A Conversation with Yasmin Ahmad

I entered her office room and placed my tushie nearby Yasmin.

Yasmin Ahmad: So, before I start, tell me a little bit something about yourself.

(Ali lights up a ciggie and place himself next to Yasmin)

Me: My name's Rae and I live with my grandmother in Dato Keramat. I have three younger siblings, whom are boys and one elder sister. I went to Lim Kok Wing but I dropped out halfway because of personal problems.

Yasmin Ahmad: Oh, and what is that?

(She lights a ciggie)

Me: I didn't have the financial support.

YA: Do you mind if I ask you where are you parents?

Me: Urmm, oh , my dad passed away recently and my mom passed away 10 years ago.

YA: Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't know.

Me: Ah, dont worry , it's completely allright. So, anyways, I went to 95% and trained under Janet Lee in one of their course for 3 months. So, here I am , looking for a job - armed only with my portfolio and no acceptable credentials.

YA: I see. Well then, shall I see your book?

Me: Oh! Of course!

(She runs through my book and laughs at some of them and comments on the rest)

YA: Ali, I like this book. It's not pretentious like all those award shows. It's also clean and well kept.

( I swear that's what she said !)

YA: So, Rae, what do you want from us?

(Now Encik Ali was looking at my book, he laughed and smiled too)

Me: I want to have a shot at advertising. I want to know whether I deserve to be in this career path and if not, then I know that I didn't regret one bit making it here.

YA: Okey. Talk to Yuza and she will arrange the paperworks for you.

( In disbelief!)

Me: Oh, okey, thank you , thank you so much Kak Min!

YA: What's your real name again?

Me: Eh, Err , Shaikh Muhamad Azraai , Kak Min.

YA: Nama punya cantik jadi Rae! ish! Bangga dengan nama tu tau. Kamu tu orang melayu!


And that's my 45 mins with Yasmin Ahmad. I'm sure we talked more than that but these were the ones that i can remember vividly.

Top Creatives

If friendster is for the world then www.topcreatives.com is for creatives.

The Copywriter’s Guide to becoming one with advertising or,

How I hate the ipod.
(by Woei Hern)

My boss writes a column in this small box about the way the world of advertising is moving. Among other things. He’s a reservoir of information when it comes to marketing, strategy, public relations and French women.

His battlecry is “integration”. He prides himself in the fact that our venerable, respected and pretty intimidating (well in Japan anyway, we’re like the Alamo down here) agency is at the forefront of this re-revolution.

Of course, every other month we see some agency or another try to come up with their own terms of what integration means. And flout their new “direction”. That’s the other thing that irks me about agencies.

Why on earth do agencies who’ve established one of the best brands in the world always come up with the worst, tackiest, most pretentious and nebulous “proprietary” tools for what basically is “common sense”?

But I’m not here to talk about that. The paragraphs above would’ve already guaranteed a semi-blacklist amongst said agencies. I’m here to talk about how a copywriter can learn “integration” away from the micro-ecosystem of advertising.

Integration in its purest sense, is almost zen-like. Long, long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, the copywriter writes what is called a “copy strategy”. Which is the birth of many above mentioned “proprietary” tools currently the domain of strat planners.

Copywriters did “type-setting”. Something that Adobe and Art Directors hijacked for themselves. Even if they don’t ever read any bodycopy to start with.

Copywriters did “research”. Which means taking a month off work to work in the manufacturing plant, mingling with factory workers. Or even spending a whole year being homeless just to write an ad for them.

Heck, we even went to take the “brief” before sitting down with the account managers to write it. In the good old days, this meant great “single-minded propositions” that could’ve already been the “big idea”.

Integration is about bringing all the various fragmented disciplines of advertising together - above-the-line, below-the-line, through-the-line and on-the-line becoming just well, “the line”. (I should copyright and trademark that as the next proprietary tool)

But before we start doing that, let’s take a look at our lives and how by living an “integrated” lifestyle can help us become uber-copywriters.

Let’s start with the laptop that I’m writing this on. As I am typing this will-be-scoffed-at-till-i-die-upon-which-will-become-the-stuff-of-legends article, I have hooked up my Altecs to the tunes of Thief – Sunchild.mp3. I am also online, checking my emails, downloading stuff, watching youtube and chatting with my friends. With a little help from 3G of course.

A quick recap. Laptop and mobile phone = all you need. Integrated.

Everybody loves the ipod. But the ipod is the ultimate Chernobyl of integration. Of course they would beg to differ. “It’s all you need to listen to music”, said my 23-year-old junior. “I like it. It’s nice. And it’s an apple”, said my 40+ year old boss.

“I can carry my music with me everywhere”, said a fellow copywriter who obviously plagiarised that from the brochure.

Integrated? I think not. Because of the ipod, you need “ipod speakers”. Tiny, tin-canned players that function only if you drop the pod into it. It can’t play CDs, music from thumb drives or the internet.

To upload your playlist, you need “iTunes”. A RAM-devouring programme with Nazi-like traits – it makes itself the designated player, and ensures that you have to upload everything it wants to, and not you.

You also need an i-something to plug your pod into your car player. You need jeans and running shoes that are called i-something-else.

You watch “movies” through a screen so small, you’d think you’re watching Hero instead of Heroes. Of course, you can now plug it into an “apple server” (I forgot the name, there’re already too many i-somethings. I think it’s called iforgot) that links itself to your TV, sound system, blablabla.

By making itself the one, absolute source of everything that’s cool and I guess, music, the ipod has convinced you to buy 20-million more accessories. The only thing integrated about it, is Apple’s profit margins.

You want to learn what integration is all about? Stop reading articles. Stop asking the so-called ipod-carrying experts. All you need to do is give your 15-year-old nephew a surprise and let him inherit your disintegration.

Living without an ipod, means plugging fat speakers to your laptop. It means playing loud music while you type “dengki” articles like this one. It means skyping and video conferencing people on messenger free of charge. It means so much more, including being integrated, and in about 2 weeks, a better copywriter.

Tips from Droga and Garfinkel

Wish you had a longer face-to-face interview than ihaveanidea with famous CDs Droga and Garfinkel? You can at diaryofacreativedirector.com These giants speak up on a broad spectrum of topics including management of creative folk, how they 'ideate', sacrifices and rewards of the job, the happy parts and the sappy parts of being an adman. Could be of much help to those looking for direction in an ever widening and maddening maze.

Are computers changing?

Check out this link: www.surface.com

Touch screen technology meets Star Trek. I can't wait for a vertical 3D hologram computer screen. Because staring down at a table screen's gotta be a pain in the neck after a while.

The Path of Droga or the Path of French

David Droga, a young brilliant man of ideas that started off as a writer.
Neil French, a veteran in the crafting of copy and clever headlines.

I admit that I'm no uber craftsman in copy, but I do try my best to make it decent - in terms of contents, message and grammar(of course)

However, my mind and my heart is fully committed to the creation of the big idea; which transcends everything that a copy can offer.

The Vertical Football by John Merrifield transcends copy
Marc Ecko's "remember" ad by Droga5 transcends copy
The Yellow Men from DIGI transcends copy

And that's why I'm following the path of Droga, because copy is just techniques; like a mechanic. And I don't wanna be dat.


Correct me if I'm wrong

Low Death, please?

Yu Links 1.0

Talks that will change ur life. The power of Big Ideas indeed.
http://www.ted.com/tedtalks/

How to be creative. Superb stuff, this.
http://www.gapingvoid.com/Moveable_Type/archives/000932.html

From Kenneth Yu.

Woei Hern's Reading List

In response to the list of must reads by the kind bartender, here's my list. Please note that reading copywriting or advertising related material, while necessary isn't the only thing you should absorb.

Newsweeks, details, playboys, klues, harry potters, music, sports, hobbies read and absorb anything and everything voyeurise when you can't experience yourself, but i digress here it is as far as books are concerned. For now.

1. Kiss & Sell by Robert Sawyer

2. What copy is by david abbott

3. Write Right! by Jan Venolia

4. You're an animal, Viskovitz! by Alessandro Boffa

5. It's not how good you are, It's how good you want to be by Paul Arden

6. Whatever you think, think the opposite by Paul Arden

7. John Constantine, Hellblazer from Vertigo Comics

8. Fables from Vertigo Comics

9. Lucifer from Vertigo Comics

Reading maketh the ad man

Nothing helps build a keen strategic mind like books. Nothing.
Read ad books. Not just annuals. Read Time or Newsweek. Read marketing books. Read graphic design books.
Search for latest trends online. (For IT, www.slashdot.org)
Below is a list of ad/marketing/copy/design books I have read or am reading (not exhaustive).
They are recommended for writers who want to be more than writers:

Hey Whipple Squeeze This
Creative Leaps
Creative Company
Is There Any Hope For Advertising (Gossage, a classic; get any of his books, if you can)
The Copy Book
The Art Directors Book
Cutting Edge Advertising (duh)
The Copy Workshop (a MUST)
The Elements of Style (watch thy grammar)
Confessions Of An Advertising Man (Mr O)
Blink
Tipping Point
An old book about the history of Saatchi - can’t recall title
Disruption
A Smile In The Mind (excellent graphic design)
The Art Of Looking Sideways (ditto)
2 Kilo Of Kesselskrammer
Juicing The Orange (brilliant strategies and campaigns)
Brand Apart
From The Folks Who Brought You Pearl Harbour (funny classic, borrowed from a pal. Try amazon)
(That’s all I can remember)

Problematic Thematic

Brand X is about to launch three products. The client however does not know what theme would be great for the launch. Since the clients don't know how to launch it, then it's the creatives job to propose a theme.

Now, the real problem is - what would be the perfect theme for the product?

Fact 1: There are a number of brands out there that have the same capability as brand X
Fact 2: If there is nothing to say then what do we show?

By Rae - The Guy Sipping a Guiness Draught