From Chanel N°5 to Space Exploration

The new Chanel N°5 ad campaign which features Brad Pitt, their first male spokesperson ever, has people across the planet talking. Well, actually they are trying to make sense of what Pitt is saying in the ad. Written by GQ Style Guy Glenn O'Brien and filmed by Atonement director Joe Wright, Pitt's surprisingly casual attire and breathy monologue titled "Wherever I Go" are perfectly mysterious:

"It's not a journey. Every journey ends, but we go on. The world turns and we turn with it. Plans disappear, dreams take over, but wherever I go, there you are: my luck; my fate; my fortune. N°5, inevitable."

Perhaps we're biased given our fetish for the future and all, but our take on the ad campaign is that it references the incredible tipping point we are at with science, technology, space exploration, and everything else to come in the next century. The voice of humanity speaking about our future, a direct response to Star Trek's "Space, the final frontier." Curiosity, discovery, mystery...muses for the 21st century if you will.

The ad campaign also confirms something we've long known here at Future-ish, that wherever we go in the future, humanity will take our most important attributes with us, our individuality and our aptitude for self-expression. Some day in the 25th century, a female spaceship captain will return to her quarters, slip on her biometric robe that measures health vitals, and remove the cap of her Chanel N°5.

Wherever I Go - Chanel N°5 Part 1...



Wherever I Go - Chanel N°5 Part 2...

Chipotle's "Back to the Start"

A recent TV ad by everyone's favorite sustainable fast food burrito chain, Chipotle, has created quite a stir. Some say it upstaged the Grammy Awards during which it aired and it has now won several awards. The ad/short film, produced by Creative Artists Agency and Nexus Productions and directed by filmmaker Johnny Kelly, Back to the Start, supports Chipotle's long running position on developing a sustainable food system. As an animated farmer learns about the gritty details of industrial farming, Willie Nelson covers Coldplay's tune The Scientist, the perfect soundtrack to make the spot hit home all the more.

In a June 2012 interview with Matt Lauer on TODAY, Matt Miller, President and CEO of the Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP), commented on the ad, winner of AICP's best commercial for 2011,

"it says that you can sell and have a social message, that's kind of what advertising is going towards right now".

We agree on all fronts, sometimes shaping the future does require going back to the start...to do things right from the beginning.

SeanChron | Michio Kaku Meets Madison Avenue

5.15.12. Today I heard a radio ad in which celebrity physicist, Dr. Michio Kaku, was lending his wise words and futurist foresight to a tri-branded ad campaign promoting the movie Battleship, Coke Zero, and Subway all in one snappy little soundbite. Of course the thrust of the promo was that the aliens in Battleship are coming for everything, including Coke Zero, but something else caught my attention. This is one of the rare occurrences, perhaps even the first in recent times, of a scientist being chosen for a major mainstream ad campaign.

Goal of getting scientists into the mainstream...check. And now, move over goal of trying to get scientists more involved with policy to shape the future, now there's something meatier...scientists promoting products. There will certainly be many in the science world that shun such an evolution but I for one am 'over the moon' about it (pardon the pun). It's about time that actors, athletes, and models shared some of the spotlight (and earnings) from product promotions and endorsements. And what better way to get scientists and science in front of millions of people than pitching products in the mainstream consumer marketplace. The era of the supermodel may be over but the era of the 'superscientist' is just beginning.

Oh, and here are the related sweepstakes:
Coke Zero - Battle for Everything
Coke Zero - Trip for 4 to Hawaii, free Subway for a year
Subway - Zero in to Win $100,000

SeanChron | Star Power

10.3.11. I remember it so well...the day I missed the perfect shot. It was November 2003 and I was in Milan to attend the Sustainable Everyday event. On one of the afternoons we had off, I took a long stroll down Via Montenapoleone where many of the major fashionhouses had their shops. As I was passing by the Giorgio Armani store two stunning women...reminiscent of Sophia Loren, dressed to the nines, and arms full of shopping bags, stepped out of the shop, walked around the corner a bit, and got in a tiny Smartcar. It was at that moment that I realized that if the most beautiful, stylish women in the world could go shopping at Giorgio Armani and then drive off in a Smartcar, why do we in America need to drive to the mall in our huge SUVs? I also realized I missed a great photo.

So...I was thrilled to see the Fiat 500 commercial featuring Jennifer Lopez. Not quite the picture I missed but certainly the next best thing. You can view the ad below:



I've long said that we need to use the same tried and true marketing and advertising techniques for alternative products as we do for conventional products. Celebrity endorsements are one of the most effective techniques around. So, I have no doubt that we're going to be seeing a lot of Fiat 500s on the roads in the near future. Now to be clear, these efforts are often co-branding. In the case of the Fiat 500 commercials, one commercial features scenes from her new video "Papi" and the another, tri-branding if you will, features a special edition Gucci Fiat 500 showcased during at Gucci’s Fashion Night Out event in New York. In the end, kudos to Fiat for tapping great music and fashion for their campaigns.

J-Lo isn't new to co-branding though...I remember a 2002 PSA ad and poster in which J-Lo supports the Forest Stewardship Council. Notice the largest word on the poster is 'enough'. Interesting that the the poster coincided with the release of her movie "Enough". Some claimed she was just promoting her movie, my response...Who Cares? Sustainably harvested wood had never received so much press. The PSA was produced in Spanish and Portuguese as well..

One thing for sure is that celebrity endorsements will continue to shape both the hearts and minds - and wallets - of consumers...the more this power can be used for good, the better.

See Spectrum: Montana travel advert

Another addition to the See Spectrum Project. I've seen this and many other photos promoting travel to Montata on billboards and busses lately and given my fetish for the color spectrum in pop art, this one in particular caught my eye. What's great about this image is that the colors are natural. And...its an extra bonus if your a geology geek like me.