The ranter in media's October 12 issue is the inspiration for this
piece of vitriol.
As a creative chief, I am surprised - no, usually outraged - at how
blatantly our industry copies from one another. Are we so bankrupt of
breakthrough ideas, so totally lacking a modicum of pride in our work,
so indecently lazy that we've now taken to copying concepts from
competitors?
I had goosebumps the first time I saw the Nippon Paint ad in the
Philippine press. When it broke, I beat everyone else to herald what I
thought was a truly great campaign to the creative team.
I even posted a comment - "Philippine advertising comes of age" - on the
Nippon Paint series, which appeared in 1996 and won a couple of local
awards. Then it happened. I saw the Doc Martens campaign in the One Show
Annual, with a publication date that clearly antedated Nippon.
It's hilarious that even campaign castigating copycats - "Here's another
copycat, where's my award?" - is itself, how shall I put it, a
copycat.
It ripped off "Here's a dead dog, where's my award?"
Whoever you are, and whatever you want to get off your chest, send you
rants to rant@media.com.hk and we'll print them anonymously.
