The Chronicle stops the presses- Play offers new twist on classic story
- Students create illustrations for Georgia Ports Authority
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Graduate student channels classic horror in thesis film - Alumnus creates mobile gallery
- SCAD libraries hold artist’s book competition for students
- Griffis discusses development of Arthur legend
- Noted author speaks to students
- The Green Scene: 'We have a dream'
- Personnel File: New staff members join SCAD-Savannah
- SCAD hosts regional IDSA conference
- Titus Kaphar to speak at SCAD
- The Bee Line
- Women’s lacrosse sets records in Kennesaw State win
- Athlete Feats highlights for Feb. 22
- Baseball takes series from St. Thomas
- Women’s basketball wraps up second place in Florida Sun
- Athletics updates for Feb. 15
- Baseball off to best start in program’s history
- Big third period leads lacrosse team to victory
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Class in the Spotlight
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Everyone ‘WIN’s with PSA collaboration
By Monique Bos Published: Friday, March 23, 2007 A friendship forged during a Savannah College of Art and Design faculty orientation led to a collaborative project between students in two different departments. Advertising design professor Sean Trapani and film and television professor Levie Cruse Isaacks met during orientation and stayed in touch. They often talked about having their students work on a collaborative assignment, and when Isaacks met Carol Towbin Greenberg, a coordinator of the Women’s Independence Network, he found the perfect opportunity. WIN is a nonprofit organization that provides women in the arts with networking opportunities. The students collaborated to create and film a public-service announcement for WINFest 2007, a women’s art festival that will be held March 29 - April 1 in Savannah. “The PSA is a metaphor for the struggle of young, talented women who are trying to break into the business side of the arts,” Trapani said. “They have the talents, but not the business skills. The client … is a group of experienced creative professionals that provide free training to empower these young artists, sculptors, performing artists, etc.” Students in Isaacks’ Lighting and Field Production Techniques course worked with members of Trapani’s Branding Theory class to develop a concept, present it to the client, and film and edit the final product. “They had real-world pressures and a client,” Isaacks said. “It was an enjoyable experience for them to know they were doing something that would actually be seen on television.” Trapani divided his 12 students into creative teams and had each group develop a concept for the spot. This echoes the environment at ad agencies, where multiple teams often work on concepts for a single client. “The thing I told my class is that advertising is a collaborative process, and everyone’s involvement is critical to that process,” he explained. “Ideas are thrown around. B never comes before A. The three students whose concept was chosen have their classmates to thank. That’s what I love about advertising in general — it’s very collaborative.” Isaacks said he was impressed with the results. “There were three different spots that we could have used,” he said. “It’s funny because if I was in ad-agency land, I would have pushed the simpler idea,” Trapani said. “[But] our job was not just to make the client happy, but to provide as many learning opportunities for the students as possible. This was the tougher one to execute. We did not take the easy road, for sure.” Ann Thibodeau served as lead writer for the creative team whose idea was chosen, which also included Jacquelyn Sommer and Kristen Curette. “Collaboration was very important in our group. We bounced off lots of thoughts and combined ideas to come up with what eventually became the final TV spot,” she said. “We watched a lot of TV commercials for inspiration and took notes in each of our meetings.” The concept that was chosen featured a female dancer picking herself up off the ground and then beginning to dance, backed by a group of women playing instruments. Executing the idea required finding a location, musicians and a dancer, as well as locating instruments and other props — and doing everything at little to no cost. Billy’s Place, located upstairs from McDonough’s, donated space for the shoot, which took place Feb. 25, and students drew on a network of SCAD staff members, friends and acquaintances to find musicians and a dancer willing to contribute their time and talents. Film and television student Paula Wood served as director and producer. “It was a really great experience,” she said. “I think we worked well together on-set. I liked the idea that two classes got together to make something for television.” Thibodeau spent the day of the shooting on-site, and she said the experience was positive. “It was exciting being there while they were filming. There is so much involved and I was very impressed,” she said. “I learned about some of the terminology they use to describe types of shots and other things. That will help me later if/when I do another TV script.” The project entailed a lot of hard work. In fact, said Isaacks, “They worked night and day on this between classes. This class has put in far more hours than any class I’ve ever had.” Greenberg agreed. “It’s amazing how much work goes into 25 seconds,” she said. Working so closely and with such intensity produces a sense of community among the collaborators, Isaacks said. “What kind of happens is that once you have to start collaborating, you become a family and depend on each other,” he explained. “It’s a great experience of teamwork.” For the students in both classes — most of whom are sophomores — the project provided full immersion in their majors, and they found the experience valuable. Thibodeau, who recently changed her major from illustration to advertising design, said the experience helped confirm that she’s made the right decision. “I think I have learned a lot from [the class] and hopefully will become better because of it,” she said. “Even if I do not go into copywriting, having an understanding of how it works will help me understand ads as a whole. It will allow me to work more fluidly in a copywriter/art director team.” And the client, Greenberg, said, “I love the result!” In addition, the multidisciplinary, creative process embodies WIN’s goals, she said. “What’s so wonderful from my perspective is that our festival will help emerging artists connect with the community,” she said. “This project exemplifies what we’re trying to do. We have emerging artists helping with the planning and implementation of the festival.” The commercial will air on local stations, which are required by law to run a certain number of PSAs. Isaacks explained, “They usually run something they like, so what we attempted to do was provide them with that!” Greenberg said being able to provide the spot to stations also conveys an advantage. “We’re actually supplying the product to go on the air, not asking them to air and create the product,” she said. “I think [the commercial is] wonderful. Of course, I know everyone that was involved in it,” Trapani said. “The client’s happy. When the client’s happy, the agency’s happy.” Both he and Isaacks — as well as many of their students — expressed a desire to participate in more interdisciplinary projects in the future. “What makes [SCAD] different for an advertising student is that we have all these other disciplines we can draw off,” said Trapani. “What makes this place special is that when you work together, you’re more than the sum of the parts.”  |
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