BRANDON LEE SMITH | Creative Brand Manager

lukeiscrazyman: Converse - “All Summer” - Music Video (via...

Wed, 21 Jul 2010 14:21:31 -0400

Converse - “All Summer” - Music Video (via conversegallery)

"I think it’s important that if you’re going to be innovative, that there’s not a..."

Sun, 04 Jul 2010 18:27:13 -0400

“I think it’s important that if you’re going to be innovative, that there’s not a process for everything. Sometimes it seems that if you’re never lost you’re never going to wind up any place new. It’s only if you’re willing to be completely fucked-up that you’re going to do anything important”

- Dan Wieden, W+K

Googlebook?

Sat, 03 Jul 2010 12:23:54 -0400

After it’s mostly failed attempt to create a new Twitter with Google Buzz, Google is now rumored to be creating a new social service that would rival the likes of Facebook. Which begs the question, do we really need another Facebook?

Yes, historically speaking, creating competition is always beneficial to the user/consumer, however do these rules apply to the social media world? People have spent years creating and evolving with Facebook. Many have spent their entire college career carefully molding their facebook into their digital selfs. And now Google, somehow thinks that people are going to just start all over?

Another factor that applies to all of Google’s services, is that you usually need to have a Gmail account to access it. While millions of people do use Gmail, there are also the millions of people you don’t. The reason Facebook grew so fast, is because they eventually opened it up to everyone, not just those with a college email. I can see this being an issue most of Gmail services will face, if they haven’t already.

This service might come to fruition if the younger generation, who haven’t quite reached the age of understanding Facebook, suddenly pick up on this. But I also have to ask the question, why now? Facebook is statistically losing steam when terms like ‘internet fatigue’ are becoming more and more relevant. While I applaud Google for taking innovative risks, I don’t see where social media fits in.

But I’ll be the first to bite my tongue if they pull it off.

Video

Fri, 02 Jul 2010 13:11:24 -0400

Ok Go - End Love. I know this video has been out since June...

Tue, 29 Jun 2010 11:44:14 -0400

Ok Go - End Love. I know this video has been out since June 15th, so everyone and their mother has probably already seen it. But I just got to it. I have to say, Ok Go has come a long way since I saw them live when they came to my town, back when I was in high school still, and held a free concert. Two things I love or was impressed with by this video. One, the lip syncing. Not an easy thing to do with stop motion (if that is what this is, sometimes it’s hard to tell). Second, I loved the goose that was following them around at the end. Nice work.

A Brillant Mind...I Have Not.

Fri, 25 Jun 2010 19:16:42 -0400

People often get depressed for several reasons. It could be a recent breakup, loss of employment, or a family situation. But I get depressed for another reason, and often times I wonder if the other 99% of the world population ever feels the same.

So what is it that I often get depressed about? The fact, that no matter what I do, I’ll never be a genius. Now first, I should clarify my definition of a genius. A genius doesn’t have to be a 13 year old progity that just earned their second Ph.D. To me, a genius is someone like Mark Zuckerberg, who at 20 years old, developed one of the most recognizable social media brands…well…ever. Or Steve Jobs, who turned Apple into something people would sell their right arm for, just to get a glimpse of the next iPhone model. Or even the 21 year-old (former child genius), Alia Sabur, who has developed her own solutions to the recent oil spill crisis.

It’s mostly my entrepreneurial mindset, but often times I’ll catch myself trying to think what if I could do something like that. At 24 years old, I’m already a good four years behind where Zuckerberg was. I also never went to Harvard, and I never really excelled in any particular subject in school. And while, I have a basic understanding of website development (HTML/CSS), I can’t for the life of me understand the hardcore mechanics (Actionscript, Object C, PHP, etc).

Sometimes, I’ll convince myself that I could start a successful creative agency right now, with little experience, and no money. Sid Lee kinda accomplished this. Does that mean fate is working in my favor? Unlikely. Unfortunately, people try to start businesses and end up failing on a daily basis. What makes me think my ideas are any better than theres? I’ll then come to the realization, that it’s the idea of creating something, that I’m most interested in. Being apart of something from start to finish. And after I come to that realization, I find that I can do that with pretty much anything.

In the end, I need to except the fact I’ll never create the next Facebook, or build an empire such as Apple. I won’t become the next media tycoon. But a guy can dream can’t he?

Mad Men Season Four Teaser Poster

Mon, 21 Jun 2010 16:45:00 -0400

"There is nothing objective in advertising. There is nothing a person can point to and say, there,..."

Fri, 18 Jun 2010 16:25:00 -0400

“

There is nothing objective in advertising.

There is nothing a person can point to and say, there, that’s it, do it like that each time, because there is no right way to do anything, not even one small thing, except to do it each time new and different.

Which means you may be the only one who will know if the gifts of god has given you aren’t finding traction in advertising and your larger future is in another field.

There’s no chemistry test to flunk that lets you know it’s time to leave. There’s no checklist to measure yourself against.

It’s like you’ve entered in a rodeo, except you’re not just the rider, you’re also the bull.

”

- Professor Mark Fenske - VCU Brandcenter

Greenpeace’s Black Pixel Project. I wonder if this could...

Sat, 12 Jun 2010 18:05:23 -0400

Greenpeace’s Black Pixel Project. I wonder if this could actually work as planned?

Momentos - A short film worth viewing

Sat, 05 Jun 2010 11:45:45 -0400

Momentos - A short film worth viewing

Crispin Porter + Bogusky’s new campaign for Kraft Mac and...

Thu, 27 May 2010 10:42:20 -0400

Crispin Porter + Bogusky’s new campaign for Kraft Mac and Cheese. That was fast.

How long before this turns into a iPhone commercial?

Tue, 25 May 2010 12:15:50 -0400

How long before this turns into a iPhone commercial?

I’m loving this commercial.

Sun, 23 May 2010 23:45:49 -0400

I’m loving this commercial.

Google TV

Thu, 20 May 2010 19:10:13 -0400

Google TV

Video

Thu, 20 May 2010 11:37:05 -0400

Architecture of the future. Worth checking out just for the...

Mon, 17 May 2010 17:07:37 -0400

Architecture of the future. Worth checking out just for the small introduction on “memory metals.”

The google experiment.

Thu, 13 May 2010 18:33:17 -0400

The google experiment.

Be on the cover of playboy….kinda.

Wed, 05 May 2010 14:01:07 -0400

Be on the cover of playboy….kinda.

TV DEAD? Hardly.

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 14:34:32 -0400

Many people these days are claiming that TV is dying. More specifically, TV commercials are dying. This is because apparently, the internet is where everyone is spending their time. I guess I can’t argue that. But let me tell you why I don’t think TV commercials (or TV in general) is dying. Because I’m watching more TV now, than I ever have before.

You can probably thank the recent serge in awesome TV shows for that (more specifically: Lost, The Office, South Park, Family Guy, Rescue Me, 24, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Sons of Anarchy, etc.) There are so many TV shows to watch, I hardly have time to do anything BUT watch TV. I think most people will agree. And the best part is - these shows are good. Some are exceptionally good. I mean, there is nothing better than watching a show for six years, and on that six season, you start seeing characters you haven’t seen since the first season. It’s an amazing feeling.

Then there is the argument of Tivo. Really. How many people do you know own a Tivo? I know approximately one household. Because like most average Americans, we can’t afford (or choose not to spend money on) something as useless as a Tivo.

TV is hardly dead. I still watch commercials, and sometimes I enjoy them, and sometimes I can’t stand them. I think it’s up to the agencies to make them interesting enough for people to want to watch them, rather than pushing the same car commercial down our throats (you know the one where the car is driving through some amazing landscape where the grass is greener, the sky is always bluer, and apparently traffic doesn’t exist. And there is a mans voiceover talking about how this car is different/better from all the rest. Yeah that one. Move on.)

Will they just make a Halo movie already…

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 14:08:27 -0400

Will they just make a Halo movie already…