Element 79 Partners and Errol Morris have teamed up for a fun new Quaker Oats commercial starring a pre-teen rock band called the Blisters. But this isn’t your average pre-teen rock band—two of its members happen to be Spencer Tweedy (on drums) and Sam Tweedy (in the yellow and black), whose father happens to be Jeff Tweedy, the frontman of indie-rock darlings Wilco. The kids’ uncle, Danny Miller, who runs an interesting blog of his own, takes us behind the scenes at the shoot at the Hollywood Center Studios and also reflects on the finished product. He thinks it came out nicely, but then adds: “They cut Spencer’s great line from the commercial, ‘Oatmeal makes you rock more efficiently.’ Apparently two focus groups thought the line sounded fake, that no real 9-year-old would ever say such a thing. But he did say it, and it was far more natural than anything that ever came out of Mariette Hartley’s mouth.” In the comments section of the blog, Element 79 creative director Chris Laubach weighs in: “Of the 32 commercials we produced this summer, this one is my favorite,” he writes. “I really think these kids are gonna go places.” For the record, Laubach adds that the Blisters didn’t get the gig through their Wilco connections—the kids happen to be friends with Laubach’s kids.

—Posted by Tim Nudd