If It's Hip, It's Here (Archives)

Conde Nast's Point Of Passion Ad Campaign. All 31 Spread Ads.

Point of Passion is a an ad campaign launched by magazine publishing company Condé Nast Publications. Although it debuted a few years ago, and had two flights of ads, many of them have not been seen in common publications, so I wanted to show them to you.

An art director and photographer's dream project, it features people/celebrities from all walks of life (actors, designers, wedding planners, supermodels) who capture the spirit of each of their 27 print and online magazines.

With a simple headline and a caption describing the reader shown, they initially budgeted 3.5 million for creative and 40 million for media. I do not know if that's what the effort cost in actuality.

The effort comprises 12 flights of eight-page magazine inserts targeting advertisers and agency media buyers. Conceived by San Francisco ad agency Heat (formerly Black Rocket) and photographed by Jonas Karlsson, the campaign also includes online ads, e-mails and billboards through year's end.

An Oscar Wrap Up As Opposed To Write-Up.

Of course there are Oscar reviews all over the web. Some critique the fashion, like my friends over at styledash and ...even npr! , some the speeches and some, even the ads.

Now, in my personal opinion, there just isn't that much to write about. The show seems to get increasingly respectable, making it more boring every year. A year of brilliant films, there really weren't any shockers or big disappointments when it came to the winners.

See the list of nominees and winners here.

There were some truly sweet and sincerely shocked acceptance speeches, including one in Spanish by Javier Bardem (you know, the guy who had the Prince Valiant haircut in No Country For Old Men). But really, nothing to write home about. So, in lieu of writing about what may have been ignored or sadly passed over, let's talk briefly about the rest -you know, the shallow stuff.

The Host:
I still believe that Jon Stewart is nothing short (sorry about the choice of words.. .. Mr. Stewart is only 5' 6.5" tall) of brilliant.

The Music
The music? Ugh. Thankfully the 3 songs from Enchanted were passed over for the Oscar. Frankly, I'd be happy to never hear another Alan Menken/Stephen Schwartz song again.

The Set Design
This is the 19th time that Roy Christopher has designed the Oscar set.
Guess what folks? Time for Roy Christopher to retire.

Above: Roy Christopher with his set design for the 2008 Oscars. He said he was going for "glamour"

I don't know why the giant Oscar Statuettes onstage were in enclosed frosted columns but it was so eighties sci-fi/ Coma-cum-cryogenic to me.

The Motion Graphics
I could not find who did the actual motion graphics for the categories and they ought to be thankful. What was with those motion graphics? They were soooo K-Tel, circa 1986.

The Dresses
Is our economy such that women can't afford enough fabric to make 2 sleeves?
It was a night of shoulder-baring fashion. Kind of a Farewell to Arm, if you will. Over 20 women sported the one-armed dress.

above left : The dress as it ought to have been worn; above right: Hilary Swank, having altered the original design to join the ubiquitous one shoulder trend.

above: Alien imposter and brilliant actress Tilda Swinton unconsciously reaching for her missing sleeve.

The Color Choices:
Way too much funereal black (Ellen Page, Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Garner, Laura Linney in very dark navy, Hilary Swank, Penélope Cruz and Kristen Chenoweth).

And there was this odd kind of traffic light theme to me:

above left to right: Katherine Heigl as Stop, Kelly Preston as Slow and Amy Adams as Go.

Deep greens (Saoirse Ronan and Amy Adams, clearly inpired by Keira Knightley's green dress in Atonement). Blazing Reds (Katherine Heigl, Helen Mirren, Miley Cyrus, Ruby Dee, Anne Hathaway and Heidi Klum) and bright yellow (Kelly Preston ).

Most Blasé:

Above: Kerri Russell, Cameron Diaz and Renee Zellweger, all looked bizarrely washed out in their band-aid colored dresses.

Most Interesting Dress:

Above: The custom Jean Paul Gaultier (corrected for me by a reader, I initially credited John Galliano) fish scale gown donned by Best Actress winner Marion Cotillard

Most interesting dress on least interesting person:

Above: George Clooney's Vegas waitress girlfriend, Sara Larson.

The Men?
Hardly even worth talking about.
Looking appropriately arty? Daniel Day Lewis and Johnny Depp didn't disappoint. Looking more like Cary Grant every day, George Clooney still sets my heart palpitating.

But Viggo? Lose the beard...unless you're playing Moses. It adds an unnecessary 20 years to your face..

The Mess... I Mean, Hair:

above: I guess Cameron, Jennifer, Ellen and Renee's hair stylists took the night off.

Miscellaneous Observations
It's enough that hilarious and lovable Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill look like one another, but have you seen how much their dates look alike?

Now this is creepy:

Above: funnymen Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill clearly have the same taste in everything, including women.

An overly-botoxed Nicole Kidman whose upper lip hardly moved:

Get your fill of fabulous press shots by clicking here.

The 80th Annual Oscars Is Here. Some Inside Scoop. Yippee!

The Oscar Poster: Oscar® Glistens for His 80th

The official poster of the 80th Academy Awards® features the iconic Oscar glowing among bright lights against a black background.

Capturing the allure and excitement of the Oscars®, the design was originally conceived by legendary motion picture poster illustrator Drew Struzan and executed by his son, Christian.

Each 27 x 40-inch poster is printed on premium quality, Forest Stewardship Certified paper. The 80th Academy Awards poster is available for purchase for $25 (includes shipping within the U.S.).

Watch the Oscars live on ABC, Sunday, February 24 – 5PT/8ET.

To order by telephone, call 1-800-99-FILMS (option 5) during normal business hours or order online. For more information on prices, shipping and how to order, click here.

80 Years of Oscar® Celebrates All-Time Favorite Movies
The Academy proudly offers a new edition of its commemorative poster that celebrates all 80 of the films to win the Oscar for Best Picture. Printed on 27 x 40-inch premium recycled paper, the design by Alex Swart features the key art of every one of the films to win the Academy’s Best Picture award.

80 Years of Oscar won't be printed until the 80th Best Picture is announced on the Oscar telecast on February 24, but you can order one today for $25 (includes shipping and handling in the U.S.). International orders must add $15 for shipping and handling.

To pre-order by telephone, please call 1-800-99-FILMS (option 5) during normal business hours or order online. For more information on prices, shipping and how to order, click here.

Above: Jon Stewart, this year's host (and my schoolgirl crush) at rehearsal

Above: this year's Architectural Digest green room was designed in Hollywood Glam Style by Carlton Varney.

OSCAR'S GREEN EFFORTS CONTINUING FOR 80TH ACADEMY AWARDS®

Building upon groundwork laid a year ago, Academy President Sid Ganis announced today that ecologically intelligent practices have been incorporated into the planning and execution of the upcoming 80th Annual Academy Awards presentation on Sunday and related events.

The Academy's green initiative, which includes several energy-saving strategies, is being carried out in collaboration with the Natural Resources Defense Council, a non-partisan environmental and advocacy organization.

"Last year, in planning and producing the Oscar® show, we chose supplies, resources and services designed to reduce Oscar's ecological footprint," said Ganis. "This year, with the guidance and support of the NRDC, we've been able to do even more."

A few highlights of the Academy's green program include:

* With support from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, 100% of the energy used for the telecast, the red-carpet arrivals show and the Governors Ball will be supplied by renewable windpower.
* All of the generators used for the production, for press support and the red carpet arrivals area are powered by a fuel mix that includes biodiesel.
* Among the vehicles made available by General Motors for use by production staff and presenters are zero-emission hydrogen-powered cars and hybrids.
* Nearly all food serviceware for events associated with the Awards Presentation is either reusable or biodegradable/compostable.
* The programs, invitations, RSVP cards, envelopes, parking passes and other printed materials include a minimum of 30% postconsumer recycled content.

For further details about this initiative visit the Environmental Achievements page.

It's been called "the Academy statuette," "the golden trophy" and "the statue of merit." The entertainment trade paper, Weekly Variety, even attempted to popularize "the iron man." Thankfully, the term never stuck.

Born in 1928, the Academy Award of Merit — which we know as simply "the Oscar" — depicts a knight holding a crusader's sword, standing on a reel of film with five spokes, signifying the original branches of the Academy: Actors, Writers, Directors, Producers and Technicians.

Weighing 8.5 pounds and standing 13.5 inches tall, the statuette was designed by MGM's chief art director Cedric Gibbons. Frederic Hope, Gibbons' assistant, created the original Belgian black marble base; artist George Stanley sculpted the design; and the California Bronze Foundry hand cast the first statuette in bronze plated with 24-karat gold.

The Origin of the Oscar Name
A popular but unsubstantiated story has been that the moniker caught on after Academy librarian and eventual executive director Margaret Herrick said that the statuette resembled her Uncle Oscar. Its first documented mention came after the sixth Awards Presentation in 1934 when Hollywood columnist Sidney Skolsky used it in reference to Katharine Hepburn's first Best Actress win. The Academy itself didn't use the nickname officially until 1939.

Oscar has changed his look on occasion. From the 1930s through the 50's, juvenile players received miniature replicas of the statuette; ventriloquist Edgar Bergen was presented with a wooden statuette with a movable mouth; and Walt Disney was honored with one full-size and seven miniature statuettes on behalf of his animated feature SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS. In support of the World War II effort between 1942 and 1944, Oscars were made of plaster, to be traded in for golden statuettes after the war. Additionally, the base was raised and changed from marble to metal in 1945. And in 1949, Academy Award statuettes began to be numbered, starting with No. 501.

Wanna see how Oscar is made? Check out my last year's post here.

Beauty in Real Life: Slob Evolution

Nothing like a well done spoof to put a smile on your face. Thought I'd share this one that Cubano posted on NOTCOT with you.

The original:

credits:
Ogilvy spot created by Tim Piper.
Directed by Tim Piper (treatment/post effects) and Y Staav (live action).
Soho - post production
Rogue - editing
Vapor music - sound and mixing
Gabor Jurina - photography
Make-up - Diana Carreiro
Music - Flashbulb and Vapor.
Agency creative team: T Piper & M Kirkland

The spoof: