Serviced Final Proposal

t h e p r o f i l e
t h e c o n c e p t
c o n t e x t
t a r g e t d e m o g r a p h i c
t h e d a t e
t h e v i r a l s : V E N E T I A / A L E K S / S I M O N E
t h e b l o g s
t h e w e b s i t e : s i t e m a p / f u n c t i o n a l i t y l i s t
t h e m u s i c
m a r k e t i n g s t r a t e g i e s
t h e f i l m
c o n t r i b u t o r s
t h e s t o r y
c o m p e t i t i o n
a r t d i r e c t i o n
t h e m i r r o r s
a p p e n d i x

S E R V I C E D : t h e c o n c e p t
SERVICED is a pioneering online broadcast exploring the digital medium and the potential effects
it has on romantic love. SERVICED will be broadcast utilising Vimeo and a sequence of films will
then be embedded onto a self-contained website which is live from 25.5.2011 at
www.getserviced.co.uk
A viral marketing campaign will also precede the final production, taking advantage of new ways
of communicating with audiences and makes sure interactivity as a key quality to the piece.
SERVICED combines art-house visuals shot entirely in Sweden with well researched, intelligent,
journalistic dialogue as an audio narrative along with an original, musical score.
There is a strong visual identity flowing throughout every aspect of SERVICED really making sure
there is a brand present. Connectivity is extremely important and consistent branding throughout
is integral.
SERVICED promises to be something new and original in a world consumed by banality fusing
fantasy, fun but most importantly a message found in a package you would never expect.

S E R V I C E D : c o n t e x t
The ideals of romance are constantly questioned whether it be in fairytales, novels or newspapers
but never so as we see right at this moment. It is a much talked about subject with, only recently,
circumferences of concern.
Romantic love is always investigated in an almost comedic context. For instance, the Channel4
commissioned ‘documentary’ ‘Love, Virtually’ was a hybrid of fictional entertainment and case
studies from people actually partaking in web dating. However, there is never really an exploration
into its effects; there is always a voyeuristic element to programmes that tackle the topic and an
ardor to make it humorous.
SERVICED however will use an anthropological eye to investigate the subject pulling in ideas from
experts in consumerism, sex, science and creativity; all within the field of love with an absolute
sincerity and intelligent approach to the subject at hand which is an angle that has not been
looked into in a visual format as yet.
So why will SERVICED embody such a distinct approach both visually and aurally?
Ultimately, the consumers targeted and those that will be affected by it are predominantly online
in both a social and entertainment capacity. As the target demographic establishes, there needs
to be an element of interactivity for messages to get across adequately for a ‘switched on’
audience. This type of consumer doesn’t want to be told what is happening, they want to feel like
they have figured it out for themselves. The message will be enigmatic but with the internet
allowing replay at the touch of a button, it gives the consumer the ability to revisit parts they see
interesting and gives the consumer a sense of control.
Internet viewing also gives SERVICED the ability to be seen immediately with no consequential
effects. Risks are allowed to be taken and a worldwide audience reached instantly as opposed to
fighting for it to be commissioned by a more generic production house under strict limitations.

S E R V I C E D : t a r g e t d e m o g r a p h i c
Identified by LS:N GLOBAL as one of the most influenced by technology audiences is known as
Generation D. The future is potentially Generation D and these are the people affected the most by
the topic SERVICED is to investigate.
Quoting LS:N: “Generation D is the first generation of genuine digital natives. This generation is the
product of Rurban parents and Convivial Culture siblings. For them, technology is like oxygen –
they can’t live without it. Natural born multi-taskers, they pack 11 hours of entertainment into 7.5
hours, and are expected to spend $2.5bn on virtual goods over the coming two years.”
Generation D is an ever-growing population. Youthful and obsessed by the onslaught of digital
enhancement. Impressionable and excitable and engulfed in the digital social scene in every
respect.
LS:N also states: “As the habits of Generation D teens become tomorrow’s mainstream we look at
how and why new media will be a profitable and creative pathway to winning and wooing
consumers keen on more interactive and immersive experiences. And in compelling visual and
video case studies, we also chart the exciting possibilities in transmedia storytelling, multi-
screen marketing, hyper-retail, social gaming, event media and emotion recognition software.”
The execution of SERVICED is of grave importance in regards to how this will be marketed to
Generation D. The ethos that this type of consumer needs to be a part of what they buy into and the
potential for interactivity in key as opposed to the generic way of consumption. The idea of fantasy
is also important. Generation D live in an environment that facilitates the prospect of escapism.
Somewhere that reality does not necessarily need to penetrate.
The production of SERVICED will encompass all of these things from the campaign that will
precede the final film and the production of the film itself.
The type of consumer cast in Generation D will already be engaging in the elements that SERVICED
will encompass. The online epoch that is going to be created will give the audience a more
involved experience and allow communication amongst them and other interested parties which
a generic broadcast would not allow.

S E R V I C E D : t h e d a t e
Science is something that romance cannot avoid in contemporary society. We all want to know
how to fathom the most elusive but integral of emotions. Several studies have been conducted
regarding love and the brain over the past three years including Dr. Lucy Brown and Dr. Helen
Fisher’s widely reported study regarding finding your personality type can help you find love and
Dr. Samir Zeki and Dr. Andreas Bartels’ study into why relationships make our brain do certain
things. Coinciding with this explosion of information is the concept of digital anthropology; a
relatively new idea only available to be studied at UCL at present. An article in the New Scientist
states: “For the first time, scientists have a chance to study what humans do in real time and in an
objective way. It’s going to fundamentally change all fields of science that deal with humans.”
The nature of the digital persona manifests the potential for disposability to become the norm. As
information comes and goes so quickly, traditional communication similarly suffers.
According to Mintel, the amount of unique users for social networking sites has more than
doubled over the past two years with 250 million people logging into Facebook every day for an
average of 46 minutes while The New York Times published a study conducted by the Pew
Research Centre which stated that half of American teenagers defined in a study between the
ages of 12 - 17; only 33% of them talk to their friends face-to-face on a daily basis.
Commodity is a huge part of the boom that has been digitalisation and romantic love, or potential
partnership, is one commodity that has been embraced to the full by both consumers and
retailers. eHarmony for instance in 2010 was responsible for 4.77% of the entire marriages across
America which has increased from 2.5% in 2008. The online dating business is currently worth
over £8 billion.
Seventeen Magazine published a study of 10,000 guys and girls between the ages of 16 - 21 on how
Facebook affects their love lives. “Within one week of meeting a new person, 79% of people click
‘friend’ and after adding a new friend; 60% of people stalk their crush’s profile once a day (40%
check in on their would-be soulmate several times a day)” Interestingly, Facebook has the
potential to have a major effect on how one’s behaviour online can affect potential dating in the
real world as “43% of girls would decide to not date someone based on their Facebook profile.”
In a world where we can certainly get addicted to the physical click as opposed to the emotional
one, what place does the digital medium have when it comes to our emotions? With technology
constantly evolving, and research showing that romantic love is essentially bound by biological
necessity, is it possible for technology and product to prevail tradition? Is the fantasy of oneself
more fruitful than the reality?
Because really, who doesn’t want to be in love?

S E R V I C E D : t h e v i r a l s : V E N E T I A / A L E K S / S I M O N E
Viral marketing is a hot topic in the world of visual media. It is a tool that precedes the end product
to create a sense of excitement for its arrival in the form of short films or teasers. They are easily
spread via social networking sites, blogs or in some cases national press and have the potential
to really create a buzz around a project; ironically it is the audience that creates this buzz by being
a part of it themselves as opposed to the person behind the project doing the work which
reinforces the specified target demographic. The audience is in control of its fate.
The power of the viral is potentially limitless as it is in the hands of the consumer. When done
properly and aimed at the right markets, it can do wonders for the final product. The prospect of a
viral campaign suits SERVICED perfectly as the potential for them to be picked up on the
blogosphere could boost its possible success as an online only objective.
The campaign is set out to conceptually define three key personalities affected by the online
universe and their relationships.
The mise-en-scene for each of the viral films remains essentially the same as the set up is as if
each of the characters is being interviewed however they will be different in style and tone to
represent their individual characterisation and outlook as a person.
All the characters will be in disguise and shot in a studio environment. The running theme for each
viral will be handmade leather masks which are being sourced from Goblin and Crumb to give
each a cohesive piece of iconography while connoting their similarity.
Using this as a method of connectivity is extremely important. This is not style over substance.
WIthout this method, there would be no potential for SERVICED to grow and shape before its
broadcast and would undoubtedly make the final piece less successful.
The most important thing about the viral marketing strategy of SERVICED is that there is no
definitive explanation to what the project is about. The enigmatic nature of the piece is what will
make it successful. There is no specifics leaving it in the hands of the viewer themselves which is
so important when it comes to the savvy web consumer.

S E R V I C E D : V E N E T I A
VENETIA represents the old school, sexy girl. The girl who waits by the phone but it never actually
calls. However, the madness that this particular viral bestows represents the overwhelming
nature of modernity and the potential to be left behind without your knowledge. The black is a
theme running through connoting the suffocation of oneself if you refuse to engage with a world
that you’re not sure how to.
Lauren De’Ath was cast as VENETIA as she physically embodies the type of girl that VENETIA is. As I
know Ms. De’Ath personally, I knew that her fearlessness would come through on camera.
Stylistically this was influenced by old Alfred Hitchcock movies with the lingering sense of waiting
that David Lynch is notorious for with a modern twist.
S E R V I C E D : A L E K S
ALEKS is a boy who is consumed by aspiration. There are always two sides to us; romantically, the
hunter and the hunted. During primary research, a lot of people interviewed all wished they could
be the predator that was somewhere inside them but never had the confidence to be.
There are two versions of ALEKS. One that is timid and one that is darker. The short film
encapsulates the battle between the two of them and ultimately one winning over the other one.
Nathan Toth plays ALEKS. A boy whose aesthetics really plays with generic views of gender and
sexuality. Someone that isn’t easily recognisable in any capacity.
The lighting was of particular importance as the constellation is actually in the shape of ORION
which is colloquially known as ‘the hunter’.
S E R V I C E D : S I M O N E
SIMONE represents the fantasist in us all. The glamorous, in control, untouchable that we all think
we are at certain points in time.
SIMONE was shot in a very bleached out environment as the after effects added were to make it
look as if she is animated really pointing out that she is not real at all. Equally so, everything was
acted out backwards and then put into reverse in the edit so it looks controlled but is actually
quite disjointed.
Emma McCarthy plays SIMONE. Emma is a professional model and I knew would be the perfect
choice for this particular production as SIMONE is the one that is to star in SERVICED the finale shot
entirely in Sweden. Since the bigger shoot would be a much bigger challenge, I needed to cast
someone who would respect my professionalism as much as I did theirs.

S E R V I C E D : t h e b l o g s
Each character has a blog that runs in tandem for one week before the next viral video goes live.
The blog will be updated daily and the content is the conversation that each character has had in
their interview.
An unidentified person simply known as ‘X’ is the person conducting the interviews and will be
contactable via the e-mail address x@getserviced.co.uk which will be displayed on the website.
The reason why these are going to run is the ever growing need for consumers to relate to
whatever they’re seeing or buying into. It is engaging due to its interactivity. Younger consumers
no longer want to be sold to or be felt to be buying into something, they want to know as much as
they possibly can.
Three Wordpress accounts have been designed to coincide with the SERVICED brand and house
the conversations as well as an embedded version of their clip which will be found directly at a
specifically created Vimeo channel. The characters are fictional but represent cultural and
relatable figures and will be presented as if they are completely real; nothing will suggest
otherwise reinforcing the core message that the difference between reality and fantasy if
becoming increasingly blurred in terms of how we represent ourselves socially.
S E R V I C E D : t h e w e b s i t e
www.getserviced.co.uk will be the epicentre of the project.
The landing page is all video with links embedded into the clip so to know exactly where they are
going, the user will need to watch before they click. The website has been tested on all browsers
to ensure adequate usability.
The second page is four boxes with names and dates for when the virals and film will go live. It is
important for the website to remain simple as too much information will detract from the visual
narrative as well as give away too much information about the piece.
Videos will be embedded on the site for convenience and will keep viewers from needing to go
clicking further to find extra information.
With SERVICED actually going live, it is important that it is only viewable online. It is a relatively
cost effective and arguably very important method of getting anything connected to film seen in
both record time and without restraints. Without using this method, SERVICED would suffer in its
artistic direction as it is not under fire from the commercial restraints that big television
companies expect from a programme to go out on a terrestrial channel.

S E R V I C E D : t h e m u s i c
A collaborative, original score has been created for SERVICED by M.O.
It is entirely instrumental and has been influenced a lot by nature and contemporary pop. Each
track is different in style but has a similar artistic vein running throughout.
There is organic noise as well as highly manufactured sonic traits to the pieces taking influences
from musicians such as Ben Frost, Sigur Ros, Austra and Crystal Castles to name a few.
The score is exclusive to SERVICED.
S E R V I C E D : m a r k e t i n g s t r a t e g i e s
200 business cards (see appendix for images) have been professionally printed and individually
delivered to press and industry contacts at over 70 publications in personally addressed
envelopes. These included national newspapers, monthly consumer magazines and online
magazines as well as blogs.
The sectors targeted included fashion, arts, music and news. The purpose of these was to give
potentially interested press a tangible reminder of the SERVICED brand and launch and also gave a
more creative and effortful one on one touch as opposed to sending out a press release en masse.
This strategy also emphasised the guerilla nature of the project creating a buzz without much
information at hand; drawing in audiences using the power of their imagination.

S E R V I C E D : t h e f i l m
SERVICED is a conceptual film shot entirely in Ramsvik, Sweden. The story circulates around the
last character in the final viral film, SIMONE.
SIMONE is a character whose digital life and real life are no different to one another. Her inability
to decipher which one is more relevant to contemporary existence make her the perfect choice to
showcase the story that follows.
Ramsvik is an island that lies about 140km west of Gothenburg and houses what is notoriously one
of the most beautiful naturalistic environments of Sweden. The film is split into three parts shot in
different areas of the island. First, a huge field with epic amounts of space. Second, a forest and
finally the archipelago; a multitude of natural stone islands embedded in the sea. The three
scenes semiotically feed through the ideas of the three stages of love: lust, attraction and
attachment.
The film is littered with semiotic value and codes that are able to be cracked. SERVICED weaves
elements of history into its pop aesthetic. Romantic customs over the past 500 years were
researched and fed into the narrative connoting what was perfectly normal as romance has now
been cast aside for more convenient methods. Included in the story are the use of:
Knives: A traditional Nordic custom was that when a girl was ready for courtship, her Father gave
her a sheath and when a man liked the girl, he would place his knife in her sheath and then they
would officially be an item; sometimes without her consent.
Gloves: In England, men would send a pair of gloves as a proposal and if the woman wore them to
church on Sunday, they had accepted.
Cannibalism: The Chinese never used to believe in kissing as they believed it to be a form of
cannibalism.
The second scene set in the forest is one of particular importance. The semiotic use of fairytales
was paramount for this scene. A text titled “The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance
of Fairy Tales” by Bruno Bettelheim quotes:
‘Since ancient times the near impenetrable forest in which we get lost has symbolised the dark,
hidden, near-impenetrable world of our unconscious. If we have lost the framework which gave
structure to our past life and must now find our way to become ourselves, and have entered this
wilderness with an as yet undeveloped personality, when we succeed in finding our way out we
shall emerge with a much more highly developed humanity.’

S E R V I C E D : t h e f i l m
The scene plays out elements of escapism, being held hostage and needing to get out of a
situation to become a better person.
The final scene is on the archipelago which makes use of its scale and becomes a lot more serene
in both texture and tone. SIMONE feels a lot more at ease and free to take her time ultimately
becoming attached to something she thought was not initially possible.
SIMONE is dressed in a gown that is was designed and handmade by Ella Lucas specifically for this
production and a handmade leather mask from Goblin and Crumb.
The journalistic aspect of the film will stay exactly the same as it would on a more conventional
production. All interviewees knowledgeable in the subject matter have been sourced and treated
in the same way as expected, however will appear as an audio narrative telling the story of the
visuals; pulling together concepts of science, nature and contemporary communication around
digital life and relationships. However, the message remains clandestine and not overbearing. It
has a conversational, debatable tone as opposed to a specific moral or expectancy. SERVICED is
not a product to judge or an attempt to be a martyr. The interviews have been carefully
constructed to ignite an audience’s own thoughts and by no means conscripts anyone to adhere to
its own.
Having each voice remain a mystery allows the audience to use their imagination as well as pay
more attention to what is actually being said. The tone and delivery will obviously give some
connotation as to who the person might be but will not wholly give away their identity. In a world
where knowledge is handed to us at the click of a button, SERVICED will not give the viewer this
luxury.
Admittedly this avant-garde style is unconventional however, going back to the target
demographic, the importance of storytelling is integral. Without the element of fantasy and magic,
the message would be lost amidst a more conventional execution and would suffer scrutiny from
being too dominant and moralistic from a first person perspective.

S E R V I C E D : c o n t r i b u t o r s
All interviews have been conducted via Skype, recorded through Audacity then exported as an AIF
to be edited into the film.
This method not only helped due to half the contributors being overseas but also adheres to the
SERVICED ethos. Meeting people was not an option. It was the reactive state of mind that needed to
be grasped from a restricted medium and has been achieved with great success.
Joel Simkhai : CEO of GrindR
Grindr launched in March 2009 marketed as a social networking tool for homosexual men. Similar
with many social networking tools, Grindr offers a profile for oneself and the possibility of adding
a picture.
Using GPS technology, Grindr tracks the nearest user geographically and gives the user the
opportunity to chat with whomever they please about whatever they feel appropriate.
in only 18 months, Grindr has a cult following of over 1 million users with the average user
spending more than 1.3 hours a day using the application.
While marketed as a ‘social networking’ tool, Grindr has suffered in the mass media by the
consumer making it primarily about sexual adventure.
Matthew Todd of Attitude magazine states: “I think it's good for people to be able to connect.
Especially young people. It's good to be able to see that there are other gay people around, and to
be able to interact. But at the same time I think it's a very adult world. The commercial gay world –
which Grindr is part of – is a very adult, very sexual world. And I worry when I see these young kids
coming out on to the gay scene, and everything is about sex. There's no real concept of
relationships.”
Daniel Miller : PhD, Anthropology and Archaeology UCL
Daniel Miller’s book ‘Tales from Facebook’ was published in March 2011. “The material derives both
from observations on Facebook itself and fieldwork in Trinidad. Apart from 12 portraits that
indicate the impact of Facebook on peoples lives, the book includes a theory of Facebook and a
discussion of its likely impact in the future.”
Miller is also in charge of the MSc at UCL in Digital Anthropology which began in Autumn 2009.
With the ever expanding digital, social world, Miller has been a great asset to the story in the
respect that he could define between what used to be and the normalisation of now.

S E R V I C E D : c o n t r i b u t e r s
Dr. Lucy Brown : Clinical Professor, Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Dr. Lucy Brown headed the scientific trails with Dr. Helen Fisher regarding romantic love and the
brain. She has been featured in Time magazine and on The Today Show discussing the subject.
Dr. Brown adds a sense of pragmatism to the narrative focusing on how love is bound by biological
intuition and not environmental disposition.
Dr. Ted Fischer : Professor of Anthropology, Vanderbilt University
Dr. Fischer has been featured on The Big Think and adds invaluable insight into the digital arena
and its effects on romantic love. His published texts include ‘Cultural Logics and Global
Economies’ and ‘Broccoli and Desire’. Fischer’s current research focuses on ‘the way moral values
affect economic rationalities.’
Fischer theorises cleverly about fantastical relationships with technology and how those
fantasies are fed by our wonderment with the evolution of it.
Dr. Leanna Wolfe : Sexologist and Anthropologist
Media savvy Dr. Wolfe has appeared on many TV stations in the US including NBC and The
Discovery Channel. She currently teaches ‘Gender, sex and culture’ as well as cultural and visual
anthropology.
Since she has a hybrid of subject knowledge, Wolfe focuses on physicality as well as the
technological effects regarding it. Dr. Wolfe speaks candidly about the simplicity of human nature
and brings a realism that really is quite emotional.
Lisa Appignanesi : Journalist and Author ‘All About Love’
Recently released book ‘All About Love’ has had award winning writer Lisa Appignanesi in many
national press papers as well as consumer magazines. She has psychologically chronicled love
through the ages in all its ways including maternal and family love.
Appignanesi added information regarding the digital medium in a very coherent and
contemporary tone adding a lightness and humanity amongst more academic sources.

S E R V I C E D : t h e s t o r y
Lucy Brown: What is it that makes people fall in love?
Ted Fischer: Convenience
Joel Simkahi: Communication
Leanne Wolfe: Control, control, information, control
Lucy Brown: Evolution
Leanna Wolfe: income
Daniel Miller: Abstraction
Leanna Wolfe: Information
Ted Fischer: Personality
Leanna Wolfe: Dependancy
Joel Simkhai: Basics
Daniel Miller: Consumption
Leanna Wolfe: Attention, attention
Lucy Brown: Survival
Daniel Miller: Consequences

Leanna Wolfe: To be part of something
Lucy Brown: Survival, survival, survival, survival
Joel Simkhai: Serviced, serviced, serviced
Lucy Brown: We know that we have the systems to make it possible for us to fall in love and those
are these systems in our brain that signal when we’re hungry or thirsty. They signal reward. Nature
gave us these systems to survive and the system that mediates romantic love is one of those
survival systems.
Ted Fischer: There may be some biological basis that predisposes us to, to fall in love and we can
think of all sorts of evolutionary advantages to that but it’s also very malleable and very plastic.
Lisa Appignanesi: It doesn’t happen willingly and it doesn’t happen consciously, it usually happens
unwittingly.
Leanna Wolfe: What humans need is really basic. They need attention. We need touch. We need to
be seen. We need to be heard.
Joel Simkahi: We all want to find an easier way to socialise and to meet. It’s such a basic human
need.
Ted Fischer: Relationships are really what lead us to have a satisfied life.
Leanna Wolfe: What really makes a relationship endure and work and get off the ground is stuff
that many people may not be that in touch with.
Ted Fischer: Digital presentation brings that very explicitly to the fore.
Daniel Miller: When we talk about the digitised there’s not many areas of life that these days are
not affected.

Lisa Appignanesi: The digital has sort of exacerbated or given more possibility to our consumerist
instincts and the kind of phantom reality of choice.
Leanna Wolfe: There’s this sense of abundance where it used to be out spheres of connection were
really limited. This sense of abundance for many who never had such a thing and when we have
those kinds of senses we think we don’t have to choose that quickly because there’s so many
possibilities.
Lisa Appignanesi: When you’re in the grips of a romantic passion, you actually become other than
you normally are.
Ted Fischer: Technology has a way of amplifying lots of predispositions and social trends and in
many ways offers a lot of possibility but also presents pitfalls for the romantic endeavour.
Lisa Appignanesi: We’re not the sum of the properties that we advertise about ourselves on the
web nor are the people that we’re going to meet the sum of the properties that they’ve advertised.
The material that you can put down about yourself is not necessarily what other people will see in
you.
Lucy Brown: I think some of this social networking, they’re looking for compatibility amongst
people but it’s still very hard to make people fall in love. You can’t make anyone fall in love so you
fall back on what you can do and you can find people who are compatible.
Ted Fischer: The internet sort of allows us to magnify these ideals, maybe even unattainable ideals
we have in our mind and I think about dating sites and how particular you can sort of search for
people.
Lisa Appignanesi: The profile is not the story.

Ted Fischer: And that’s sort of feeding into this idea that there is one ideal perfect match out there
and if I can just select all the right variables, it’s going to be like puzzle pieces that fir together
perfectly.
Lisa Appignanesi: What happens with web dating is that people get very addicted to the click but in
fact none of this has very to do with embodied people and if you then go on to meet these
embodied people the likelihood is that other kind of click wont happen.
Leanna Wolfe: There’s always this sort of, sub context dream we have of being able to control what
happens. For many people it stabilises them, it grounds them.
Ted Fischer: Technology can lead us to be romantic at the cost of realistic. It can feed our
fantasies.
Leanna Wolfe: If we have all this information ahead of time we think “Oh well, we know what we’re
in for...”
Leanna Wolfe: With the add of all these technologies and how easy it is to find new people and
dispose of people I could see where...
Ted Fisher: Relationships...
Leanna Wolfe: ...they’ll sort of lessen in intensity and increase in numbers
Daniel Miller: Essentially people feel they’ve lost the capacity to have more intense kind of social
relations...
Joel Simkahi: I think there’s a revolution that’s waiting to happen. It’s a whole new world. It’s a
whole new world.

S E R V I C E D : c o m p e t i t i o n
Online only broadcasts are becoming increasingly popular and are used in both commercial and
creative respects. Some of the biggest brands, as well as the most unsuspecting, are using this
tool to draw audiences towards a particular product or project en masse. It is a relatively cost
effective and arguably very important method of getting anything connected to film seen in both
record time and without the restraints that major, televisual broadcast may propose.
iamamiwhoami - Music Concept
Fronted by Jonna Lee, this project began by one viral video, via a YouTube link, being sent out to
music press and industry contacts from an unknown IP address. The first being uploaded in
December 2009.
After six very conceptual viral videos came six, essentially, music videos where audiences had the
opportunity to download the songs via iTunes and Amazon on the day of exposure. The identity of
the front-woman was stripped and revealed slowly; this gave the attentive community following
the project something to constantly be talking about and attempting to figure out.
The project was also renowned for its metaphorical and artistic nature creating a story around the
the mandragora and using codes that were ultimately cracked by the followers of the project to
reveal clues to the identity of the artist and story of the project.
On November 16 2010, iamamiwhoami broadcast a ‘live’ concert that could be streamed for six
hours only at www.iamamiwhoami.cc where it initially crashed due to high demand. A ‘volunteer’
from the YouTube community was chosen by the 16,000 subscribers of the channel to appear in
the ‘concert’ and was flown from Berlin to a secret venue for the occasion without the knowledge
of what was to happen.
Months after its apparent end, the project has returned on 15.05.2011.
This was a remarkable shift in the way audiences consume, react to and experience music as well
as relate to the musician. The project was a hybrid of art, culture and community as opposed to
just releasing a product.
Italian Vogue featured the journey of iamamiwhoami and quoted one of the makers involved: “The
project has nothing new about it. It's the means, the spaces in which it takes place and the
relationship it has built with the audience that are new”.
Being a part of the commodity as opposed to just consuming it is something that is not just a
possibility but expected in this dimension of work.
Pringle of Scotland - S/S Collection 2010
Fronted by Tilda Swinton, Pringle decided to showcase the new collection in a more abstract way.
Shot in the Highlands, a seven and half minute short directed by Ryan McGinley had Swinton in
several outfits in a concept idea that had her roam various parts of Scotland while remaining
statuesque in the designer’s garments.
This type of marketing is still arguably niche but certainly has the potential to become
commonplace in the future. Coinciding with the theory that the target demographic want more
from what they invest in; an emotional attachment.
This is the perfect example of bringing the familiar into new realms of connectivity with the
consumer mixed with subliminal and stealthy marketing without being condescending or
aggressive. This type of broadcast is about choice as opposed to necessary viewing. The artistry
and the storytelling reflect that.

S E R V I C E D : c o m p e t i t i o n
W Hotel - Viral Ad Campaign
The boutique hotel chain has splashed out on a short 10 minute film starring David Gandy and
Helena Christensen titled ‘Away We Stay’ to promote the arrival of the brand in London.
‘Away We Stay’ is a romantic story about a photographer and a complete stranger who get lovingly
caught up without really any justification, apart from that they stay in the same hotel. The film
ends with a ‘To be continued...’ insinuating another is on the way. Highly stylised and once again
quite full of fantasy and gives the impression that you could be these people and fall in love quite
willingly if you stay in the same vicinity,
Ironically, the hotel or brand is not featured on a huge scale at all. The identity of the brand is kept
to the viewer’s imagination honing in on the savvy nature of the online audience.
A twelve minute advert would not only cost an obscene amount of money for terrestrial broadcast
but also does not have the ability to be revisited. Having a film exist in an online only capacity
appropriates an artistic context as it is a one on one, intimate experience with the availability to
rewind and control the viewing at hand.
The choice to take this down a digital route is important to investigate. Using this medium it will
reach a worldwide audience and the hotel will obviously benefit from that but the fact that it has
the potential to be spoken about consistently and linked to via fans and press make it impossible
to avoid.
Kanye West - Runaway (Hip-Hop Opera)
The second single from Kanye West’s fifth album is accompanied by a 35 minute music video
tagged as a ‘hip-hop opera’.
Taking advantage of the online broadcasting network The Guardian writes: “Runaway might be
loaded with deeper meaning but essentially it's just another way of getting people talking about
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy...”
While the writer seems to have a rather opinionated view on the artist, arguably what they’re
saying is correct. It is another way to get people talking about a forthcoming album that would be
impossible without it being an online only broadcast.
A 35 minute music video would be highly unlikely to be broadcast on a regular TV channel via
conventional broadcast techniques however it is very readily available in this particular medium.
Limitations are small yet audiences are potentially huge even if this is a seemingly egotistical
boost for a flailing artist.
SERVICED will take inspiration from these examples yet focus mainly on the sense of community
that could be built with loyal followers.
The viral campaign is to set the scene and tease viewers with information without giving away a
huge amount of detail. This is an integral part of the methodology to execute this correctly. The
virals and blogs will draw the audience to the bigger picture which will be broadcast on the
website in June.
The reason why SERVICED will be different is because it is not to patronise or sell anything in the
slightest. It is primarily the escapist’s entertainment exploring one of the most important factors
of our lives and how it affects how we see ourselves using the tool in question to its advantage.

S E R V I C E D : a r t d i r e c t i o n
SERVICED will have a quite dark yet sexy visual identity. Below are a few examples that have
visually inspired the project.
Shortbus (2006) : Dir - John Cameron Mitchell
Shortbus takes place in New York where a bunch of misfits exploring their sexuality come together
at a club called ‘Shortbus’.
The film follows each character separately encapsulating a linear narrative for each yet stringing
them together to form one whole piece.
This works closely with SERVICED as the interviews that are to be conducted are going to operate
in a similar manner by telling one entire story from different perspectives about the same topic.
Angel-A (2005) : Dir - Luc Besson
Angel-A is a French film telling the story of a man in peril that attempts to kill himself but is saved
by a woman claiming to be an angel. Both witty and emotional, the tone of this is something that I
find particularly poignant.
Visually, Angel-A plays with scale and space as well as defining emotion in the characters and
their approach to life.
Let the Right One In (2008) : Dir - Tomas Alfredson
Let the Right One In is simple yet incredibly effective. Using focus pulls and clear, crisp visuals to
produce something pleasurable to watch from beginning to end.
The European nature of the film as well brings a certain quality that cannot be replicated in the UK.
Notably, the natural environments are somewhat otherworldly which is a big part of SERVICED.
Love the Earth (2010): Imogen Heap and Thomas Ermacora
First broadcast live at The Royal Albert Hall, Love the Earth collated hundreds of clips from
contributors all over the world that sent in why they loved the Earth from their perspective and
were edited to create short films that were screened with music produced and conducted by
Imogen Heap. Incredibly powerful imagery combined with contemporary orchestral music is
something that really fuels SERVICED.
Interestingly, this was also broadcast live to fans that couldn’t make the concert itself in real time.
With Heap having nearly 1.5 million followers on Twitter, numbers haven’t been released, but one
can imagine it would have been quite a lot.

S E R V I C E D : a r t d i r e c t i o n
Dancer in the Dark (2000) : Dir - Lars Von Trier
An inspiring juxtaposition between two distinct styles of filming: Dogme ’95 and the musical. An
utterly fascinating concept fusing both raw footage with overtly and meticulously styled imagery
along with an emotional performance from main actress Bjork. The three things that epitomise
SERVICED in theory as a concept.
David Lynch and Duran Duran (2010) : Unstaged
Sponsored by American Express, this was a live show directed by David Lynch. Lynch takes the
generic live performance and turns it on its head with conceptually layered visuals resulting in a
different experience of pop music, performance and video while adhering to a very vintage
aesthetic.
Evi Vine (2011) : For the Dreamers
Music video set to the track from Evi Vine’s album ‘For the Dreamers’. One continuous shot of a man
holding a flare running across a coastline. Incredibly powerful when not a lot actually happens.
The whole idea of waiting and patience is one that SERVICED should embody while being good
enough aesthetically to keep one’s attention.
Howl (2010) : Dir - Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman
Biopic film starring James Franco telling the story of boundary pushing poet Allen Ginsberg. The
colour of this film is of particular importance, using bleached out visuals to create a more
historical feel to it but shot in a very modern context.
Twin Peaks [1990] : Dir - David Lynch
Twin Peaks remains one of, if not my, favourite TV show of all time. The duality of personalities and
within the framework of the narrative and also the stylistic content really was a massive influence
to SERVICED. The tone and pace of Twin Peaks was of great importance as it really captures the
style of getting audiences to be engaged but also perturbed in equal capacity.

S E R V I C E D : t h e m i r r o r s
t h e f i l m

V E N E T I A

A L E K S

S I M O N E

t h e w e b s i t e

S E R V I C E D : a p p e n d i x
Yes No
In the same age bracket, 92% of
participants said that romantic love was
important to their lives with 48% of them
being single.
When asked about the impact of social networking on their romantic lives, some of the responses
included:
“I've met two or three girlfriends through social networking sites. It’s easy.”
“It’s not that i made a conscious decision for it to cross over. It’s more that it is such a big part of life that
it just happened to be a convenient way of talking to the person I fancied.”
“From past relationships, it is easier to put your feelings into a written message than it is to convey
face-to-face. So if there is something that bothers you, you can tell them without being too overly
emotional about it.”
These responses reiterate the idea that being able to control your relationships more, makes for a
better one overall. The idea that emotions are flighty and can cause unnecessary problems that can be
avoided via a less abrasive medium such as social networking is important to consider.
‘Convenience’ is a word that cropped up several times. It seems common that romantic relationships
are now having a more systematic approach when attempting to gain one.
Romantic love is something that biologically is arguably uncontrollable but digital social lives
psychologically allow us to filter the good and bad parts about us questioning if reacting is not
something as instantaneous as it used to be.

S E R V I C E D : a p p e n d i x
0 - 30 mins
30 mins - 1 hour
1 - 2 hours
More
This graph represents how much
time users between the ages of 18
- 24 spend on social networking
sites on a daily basis collated
from independent research.
Notably, 72% of participants who
said ‘More’ were aged 18 - 20.
Similarly, more than 3/4 of people
choosing 1 - 2 hours in the same
age bracket was 79% of the total
participants.
This is an indication of how much
younger consumers are, the more
susceptible they are to being an
avid digital player and having it as
a poignant aspect to their life.
The comments that follow are some of the reactions when openly asked why the participants between
18 - 24 used social networking.
“It keeps me up to date with everyone and is a really good distraction tool. Pretty much my whole social
life is organised via Facebook.”
“Networking purposes and communicative convenience.”
“It just gives a sense of belonging to a social life...everyones on Facebook...”
“No reason not to be, all my friends are!”
The hybrid of potential peer pressure , convenience and ‘belonging’ insinuate how much of an integral
aspect of life being digitally enhanced is becoming. To get the most out of your life, one must have
access to to it and actively be a part of it.

S E R V I C E D : a p p e n d i x : b u s i n e s s c a r d i m a g e s

S E R V I C E D is an original concept by Christopher Cunniff
London College of Fashion / Fashion Promotion / Broadcast 2011

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