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The fantastic reality programme Van de Straat is back for a new season. This is such a moving show and a real labour of love for all involved. Most importantly the benefits for candidates have proven long lasting and affective.

Support the young candidates, psychologist Kas Stuyf and 6Degrees Productions as they seek to help these mixed up kids get their lives back on track.

Tuesday nights from tomorrow, 24th March, 21:25pm NCRV/NPO

IN BATTALIONS

If you are in theatre in the UK, and hopefully further afield, you will not have missed the In Battalions campaign. Headed up by Fin Kennedy, the passionate playwright and artistic director of Tamasha theatre company (www.tamasha.org.uk) and educational researcher Helen Campbell-Pickford, In Battalions was a fantastic community activism exercise in countering misguided arguments that supported cutting arts funding especially for new writing development. With fantastic research from Fin and Helen it really created a stir.

This recent article from the Spectator provoked much fevered debate in the In Battalions community. Here's my response to their arguments for blindly cutting arts funding. What do you think? Tweet us or FB. I really think this is part of a wider attack on the humanities in general and it couldn't be more ill timed.

Here's the original article:
http://www.spectator.co.uk/the-week/leading-article/9467822/james-mcavoy-is-wrong-the-arts-are-better-off-without-subsidy/

And my take on it:

James Martin, the financial powerhouse behind Oxford University’s Oxford Martin School, a successful business man and prominent futurist recently brought this to culture debate. New research from this Institute leads to a reasonably reliable prediction that by 2030 around 75-80% of what we now consider ‘work’ will be automated. This is backed up by the work of other thought leaders in the tech sector such as Ray Kurzweil, now heading up innovation at Google and the Singularity University. At the same time we have other prominent physicists, roboticists and scientists, in January of this year, publishing an open letter that raises an alarm about the rapidity with which AI advancements are being made.

Whichever way you look at it the future, good or ill, has caught up to us and we need to start thinking about how we are adapting to it.

In the near future who will be the thinkers, artists, writers and other philosophers who help us spend our newly acquired free time? Who educate, inspire and entertain. Who will be the ones working out new ethical codes and social structures in the light of all this tech disruption? Who will those people be if not the developing artists now in need of financial support and the children in schools everywhere crying out for modern, imaginative, playful, technological and empathetic ways of engaging with an already changing world?

It could very well be that the G.C.S.E. structure is out of date and needs overhauling but that is a structural problem of the educational system as a whole not specific to that one subject. Proponents of Michael Gove’s ‘rigorous’ and restrictive educational ‘reforms’ are in danger of seriously hampering our children’s social and cultural development. If they remain fixated on even older models whose sole focus is on producing workers for an economy that may soon be radically different to that of today. They lack the vision to see anything will be different. Perhaps they should have studied drama at school?

Drama as a subject is one of the rare activities that unlock holistic thinking. In drama participants learn about: communication skills, team cohesion, presentation, vocal and other public speaking skills, psychology, history and a tangible feel for it, gender issues, visual and media arts, social cohesion, geography, biography, entrepreneurialism and self-confidence. Most of all they learn empathy. At every lesson they get to practice empathising with others in a wide variety of scenarios.

Empathy, the thing that contributes more than anything else to our sense of common humanity. Empathy, another thing the current British Government and their ministers seem to have a major deficit of. Perhaps if the writer of the Spectator’s piece had done more drama at school he would have had more of it himself – for those of less socially mobile backgrounds. He would also have learnt that drama is useful for many things and not simply for training those who wish to become actors – out of work ones or otherwise.

WHAT'S UP DUCK?

So, it was a slow start to the year for us as our side of Amsterdam seemed to fall foul to a plague of flu. But, the leaves are in bud, our website's got a fresh new look, we're out and about catching up with Collective members old and new and busy getting new projects on their feet.

New projects? First off, we're looking into funding for Design Fiction workshops for schools. Are you a designer or visual artist interested in getting involved let us know! The idea being: in these times of rapid and radical technological evolution the more initiatives getting kids excited about new ways of learning and making the better. We'll be starting small but if the proof of concept works then it will hopefully lead to paid freelance opportunities for collective members.

If you're already in the Collective and think that we've been doing some useful stuff for you: getting you work, sending you personalised opportunity alerts or spreading the word about your latest projects then send us some feedback. We'd like to share your positivity with the new folks we're meeting as we grow the collective and hear about things you're interested in taking part in as 2015 unfolds. All ideas welcome. If you know someone you think would be interested in joining put them in touch!

Collective members are having a great start to 2015. Photographer Bas Niemans has been in Ghana for his partnership project with Maastricht University. 6 Degrees Productions are in the edit suite preparing for this summer's new series of Van de Straat and you can check out designer Jeffrey Goodett's awesome looking new website at www.jgood.nl.

Currently, we're largely obsessed with futurism and said tech revolution. The first draft of Esther's new play around this subject is having a reading with Orange Tea Theatre just next week. We'll keep you posted of eventual production details. All going to plan!

Lastly, we're being asked to do an increasing amount of English copy-editing/writing and translation. If you are in need of help in this department get in touch for a free quote. For collective members we're offering coffee and free 'brain picking' surgeries if you're looking to brand your work or find new ways of moving the business of your art forward. Getting together for coffee is pretty much always an option anyhoo! So, stay in touch.

More anon and have a great weekend!

Qc

The Eternal Intern

So you’ve got your degree, and you are ready to take that first or second step on your career ladder – but all the jobs you find that meet your profile are only open to an intern. Esther O’Toole takes a look at the minefield surrounding today’s internships.

‘Is it just me, or is anyone else sick to death of seeing seven out of ten job ads asking for interns? […],’ wrote Leigh Cann, designer and curator at AfricanArtbeat.com, on LinkedIn recently. 

Cann was drawing particular attention to the seemingly widespread use of internships to fulfill what used to be freelance or full-time paid positions for juniors. ‘Interns get paid either nothing or very little,’ she wrote. ‘They are doing multiple internships, landing up in an endless cycle of no pay, desperate to get that much-needed experience.’

It did strike a chord. Searching for freelance work online of late you might come to expect at least a third of postings to be for internships. Though the case of the ‘eternal intern’ is well known in the US and Britain, here in sensible old Holland there must be rules for internship practices to stop young, talented workers being exploited. Right? Yes, of course there are.

Students 

Technically, Dutch law requires that interns be either an EU citizen or enrolled in a higher education course. For those coming to study from further afield, there are specifics on visa requirements and they will have to stop after their course of study is finished. Though there is no law to require businesses to pay interns anything there is, in general, a stipend of between €200 and €300 on offer. 

However, when companies have a list of desirables as long as your arm, require a full-time commitment for at least six months and give very little information about what you get at the end of the term it begs the question – are these rules working? 

A stipend of €250 for a 36-hour working week in one of the major cities can’t possibly allow for independent living and smacks of inequity. How do you know as a newcomer that your internship will really help enhance the chances of building the kind of career you’re after?

Unemployment 

The Dutch social affairs and employment ministry says it is working to get to grips with the question of internships. ‘There are initiatives in place now; getting a better grip on youth unemployment, improving the transition from education to work and LeerWerkLoketten,’ spokeswoman Hayat Eltalhaui told DutchNews.nl. 

The LeerWerkLoketten (Learning & Work Bureaus) aim to provide easily accessible advice about rights, obligations and the transition from education to work for both (young) workers and companies alike. 

However, while there are no plans to introduce a minimum stipend for interns, measures are in place to punish companies which break the rules. ‘Fines have increased and in the case of repeated infringements work can be halted,’ Eltalhaui says.

Benefits 

Start-ups in particular rely on an ever-expanding pool of ‘interns’ to tide them through the first months and years – without them the company would be financially unviable. A property firm in Amsterdam is currently advertising for an administrative intern to basically run the office, do the books and manage the company’s social media strategy. The pay? ‘To be discussed’ says the advert.

Responsible employers make sure they meet the government guidelines. It is not unusual for larger corporations to offer around €500 a month stipend, travel costs or access to a whole range of normal employee benefits. This in conjunction with a clear development trajectory that should lead to real employment prospects at the end of the term, either with that company or elsewhere. However, these are competitive and are in no way the norm.

Robbert Coenmans, the current chairman of the FNV Jong – the FNV trade union’s youth division – remains sceptical.

‘We do see this as a growing issue. A considerable [youth] group has lowered their standards, mainly because of the high rate of youth unemployment,’ he says.  ‘Perhaps four years ago an (unpaid) internship after finishing an education would not be a viable option for most people. Now it is. This seems to be a growing trend born out of desperation … which is handy [for employers] if you want to cut your costs.’ 

In addition, he says, a complaint to employment ministry inspectors or to the union ‘would cut their chance of actually being hired, so no one complains’.

Cost-cutting 

The picture remains unclear. Are companies working towards developing the next generation of employees or simply cost-cutting?

The Waldorf Astoria hotel in Amsterdam, for example, is currently looking for a housekeeping intern who will be ‘responsible for cleaning guest rooms, replenishing amenities and supervising room attendants to deliver an excellent guest experience while monitoring housekeeping standards and assisting the head housekeeper.’ 

While a way into one of the world’s most high profile hotel chains is a great opportunity, how can you be sure any internship will be beneficial enough to be worth the low pay for doing a full-time job? 

Emke Daniels, HR expert and one of the founders of HR Community, works a lot with young starters and sees them wrestling with this problem regularly.

‘Employers are looking for people with experience, but are not prepared to invest in building that experience. Or if they are, it’s a very low investment. But there is also good news on this front – such as our work with the starters scholarship scheme (Startersbuurs) These [scholarships] stimulate employers to give young people a chance by providing a financial contribution to their pay. The construction is not an internship but a real work experience.’

Permanent job 

For many interns the ‘real work experience’, one that couldn’t be gained in one single paying position, was always top of their list when it came to the pros of interning. Bart Sturm, who interned with his current employer before being offered a permanent position, says the company was extremely flexible.

‘I could help and get experience with many different activities. This is harder as an employee, and it’s impossible in many organisations, but Peerby was happy to let me get involved in any area I could. I still reap the rewards of having worked on several parts of the business,’ he says.

With the economy picking up one must hope that employers will be increasingly keen to hang on to good workers and be prepared to pay for them too. More starters’ schemes are surely to be encouraged. If you’re embarking on an internship advance with caution. Search well and use the services available. Research your potential employer properly, particularly if they are a start-up. Be sure you’re clear about the terms of the internship and the benefits it will bring. For everyone concerned.

For more information on internships in the Netherlands and your rights check out these sites for interns and student placements: 

http://www.studyinholland.nl/ 

https://www.lerenenwerken.nl/leerwerkloketten 

http://www.fnvjong.nl/ 

http://www.hrtalent.nl/hrtrainee 

http://www.startersbeurs.nu 

For more Dutch news in English and features on living in NL read more at DutchNews.nl

Starting out as a start-up: creative hubs for entrepreneurs

If you are just setting up in business or have plans to take a leap towards entrepreneurship, the Netherlands has a great range of meeting places, networking and training schemes that you can dig into. Esther O’Toole has a few suggestions of where to look for the freshest inspiration.

If you are just setting up in business or have plans to take a leap towards entrepreneurship, the Netherlands has a great range of meeting places, networking and training schemes that you can dig into. Esther O’Toole has a few suggestions of where to look for the freshest inspiration.   

Some 800,000 people in the Netherlands are now considered to be self-employed, or a ZZP’er. Amsterdam is busy repositioning itself away from tourist den of iniquity to creative international player, a policy which has helped produce a wave of new entrepreneurs and provoked an explosion of new resources, hotbeds (‘broedplaatsen’), development schemes and networks to encourage them. So where is it worth setting up shop? 

Pakhuis de Zwijger 

Established in 2006 Pakhuis de Zwijger exists to inspire and bring together people of all walks of life interested in creativity and innovation. It aims to provide a level playing field for networking and every month there is a range of speakers, networking nights, courses and even a pub quiz to serve as a less formal meeting ground. With approximately forty different events a month there is plenty to get involved in. Its main areas of focus include architecture, design, urban planning and the arts but they also include pretty much everything that falls in between these or overlaps. You can sign up free for their social network too. 

Mediamatic 

Mediamatic is a hothouse for the cross pollination of ideas that started life way back in 1983 and developed into a modern connected network. Varied is its middle name. They put on exhibitions, have acted as an occasional publishing company and you can go there for myriad workshop experiences. Their main aim is to find new ways of exploring cultural influences on technology and techs influences on culture. Current areas of primary focus include aquaponics for urban agriculture and their Myco Design lab looking at research with micro-organisms in search of new organic building materials. Check out their website for upcoming events from the creator of an algae eating robot and the ‘Drone Camping’ at the end July. A generalist’s playground! Mediamatic is internationally focused; the website and all events are in English. Events that do charge are low cost to maintain open access – check the website for specifics. They also offer varied internships. 

Cultureel Ondernemen 

C-O (cultural entrepreneurship) provides development and finance advice for all creative business fields. New entrepreneurs, those wishing to increase their level of professionalism or business acumen and more established cultural organisations with specific project plans can turn to them for information and assistance. Get in touch for a free face-to-face session or sign up for one of their training sessions via the website (prices vary.) 

Rockstart 

If you’re looking for a real powerhouse of entrepreneurial energy head to Rockstart. With pitching and networking events, office or co-working space and a specially designed Accelerator programme, Rockstart is a fantastic source of info for start-ups in their first 1000 days. An extremely international operation with English as the working language, extras include free yoga sessions and exotic lunches. 

‘Broedplaatsen’ (Hothouses) and space sharing 

Artist-led initiatives, self-styled artistic hubs, often geared towards one medium or several overlapping disciplines have always done well in Amsterdam since the early 1980s – so much so that the city council set up a Bureau de Broedplaatsen ter Amsterdam. It provides advice and an easy access map of where different initiatives are based. These range from creative workshop spaces and networking hubs to places such as The Beehive, a cellular office complex where you can hire a cubicle, or an office, or a conference room at very affordable rates, they have complexes in West (Sloter) Oost (Ijburg) and de Zuidas. 

Outside Amsterdam 

Spaces.nl 

Affordable and interesting office space sometimes seems like a contradiction in terms. Spaces.nl is one of the organisations seeking to make flexible work space both affordable, attractive and useful. Their buildings in The Hague and Amsterdam (at 3 locations) offer a variety of priced rooms and offices together with flex-places and cafes. With a wide variety of entrepreneurs using them you can be working and networking at the same time and by becoming a member of their online community you can keep up with your fellows with ease. 

Seats2Meet

Along the same lines but with a more global-minded vision is Seats2Meet. With affiliate locations in 67 locations in the Netherlands roving start-up workers are well served. If work takes you abroad there are further desk spaces, work spaces or meeting places waiting for you in Belgium, Germany, the UK and more. 

Funding and advice

As well as offering shared offices, Rockstart travels the country answering questions at its Rockstart Answers sessions. If you’re looking for creative funding the Amsterdam Fonds voor de Kunst (Amsterdam Funds for the Arts) now do walk-in sessions to pitch your ideas before going through all the performance of full on application. Guidance in advance of applying greatly enhances your chances of success and/or stops you wasting time on a lengthy pitch on paper if the idea still needs work. They now also have grants aimed at artists looking for personal development money and with international focus so you can be sure that being an ex-pat does not put you at a disadvantage. 

Further funding bodies worth checking out include the Prince Bernard Fonds for the Arts and the Mediafonds. 

Esther O’Toole is the Creative Development Director of Quint-Creative.com

Read more at DutchNews.nl, more articles from Quint coming soon.

Hidden Holiday Gems

If an exotic foreign holiday is a bit beyond your budget this year and you’re still digging around for something closer to home (that promises more than just the average Dutch holiday camp experience) then look no further; Esther O’Toole has dug up some hidden treasures for you.

For the original (and more great Dutch news stories; including features from Quint) check out the brilliant English language site www.dutchnews.nl

Family Novelties

Picture courtesy of Feather Down press dept.

Feather Down

http://www.featherdown.co.uk/

Get unwired and back in touch with a simpler way of living. Feather Down (in Dutch, Het BoerenBed) has a variety of working farm locations geared up for guests who still want comfort when they’re in the great outdoors. If you like to ‘rough it’ in style then this is a great stop.

The children can help fetch water and fire wood for your stove and enjoy the novelty of sleeping in bed stays or looking after animals while you can still be assured of a great tent that doesn’t leak, a comfy bed and hospitable welcome. Special horse riding locations also available.

This is the English language version of their site, click on ‘locations’ for NL farms. Customer Service in Holland can of course help you in English on 0528 229440. From €455 for a weekend tent stay.

De Vreemde Vogel

http://devreemdevogel.nl/assets/english.pdf

If you’re looking for something really quirky then De Vreemde Vogel has lots to offer.  It’s in Vlaardingen between Rotterdam and the beach at Hoek van Holland so a good place from which to explore the surrounding area. From treehouses to olde gypsy wagons, sleeping in a reclaimed aircraft or a giant birdhouse they pride themselves on variety and comfort. Prices vary from about €155 for a weekend stay but all general information and contact details in English can be found at the above address.

Stortemelk

http://www.stortemelk.nl/default.aspx?lang=uk

If you’re looking for a real getaway how about Vlieland? Tucked in behind the dunes on this protected Wadden island is Stortemelk. It offers a variety of accommodation including small attractive cottages and different types of camping e.g. family and teen areas.

One thing they don’t cater for, campervans, because you can’t take any vehicles onto the island at all. For a real get back to nature feel this is a beautiful, untouched and remote spot.  Look at the site for details of how to book the ferry from Harlingen to the island and how to hire a ‘baggage car’ to go on to the Stortemelk itself. Prices vary but tent hires start at €630 for a week in the school holiday season.

Luxury and Romance

Dutchen Holiday Parks

http://www.dutchen.nl/contact

Dutchen promise unusual holiday homes, in small numbers, located at beautiful spots throughout the country; complete with all luxury mod cons, including options such as a sauna or Jacuzzi.

For example, Weideduyn, has up to date luxury eco-cottages, lots of space from your neighbours and a beautiful beach; Vlindervallei is in the middle of the Veluwe woods, outdoorsy yet complete with spa and wellness facilities; at Baayvilla’s, on the border between Groningen and Friesland, there are large houses with lots of amenities for sea and sailing enthusiasts overlooking the sea of the Lauwersmeer National Park.

Though their website is only available in Dutch and German at the moment all customer service workers speak English and can help you book. Prices upwards from €460 a week, ask for details of where last minute discounts can be had.

De Verrekijker

http://www.belvilla.com/search/#hsco=NL-6617-01&orgkw=verrekijker

If you want to do it you can, sleep in a windmill, you can’t get much more ‘Nederlands’ than that. Beautiful and atmospheric mills can be hired for private holidays, such as this near Gelderland, one of many good quality holiday homes to be found on Belvilla. Prices for the Verrekijker from €943 Friday to Friday. If you have special access needs do check whether this is suitable for you.

Castles from Bilderberg Hotels

http://www.bilderberg.nl/uk/hotels/chateau-holtmuhle/

Who doesn’t want to sleep in a castle? Honestly, who? At least once let loose your inner Romantic or sweep someone else away with a special castle B&B such as these from Bilderberg Hotels located near Utrecht, Venlo and Maastricht. From €94 per person per night.

Tugboat Willem

http://www.sleepbootwillemzoutkamp.nl/en/

If you’re over 18 years old and a water lover you could opt for an unusual stay for 1-2 people on Tugboat Willem; an original 1930’s working boat now transformed into a lovely bed and breakfast. Moored at Zoutkamp near the village of De Marne you will get a truly personalised trip. If you have special access needs do check whether this is suitable for you; as a sailing ship it won’t be able to accommodate wheelchair users unfortunately. Upwards from €80 per night per person, for a stay of 1-7 nights including breakfast.

Budget

Camping Zeeburg, Amsterdam

http://www.campingzeeburg.nl/index.php?page=wagonette

In high season hotel prices in the capital may price out many families and students so why not try an alternative city break at Camping Zeeburg? Located in the old harbour area to the east of town Camping Zeeburg offers you the chance to camp out in the city. Be it overlooking the water in your own tent or campervan or in one of their brightly coloured gypsy style ‘wagonettes’ or ‘eco-cabins’.

Good amenities include fresh baguettes/croissants daily and free wifi across the whole site.  They’re located a short distance from tram 26 which takes you into Amsterdam centre in about ten minutes. Prices start at €25 a night for a 3 person tent spot, €105 a night for a 3-4 person wagonette, to €115 a night for a 4 person eco-cabin, in high season.

Cube Houses, Rotterdam

http://www.stayokay.com/en/hostel/rotterdam

Another alternative city stay can now be had in the famous Cube Houses in Rotterdam which have been made into a Stay Ok Hostel; a great location from which to explore the city.  From €24.30 per night for a bed in mixed sex shared room.

Cycling Tours

http://www.nederlandfietsland.nl/en

You’re in the Netherlands so, get on your bike. All sorts of bike tour holidays including biking between hotels, family biking and short breaks are available to suit every pocket. All information you could possibly need about cycling in the Netherlands can be found at Nederland Fietsland, the site of the official Dutch organisation for recreational cycling (Nederlands Fietsplatform) this includes maps, where you can hire bikes and a variety of  information on reputable tour operators.

Quint's suggestions for the Dutch school holidays. For the original (and more great Dutch news stories; including features from Quint) check out the brilliant English language site www.dutchnews.nl

HOLIDAY HIGH JINX

With a lot of school holidays coming up, Esther O'Toole has some suggestions to keep your offspring amused.

With the Easter and May holidays ahead, how can you make sure the kids are exhausted enough to fall into bed and leave you alone with a bottle of red wine and all the left-over chocolate?

If you are in Amsterdam how about getting arty? 

Get arty

There’s new awesomeness to explore down at the Rijksmuseum for ages 6+. Since it’s reopened the museum has expanded its family activities, including learning how to etch like Rembrandt, discovering life in the Golden Age and a family tour.

Find out more: www.rijksmuseum.nl

Over at the Van Gogh take a trip back in time with Vincent’s suitcase. Available in Dutch or English; it’s full of interesting activities for kids to dive into that turns the visit into a treasure hunt (again from age 6). They also offer very affordable art courses for youngsters throughout the year.

Find out more: www.vangoghmuseum.nl

Regular arts and crafts workshops can also be found in the studio of the children’s department at the Central library near Central station. For bi-lingual kids these are often coupled with book readings in the library’s Annie MG Schmidt theatre.

Find out more: www.oba.nl

Get messy

If you fancy getting out of town and getting messy then check out Oerrr from Dutch natural heritage (Natuurmonumenten). It’s full of great family ideas on where to get muddy country-wide.

Plus sign up for the newsletter and get free wildlife activity cards throughout the year. Learn how to survive in the wild from April 13 with the ‘Wild Outdoors Day’ at Overijssel, Utrecht, Gelderland and other locations up and down the country.

The thing that most caught my eye amongst the night time walks, castle exploration and deer watching activities had to be seal spotting off Zeeland – an exciting and mucky day is guaranteed for all!

Find out more: www.natuurmonumenten.nl/kinderen/oerrr (Dutch only)

Southern fun

For those further south here’s a tried and tested favourite in our household. Eleven minutes out of central Eindhoven brings you to Nuenen and its massive children’s wildlife park - Dierenrijk.

Large enclosures and a wide selection of well-cared for animals - both obvious biggies (tigers, bears, lions and seals) and surprise winners. My kids both adored the…Garra Rufa Fish. That’s right - the ones you get at foot spas. You can wash your hands and put your fingers in so they can be nibbled at. Endlessly exciting for the under tens.

Two major benefits here: if it’s raining there is a gigantic indoor jungle-themed play-zone with seating for parents with tired feet, and great Puro coffee for any parents with tired heads.

Find out more: www.dierenrijk.nl

The Hague

And last but not least: if you have children of three and up then maybe they need to know that in The Hague there is a rabbit on the run from the police.

On Sunday May 4 the hunt is on for the meddlesome bunny in Maas Theater en Dans’ WANTED: RABBIT. This highly successful show is on its fourth run promising lots of slapstick and suspense for young and old.

Find out more: www.mastd.nl

Amusement parks

Now is the time when Dutch amusement parks come to life again after the winter months. Website www.netherlandsbynumbers.com has a list of 10 of the country's best theme parks, from the much-praised Efteling to Walibi and the more gentle fun of Plopsaland.

Her

Writer/director Spike Jonze, starring Joaquin Phoenix, Scarlett Johansson and Amy Adams.

So, there go the Oscars again.  Poor Leo really thought it was his year didn’t he? Well, plenty of other people did too but, as Ellen put it so succinctly, there really were only two possibilities for best film:

“Possibility No. 1: 12 Years a Slave wins best picture. Possibility No. 2: You’re all racists.”

Truest words spoken in jest.  No real surprise that the academy did indeed go with a real history lesson over a supposed cautionary tale of Wall Street excess. Especially as we’ve all learnt far more about that in the last couple of years than we’d have liked. Well, except the stock brokers.

With so much discussion about the tough running in the Best Picture and Leading Role categories the writing didn’t get much attention in 2014. Oh, laments the writer, we do all the genius work and get so little credit! No, it’s not that, it’s more that in the Best Original Screenplay category the winner was a shoe in. Her by Spike Jonze was the only title that ever really came up for discussion. And it doesn’t disappoint.

Her is the story of Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix) a recent divorcee who, unwilling to take the leap into a ‘real’ relationship, starts one with his new operating system instead. The Artificial Intelligence behind the ‘OS’ though is learning at a rate that both she and Theodore struggle to understand and what seems to be a surrogate for a human relationship mutates into a very real one between a human and an entirely new species that humans have created.

Casting Phoenix was a stroke of brilliance. A less accomplished actor could not have made the job of keeping the audience engaged for two hours (pretty much single handed) look so effortless. He is vulnerable, witty, horny and troubled in quick succession and you never once fail to take his love story seriously.

What could have turned into a schmaltzy pile of indie dross in the wrong hands comes to warm and colourful life in the hands of writer/director Spike Jonze. A light touch, never didactic, he allows both the romantic and disturbing elements of the story to spring out at you from behind the often seemingly everyday dialogue. The premise seemed simple enough; a study of our increasing reliance on technology to provide for our every need. The future shown here is nothing like Azimov’s it is very recognisable and very convincingly the immediate future. As the story unwinds and the technology develops needs of its own the audience is thrown so many questions: what constitutes a ‘real’ relationship? Have we already opened a technological Pandora’s box? Who and what is god?

This movie set my mental processors into overdrive and they will be whirring a good while longer. Well, deserving of its prize and something we all need to start learning more about.

In cinemas throughout the Netherlands now.

Trust and Brands

I was reading a blogpost by James Garvey, editor of The Philosophers’ Magazine and author of a number of books about philosophy. He wrote a short piece on Trust and Brands in which he raises an interesting point. He believes we’re living in an age of mistrust, with scandals in banking, politics, the media and military, even organized religion. He recognizes trust as an emotion, and therefore not something that can be regained through objective means. When people have lost their trust it is very hard to win back. Only through time, transparency, and a change in behavior can trust be regained.

Fair points I think. Maybe it would be useful to push this idea a bit harder.

One way to look at brands is as differentiators primarily built on trust, “I buy Heinz tomato ketchup because I believe the brand will provide me with the same quality product every time I buy it”. Trust is based on belief and therefore only thrives in circumstances where I cannot have all the facts to make my decision (the difference between ‘believing’ and ‘knowing’). But with today’s digital tools at my disposal I can get most of the facts after just a few well aimed mouse clicks. I can examine the brand’s social agenda, I can go over every single ingredient, I can even ask my friends why they prefer a certain brand and advise them to use brand X over brand Y.

I think this is what is helping the erosion of the historically high level of trust in Apple. Of course the death of Steve Jobs is a large factor but I believe the discovery of sweatshops, the discussion over their use of ‘dirty’ minerals and the availability of the details on the legal fights with Samsung and Google are what are really bringing down this once invincible brand. And it’s not just Apple. Brands seem to be struggling to find an answer to the transparency provided by the internet. Marketeers are coming up with brand strategies aimed at convincing us that their brand is exactly what we want it to be, with ‘transparency’ and ‘honesty’ becoming key marketing terms. Trouble is, you can’t fake this, or like James says in his blog, you have to mean it.

So what’s your point of view? How should brands react to this changing world? Should they? What’s the future of brands? Is there one? Or should brands be on the endangered species list? Leave your comments, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Q.

The World's Fastest Agency.

 Consider this:

“Ad Agency Answers 140-Character Twitter Briefs in 24 Hours”

“A networked team of creatives in New York launched a new service that meets the demand for rapid turnaround advertising. Using Twitter as a medium, the World's Fastest Agency will respond from briefing to idea within 24 hours.”

“Clients can say goodbye to 100-page PowerPoint decks, meetings, weeks of fee negotiation, countless emails, more meetings, lunch, meetings, scope of work to-ing and fro-ing, meetings, more emails, Q&A sessions, tissue meetings, inaudible conference call, pitch, feedback, feedback on the feedback, re-briefing, re-pitching, another meeting, more feedback, focus groups, another meeting, more emails....”

http://mashable.com/2013/03/18/worlds-fastest-agency/

It seems to make a lot of sense. A quick, no-nonsense, cheap creative solution via social media. But, and there’s always a but, I don’t think it’ll go anywhere. Why?

It made me think of the time a slightly annoyed client saw me after what was undeniably a boring meeting. She told me that the time she got to spend with the agency was normally the highlight of her week. She finally got to think about the brand, be presented with great  (and sometimes not so great) creative ideas, got to be the boss and to top if off, eat as many free Pret sandwiches as she could stomach. So for her a boring meeting was inexcusable and should never happen again. And she was right of course (as a lot of clients tend to be…).

And therein lies the rub. I think clients secretly like the process, they like the time they get to spend thinking about the brand, they like the back and forth, the briefings, the meetings, the focus groups, the whole shebang.

The proposition of The World Fastest Agency is very much a translation of how advertising creatives tend to view the world. However, it has made the cardinal mistake of not considering your target audience and that is why I don’t think it’ll fly.

Q.