Unique Meson

Lords of Dogtown

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 21:38:00 +0000

Some new spec work for Orijen Dog Food. More to come shortly.

Stop Motion Madness

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 14:41:00 +0000

Dutch techno collective Nobody Beats The Drum spent what appears to be an inordinate amount of time with colored and nicely lit wooden blocks to create this stunner of a stop-motion music video.

In a testament to the creation process - as well as a cheeky take on addiction recovery shows like 'Intervention' - they made a behind the scenes video as well.

The music isn't really my bag - kind of a hyper, less cerebral version of SoulWax - but the visuals and sense of humor are spot on.

Keep your eyes peeled for Rogier van der Zwaag, the director and collective member in charge of visuals, in the very near future.

Writer's Paradox (via Conrad Lisco)

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 16:16:00 +0000

Just when you thought it couldn't get worse...

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 21:41:00 +0000

Augmented (hyper)Reality: Domestic Robocop from Keiichi Matsuda on Vimeo.

How's that for brand ubiquity.

Did like the suggestions for the tea though.

next up, full brain interface

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 02:11:00 +0000

Here we see Pattie Maes and Pranav Mistry of the MIT Media Lab present their Sixth Sense user interface at the TED Conference here in Long Beach last year.

To break it down quick - it's a mobile interface that uses a cellphone, a camera and a projector to turn any surface into something that can interact with a networked device.

Think about that for a moment.

While this made the rounds last year, I have yet to hear anyone talking about how the future of mobile applications belongs to who really who nails the interface. Technology doesn't mean squat unless you can use it with an almost childish simplicity. Check out a case study of the light switch for greater detail.

If Sixth Sense gets to that point, I think even the touchscreen gets tossed.

Apologies, Mr. Jobs.

beauty is the flavor of quark

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 16:44:00 +0000

When I’m looking for a culture arbiter, it’s typically not science that springs to mind. However, after digital media took over my old print world, I've been paying attention to technology. Stuff like this next article.

Writing in the January edition of Vanity Fair, Kurt Andersen writes about the Large Hadron Collider currently beginning testing and research at C.E.R.N. on the Swiss-France border.

Basically the Large Hadron Collider (L.H.C.) is a giant particle accelerator and the largest single machine constructed in human history. But despite the huge scientific gains presented by the project, Andersen presents the research as only the beginning of learning about the universe:

One of the paradoxes of physics is that as knowledge has dramatically grown—thanks to particle physicists [continued research in particle accelerators], and to astrophysicists measuring the distances and movements and energies of stars—so has our awareness of the vastness of our ignorance.

The funniest part comes later in the article, when after hearing a lecture by Stephen Hawking and not understanding about 80 percent of it, Andersen quickly figures out that the limited knowledge of these physicists is pretty substantial:

I realized that the physicists with whom I’d been speaking all week had been radically dumbing down their explanations so that I, a functional fifth-grader, might achieve some tiny glimmer of understanding.

Even with only a model covering four percent of an understanding on how our physical universe behaves, the L.H.C. – at a cost of $9 billion and employing half the particle physicists in the world – could provide insight unheard of previous to its discoveries.

Or it could be a giant art project.

But would that be so bad?

“We have dreams,” L.H.C. physicist Fabiola Gianotti says.

“It’s like art. Is art useless? Yes and no. The concepts [of particle physics] are so beautiful in their simplicity. And they answer the most fundamental questions. Physics and art are two forms of the same wish of human intuition, to understand nature.”

Food is the story

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 02:12:00 +0000

Telling a story is important. Doing so in a captivating manner is better. Now make food the medium, and shoot for intense emotional reactions. Chef Grant Achatz aims for this every night he opens his restaurant Alinea in Chicago.

Achatz has been noted as one of the best chefs in the United States. Many journalists point to him among the vanguard of modern fine dining - a process of cooking with an implementation of science and technology commonly called molecular gastro nomy.

What's profound is not only Achatz' attention to science and technology in his cooking, but the use of it for a better construction of the story he tells with food. His use of science creates drama and unexpected delight. He shatters his guests preconceived notions of the media he's working with.
Good goals to aim for when you next look to create something.

John Hegarty and the creative checklist

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 18:02:00 +0000

John Hegarty, the "H" on the door of super-shop BBH, broke down some of his theories on creativity in an audio tour through the neighborhood surrounding his agency's first home in Soho, London. Click on the logo above to give it a listen.

It's a little self-serving, since the audio is presented as a part of a campaign for BBH client Johnny Walker - according to AdFreak.

However, there was a nugget in the middle of Hegarty's talk I found particularly inspiring:

John Hegarty's Creative Checklist

Is it different?
Does it touch on an essential truth?
Does it have a streak of irreverence to it?
Have I expressed it in a simple, direct way?
Does it stop and capture people's imaginations?

All of this you've probably read in Whipple or any of Paul Arden's books.

But despite however cliche it may seem, the above questions work at the heart of all creative endeavor. It is the natural challenge we face in creating something original.

Maybe something uncomfortable. Maybe something brilliant.

Back to work.

The Fog of Advertising

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 23:36:00 +0000

After re-watching the Errol Morris documentary on Robert S. McNamara, The Fog of War, I couldn't resist paraphrasing for my industry.

The Eleven Lessons (as they apply to advertising)

Empathize with your customer
Rationality will not save us
There's something beyond one's self
Maximize efficiency
Proportionality should be a guideline in advertising
Get the data
Belief and seeing are often both wrong
Be prepared to reexamine your reasoning
In order to do good, you may have to engage with the client
Never say never
You can't change human nature

Test shot for spec campaign for Alzheimer's Association

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 20:35:00 +0000

So I'm working on a new spec campaign for my book and thought to throw it out there for the world to critique.

It's an outdoor execution, using UV to diminish a photo in order to reveal the text.

It can be found in all its glory at the following locations:

Alzheimer's Association spec treatment - Spouse

Alzheimer's Association spec treatment - Children

Alzheimer's Association spec treatment - Family

Feel free to critique with the gusto of a Spanish Inquisitor.

WWJD...

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 22:20:00 +0000

...as an employee of your local transit district?:

1.“Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself. Please remove your bag from the adjacent seat.”

2.“Blessed are the poor, for they shall inherit the Earth. You kids leave that poor man alone.”

3.“Take this all of you, do this in memory of me. Additional transfers are available at the next station.”

4.“No one enters the kingdom of heaven except through my Father. Please have your tickets out for inspection.”

5.“Let he without sin cast the first stone. Sir, you need to put your pants back on.”

Who doesn't love ice cream?

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 19:28:00 +0000

Even though we're in the midst of our wimpy Southern California winter, I still felt like having an ice cream bar. Well I felt like making an ice cream bar. In Photoshop. From scratch.

Next thing I'll be telling myself I don't need an art director anymore. Psych!

Here's the tutorial to building this platonic ideal of ice cream treats (originally found on Boing Boing):

Delicious Ice Cream Bar Photoshop Tutorial on PSDTUTS

The B Party - An exercise in stenciling

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 17:50:00 +0000

Finished products, originally uploaded by uniquemeson.

So Carey and I were invited to a party themed with the letter 'B'. That would mean anything 'B' was fair game. We saw babies, boat captains and barbarians.

We decided to send up Bush and Barack.

Here's the creative process documented for your viewing pleasure.

It only took an afternoon, two X-Acto blades and a pot of coffee to finish in time.

Anti-Car Theft Campaign?

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 22:53:00 +0000

At the L.A. Creative Club mixer in Century City a few weeks back, Hallisey and I spent a few minutes talking ads with a freelance copywriter from South Africa. For a while we stuck to the business at hand before drifting to conversation about things like this:

I guess you have to be in a certain market for products like that. By that I mean the lawless lands of a Mad Max movie or with high participation in monster truck rallies.

Check one...

noreply@blogger.com (Ryan Hammill) — Tue, 27 May 2008 18:34:00 +0000

Let's invoke the right mood to kick this off.

Here's to remembering that everything is an experiment.