Is it true? Do we suck?

Having been in advertising and having seen the work that goes into creating 30 seconds of television, it's been very hard for me to understand what people were talking about when they made claims like: "Advertisers are musicians, film makers, and writers who aren't talented enough to make real music, real films or real books." I know for a fact that some people in advertising are definitely creative enough to make a film, book or legitimate music. I think problem lies in the people who try to make ads look filmy or musicy or wordy and then fall short by forcing business sense in with the artsy aspect of the ad.

Here's an example of what I'm talking about:

Seiko Ad

This is a Seiko ad that starts off provocative, complete with a cool location and shot in 'black and white'. The ad gets interesting until you find out that the climax of what your watching involves this tag line: "You can tell more about a person by the watch they wear than anything else." Come on... this is shot with an indy feel, and that's the best you got? I feel like I should be laughing at someone who jokingly said that tag line; or I should be spitting in the face of someone who said that about the Cheerios watch I wear.

If you can really tell something about someone by the watch they wear, show me how to read someone. If you can really fit a lesson in 'how to determine someone's status by taking a glance at a watch' into a 30 second spot then you'd give a good name to advertisers.

Here's where it starts to get a bit dirty. Those same people who say that advertisers suck ad making film, music and novels were the first to say that the big H&M ad/ short film/ music video felt like a big soggy diaper of shit. This ad was directed by David Lachapelle who kicked ass in other music videos such as The Red Piano DVD's by Elton John, and the Moby: Play DVD. Tamyra Gray is a musician and this was produced with a huge budget. So why did it suck?



I think the answer is, in the end, there are too many people with a vested interest in the project. The director has a vision, producers have a vision, writers have a vision, H&M has a vision, Tamyra Gray has a vision, and together it ends up being the cheesiest, piece of film since Paris Hiltons sex tape. If you want a real film quality ad, here's a hint: don't try to fit a film in a couple minutes of ad space. Have a very simple message, or a complex message that can be delivered in a simple way, that you can fit in 15 second. If you can shoot the whole thing in one continuous shot, you've hit it out of the park. If you're going to use music use it in one of two ways: one, sell out completely and use a song everyone knows. Make sure you use the catchiest part of the song. Two, use a song 90% of the population doesn't know. This way if they like it, they'll go out and find it, and every time they hear it after, they'll think of your commercial.

So do advertisers have a bad rap? Are they really, under it all, good at doing what they do? I think the answer is that there are some very good, creative people who probably could make great films, but after making a bunch of ads, now think in 30 second blocks of time. Same goes with music and writing. I think there probably is a 5% break-away potential. Where 5% of advertisers actually do break out of advertising and write a good book, or make a good film, or produce a good song. I think everyone else is just happy to be associated with an industry that allows their work to reach a massive audience.

I recently read an article comparing and contrasting the advertising industry with the film and television industry. The article made the advertising industry look like the sugar-daddy of television and film. It implied, in a weird way, that advertisers would love to pay the price to get their work to appear between an episode of CSI and The Family Guy simply because we can then associate ourselves with good work. In the end it's not us, but corporations, who pay the price, and reap most of the gains.

Just as a final thought: in at time of PVR systems, Internet TV, and the ability to skip over commercials all together; wouldn't it make sense to start producing such entertaining, helpful, or informative commercials that people would not only choose not to skip past them, but may actually start keeping them to watch? In a time where shows like The Family Guy, Simpsons, and CSI are cleaning up in the ratings by pushing the envelope of what's acceptable on TV, when will advertising stop worrying about being politically correct and appealing to everyone, and start worrying about appealing to THEIR AUDIENCE.