| NEWS 10.21.09 11:53 AM |
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In the News: Oscar Taps New Producers, Izod Caps Year of Indy Partnership
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Oscars Find New Producers, Search For Host: After a much-needed upswing in viewers last year, the board of directors at the Academy Awards was hoping to continue its relationships with last years producers, Larry Mark and Bill Condon, and host Hugh Jackman. But both producers are tied up with other projects and Jackman is apparently uninterested. Instead, they'll try to maintain momentum with Adam Shankman and Bill Mechanic, both filmmakers of a similar pedigree. As for a new host, there are rumors that Tom Hanks has been asked. [Deadline Hollywood]
Izod Wraps First Season With IndyCar: After signing on for a five-year marketing partnership with IndyCar in March, Izod spent its first season on the tour justifying the millions of dollars that have already gone into its largest marketing effort to date. As the official apparel sponsor, Izod was present at 17 races, 20 in-store events, and advertising in every medium. The label finished the season last week with two in-store events at a Miami Macy's that brought drivers and shoppers together. [WWD]
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Oscars, Academy Awards, Hugh Jackman, Tom Hanks, Izod, IndyCar, Volkswagen |
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| NEWS 02.25.09 4:06 PM |
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In the News: Northern Trust Upsets Congress, Mardi Gras Carries on Despite Recession
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Magazine Publishers of America Downsize Conference: The annual American Magazine Conference, planned as a three-day function in Boca Raton, Florida, this October, won't go ahead as planned. Instead, the Magazine Publishers of America will host a one-day event in New York. [Mediaweek]
Washington Riled Over Northern Trust Corp. Spending: A group of congressional representatives, led by Barney Frank, has called out Northern Trust Corporation for misuse of the $16 billion in U.S. bailout funds it received last year. TMZ reported earlier this week that a firm-sponsored golf tournament in California included nights in the Beverly Wilshire and Ritz-Carlton hotels for clients and employees, lavish parties with A-list entertainment, and Tiffany souvenirs. A spokesman wouldn't divulge details of costs, but insisted the spending "is part of a business decision regarding an annual event to show appreciation for clients.” [Bloomberg]
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Magazine Publishers of America, Northern Trust, Mardi Gras, Liz Smith, Oscars, Academy Awards |
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| NEWS 02.23.09 12:17 PM |
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What the Press Said About the Oscar Ceremony: Different Is Good
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The press is decidedly divided about what worked and what didn’t at last night’s rejiggered Academy Awards ceremony, but everyone seems unanimous in the assessment that it was different. And any departure for a show that saw its lowest recorded ratings just last year seems to be a welcome one.
- The New York Times’ Alessandra Stanley posited that the night’s best move was the selection of Hugh Jackman as host. “Mr. Jackman was high-spirited, not mean-spirited," she wrote. “He spoke with sass, but unlike more satirical predecessors like Chris Rock and Jon Stewart, there were no smirks; he came to the task with Broadway sizzle, not a stand-up routine.” [NYT]
- Whether the production numbers were effective or not doesn’t seem to matter to most. The fact that there was such a dramatic change to the format was enough for The Hollywood Reporter to note that the franchise is "undeniably the better for it.” [Hollywood Reporter]
- Variety’s Timothy M. Gray—who was actually inside the Kodak Theatre—wrote an overwhelmingly positive review, praising the set design and, particularly, the incorporation of music. “The best decision was to move the orchestra onstage, which made a closer physical connection between audience and performers, helping break down that best-behavior attitude; the looser mood was contagious even to the balconies.” [Variety]
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Oscars, Academy Awards, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences |
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| NEWS 02.12.09 1:16 PM |
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In The News: T-Mobile Gets Free Guerrilla Marketing, Vanity Fair Stages Oscar Return
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Here's a quick look at some of the bigger stories grabbing our attention this week:
T-Mobile Inspires Public Disco: A recent British commercial for cellular provider T-Mobile that featured 400 actors dancing in London's Liverpool Street station inspired more than 13,000 fans of the ad to do the same thing. They planned the event, dubbed Liverpool Street Station Silent Dance, on Facebook for last Friday and stormed the station at 7 p.m. Police had to close that station for more than 90 minutes, but there were few arrests for what a police spokesperson called "a peaceful and fun event." Organizers are already discussing another outing. [Telegraph]
Vanity Fair Returns to Oscars: One year away from the Academy Awards was enough for Vanity Fair. The magazine will return to Los Angeles for a week of pre-Oscar events and its hot-ticket post-awards party this month. Among the events on tap are an opening party for the BMW Art Car installation and a silent auction sponsored by Christian Dior. As for the big party, it’s moving to the much smaller Sunset Tower hotel, making invites that much harder to come by. [WWD]
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T-Mobile, Vanity Fair, Oscars, Academy Awards, BMW, Christian Dior, Desirée Rogers, Fashion Week, Halston, Live Nation, Ticketmaster |
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| NEWS 02.02.09 4:20 PM |
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Oscar Producers Plot Abbreviated Red Carpet to Win Back Audience
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The New York Times reported yesterday on the unique predicament of the Academy Awards' producers: the need to find a way to bring back an increasingly ambivalent crowd in a year when the biggest nominees are films so few have seen.
Producer Laurence Mark and executive producer Bill Condon haven't discussed many details, hoping to keep the night a surprise, but rumors are floating that many stars might skip the red carpet to draw the public's attention inside the Kodak Theater. By keeping the higher profile guests' fashions a part of the show itself, ratings would presumably bounce back from last year's record low of about 32 million viewers.
Another change on the horizon might be the absence of all those clip reels from winners past. Instead, producers are trying to secure footage of upcoming films to offer new, unseen content. If all goes according to plan, exclusive previews of some of the year's most anticipated movies will run alongside the credits at the show's end. USA Today's preview of the show is here. —Michael O'Connell
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Academy Awards, Oscars |
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| NEWS 01.12.09 1:21 PM |
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What the Press Said About the Golden Globes: Tolerable and Painless
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It’s been two years since we last had a traditional, televised Golden Globe ceremony, due to last year’s writers strike, which derailed the annual award show and turned it into a glorified press conference absent of any sort of celebrity or pomp. In the time since its last official iteration, critics and audiences seem to have gotten less and less patient with award shows, so the pressure was on for the Globes not to further the mounting alienation.
And it really didn’t. Critics seemed more or less unbothered by the three-hour show, acknowledging that the ceremony doesn’t try as hard as other award shows to cater to the audience at home. The Los Angeles Times award blog, the Envelope, noted this in detail: “No host, no opening monologue, no breakaway skits, no musical numbers, no huge, evocative, and ever-changing stage—the Golden Globes is a televised awards presentation that relies totally on the apparently worldwide desire to see movie and television stars wearing fancy clothes, making a few jokes, saying nice things about each other, and occasionally breaking down in tears.”
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Golden Globes, Academy Awards, Hollywood Foreign Press Association |
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| ASK BIZBASH 09.08.08 9:00 AM |
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Who Can Produce a Cool Tribute Video?
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 | Stills from a variety of tribute videos.
Photo: Courtesy of Lifefilm (top), Courtesy of Madprops (middle), Courtesy of Raw Films (bottom) |
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Honoring a retiring exec or an award winner with a video about their life’s work is a great idea, but only if the piece doesn’t move guests to check their BlackBerries or sneak off to the restroom. Here are three companies that specialize in these types of films and, if asked, will travel to make it happen.
With more than 20 years of combined film and television industry experience, Lifefilm Productions co-founders Peilin Chou and John Brancaccio use the same production professionals they worked with at companies such as Walt Disney Studios, MTV Networks, ESPN, and Bravo to craft their celebratory docs. The firm prides itself on delivering broadcast-quality, story-driven films that are truly entertaining. Past clients include C-level execs from Hasbro and real estate developer S.R. Weiner. Rates start at $5,000, with longer and more intensive projects ranging from $10,000 to $20,000.
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Walt Disney Company, MTV, ESPN, Bravo, Academy Awards, Saturday Night Live, VH1, A&E, E! Entertainment, NBC, Clinton Global Initiative, Miramax, Hasbro |
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