Table of contents for June 8, 2020 in Adweek

Until it is safe for the biggest sports leagues to resume play, the TV industry is missing out on billions in ad revenue. Here’s how much estimated national ad revenue the big four professional sports leagues brought in during their last full seasons, according to Kantar Media. NFL REGULAR SEASON $3.3 billion PLAYOFFS $1.3 billion NBA REGULAR SEASON $528.2 million PLAYOFFS $877.5 million MLB REGULAR SEASON $144.7 million PLAYOFFS $338.5 million NHL REGULAR SEASON $35.9 million PLAYOFFS $102.2 million…

Whether or not ad school is a worthy investment has long been a debate in the industry. On the one hand, costs can be pricey. Miami Ad School’s two-year portfolio program costs $38,800, while The Creative Circus charges $45,012 for eight quarters. On the other, it gives students the chance to learn the ropes of the industry, network and create a portfolio. Like most colleges and universities, ad schools have found themselves going virtual in recent months because of the novel coronavirus pandemic. However, students soon graduating from these programs are facing a job market rife with layoffs, hiring freezes and canceled internships, and some students are taking it upon themselves to find opportunities. NEW OFFERINGS Denver Ad School opened its doors last year. The 14-month program, which costs $16,000,…

Mary Neely actress and filmmaker Solo show With little more than an iPhone, a closet full of costumes and a seemingly bottomless enthusiasm for iconic Broadway moments, Neely has re-created some of the most noteworthy duets in musical theater and Hollywood ensemble songs—starring only herself—for her ultra-popular Coronavirus Lockdown Project. How it began “Since I’m single in the quarantine, I’ve decided to reenact moments from my favorite musicals so it feels like I’m in love,” she explained in a tweet before launching into her first “duet,” from Les Miserables. The initiative quickly ballooned into a viral sensation as she tapped into theater favorites like Grease and Phantom of the Opera. Her most ambitious project She recently re-created the entirety of The Sound of Music as a fundraiser for the nonprofit…

Shamrock Capital, a Los Angeles-based investment firm with about $1.9 billion of assets exclusively in the media, entertainment and communications sectors, has reached an agreement with Beringer Capital to acquire Adweek, the leading media and events company serving the brand marketing community. As part of the deal, Shamrock will acquire Adweek’s diversified business, which has greatly expanded over the past four years with a robust event, community and education portfolio. Building upon award-winning journalism, Adweek launched more than 40 new products, which include reimagined Brandweek, NexTech and Challenger Brands summits, CMO Symposiums, as well as Adweek’s D&I Council and the Institute for Brand Marketing, done in partnership with IBM. Jeffrey Litvack, CEO of Adweek, will continue to lead the company. Adweek’s editorial and business operations remain unchanged—if anything, the deal…

QUICK PIVOT Aside from learning, ad schools have been forced to take many events that typically happen in-person online. VCU Brandcenter recently forged a partnership with Working Not Working, a platform that connects creatives with jobs and freelance gigs, to host its annual recruiting fair online—with the caveat that “students are aware that most conversations at this point will be exploratory in nature.” PROACTIVE APPROACH As ad schools have quickly moved online, some have taken the opportunity to invite students from other colleges to take part in their virtual courses and lessons. “Suddenly we had a big virtual school working on a live brief for a big drinks brand, with my students competing against students from other schools,” Marc Lewis, dean of the School of Communication Arts in London, said.…

Tell us about what you are doing now. 2020 took off like a rocket. We were ready for it to be an extremely busy year given the presidential election, but in January the Senate impeachment hearings consumed most of the month. Then came February. My mom passed away on February 16 after six weeks in hospice. I returned to work soon thereafter, and in late February my focus immediately turned to the coronavirus pandemic. My first priorities were both ensuring the health and safety of our employees and providing a public service to our viewers with informative coverage around the clock. Within a week of the onset of the crisis, we set up more than 40 remote studios, quickly added more informative programming and hired additional medical experts. What pivotal…

ONE OF LAST YEAR’S BEST NEW SERIES WAS RAMY, which creator/star Ramy Youssef based on his life as part of an Arab-Muslim family living in New Jersey. While Ramy was a critical success, the Hulu comedy—which is TV’s first scripted show to center on a Muslim-American family—didn’t really break through until January’s Golden Globes. That night, Youssef was the unexpected winner of best actor in a TV musical or comedy series, over bigger names like Michael Douglas (from Netflix’s The Kominsky Method) and Bill Hader (HBO’s Barry). The audience was surprised, but quickly charmed by the comedian’s acceptance speech. “Look, I know you guys haven’t seen my show,” said Youssef, to huge laughs. “Everyone’s like, is this an editor?” Looking back on his big win five months later, Youssef tells…

Thabang Skwambane group managing director, FCB and Hellocomputer Joburg (South Africa) Based in Johannesburg | One of the agency world’s little-discussed challenges “Intellectual property rights. We develop incredible ideas and craft exquisite elements, but have no ownership rights.” On his global journey “I grew up on a mine in the Namib Desert. I have lived in Cape Town, London, New York and Johannesburg. I learned how to adapt and thrive in different environments. I learned resilience and self-reliance.” Advice to aspiring creatives “Make good use of every opportunity you have here, because the more you do, the more you will grow, and that will get you to where you want to go.” Personal mantra “Martin Luther King Jr. said, ‘The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands…

Melina Matsoukas Represented by De la Revolución Films and Prettybird | Based in Los Angeles Recent work Her first feature film, Queen & Slim, tells the story of a young Black couple who kill a police officer in self-defense and then must go on the run. “Every aspect of the process was challenging, from telling an original story that deals with systemic racism both in society and on screen, to maintaining ownership of the narrative surrounding the film. It had real purpose, and although challenging, it was a privilege to honor those people of color who lost their lives to police brutality,” she says. Advice for aspiring filmmakers “Educate yourself. Hone your craft,” she says. “For me, that meant both studying film, its history and production in a classroom setting,…

Like every year, 2018 racked up its share of lugubrious news. The federal government shut down (twice), the Justice Department indicted 12 Russian officials for conspiring to hack the election and adult film star Stormy Daniels revealed her intimate relationship with President Trump. But one development from 2018 shocked and saddened millions of Americans like little else could. Early in the year, PepsiCo decided to discontinue barbecue flavor Fritos. OK, wait—were people really that upset? Actually, yes. “Truly an outrage and an injustice,” charged one blogger. “Outrageous,” tweeted a fan. “Oh no,” posted another. “I’ve been fighting this all year!” And indeed, many were. A Change.org petition surfaced to bring back BBQ Fritos, and nearly 23,000 people signed it. Not unaware of the power of enforced scarcity, headquarters has now…

Nearly three months since every major professional sports league shut down due to Covid-19, the return of live sports to TV could finally be just around the corner. With the National Basketball Association, National Hockey League and Major League Baseball laying the groundwork toward resuming play in July and August, and the National Football League releasing its full season schedule last month, buyers are “cautiously optimistic” about live sports becoming a reality once again, said Jeremy Carey, managing director of Optimum Sports, Omnicom’s sports media and marketing division. “We’re starting to pinpoint some time frames. We’ve done a tremendous amount of scenario planning on what that would look like” and helping clients prepare, he said. Not only would live sports signal an important return to normal for the country, but…

In addition to design, restaurant chains are also strengthening ties to local markets by hiring managers who are longtime residents or via community outreach. Barcelona Wine Bar, for instance, said its general managers in many instances are on a first-name basis with customers. Outreach is also an important aspect of building a relationship with the neighborhood. For Torchy’s Tacos, that could include catering a Chamber of Commerce lunch meeting, hosting a stand at a music festival or providing food for a school fair. Donations to nonprofits and hospitals also play an important role. Bartaco, meanwhile, will send its marketing team to the community ahead of a store opening. The team is tasked with identifying partnerships, such as hosting a pop-up with a local yoga studio.…

While many TV creators are signing megadeals with streamers like Netflix or major production studios like Warner Bros., Youssef again carved his own path late last year by instead signing an overall TV pact with A24, the independent company that produces Ramy. “Taste is really important for me,” Youssef explains. “I would not want to sign one of these big deals and then feel this pressure to make things that maybe I’m not excited about making.” Instead, he’s focusing on developing a pair of projects with A24 that he is excited about. One is a Netflix series Youssef would produce that he says is a “deep dive” on immigration, “in a comedic way.” The other, for Apple TV+, would star Steve Way, his comedian friend with muscular dystrophy who co-stars…

Ana de Diego founder, Spark & Riot Based in Los Angeles | On launching a production startup in 2018 “The goal was to build a company that produces a variety of projects, all with an ethos of giving back through and after production,” says de Diego. “Since the birth of Spark & Riot, we have produced numerous projects across different industries and have helped dozens of nonprofits and causes by creating content and financing specific projects for them.” Recent work Dove’s “Amplified,” featuring four Black women sharing their stories of hair discrimination in the workplace. “Not only is the ethos of the brand and messaging in line with Spark & Riot’s,” she says, “but it allowed us to build a strong nonprofit partnership with the ballerina Ingrid Silva, and we…

RISING TALENTS Anthony O’Neill and Rony Castor associate creative directors, Goodby Silverstein & Partners Kevin Kaminishi and Jessica Ghersi creatives, Wieden + Kennedy New York Sai He Senior freelance creative Mietta McFarlane and Luke Chard senior copywriter and senior art director, Droga5 New York Christina Mallon global head of inclusive design and accessibility, Wunderman Thompson Raphael Franzini creative director, The Community Meredith Kinee and Rachel Cuyler creative directors, VMLY&R New York Joshua Smutko partner and creative director, Omelet Liz Marks co-founder, Inside.Company Nellie Rego Santee copywriter, David Justin Norman svp and creative director, Doner Paulo Junger group creative director, DDB New York Phil Fattore associate creative director, BarrettSF Matthew Pullen and Jon Murray associate creative directors, RPA Aline Ridolfi creative director, The Mill Maggie Bryan director of user experience, Stink…

‘You always have an edge in your industry if you love what you’re doing. That love comes through in the work.’ Diane Villavieja has had wildly different answers to the question “What do you do?” over the last decade. The Australian businesswoman co-founded digital marketing company QuantumLinx, recognized as one of Australia’s fastest-growing startups in the 2010s; she produced and acted in independent films; she owned and managed a cafe and fashion boutique in her 20s in Sydney; and she launched her first business at 16, a seasonal gift basket company. Villavieja now oversees operations for creative agency Cummins&Partners New York. “Being in operations suits me, as no two days are alike and I get to use both sides of my brain,” she said. “I’m constantly solving problems.” Cummins&Partners, which…

Home delivery has become a newsworthy topic in recent weeks. Americans had $5.3 billion worth of groceries delivered to their doors in April, up 37% from the month before. The average consumer now uses two delivery apps, even though many of them don’t feel so great about it, given the high service fees restaurants typically charge. Cities like New York and Los Angeles have recently passed laws to cap those rates. But there’s one delivery trend that’s gotten far less attention: the return of the milkman. Prior to the 1960s, most Americans had their milk delivered in returnable glass bottles, just like the well-coiffed California homemaker is doing in this 1955 photo. Suburban sprawl and the coming of the supermarket eventually made milk delivery financially untenable. Since February, however, regional…