To start, here is one of my favorite nike ads:

Now watch how the UK Football Association applies the concept to joe schmo:

I put this ad up because i think its made really well.  Its been done before, but the quick cuts with lots of images, the sun glaring at the camera and the slow, dramatic music create a very emotional ad.

Another ad that does a good job with quick cuts, matching the music with the timing as well.

I realize that most of the ads I comment on are sports-related.  most of the tv i watch is sports-related too.

so i go to nike.com ready to look at some shoes online and on the home page is this video titled “Courage”.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=pit0zG1vswM

to start off, i noticed the song choice. “All These Things That I’ve Done” by The Killers. I actually have that part of the song (“i’ve got soul but i’m not a soldier”) as one of my ringtones. One of my favorite bands.

The video is about “stories of triumph”. The campaign includes LeBron James, Bill Bowerman, John McEnroe, and Cristiano Ronaldo among others. One prominent example of LeBron’s passion and triumph come from his performance in the 2007 Eastern Conference Finals over the pistons (scoring 29 of the cavs final 30 points in game 5).

I like the quick succession of images throughout the video, creating an almost overwhelming feel. I like the quick cuts of a cheetah, liu xiang and then carl lewis. i liked the few images of prefontaine thrown in there too. I notice something new each time i watch it. This is something i want to do as a career. I want to make these creative, inspirational videos.

so a little about what I’m doing this summer.

my first job is an internship through the Oregon Sports Authority (http://www.oregonsports.org/). I am part of a team of interns, currently focusing on promoting the AST Dew Tour (http://www.ast.com/). So far we have been distributing posters and flyers to skate shops across Portland and getting involved in extreme sports events as well. For example, last weekend I worked at a booth at a wakeboard competition, handing out fliers and spreading the word about the Dew Tour. It was good experience for creating a personal relationship with customers and learning how to effectively get someone’s attention and maintain a conversation about the event. I had a good time and saw myself improve as the day went on.

My second job is working part-time at the Nike Employee Store in Beaverton. My title is a “seasonal sales associate”. My training starts on monday, i’m looking forward to it. I’m really glad to get my foot in the door with Nike, hoping to stay with it and work my way up.

Should be a busy summer working two jobs but it’ll be good experience.

Here’s a preview of this year’s skate vert competition at the AST Dew Tour (http://video.astdewtour.com/player/?id=145544#videoid=258238)