It’s not interactive.  No real time.  Doesn’t rely on UGC.  Nor is it for the faint of heart.  This is old school storytelling at it’s finest. MIA’s new video for her Born Free track is a highly charged, shocking exploration of ethnic cleansing, as seen through the systematic gathering and murdering of “Gingers.” A difficult piece of film to watch (Sudan/Congo/Iran/Rwanda anyone?) but another mighty example of storytelling through film by Romain-Gavras. Put on your headphones, crank the volume and watch it full screen.

Born Free..."Boo"

This gothic wallpaper designed by Carnovsky changes depending on the light shone at it. Maybe not something you want in your bedroom but a visual treat nonetheless. Perhaps business cards that change in the light or an OOH execution? This wallpaper is manufactured by Jannelli & Volpi, and debuting recently as part of their showcase at Milan’s Design Week.

See all the chilling photos below.

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This blog post is dedicated to Natalie, who gave me the lowdown on this.

This is for all the TAXI workaholics pulling late nights out there who missed Oprah when she covered this because you know she did (and you were working anyway).

So peel your lips from that can of Red Bull, drain your last triple espresso, and put away the smelling salts …if you think I’m talking about chia pets, you’re mistaken. They sucked then and they suck now  …

… but you need to read this (what follows was Googled and gleaned from seemingly reputable sites) …

Chia comes from the chia plant (Salvia hispanica) and belongs to the mint family of Lamiaceae.

It’s native to some parts of Mexico and Guatemala, and it has a long history, going way back to as early as 3500 BC. The Aztecs, the Mayans, and now those in the know are eating these blessed seeds daily. They blow most “superfoods”, including flax, Goji berries, and Ben&Jerry’s, away.

First, they don’t go bad quickly, like flax does, and you don’t have to grind ‘em to get their blessings.

One ounce, has:

• Omega-3 fatty acids, 4915 mg, equal to 250 g (9 oz.) of wild salmon
• Omega-6 fatty acids, 1620 mg
• Antioxidants – equal to 15 grams of blueberries
• Fibre – 10.6 grams of dietary fibre, equal to 17 g of bran
• Protein – equal to 44 grams of kidney beans
• Calcium – 177 mg, equal to 3 oz. of whole milk
• Magnesium – equal to 73 g of spinach
• Iron – equal to 103 g of spinach
• Potassium – 44.8 mg
• Phosphorus – 265 mg

PLUS:

• They are bursting with vitamin B, C, E, plus other vitamins and minerals
• Improves cardiovascular health
• Reduces cravings for sugar and junk
• Brings down high blood pressure
• Stabilizes blood sugar levels
• Helps reduce pain and inflammation associated with arthritis
• Boosts metabolism
• Promotes lean muscle mass
• Aids digestion and detoxification
• Fills you up, so it helps weight loss
• Keeps you well hydrated and your electrolytes in balance
• Improves brain function, mental focus, and concentration
• Enhances energy (effective in enhancing the performance of athletes)
• Anti-aging properties
• They are gluten-free and low carb
• At room temp., they’ll stay fresh and ready to eat for over two years

Chia seeds

I mean, unless you want this seed to impregnate you, there’s not much more it can do for you.

There’s probably more to say about them, but that’s the gist of it. There are two kinds, white and black chia seeds, and as far as I know, they’re pretty much the same in terms of potency and quality. If you let the chia seeds sit in water, they will form into a gelatinous cloud and when you swallow the cloud it feels like swallowing a large glob of mucus or something. Basically, it’s kinda gross. (Though Natalie digs it.) I don’t recommend this. Take two tablespoons a day, and like all good things, except working at TAXI of course, don’t overdo it. You can find it at health food or organic stores, Whole Foods for sure, places like that. I get mine at St. Lawrence Market. They are not cheap, but then, neither is a coffee or drug habit. (Just heard Bulk Barn sells ‘em cheaper than those places.) Let us know how it goes and how you feel after a few weeks. Take before and after photos if you can.

It’s now easier to check out your destination on Google maps. Previously only available through a separate application, now Google Earth is part of Google Maps – plugin download required. Handy bonus: find out which of your neighbours have rooftop pools and make friends.

I was fortunate to attend the Boulder Digital Workshop last week held in Toronto.

Dubbed “Digital Bootcamp”, the workshops covered many topics from digital strategy, the importance of technology and UX in the creative process to how to structure teams. There were deep dives into planning, the mobile space, online video & OOH and social media. These two days were built to illustrate and discuss all the various parts of what the boulder folks describe as the digital ecosystem.

BDW is  developed by the University of Colorado at Boulder through the early support of founding partner MDC Partners and with input from Sweden’s Hyper Island and The Society of Digital Agencies (SoDA). It was led by leaders from business, creative, and technology disciplines. In Toronto the key presenters were Scott Pringle – director of technology  and Joe Corr, senior technical lead from CP&B and Matt Howell from Modernista.

I will write here about the beginning of day two which focused on the emerging technologies affecting Digital OOH and Video, clearly a topic close to my heart!  Digital OOH presentation showcased both the passive experience ie projection mapping, ambient work as well as the interactive experience which was the most immersive and engaging work – truly inspiring. Each piece is customized and is a shared experience for those viewing. When it is truly interactive it turns the actions of the viewer into visible results. The times square work with Microsoft and Nike are probably the most well known but my favourite piece presented was the Hard Rock Café touch wall which had viewers able to access a full catalogue of music info and content pieces. The possibilities are endless and this space will only get more and more inventive. Another possibility discussed was helio technology that generates a mist into the air so that you can project against that.

There’s a lot of buzz around the future of video, be it IPTV, Internet TV or aggregate sites like YouTube, Veoh and Hulu. Migrating “traditional” advertising strategies to digital means integrating video into the digital process. David U.K. (Managing Director of Digital Percent and previous general Manager at Heavy.com) discussed the creative and production opportunities.

Online video spending will grow 45% over the next year and the new technologies are providing very creative ways to engage with the consumer. The landscape for Digital video spans everything from user generated You tube hits to webisodes  to SPUG – semi professional User generated work  to real time web shows such as fearless Q&A & Justin TV PCHookupshow. The discussion centered around how a brand can be involved in the space of branded content/entertainment. Many of the examples started from an event. Taking a sponsorship and making it bigger; adding a layer of Social media on top of it and promoting the piece – ie Kokanee crankworx

One of the most entertaining viral pieces showcased was created for Samsung and was hugely successful. It was simply tagged by the advertiser and did so well because it was original, entertaining and not expensive.

Samsung produced the viral video to promote its new LED TV range. The brand came up with an idea to make sure that its new product will be talked about: viral sheep advertising. They simply equipped a flock of sheep with LED lights and filmed them being shepherded on a steep hill in Wales. The “Baaa-Studs” team, including among others a shepherd, a cameraman, and several sheepdogs, did a great job. They made a sheep form different contours on the hill, played LED sheep Pong in the dark and even created the Mona Lisa entirely out of sheep. This got over 3.5 million hits in its first week. It’s about a year old but so entertaining.

See for yourself:

While this viral was highly entertaining the most innovation is being seen in the real time web.  Sites such as Ustream and kyte.com allow consumers to watch and interact with the show live. (in fact Boulders 3 day workshop in Boulder was streamed live on Ustream.com – (wish I had known that!) and they both have online and mobile platforms. Their premise is to stream live, build a community and of course increase revenue opportunities. It is not a one way video delivery platform but is designed to be interactive via comments, chat or uploading their own videos – you can also see who is watching online or on mobile. The system also offers a variety of metrics to see how the audience is engaging.

Another real time web show was created by Microsoft & Justin.TV to create a live talk show called PC Hook up with host Christian Lander , author of “Stuff White People Like: A Definitive Guide to the Unique Taste of Millions”  The show run as a late night talk show format, starting with a monologue from Christian and followed by interviews. Each episode was broadcast live and offers real time interaction with viewers at: http://justin.tv/pchookup. The PC Hook Up Show hosted celebrities from the technology, media and entertainment worlds and the first 10 episodes showed interviews with various artists as they described their PC experience. It also allowed viewers to  call in or chat and be a part of the show as well as have the chance to win a free PC. It may not be the best show but a great example of reaching consumers online in real time.

The show got 1.5 million view and was supported by a twitter feed. It is high production quality and 10 episodes were made for the cost of 1 TV spot (ok US budget – $600K). It ran for 5 weeks, interviewed 50 guests and created more than 450 minutes of content. Most importantly it created real time dialogue with its viewers. The branded content/entertainment space has much potential for our clients particularly as interactivity becomes more viable.



Two of the latest iControversies (outside of iPhone4Gate) surround Apple’s seeming manipulation of content:

Controversy: December 2009, Apple rejected political satirist Mark Fiore’s NewsToons, an editorial cartoon-of-the-day application on the basis that it “ridiculed public figures”. After a bout of media frenzy, Newstoons debuted in the iTunes store a week after Fiore received the Pulitzer.

Response: “While the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists realizes that Apple is a private sector company, Apple is also becoming one of the primary ways people publish news and information. With that innovation comes new responsibility…A vigorous public discourse, opinion, satire and, yes, ridiculing public figures, are essential to journalism and our Democracy.” –letter to Steve Jobs from the American Association of Editorial Cartoonists (Fiore is a member)

Controversy: April 2010, Apple rejected Daryl Cagle’s (MSNBC’s editorial cartoonist) Tiger Woods cartoon application even though the company had previously approved a very similar MSNBC.com Obama Cartoons app.

Response: “Editorial cartoons are the best measure of the freedom of a nation…It is chilling to see Apple pick and choose which topics can be discussed in the mediums they control. By positioning itself to control the new methods of delivery for news and opinion, Apple assumes a special responsibility to allow for a full and free debate on all topics and personalities in the news. I don’t want Apple deciding which public figures I may ridicule.” — Daryl Cagle

Throughout their notoriously secretive and strict approval processes, Apple, as a corporation, maintains the right to reject any application when they deem the content to be “objectionable”. Both Cagle and the AAEC make stirring arguments for free speech and the removal of corporate meddling. But most importantly, they asked the million dollar question – does Apple’s influence on the way we consume content innately negate their right to create filters? If the Internet is inherently “free” should Apple products eventually become mere vehicles for content?

On the flipside: is it the corporation’s responsibility to regulate content access to the consumer if the content is the Wild Wild West?

As part of the upcoming Elektra II  International Digital Arts Festival (May 5th – 9th) in Montreal. This installation, created by TAXI, invites people to an online encounter at the junction between real and virtual. Users connect via webcam on the Elektra website. At the physical festival site, these encounters are retransmitted on two screens, each equipped with a camera to send web users images from the festival, in real time. But doesn’t a virtual presence provide you with only a fraction of reality? Without smell, touch or the energy of the crowd, we’re sure that web users will be anxious to join the reality of the experience they sampled virtually.

Stop by if you are in Montreal. The installation is at LAIKA 4040 St-Laurent, Montreal.

via AdAge:

After more than a year of consumer research and agency brainstorming, McDonald’s global chief marketing officer unveiled an updated take on its iconic, 7-year-old “I’m Lovin’ It” campaign today before an audience of 15,000 franchisees, marketers and suppliers.

click for video

Drew’s “Get Up and Go” post rekindled my thinking on the current state of sharing on the internet.

Every website you go to nowadays (except this one ) has those handy sharing links on every piece of content it produces…that is, every piece of content that THEY want you to share.  But what if you want to share something that they forgot to put a share link on, like their contact section, or their bio section?  And what if they don’t provide share links at all?

Mashable.com – convenient sharing links on their content stream…but not their jobs section

Unacceptable!  As a content-hungry, share-savvy internet user, I demand to be able to share arbitrary pieces of content!  Of course, internet companies can read ours minds, and so some people have attempted to satisfy my demands.  Sites like delicious allow you to use bookmarklets to share any page on the web, and a little-known feature on Google Reader’s bookmarklet actually allows you to share ANY piece of content you highlight/select on a page (to do this simply get the bookmarklet, refresh the page with the item you want to share, DON’T click anything and click on the bookmarklet for instructions).

Google reader sharing – we’re getting closer to my share-topia!

Okay, so now you have your arbitrary content, but what’s the point of sharing if you can’t have a discussion?  Well with Google Reader, you COULD hook it to your buzz stream and blah blah blah LAME!  Too many steps!  Comments aren’t threaded!  And what’s worse, you have to wait for the content to pop up in your buzz before you know what your friends have been saying about it.

Unacceptable!  I want to know what my friends think about web content IMMEDIATELY, right when I’m looking at it.  Well the mind readers on the internet have started going in this direction.  Check out Stickr.  It’s an interesting take on how to get instant feedback for content on the web.

In case you’re wondering, yes that is my stickr.

The basic idea is that you post stickrs on any website, and you can read stickrs from your friends, from random people, and comment on the sitckrs as well.  It’s a really interesting idea, and the execution is not totally terrible.  The real problem?  None of my friends are on it (it’s mostly a bunch of Russian people).  I barely even care what my friends think, so obviously I don’t care what random people have to say about most content pieces.  So there’s still something missing here.  Good idea, but there is a long way to go.

I think the ideal solution will integrate current social sharing sites so that my friends will already be signed up.  That’s what Google did with Buzz, and I think they were incredibly successful considering how entrenched people are within their own social media spheres. All they have to do is make another bookmarklet that will allow me to see what people have already said about content while I’m surfing, and they’ll be two steps ahead of everyone else.

Until that happens, I’ll be constantly refreshing my buzz stream.

I save a lot of things online. I like stuff on vimeo which is where this video came from, via a friend on twitter (thanks zack!) I favourite videos on youtube, they auto post to facebook. I favourite tweets while on the train, they get auto synced to delicious via packrati.us. I post to my blog which posts to facebook, to virb (which I no longer maintain), same goes to my tumblr which held my interest for a short time relegated to be just a stream of what I’m doing elsewhere. My list of personal URL’s is long, peppered with different screen names, passwords, recent findings and abandoned ideas. Truth be told I manage them poorly, I update less and less and constantly look for the simplest way to integrate them all so they all don’t go stagnant. Maybe it is time to get up and go