thetangibleintangible

Ever wonder why food looks so tasty in advertising? This video might answer some of your questions.

Some of us at both deep and Marlin got pretty giddy when we saw previews for the movie Art & Copy, and not just because some of us make art, and a few others of us make copy. Instead, it was because we knew that it would bring lots and lots of inspiration to any person in the advertising world. We were particularly pleased to find that not only did our favorite independent theater, The Moxie, bring it to Springfield, but the entire Marlin Network would be treated to a matinee showing of the movie—something which brought us great joy in the middle of a rainy Tuesday afternoon.

Art & Copy gave us insights and wisdom from some of the legends of advertising—including the brains behind the “Got Milk?” campaign, iPod and Apple 1984 spots, Nike “Just Do It” slogan, and even the “I Want My MTV” push.

Art Director Mara Dockery loved hearing the interviews and stories about creative. “Especially some of the stuff Lee Clow said. Something like if creatives didn’t do work, the suits wouldn’t have anything to sell.” (P.S. We LOVE our account services teams. They are wonderful people.) Meanwhile, Designer Desirae Struthers said: “It was interesting to realize how influential advertising is and can be. Some ads people never forget and love which is nice to realize when they’re mostly seen as an annoyance.”

Our company president, Dennis Marlin, got to the heart of it: “It is getting to the simple truth that emotionally connects to the audience. It cannot always be thought out, it sometimes just happens. What that means to me is search for the truth, the real emotional truth and then don’t be afraid to let it happen.”

But perhaps deep’s Creative Director, Patrick McWhirt, said it best: “Reserved and articulate, loud and blunt—the personalities of Art & Copy were just as entertaining as the work each created. From Kennedy’s quiet sage to Lois’ profane street hustler, though, the thread of passion, integrity and honesty towards the work could be felt in every one. Added bonus: I may have picked up a couple of new swear words (Thanks, George).”

It’s not every day you are invited to board a giant yacht, get to hear the Food Network’s Guy Fieri speak, and are lucky enough to enjoy a room with a view of the San Diego Bay.

So though we couldn’t be happier that deep’s own Stephanie Kabbaz is representing deep at the Flavor and the Menu’s 2009 Flavor Experience in San Diego, we are also slightly jealous. Which is why our evil writers decided to put her to work, tweeting about the things she’s learning while there.

We are genuinely thrilled that Stephanie went to help Torani, whose Beacon of Discovery yacht tour was deemed a great success by the client. The event was designed to help them gather national account leads as they continue to break into the restaurant world. Stephanie will be blogging away when she gets back so we can all hear more about what it’s like to sample drinks from San Diego’s top mixologist, Ian Ward, and to help make sure it was truly smooth sailing for Torani.

So until she gets back, check out what Stephanie is learning while she’s at the event.

There seems to be a lot of confusion these days about the proper way to use an exclamation point, and much to the chagrin of some of the creative staff here at deep, we are sometimes irritated when we receive communications from people who use exclamation points with what we would consider great fervor.

That’s why we’re dedicating today’s blog post to the exclamation point. Not because we want to be grammar fiends necessarily, but more because we want our writers to feel loved and important.

With that said, here’s a quick lesson on the right way to use the exclamation point. The Simon & Schuster Handbook for Writers says that their use is totally OK for “a strong command or emphatic declaration.” So basically, if your friend gets run over by a chair during “Race our Chairs Around the Office Day” and you’re emailing your BFF to tell him or her, you could write, “Mark got run over by a chair and his wig ripped right off in the middle of the race! Who knew that was a wig?!”

Notice, if you will, that carefully place interrobang, which, though not found in the Simon & Schuster Handbook for Writers (nor in other conventional English books), makes many writers a bit giddy with glee.

And finally, please, avoid the overuse of the exclamation point. As stated in the Handbook for Writers, “In academic writing, your words, rather than exclamation points, should communicate the strength of your message. Reserve exclamation points for occasional emphatic dialogue. Use them only very rarely for a short emphatic declaration within a longer passage. If you use exclamation points too often in academic writing, your reader will think that your judgment of urgency is exaggerated. Your choice of words, not (!) should communicate amazement or sarcasm.”

We think they’re right!!!!! Or maybe we’re being sarcastic? Hmmm…

It’s pretty amazing that Neil Young was so passionate about  his 1959 Lincoln Continental that he would dedicate his latest album to it. But what’s even more amazing is that the reason he did so was because he and a team of like-minded visionaries found a way to turn his vintage car into an electric hybrid—creating a zero emissions vehicle that gets around 100mpg. Not bad, eh?

The LincVolt website talks about Neil and his team’s goals for inspiring green technologies in the auto world, and it looks as if any vehicle—yes, even this guy and, WHOA, maybe even this guy—could run just efficiently as Neil’s sweet little cruiser. Fingers crossed, it’ll happen sooner than later.

We think maybe. Not because of his dry wit alone. But also because of his stunning ability to write a 224-word palindrome poem. Feeling inspired, we think maybe it’s time to sell a client a palindrome-based idea. So until we figure out how to make that happen, here is Demetri‘s poem. Caution: it might just blow your mind.