The Colonie provided editorial, FX and finishing services for a pair of public service advertisements for the American Academy of Dermatology. The :60 spots feature sharply contrasting storylines and approaches to educating two high-risk demographics about the dangers of sun exposure and skin cancer: “Looking Good” targets men over 50 using a comedic scenario to communicate a strategy for early detection, while “Arms” tailors its message about prevention to young women between 14 and 18, using a touching story to educate them about the risks of tanning. HY Connect called upon the Chicago-based editorial and post boutique’s editor, Tom Pastorelle, to weave the footage into engaging vignettes that draw viewers into their stories and drive home these potentially life-saving messages.

Cut to a contagious beat, “Looking Good” takes a light-hearted approach to a serious issue. The :60 PSA opens with a portly middle-aged man sprightly dancing around the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, occasionally pausing to strike a comical pose in the mirror as he admires himself. Adding to the upbeat mood, a voiceover encourages his antics before segueing to some hard facts: Men over 50 are in the group most likely to develop skin cancer, including melanoma, the cancer that kills one person every hour. As the voiceover talks about the importance of examining your skin regularly and finding a partner to help, the man’s wife, who had been watching from the doorway, entertained and amused by her husband's antics, nudges him out of the bathroom, assumingly taking her cue from the voiceover to help him with the exam.

Pastorelle and agency creatives Norbert Shimkus and Jason Halverson’s first challenge was selecting the style of music that would work best. After trying some ‘70s funk and ‘80s new wave tracks, they finally decided that although the retro music was comedic, it distracted from the message of the spot, and so they went with more contemporary dance music.    

Pastorelle brought his quirky sense of humor to the cutting of the PSA, embedding the serious message in a music-driven, fast-paced scenario. The editor used a jump-cut, frenetic style of editing, heightening the humor during the farcical dance vignette.

“I didn’t want any of the character’s dance moves to be repetitive, so I went for some less obvious moments as the man grooved to the music,” says Pastorelle. “While the script called for a more serious mood as he examines himself for spots on his skin, I kept these sections as brief as possible – without sacrificing the impact of the message – and then kicked the humor back into high gear for the rest of the spot.”

The over-the-top humor gets people’s attention in a light-hearted way, drawing them in to think about a serious issue and demonstrating how working a simple self-exam into their routine can help prevent serious health issues down the road.

In contrast, “Arms” takes a hard-hitting approach to warn teen girls that tanning now – both indoors and out – can have scary consequences in the future, including melanoma. The spot’s opening scene sets a fun, summertime mood as two best friends set out to enjoy a beautiful day. As the spot follows their lives, from high school prom and spring break to a friend's wedding, we see them comparing their tans and lying out in the sun, oblivious to the repercussions.

Pastorelle slows the pace to elevate the emotion of the storyline as one of the girls realizes the consequences of years of tanning. The spot takes on a somber tone as she tells her friend, “I can’t go tanning anymore — doctor’s orders” and we notice a bandage on her arm. 

The PSA ends in a hospital room as she shares her diagnosis with her friend: Stage III melanoma. The voiceover informs its young target audience that melanoma is the second most common cancer in women 15 to 29, and encourages them to stop tanning and visit SpotSkinCancer.org to learn more.

“For ‘Arms,’ we needed to find a balance between crafting a touching story that would also hold the attention of this young demographic,” says Pastorelle. “We also had to use the spot as an effective vehicle for educating young women about the potentially fatal dangers of the sun.” 

The Colonie’s Lyndsay McCully created the title treatments used in-between the vignettes of the young women. Light flares were added as transitions as they faded in and out, creating the overall feel of the sun beating down. The titles cards, which read — ‘You love how it feels to lay out,’ ‘You can always stop tanning when you get older,’ ‘If you get older,’ ‘One person dies every hour from melanoma’ —  clearly deliver the essence of the PSA’s message.

McCully also created the AAD’s animated logos in “Arms” and “Looking Good.” Tom Dernulc, the online editor for both spots, also created effects for “Arms” that altered the complexion of the girls with discolored spots on the skin and touched up the footage. 

“This is the third campaign I’ve collaborated on with HY Connect,” say Pastorelle. “Working with the agency’s creatives Kevin Houlihan, Michael Matykiewicz, Colin Quinn, Norbert Shimkus and Jason Halverson is a great collaborative experience. Their ideas and perspective were invaluable. We worked as creative partners throughout the process: I’d come up with the feel and pace for each segment of the spot, and then we worked together to make sure that the messages about the perils of tanning and the importance of skin self-exams were front and center.” 

“We wanted ‘Looking Good’ to be engaging and comedic while delivering its important message, and we wanted ‘Arms’ to tell a story that both touched and educated young women, instead of scaring them.  Getting across the statistics and seriousness of melanoma was key, but so was communicating the effective, simple precautions people can take to protect their skin from the sun,” adds the editor. “Both spots achieved these goals, and The Colonie’s team is proud to have contributed to an AAD campaign about the importance of skin cancer prevention and detection.”

About The Colonie: 

The Colonie is an award winning Chicago-based creative editorial, motion design, visual FX and finishing boutique with a seamless full-service approach to creating spots and cross-platform content that engage, entertain, inform and move audiences.  

Our multi-disciplined collective of creative, technically skilled storytellers work as a creative partner with clients, following a shared vision - from rough-cut through completion – and consistently delivering a final product that exceeds expectations.  A wide range of national and global clients, such as Nintendo, Google, McDonald’s, Pepisco and Bayer, rely upon our accomplished team of talent to consistently deliver compelling creative content that elevates the viewer’s experience and connects them to brands. 

For more information about The Colonie and its services, visit www.TheColonie.com, or contact executive producer Mary Caddy at 312-225-1234, or Sonia Blum or Hillary Herbst at Hilly Reps, 312.944.1100.

CREDITS:  

CLIENT: American Academy of Dermatology

 TITLES: “Looking Good,” “Arms” 

  LENGTH:    :60, :30, :15

TYPE: Broadcast PSA Campaign

AGENCY: HY Connect/Chicago                

      Producer: J.P. McIntosh

      ECD: Kevin Houlihan  

      Creative Directors: Michael Matykiewicz and Colin Quinn

      Art Director/ACD: Norbert Shimkus

      Copywriter: Jason Halverson

      Account Director: Brad Most

      Account Supervisor: Suzanne Velonis

PRODUCTION COMPANY: Method Laboratories

Executive Producer:  Michael Savitz

EDITORIAL COMPANY: The Colonie / Chicago

       Creative Editor: Tom Pastorelle

       Assistant Editor: Emily Hayes

       Finishing: Tom Dernulc

       Assistant Editor:  Ben Pokorny

       Producer: Anne Siwek

       Executive Producer: Mary Caddy

 

VISUAL FX/DESIGN: COMPANY: The Colonie / Chicago

            VFX Artist: Lyndsay McCully

 COLOR CORRECTION: CO3

          Colorist: Tyler Roth

     

AUDIO COMPANY: Chicago Recording Company

            Mixer + Sound Designer:  Eric Cauwels           

MUSIC COMPANY: Hum Music / Santa Monica

    Composer – ‘Looking Good’: Bruce Gainsford

    Composer:  â€˜Arms’:  Ramin Kousha