Creative Entrepreneurs: Shilo’s Jose Gomez

Over the past year, creative production company Shilo and director Jose Gomez took on the challenge of creating a great deal of stunning cinematic content for Qatar TV, as you can see in the montage featured above. After traveling to Qatar to learn more about the culture and people – and make a lot of new friends – Shilo crafted this original HD content and much more for Qatar TV’s on-air identity.

“We were asked to make each promo a metaphor for different aspirational subjects such as education, business, environment and family,” Jose explains. “The main creative challenge was to render these stories in artistic and simple ways that didn’t require further explanation or language. We focused on conveying a feeling and tone for each subject in ways that are abstract and metaphorical but still understandable.” Read more

Factory Design Labs and Leviathan Drive Callaway

The principals of design-focused production studio Leviathan are very proud to share the results of their collaborations with advertising agency Factory Design Labs on behalf of Callaway Golf Company. Numerous TV spots and brand films supporting the launch of Callaway Golf’s new line of RAZR Fit Xtreme(TM) Drivers, X Hot(TM) Drivers, Fairway Woods and Irons have recently debuted on targeted media outlets and Callaway’s YouTube Channel. Leviathan’s team has been integrally involved in the end-to-end design, animation and visual effects aspects elevating the visual, artistic, branding and storytelling aspects of these spots and several new Callaway product films and still renderings that are 100 percent CG. Read more

2013 AICP Show Call for Entries

The Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) has announced its call for entries for the 2013 AICP Show and Next Awards. Entries are now being accepted at www.aicp.com. For more information visit AllArtIsAdvertising.com.

Making history: Super Bowl XLVII

This Sunday, CBS will broadcast Super Bowl XLVII, and while the historic main event involves the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens playing football, many viewers are certain to be especially tuned-into the ads which brands are spending millions upon millions of dollars on just to place. Without even considering the costs of production, is it worth a $3.8 million media buy just to run a 30-second spot during this year’s Super Bowl? For brands looking to reach some 150 million viewers all at once, this year’s NFL championship game is probably the only hope, and the pot gets even sweeter when you consider how much media buzz attends this highly ambitious media strategy. Right now and in the weeks to come, in some of the world’s most prominent media outlets, the game’s advertising is getting more buzz than the players set to take the field on Sunday. I know this first-hand based on my personal experiences supporting high-profile Super Bowl projects involving my clients at global creative agency ATTIK and many others.

Last month I shared the stories from Adweek and The Los Angeles Times about the very cool 2012 Ads Leaderboard from YouTube. I find it interesting that a quick scan of the Top 10 ads of 2012 reveals many spots that debuted during last year’s Super Bowl. To me, it’s further evidence of the far-reaching returns on investments from advertising during a Super Bowl broadcast. Be sure to check out USA Today’s Ad Meter where you can discuss and rate this year’s ads. And to view 41-years’ worth of Super Bowl commercials, visit www.adland.tv/SuperBowlCommercials.

Rocking, rolling with PICROW

Digital content studio and branded entertainment agency GreenLight Media & Marketing recently engaged the award-winning, full-service Hollywood production studio Pictures In A Row (PICROW) and director/cinematographer Peter Lang for a high-profile assignment for “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and sponsoring partner Hyundai. To take full advantage of Hyundai’s sponsorship of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” GreenLight conceived two energetic :15 spots featuring visually stunning cinematography of a custom Hyundai Santa Fe, which was a perfect fit for Lang and other PICROW in-house talents, including editor Joseph Remerowski.

Coming soon to PBS: “Mission of Hope”

Premiering Jan. 31, 2013, on PBS, “Mission of Hope” is the untold inspirational story of Colonel Ilan Ramon, a fighter pilot and son of Holocaust survivors who became the first and only astronaut from Israel, embarking on a mission with the most diverse Shuttle crew ever to explore space. Ramon realized the significance of “being the first” and his journey of self-discovery turned into a mission to tell the world a powerful story about the resilience of the human spirit. Although the seven astronauts of the Columbia perished on February 1, 2003, a remarkable story of hope, friendship across cultures and an enduring faith reemerged.

Playtone presents a West Street Productions and Herzog & Company film. Read more

Award-winning Innovation Lifecycle

On Thursday, Dec. 6, The Global Awards for the “World’s Best Healthcare Advertising” announced its 2012 award winners at ceremonies in New York City and Sydney, Australia. At the New York festivities, executives from the Intellectual Property (IP) & Science business of Thomson Reuters and the full-service Hollywood production studio Pictures In A Row (PICROW) were present to receive their Global Award for “The Innovation Lifecycle” (www.youtu.be/ibfrzjb_fB0). Created by PICROW in direct collaboration with Thomson Reuters executives and recently also awarded a CLIO Healthcare Award, this unique brand film presents a story of a series of professionals guiding viewers through the complicated process of transforming a scientific discovery into a life-saving drug using Thomson Reuters products and services. To shine more light on the project’s development, PICROW executives have produced this behind-the-scenes presentation illuminating their work on this award-winning production. Read more

Forces for good: Kobe Bryant

In this first episode of Mission: Kobe Bryant, the renowned NBA star visits Skid Row to learn about the issues facing homeless people in LA, and speaks to four extraordinary men seeking to improve their lives. You can learn more about the Kobe and Vanessa Bryant Family Foundation’s fight to end homelessness in LA by visiting www.kvbff.org. You can also follow the link to the YouTube posting to find a Homeless Service Organization near you through the National Coalition for the Homeless.

More on Mission: www.bit.ly/VOEpdN

In Mission, Kobe Bryant documents an honest account of challenges facing residents of Skid Row, the downtown Los Angeles area with the largest concentration of homeless people in the United States. Through his personal and candid conversations with residents of The Los Angeles Mission Read more

YouTube’s Top 10 Ads of 2012

This week I have read some great coverage about YouTube’s top ads of 2012. I’m embedding a YouTube playlist with the current list of top spots here. For more depth and insights, I encourage you to read Tim Nudd’s story for Adweek.com kicking off the publication’s new Monthly YouTube Ads Leaderboard coverage… as well as Tiffany Hsu’s story for LA Times Money & Co. and the fascinating YouTube 2012 Ads Leaderboard.