Another frigid night.

The traffic team of Sensational Steve and Chick Magnet Curtis were our hosts for another night with Checkstop.  We started with a group of about 10 officers with the Checkstop van on Regent.  It was SO cold.  I was very impressed again with how courteous both the drivers and the officers were.  I also appreciated how many designated drivers were out there.

One older gentleman that we pulled over received a WARN when given the ASD.  This meant he received a 24 hour suspension.  He was very concerned about leaving his car in the cold without being plugged in.  As it turned out, he didn't live too far away so I volunteered to drive him, his passenger, and his car to his home for him.  He gave me a nice interview,I had a lovely drive complete with Christmas carols on the radio and I learned a little more about the two men.  One had recently retired after 37 years at the same company.  Had never missed a day of work....and I believe him.  He was originally from Chile.  The driver had recently arrived from Halifax.  Two hardworking guys out for a few drinks. But they learned a relatively inexpensive lesson and more than anything....everyone was safe.

Towards the end of the night we were called to a collision near the Norwood bridge.  The driver was clearly intoxicated and he was arrested and charged.  The young woman he hit was in pretty good spirits - but it could have been so much worse.  The guy blew 140 and will lose his licence for at least a year.

Then we were called over to a significant crash on Logan.  Here's the official release.  I took a few pictures at the scene.  The guy was a total menace and although he put two other drivers (in separate collisions) in the hospital in addition to himself...no one was killed.  Serious property damage too.

http://winnipegpolicenewsreleases.blogspot.ca/

This vehicle had been through a lot. 

Was very impressed at how quickly they were able to get this house fixed up to survive terrible temperatures.

This was our last night of filming and I just have to take a moment to thank Steve and Curtis again.  We learned so much about road safety, photo radar, cellphone and distracted driving laws, and impaired driving tests and laws. Steve served in Afghanistan with the Canadian Armed Forces and he's just someone I'm proud to know.  Honest, committed and a sneaky sense of humour.  Curtis is an enthusiastic world traveller - leaving for Ghana at the end of January, a great cook and just a charming rogue.  Between the two of them, we have fantastic content for our road safety video.

Add to that the ever entertaining Dave Gaudet and his enthusiasm for the project, dedication to the cause no matter the conditions and genuine talent of an experienced cinematographer and you get a memorable experience.  A shout out to Shea who assisted with many of the shoot days - helping out a ton.

Dave, Curtis, moi, Steve

Now it's up to me, with the help of trusty George, to cut this into something.

But first...finishing off the last.two more Doctors Care episodes.

Sorry - it's been awhile.

Since beginning production on Doctors Care, I haven't really felt like I've had a lot of "down" time.  When I said back in March that it was an ambitious project - I sure wasn't kidding.  I guess, to be honest, I didn't realize just HOW ambitious.  So this blog is quite out of date.

But - I'll update on Doctors Care later.  Today I want to talk about the Winnipeg Police Service.

The WPS issued an RFP in June and we put together an elaborate proposal.  After a very long wait of 3 months, we were rewarded with the good news that we won in mid-September.

I have such a high regard for the WPS, it's difficult to put into words how sad I would have been if we had lost.  But, be that as it may - we were successful and are pursuing pro-active ways of getting Road Safety messages out there and continuing with Just Slow Down.

We are currently working on a Road Safety video that will encompass messages about Speeding, Distracted Driving and Drinking and Driving.

Last night it was minus 30 degrees celsius, and we were out with the dedicated members of the WPS, filming the Checkstop program.

Getting the lowdown on the process.  

That's me on the right.  Good thing Dave had an extra snowsuit.

First impaired.  Blew 1.2.  

On Disraeli around 1 am.  Too slippery though. 

Driving the wrong way down Osborne was a bit of a tip off.  Blew 1.2

About to get the Breathalyzer at the PSB. 

Getting fingerprinted.  

I don't want to sound holier than thou -everyone enjoys having drinks with friends, but, an evening with the WPS is very eye-opening.  Here's what I've learned as of last night.

1.  The bottom line is...the police want you off the road when you have had too much to drink.   The WARN reading on the ASD (alcohol screening device) means you will have your licence suspended for 24 hours and you will need to find another way home.  This is a big part of what Checkstop is all about.

2.  Having said that....the police do not believe that an impaired charge is a minor or insignificant charge.  It is a criminal offence.

3.  Many of the people who received the 24 hour suspension expressed gratitude.  Certainly they were relieved that they did not blow over the .08 legal limit - but they also were very courteous to the officers and praised them for what they were doing.

4.  It takes more alcohol than you might think to be over the legal limit.  We witnessed people we thought were quite impaired who received only the 24 hour suspension. (The ASD device can indicate the WARN or the officer can merely determine if you are impaired through your behaviour and certain observances they are trained to make.)   It is not a good idea to refuse a Breathlyzer - there's a very good chance that you aren't over that legal limit - and a 24 hour suspension is really a very small penalty to pay.

5.  The officers were very courteous to everyone.  I do not believe that this was only because our camera was there.  They were courteous, respectful...but firm.

6.  It was SOOOOO cold!  That is not an easy job.

7.  For a time we were on Disraeli Freeway.  The roads were so icy the officers felt they themselves might cause some difficulties in that spot - and they were very concerned about safety for the drivers and for their own personnel (and for us!)  So we did not stay there.

8.  We knew that word was out that we were outside a particular Beverage Room - and yet the drivers kept coming and we kept pulling them over.  It was a bit weird.

9.  There is a lot of paperwork involved.  It ties up the officers for quite some time when they find a driver that shouldn't be out there.

10.  One of the drivers who was pulled over had a suspended licence from 3 years ago.  His vehicle also was not licensed. It is likely that he has been driving illegally all that time.  He also blew a WARN into the ASD.  A really good thing to get him off the road.

11.  Not really much point in lying when the officer asks you how much you've had to drink.  (everybody does.)  The officers really do know .  It's quite funny watching each respondent make up their number.

12.  One of the officers was relatively new (1 year) on the force.  She is in general patrol but likes working with Traffic.  She feels it is a very important job.  I couldn't agree more.

13.  The 23 year old who blew 1.2 and so will receive a number of charges - ie Driving while impaired plus Driving over the legal limit - was primarily worried about his mother's reaction.  Some things are just so consistent - we hate to disappoint our moms.  (This was the guy who was observed doing an illegal u-turn and then heading up Osborne the wrong way.)

14.  Cameras don't really like it when it gets that cold.  And batteries like it even less. Big challenge keeping everything running.   Kudos to Dave Gaudet for capturing all the great footage out there.

15.  It was a very interesting evening and I believe people will be impressed by what they see in the video.

If possible, I have even more respect for the WPS now, than I did before.

Doctors Care in pre-production.

Picante Advertising is heading into a very busy spring.

We'll launch a new awareness campaign on bustails for the College of Medical Laboratory Technologists in Winnipeg and Brandon.  The E.D. Adam Chrobak is just a pleasure to work with.

We're busy working on an update for the website for the Manitoba Institute of Patient Safety.  They have so much valuable information on their website it's going to be quite a task.  Their new fresh look should be in place by June.

Right now we're in pre-production for new television commercials for the Massage Therapy Association of Manitoba.  We'll be shooting them during the last week of March.

Very excited to be working Susan Freig and a large multi-national consortium on the City of Winnipeg new Pedestrian and Cycling Strategy.  Presented new creative to Susan yesterday and she seemed to enjoy the fun, positive approach - just what I was hoping for!

Grant Park's new spring campaign will be out next week.  I have to tip my hat to photographer Sami Katz, designer Char Lannoo, printer Mark Davis and of course, Jennifer Larrazabel and Sandi Haganaars at Grant Park for making this such a fun project.

And of course, we've now received the final green light for Doctors Care from Doctors Manitoba.  This ambitious project will keep us very busy over the next several months.  Will try to post production photos and updates as we go along.

Introducing Doctors Care

Back in June, 2012, Picante Advertising was invited to meet with the CEO and COO of Doctors Manitoba. We had preliminary discussions and Picante put together a draft of a communications document, complete with proposed strategic objectives and an analysis of what other similar organizations across the country were doing.

By November, Picante had a plan to present with an unusual and innovative idea.

We received early approval in concept  but still had to receive broad general approval of the Doctors Manitoba board.

This was accomplished on January 16th and Doctors Care is now in pre-production.

Doctors Care is a 13 week television series that will focus on the daily lives of some of Manitoba's hardest working and most accomplished doctors.  It will focus on health and wellbeing information for Manitoba patients and highlight research and other activity that is putting Manitoba's medical community on the global stage.

This is an ambitious project and we're confident that Doctors Care will deliver a powerful message to the citizens of Manitoba about their own, building pride, trust and confidence.

The series will launch in September, 2013 and will be available on Shaw.

Happy New Year!

Definitely time for a quick update on the fall/winter season thus far at Picante.


City of Winnipeg - Know Your Zone

General Grader

Following a very busy October with the Massage Therapy Association of Manitoba, we got busy with the relaunch of Know Your Zone 2012.  As it happened - nothing went quite as planned.

Last year, the City of Winnipeg launched a brand new snow removal system, and Picante Advertising was selected from several different agencies to create a public information campaign.

We developed two animated characters, General Grader and Lieutenant Loader and created the award-winning Know Your Zone campaign.  Then, in a very unusual circumstance for our fair city, there was little snow in the winter of 2011-12 and a residential snow clearing operation was never called!

This year it was decided to re-launch the campaign on a more modest basis.  The campaign elements were all there - we just needed to place the media.   Target launch date:  November 15th.

On Saturday, November 10th....it began snowing.  And snowing.  And snowing.  I received the call on Saturday afternoon from client Ken Allen from the City of Winnipeg Public Works - a residential plow would begin on Monday, November 12th - 4 days before the planned launch of the campaign!

To add to the challenge, November 11th (Remembrance Day) triggered a holiday day for many Winnipeg citizens.

Kudos to those within the city who worked tirelessly over the weekend to plan the snow clearing operation, inform 311, develop and send out the news release, the IT people who updated the website etc. etc.

And a big thanks to members of Winnipeg's media who attended our hastily prepared News Conference on a frigid Monday morning.  While I'm at it, I'll mention those 311 operators who received an inundation of calls.

All in all, there were very few complaints about this massive and complicated first implementation of the new system.

And I have to say, there was excellent exposure from the media campaign which kicked off one week late....(keep in mind that the buy was arranged in August.)

I love an all's well that ends well story.  Thanks to Ken Allen for his devotion to this city and his enthusiasm and support of our campaign.

Grant Park Shopping Centre

November and December meant getting Grant Park Shopping Centre ready for the holidays.  We developed a stunning outdoor campaign that mirrored the new creative Everyday Essentials.  And we created a sensational Holiday Gift Guide.  The merchants were really involved, helping us select unique gift ideas.  Thanks to Samanta Katz Photography and a special shout out to Sami who modeled the Spirit Hood for the brochure- she looked mahvelous.  Quick turnaround by Corporate Source Printing and thanks to The Sign Source who help with all the special decals and posters we create each season for Grant Park.

Sandi Haganaars has done a wonderful job of managing all the significant changes at Grant Park and Jen Larrazabel does a fantastic job with the social media there.

Thanks to designer Charlene Lannoo for another terrific job and Tyler Bachewich for the radio spots.

Bothwell Cheese

New Labels for some exciting new cheese flavours for Bothwell.

The Winnipeg Police Service

Continued to fine tune the Winnipeg Police commercial and presented a final version just before Christmas to Staff Sergeant Rob Riffel.  Can't wait for it to go to air in the new year.



Working on some very exciting things in the new year that I can't wait to blog about.  Updates shortly.

I hope 2013 brings peace and joy, health and happiness to you and yours.  The year promises to be full of new and dynamic challenges for us and we can't wait to get started.

A lovely letter from the President of MTAM.

Sue Kos

MTAM Board Members, Staff, & Picante Advertising,

I am completely overwhelmed with emotion!...everything seems to be coming together beautifully right now.

Sue and Mel did an awesome job on breakfast TV Monday morning!

The newspaper has really got people talking.
I love it!

My daughter Jessica's boyfriend, Don, who is a 4th year Asper School of Business major said that his professor discussed the article and campaign this morning in their class.   Don was prepared to discuss the campaign because I had explained it to him one day when he asked me what the '24' meant that he saw on a bus tail.  He said they had a real good discussion about our legislative process.   These are our young people that are getting who we are, and what we do...our future clients.

My daughter Sara said that it was discussed in her political science class this morning.   Bud Simmons (a former MTAM member, she met as he hired her to be a note taker) told her that he thought the articles were great too.

My dad approves!   He says, "our message is so clear"....he is thrilled and excited for us and what this will mean for our profession.   Having been on the Chiropractic board for several years he knows we are putting up the 'good fight' politically.   He said, "The newspaper spread is brilliant"...and to get the John Kos stamp of approval is saying something!

We have had so many timely opportunities in this past month and we have harnessed the greatest potential out of each of them.   I really think the board has done an awesome job preparing for our 24 campaign and legislation.   The points have been driven home!   It feels like we are on the cusp of something great.   I just want to scream, "In yo' face".

Laura Hawkins and Picante advertising have fabulous 20/20 vision.   We are present.   We are remarkable.

To have this 24 campaign launched on the 24th, in my 24th year of practice, exactly one month before my 48th birthday, on the 24th (ok, I am not going to burn incense here and do incantations, but...) is just too exciting for me too!   I feel like we have finally arrived.   We are at the door, and we are knockin'!

George, you have been our guiding light.   Always, steadfastly, gently, with nothing more than a nudge to keep us on track and focused forward.   You have been at the helm of this ship.   You have assisted us in managing any major gusts, or threatening gale force winds, always, while keeping your thumbs and fingers in the holes so we don't sink.   We would not be where we are today without you.

How can we thank you enough?!

If I sound excited....I am.

Sue

Susan E.A. Kos B.A., R.M.T
166 Kane Ave.
Wpg., Mb.
R3J 2P2

Massage Therapy Week

Pretty sure most Winnipeggers are aware now that we are in Massage Therapy Week.  In addition to radio and television on air right now, we created a full 4 page wrap of the Winnipeg Free Press which was on the street today.  We've had fantastic feedback about the wrap.  We also have electronic signs on Donald Street and on the Rice Building at Portage and Colony.

Monday morning we were on CTV Morning Live.  Fabulous Registered Massage Therapists Sue Zwarich and Melanie Boehm made an appearance along with yours truly who received a lovely neck massage.

Tuesday it was over to Breakfast Television.

http://video.citytv.com/video/detail/1918839850001.000000/benefits-of-massage-therapy/

Wednesday (today) the Winnipeg Free Press wrap came out and tomorrow the gang will be visited by the Global morning show.

Massage Therapy Association Executive Director George Fraser was on CJOB on Monday morning discussing Massage Therapy Week, the "24" campaign and a recent court case involving a massage therapist who was not a member of the Manitoba Association.

It is a privilege working with these sincere and committed individuals.  Their Association should be very pleased at the stewardship of the image of the organization and the efforts to advance their goals.

A busy fall.

We've had a busy autumn.

The Massage Therapy Association of Manitoba has been active with a multi-media campaign designed to raise awareness of their application to become the 24th Regulated Health Profession.  We're now in the planning to celebrate Massage Therapy Week in late October.  Looking forward to having the opportunity of helping Manitobans engage in the discussion.  Watch for a Winnipeg Free Press front section

Working on post-production of the new Just Slow Down spots.  I do believe it will be one of the best yet.

Renovations at Grant Park Shopping Centre are absolutely amazing.  Today it was announced that Glitz (formerly from Academy Road) will be relocating to Grant Park later this year. We put the finishing touches today on a contest/mailer for the neighbourhood that reflects our dynamic new communication design.

We've been active creating new packaging for Bothwell Cheese.  The folks over at Bothwell are developing some very exciting new flavours like Jamaican Jerk and Chai Tea.  I cannot wait to try these new flavours.

Now we're developing a video for the Canadian Cancer Society.  It's certainly an emotional subject and I will be doing all I can to do it justice.

Massage Therapists and Just Slow Down are on air right now and the 2012 Know Your Zone campaign will be starting shortly.  Having some fun getting the Santa Claus parade float together.

Just Slow Down - Aftermath

Took a somewhat different approach with the creative this year for Just Slow Down.  I thought it would be interesting to shoot the entire message from the perspective/point-of-view of a driver who was driving at an excessive speed, ultimately crashing into a parked vehicle.  The result is a tragic loss, and the driver must face the world through the eyes of a guilty person.

Once again I am indebted to Cinematographer Adam Sliwinski.
His extensive experience, artistic talent, and remarkably his confidence in me help me explore new ideas and approaches with each new project.  This year we were joined by First Assistant Director Robert Lee.  http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0498108/
How humbling to "assisted" by this entertaining and exceptional professional.



It takes a lot of teamwork to pull a production like this together and I owe a debt of thanks to everyone on the team including:

Sue Burns - Production Manager
Brett - Stunt Coordinator
Robin Lindala - 1st Camera Assistant
Bree Hawkins - 2nd Camera Assistant
Joao Holowka - Lighting/Grip
Tim Freestone and his amazing team - FX Coordinator
Dino Schiovone - Audio
Hersh Seth - Locations Manager
Don Greenberg - SFX Makeup
Angie Lindsay - Makeup
Shea Kosokowsky- Props/Wardrobe
Allan Hawkins and Kazu Tani - indispensable Production Assistants

On camera we were thrilled with the participation of Matt Enns, Mikey Tucker, Yana Sigurdson, Wendy Fyfe, Glenn Odero and all the extras.

Wonderful SFX makeup by Don Greenberg. 

At Wojcik's.  Flowers by Cosmopolitan Florists. 

For our "crash" we were privileged to have the assistance of Jim McKendry.  Thanks to Jim we had the support of several of Winnipeg's dedicated fire and paramedic professionals.

Another vote of thanks to Richard Wojcik from Wojcik's Funeral Chapel.  Richard also kindly agreed to appear in the spot.

Thanks to Tyler at the Misericordia Hospital and Vicki who also appeared in the spot.  

And thanks to Kevin Chimnoski from the WPS for attending the crash scene.

Picante Advertising Demo Reel 2009

I stumbled upon this Demo Reel this afternoon.  It contains much of the work we produced for the Saskatchewan Credit Unions from 2000 to 2009.  It's a wonderful trip down memory lane to revisit the many different locations and people we employed for some memorable commercials.  I'm proud of the work of core team which consisted of myself, Keith Neimor, Adam Sliwinski, Sue Burns, Olaf Pyttlik (composer), and Tony Wytinck. 

A night to remember.

Winners of 3 Awards for Just Slow Down for the Winnipeg Police Service

.  Pictured here are Kirk Van Alstyne, Mark Hodgson, moi, Steve West and Lori Dyck

My daughter Shea and husband Allan.  So nice to have family support.

The first of the 4 awards.

Winner of the award for Best TV Commercial under $20,000.  City of Winnipeg Public Works for Know Your Zone.  Pictured here:  Yours truly, Ken Allen, Steve West and Lori Dyck

Four Signature Awards!

 

WARNING - Lengthy Blog Post - Delayed acknowledgements, thank yous and an indulgent summary of a memorable evening!

Wasn't that a party?!!  The site was the Winnipeg Convention Centre for the 2011 Signature Awards.  Although we were nominated for 5 awards, I had a healthy respect for the competition and didn't want to count on anything.  

With the wildly positive Ken Allen!

My husband Allan and I were joined by Ken Allen from the City of Winnipeg Public Works.  He was the client who enthusiastically encouraged me to think outside the box for the City of Winnipeg Overnight Parking Ban campaign which became Know Your Zone.  Ken was abuzz, with a confidence that his campaign WAS going to win.  Oh well,  I couldn't dampen his enthusiasm so I quit trying.

My daughter Shea, Mark Hodgson and yours truly

Also, Staff Sergeant, Mark Hodgson was able to attend.  I do give much of the credit for the Winnipeg Police Service Just Slow Down campaign to Mark as he thoughtfully went through the process with us to determine strategy and generally put a lot of trust in what we had to say.

Steve West, Manager, Corporate Communications with the City of Winnipeg attended as well.  Steve was with the Winnipeg Police Service at the very beginning of Just Slow Down.  He was such an ardent supporter of Picante right from the get go...I believe playing a major role in us being hired in the first place following a vigourous RFP process.  Steve was important to Just Slow Down being as strong out of the gate as it was, enthusiastically interacting with the public on our JSD website.  Then he moved over to the City of Winnipeg and led the Corporate Communications team as we built Know Your Zone from the germ of an idea into the multi-media public awareness campaign it became.

Mark Hodgson and Steve West

Kirk Van Alstyne is an officer with Winnipeg's finest, who works on the front lines with Photo Enforcement.  His presence at the event was very important to me.  Part of what we hope to achieve with JSD is greater public approval and acceptance of photo radar as a safety tool.  I'd like to think we're making Kirk's job just a little bit easier.

The magnificent Lori Dyck with Wildfire Online added to the sparkle at our table.  Lori, along with our intrepid media director Kathryne Grisim, has been an intricate part of the success of both KYZ and JSD.  Lori built the original JSD website and devised the Tell us your Thoughts section.  And she received extensive kudos from the client and the city IT department for her cooperation in building all of the complicated elements of the online portion for KYZ.  A quick thank you here to Amanda Buhse and Shaun Gray - involved in the original development of the graphics for Just Slow Down.

Great friends Ken & Marnie Stuart were also on hand to cheer us on.  We already had a pretty lively table but Ken & Marnie always make things just a little more festive.

And lastly, due to a last-minute seat availability, my daughter Shea came to support her momma.   I warned her that it could be a long and somewhat boring event but she was enthusiastic about wanting to share in the evening. (Thanks to Graham and Julia from Los Chicos who let her have the night off from her shift to join us.)

Well.  It was most definitely not a long and boring event.

It began quite early with the very first television category.  Best Television Under $20,000.  I believe there were 5 nominated commercials in this category.  I was surprised (Ken Allen was not) when they called the name PICANTE as winner of the category for Know Your Zone.  I managed to get up to the stage - it was a bit challenging to get my mouth to work - more of a nerves issue than a wine issue I assure you....oh, maybe a bit of a combination of both.  Luckily I pulled it together and managed to thank Ken by name as he deserved.  I attempted to return to my seat but was captured and led off to get the official photo done off to the side.  Unfortunately, as I was making my way back to the table I heard ...."and the winner is PICANTE ADVERTISING again.

I had to check with the gang at the table to find out what we had won before going up to accept.  It was Best Television over $20,000 for Just Slow Down.   How lucky could we be??  That both clients in attendance were going to go home with an award!

Lori Dyck, moi, Denise Meilleur, and Shea

I thanked Mark by name - should have thanked Steve - so sorry Steve.  I was a bit flustered.  But made a brief speech about doing great work for clients who put genuine trust in their agency as the Winnipeg Police Service has definitely done with us.

After the official photo I had a few more minutes to relax and enjoy the show.  And then in the category of Best online advertising single or series....PICANTE ADVERTISING Just Slow Down Webisode.  We've just passed 150,000 Youtube hits on this webisode and I'm very proud of that.  This time I had the presence of mind to thank the organizers of the event.  I should have and wish I had made a shout out to Tony Wytinck and the crew at Midcan, and Olaf Pytllik and everyone at daCapo productions who put so much work into creating the actual "show" of the 2011 Signature Awards.  They deserve a ton of recognition and I had the forum and didn't capitalize on it.  I'm bummed about that so I humbly give them a huge THANK YOU here on my lowly blog.

Later in the evening we were awarded People's Choice for electronic media for the Just Slow Down webisode.  I will admit that we strategized a bit to ensure our own 10 votes were not split amongst the entries.  We decided together that the Just Slow Down webisode was our pick for the winner due to its success in Youtube views.  And the Winnipeg Police Service has been approached by a Driver Training Company in Santa Barbara, California to use it in their program.  We are thrilled that the webisode is doing so well and believe it is helping to save lives.  So - we were rewarded with a fourth Signature Award.

Acknowledgments are scary because you might miss someone out.  But I'm going to try.

Just Slow Down   


http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=H5EyOnccJLg&vq=medium

Adam Sliwinski - Cinematographer extraordinaire.  Thank you for always believing in me.  You told me, "You're a director - so Direct."  Just Slow Down 2011 was my directorial debut.  And it seems to have turned out very well.  But along with the powerful performances, your mastery of cinematography brought my concept to life.  No one could ever know how much you have done for me these many years.  I owe you so much.

The cast - the actors in JSD were amazing.  Cooperative, passionate about what we were doing, local talent.    Poor Josh Sigurdson, I made him cry and cry for cumulative hours in various scenes.  Never once did he complain or give up.  Lexie - you broke everyone's heart when we lost you. Michel - so committed and professional, Anne and Laura - so much emotion and lots more crying, the doctor and all the staff at St. Anne's Hospital, Tara Mangano who made all the arrangements and our two real cops who patiently put up with us.  

The crew including Robin Lindala (miss you so much Robin) Joao Holowka, Conroy Finnegan, Alana Pona, Ben Wytinck and Shaun Gray who production managed with poise and calm.  Allan Hawkins who had all the crappy jobs - street barrier and bogey wrangling.  Jen Santoro for wonderful makeup.

Thanks to the City of Winnipeg Production Office - Kenny Boyce and Kevin Uddenberg.  For helping us set everything up and for forgiving our small transgression.  :)

Jim McKendry and the amazing folks from Winnipeg's Fire and Paramedic Service.

Eric Olson for brilliant storyboards.

Anet Ducharme and John Webster for Faster and Faster - the haunting music that set the stage for the tragedy to come. Trevor Mirosh for your inspired editing and Gary Shaw for incredible colour-timing.

The apres party at Blaze.  Favourite moment - Mark's "Steve" impersonation.  

Know Your Zone








Elemental Motion Media - now CoElemental.  Brad created the look for General Grader and Lieutenant Loader.  And together with Adam Duguay and Simon Burgess, brought our characters to life with a little help from.....

Laurie Mustard and Jim Ingebrigtsen.  I actually conceived of the General and Lieutenant with you two guys in mind.  They couldn't have been played by anyone else.  Thank you for your enthusiasm for the project and for your talent.  Winnipeg is lucky to have you.

Nolan Balzer from daCapo productions.  You are always a joy to work with.  Experienced, professional and so much fun.

I'd like to acknowledge all the nominees and winners who share a passion and love of advertising with me.


A wonderful night for Picante.  A fun evening of family and friends (all my clients are my friends.)  Thank you  so so much.

And thank you Allan for everything.  I love you very much.

Bothwell Cheddars

 Quite excited about the new Bothwell cheddar labels.  We have been working on these for quite awhile to get them just right.  As the flagship product for Bothwell it was critical that these labels would lay the groundwork for all other flavour varieties to follow.  It seems simple now, but choosing to use a backdrop of the passage of time throughout a year, looking over a traditional farmyard, using a unique illustrative style took some doing.  I congratulate designer Charlene Lannoo and our enthusiastic and meticulous client Steven Gettis for just an outstanding final result.  I hope you all agree.

A fresh new product.

We've just developed this name and logo for an exciting new line of skin care products.  The primary ingredient in the body scrubs, lip balm, lotions, hair conditioners etc. is pure coconut oil.  We'll be working on the brochure and promotional materials soon and then I'll know lots more about the benefits of coconut oil which I hear are numerous.  Will keep you posted.  Kokonati is actually the Maori word for coconut and I liked how it sounded and how it looked.  The products are healthy and organic and have no artificial ingredients and that's where the fresh comes in.  I personally love this logo.  Can't wait to try the products when they are ready. 

Five Signature Awards Nominations!

It's always nice to be nominated.  This year Picante Advertising has received 5 nominations.  Three for Just Slow Down and two for Know Your Zone.  The gala awards event will be held May 10th and we're looking forward to a fun evening with some of our favourite clients.

We received a request today from Santa Monica, California.  A driver safety group wants permission to use elements from the Just Slow Down campaign for their students.  Very pleased about that. 

Still busy putting the finishing touches on Bothwell's new cheddar labels.  I do believe I'll be able to post the new labels here as of tomorrow. 

The International Applicants section of the College of Medical Laboratory Technologists website is soon ready for launch. 

I do promise to get some nice artwork on here soon. 

A busy Spring

Know Your Zone was a great pleasure to work on.  It's a bit of a shame that this was what seemed like the warmest winter in history and a Residential Plow was never called - no snow!  So the City was not able to even test out the new system.  It is a little unfortunate but at least on our end - the campaign was very well received.  It will definitely go down in my personal history as one of my favourite campaigns to work on.

The Picante team put a great deal of effort into a new proposal for the City of Winnipeg's new Garbage and Recycling Program.  We were rewarding by being part of the shortlist.  Now we must wait and see if we were successful in winning their confidence.  We would love to work on this exciting program.

The Winnipeg Police Service have had a fair bit of bad press lately and I feel nearly helpless.  I feel so strongly about the motives and character of the individuals in the Traffic Division.  But the public and the local media have been merciless in their criticism.  I had lunch the other day with my clients and the new head of the Central Traffic Unit.  Threw out a few ideas for a proactive program....but I'm not sure we'll be able to go ahead with it.  I think I'm a little close to the problem.  I feel the criticism very deeply and my natural disposition is to "protect and defend."

Looking forward to the launch on March 19th of the new Grant Park Shopping Centre spring campaign.  The original promotion idea was all GM Sandi Haganaars idea.  But I'd say Char and I did a fine job executing it.  Everything looks terrific and I'll be sure to post photos soon.

Have been working on brand and ads for Bayview Construction.  These impressive young men have built an enviable company.  I definitely enjoy working with them.

And soon we'll be launching a new segment of the website for the College of Medical Laboratory Technologists of Manitoba.  For their International Registration area.  It has involved a completely new design and I believe represents a significant upgrade.  Their Spring awareness campaign will be launching at the beginning of April with bustails, radio and newspaper as well as on medical clinic electronic signage.

Bothwell Cheese has kept us very busy with label design.  Once we have some final approval on artwork, I'll post it here.  We've redone all the cheddars (old, medium, mild, 1 year old and 2 year old) horseradish cheddar, black truffle and soon will be working on maple smoked.  We've also created special occasion gift boxes.

Will check back in shortly when I can post pretty pictures.  Hope you're all enjoying this beautiful spring weather we're having.

Know Your Zone - Courtesy Tow

Know Your Zone - City of Winnipeg residential street winter parking regu...

Know Your Zone - The City of Winnipeg Winter Parking Ban campaign.

General Grader

If you've been following along, you know that back in early September, Picante was chosen by the City of Winnipeg to develop a communication campaign for the Public Works Department regarding the changes to the Winter Parking Bans.  The clients put their trust in us and challenged us to come up with something eyecatching and different.

Lieutenant Loader

The result is Know Your Zone.  We developed two characters, General Grader and Lieutenant Loader, voiced by Winnipeg personalities Laurie Mustard and Jim Ingebrigtsen who did an amazing job creating unique, charismatic characters.

Thanks to Nolan Balzer at daCapo for engineering the audio session and directing the music choice.   Then the fabulous Adam, Simon and Brad at Elemental Motion Media brought the characters to life in the animated commercials,

The multi-talented Lori Dyck from Wildfire Online worked tirelessly with the IT team at Public Works and Corporate Communications, Nasir, Ashley and Nancy to make sure the website www.knowyourzone.winnipeg.ca  was ready for action this morning.  The public is encouraged to sign up for email and Twitter notices relating to the residential parking ban. You can even look up the snow zones on your mobile device, making this truly a cutting edge communication program. 

Vertical Billboard

Bustail

Knowledgable and experienced Kathryne Grisim put together a comprehensive media plan and Charlene looked after design and layout for a host of print applications,  You'll soon see Know Your Zone on vertical billboards, newspaper, bustails and electronic billboards. In a campaign with numerous components, date changes and many approval levels, Kathryne and Char never lost the smile in their voices. 

It's very difficult to put into words, what an amazing team was involved in this project.  ...and I'm supposed to be a writer.   Ken Allen - thank you for your tireless, passionate work on this campaign. You were the Commander in Chief on this operation (at least our end of it) and need to be credited for being an exceptional project manager and enthusiastic cheerleader.  I think it's safe to say we'll be staying in touch - this is a relationship I've come to greatly value...feels more like family than client/agency.   And thanks to Ken Boyd, Stan Siu, Bruce McPhail and Brad Sacher for putting your trust in us.

It was our first opportunity to work with Tammy Melesko at Corporate Communications.  Tammy you were so wonderful to work with.  It was a distinct pleasure getting to know you better and I am sure we'll continue to stay in touch.  We were reunited with the amazing Steve West - how we've missed you Steve - Steve was a big part of the original planning for Just Slow Down for the Winnipeg Police Service and it was so great to have the chance to work together again.

Nasir Noor, again, what a positive, genuine, calm and caring individual you are.  No matter how complicated things became, you were open to discussion and so willing to go the extra mile. 

I'm very proud of Know Your Zone...it will definitely go down as one of the highlights of my career.

I hope everyone takes the time to find out their snow zone and that the Winnipeg Parking Authority can't find anyone to ticket or tow next time we are in combat with Major Snowfall!  (I cannot take credit for that one - that was Ken Allen's idea! )

Some behind the scenes shots: 

The Dream Team - The group responsible for the Know Your Zone campaign.

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Jim Ingebrigtsen and Laurie Mustard lending their golden voices to Lieutenant Loader and General Grader.

Commander In Chief - Ken Allen

Audio Engineer Extraordinaire - Nolan Balzer from daCapo.

Ken Boyd at today's launch.

Ken Allen describing the components of the campaign.

Ken explaining how the website works to help citizens look up their residential street snow zone.

An excellent turn out by the media.

Remember way back when?  In mid-September we held our first"creative" meeting at Cafe Dario.  Ken Allen and Tammy Melesko.