Anyone who knows me knows I loathe being confined. I think it hurts creativity. So when I read what a small Silicon Valley company named Anybots is doing, it inspired me once more to ask my favorite question:

Do we have to be anywhere to be anywhere? (watch video)

Sure, right now this technology is a little creepy/clunky/Short Circuit-esque. But you can see the possibilities. I know I can.

Peoplelovebrands.com is a creative contest worth entering. Right now, we're collecting content to launch the site in the fall. Check it out.

I'm excited to share a web film we produced in collaboration with SixSpeed for Crestliner Boats. Crestliner is a sister company to Lund Boats, a client of Pixel Farm Digital. It was a fun production that allowed us to integrate our digital, music, editorial and effects groups as well as work with a rockstar agency. Check out the film at crestliner.com!

only happens when you play with people who are better than you - making you loathe and love every layer of what that inspires.

“Learn to say 'no' to the good so you can say 'yes' to the best."

                                                                                         - John C. Maxwell via Peter Hahn

Minus my brief love affair with David Copperfield's magic mojo in the 80's, I've never been a fan of magic. To me, most magicians are clones of each other. You see one, you've seen them all. Then there's David Blaine. Admittedly, I got caught up with the Blaine phenomenon in the beginning, then hated on him later on. Mostly because I didn't think what he did was magic, I thought they were PR stunts. But after watching his TED piece (below), I see now that I hated on him because he didn't follow my conventional rules of what magic was (lame). Instead, he's pioneering a new way to look at what magic can be (I can't believe I just said that about David Blaine). The TED piece is a little long, but it's worth it to see how humble Blaine comes off and how dedicated he is to pushing his own limit. I admire this kind of crazy passion and believe it translates into any business. Or better yet - any quest.

(If you can't wait for it, Blaine shares his answer @ 19:38.)

NOTE TO CREATIVE SELF: Stay young at heart and make prototypes. Lots of them.

We're doing another epic round of presentation classes. In doing these classes, we hope to accomplish 3 things:

1) Find out who's ready to work on new business pitches.

2) Demonstrate that selling horrible work is horrible.

3) Learn to be more confident and authentic in presentations, giving us a better chance to sell great ideas (far away from #2).

Speaking of #2, that's where we begin with our first assignment. Shitty advertising. With only 5 minutes to prepare, Travis, Matt, Marilyn and Michael had to pitch this turd of an idea to our fake client - Eagle Insurance.

Below are videos from their first quickfire pitch. We used these vids to work on our team's body language and pacing. Preso-wise, the only info we gave them on Eagle Insurance was the youtube video. That means they're pulling most of this shit out of their arses. Enjoy...

TRAVIS (aka "CREEPY EYES") - ART DIRECTOR

MATT (aka "599" or "FOLDED VULCAN ARMS") - TECHNOLOGY DIRECTOR

MARK? WHAT MARK? I'll STAND WHERE I WANT MARILYN - BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER

MICHAEL (aka "I WALK SIDEWAYS BITCHES") - DIGITAL PRODUCER

The verdict? Pretty clever and funny pitches, actually, for such a horrible idea. Sure, there's room to grow preso-wise, but the important thing is Travis, Matt, Marilyn and Michael all come off as likable. That's because they are. (One comes off as slightly creepy, but Travis can work on that.)

Stay tuned for Round 2:

ASSIGNMENT: Sell an ad you love.

THE ONLY RULE: The presentation must last at least 5 minutes.

Congrats and thanks to everyone on the Lund Team. Well done.

Our new Talent Farm on their first day together. Today, they met our people, heard our vision and watched our company video. They also got their first big test - find an authentic way to introduce themselves to the world. Time limit? One week.

Let it begin.