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Oscars

Movie Review: Obit

Hot Docs - Obit - Bruce Weber and Vanessa Gould

Director & Producer Vanessa Gould and Reporter Bruce Weber

What do you consider a newsworthy death?

Well, the New York Times’ obituaries section is not limited to celebrities and politicians, as there are many ordinary people doing extraordinary things and their stories deserve to be told in print and online. By flipping to the obits section, you can access history from the perspective of a skilful reporter who wrote a retrospective about a person who led a meaningful life. That’s something worth reading.

After job shadowing a movie critic at The Globe and Mail during high school, I was intrigued by the movie Obit, as it promises to offer a behind the scenes look at The New York Times. Thankfully, Vanessa Gould’s movie is insightful and engaging and you don’t need to be a journalist to enjoy this documentary at Hot Docs. After all, the obits are written for everyone. One of the reporters communicated this effectively when he said that their challenge is to craft an entertaining piece about history for people who don’t know history.

May 5, 2016 by Sarah Prince

All Stars Wear Converse

Converse - Made By You - Andy Warhol — Photo Source: Esquire

It’s Throwback Thursday and that calls for a spotlight on a campaign from a classic brand: Converse. I’ve never doodled on my Converse, but I love to wear them. I suspect they’ll be a wardrobe staple indefinitely.

Every owner of Converse sneakers has the option to personalize their footwear to reflect their personality and interests. Converse is celebrating consumers’ flare for customizing sneakers with their latest Made By You campaign.

March 5, 2015 by Sarah Prince

Fitz and the Tantrums

Fitz and the Tantrums is one of those bands you’ve heard on TV, but can’t remember how you were introduced to their music.

Begin Again star Adam Levine reportedly discovered Fitz and the Tantrums through a tattoo artist and then invited them to open for Maroon 5. Since then, Fitz and the Tantrums has been featured on Suits, Desperate Housewives, Criminal Minds and The Vampire Diaries.

More recently, Fitz and the Tantrums cemented their place in the spotlight once Ellen Degeneres danced to The Walker in the 2014 Oscars trailer.

July 9, 2014 by Sarah Prince

Third Tuesday: Gini Dietrich

This month’s Third Tuesday may have been scheduled on a Monday evening, but it was as informative, inspiring and engaging as always. Third Tuesday was generously sponsored by Rogers and Cision Canada and hosted by Thornley Fallis at The Pilot. So far, I’ve only gone when the guest speaker is an author – Mitch Joel, Nora Young and last night, the lovely Gini Dietrich.

While sharing her insights about astroturfing, whisper campaigns and media manipulation, Gini subtly promoted her PR firm, book and blog. It was especially interesting to hear Gini’s perspective as a blogger because I initially learned about her through a Behind The Brand interview on Hot On The Street! I had to laugh when Gini told a story about meeting blog commenters at a conference and referred to them as “Spin Sucks crazies.” Don’t worry, she was just kidding. Most bloggers are thrilled to meet their loyal readers in person!

Gini began her presentation with a simple overview of how Miley Cyrus’ career is a good case study for PR pros. Kicking off a presentation with slides about Miley is a sure fire way to excite an audience, but I wonder how much longer speakers can get away with it. When Toronto has a new mayor (fingers crossed!) and Ellen’s Oscars selfie is ancient history, presenters will need to find a new pop culture reference. When I pay to see a major thought leader, I want to hear their opinion about current events, not yesterday’s news. Marketers are increasingly encouraged to explore real-time marketing, memes and news-jacking and I think keynote speakers should take the same approach when preparing presentations.

April 8, 2014 by Sarah Prince

Sharing Secrets With Jessi Cruickshank

I don’t have many beauty secrets, but I will let you virtually eavesdrop on conversations with TV personality Jessi Cruickshank at Bioré’s event. Jessi and Dan were to MTV what Regis and Kelly were to ABC, so when I was invited to hear Jessi reveal how she becomes camera ready I was psyched.

The theme and hashtag of the evening was #TheCharcoalSecret because charcoal is a key ingredient in Bioré’s new products. The event was just a few days after her infamous Rob Ford interview in LA and Jessi gracefully transitioned from talking about politics to Hollywood and skincare.

Jessi hosted her own mini ceremony to reveal her craziest interview experiences:

Best Actor: Tom Cruise

Did you know he has his own mystic tanner? Hopefully they’re not the same person responsible for so many A-list stars with orange skin at the Academy Awards. Regardless, Jessi was overwhelmed by the size of his entourage, which she says includes assistants for his assistants.

Worst Actor: Kristen Stewart

To put it mildly, “she was very unpleasant.” Unfortunately for Jessi, Twilight fans were so aghast by their televised interview that they sent death threats and complaint letters to MTV.

Most High Maintenance: Mariah Carey

Mariah’s publicist insisted on a standing interview so Mariah would look thinner. OK, no big deal. Once on set, Jessi was introduced to Mariah’s personal lighting director and when she arrived, the publicist said, “I’m going to receive Mariah,” speaking about the diva as if she’s royalty. Looking back, Jessi says that now “I feel like we go back to when we were babies with pacifiers.”

March 9, 2014 by Sarah Prince

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