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2 things
Zara and I are back from our honeymoon in Japan. We highly recommend a visit. It's a magically crowded island. There were so many good things about the trip, I can't even begin to list. Well, maybe just 2 things.
One of the sites we saw was a hilltop temple in Kyoto. In itself, this is not out of the ordinary. Anyone who's ever been to Kyoto will tell you there's a temple around every turn. What made this temple stand out was a fountain.
As you can see, this fountain has 3 channels you could drink from. Each of the 3 channels represented one of the following: health, longevity and romance. Pretty cool. But here's the Buddhist twist, you can only drink from 2. Drinking from all 3 would deem one too greedy. To me, this is a trick question. Health, longevity and romance are interconnected. These 3 channels came from the same water source, after all, didn't they? I think if you chose the right 2 spiritually, you'll get the 3rd regardless. So which 2 channels would you drink from? Yeah, me too.
Let's see if this trick applies to advertising as well. But instead of water from a fountain, we can chose from 3 gold pencils. Here are their categories: the glory, the craft, and the relationships. Now pick 2 things. Yeah, I think it applies here too. If you pick the right 2, you'll definitely get a taste of all 3.
our first talent farm is coming to an end
On Wednesday, we'll meet with each intern individually and talk about our time together and we'll let them know what their future is with our people company. I look forward to our conversations. I've watched each one of them climb and fall and climb again. What they tell us will help us shape the future of this program. I'm not sure they realize how special they were when all 9 of them came together. The following is my favorite memory of each of the 9*:
Baii: When she was photographing our company picture, she literally did some break dancing moves to get the shot. Talk about dedication. On another occasion, I threw a sharpie at her eyeball by accident. Luckily, she had her glasses on. Eva: When I didn't include Eva in a new business website assignment, she did it anyway. The design was good enough to present and good enough to be the winning design. So pretty good. That's how I remember Eva. Glenn: So talented on so many levels. My favorite memory of Glenn was the night Zara and I drove him home from work. We talked about life more than work and I got to know the Glenn he should always be. Oh yeah, I also fell into and broke our company ping pong table in a heated game against him.
Matthew: My favorite memory of Matthew was how well his character held up when we broke everything around it down to test the talent underneath. I'll always remember a shitberg-free email I got from him after a grueling pitch. He is wise beyond his years (which is pretty old to begin with). Travis: Travis loves people and it shows. You see, Travis flashes people a lot. In my entire advertising career, I've never seen an intern's nipples more than I've seen his. Stop it, Travis. Stop it. Will: When I met Will in an informational interview at another agency, I instantly saw how much potential he has, despite his horribly art directed book. Luckily, he's a writer.
*Hydra9 will release a results video at the end of their internship.
I'll take the dreamers
It's easy to be cynical. Hate has always been a downhill sport. It's harder to believe in something yet unseen and run toward it with (what seems like) reckless abandon. But time and time again, I've seen proof that impossible is just another imagining and a house united can surprise the world.
Gnarly Bay Productions (Thanks Phil Mero for sharing this video.)
best. weatherman. ever.
Jim Kosek walks to the beat of his own drummer (who is apparently crazy and hard of hearing). Why aren't there more weather people like this? Heck, why aren't there more people like this?
WWWWHHHHHYYYYY?!?!?!
trippy weekend inspiration
smart is overrated
my favorite super bowl spots
As usual, there were many bad spots. But why hate on advertising's big night? Here are some of my favorites:
Bridgestone Whale
Highlights: A) Pouring water on the whale. B) "It's in my mouth!" C) "Ahhhh!!!"
Doritos Snack Attack Samurai
Highlights: I'm partial on this one, because it was made by some of my friends in the Minneapolis film community using their own dime and grassroots support. I believe they somehow managed to do it without using a single advertising "creative" too. Say what you will, haters. How many of you professional ad guys have Super Bowl spots on your reel?
Google Parisian Love
Highlights: A) Captivating music. B) On brand like crazy. C) It breaks the clutter with story, not special effect.
NFL Best Fans on the Planet
Highlights: A) Reggie Bush! B) Sound design and music. C) Sometimes, timing is everything. Dear NFL, we both know it's expensive to buy ALL the shit you hock at us. So thanks for remembering why you're the best sport on the planet. Today doesn't belong to the ad snobs, it belongs to the football fan in all of us.
hydra 9 is alive
I've been in advertising for over 10 years. Or in non-ad people speak, I've lost all forms of emotion other that jadeness and cynicism - many times over. But for each time I've lost my way, for every moment I've forgotten why I love the potential of ideas... I've found a foolproof way to remember.
NOTE TO SELF: Keep people around you who deserve what you have more than you.
Our 9 interns officially revealed their journal to the world today. Check them out once in awhile. Who knows, maybe they'll help you find a few things you lost along the way too.
shitberg-free
You are a class act, Conan. Way to set the pace for the rest of us. 3:53
