For us that is. You're probably not that fussed one way or the other are you?
Anyway, after nearly 17 years at WCRS we're moving on to pastures new. McGarry Bowen to be precise (or McGarrybowen as they like to be known - can't let those pesky spaces get in the way now can we?)
We start on 7th April and can't wait to get stuck into some new briefs and work with some lovely new people.
Jumping on the World Cup bandwagon, we've helped develop a fun little game for Churchill where you get to take on the rest of the world in the ultimate penalty shootout. If you have a few minutes to spare then why not have a go? You could win £500 holiday vouchers, or even a nodding dog Churchill.
Here are another two ads in our B&Q "UNLEASH THE B&Q IN YOU" campaign.
In one a woman finally casts off the shackles of beige to turn her home and garden into a rainbow of colour (with the help of her dog), while in the second ad a small boy decides to have some fun with B&Qs ridiculously easy to grow Easy Grow bedding plants.
They were directed by Olly Williams at HSI, made lovely by Absolute Post, and given sound by Munzi at Grand Central.
After a pretty hectic (yeah, that's a deliberate reference to the middle bit of the song in the ad - what are you going to do about it?) six weeks or so we've finished up three ads for B&Q.
We wrote them over a weekend, presented them on the Monday, and by the Friday we were well into production.
The campaign aims to get the Great British public up off their sofa and doing all the little jobs around their houses and gardens that need doing. By using the iconic orange B&Q apron we're elevating these jobs and giving the people who do them almost hero status, which will hopefully encourage them to unleash their B&Q.
The launch ad is on air now with two 30 second spots to follow that will focus on some of the products available in store.
Advertising is
seldom glamourous; usually it's endless meetings, it's hours spent drawing
stupid doodles on paper, it's debating whether it should be "yet" or
"however" in a bit of body copy that no one will ever read. It's why
I started my Just Like Mad Men blog a few years back.
However, next
week advertising will be just like Mad Men for us, as we're off to Cape Town
for 10 days to shoot some TV commercials. It will be posh plane seats, it will
be all the wine you can cram in your face, it will be delicious food, sunshine,
swimming pools, expensive restaurants, it will be fancy hotels, and (at some
stage or other) it will be a bit of work.
In an ideal
world, there shouldn't be a lot for a copywriter to do on a shoot. If a job's
been done properly then you've written the script, amended it and finally had
it approved. You've chosen a great director who you feel confident will bring
your work to life. You've discussed with client and the team how it should
look, which actors you should use and what everyone will be wearing. You'll
even have storyboards that show you how each shot will be framed and where it
fits into the finished ad. All of which you'll have discussed and changed until
(theoretically) everyone is happy. Aside from approving the odd set, giving a
thumbs up to wardrobe here and there, and nodding now and again when someone
shows you something or other, it's pretty much just a case of making sure
you're happy with each take. And eating your weight in cake.
Obviously,
there will be tensions on set, but that's not exactly taxing - you just have to try to keep everyone happy - come to a compromise if necessary,
or just do a few different takes and put the argument off until you get to the
edit.
That's that as
far as work goes really. On your average shoot day, you wake, shower and dress, and
from then on it's basically a case of watching other people work.
Someone drives
you from the hotel to the set, where someone else shows you to a seated area
next to a TV screen which other people have set up for you. If it's too sunny,
someone else will put you in the shade. If you're a bit thirsty they'll make
you a drink. If you're a bit peckish someone else will bring you some food.
Actually, you don't have to be peckish, they'll just bring you something to eat
anyway. From your pampered playback perch you watch everyone else run around; sawing, building, painting, pulling, pushing, acting, filming,
directing.
It's an awkward
experience to be honest - the one time you feel a little like a movie star, but one that should never be taken for granted.
At times like these all the re-writes and brief changes, all the brainstorms and ideas
dumps just fade away. These are the times when advertising feels like what
normal people think advertising is. These are the perks of the job, and because
they only make up a mere 0.00000034% of your average day, you'll forgive us if
we make the most of them.
