On Advertising by David Ogilvy
Ogilvy, David Mackenzie. On Advertising. First Edition. Vintage, 1985.
This text summarizes David Ogilvy’s experiences in advertising as he shares his advice for someone working in the field and on how to create a successful ad. He was the founding partner of a majorly successful ad firm. It is written in an informative, instructive tone, and in a clear, 1980s-esque style. Its intended audience is someone wanting to enter in or already in the field of advertising. Its purpose is to inform the reader ‘on advertising’. A tenet of advertising I learned from the book is the importance of a ‘big idea’. It is crucial to attract attention and get people to buy your product who would otherwise not. It is difficult to have humility in the presence of a big idea and not tear it down, especially if it came from a coworker. The questions to ask yourself Ogilvy gave to recognize a big idea are the following: did it make me gasp; do I wish I’d thought of it; is it unique; does it fit the strategy to perfection; could it be used for 30 years.The book also made me more conscious of brand image, which is the personality a brand has in how it relates to potential customers. It is the antithesis of trying to use rational argument to persuade consumers. Ogilvy gives Marlboro as an ultimate example of a successful brand image, and gives the silly example of how Coke doesn’t tell you it uses 50 percent more cola berries than other cola brands (as that doesn’t fit their brand image of being simple, reliable and delicious). The book relates to my senior project because it will inform me about advertising, knowledge which will be useful for my advertising/video production internship.
A Technique For Producing Ideas by James Webb Young
Young, James Webb. A Technique For Producing Ideas. 1st edition. McGraw Hill, 2003.
This text gives a formula for ‘producing ideas’. It was written by an advertising executive. It is written in an older style, but is quite clear and gives elaborate examples. Its intended audience is for people doing creative work, and is especially useful for people working in advertising as they are given a formula to help come up with ideas for ad campaigns. The most important thing I took from this short book is the following 5 step process to come up with new ideas. Step 1: gather new material, related or not related to the product. Step 2: mull over the materials in your mind, mix and match them and experiment with them to look at the facts from different angles. Step 3: go do something else unrelated to coming up with new ideas, something that invigorates you and that you are excited about. Step 4: this new idea will come to you in a flash of insight, but only after you have stopped straining to come up with it. Step 5: sculpt your idea to reality; make it practical, put it out there, take criticism, and adapt it as necessary. This book relates to my senior project because it will give me a practical way to come up with ideas, a skill which will be useful in my work as an intern at a video production and advertising company.
Hey Whipple, Squeeze This by Luke Sullivan
Sullivan, Luke, and Edward Boches. Hey, Whipple, Squeeze This. 5th
edition. Wiley, 2016.
This text acts as a guide for people in advertising to produce good ads. It goes into general principles of advertising, gives advice for working in the fast-paced industry of advertising, and gives practical advice for doing the work. Its intended audience is someone interested in advertising. It is written in a modern style and a lot of it is written in narrative form, giving plenty of examples to illustrate its key points. Here are some key points on advertising I learned. People can sense and want authenticity in the advertising they see. Copywriting is a process, don’t expect to have the first twenty lines be anywhere close to good, you have to write down all your bad ideas before you get to the good ones. Tension attracts attention (this is a concept I’ve learned in books I’ve read on screenwriting). Put the customer’s needs and interests first. These felt pretty basic, but really fundamental and definitely got drilled home to me in this book. This book relates to my senior project because it will inform me about advertising, knowledge which will be useful for my advertising/video production internship.
Free Solo – Produced by ace content
Free Solo. Directed by Jimmy Chin; Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi; Tommy Caldwell, Produced by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi; Jimmy Chin; Shannon Dill; Evan Hayes, August 31st, 2018.
This film is a documentary on Alex Honnold, a rock climber, as he climbs mountains and prepares for and attempts to climb a mountain in california completely unstrapped. It was produced by someone who works for Ace Content, the company I am interning for, and is a good example of the work they do. Its purpose is to give people an insight into the world of rock-climbing and to entertain. Its videography is very dynamic, high-quality and fresh.
It connects to my senior project because it is a great example of the work the company I am interning for does, and I will be able to gain insight into their style by analyzing the film’s videography and narrative structure. The film really took advantage of Jimmy Chin’s superb skill as a photographer skilled at photographing the extreme, and the producers (Evan Hayes, partner at ACE content, among them) made an excellent decision in investing in drones to capture Honnold’s free solo close up.
Master Shots Vol 1 by Christopher Kenworthy
Kenworthy, Christopher. Master Shots Vol 1. 2nd Revised edition. Michael Wiese
Productions, 2009.
This book is a sort of collection of shots and their utility in various film contexts. It is structured in a list format, with diagrams and examples of the film shot above the description. Each chapter has a sort of genre, for example there is a car chapter with a bunch of shots for scenes in cars, a fight chapter with fight shots, etc. The description includes when to use the shot, how to do the shot best, and general tips for the shot. It is written very clearly and with brevity. Here is an example of a shot I found particularly interesting. The ‘push on nothing’ shot is commonly used in horror films to increase the viewer’s tension and feelings of anticipation by placing them firmly in the actor’s point of view. It is described as the shot where the camera is placed behind and two the side of the actor, moving forward with the same speed as the actor, and then a cut to where the camera is in front of the actor, moving backwards with the same speed as the actor is moving forward. The description included a tip saying that this shot works particularly well when actors are moving through door frames, to capitalize on the anticipation involved in opening a door, especially in horror films. I also saw it used in the recent crypto ad with Matt Damon which aired during the super bowl, which shows it has other applications outside of horror. This book is useful for my internship as it will help give me the language to properly talk about filmography in the video ads that I may help envision and create.