Whilst this was not something I worked on directly, but having spent 18 months working closely with the Jacamo team (whilst I was at LOVE), working on the rebrand and creating all their seasonal brand guides for this period it was nice see that they were taking the guides on themselves and creating good solid content on their own.
Whilst there is nothing ground-breaking in terms of idea or application here, it's a long way from where they used to be with Johnny Vegas.
It was also nice to see the tv campaign lead with a line written be me. #winterwrapped
So after; two enjoyable years at LOVE, two years before that leading the JD Sports digital creative team, three fantastic years at advertising agency TBWA and four years before that working in various small studios, I am now available to hire directly for all your graphic design, art direction, brand and digital design needs.
If you would like to get in touch to discuss a potential project all my contact details can be found here, I would love to hear from you!
A fun shoot and project to be involved with, shot as a stop-frame animation by Tommy Cockram, starring former England Cricket Captain, Freddie Flintoff with post production provided by The Mill.
The stop-frame animation worked really well across social too:
Below are some of the behind the scenes, including me taking a (it was three or four) snowball(s) for the team. I'm thankful it wasn't Freddie wasn't throwing them, an unlucky digi was on the receiving end the next day and whoa!
I also shot a series of four of interviews with Freddie between scenes, where he ponders some the big festive issues check one below, more on Jacamo's youtube channel.
A creative brief is a unifying document that identifies the important key benefits for a project or task. It tells the story and explains why it’s important to the audience, serving as a guide for the creation of new materials. It seems simple. Yet developing an effective creative brief is far more difficult than it may at first seem.
A poor creative brief can waste time and money, and creates frustration because the resulting concepts do not nail it.
A well thought out creative brief is imperative no matter the scale of the project. From quick turnarounds, amends or longer projects, a solid creative brief is the one document all parties refer to throughout the life of the project or task.
The key aspects of a creative brief are as follows:
1) Background/summary.
This is where the brief provides all the supporting, contextual and target audience information, as well as any customer insights or knowledge gained from previous projects and research.
Always provide more information than you think is relevent. Remember the person working on the job
may not be as familer with the task or a projects history as the person who created the brief.
2) Proposition.
What are the problem(s) which needs solving. Keep it short, and to the point.
3) Requirements.
This is where any other supplementary information is confirmed, this includes (but is not inclusive):
- Brand guidelines, styleguides and technical specifications.
- Supporting copy and headlines.
- Assets - Brand supplied or campaign imagery, logos, lockups or illustrations.
- All links/CTAs and their destinations.
4) Deliverables and objectives.
What is required and what do you expect to gain from it.
Eg. A webpage, banner, email, logo, page takeover, etc.
5) A reasonable deadline.
Liase with the creative department to get an idea of timescales if unsure.
If it is a large project, set intemediate targets/deadlines along the way.
6) Approval.
Before starting confirm everyone involved with the project and all stakeholders are happy and onboard.
It is then the job of the creative(s) to consider the brief, carry out suitable research (as required) and
present back solution(s) which answer the brief once completed.
Remember: Briefs are in their nature, brief. Use bullet points, keeping each point short and concise.
Avoid: Stating or illustrating how you want the final design to appear.
It was good to see the ad I designed (concept by Adam & Becci) win a silver in the '6, 4 or Smaller Sheet' category at the Roses Creative Awards last night. This was amongst several awards scooped by TBWA\Manchester which included: two golds, three silver and three bronze. Well done everyone involved.
Client: Manchester United
Agency: TBWA\Manchester
Art Director: Adam Richardson
Copywriter: Becci Tyrell
Designer: Ben Topliss
Here's a nicely executed concept for BMW M3 Coupe at Hamburg Airport utilising a 50x2m light wall in the middle of the arrival hall to portray a car that exceed limits by exceeding its limits.
Advertising agency Serviceplan created a headline out of half letters, the super shiny floor then reflected the other half. As a result, BMW doubled the media space for free.
After discussing this a little bit, we concluded that they've missed a trick with the standard car shot at the end and that something more inventive continuing the reflections theme could have been done. The orientation of the type is changed from the first word to the second, so you are alredy reading it with your head turned which would then suit a car shot from either the front or the rear.
It seems there are many parallels to be drawn here between the notion of playthings and adult situations. Not to mention the idea that Lego bricks create an instant pixelization effect, adding to the X-rated allure of these images.
Once a month at the agency we have a get together where everyone shows a few examples of advertising (good and bad) and we can then discuss it further. As I've only been working at TBWA\Manchester a handful of weeks now this was my first creative and show and tell and this month happened to be a little different.
This month there was a theme, "Media Arts". Basically Media arts is about getting people to invite advertisinginto their lives and interact with it instead of being force fed it on the television, in magazines/newspapers, websites etc.
Below is what I presented. Co-incidentally both pieces happened to be by Colenso BBDO, Auckland, New Zealand.
Piece 1.
Brief Explanation: Designed with a purpose for everyday use, these eraser/usbs are meant to serve as a constant reminder of Alzheimer’s New Zealand’s importance, as well as help New Zealanders realise how important our memories are, and how difficult life can be for those living with this disease.
Brief from the client: Design a memorable piece of communication that raises awareness of the disease’s early warning signs, like memory loss, as well as reminding everyday New Zealanders of the importance of Alzheimers New Zealand.
Final design: Actual working erasers were hollowed out and fitted with USB memory sticks. The message displayed on the top is: ‘Alzheimer’s erasers your memories. Save them.’ On the reverse side was the Alzheimer’s New Zealand logo and website. The place you can turn for more information and support, www.alzheimers.co.nz.
Indication of how successful the outcome was in the market: Alzheimer’s New Zealand distributed these eraser/usbs amongst the public, sent them to various local organisations, as well as distributed them to local politicians, with a letter, in an attempt to raise awareness of the charity. They have received positive feedback and they’ll hopefully continue to leave people with some sort of understanding of what people with Alzheimer’s go through everyday, and where they could turn for more information and support.
Advertising Agency: Colenso BBDO, Auckland, New Zealand Executive Creative Director: Nick Worthington Copywriter/Art Director: Jonathan McMahon Art Director/Copywriter/Designer: Lisa Fedyszyn Account Manager: Stefanie Robertson Planner: Hayley Pardoe Agency Producer: Phil Newman Designer: Phila Lagaluga
Piece 2.
Water coolers filled with blood, were placed in gyms, offices, hairdressers and other public places in order to promote the new show Vampire Diaries on TV2. Advertising Agency: Colenso BBDO, Auckland, New Zealand Executive Creative Director: Nick Worthington Creative Director: Levi Slavin Art Director / Copywriter: Sarah Longworth Producer: Rob Linkhorn Retoucher: Kevin Hyde
As of next Tuesday (1st June), I'll be starting my new job as designer at TBWA\Manchester. I'm really excited about the opportunity and can't wait to get to work.
After a year and a half, its time to say goodbye to this...
(This an advert from the dizzy heights of 1999! Amazing,)
BEAVERTON, Ore.-- NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) today unveils an action-packed film that brings together some of the world’s greatest players to inspire football lovers and sports fans around the world. The epic three-minute “Write the Future” film takes people on a journey that dramatically captures that one moment when headlines are written from a single pass, or one strike can bring a nation eternal happiness, while bringing others to their knees.
Some of the world’s best players, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Didier Drogba, Wayne Rooney, Fabio Cannavaro, Franck Ribery, Andres Iniesta, Cesc Fabregas, Theo Walcott, Patrice Evra, Gerard Pique, Ronaldinho, Landon Donovan, Tim Howard and Thiago Silva, are featured. Special guest cameos are made by tennis legend Roger Federer and basketball superstar Kobe Bryant. Homer Simpson completes the star-studded cast of appearances. The film will be shown on TV for the first time on May 22nd during the European Club Final.
Directed by renowned Hollywood director and producer Alejandro G. Iñarritu (21 Grams, Babel), this epic football journey unfolds through a match of goal line clearances, game-winning tackles and lightning footwork that literally send a ripple effect across the world.
Football fans around the world will be able to experience the full three-minute film online at nikefootball.com from May 20th at 6pm GMT before it rolls out through global partnerships with Facebook, YouTube and QQ.com on Saturday the 22nd. The spot will then air across 32 countries, sharing the campaign with millions of fans around the world on May 22nd.
This marks the first stage of a journey that will ultimately see fans around the world write their own future through experiences that put them at the center of the action. In June, fans will be able to live like their heroes through a unique experience on nikefootball.com that generates ripple videos and visuals from their own photos and information, placing them at the center stage.
Footballers can then use this creative to build their own Facebook campaign to get noticed and selected for “The Chance” – an elite Nike Academy football camp in partnership with the Barclays Premier League in England that allows players to get scouted and get noticed at the highest level of the game.
“This epic campaign really captures the scale, emotion and impact that one single moment in a football game can have on a player, fan or nation,” said Davide Grasso, NIKE, Vice President of Global Football Marketing. “This is just the beginning of the journey. The next stage allows everyone who loves football to engage and interact in an incredible way.”
The story starts when the viewer is drawn into the heat of battle on the pitch as a ball drops from the air into the path of Didier Drogba. As the world holds its collective breath, Drogba picks his way through sliding defenders and expertly chips the goalkeeper – wild celebrations commence across Africa. But they are curtailed at the last second as Fabio Cannavaro makes a stunning overhead goal line clearance. This game-changing moment propels Cannavaro to pop culture icon complete with television chat show appearances and a song dedicated to his moment of brilliance.
Other global football stars including Wayne Rooney experience how a moment on the pitch can last forever. In one scene, the England striker sees an intercepted pass picked up by midfielder Franck Ribery. The ensuing impact brings a nation to its knees and leaves us to imagine Rooney’s destroyed career and his life as a groundsman, living in a caravan, with Ribery’s image looming large above him on a giant billboard. Fast forward, and Rooney relives the moment, sprints after Ribery and wins the ball back. Personal and national pride restored, we see him receiving a knighthood, with headline-grabbing plaudits, a maternity room full of little Waynes and an effortless table-tennis defeat of Roger Federer. The Rooney ripple effect comes full circle.
Similarly, Cristiano Ronaldo is fouled in a game, and as he prepares to take a vital free-kick for Portugal, we flash forward to see the ripple effect if he scores; a stadium named in his honour and a Film Premiere for a movie of his life.
“Every touch you have in a game has the ability to change the entire course of not just those 90 minutes, but your entire tournament or season,” said Cristiano Ronaldo. “One touch of the ball can be an opportunity to leave your mark on the game and write your own future, or equally a moment missed, that creates a legacy for your opponent with their fans.”
Also unveiled is Nike’s supercharged Elite Series football boots providing new levels of performance for players during the tournament. Nike’s Mercurial Vapor SuperFly II, CTR360 Maestri, Total90 Laser III and Tiempo Legend III all feature a new performance upper to improve on-field visibility and a reengineered outsole to deliver lightweight performance for every style of player. The Elite Series is available to players at all levels and also incorporates Nike Football+, which features exclusive insider access to the world’s best coaches, players and teams for total game improvement.
Over the past couple of months I’ve been working on re-designing my website. Whatever I have had up before has either been a bit of a bodge job or rushed up in time for something happening. The result was a bit of a mess, and a nightmare to update.
So with this new site should hopefully fix all the issues with the old one, and hopefully my work is now portrayed in an easy and accessible way, with a smooth flow around the site and between sections. And hopefully it looks ok too… but I suppose that is for everyone else to decide.
A few further site updates will be coming at a later date.
![Reebok – NBA All Star Event [2022]](https://i0.wp.com/bentopliss.com/assets/2022/03/Project_panel_480x328px__0007_ALLSTAR.jpg?fit=480%2C328)
![Reebok x Jurassic Park [Pitch]](https://i0.wp.com/bentopliss.com/assets/2022/03/Project_panel_480x328px__0006_JP.jpg?fit=480%2C328)
