantic melody. Everyone makes unique movements and you can save yours and send to someone who hopefully loves you back enough to watch. Either way, the whole experience makes you feel relaxed and free (the butterflies help..) I know we'll be seeing more of these things really soon- they can help us communicate just about anything to one another.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Wii Ads on Bananas. How surprise can work.



A few years ago CBS got a lot of egg in the face for their "egg-vertising" campaign. They had millions of eggs laser printed with ads for their show line-up. The whole project got a lot of press, mostly negative. Bloggers hated it and I haven't seen any other CBS ads on eggs. But I've seen Disney ads on eggs (and don't buy them- they're a lot more expensive!). Besides the Ick factor is too high. Isn't anything sacred? Well, apparently not bananas who've wound up as the latest billboards - a new marketing term- "banana-boards?" This time it's pre-holiday Wii ads. I actually had to zoom in on that green bunch, my early morning pre-caf vision a bit blurry. Sad to say, Ick factor also high here. Many bloggers reacted to the bananas the way I reacted to the eggs. But. But. But. For some reason this time, I forgave the marketers for pushing the envelope. After all, I reacted. I felt something. A surprise juxtaposition that worked (for me). Surprise is an important way to grab attention, and in my profession, to keep stories interesting. Sometimes, unfortunately for all of us, the line gets crossed. The effect pushes us away like a pick-up line gone awry. Guys don't always get a second chance, and neither do bananas. But you gotta keep trying to surprise.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Roasted Winter Veggie "Vidipe"

This just wouldn't be a real blog without a recipe, would it? While this happens to be a wonderfully simple, healthy, and yummy one, the reason I've posted is because it's a perfectly crafted video for it's home- the web. So I call this a "Vidi-pe." This is what I want, actually need, to play in my kitchen so I can prepare something edible for my family. Pardon the ad, but we're all used to it by now.




Close-up on the food, (no annoyingly bubbly chinwagger telling me about all the extra fiber I'm going to injest), just pleasant and clear narration, light music, a to-the-point "how to" with a recipe right underneath. This works on laptop, ipad, mobile vid...perfect kitchen content. I have a hard enough time trying to follow a recipe and love this idiot-proof packaging and delivery. It's really delicious and yes, we can all use a little more insoluble fiber...gobble, gobble..Here's link with full recipe: http://tinyurl.com/242qdvl

Monday, November 15, 2010

Our Brave New World

Japan's Biggest Pop Star- A Hologram (this is not a joke...)




If you're familiar with the way the star machine works in Japan then this latest phenom will be no surprise. It's just the latest iteration of the pop music industry creating a collective "idol." Traditionally, good looking young folks are "cast" as musical "talentos"- they don't have to be particularly talented, just cute. They are then trained, packaged and marketed practically to death. When I lived in Tokyo the biggest pop star was Seiko Matsuda. She was everywhere, every tv show, every billboard, every top hit. It was strange. How could she possibly be in so many places at once? Though Matsuda was cute in Japanese terms, she would not have passed the semi-finals on American Idol, or any show where talent mattered. But in Japan, she was an employee of entertainment interests that controlled her every move, her every note. This next generation of holographic idols is a natural progression of a system that everyone was already comfortable with. Question is- where and how will we see it next?
Read more at the UK daily mail: http://bit.ly/aty7Jo