Some things are so ridiculously uncomfortable and cringeworthy that they just have to be shared.
Watch through the gaps in your fingers on your face.
Found via Robert Popper's site which is a treasure trove of the awkward, hilarious and plain weird.
Gotta hand it to her though - that actress is a pro. You can't even see a hint of despair in her eyes!
ReplyDeleteFor a (probably) no budget production...this ain't even half bad. I've seen ads shot with six figure ones that were arguably bad in relation to the money spent on them.
ReplyDeleteI respectfully put it to you, Anonymous 12:32, that your bar is set quite low...
ReplyDelete@SellSell: apparently it's not just my bar that's super low. When was the last time you saw a good poster or ad on tv? And I mean actually saw on the street and on your television set, not on some blog about advertising. I can only recall the 'shot on iphone' one that ran recently that was decent.
ReplyDeleteI agree, the bar seems to be set quite low just about everywhere.
ReplyDeleteDon't get me wrong though, I'd love to do the next Surfer or Refreshes The Parts Other Beers Cannot reach. But there are a billion things preventing that from happening, whether its the decline of good creatives in agencies or clients who'll run it.
ReplyDeleteI'm guessing you work in production of some kind, Anon. I don't think the cringeworthy nature of this has anything to do with budget, at least production budget.
ReplyDeleteI'm just one of those mediocre creatives sitting in an agency dreaming of coming up with the next award winner to live off of for the next 5 years.
ReplyDeleteInspiring stuff.
ReplyDeleteSadly that's where it's all headed towards. I'd be happy with making actual advertising, you know, posters, press, tv. Something that'll actually get seen by human eyeballs as opposed to the next banner or email. I'd also be fine with working directly with clients who trust us to solve their problems. None of that planning and strategy BS, which were solely invented to increase what agencies can charge. More and more value is being put on describing the problem in minute detail in a brief that's four pages long instead of the one sentence that actually matters scribbled hastily on a post-it. Sorry for rambling, slow day here at the office.
ReplyDeleteAt the risk of offering unsolicited and ill-conceived career advice, have considered that you might be in the wrong place?
ReplyDeleteOver the short career I've had so far (6-7 years) I realised there's no such thing as the "right" place. Short of opening up my own agency, there'll always be something that doesn't work in favour of creatives doing the best possible job they can. That being said, the place I'm at now has a great ECD and senior people. However, all the ideas we're putting in our book have never ran and we certainly won't put the stuff in that did.
ReplyDeleteI'm certain there are 'righter' places if it how you describe it. I'm wary of casting aspersions towards people who you clearly have respect for, but if the agency isn't getting the best work of the creatives out for its clients, there is problem at the top somewhere. This is far from an isolated problem in the business, but the tone of an agency, and how it works, is set from the top.
ReplyDeleteMy experience so far is that it's never the same reason for the work not being as good as can be. Sometimes it's the client who doesn't want to get involved and put any effort into making something outstanding. Sometimes there's literally no money to do a piece of comms because they blew all of their cashola on the TVC. Sometimes its the account people getting the whole brief wrong. I always try the best possible job I can with the tools and time I'm given. That way whenever any one of those things happen I can shrug it off with a "it's not my fault since I've tried my best" and get on with my side projects. I think it's the curse of the holding company owned agencies. I'm sure over at SELL!SELL! towers things are different. I'm also sure I wouldn't earn as much as I do now. I've got three bartenders to take care of after all.
ReplyDeleteSad times. Yes it is very different to that at Sell! Towers. We also keep a good few bartenders happy.
ReplyDeleteMaybe I'll pop by one day for a pint. As long as you're paying ;)
ReplyDeleteI've seen places like that, too, anon. It normally means that something is wrong high up in the company, and the purpose of the company existing is lost amongst the day-to-day mess of trying to fight the symptoms of a bigger problem. Network agencies are plagued with this.
ReplyDeleteThe problem in my experience (regarding what you're talkin' bout above) is a lack of real creative leadership in the agency. Especially true when the excuse for interfering with the work essentially amounts to "Ah, but I'm the planning director."
ReplyDeleteIf there isn't real creative leadership, good work going through will always be an accident, not a goal. It's something I've struggled with coming to terms with, but it does mean that a lot of the creative directors I've worked with (despite being talented people whom I personally liked) are not worthy of the mantle, because they do not provide that leadership.
I concur, J. It might look like there are lots of different thing getting in the way of the agency getting the best creative work out each time but, in reality, often they are all symptoms of problems at the top, how the company operates.
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