Cool Stuff I Be Seein'

Practice What You Preach
Faris Yakob's presentation on transmedia planning, using a transmedia execution. It's official. I have a man crush on Faris.

In Control of Polls
This is older, but pretty interesting. Komar and Melamid focus grouped their way into art, polling various global artistic preferences to have a painting truly "by the people." Of course, the end result wasn't necessarily so populist.

"It has often been suggested that in contemporary society, polls have replaced politics, and even though the pollsters and statistics professors openly acknowledge that theirs is a limited science, it has been made to function as the true representation of the people's choice. Seemingly the most democratic tool, statistical analysis is frequently used as the most authoritarian one. Rather than articulating desire it constructs it. Komar and Melamid take the polls at face value - literally. This literal-mindedness, coupled with a rather fantastic technology, is characteristic for much of American media culture. The artists reveal the latter's absurdity: The most wanted thing calculated with the help of the polls is precisely what nobody wants - except those who order the poll."

Nike PHOTOID
Nike built an absolutely fantastic mobile application that allows Nike fans to take a photo of whatever they'd like, then uses the colors in the photo to create their next pair of kicks. Feet reflecting the world around them. Cool stuff.

Ambient Lighting
Pretty cool way to use rope lights and not look like a cheap bastard or college student.

Facebook Apps
A rundown of the 50 most active applications on Facebook.

Good Work Finally Makes a Comeback.
All the other stuff is still important, but the bottom line is that doing the nuts and bolts well just isn't enough to stay on top. Be great and the rest seems to fall into place as it should.

"Moreover, the client community maybe starting to remember that better work delivers better results. Creativity has always been an important element in powerful communications but never before has the quality of the work had such a direct effect on the effectiveness of the budget, and the success of the brand. Because never before has the primary determinant of consumer reach been consumer engagement rather than simply ratings. Only a few weeks into the launch of the Gorilla ad, the number of people that had seen the film was almost double the number that Cadbury’s had actually paid to see it."

The Coolest Hotel Room Ever. (via BfB)