Author Archives: Adam

H&H/GFS Partnership – Info Meeting – September 7th

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H&H/GFS Partnership is a collaboration between the two organizations that involves teaching Industry curriculum, a mentoring program of GFS Fellows with H&H Members, the H&H Intern Workbook, and promoting GFS internship candidates to top media companies. 

 

H&H members teach a variety of different subjects – from film distribution and networking to putting a reel together and resumes/cover letters. 

 

One of the key components of the program is the mentoring program between H&H members and GFS Fellows. 

 

Our members become one of the first professional contacts for a lot of these students and helps them navigate their way into internships and increased industry knowledge.  The program has a defined and small time commitment. 

 

We are holding an informational session on September 7th to discuss the program for anyone interested in learning more about being a mentor.   

 

SWIFT
8pm, Tuesday, September 7
34 E 4th Street
We’ll stake out a place in the back
http://www.swiftnycbar.com/

Please fill out this interest form and submit by Monday, September 6. 

 

If you have any questions feel free to send an email to myself or sasha.silver@gmail.com, subject “H&H/GFS Partnership”

 

Interesting Things – 8.31

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Be afraid, be kinda afraid

 

Dattoo

The Dattoo would be a printable tattoo that users would wear for a day and then wash off. This tattoo could be used just like a cell phone or a computer, with users being able to communicate and identify each other with their Dattoos. Five years ago, Frog Design founder Hartmut Esslinger envisioned a technology that “could influence notions of community, identity, and connectivity with minimal impact on the physical environment.” Today, the company is close to making this a reality.

http://www.gizmag.com/datto-concept-from-frog-design/15944/

 

GazeHawk

The GazeHawk eye-tracking service was created to help companies see which areas of their sites were getting the most attention. Finding a number of participants to view the website, the GazeHawk eye-tracking service then sends these results back to the requesting company. With this information, companies can then optimize for the ads which get the most stares and then generate methods to profit accordingly.

http://www.gazehawk.com/

 

Neuromarketing

What people say and what they think is not always the same, and new developments in the world of neuromarketing hope to lessen the gap between those two divides. The goal of neuromarketing is to extract “hidden information” directly from people’s brains by not asking questions at all, but by recording responses at a deep subconscious level with the aid of an electroencephalograph (EEG) machine.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20727721.300-mindreading-marketers-have-ways-of-making-you-buy.html

Interesting Things – 8.23

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Sharpie King

Chicago artist Immy Melvin has been producing work for over 30 years now. He describes his work as unique due to its complexity, use of geography and its great use of Sharpie markers. Dubbed the Sharpie King in 2008, Melvin uses nothing but old fashioned Sharpies to produce his work. Claiming that the office staple has vibrant color and long-lasting ink, Melvin’s devotion to the brand is what has earned him the title of Sharpie King.

http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/sharpie-king

 

 Flying Motorcycles

Designed by Marko Design, The MoonRider is a futuristic hybrid two wheeler which can be driven as a bike, but also acts as a flying machine. The lightweight motorcycle is an electric-powered bike with zero emission as well a plasma jet engine to provide power in flying mode. The MoonRider is made of lightweight composite materials which allows the bike to fly efficiently. The MoonRider features two front tandem wheels that consist of electric motors powered by electric batteries. The batteries are charged up by solar panels placed in the front of the two wheeler.

http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/moonrider

 

Cool Conversation

A conversation on cool: Complex Magazine sat down with up and coming style guru’s to discuss staying fresh and clean. Among those interviewed Sean Sullivan the proprietor of “The Impossible Cool” and now his new site, “A Conversation on Cool”. Indeed everything associated with these six up and coming movers and shakers is cooler than a polar bear’s toe nail.

http://www.complex.com/blogs/2010/08/16/augustsept-fashion-feature/

Interactive Advertising – Space 150

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As my years in New York add up, the magic of Time Square dwindles away.  Minneapolis interactive agency, Space 150 has lured me back in, if not to shop and eat, but to interact with GIANT models.

Their brand new Forever 21 billboard in Times Square acts like a mirror to the crowd.  The model takes a photo of the crowd, shakes it, and shows it to them.. one model plucks some from the crowd and gives them a kiss… It’s only been live for a little while, but there is much more to come from this billboard and innovative company.

http://www.fastcompany.com/1663846/times-square-billboards-use-spy-tech-to-reach-out-and-grab-you

Company website:  www.space150.com

Ashlye Vaughan

Social Media & Television

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Maybe Television isn’t dead.

Maybe Liz Murdoch was 110% spot on when she said at NATPE at the top of the year that social media is the key to TV’s success.

There are so many examples reflecting how these two mediums are converging and quite frankly – I LOVE IT!!!

There’s MTV’s first ever TJ – Twitter Jockey which was a show on MTV were @gabifresh won the new job and $100,000.00 salary. $100,000 to Tweet?   Anyways.

Then there’s Comedy Central’s success of Tosh 2.0 where comedian Daniel Tosh stands in front of a green screen and deconstructs the latest nuttiness videos on the Internet. This is a hit for Comedy Central because it’s uber cheap to shoot (I mean – uber cheap) and is perfectly suited for the male 18-34 demo.  The show is most watched program on Wednesday nights within that age group.

The online media-tv hybrid model has been such a success for Comedy Central that they are going to take a crack at it with Dwyanebook – a show that is entirely about social media and adopts the same programming model as Tosh 2.0.

What I find the most fascinating is how computer usage goes up during certain TV programs – especially major hit shows and tentpole specials such as the Super Bowl and Academy Awards.  Data shows people are going on to their computers to chat and engage with other content while watching these programs. There was an increase in computer usage from 2009 in 2010 during both the Super Bowl and Academy Awards.  Thus, this is creating a different type of water cooler effect – one that doesn’t have to wait until the next day at the office but happens live – on the moment – as the program is happening.

This presents such an interesting opportunity for marketers.  As this 360i blog posting mentioned:

This means marketers can reach consumers through two separate media simultaneously, creating a richer and deeper single brand experience.  Brands like MTV, Bravo and MLB are leading the way in this new era of television – and you can be sure others will soon follow suit should the opportunities be right for their programming.

Interesting times indeed.  Endless opportunities to change the TV format model and make the television experience that more engaging, creative and quite frankly – new.

@MitchKapler

Magic Bus

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Magic Bus
The Chinese company, Shenzhen Huashi Future Car-Parking Equipment is proposing the creation of a giant, road-straddling bus to help ease the traffic due to their booming population and economy.

This super bus will straddle the road above the cars, and carry between 1200 to 1400 riders.  It is powered by solar energy and electricity, so will offer at least 30% energy savings.  Passengers can enter and exit the bus through terminals that span the road allowing for traffic to continue while it is stopped.

The “3D Fast Bus,” it’s current name promises a reduction in traffic jams and will only cost about 10% of what it would cost to build a subway. There is already a pilot for the project being planned in Beijing’s Mentougou District.

Now that is the future of transportation I’d like to see.  Get one out to Los Angeles pronto!

http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/02/china-to-build-ginormous-buses-that-cars-can-drive-under-video/

Ashlye Vaughan

Interesting Things – 8.9

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Bronx Perfume

”Scentbranding” is nothing new for hotel chains, electronics companies, or lingerie lines, but it is new for apartment living. It’s rumored to be part of an experiment in a low-income housing development in the Bronx. In the Bronx, the hope is that by dousing common areas like hallways, lobbies, and shared spaces with perfume, they can make the residents happy, logic being that research shows strong connections between olfactory response and emotion. In shops, that can mean creating a feeling that is conducive to buying lots of stuff. In housing complexes, that can mean creating a feeling of hopefulness in an otherwise unpleasant environment.

http://www.good.is/post/is-it-ethical-to-scent-brand-public-places/

MOBA

While it’s difficult at times to discern “good art,” MOBA (Museum of Bad Art) has made a mission of collecting “bad art.” The works of art range from poor technique such as crayon etching, to lousy subjects like a demented clown. Housed in a pair of basements, has even hosted a hand full of poorly designed knockoffs.  But the question often posed to the curators is whether this collection is meant as a celebration of effort, or a mocking of absence of talent.

http://www.museumofbadart.org/

Careers Reversing Dystopian Future

Many believe the world is changing rapidly and if we want to sustain order and livability on earth we have to adapt.  One of the biggest concerns will be shifting jobs and focusing on new fields or ones that we relied less on in the past.  For example, bees have been disappearing, and because of their importance in the food cycle, there may need to be a rise in the number of beekeepers. Jobs like librarians/archivists might also be important; so much information is stored only on computers, and at risk of being useless if there’s a massive technological failure.

http://io9.com/5562433/20-careers-that-will-make-the-future-less-dystopian

Interesting Things – 8.2

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Mobile Fish Farms

A new generation of fishers and scientists has been developing a new era of sustainable green fish farming with the mobile fish farms.  These massive spherical cages contain the fish in the open ocean but what makes them unique is they’re designed to flow with the ocean currents, keeping them from causing damage by stagnating in one area.  The cages also have computer controlled propellers to help direct the cage if it gets too near reefs, or currents are not enough.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCz1KNBI60I

Robin Rhode

There is something irresistibly playful and mischievous about Robin Rhode’s artwork due to this youthful interactions with each piece. By becoming part of his art, the South African artist brings it to a whole new level. Based in Berlin, Germany, Robin Rhode pushes the boundaries of stationary art, bringing life to an otherwise static creation.

http://www.perryrubenstein.com/artists/robin-rhode/

Tattoo Crowdsourcing

Caisa Ederyd crowdsourced her first tattoo, and allowed complete strangers to design and vote on a tattoo to cover the left side of her rib cage. The Wellcome Collection provided sponsorship as part of their Skin exhibition. She put a lot of energy into describing what she wanted from the design on Facebook, Twitter and on her own blog. In the end, she got a “reworked” version of a design that she chose herself. The design chosen by the community was totally different, and didn’t feature any pigs.

http://www.newscientist.com

Aston Martin Resort

MVRDV plans to build a luxury holiday resort that seems to have pulled up a lush green hilltop like a blanket and hidden itself under it. To be located in Montenegro and designed for Aston Martin, the grass-clad hotel seems to blend in seamlessly with its surroundings. Dubbed “Galije” and located on a parcel of untouched coastline land, the resort is envisioned as a way to combine exclusivity with a responsible, sustainable embedding of the structure in its surrounding landscape.

http://inhabitat.com/2010/07/20/aston-martin-resort-disguised-as-a-giant-mountain-of-lush-green/

Ready, Set, Market!

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A documentary leverages emerging digital tools and marketing techniques to get people’s butts into the seats

Ready, Set, Bag! is a new documentary that has leveraged social media to promote the film’s release in local theaters as well as take advantage of cause marketing. The digital savvy filmmakers partnered up with Groupon, a website that enables businesses to offer great deals to people in their communities.  Through Groupon the filmmakers made pacts with local theaters, $1 of each ticket sold will go to food banks near the theater to help feed the community.  So far 100% of theaters have agreed to carry the film. Furthermore, the filmmakers are playing the trailer on Blip.tv (see below) and all advertising revenue is going to support the charity of Feeding America.

This recent project highlights various trends happening in filmmaking and in business in general.  Filmmakers are getting savvier when it comes to leveraging online to support their projects.  For example, Kickstarter, an online site that enables you to raise funds for projects is turning into a go-to for filmmakers who need to raise money to fund their films.

Furthermore, filmmakers keep exploring new means of distribution, for example this year Sundance enabled filmmakers to distribute the film through VOD services and the internet.

Lastly, the trend of embedding the pay-it-forward element into you’re your business model is really hot right now.  Expert calls this cause marketing and it looks to be a win-win for everyone involved.

In an era of change, new distribution models and business plans are emerging.  Sure, Ready, Set, Bag! might not win an Academy Award but you have to tip your hat to the producers for leveraging all the tools available in order to, as they like to say in Hollywood, get people’s butts into the seats.

@MitchKapler