The weather this past weekend in Chicago lent itself as a great opportunity to catch up on some TV. As I was clicking around the tube I came across a Charles Schwab commercial. Their latest ads feature people animated using a technique called rotoscoping (think of films like Waking Life and A Scanner Darkly) discussing investment services issues and what not. Every time these commercials come on I’m completely confused why they chose to use this animation treatment.
I later discovered (through Google) the reasoning behind this animated effect; they wanted viewers focused on what the characters where actually saying. Now I commend them for thinking outside of the box and trying to be innovative however I would say in my personal opinion this is a major failure. When this commercial comes on I get so fixated on the animation, that the only two things that pop into my head are “why is this animated?” and “where have I seen that face before?”
The whole thing makes me go back to a saying we use a lot here at BDC, Keep it simple stupid. For example, a center for elderly people in the community does not need a full flash website however, applying that same technology to a flash header displaying photography on the homepage might be a nice touch. While we certainly encourage our clients to think outside the box, be modern, and use new technology we also stress the importance of keeping things relevant and simple so that your target audience can properly consume your message. Remeber you always want to communicate your ideas quickly there’s no need to draw it out.
