If VW is more fun, what is BMW?

I seem to keep coming across ideas that are completely unrelated to cars, yet end up as a marketing tool to establish a car company's brand image. The latest company I have discovered is BMW (remember the piano stairs and "Fun Theory" for VW?).

I wanted to originally post this video because I was amazed by the genius of Theo Jansen- a Dutch engineer and designer who creates robots propelled entirely by wind. I think it's fascinating, and exciting, that there are people in the world who have the capability to utilize alternative resources for future creations.

Then there is BMW. VW created the image of being "fun;" BMW creates the image of being innovative. By sponsoring Jansen, I would assume, the company is saying that they are a company interested in future possibilities and being the first to showcase them.

Jansen's inventions correlate with BMW to an extent because of the idea of a machine (automotive/robot) being propelled by wind. I'm kind of curious as to what other ideas car companies have attached its name to in order to create its brand personality...

Woo-Hoo!

This Michelob Ultra commercial was first shown during the Super Bowl. It includes Lance Armstrong waking up, running, biking, and hanging out at at bar. I remember really liking it at that time, but it had left my mind since then. Until tonight.

I was watching the Discovery Channel's new mini series "Life" on Animal Planet (some really cool stuff and I enjoyed the documentary aspect of it, but a narrator other than Oprah would definitely bring the quality of this series up) tonight when the commercial appeared. It's the first time I've seen it since the Super Bowl. Still like it.
Something about this commercial that I find interesting is the product placement. Lance Armstrong clearly endorses his LiveStrong campaign everywhere he goes, but the placement of LiveStrong products in the commercial is rather prominent: shirt, bracelet, etc. The "ad-in-an-ad" idea is kind of fun and creates a strong partnership between two companies/organizations.

By the way, the guy obviously has tons of commercials/endorsements cause he's just a cool dude. I get a kick out of this one.

Sorry Lance, but no matter how badass you are, your tires just aren't going to handle that terrain!

Cosmo Ages

As I was reading the article for class, Inventing the Cosmo Girl: Identity and Girl-Styled American Dreams, I was intrigued, and somewhat shocked, by the low standards for which the magazine held its audience. It may be the same way now, but it wasn't a concept I had considered before.
I looked up past Cosmo magazine covers to see if these concepts were portrayed in their cover girls. I don't know that I found what I was looking for, but the timeline of covers is very interesting. For one, I actually think that Cosmo has become more conservative in its old age! I'm not saying that the cover girls of today are covered head to toe-they are clearly using their sex appeal. However, they wear more than, say the June 1976 cover girl who is clad only in a lei.
It's neat to browse through all the covers and see the trends through the decades.

Signs, Signs, Everywhere a Sign

I love articles/photos of odd signs. They're everywhere and sometimes you just have to wonder about the rational behind them. Sometimes they're intentional as a creative way to grab people's attention (i.e. the dog sign in Vancouver). Sometimes the oddity comes from a cultural barrier (i.e. the "Caution: Sleeping Police Men Ahead" sign; in the UK, sleeping police men are speed bumps). But then, there are the times that just make you hope there was a momentary lapse in judgement (i.e. "Please Be Safe. Do not stand, sit, climb, or lean on fences. If you fall, animals could eat you and that might make them sick. Thank You."). No matter what the reason for their peculiarity, they remain a little commonplace joy in our everyday lives.

An Old Technique, A New Look

This is a really cool video I stumbled upon. I don't understand the story line, but I'm mesmerized by the animation. Nothing fancy, just black and white cartoon (or specifically anime) drawings. In my mind, it's essentially a beautiful pairing of old and new animation techniques. Each frame was meticulously drawn out to create the motion and story; like cartoons before shows and movies became CG heavy. I think it's a neat technique and would love to see more examples of it.

Shots Heard on the Mountain

As I've mentioned before, I'm an Olympics fan. I joined several friends last Friday for an Opening Ceremony party complete with "ethnic" food trays (alright, so really we just tried to justify how pigs-in-a-blanket could be considered foreign; I think we settled on wrapped frankfurters...). I was pleased with the ceremony-the led effects were really cool- but one thing in particular struck me while I was watching.....what on earth is a biathlon?!?!?! Many of the flag bearers for multiple countries were biathletes, a sport I had never heard mention of before.

In case you're wondering, as I was, the biathlon is an event where skiiers do a cross country circuit, stop at a shooting range, then take off skiing once again for the finish line.

Apparently, the event has been a part of the winter Olympics since 1955. I won't dispute the athleticism needed for the event; I cannot imagine the stability one needs to hold the rifle still after having completed a difficult skiing course. But the event seems so...random! I would never think of skiing and shooting as a possible combination for elite athletes to take part in.

Oh, and just an fyi, the US hasn't medal, yet, in the biathlon. But the next event is scheduled for tomorrow- fingers crossed that they ski fast and hit their mark!

Tonight, millions viewed the annual, infamous Super Bowl ads. As a whole, I couldn't tell you if they were overall good or bad (all I can picture right now is a ton of screaming chickens).

There is one ad that has caught my attention- the Google "Parisian Love" ad.

Immediately after the ad was aired, I witnessed two different reactions to the ad. The first reaction was from a girl at the same party as I. From another room, we heard a squeal of delight followed by the exclamation that it was the "sweetest" ad she had ever seen and it made her want to cry with happiness. A few seconds later, I received a text from my friend Josh saying "Does Google really need to advertise? Their name has become a verb..."

Good point. So what is the reasoning behind Google advertising during the Super Bowl? Google has become a part of everyday speech. You'd be hard pressed to find some one in the US who does not know how to "google" something. The Super Bowl ad was Google's maiden voyage into tv advertising, but is it honestly necessary to shell out millions of dollars for a 30 second spot to advertise something that the majority of Americans use multiple times a day without conscious thought?