Fresh

We make it our job to stay abreast of cultural, social, economic and industry trends—things that influence us and, in turn, you. What's caught our eye lately? What kept us up last night? What can we not stop thinking about? Or looking at? Or dreaming of? Stuff like this ... 

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  • May09

    Fresh. Home baked goodness from ProActive.

    Posted in Ideas by Mick Brennan Permalink

    We have raised the curtain on a wholly new website. ProActive's online habitat has evolved. Advancing technology has enhanced the overall user experience, fine-tuning the way we present information in this section and elsewhere.

    But while Fresh uses an array of bleeding-edge tools behind the scenes, our people and culture power this section. Fresh illuminates what excites and motivates ProActive, inside our industry and well beyond.

    The categories are pretty self-explanatory. WEBSITES features posts about, and content from, unique and influential websites; MAGAZINES offers the same for magazines; and BOOKS, well, books.

    The lynchpin of Fresh, and the grouping we're most excited about, is IDEAS. This collection details bigger picture ... paradigm destroying ... genre-defining stuff. IDEAS is about something brilliant that happened in the last 24 hours, the innovators responsible for it, and what's next.

    Most importantly, IDEAS is the domain of ProActive thought-leaders, and it spotlights our vision of, and aspirations for, transforming audiences through strategic brand communication.

     

  • May07

    Pitchfork.tv

    Posted in Websites by Mick Brennan Permalink

    MTV used to show music videos. Lots of them, even during the day.

    In the beginning, MTV would show anything programmers could get their hands on. This meant the channel showed a pretty diverse assortment of videos. Established artists added to their record sales. New acts became stars.

    Eventually though, MTV tightened its playlist, relegating the more underground-leaning acts to smaller and smaller windows of airtime. Fast-forward to higher-ups at MTV deciding they need to get back to the channel's original spirit. Moments later, MTV2 is born.

    MTV2 used to show music videos. Lots of them, even during the day.

    Then reality shows happened ... and Ashton Kutcher.

    So much the way independent record labels rose to prominence in the early '90s, parlaying major label cluelessness into success on their own terms, wildly influential music site Pitchfork Media has launched Pitchfork.tv.

    Pitchfork.tv is "the first ever music video channel dedicated to the documentation of independent music." The site features original performances and documentaries, complete concerts, interviews, and a robust collection of music videos.

    Like the website, and music scene, that spawned it, Pitchfork.tv is an independent enterprise, affording its contributors "the freedom and control to stay true to (their) creative vision."

     

  • May07

    Antenna Magazine

    Posted in Magazines by Mick Brennan Permalink

    Antenna refers to itself as "the first mainstream magazine to target individuals who are on a constant quest for the newest and coolest products on the horizon." That's a bit hyperbolic.

    But Antenna is the latest, and most adventurously executed, example of a trend in publishing that includes Lucky, Domino, and Complex — magazines, more to the point "style catalogs," that feature page after page of hotly-tipped items, accompanied by their prices.

    Antenna sets itself apart by focusing on the pieces themselves ... meaning no celebrities, no models and no concept shoots. Everything from limited edition Nikes to leather jackets to shaving cream, is presented in supremely art-directed fashion, amidst brief articles about the creators and purveyors of the goods.

    Oh, and the products appear in alphabetical order, so the four-page spread of jeans comes before the two-page spread of satellite phones.

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