And so, the guest contributions keep coming in. Here’s a quick item from 72andSunny creative director Matt Murphy (pictured), a W+K alum who headed to the City of Angels to join the MDC-owned agency two years ago and was most recently involved with the K-Swiss Kenny Powers work. It appears he just wants to get something off his chest in regards to the new Deutsch LA-created ad for Playstation. The floor’s yours, my friend [ed. 72andSunny recently won Activision, so yeah, there may be some bias].
Let the record state: I’ve never written a movie. (yet) Nor pitched one to a Hollywood studio. (yet) But I think about what could be a great movie pitch all the time. That alone qualifies me to provide my biased context on what’s possible. After all, I know many, many people in this industry dream of taking their ideas to the next level. God forbid, we try and push our thinking onto the big screen. After all, it’s not like movies are killing it these days.
In this first edition of NABWIMAGM, I’d like to look at the new Sony Playstation “Long Live Play” spot getting all the rave right now. As a commercial, it’s pretty awesome. Great execution. Great casting. And very cinematic. It’s very easy to imagine this spot being two minutes pulled from another 120 we haven’t seen yet. More important, this commercial is a perfect example of why gaming can/should push out of its own medium and into other storytelling constructs.
The line where gaming meets entertainment is invisible. Game characters are as much a hero as anyone else. That’s actually the backbone of the spot. What happens when they all get together and realize they share a common bond? That bond being not just Michael,” but all the crazy battles they’ve waged on his behalf. There are so many fan groups from each of the game franchises connecting in this commercial it’s crazy. That alone is part of the magic. Bringing them together and cross-pollinating those stories seems like where the real film begins. The what if….of their stories actually intertwining is pretty rich territory to explore.
Now, I’m not going to get into story arcs, character development, and whether it should be shot in IMAX 3-D. I’m only responding to the huge potential that lays within a great commercial. Which is something bigger. Seeing that potential only stokes more questions, that reaffirms why I’m writing this. Do we meet Michael? Probably. Is he played by Rob Schneider? No. Will we see lots of face-melting fight sequences? Most definitely. Will it be live action or CG? Not sure, to be honest, you could argue for either. Will Christopher Nolan direct it? For sure. But just so you know, I heard from a credible source that he’s signed on to make seven more Batman films.
All in all, this spot has the chops to go big in the afterlife.