Uniqlock


Just come across this, it won a Grand Prix at Cannes its quite cool its called the Uniqlock
I like the Uniqlo Stuff anyway and this got me fixed for ages, just watching them dance in time to the clock music, and the appearance of the cool little characters now and again. 

You can also get the clock for which ever country you are in or you want for your screensaver.

Enjoy.







This is Phil!


Incase you didn't already know, this is Phil. The other half of the Creative Team - If you've got a keen eye you'll notice that he hasn't posted yet... He assures me he will *eventually* - so in the meantime - enjoy the photo... 

We've got matching hats incase you were wondering! ha ha. 

...Cue Phil....

Mike.





New Blood 2008 Highlights.




Well, if I am honest, I didn't really know what to expect when I got there, we arrived near enough on time for the Private View on Monday Night and had a good look around - Initially I learnt that the shear amount of graphic design & illustration far out weighs that of any advertising on display.

On the whole I was expected to be blown out of the water by the standard of the work, considering this is a showcase of the best academia from around the UK - possibly further - I didn't come away needing a change of underwear and wanting to crawl into a hole somewhere. There was a lot of advertising stuff I just didn't get, I'm sure people might say the same about a couple of bits of our work, but that's that. However, there were certainly a few gems that I was rather jealous of. 

Like the true photographer I am, I left my camera at home, so have added a few photos straight off my phone.

University of Lincoln BA (Hons) Creative Advertising Display Wall


No idea what stand this one was from, but I felt at the visual simplicity was brilliant. Slightly envious - if anyone happens to know who this is then let me know and i'll credit them where possible.



This one I find especially amusing, a business card to put if your wallet ensuring if it's stolen you'd have the last laugh. If only the guy who took the photo had managed to get the other side of the business card I'd liked to have seen some more of his/her stuff.


Although it does resemble that of a computer arts magazine cover - I loved it, a stunning, vibrant, crisp piece of work from a few stands down, the backlight simply added to the work - again, if i'd had half a clue, maybe i'd have remembered its creator! Hats off.


On the whole the experience was good, we were given some contact details and have lined up a few things as a result. I managed to hook up with some friends from my College foundation course - a good few years back, people from the Watford interviews and a couple of friends from other Universities across the UK who were exhibiting. Finished off at the pub for a quick pint before heading off with an early start the next day.

Mike.



A little chuckle.

Well it's pretty simple really, doing some 'research' for something we're working on at the moment and came across this piece of pure genius... It gets funnier the more you watch it!



*Warning* - There's some heavy quoting potential in this flick. All I would say is, "O'dell!!! - oh my, that got me good."

Mike.



Saturday at the Office...

So, things have been pretty full on at JWT so far. We're just about settled in now, new faces everyday makes things that little bit more interesting. There's too many people to meet for the first week - but we'll get there I'm sure.  It seems the other two placements teams are hanging in there for a bit so that's good news.

A lot of people arrive back from Cannes Film Festival on Monday - so we'll have the pleasure of feeling like we're starting all over again - other than the obvious familiar faces and the familiarity of our Cupboard-like office which we've grown to love and adore. We even had a little visit from a friend today for all of 5 seconds, but only some of you will be lucky enough to know what that is all about - unless you ask nicely.

We pulled a long day today covering an extra brief this weekend and are in again tomorrow - that's right a Sunday! (a day of rest ha ha!) The place is a little strange, at least for the most part anyway, the entire ad business shuts down come the weekend - people are very few and far between - it's been a experience though and I'm sure there will be plenty more of that over our placement. 

Still loving the fact of the coffee & tea machine being all of 5 paces from our chairs - it can't be that bad can it!? 

Mike.




You can Wonder!

Some other recent contributions to the Wonders of the Tube...

"THE EAVESDROPPER - Constantly seen listening to people with their 'eyes' - as if this heightens their ability to drop in on other people's conversations. It doesn't. Mind your own".

"THE TOUCHER - Someone who has no need to be in contact with you but does it anyway. Quite cool if it's a chick (...and you're a guy) who knows maybe they are coming on to you, but more than likely they are just trying to pass the lergy".

"THE HUFFER - Usually an annoying woman who thinks she deserves a seat for some unknown reason, then constantly huffs, puffs, tuts and shakes her head and the people with seats who are ignoring the silly cow. If you want a seat, get a cab".

A new one I picked up on today...

THE TUTTER - Simple really, 'Tut' - about no one thing in particular - often a culmination of a number of things, pretty irritating for the most part. Best response: tut back... disorientates the individual. Warning: May result in Death stare. 

Keep them coming...

Mike



The Tube People!



The wonders of the Underground. 


It's funny. Phil & I constantly board the tube often missing the first and second ones that come along because we simply can't bear the thought of breathing the fresh fruity air of another mans armpit and opt for the less volatile shoulder nudging.


Something we've come to notice though, is the different types of people, I'm not talking ethnicity, race or background. We mean the 'tube people'. So we'd thought we'd have a laugh in naming a few. Feel free to add any in the comments section.


Reading this - print it out, take it on the tube look around - each one of these people exists on nearly every single tube journey. I promise.


THE STARER, they shift from place to place pin point a target and inevitably end up staring at one spot for the whole of their journey.


THE WATCHER, these people seem infused by the actions of others, they seem overly fascinated by what other people are doing and pay attention with great interest - OK I am aware of the irony, we I fit it here.


THE OVER SHOULDER LOOKER, this type of person reads everything you read, and more, newspaper, magazine, leaflet, label, text message - literally anything! You'll notice them peering over the shoulder, round the pole or through the arms of others. You turn the page - close the phone - shut the book, and it would be as if they had never been interested in the first place.


THE DOZER, this person clearly hasn't had enough sleep, they are out cold for the journey - they can occasionally be seen to dribbling or leaning on the shoulders of others - but magically wake when their stop arrives. 


THE NODDER, not to be confused with the dozer, this person is never actually fully asleep, they are clearly tired but refused to fall to the land of nod. Ask a question the answer is usually yes, once they start to drift you'll see it - once in a blue moon a nodder will cross the boundaries into the dozer zone. Don't be fooled however, they will never admit they are falling asleep.


THE TAPPER, this ones kind of funny, no music, no rhythm, just a tap. Tap, tap, tappety tap tap. Irritating as hell. Unless you're the tapper it never seems that annoying.


THE RAVER, Earphones, Loud, Tinny Sounds - Occasional nodding of the head to acknowledge the beat, the tapper can often be found near by. 


THE STUMBLER, they'll never learn to hold on when the inertia of the train sets in, constantly caught off-guard by the sudden motion of the train. They realise it's happening but choose to do nothing about it - much to everyone else's amusement, stop after stop it will happen time and time again. A good source for a giggle.


THE UTTERLY CONFUSED, which stop am I at? If you're lucky they may ask you a question, unsure of what is the next stop even after having check the underground map a good half a dozen times in the last 10 secs, often seen peering out of the window looking for acknowledgments of the station name. Sometimes its too late and they evolve into the PANICKER.


THE PANICKER, a stage higher in the plains of worry than the utterly confused, they are no longer confused but seriously worried, oh crap, I've missed my stop it's the end of the world. I'll curl up into a ball and magic my worries away!


THE HEAD-BANGER, this person can always be found near the door, often mistaken for the stumbler, a jolt of the train can lead them bumping into others and results in receiving the darkest stare from the depth of hell. Often has issues with the closing of the door at the last minute and forgetting that the head is a necessity and is attached. Met by a loud 'donk' - and a profuse range of comments blaming the door for their inadequacies.   


THE PICKER, these splendid people can be seen picking their nose the whole journey - blow your damn nose! How much phelgm or bogies can you actually have up there! It's not a pretty sight. Somehow they think that they are invisible and shrug off any eye contact. They have been known to evolve into the Wiper or the Flicker. 


THE WIPER & THE FLICKER, a chronological development of the picker, just the next stage in the evolutionary ladder, when you pick bogies you have to dispose of them. WIpe or Flick, oh nice, thank you very much!


THE POSER, this person is an idiot. A 21st Century gift from God himself, the irony isn't lost though, they are constantly seem trying to check their whole appearance in the carriages windows, anyone who has been on a train will know this is a physical impossibility as the curvature of the window resembles that of 'Old Crazy's Magical Mirror Fun House'. If you're lucky they might blow you a kiss - a sight that must be truly treasured for it doesn't happen particularly often.


THE INTELLECT, this guy is a legend in his own right, found sharply dressed, often in a pin-stripe suit, accessories are vital - umbrella (even if it is not raining), briefcase, the financial times or a business supplement, the shiniest shoes & possibly a satchel. The only irony is that he rides the train and is not driven by a chauffeur. 


THE FRAUD INTELLECT, this one's pretty simple, he attempts to be everything that the intellect is, but he's not. He probably doesn't have the high flying job - or any interest in business and just wanders around London attempting to look like he has a purpose and has just met with a major client to settle a business deal. The plan is flawed though as he will remain on the same business page for the entirety of the journey or if you are lucky enough you will find his newspaper upside down with a copy of The Sun inside.


THE SHOUTER, intensely aggressive and hostile, often unidentifiable until the red mist descends over his eyes, he can then be seen expressing his feelings towards the picker, the raver or the tapper in a less than friendly way. DO NOT piss this guy off! It makes for a horrible journey - and you won't shut him up. High rate of embarrassment likely.


Feel free to add some more.


Mike.




First Day at JWT London!

Well, what can I say... It's official.

It was all very nerve-racking, pretty exciting and all kind of crazy at the same time.
We were shown to our work space (that's right) soon to be an 'office' tomorrow, it's well... cosy, I think is the word that best describes it. We've met a fellow creative team who have been around for a few weeks and seem to have the place pretty sussed. So we'll be looking to them for advice! Got cracking straight away on some work and were left to our own devices. 


There's a real relaxed, but working environment throughout the whole of JWT - the food's not half bad either. It's been quiet for us really though, I think tomorrow will be the first 'true' day, we'll have our passes, phone lines & computers sorted hopefully and feel like we actually belong there perhaps.

We get the chance to get our teeth stuck into a couple of key briefs tomorrow and try and make a good impression. Hopefully meet some more new faces and find our place amongst the creative department!

Mike.



Sh! Design Awards 2008

The summer is clearly the time for good news...


Phil and I entered the Sh! Design Awards back at the end of May and have received confirmation that we made it to the second round of judging! We can't believe it. Completely stunned in fact!  

The SH! Design Awards are run by Brahm - One of the leading independent communications agencies in the UK with over 200 creative and marketing specialists on one site in Headingley, Leeds. The awards were set up in memory of Stuart Hocknell, a talent young designer who tragically lost his life to Meningitis back in 2002, aged just 28.

The award scheme provides a leg-up for talented young designers into the industry. Up for grabs are cash prizes & the possibility of a placement!

The deadline has obviously passed but if you want some more info take a look here

Mike.