Advertising

Just Do It.
Be Different.

Sage advice, or merely revolutionary advertising slogans? Or both?

Art & Copy is an entertaining new documentary that steps inside the world and minds of some of the most legendary creative advertising executives in history. Having worked in and around the advertising industry during my career, I was quite interested in learning more about the visionaries who mastered the art of selling - and who made a significant impact on our culture (whether we like it or not). In particular, I've long admired Mary Wells Lawrence (featured in the doc) for her gutsy nature and groundbreaking advertising work - check out her colorful autobiography, A Big Life in Advertising.

I'm also still engrossed in the ever sublime Mad Men show on AMC, which is set in the world of New York's Madison Avenue advertising in the '60s, but is really about the peeled-back layers of society as it was then - with some lessons for the present. It's simply television at its finest.

During the Art & Copy panel, the film's director Doug Pray mentioned that when asked about Mad Men, the consensus from the real ad icons who lived that life in the '60s was that the show - while an excellent series - doesn't truly capture the intensity and creativity of Madison Avenue during that era. Guess I will just have to make do with great television and a little imagination.

I ♥ NY (revolutionary advertising slogan and truth).

L.A. Story

I spent my Labor Day weekend laboring over my documentary short film, due this week. It's almost complete, and I've upped my novice technical game considerably with my editing system. Finally.

On Sunday, I took a much needed break from working on this historical documentary of my city to check out a local screening of another historical documentary on the Los Angeles area - the 2003 film, Los Angeles Plays Itself. This terrific film essays Los Angeles as it has been depicted on film throughout history - as subject and character, backdrop and muse.

Some of my favorite locations and architectural landmarks in the city are highlighted in this nearly 3 hour opus. Director Thom Andersen makes some keen insights, such as the fact that George Kennedy seemed to be in every L.A. disaster movie of the '70s. I presume that the reason the documentary sadly is not planned for DVD release is due to rights issues for all of the film clips and music. It seemed like most of Los Angeles tried to squeeze into the theatre to see this rare showing, introduced by Andersen. The screening sold out both nights it was
playing; I hope it will be brought back again so more people can see this absorbing and layered look at the city most captured on film.

If you get a chance to see it on the big screen, definitely check out this cool L.A. story.

Youth

You're only as young as you feel - or these days, as young as you look.

A few weeks back, I saw a screening of Youth Knows No Pain, a new documentary on the $60 billion anti-aging industry. It is currently airing on the aforementioned HBO Documentary Films summer series. Bear in mind that I saw the film in Hollywood, which I'm guessing may be ground zero of the youth market. There seemed to be a lot of nervous people around, waiting to hear what Pandora's Box this film was going to open.

Mitch McCabe, documentarian and beauty-product obsessed daughter of a deceased plastic surgeon, examines the world of anti-aging and her own history with it. Along the way, she meets some eclectic characters who are also determined to hang on to their youth - any way that they can.

The film is certain to stir up some debate about our society's youth-obsessed culture and fears of aging. As for me, I was most interested to learn that you can get facial lines from drinking out of water bottles (yes, I know, another reason to give that up). I haven't gone down the anti-aging road yet aside from the lotions and potions that start and end my day, but the film did make me think twice about some of those little lines right there...

Excuse me while I go look in the mirror.