Category Archives: Television

Make Love Not Scars

reshma

Since its founding in 2005, YouTube has been home to a myriad of beauty bloggers who post tutorials and other how-to makeup videos. But in a powerful new campaign for Make Love Not Scars by Ogilvy & Mather, the woman giving the red lip tutorial looks a little different than the typical 20-something beauty blogger.

Reshma, whose face has been scarred and disfigured, is a spokesperson for the #EndAcidSale campaign, whose goal is to curb the number of acid attack victims in India by limiting the accessibility to acid (you can buy a liter of it in any drugstore in India for about $1.50).

According to a petition that Reshma asks viewers to sign (which has over 65,000 signatures), India has over 1,000 reported acid attack cases per year, of which 90% of the victims are female.

What Sparks Our Fire: Creative and powerful campaigns that capture attention and call for change.

The New Meaning of “Broadcast”

chromecast

With streaming services like Netflix and Hulu Plus on the rise (such as Netflix announcing that its second-quarter revenue exceeded estimates at $1.64 billion), tech giants are competing to enhance the streaming experience, revolutionizing the way we watch TV.

It’s clear that this is a step in the right direction, according to a report from Google regarding engagement via Chromecast that revealed users transmitting media to their TVs watch 50% more video than the average mobile app user. Chromecast, along with competitors such as Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV, represents another huge push toward digital streaming over regularly scheduled programming, which could mean the end of TV as we know it now.

streaming

Earlier this year, The Artifice reported that more than 40% of American homes used a streaming service as of the fall of 2014, which shows that the demand for “on-demand” services has increased dramatically and is becoming rapidly integrated with the average consumer lifestyle.

What Sparks Our Fire: Data that shows how a consumer preference shift and new technology is changing the traditional pastime of watching television

Love Has No Labels

skeletons
As Pride Month comes to a close and the remnants of confetti are swept off the streets following the landmark Supreme Court marriage equality decision, brands have started showing their support for LGBTQ through mass marketing campaigns. However, the advertising industry is embracing a new kind of LGBTQ acceptance in its productions: “gay-inclusive.” Instead of drawing attention to the subject’s sexual orientation, these brands succeed in telling a story while normalizing LGBTQ relationships. From dancing skeletons to dancing wedding parties, here are five of our favorite ads that show how LGBTQ acceptance has shaped the definition of inclusivity in the media.
Taking home an unprecedented number of awards at the Cannes Lion Festival, the viral “Love Has No Labels” campaign was designed by the Ad Council to raise awareness of implicit racial, sexual, and religious bias, premiering on Valentine’s Day in Santa Monica earlier this year. The inspiring “Love Has No Labels” tagline also was prominently featured in the New York City Pride Parade, which took place a day after the campaign’s Cannes victory.
Although its debut was back in 2013, the Kindle Paperwhite commercial is still praised by critics as one of the most innovative gay-inclusive ads, using a humorous approach portray acceptance of LGBTQ couples as a social norm rather than highlighting the differences for the purpose of awareness, and avoiding all-too-common “gay male” stereotypes.
amazon kindle

The commercial for the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite was commended for its normalization of gay couples and absence of gay male stereotypes.

This heartwarming spot depicts two women preparing to adopt a deaf child, and its positive portrayal of LGBTQ relationships, adoption, and strong family values, minus the overt “pride” motif, sets the standard for diversity in advertising.
Hallmark’s “Put Your Heart to Paper” campaign is a poignant expression of love of all kinds, and emphasizes the lasting impact of the spoken word. By featuring the couple in the same fashion as it would a same-sex couple, Hallmark succeeds in demonstrating a shift away from gay-focused and toward “gay-inclusive” ads.
hallmark
If you blink, you may miss this one—the video shows several wedding parties joyously celebrating their marriages, one of them between two brides. It also features guest performers Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, who gained recognition for their support of the gay community with their song “Same Love” back in 2012.
What Sparks Our Fire: Brands that celebrate diversity through exceptionally creative and high-impact storytelling

Festivus Comes Early This Year

seinfeldapartment

This week, as an early Festivus present, thousands of people will cross one more thing off of their Dream-things-to-do-in-New-York bucket list, by stopping by their old pal Jerry Seinfeld’s place. His fictional apartment, that is. A re-creation of the famous Upper West Side apartment will pop-up thanks to Hulu on 14th street near Chelsea Market on Wednesday, and will be open through Sunday. This fan-driven activation will celebrate the introduction of ‘Seinfeld’ to the Hulu catalog.

Similar activations have been created to celebrate ‘Arrested Development’ and ‘Friends’. The ‘Central Perk’ pop-up cafe was co-sponsored by Eight O’Clock Coffee and Warner Brothers, and gave both brands a valuable way to connect fans with one of the most popular shows in television history. Both of these activations were incredibly popular and generated long lines just to get close to the action.

Activations like these allow fans to engage with their favorite shows in an exciting way– they can actually place themselves into the show they normally see through a television or laptop screen. The promise of a great selfie on Jerry’s couch might just be enough to make the long line worth it.

If you’d like to see if Jerry has a copy of Kramer’s coffee table book about coffee tables on his coffee table, the apartment will be open June 24th through June 28th from 10 AM to 7 PM at 451 West 14th Street.

What Sparks Our Fire: Seinfeld… enough said.

Canopy Favorites: Funny Business

In honor of one of our favorite TV shows ending this week (#RIPMadMen), each day a member of the Canopy team will give some insight into one of their favorite shows or movies.

siliconvalley

Who would’ve thought that the best depiction of the startup world would come in the form of an HBO comedy? But according to many insiders, ‘Silicon Valley’ is just that. ‘Silicon Valley’ follows the trials and tribulations of fictional Pied Piper, a small startup with a killer algorithm for data compression, as it competes head-to-head with a mega-company looking to do the same thing. Relying on a real life group of friends and comedians as it’s stars, ‘Silicon Valley’ is not only interesting and accurate, but really, really funny.

jared-swot-silicon-valley

I love the show because it takes concepts I understand from work and school, and depicts them in the most hilarious settings. For instance, Sunday night’s episode began with the CFO teaching the team about SWOT analyses for business decision making. The team later uses the concept for a personal situation so insane I’ll just have to recommend watching it for yourself.

TV Show: Silicon Valley
Team Member: Jacqueline, Accounts Management Intern