From 1997 – 2003, I worked on a series of M&M commercials. These TV commercials had a fairly large budget. As a result, the advertising agency arranged for well-known actors/actresses to appear, such as:
- Dennis Miller
- Tia Carrere
- Santa Claus
- Stephen Baldwin
- Patrick Warburton
- Halle Berry
- Naya Rivera
(1)
The most humble celebrity I’ve worked with is Patrick Warburton. Patrick is a Christian (not only in Seinfeld, but in real life). He didn’t have an entourage, or disappear into his trailer between scenes. He hung out and ate lunch with us. Turns out Patrick and I had an appetite for Craft Services cookies.
One time, before a shoot, we were eating chocolate chip cookies. It was a hot day, so the chocolate had melted onto Patrick’s face and hands. When I mentioned it to him, Patrick gave me a big smile, and wiped his face/hands onto the sweater he was wearing for the shoot!
He said, “Wardrobe has more sweaters.” If only my mother would have accepted that as an excuse.
Here’s one of the commercials we shot with him:
(2)
Here’s the process we went through to make M&M commercials. First, we filmed the actors and actresses. Next, we recorded the voices of the actors playing the M&Ms. Later, M&M characters were animated and integrated into the film images, creating the final result for the TV commercial.
I worked as a digital effects artist. To make sure we could easily integrate the M&M’s into the scenes, I had to stay close to the camera, director, and talent. If I did my job correctly, I saved the studio a lot of work in post-production.
It was fun! Our work was on national TV and played during the Super Bowl. I was given 10s of pounds of M&M candies, making me very popular with the kids at our church.
A lot of the time we filmed in LA. When we worked outside, or in a public area, large crowds would form. There were beefy, well trained security guards between the onlookers and crew, but people still pushed forward. Trying to get as close as possible to see what was going on.
One thing they all had in common: they were curious.
John Medina’s 12th Brain Rule: ““The greatest Brain Rule of all…is the importance of curiosity.”3
We naturally investigate what we’re curious about. If a group of people is curious about the same thing, such as ‘can we see a celebrity with our own eyes,’ crowds start forming.
If you did a word search for ‘crowd’ in the Gospels, you’ll find it. Even if you narrow it down to ‘great crowd,’ the phrase will still appear almost two dozen times in the ESV translation of the Gospels. Crowds of all sizes followed Jesus during His ministry. They were curious about Him. Who was this humble man who performed miracles, who taught, and who stood up to the religious elite of the day and turned their world upside down?
Jesus is more than a celebrity. He’s God and man. Jesus of Nazareth, God incarnate, walking on the planet. Sounds way more interesting than any celebrities I’ve ever met. No wonder ‘great crowds’ followed Him!
Who wouldn’t want to catch a glimpse of God in the flesh, walking around the planet?
How can we not have a lifelong curiosity about Jesus?
Look again, at Escher’s example. Escher was ever curious, ever on to the next print, ever onto the next technique, ever addicted to the joy of new discoveries. As a result, Escher’s artistic approach morphed over time
- Simple Portraits – Baby (1917)
- Landscapes – Barbarano, Cimino (1929)
- Tessellations – Metamorphosis I (1931) (shown in earlier blog)
- Strange perspectives, such as the print Relativity (1953)
- Approaches to the infinity – Circle Limit I, II, III, IV, and Snakes (shown in earlier blog)
Near the end of his life, Escher stated: “I could fill an entire second life with working on my prints.”4 Escher is the posterchild for Dr. Medina’s twelfth brain rule. He was curious to the end.
What Escher did with his art, we do with Christ.
I am not a child, but I have child-like curiosity for Scripture. The Holy Spirit awakens that desire in us. That is what he does.
The whole Bible is available to help us understand who Jesus is. It can help quell our curiosity. Even the ever-hard-to-read Leviticus! That actually gives great insight into Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. Also what it means for Jesus to be the “High Priest.” There’s always more to discover about this God-man. Always more questions to ask.
Ask why. Seek. Knock. Keep that childish curiosity alive and the answers will come.
(5, 6, 7)
Sources:
- Floor, Television Commercial by Will Vinton Studios. Small portion used. See Use Rational Notes. From personal work January 2001.
- https://youtu.be/D3bHyGe2tjA
- Medina, John J. 2008, Brain rules, 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School, Page 279. Seattle, Washington: Pear Press.
- Locker, J. L. 2000, The Magic of M. C. Escher, Page 49. New York, New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., Publishers.
- Baby, C. Escher. See Use Rational Notes. Retrieved from mcescher.com and wikiart.org on January 15, 2016.
- Barbarano, Cimino, C. Escher. See Use Rational Notes. Retrieved from mcescher.com and wikiart.org on January 15, 2016.
- Relativity, C. Escher. See Use Rational Notes. Retrieved from mcescher.com and wikiart.org on January 15, 2016.