Skip to main content

Did the earth move for you?


Last night there were a series of small earthquakes in Auckland. The biggest was 4.5 on the Richter Scale. Not big tremors in the grand scheme of things, but enough to remind one of the fact that the city is squarely within a volcanic ring. Rangitoto, the landmark island in the Hauraki Gulf is quite recent and is considered dormant rather than extinct.

It struck me as slightly strange that such a potentially destructive force of nature could seem to be a minor thrill; in the same way that throwing oneself off a bridge, tethered by a bungy cord isn't the indicator of mental illness it might once have been. I realise that feel mildly excited by a shake might sound weird, but it reminds me of the concept of creative inflation that I wrote about in my latest column for Idealog magazine (referring to remarks made by UK planner Richard Huntington to Russell Davies).

Things that were once the cutting edge of excitement become dull and we need a bigger fix. Perhaps it is related to the concept of quality demand in economics; for example: when you first start working in an office you might buy your first modestly priced business suit. But you can't wear the same suit every day, so you get another in order to rotate them. After a while you have earned a little more, you buy a better quality suit and suddenly the original purchases don't ring your bell the way they did. You progressively increase your demand for a better quality product and rarely go backwards. In some cases you might prefer to have less of something than to revert to more volume of an inferior product or experience.

I felt quite blase about the shakes last night, a mild thrill. In another time I might have felt the need to sacrifice a goat to read its entrails to determine why the gods were angry...But don't get me wrong, I'm not keen on anything that could be classed as a natural disaster. As Winston Churchill once said "There is nothing more thrilling than to have been shot at with no result."

And on the subject of 'rocking your world' Simon Law has given a heads-up to a movie The Alchemists produced by the One Show (American advertising award show). The trailer promises much - I am looking forward to seeing the movie, though I am a little confused about whether it has been produced or is in production. Looks like it will be a fantastic teaching tool for my Advertising paper at Massey University.

Here is the synopsis.

Imagine a movie that, for the first time ever, pulls the curtain back to reveal a small group of individuals you've probably never heard of, but who undoubtedly changed your mind and your behavior… THE ALCHEMISTS is a surprisingly personal exploration of some of the most influential advertising giants of the last century, and the communication they created which rocked our culture. Inspired by the social movements of their time and driven by the need to communicate some greater truth, these artists and writers despised mediocrity and the status quo of the advertising industry and brought a revolutionary spirit to their work:

Lee Clow, who created the most-famous commercial in history by introducing Macintosh computers in "1984"; George Lois who single-handedly saved MTV from extinction with his trademark in-your-face celebrity campaign; Phyllis K. Robinson who helped define the entire "me generation" with her liberating spin on selling Clairol; Hal Riney who got President Reagan re-elected; and Dan Wieden who, inspired by the last words of executed murderer Gary Gilmore, came up with the little phrase "Just Do It" and revolutionized advertising forever. Sports, fashion, music, politics, technology-our culture-was deeply affected by these alchemists.

Through their stories, and with humor and drama, THE ALCHEMISTS will be the definitive film of the 20th century phenomenon of creative advertising.

It will feature celebrities, upbeat cultural commentary, and an amazing display of commercials and history from the last century, including the ground-breaking work of Bill Bernbach (VW), David Ogilvy (Hathaway), Jay Chiat and many others. But this is not a historical documentary or a tribute, and it's not an analysis of the perils of consumerism and thought-control. It is a film about creative rebellion, and how all-powerful art springs forth from deeply personal, psychological sources and the need for change… even in advertising.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ze Frank thinks so you don't have to

Ze Frank appeared on my radar when I saw his presentation among the excellent TED Talks videos . This morning I was reading Russell Davies planning blog in which he referred to a clip by Ze Frank - Where do ideas come from. Here's the transcript: "...Hungry Hippo licks Aunt JEmima [sic] writes, "Are you ever gonna break into song again? Are you running out of ideas?" Hungry Hippo licks Aunt JEmima, that's a good question. I run out of ideas every day! Each day I live in mortal fear that I've used up the last idea that'll ever come to me. If you don't wanna run out of ideas the best thing to do is not to execute them. You can tell yourself that you don't have the time or resources to do 'em right. Then they stay around in your head like brain crack. No matter how bad things get, at least you have those good ideas that you'll get to later. Some people get addicted to that brain crack. And the longer they wait, the more they convince themse...
1 comment
Read more and leave a comment

Johnny Bunko competiton

The Great Johnny Bunko Challenge from DHP on Vimeo . There's a young chap in Indiana, one Alec Quig , who has written to me about creating a career based on a polymathic degree, from which he has recently graduated. He's an interesting young man and his concerns about going forward in life are the anxieties we all face at crossroads in our lives when we are forced to make choices. Dan Pink's latest book The Adventures of Johnny Bunko: The Last Career Guide You'll Ever Need might help: "From a New York Times, BusinessWeek, and Washington Post bestselling author comes a first-of-its- kind career guide for a new generation of job seekers.There's never been a career guide like it.the fully illustrated story (ingeniously told in Manga form) of a young Everyman just out of college who lands his first job. Johnny Bunko is new to parachute company Boggs Corp., and he stumbles through his early days as a working stiff until a crisis prompts him to find a new job. St...
Post a Comment
Read more and leave a comment

Why billboards must go.

The problem with billboards and advertising in public places is they are an invasion of privacy. Unlike magazine, tv, radio (etc) advertising you cannot choose to turn it off or avoid it. Nor does it offer anything in return. It is a medium that offers no benefit or advantage to the person it is inflicted on. At least television ads subsidise the programming. Without doubt some billboards are entertaining - I thought the anti GE poster for short lived MADGE activist group was particularly good. But most are rubbish. Literally. Badly executed. Nothing important to say. The debate has led to a great deal of hysteria - mostly from people with a vested interest in perpetuating the deployment of hoardings. Perhaps the idea that the issue at stake is 'property rights' is the creepiest. If you own a building you have every right to plaster anything you like on its external surfaces. Is that an antisocial point of view? I think so. In the UK you could have an ASBO slapped on you for si...
Post a Comment
Read more and leave a comment