Movember Update and Tanuary

Hi Everyone,

So we approach the end of Movember, and I can’t wait! I feel it is important to clarify that I think mass fundraising events are great and support them but I’m ready for December and the inevitable Christmas anarchy.

I am blessed with a pretty good coverage and density of facial hair so I headed into Movember with a little bit of confidence, additionally, as a bald man facial decoration helps liven up the blank canvass.

  

Unfortunately the moustache flatters nobody and to make matters worse it is pretty difficult to maintain. Trimming has been a time consuming affair, attempting to get both sides equal in length and girth is not helped by the fact that faces aren’t symmetrical. So when you relax the crazy face that you pull in order to trim the moustache accurately, you soon realise that it has been trimmed in the dark, with hedge cutters.

I normally bike into work so it wasn’t until mid-Movember when I got on the Underground that I realised how many people were taking part it also dawned on me how hard it is to pull off a good moustache. Standing on the tube and looking around, there was a look of acknowledgement from other participants, the look that says, “I know this isn’t working, I know my partner hates it, I don’t understand why the tache is a different colour to my hair, the coverage is uneven and I have aged 20years but Janine from accounts is paying 10p a day for this”. I think it’s fair to say I cannot work a moustache, unless it is required for a specific novelty event e.g. being a strongman at an old fashioned circus.

Would it not make more sense to have a shorter event, 31days is epic, the Olympics takes place in half that time.  I would also like to propose, for vanities sake a female alternative, Tanuary. This would involve having a ridiculously over the top fake tan for the whole of January. At least then the ridicule is shared and the charitable efforts are doubled!

Until next time Bat fans.

O

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Versace x H&M

Hi Everyone,

Versace x H&M appears to have been a success with the website crashing, people queuing overnight across the globe, additional security and photos of empty shelves being posted online. 

The marketing has been in overdrive for a while with the multi-coloured animal print images adorning London Underground and H&M stores with media coverage helping to increase the buzz. But what has the partnership achieved?

Possibly not suitable for the office party

The collection had been previewed and the vibrant colours and loud patterns will certainly brighten up the winter wardrobes. In all honesty the woman’s collection appears much more wearable than the men’s but the tie-in with a high street chain means that the collections get less opportunity to be ‘diluted’ from the catwalk creations. 

Bright vibrant and wearable

The result is that styles are being introduced that are slightly more extravagant/fun but in the era of Lady Gaga creations being slapped across all media what was once considered ostentatious seems relatively mundane. It is also good to see another top fashion icon reaching out to a new audience as opposed to a minor celebrity endorsed range of clothing (The Amy Childs Collection??)

Kudos goes to all involved as the partnership has only created winners, Versace and H&M have an increase in media exposure and sales and the customers are introduced to reasonably priced designer garments.

Best get down to the store and see what's left!

O

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Frankie Cocozza axed: Only Marks&Spencer affected?

Hi Everyone,

It seems Christmas wishes do come true!!

The entirely crappy Marks&Spencer’s advert that ran during The X-Factor bore all the normal trappings of a festive promo. Apparently women love getting clothes (don’t bother getting her anything she may find useful, get her a bra so you can enjoy it!), only attractive people celebrate Christmas and excessive flaring and smoky effects is what Christmas looks like. Before you get to that point though you will no doubt be enjoying the song by The X-Factor finalists, slow motion panning shots as average singers, dressed in black stare stupidly into space.

I don’t really get what the message is? Are M&S telling me that if you wish hard enough then I could end up on The X-Factor (regardless of talent) or if I wish hard enough then I will be bought some sexy underwear? Regardless of what they are attempting, if you were wishing Frankie would leave X-Factor… wish granted!

As the self-perpetuating money machine that X-Factor has become continues its vain attempts to claw back its viewers a new ‘controversy’ has begun. The arguing, racism and bullying claims, changing of band names, Kelly’s ‘sick’ voice and the changing of band members has obviously not been enough so Frankie Cocozza has been removed for breaking the “Golden Rule” (we didn’t know there was one either). The official statement refers to breaking competition rules, in my opinion he is owed some leeway as having no discernable talent meant that he was barely in competition with anyone in the first place. The statements also firmly lay the blame on his shoulders which is a bit strange as The X-Factor controls so many aspects of the show.

Has the show finally got to the point where they can see that having a show based on talent (Strictly Come Dancing) is what people want to see? I feel sorry for Frankie as the show put him in this position (he won’t have seen the judges unless executive producers had auditioned him) he was then exploited for headlines and he is now surplus to requirements. I would imagine that one of the more talented (not talented) acts will be back to attempt to give the show some respectability on Saturday but at this point who cares?

In the meantime I expect the producers of the M&S advert to be submitting the overtime requests as they will, no doubt be editing a new version of the advert to account for the changing line-up (good luck with that!) I’m hoping they just bring Twiggy back.

O

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Winter Survival Plan

Hi Everyone,

Winter is here! It’s colder, darker and wetter and no matter how much we want to resist it is definitely time to work on the winter fashion (this Halloween being the exception). In this instance a quick google search will tell you all the trends for the winter so instead of re-hashing what everyone is saying so below are four things that will get me through the cold winter nights.

Wooly hats – Fun and practical, what’s not to like?

    

Mulled wine – Tasty warm and so Christmassy I can literally feel Santa’s presence after a few glasses.

Winter Coat – So big they feel like they can shield you from bullets as well as the elements and if I’m running around London, I will be pretending I’m Sherlock.

Duvet days – There will be times you wake up and you can hear the wind howling, the rain hammering, at this point it is time to let the duvet consume you!

You all better get your winter survival plans prepped, because it’s happening!!

O

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Theft is not 'inspiration'

Hi Everyone,

Intellectual property is a precious thing, in a creative industry you want to protect your hard work. We have been confronted by potential clients who don’t value IP and want to see assets prior to paying. This is very frustrating, I’m pretty sure they don’t ask an accountant to do their finances for six months to determine if the will hire them. Anyway, when we do create something you want to protect it as if that thing is successful people will attempt to use that success.

Today we heard that a settlement had been reached between Rihanna and David LaChapelle for the use of images used in her S&M video. As you can see below the similarities are obvious so he was right to be upset.

This brings us nicely on to the new Beyonce video and the work of choreographers Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker. Take a look below and, again, there is no doubt that there are strong similarities between the two.

There is a difference between paying homage with a variety of subtle nods or thematic choices and the exploitation of someone else’s property. The proliferation of the web means that if you utilise information it is no longer a case of finding a random book from a library and taking those influences and expecting nobody to notice. If artists want to be credited as more than just a performer then it appears that they will need to check all source material. Millions of online detectives are ready and waiting to dissect and determine where any similarities lie so there is little chance of escape!

It will be interesting to see if the Beyonce video becomes subject to legal proceedings of the owner of the IP (Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker) may have been asked for permission. If not, then it will be time to arm the lawyers.

Until next time, I shall be learning some new dance moves!!

O

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A Week of Battles

Hi Everyone,

As we beaver away in Originals HQ it appears that battle lines are being drawn across the globe, Dr Conrad Murray vs the people, Dr Liam Fox vs media rumours and smartphone companies vs each other.

To be honest the live feed of the trial of Doctor Conrad Murray has raised expectations for similar drama when it comes to the UK although it may affect Jeremy Kyle’s ratings. The media hounding of Dr Liam Fox is interesting if only for the fact he is doing absolutely nothing to help bury any of the revelations that keep being unearthed, a novel approach which is enjoyable as it can only get messier.

The biggest fracas appears to be between the technological companies, BlackBerry are in a pickle as Apple reach for the iClouds. The technological battlefield is always a dangerous place with Twitter trends giving a real-time feedback for what the populous are feeling, each vying for the ultimate prize of being market leader. We doubt the result will be as clear cut as the Blu-Ray vs. HD-DVD battle but it appears with BlackBerry on the ropes they could be ripe for a takeover which could throw a cat among the proverbial pigeons.

O

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Can an Icon be replaced?

Hi Everyone,

So sad that Steve Jobs has died, the guy is pretty much a legend for all the reasons that you are likely to have read about already. It won’t be long until discussion will turn to how Apple will cope in his absence. It is clear that Steve Jobs was the talisman for the company and when he was forced out in the 80’s the company suffered. This situation is different from his previous departure but it got me thinking about how companies react to the loss of an icon.

Entertainment

Within the vastness of the entertainment industry there are a number of occasions where the figure head has been lost. In music, Diana Ross left The Supremes and Michael Jackson left The Jacksons, both groups attempted to continue either with a replacement or in blissful ignorance but the impact was felt and neither group repeated the success they’d had with their leads. The death of a singer normally increases the number of records sold and posthumous releases are extremely common, with demo tracks re-produced, live tracks bolted into an album or simply re-packaging existing albums.

In film the biggest case I can think of is when Brandon Lee died before filming had been completed on ‘The Crow’. Ultimately the film was completed with some re-writes but this may have not been possible if at the beginning of the shoot. Alternatives do exist, a computer generated version of Oliver Reed was included in Gladiator, Liam McIntyre was re-cast as Spartacus after the unfortunate death of Andy Whitfield and Bob Monkhouse was reanimated for an advert! It appears that the show really does go on.

Fashion

The most recent case is probably the suicide of Alexander McQueen, like Steve Jobs, he was undoubtedly a genius in his field, creating numerous iconic collections and being responsible for a number of trends. Perhaps where the differed was in business acumen, the fashion house was reported to be in considerable debt at the time of McQueen’s death - the same cannot be said for Apple. The McQueen brand continues without its founder and amid continued success under a new Creative Director.

Business

It is difficult to find someone within business who has been as iconic as Steve Jobs. It is arguable that the loss of Bill Gates at his prime as the head of Microsoft would have created a similar impact but as he now has a limited role any potential issue is reduced. Perhaps businesses are now designed to prevent any one person having such a key aspect thus mitigating against their loss.

I have no doubt that Apple will remain successful at least in the short term but the long term plans seem a little less bright without Steve Jobs. One thing is for certain the techniques used in other industries means will not be possible to replace Steve Jobs.

O

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