I think this is the future of video advertising! I've seen it twice in recent months & I guarantee we'll be seeing more of it in the near future. I guarantee this is what many large & the mid-sized companies will start investing their advertising money into. And I guarantee that if you're in commercial video production & you don't have the foresight to hop on this train, you'll start getting passed up for others who did, if you haven't already.
Earlier this year, the Red Hot Chili Peppers teamed up with Therapy Studios & Axis Studios to come out with an interactive music video for their song Look Around...
The video's story is pretty basic, really. It's just the band members dinking around in their own individual rooms. Big whoop... But the concept & format of the music video (which is a form of advertising) is groundbreaking. The audience is now involved in the viewing experience as oppose to merely being observers. They choose which scene to watch at any given point, and what's more, they'll watch it again to see what they missed and show their friends. You can have multiple stories progressing in one video, all intersecting at some point, and the viewer will immerse themselves in each one, multiple times. Think about how the viewing experience is changed for the consumer. And think about the boundaries you can push with this, creatively!
Another bunch of people pushing the envelope are those folks at Uncle Grey in Denmark, who made The Liberation for Only Jeans...
In this piece, the viewer's not just an observer who chooses what to watch, but they become a character who drives the story (unless you're watching it on a smartphone). In other words, the story does not progress without the viewer's participation. This has surely been done before, but it's brilliant. Despite the ridiculously juvenile & suggestive storyline, I gotta give it up for Uncle Grey for making something captivating, fun & effective! They're reaching their target audience with this & having a profound effect, no doubt. Stuff like this will be what drives commercial video into the next generation.
By no means am I saying that agencies will tank if they don't adapt & pick up on these new forms of video. I am saying that in the months & years to come, it would be a far cry to say they're on the cutting edge if they're not pushing the boundaries with projects like these, or coming up with something entirely new, whatever that might be.
I'm fortunate enough to be in a profession where ideas & creativity are major assets. My mind is consumed with ideas for what can be done with these concepts & I'm determined to meet others who are like-minded & driven to bring these projects to fruition. Where are you people?!