the 4 c’s of great content
The bar has never been higher for brands that want to produce content. Are strategists up to the challenge of taking the brand out of branded content and putting the human element back in? In short, branded content now needs to be as good as unbranded content. Here are a few starters for ten. Context: […]
hail robert harris
Robert Harris’ wise words on Brexit and our government’s jurassic ignorance of logic. Poignant and pithy, this is one of my favourite writers at his best. I’ll just leave this here: R
pepsi’s tiananmen square-moment
Last week’s Pepsi TV campaign was excruciating. How does such creative work get signed off? How does an agency’s entire 8-year strategy of socially engineering America to buy more sugary soda conclude with Kendall Jenner defusing a Tiananmen Square-moment with a can of Pepsi? We would have peace in the world if Kendall Jenner handed […]
the roger stone effect
Trump came to power clinching 5.50% electoral vote victory employing an opposition research plan orchestrated by strategist Roger Stone. Using whiplash rhetoric, the successful gaslighting strategy was designed to ride the crest of anger that middle America had for cold Washington-style politicians. The Trump campaign was the apotheosis of Roger Stone’s work. His gaslighting strategies […]
gotta hand it to what3words
Disruption is a term I often struggled with. It somewhat clouds what it means to bring about progressive change. The irony of purported disruptors such as Uber is they demonstrate that truly beneficial and lasting change comes from taking something for what it is and finding ways to marry it to a novelty. I think […]
little bits
When Matt Damon decided to “science the shit out of this” as he was stuck on Mars in Ridley Scott’s space epic The Martian, one would be forgiven for thinking his parents brought him up on LittleBits. The groundbreaking US start-up is empowering kids to create inventions using easy-to-use electronic building blocks. At a time […]
edgerton’s mastery in the gift
I finally watched the much-talked-about US indie film The Gift last night. The story centres on a young couple whose lives unravel when a schoolfriend from the husband’s past shows up with mysterious gifts and a chilling secret. Directed by Joel Edgerton in his debut, the film feels Hitchcockian in its pace and sparing dialogue—a […]
that roman-raphelson book
In many ways, books on the craft of writing have had a huge impact on the world. In other ways, none at all. With the market now saturated, separating the wheat from the chaff has become more tedious. Writers seem out of moves. Worse, most fail to reveal the mechanics behind their advice. Hidden deep […]
at the sennheiser hq
I’m on day two of a project at the mighty Sennheiser global HQ. It’s set in a strangely quiet countryside near Hanover, Germany. My film crew and I have been politely asked not to share photos, but our kind hosts have allowed this blog post. So, here’s the raw text: This is by far the […]
IMAX
IMAX Blending an unpredictable live concept, a bold brand identity, and an energised immersive design, we unlocked many new audiences for IMAX Live. Brand Identity Brand Idea Agency: Dixon Baxi https://getcostello.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/IMAX_LIVE_VIDEO_005-1.mp4 Overview. IMAX approached design studio DixonBaxi to brand their latest project. It reinvents the concept of venues by turning cinemas into concert arenas, stages, […]
