The O’Hare International Airport in Chicago is one of the busiest airports in the world, serving tens of thousands of passengers a day with flights to over 60 international destinations. Nearly half of the traffic in O’Hare International is operated by United Airlines, whose hub is stationed at O’Hare. For the fall fashion issue of Chicago magazine, photographer Brian Doben and Fashion Director Stacey Jones took advantage of O’Hare’s expansive architectural features to shoot the video and fashion story “Arrivals and Departures,” spending a full 12 hour day exploring the United Airlines terminal.
The story came to Jones as she was attending fashion shows in New York and Paris. Says Jones, “The concept was that the model embodied different characters – one being the harder, minimalistic bad girl and the opposite, more feminine, retro softer version. I wanted to shoot at O’Hare because of its clean lines, open spaces and tons of light and glass that would become an integral part of the story.”
Poor vision continues to plague undeveloped areas of the world where finding an optician is costly and time-consuming. Danish optometry chain Nyt Syn, or “New Vision,” strives to make a difference with their “Glasses for Africa” program. Nyt Syn collected eyeglasses from more than 70,000 people in Denmark. Six opticians and a nurse then traveled to low-income areas of Gambia and Senegal to administer eye exams and fit them with the collected glasses. Joachim Ladefoged accompanied them on their journey to villages around Africa, shooting video and reportage-style images to document the trip.
As people finished their exam and were given a pair of donated glasses, Ladefoged was there to take each person’s picture. The portraits are featured on Nyt Syn’s website, in store displays, and the corporate magazine. The print campaign has been shortlisted for a Creative Circle Award. While the portraits show people sitting still and refined, their visible reactions of the joy and awe of being able to see clearly are captured in Ladefoged’s video footage.
Alan Cresto reunites with Grammy-nominated R&B singer/songwriter Ne-Yo to direct a promotional video for Macy’s. Ne-Yo shows off his sleek and tailored style in clothing by Macy’s private label Alfani Red while performing “Nobody” off of the Year of the Gentleman album. Cresto shot the video over two days around New York City, filming a helicopter entrance, riding around the city in a vintage car, and Ne-Yo performing on a floating barge in the East River with the iconic skyline in the background.
Ne-Yo will release his fourth studio album Libra Scale in September. Comments Cresto, “Ne-Yo is a dynamic performer who gives 150%, and as we’d worked together before, there was a mutual trust and respect which enabled the project to go that much further.” Cresto previously collaborated with Macy’s and Ne-Yo for another Alfani Red promotional video that was shown nationwide. Both videos were shot with the RED camera system.
N.E.R.D. rolls around the California desert in a custom-wrapped Rolls Royce designed by FriendsWithYou for their upcoming music video “Hot & Fun.” The single featuring Nelly Furtado drops in June. In the meantime, teaser music videos by Fro Rojas have been proliferated around the web. FriendsWithYou’s Super Malfi gets some special attention from a few party-goers in Rojas’ “The Party Version.” In creating the one-of-a-kind Rolls Royce FriendsWithYou says “Magical Explosions [were] born, a psychedelic take over of FriendsWithYou cosmic forces.”
Am I Collective animated and directed a 30 second viral video for the Nike Sportswear Six Collection. Of the six countries in the “Bleed Your Colors” campaign, artists Am I Collective and Kronk represent the spirit of South Africa, the host nation of the 2010 World Cup. The Kronk x Nike sportswear collection launched in early May in stores stateside.
The video was filmed in Cape Town and Johannesburg. Am I Collective artist Chris Hewitt created the mascot that runs through the cities like a virus infecting the urban environment. The mascot changes colors throughout this journey, each color reflecting the mascot’s personality. Says Mark van Nierkerk of Am I Collective, “Black represents the darker competitive side of sport, yellow – speed and endurance and green – growth and development.”
Stephen Wilkes took a photo every 10 seconds of the day for a time-lapse video inside Walmart for Fortunemagazine. All in all, 8,640 frames were taken (1,800 that are actually used) and the entire 24 hours is compressed into two minutes. The shoot took place on April 6-7, 2010 in New Brunswick, New Jersey from 9:14pm to 9:14pm. Says Photo Editor Lauren Winfield, “The inspiration was to show that Walmart never sleeps… open 24 hours with no real daylight, you have no sense of what time of day it is. We wanted to see what the traffic flow of people coming in and out of the store looks like as a day in the life.”
Theater-goers are eagerly anticipating the revival of La Cage Aux Folles on Broadway this spring, starring Emmy Award-winner Kelsey Grammer and Olivier Award-winner Douglas Hodge. The Spotco advertising agency is responsible for the playful neon pink-tinged campaign, shot by Uli Weber. The poster is accompanied by a video that is currently being broadcasted and shown online, also directed by Weber.
The campaign went through many iterations, some were deemed too cold, too aggressive, or not loud enough for Broadway and the flashy marquees of Times Square. Finally, Spotco found its winner with the silhouettes of men against the neon-hued letters of “La Cage.”
A&E and BLT & Associates worked with Brian Doben on the print campaign and television spots for Kirstie Alley’s reality show “Kirstie Alley’s Big Life.” The 30 second spots show Kirstie enumerating her thoughts on life, love, men, and what else – food. The show follows Kirstie Alley as a single mother raising two teenagers in Hollywood, showcasing her humor and wit as she deals with weight loss and the pursuit of love.
In honor of Black History Month, Target recently launched its “Dare, Dream, Do” campaign. The print, web, broadcast, and interactive campaign tells the inspiring stories of Malaak Compton-Rock, Marc Morial, Marcus Samuelsson, and Steve Stoute. The banner ads and video interviews are a blend of 2d and 3d, Digital Kitchen seamlessly mixes live video with Sarah J. Coleman’s intricate hand-drawn illustrations.
FriendsWithYou has been very busy bringing magic to life. They paired up with US Sydney to produce the latest animated spot for Match.com. It’s never too late to find your match! “Better Together” tells the animated tale of a pea and a carrot destined to find one another. From strawberries and cream, fork and knife, to rabbit and hat, watch beloved duos connect in Friends With You’s delightful universe.
Cavit, the number one imported Italian wine brand in the United States and producer of the best-selling Pinot Grigio, was looking to raise awareness and bring its Italian heritage to the forefront. Alan Cresto worked with Agency212 on a new campaign that expresses what Cavit and other Italians have known all along – that life is meant to celebrated!
Comments Creative Director Guy Barnet: “We wanted to give the kids of Long Island their own Nike moment. But for a Payless budget. If you ask me, we got a slam dunk, a three-pointer, an alley-oop and many other basketball puns rolled into one awesome film.”
