Brandcast Media

OK so here’s something which comes in the top 10 most creative ideas Ive seen for a while, and it involves balloons:

Generic timelapses have bored us from the television world to the corporate world for far too long now, but I think this one, recently featured in Gizmodo (http://gizmodo.com/) is pretty awe inspiring:

Timelapse – The City Limits from Dominic on Vimeo.

Another ad that we like here at Brandcast. Nicely directed with high production values and a funny pay off… it almost makes me want to do the vacuuming. Almost.

This is an incredible short stumbled across recently. Bruce Branit’s “World Builder” short film is a impressive piece of storytelling. While it begins initially with a lot of technology, it is an impactful and rewarding human story that is one of the best short films I’ve come across for a few years. Enjoy!

Panasonic have just brought out a new video camera, nicknamed by some the “DSLR killer”. There seems to have recently been a craze for shallow depth of field (that cinematic look) and vibrant, HD images which a DSLR with a large sensor and interchangeable lenses is able to produce. However, they have  a lot of compromises, such as awful sound, shakey images and reduced recording times. The AG-AF101 seems to be the perfect compromise, offering all the pros of a prosumer video camera AND all the pros of a DSLR, without any of the cons. Sure, it might cost £3k more, and it may not be the most aesthetically pleasing camera ever, but goodness me the image quality it produces is nice… here’s a random video of some Japanese stuff to prove it:

This is the latest RKCY/Y&R spot for Virgin Atlantic, directed by Traktor. It’s follows on from their previous spot celebrating the airline’s 25th anniversary. With reference to James Bond title sequences I guess it’s looking to put the some the allure back into flying. However, it’s so far removed from the actual reality of flying, coupled with the flat dialogue at the end, dispelling all notion of glamour and making it more reminiscent of a spoof of the dream sequence from The Big Lebowski than a Bond.

Can W***** and K****** do no wrong!? The new Nike and Footlocker viral stars Marouane Chamakh and Andrey Arshavin who have joined forces with French World Champion female boxer and model Ingrid Graziani to promote the new Air Max 90 trainer. The video uses some snazzy projection mapping techniques for it’s animation execution.

EPIC. Who said TV advertising is dead? Needs several viewings to appreciate the complexity of what Nike have done here. The gauntlet has been well any truly thrown down to other sportswear manufacturers (any just about anyone else) in the run up to the World Cup.

So often today with films adverts or music promos, a very basic idea is dressed up to be something much more than it actually is. Once we look past the aesthetic, the idea is found wanting. A simple idea is not the same as a basic idea. A simple idea works on its own, but can be made to any degree of complexity, without losing the core of the original idea.

I think this animation from Renaud Hallée perfectly illustrates what I’m trying to say. Watch in full screen.

Check out Ad Age’s list of Top 20 most effective viral videos on YouTube here.

As they say:   As a publication that covers the business of marketing, advertising and media, Ad Age closely watches how advertisers and marketers use platforms like YouTube. That the videos in this list are selling something is almost besides the fact; these clips are pure entertainment.

Ahh what a cute kitten!! See him do all kinds of cute stuff here.

My faith in the music promo has been restored by these three very different, but equally excellent offerings from OK GO (dir. James Frost), Darwin Deez (dir. Ace Norton) and Jamie T (dir. Adam Powell). You might remember OK GO from THAT treadmill video.

-J

However much you tell people what you’re about, there’s nothing like showing them.

That’s why we encouraged the London Handel Festival to make a video of a typical major production of the Festival in rehearsal. We filmed some great music and heard what the stars, the artistic director and his colleagues have to say about Handel, his music and his place in the life of London (his adopted home for 50 years, and the place where he died).

We picked Theodora – one of the last and greatest of Handel’s oratorios whose theme – dear to mid-eighteenth century novelists – was that of a virtuous damsel in distress. The setting for this production was the great church of St George’s in Hanover Square, where Handel himself worshipped, and where the London Handel Festival has its home. The result, we hope you will agree, is astonishing and curiously moving.

Handels Theodora from Charlie Grieve on Vimeo.