Campus MovieFest

A few weeks ago I attended the Campus MovieFest where a large number of University of Alabama students created 5 minute films to compete against each other various prizes and a chance to move on to the National Competition.

I'm just going to share with you some of my favorite movies that were shown at this years event. So without further ado....

1) "Day"
Created by Project Theory at For The Love Of Movies in 2011

This movie shows off the darker side of drug use with the film centering around Lucy who is in an abusive relationship with her partner Cid. Through several counseling sessions Lucy finally gets the courage to move out, but she hasn't told Cid yet.

A very moving movie that shows a side of life that most people choose not to see.

2) "Two Guys Getting Over A Wall"

Created by Hakeem Olajuwo

This film is an "allegory" about two men trying to get over a wall. Using boosties, philosophy, and help from household objects. 

Will they succeed? 

What's over the wall? and

What happens when they need to get back over the wall?  

All of these questions will be answered in this tale of struggle and achievement. 

3) "The Bus Stop"

Created by Top Flight

This endearing tale will have you laughing, feeling awkward, and joyfully giddy by the end of it. A simple bus stop sees many characters come and go and what happens at this particular bus stop is a love story. The two men in the film have a sort of modern day Odd Couple style to their humor and should both go on to do more comical shorts.

4) "Sugarbaby"

Created by Bob Loblaw's Law Blog

We've all been in a situation similar to this, where you are trying to get the point across to someone who obviously doesn't want to hear what you have to say. This situation is a bit more comical with the edition of coffee-shop on lookers and an item from Publix. Be sure to stay til the end for a big laugh!

Clearly, someone's been doing the herbal

Herbal Essences have always done a mixture of two advertising appeals in their television commercials. Their new “Someone’s been doing the herbal” is no different.

Most of today's twenty-something women have done 'the herbal'.

 For the young twenty-something women the ad is geared towards, it goes after a personal appeal. It shows women using the product with a smile on their face and hair that always comes out perfect, giving them a boost of much needed confidence.

Humor is the other appeal Herbal Essence has always tried to throw into their commercial; however, this almost backfired with negative press about their “Orgasmic” commercial a few years ago. Their new commercial though plays off their product’s name, Herbal.

 The commercial, shown above, depicts a woman using the product and as she uses it she starts to fantasize about wild dream and aspirations, her dream comes to an abrupt halt and the announcer says “Clearly, someone’s been doing the Herbal”, an obvious reference to marijuana.

 This campaign could easily come under scrutiny like their last campaign; however, the damage is already done and Herbal Essence will receive good and bad press for this campaign and laugh all the way to the bank.

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To continue with the drug references, it is clear that Skittles Marketing Managers over the last couple of years have really gone for the absurdity and humorour over anything else in their advertisements.

Their “Taste the Rainbow” commercials have had everything from a man who turns everything he touches into skittles (a la the Skittles “midas” touch), a giant man-sized tube sock living with an old couple, and their online commercials go off of the deep end in regards to ridiculousness.

The tubesock uses mass amounts of static electricity to jolt the old man's tongue, mimicing the FIZZ sensation of Skittles new flavor.

 While the older consumers might not ‘get’ these commercials, the younger consumers that skillets are marketed towards definitely do like them and it has shown with skittles continuing their asinine but successful campaign.

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Godaddy.com , an online website hosting company, has always used sex appeal to get their customers to come to their website.

Their method is to show Candice Michelle, or another gorgeous supermodel, in some situation in which she inevitably strips - or starts to - on camera. The commercial ends just before anything too revealing is shown and viewers of the ad are asked to go to GoDaddy.com to view the rest of the ad in which the viewer hopes will be filled with T & A.

A simple ‘tease & please’ method of getting customers to go to your site.

So Authentic, it should be illegal

Any marketing campaign that increases business, no matter how out there or ridiculous it is, should be considered a success. Roberto’s Taco Shop’s ‘honesty is the best policy’ campaign is prime example of an idea that sounds bad on paper but paid off after execution.

As a Mexican food shop ,having employees being arrested by the INS could be the most detrimental thing to your business; however, thanks to quick thinking by the marketing team Roberto’s Taco Shop was able to increase business despite their unfortunate situation

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The first ad that was shown in the surfing magazine depicts a U.S. Border Control officer’s badge and has the slogan “Mexican food so authentic, the competition can’t wait to get their hands on our cooks”. Brilliantly simple and hilarious, this ad quite plainly tells the reader that ‘yes’ their employees have been arrested due to immigration but that is what makes their food so delicious.

The second ad of an open car trunk I feel is a bit more jarring to the viewer of the ad. The picture is simple but after a glance you are compelled to read more into the ad. The slogan chosen for this ad is “To prove how authentic our Mexican food is, we’d like to show you were we get our cooks.” Slightly offensive, but truthful, is obviously the route they went for.

I would really like to see how Mexicans felt towards these ads. Considering their business increased, I would assume that Mexicans did not care too much about the offensive subject material.

Yellow Sticky Notes

Post-it Notes.

The invention that seemed perfect for the unorganized person looking to be organized. One of the few accidental inventions that made a big splash in the consumer market, sticky notes have become a staple of the business and office world. 

Ever since their creation in the 1980s, 3M has reaped the profits of a simple product with many useful implementations. First created for a bookmark of sorts, Art Fry saw the potential of his idea and after a few years of development he went to market; ultimately succeeding in the consumer market. 

The very recognizable yellow hue of the notes were simply by accident. The lab next to the Post-it Note lab had excessive yellow sheets of paper. So seeing this as a cost-efficient way to gain a supply of paper, 3M decided to print the first few batches of sticky notes on this, now unforgettable, color.

These notes have been used in all sorts of art since their creation in the 80s. From collages, flip books, and even stackable fans, Post-its have always given the creatives in the world a way of jotting down notes, to-do lists, or even just doodles. 

Which brings me to the reason for this post (pun intended).

Jeff Stearns, an animator, film maker, and entrepreneur has been using Post-it Notes for many years. He has a Cafe Press  page that allows shoppers to purchase his sticky note doodles on shirts, coffee mugs, and even hats. However, the definitive piece of work that showed me just how much Jeff loves 3M's product was the following film:

Yellow Sticky Notes

Dr Seuss vs. Ninja Turtles

"I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells.

Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living,

It's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope.

Which is what I do,

And that enables you to laugh at life's realities.

~ DR. Seuss

The quote above is one that connects with me on a very personal level. Dr. Seuss had a mysterious creativity about him that only he fully understand. His readers, be they young or old, most likely did not truly get some of the hidden message he left in the books.

As the doctor points out in the quote, he loves the nonsense and nothing is more apparent in his writings than that simple fact. He took the absurd and made it kosher for people to say things like:

“My alphabet starts with this letter called yuzz. It's the letter I use to spell yuzz-a-ma-tuzz. You'll be sort of surprised what there is to be found once you go beyond 'Z' and start poking around!”

His whimsical writings enlightened a generation of youth and his books continue to inspire generations to think outside the box. While the recent movie adaptations of Horton Hears a Who, The Grinch, and The Cat in the Hat have all been well received (at least with the kids it was meant for).

Hopefully, more generations of youth will find the joy that Dr. Seuss has instilled with me and other generations. I'll leave you all with one more great quote from the doctor.

“Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the things you can think up if only you try!”

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Next, is something completely unrelated, but, still equally amazing.

Recently, a short film inspired by the fictional Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was released by Director Richard Krause. The short film, according to Krause, is a tease of what a future TMNT full-length film could be about. In Krause's universe, Shredder is unknown of, Splinter is still training the Turtles, and the Turtles are not known by public.

Fight The Foot

The film shows April O'Neil sitting quietly in her apartment, looking over photos of Foot Clan members. April's reporting has always gotten her in trouble with the Foot; reporting on evil doings by evil-doers is not a good way to stay out of harms way. Thankfully Ralph, the red Turtle, is watching over April. As soon as the Foot Clan enter her apartment, Ralph emerges from the shadows ready to show the clan the new foe they will encounter in future fights. Ralph makes an easy fight out of the 5 of so clan members and once the fight is done gives April a stare of security.

For more information on the director responsible for this short film, head on over here.

Volkswagen's Super Bowl XLV Commercials

Volkswagen has always captivated the hearts of Americans with their witty, humorous, and magically simple advertisements. From simply designed magazine ads that resonated loudly with the sub-culture of the time to comically wild commercials such as their "Unpimp" campaign; VW has done everything slightly different than their competitors.

Today Volkswagen debuted two new commercials that will, once again, capture a new audience. These commercials are set to air during Super Bowl XLV.

The first one shows off the all-new Passat. VW uses the appeal of Star Wars to help hopefully build relationships with a new market. A pint-sized Darth Vader is trouble to learn that his menacing suit & cape do not grant him the power of the force. It is not until the boy sees the new Passat that he is granted the power of the force.

The combination of these two iconic brands leverage humor and the unforgettable Star Wars score to craft a truly emotional and creative commercial.

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The second VW commercial is something that most Americans have been waiting to see....well sort of. It shows a black beetle sprinting through a congested microcosm. Zipping past other beetles, zooming around corners, and dodging massive centipedes it is quite obvious VW is allowing the audience to use their imagination and replace the beetle with the new 21st Century Beetle.

"Both spots show the creativity and innovation that people expect from an iconic brand like Volkswagen. The Super Bowl is unlike any other media platform in the world in terms of its reach and cultural influence. It is tailor-made for big announcements and is the perfect way for VW to engage the American public." - Mike Sheldon, CEO, Deutsch LA, Volkswagen's Agency of Record

Subculture Movements

Bob Marley's "Get up, Stand Up" has to be one of the most recognized reggae songs of all time. It inspires people to rise against authority and the traditional norms that citizens face every day. Government oppression is a main theme in most of Bob's music and the line "..Stand up for your rights!" clearly depicts this.

As times change, so does the music. Now-a-days it seems there are more music genres than there are flavors of Hamburger Helper to choose from. However, as with past music movements, a certain sub-culture flocks to each music genre. Today's dub-step and various electronic sub-genres have become the movements as to which the more creative, artsy, elaborate, "out-of-the-box" thinkers have swarmed to.

These creative types might seem odd when looking at them at the gas station: crazy hair, unusual sense of clothing style, and generally outgoing; but they have a passion for the arts that have not been seen in our society for a long while. These 'hippies' envelope themselves in their culture and lifestyle, embrace their chi, and spread good vibes to any and all who are receiving to those vibes.

Bob Marley, I hope, would be proud of the fundamentals that this new sub-culture is ensuing upon our society.

Below is a dub-step remix of Bob Marley's famous "Get Up, Stand Up" -- done by Blunt Instrument

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To follow this theme of sub-cultures, I will showcase an artist I was just recently made aware of and fell in love with his work.

Adam Scott Miller has classically studied art Maryland Institute College of Art and Massachusetts College of Art. His art is influenced by key principles of insight from art, science, and mysticism. Devotion is a word that Adam knows very intimately and it shows with the level of detail in each painting he produces.

A quote from the Artist Statement on his page:

"The paintings of Adam Scott Miller art artifacts excavated from exploring the relationships between mystical personal experience and universally relevant concepts. Art is his tool for discovery, and a by-product of the experience of his consciousness...."

If you find time after reading this post, please head over to his website and think about ordering some of his very affordable prints.

Sudanese Refugees

Last night I devoted a portion of my time to educating my world view. I learned of a tragic story that every one should be aware of and do all that you can to bring awareness of these travesties to the fore-front of the media. Before I tell you the story, I'd like to thank Amanda Small for inviting me to this event.

I arrived at the University of Alabama's Ferguson Center around 7pm, went to the movie theater where the showing was, and walked in and sat down to hear the speech in progress.With bright lights surrounding the dark figure at the front of the auditorium, I quickly gathered that this mysterious man was from an African country.His English was easy to understand despite English being his "2nd Language"  (I'll explain later) and the story he told was a tragic one about his native country of Sudan.

His country was ravaged by the Second Sudanese War, in which most of the people he cared for had been killed or scattered throughout the nearby lands. Some of the lucky Dinka and Nuer (ethnic groups from Sudan) were saved from the war by the U.S. government.

The introduction to the "Lost Boys of Sudan" documentary.

The U.S. government took 3800 of these "Lost Boys of Sudan" and helped them get established into American lifestyle. Giving them a place to stay, money for a few months to live on, and also helped them look for jobs.

The director's focus of the documentary was obviously to showcase the cultural differences between Sudan and America. The shock these Lost Boys encounter when they first saw a refrigerator, an electric stove, and even television was quite amusing. However, some differences that are less apparent are also showcased.

In one instance, the Lost Boys are in their apartment and explain how their affectionate displays of love towards one another must be kept to a minimum in american public. This small detail of life is one of the numerous aspects that the Lost Boys must change, and in doing so, the movie is ultimately a story of how these men must become accustomed to American ways of life.

For anyone interested in cultural differences or just interested in learning of other cultures, I really recommend viewing this movie. It will keep you interested in these boys throughout the entire movie experience.

Check out the movie here : http://www.lostboysfilm.com/