Month: October 2011

1000heads: Double Winner!

Last week, a mere 24hrs after we picked up a SoMeComms award for ‘Best Viral Campaign: Nokia / Tron: Legacy’, we did ‘the double’ at the Digital Impact Awards!

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Picking up a silver award in the ‘Best use of existing social media platforms/sites’ category for ‘Nokia / Tron: Legacy’ as well as a Digital Impact ‘Highly Commended’ award in the ‘Best use of online video’ category for ‘Behind the E7‘.

We’re immensely proud of our work on both of these wins and, as ever, we celebrated in the correct and proper way!

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Fancy joining us for celebratory tea and cake? Why not apply to be part of our [multi] award-winning team?

We’ve just won a wealth of new clients and we need fresh, smart and hungry talent to help us deliver even more spectacular work for some of the best clients in the world.

Join us today.

 

 

 

Beijing Bound

Moleskine Entry April 22nd 2011

It’s 11:49am local time, we crossed the Chinese border about 12hrs ago and should be arriving at the capital in around 2hrs. Immense.

Some things I need to cover before I start on Beijing!

Day 3 in Ulaanbaatar.

After waking up at stupid o’clock and catching a genuine Mongolian sunrise (note to self: catch more sunrises), we had breakfast and headed back to UB just in time for lunch.

Later there was traditional Mongolian dancing and singing.
More things of note:

  • The Mongolian influences on parts I, II and III of Star Wars are incredible. The first singer may as well be auditioning for the part of Queen Amidala – it was that spot on.

Traditional Mongolian Throat Singing

  • I touched upon the culture clash of eastern and western life in a previous entry but, what is equally staggering is that, simply through a cursory glance at the traditional clothing worn by the Mongolians at this evening out, anyone could see how the Russian and Cossack dress, style and fashion has mixed in with that of the eastern, more Chinese way of presenting one’s self. If London is the cultural melting pot of the world, then Mongolia is (or was) the same but of Russia and China. A truly unique, yet ultimately recognisable, design for life.
    .
  • Mongolian throat singing. Like that thing that you do sometimes when you catch your voice just at its driest.

Aaaaand then it was an early night for us. Yesterday, the 21st, we were to get up and board the train for our final leg of the trip from UB to Beijing.

Looking at the train

The train itself (by comparison to our last transport) is gorgeous (and actually, I’m glad that I made the trip this way ’round, given that initially I’d intended to start in Beijing – thank you Sarah), and they have actual showers!

Last night, just after we crossed the border…

WE HAD TO CHANGE THE FRICKIN’ WHEELS ON THE FREAKIN’ TRAIN CARRIAGES

Changing the wheels

Yes, that’s right. The tracks in China are smaller to that of the rest of the world and, although you would think that you would simply change trains at the border – oh no, they simply lift the carriages into the air AND CHANGE THE WHEELS WHILE YOU’RE STILL INSIDE. This is nothing short of mental.

Soon. Beijing.

We’re not there yet and already I’m in love.

China is stunning.

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PS. Lunch in the restaurant car.

Yes! Decent food! Yes!

1000heads: a big thank you

1000heads wins!

Best Viral Campaign for Nokia / Tron: Legacy at the Social Media Communications Awards!

Just over a year ago, the 1000heads Nokia account team were gearing up for one of the biggest/most intense workloads of our collective history as we headed towards the 24hr Nokia / Tron: Legacy takeover.

Here, in October 2011, it is still look upon as one of the best pieces of activity we have ever worked on and – for our client – it is continually held up and referred to as their best Facebook campaign, ever.

To put it lightly, we’re chuffed to bits!

A few thank yous:

  1. To the SoMeComms judging panel for recognising our fantastic work.
  2. To our partners at Disney and Propaganda, without whom none of this would’ve happened.
  3. To the ‘heads who worked tirelessly (through the night on some occasions!) to make sure that this activity came together perfectly.
  4. Last, but by no means least, to our awesome client(s) who continually challenge us and brief us into being able to dream, create and ultimately perform best in class and industry-defining work in the social media space.

Thank you, all of you.

Right, let’s get that champagne…

http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=19439286&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=00adef&fullscreen=1&autoplay=0&loop=0

Awards are great, we love them, but what we love more is delivering great work for inspiring clients.

If you’re looking for a career change and want to work with some of the best and smartest people in the industry, then get in touch.

We’re waiting for your call.

 

 

TF3: an overdue review

I’m just sorting through some old Moleskines (making sure that I’ve copied up all the blog posts that I’ve made in them etc before I crack on with the new one) and I stumbled upon this short review of Transformers 3 – aka Dark of the Moon.

It’s old, I know. But I fancied sharing it.

TF3: Moleskine Review

In short: the best Transformers film to date*
*Not exactly a hard thing

High points

  • 1960s!
  • OMFG! BEST TRANSFORMING SCENE… EVER!
  • EPIC BATTLES
  • SENTINEL PRIME!

Low points

  • THE END IS HORRIFIC
  • WHY IS MEGATRON IN A SCARF?
  • MEGATRON / NEW GF SCENE OF FAIL

Going to the NYC premiere was fun (as was the Michael Bay screening in Miami), but the film – although featuring several rather spectacular set pieces – was not awesome. Figured the best way to illustrate this was through the above ‘interest curve’ idea that I nicked borrowed from Total Film.

S’all I got.

Rings of Saturn

Screen Shot 2015-10-25 at 23.57.06

This happened, but I feel it needs elaboration. Below is exactly how I remember it.
It was …an incredible dream.

Screen Shot 2015-10-26 at 09.16.19

In darkness, I shouted over the noise of our transport - 

“Go! Go quickly! Race to the end of that hill’s corner and then stop. Dead. Do not – I REPEAT – do NOT keep going. Stop, as soon as you get there. Trust me. Go now!”

I saw the outlines of nodding silhouettes as the sky turned a deep blue, “We don’t have much time, go NOW!” 

Racing, heart-pounding, we drove across the track. Corner one, clear. Dipping, downhill, speed increasing and then, I saw it. The first ray of sun revealing what had been there this whole time. Our planetary rings, silent in darkness, suddenly deafening by their over-whelming presence. Back up the hill. Out of the valley, into the corner and stop. Hard. 

Breaking, the dirt shifting under the tracks below. We come to a standstill. On the edge of the cliff and as one, we look up. The first sunrise in twenty-seven years and we’re here, to bathe in its infinite glory. 

The light dances and shines as it pours across the asteroid belt. The deceptively rough lines, crying out as they soak themselves in long-forgotten rays of luminescent nectar. 

We can only stare, transfixed, in awe of nature’s universal power and equally, at our constant insignificance. 

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Image above taken from this amazing video – ‘What if Earth had rings like Saturn?‘

adrift

again, wind comes unrolling out of the east
like a prophet, judging with a heft of its
palm the weight of things, taking measure
with spanned fingers of the space between,
while wolf-fish graze the floor of the sea,
the teeth inside their smiles white as beacons.

plenty of time to consider the dimensions
of your loss, how it might be listed
on manifests. still, what you have left
is better than you deserve. and sufficient,
if one holds on hard enough, to keep you afloat

a narrow band of slip shows now
beneath night’s skirt on the horizon,
and widens. once again as you watch, light,
with its hunger, will have the world.

– James Sallis

 

fall

It’s Saturday.

Leaves have fallen and the air is crisp; today is the first day I smelt autumn.

I love this time of year.

It’s my favourite season for so many reasons: the deep brown colours, the change of temperature and the quiet, slow excitement of what’s to come. Autumn’s arrival tells me my birthday is near.

Except, things are different this time.

I don’t know if any of you have ever had your birthday ruined before. It’s not a nice feeling. In fact, it’s pretty bloody awful. Close friends will know (as will those who have read the piece I wrote for CALM) that my birthday last year was probably the worst day of 2010.

The day before, was amazing. A great day out shopping & hanging out in town then later, my awesome birthday party. Benny came dressed as Beetlejuice, friends old and new mixed together, hell, even my family came.

Less than 24hrs later, on the evening of November 21st – my actual birthday – my then girlfriend of two years decided that it would be an ideal time to end our relationship over [what I was then told] ‘trust issues’. Wrongly accusing me of cheating, she was up and out of the flat before the week was out.

It nearly killed me. How do you prove yourself innocent when the other party has convinced themselves you’re guilty?

After months of blaming myself, I uncovered the truth: she hadn’t broken up with me over trust at all. She had, in fact, decided to leave me for one of my alleged best mates and was too cowardly to tell me. A chance meeting with the latter (after general avoidance and non-returning of calls) back in March started that avalanche of information.

The night I found out everything, the week before I headed off to Siberia, my friends were stunned. They expected me to be livid, to be more angry. But honestly? When all the pieces finally fell into place? I felt relieved.

Relieved that I wasn’t at fault, relieved that the pain and angst I’d been carrying around for months could finally lift and most of all relieved that I was out of the sick, twisted, horrid mess that I’d mistaken for two people I could love and trust.

Today is the first day of autumn for me. My birthday is just around the corner. I stepped out of the flat this afternoon, took a huge lung full of air and… I remembered.

A couple of weeks ago someone dear to me asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday. “I don’t know” I replied. Then I remembered what happened last year. The fake smiles at the party, the secret plans behind my back – I panicked.

“What will I do? What can I do? God, last year was terrible..”

But y’know what? Life is better now. So much better. Life has moved on, love has moved on and, best of all, the people around me are amazing.

When I first started writing this about an hour ago, I was full expecting it to a be low, melancholic exploration of how now the change of season has made me sad. Instead it’s a celebration of autumn, the beautiful season it is and a look up toward the amazing birthday I’ve got lined up for next month.

Bring. It. On.

 

[Private post – made public Dec 23rd, 2011]

UB: catching up

Migjed Janraisig

Moleskine Entry: April 20th, 2011

or ‘things that I’ve forgotten to write down and mustn’t forget that I did them’

Day one in Ulaanbaatar (UB):

  • Feeling immensely spiritual (and quite honoured) after catching an extremely rare Buddhist ceremony at the main Monastery (pictured) in UB. So rare in fact, our guide called her mother as it began so she too could hear the prayers and chants around us; incredibly moving.
  • Facing down pick-pocketers (my new favourite past-time)
  • Crying tears of laughter at the hilarity of Mongolia’s ‘world famous’ International Intellectual Museum. There are honestly, no words.
  • Oly (finally) admitting his love for our first Honcho, Marina.
  • Beers, pool and then a Mongolian Karaoke Bar until the very early hours.

Yesterday (day two in UB), we drove for an hour out of the city to camp out for the night in a traditional Mongolian Gur camp. It was pretty impressive stuff.

View from above

There was horse-riding, local delicacies, a visit to a nomadic family and of course, the sunrise earlier this morning. An additional bonus was that the other group we met on our first night in Moscow were staying at the same camp-site too and now, we’ll be travelling together all the way to China.

Oh yeah, that’s another thing, there’s still China.

<GRIN>