This ain’t your grandma’s barcode for tomato soup. The evolution of identification codes continues and we now see new applications for the not so new technology popping up everywhere. If you don’t know what that funny looking black and white box above this text is, stand by. If you do, feel free to skip past the history lesson. Continue reading ‘Is “QR” Code for Happiness?’
Evidently Toronto is a good place to be right now. Especially if your intent is to create engaging video content for a hungry Canadian Internet market. The jury is out, and the verdict is that Canadians watch online video more than any other country in the world. The crazy Canucks just can’t get enough. Continue reading ‘Canada’s Internet Video Addiction’
Unilever were undoubtedly the stars of this year’s Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival, winning the renowned ‘Advertiser of the Year’ award. It has to be said, that after 50 years of inspiring and pioneering campaigns, it’s thoroughly well-deserved.
Unilever won their first Cannes Lion with Omo washing powder in 1961 and there’s been no stopping them since, with over 200 Lions in total. Their campaigns include the groundbreaking Dove ‘Evolution’, the much loved PG Tips ‘Chimp Family’ and Marmite’s uniquely brilliant ‘Love It or Hate It’ ads.
We were thrilled to be asked to make a film that would showcase Unilever’s fantastic heritage of advertising campaigns (an accompaniment to Keith Weed’s acceptance speech as Chief Marketing Officer). With over 400 brands to choose from, and 50 years worth of material, we were spoilt for choice.
In terms of advertising, Unilever have always been on the mark -- they were behind the first ever TV advert to be broadcast (Gibbs Toothpaste 1955) and continue to be ahead of the game with recent viral campaigns such as Axe’s ‘Clean Your Balls’. We wanted to celebrate Unilever’s success whilst placing their work in context. Here’s what we came up with…
We live in a highly visual time. In the urban world nature has long ago relented to the onslaught of build and design. Most of the things that people design and create are easily overlooked as they blend into the clutter of our daily lives. We’ve all heard the cliche assertion that the average person sees thousands of branded messages a day, and likely remembers or even consciously acknowledges very few of them. Amidst such competition, seeing a visual style so striking is rare and instantly captivating. I came across the work of Alex Varanese months ago, and somehow found myself compelled to go back for more. While thematically he offers some variety, stylistically his consistency draws a very clear picture of the view from his frontal lobe. To me that is the rare part. There are recurrent elements that create texture and context, but also make his work recognizable and memorable. There is a feeling of deep layering that pervades and makes me think he toiled over the intricacies with the dedication of old time craftsman of unfettered resolve.
Alex Varanese may or may not be your favorite artist, but just see if you can get away with only one look at his collection.
Today marks the YouTube premiere of Evidently’s latest project -- Smober Up -- work of which we’re crazy proud.
I’ll describe it quickly to you here, but I encourage you to click the link just above to see it in its natural surrounds…
First off, some context.
One in 5 Canadians smoke. Two-thirds of them report that they’re desperate to quit. And once they’ve decided to quit, most will fail (repeatedly) before they succeed.
Smober Up is a 10-part docu-reality series that chronicles the real life experiences of eight Canadians as they try to quit smoking. Continue reading ‘Evidently’s latest creative launches: Smober Up’
I will begin by offering a pretext for the content of this post by publicly stating, “I currently have an odd obsession with infographics.” That said, this one while entertaining can actually be useful at times. Choosing an appropriate font for a project can often be a challenge, but since encountering this little gem, I have had a basis for rationalizing my decisions.
“So You Need A Typeface” was featured on Inspiration Lab, a blog by Julie Katrine Andersen, a Danish graphic designer. It was a brilliant project created by one of her students, 22 year old Julian Hansen. May it serve you as it has me during moments of indecision.
It all started in April 2005 when a 19-second video clip was uploaded to an unknown website. A year later, that same website had over 100 million daily hits. That website is YouTube, an internet giant and household name across the globe. Continue reading ‘The rise and rise of YouTube’
The other weekend I was watching the undefinably glamourous Monaco Formula 1 GP, which is considered the blue ribbon event within the sports calendar. As well as having a keen interest in the sport, it a good chance to play celebrity spotter – Michael Douglas, Gerrard Butler and even J-Lo had hot-footed it over from nearby Cannes to spectate. But the thing that caught my eye was that BBC’s Jake Humphrey, the show’s presenter, was clutching an iPad for most of the show. Like a super-charged upgrade to the humble clipboard. Continue reading ‘The next thing in clipboards?’
JK Rowling is extraordinary, no doubt. But I’ve just watched a talk she gave which made me like her as a person rather more. In it, she explains the benefits of failure over success, how the former enables the latter, and how sometimes falling flat on your face can teach you more than any qualification.
And she does it as a commencement speech at Harvard…good on her.
Microrentals are the newest space-conscious trend to hit Japan; go to nokisaki.com and you can (if you speak Japanese) rent ‘dead space’ in Tokyo for as little as $15 for 3 hours…
Check out more at WSJ online.
I love this talk by Elizabeth Gilbert, author of “Eat, Pray, Love,” on wrestling with writing, keeping creativity alive, and giving yourself a break when you just need a break…
Anyone else thinking what I was thinking when they first watched the latest Lady Gaga video extravaganza? Continue reading ‘Lady Gaga & the art of product placement’
Over the weekend, Demi Moore and Nia Vardalos may have helped keep a Florida teen from committing suicide. A teen neither had ever met. Continue reading ‘Twitter Saves Lives (?)’
I clearly have a strange obsession with Lady Gaga.
After writing the below blog post, I have found myself eagerly checking LadyGaga.com on an almost daily basis in anticipation of her new video release for Telephone. So how excited was I to find out it has its world premiere on her site tomorrow? Very.
It’ll be on here as soon as I’ve seen it…watch this space!
Gaga? I don’t think so. The woman is the opposite.
Lady Gaga is so hot right now. From zero to superstar in a matter of months, she’s a self-styled marketing Queen. And the secret of her success? Two words: Social Media. Continue reading ‘Gaga ooh la la!’
Êtes-vous ou connaissez vous un fumeur prêt à cesser la cigarette, mais qui aurait besoin d’un petit coup de main pour le faire?
Evidently Picture recherche des gens pour tourner une série documentaire intitulée ENFUMÉ.
Recherchons fumeurs vivant à Montréal prêts à arrêter.
D’une durée de 10 semaines, cette expérience unique vous aidera à arrêter de fumer et ce, avec l’aide d’un expert et traitement de remplacement de la nicotine.
Cette série vous suivra, ainsi que votre famille, tout au long de ce processus pour vous aider à cesser de fumer une bonne fois pour toutes!
En plus de cette expérience unique, les participants courent la chance de gagner le prix du billet d’avion n’importe où à travers le monde et ce, d’une valeur de 2000$.
Vous êtes intéressé par ce magnifique projet ? Veuillez envoyer votre candidature au courriel suivant: smokedcasting@evidently.com
I watched this video for the first time yesterday. It had about 109,000 hits at the time. Today, more than 1,200,000.
Could this be OK Go’s triumphant comeback, having relinquished their most-insanely-highly-watched-music-vid-on-YouTube title to Lady Gaga…Miley Cyrus…Vanessa Hudgens…and umm…Susan Boyle?
You be the judge.
p.s. I think yes. I loved it. But weirdly, I can’t really remember how the song goes…
Are you or is someone close to you a smoker? Are you ready to quit, but need a little help?
Evidently Pictures is currently casting a docu series titled “Smoked”, seeking Greater Toronto Area smokers who want to quit.
Over 10 weeks, have the unique experience of quitting with expert support and custom over-the-counter nicotine replacement therapy. The series will follow you and your family in your journey to quit, this time for good.
In return for the time and experience you’re sharing you could win a flight anywhere in the world, up to a value of $2000!
Please email: smokedcasting@evidently.com if you or someone you know is ready to quit!
I’m pretty cocky about my spelling, but you always manage to trip me up. Thanks for humbling me.
For all the ‘THANK YOUS’ you never say, this woman does:
Although our bodies appear largely symmetrical on the outside, the way our brains are organised and wired is rather more lop-sided. This is obvious to us in relation to handedness, whereby the brain is better at controlling one hand than the other. The idea that, for many of us, the left-hemisphere is dominant for language is also widely known. However, functional asymmetry between the brain hemispheres also affects our behavior in more subtle ways that are still being explored. The latest example of this comes from Japan where Matia Okubo has shown that right-handers have a preference for sitting to the right of the cinema screen, but only when they are motivated to watch the film. Continue reading ‘How to Optimise Neural Processing of a Film’
So far, little has been covered in the mass media over here in the UK about the internet’s most recent and shamelessly chaotic (and hellish/hilarious) addition to the social ‘interaction’ cauldron.
This is despite the fact that its numbers have reportedly soared from a few hundred into the dozens of thousands since its launch last December. Why, it’s chatroulette.com of course and it’s based on the simple premise of bringing complete strangers face to face via webcam until one or the other decides they’ve had enough of you..and clicks onto the next.
Wonderful. Or is it?
Well no, it isn’t…because of the few who spoil it for the many, or in this case the many who spoil it for the few.
Enter at your own risk!
…bravo, Google. Bravo:
p.s. the Saints won.
Animators have the best imaginations…
Yesterday, millions and millions of devotees sat glued to their screens, waiting for breathlessly for the latest life-altering word from their leader.
Also airing: The State of the Union Address.
In a sad state of affairs, it seems that there was more buzz about Apple’s latest release than the President’s. How can healthcare compete with a 10 inch screen and a wireless milk frother? (The latter is still in beta.)
According to our friends at Google, it can’t….
All eyes in the tech world will be on Apple later today as it holds a press conference in San Francisco to unveil the iPad Reader. Tech forums and blogs are speculating on whether the device will be a keyboard-less tablet. The smart bet seems to be on the latest offerings from Apple being a some sort of “slate-like computer which traditionally bridges the gap between smartphones and laptops”.
Despite years of rumours, Apple have been able to keep a tight lid on exactly what the mythical piece of hardware actually is. A giant iPhone? A rival to the e-reader? A new gaming device? Having hypothesised what it might actually be, debates have been stirring as to whether it the iPad will crack open a new market or will be a (successful?) rival in an existing market. We have but hours to wait and find out what it is and just an hour before we can judge whether it is worth the critical and social-networking hype.
Keep watching Apple’s space…
