Today we wrapped up our portfolio class with the end-of-semester critique. Everyone finished in time and it was nice to see my classmates' work (and my own) come to fruition. We got some helpful feedback from industry pros which enabled us to gauge our progress on "making our books."
No matter how you slice it though, it's been an exhausting journey. As my friend Stacey put so precisely early this week, "P2 [intermediate portfolio] is full of growing pains." I agree. Unlike in P1 (beginning portfolio), we're sorta at the point now where we know when our stuff sucks, but are still grappling at making things good or great. There's a whole lot of being satisfactory or adequate, but not special. Needless to say it's frustrating, but all part of the learning experience.
Anyway, like all things in life besides the really important things like family and friends, you just have to remind yourself "it's just advertising." We all get sucked into our own little worlds and forget about the world going on outside. We don't return phone calls. We go underground for unknown periods of time, conversing only with others in the same situation. Our tempers are short and we're ready to pounce on unsuspecting copy center employees, should they mess up our order or coloration on our final ads. We worry about the most infinitesimal details... "I don't have time to get coffee, I have to redo the Gaussian blur." To quote my undergrad econ professor, Ken Elzinga, "In the long run we're all dead." How much difference will that extra 10 minutes for a snack or caffeine break make in the long run? Will it be the difference between a lower and higher score at critique? Probably not.
But who am I kidding? I got sucked into the madness just as much as everyone. As usual, seeing everyone else stressed out frazzled me as well. Call it pathetic, but I was glad for it to end because for the first time in a week I sat down and watched three TV shows in a row. I stress the word watched, because I've been listening while graphic designing/art directing or cutting my foamcore for the final mounted ads for the past week, but hadn't truly enjoyed the art of watching TV.
Going back to "it's just advertising," a friend of mine pointed me in the direction of this unbelievably hilarious YouTube video parodying agency life. I laughed loudly at least six times during the video, and thought over and over again "this is what I'm going to school for." I think if you can't laugh at yourself you won't be able to survive in the working world. It was the perfect thing to watch after a day, week, month, and really, semester of portfolio obsessing.
I love that it doesn't miss a single detail. Egotistical creatives* driven by the incessant need to win awards (and toot their own horns about it). The mention that Crispin always comes up with the great ideas, looking for inspiration in the CA annual, which works perfectly, as that issue arrives in December. Guerilla marketing. KISS - Keep it simple stupid (I enjoyed the surprising substitution of "shithead" though for that final S in the acronym). "Concepting." There's a word you don't hear enough of in the advertising world.
Well enough with the overanalysis. I'm going to KISS and get ready for and go to bed -- a plan that has worked for thousands of nights of my life already, and yet never loses its freshness.
*I will post my opinions on this word in a future post. Stay tuned.
Showing posts with label agencies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label agencies. Show all posts
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Monday, September 8, 2008
Dr J, Dr P
Y'all catch the Dr. J Dr Pepper commercial yet? I get the vibe it's been around for a little while, but I've been seeing it a lot lately.
Well I must say I'm a fan. Why exactly? Because it is so perfectly corny in every way. Check it out:
It has all the "nos" of creative advertising wrapped into one beautiful, hilarious, so-bad-it's-good package.
How, you ask?
Does it have a ridiculous celebrity spokesman for the product?
Check, Dr. J, obviously a candidate who'd know lots about... soda. And Dr. J, Dr Pepper, very funny, we get it easily.
Oh, so an athlete is the spokesperson. Is there a cheesy slo-mo sports play in the commercial?
Check, oh you know it.
Ah yes, and for Dr. Pepper. Clever. How many times is that pun approached?
At least 3 times (Dr. J name is a pun in every mention, so there's at least a pun in introduction, when he mentions being a doctor, and tagline at end).
Is a cheesy over-the-top sports feat accomplished (an impossible goal or shot, slam dunking on the moon, etc.) to a play-by-play soundtrack or equally silly song?
Oh yeah, Dr. J hits the glass with his ice cube from 10 feet away. In slow motion. Gotta love the music during the shot though. It was my favorite part of the commercial.
How about a cringe-when-you-hear it line from the script?
"Trust me. I'm a doctor."
And a pun-tastic tagline to seal the commercial?
Check. Dr's orders. Doesn't get any better than that!
Apparently we can expect more where that came from from Deutsch/LA, where similar ads will feature another doctor with expertise, Dr. Frasier Crane. The boundless corniness of this installation will certainly be tough to top.
Well I must say I'm a fan. Why exactly? Because it is so perfectly corny in every way. Check it out:
It has all the "nos" of creative advertising wrapped into one beautiful, hilarious, so-bad-it's-good package.
How, you ask?
Does it have a ridiculous celebrity spokesman for the product?
Check, Dr. J, obviously a candidate who'd know lots about... soda. And Dr. J, Dr Pepper, very funny, we get it easily.
Oh, so an athlete is the spokesperson. Is there a cheesy slo-mo sports play in the commercial?
Check, oh you know it.
Ah yes, and for Dr. Pepper. Clever. How many times is that pun approached?
At least 3 times (Dr. J name is a pun in every mention, so there's at least a pun in introduction, when he mentions being a doctor, and tagline at end).
Is a cheesy over-the-top sports feat accomplished (an impossible goal or shot, slam dunking on the moon, etc.) to a play-by-play soundtrack or equally silly song?
Oh yeah, Dr. J hits the glass with his ice cube from 10 feet away. In slow motion. Gotta love the music during the shot though. It was my favorite part of the commercial.
How about a cringe-when-you-hear it line from the script?
"Trust me. I'm a doctor."
And a pun-tastic tagline to seal the commercial?
Check. Dr's orders. Doesn't get any better than that!
Apparently we can expect more where that came from from Deutsch/LA, where similar ads will feature another doctor with expertise, Dr. Frasier Crane. The boundless corniness of this installation will certainly be tough to top.
Monday, June 16, 2008
The Advertising Ivy League
So today I was internet-ing and I stumbled upon (though not by using StumbleUpon) a list of advertising agencies that allegedly compose an unspoken Ivy League. I've thought about the concept a few times and was curious if anyone had ever ventured to publish a list, and somewhat serendipitously found this today.
According to the daily (ad) biz, these are today's Ivy League advertising institutions (as of May 2008):
And of course Honorable Mentions... aka "Bubble Teams":
While I don't pretend to know any more than the next ad enthusiast, I'd be surprised to see CP+B, Goodby, and W+K not on the list. TBWA is a far from shocking inclusion as well. I was happy of course to see Virginia is for Lovers' (of old) (The) Martin Agency on the honorable mention short list though.
In an industry so volatile, you can never be certain how long any agency can maintain Ivy League status. This list (though a blogger's opinion) could well be obsolete in a matter of months. Either way, it was enjoyable to see a blogger venture to rank the advertising world's titans for the rest of us to contemplate.
According to the daily (ad) biz, these are today's Ivy League advertising institutions (as of May 2008):
And of course Honorable Mentions... aka "Bubble Teams":
While I don't pretend to know any more than the next ad enthusiast, I'd be surprised to see CP+B, Goodby, and W+K not on the list. TBWA is a far from shocking inclusion as well. I was happy of course to see Virginia is for Lovers' (of old) (The) Martin Agency on the honorable mention short list though.
In an industry so volatile, you can never be certain how long any agency can maintain Ivy League status. This list (though a blogger's opinion) could well be obsolete in a matter of months. Either way, it was enjoyable to see a blogger venture to rank the advertising world's titans for the rest of us to contemplate.
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