Coke's AI-Generated Holiday Ad: How'd They Do It? (& What Does It Represent?)
My Exclusive Conversation with Creator Eric Shamlin of Secret Level
No need to wake up for your Monday morning “brAIn” dump this week. Your caffeine fix comes from Coca-Cola. Specifically, this week’s “mAIn event” features my exclusive conversation with the creator of that now-famous AI-generated “Holidays Are Coming” Coke polar bear commercial. Next, it’s the “AI video of the week” — featuring new experimental “AI-nimation.” Then, it’s the “mosAIc” — a collage of AI stories & podcasts I curate for you. Finally, the “AI Litigation Tracker” — updates on key generative AI/media cases by McKool Smith (check out the full “Tracker” here).
I. The mAIn Event - Coke: It’s The Real Thing (Only This Time It Isn’t!)
My Conversation with the Creator of That Famous (& Controversial) AI-Generated “Holidays Are Coming” Ad
A few weeks ago, I was a featured speaker at ThinkLA’s big AI-focused event. ThinkLA is a great non-profit organization that serves marketing and media executives. I invited Eric Shamlin, CEO of Secret Level, to join me. Shamlin and his team were the ones who created the iconic AI-generated “Holidays Are Coming” Coke ad that became THE marketing story this past December.
In our “fireside chat,” I asked Eric the story behind it all — i.e., how he and his team conceptualized and executed it — and how consumers and the creative community reacted to it. Suffice it to say that while consumers reacted overwhelmingly positively (the ad was a smash hit), not everyone in the creative community felt the same. According to AdWeek, the ad “went from praise to rage … signaling a wider industry dilemma.” It’s a fascinating discussion that was extremely well-received. Think you’ll get a lot out of it (watch/listen via the link to the video below).
VIDEO CREDIT: Timo Bentley, Bentley Creative Media (thank you Timo !)
II. Video of the Week - “AI-nimation”
Innovative video/film director Paul Trillo and his company Asteria Film Co. created this video — titled "A Love Letter To LA" — in collaboration with LA music artist Cuco and visual artist Paul Flores. Trillo’s mission is to bridge the traditional with the bleeding edge. He tells me that “this project was a perfect example of the convergence done in an ethical way by working with illustrations, 2D animators and training our own models. We believe this hybrid approach is the future of animation.” Check it out and see if you agree (watch by clicking on the video below).
III. The mosAIc — My Curated “Must Read,” “Must Listen” Playlist
(1) Another Great Advertising-Focused Session to Watch
I also recently moderated a marketing-focused “Connected TV & AI” virtual panel that was organized by Will Richmond at VideoNuze. You can watch the full video via this link or via the button below. The expert panel’s expertise is worth checking out (panelists included Albert Lai of Google, Peter Crofut of Wurl, Bharad Ramesh of Aqxle AI, and Marilois Snowman of Mediastruction).
(2) Studio Quality Feature Films for $500K? Yup, That’s What This New AI Studio Says
Pouya Shahbazian, a producer of the “Divergent” franchise, just launched Staircase Studios AI. And that’s his claim. He told The Hollywood Reporter that he aims to produce 30 low budget high quality feature films in the next 3-4 years.
(3) Listen to This Important “Hard Fork” Podcast Episode
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei discusses his hopes and fears for AI technology over the next two years. Fascinating. Sobering.
(4) Listen to My Most Recent Episode of “the brAIn”
It’s an enlightening discussion about how courts will assess damages in generative AI copyright cases.
NOTE: I generated this episode using Google NotebookLM and approve its content. It’s an accurate reflection of the relevant key issues (and my overall analysis).
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IV. AI Litigation Tracker: Updates on Key Generative AI/Media Cases (by McKool Smith)
Partner Avery Williams and the team at McKool Smith (named “Plaintiff IP Firm of the Year” by The National Law Journal) lay out the facts of — and latest critical developments in — the key generative AI/media litigation cases listed below. All those detailed updates can be accessed via this link to the “AI Litigation Tracker”.
The Featured Updates:
(1) The New York Times v. Microsoft & OpenAI
(2) Kadrey v. Meta
(3) In re OpenAI Litigation (class action)
(4) Dow Jones, et al. v. Perplexity AI
(5) UMG Recordings v. Suno
(6) UMG Recordings v. Uncharted Labs (d/b/a Udio)
(7) Getty Images v. Stability AI and Midjourney
(8) Universal Music Group, et al. v. Anthropic
(9) Sarah Anderson v. Stability AI
(10) Raw Story Media v. OpenAI
(11) The Center for Investigative Reporting v. OpenAI
(12) Authors Guild et al. v. OpenAI
NOTE: Go to the “AI Litigation Tracker” tab at the top of “the brAIn” website for the full discussions and analyses of these and other key generative AI/media litigations. And reach out to me, Peter Csathy (peter@creativemedia.biz), if you would like to be connected to McKool Smith) to discuss these and other legal and litigation issues. I’ll make the introduction.
About My Firm Creative Media
My firm and I specialize in market-defining strategy and content licensing for generative AI, breakthrough business development and M&A, and cost-effective legal services in the worlds of media, entertainment, AI and tech.
We represent media companies for generative AI content licensing, with deep relationships and market access, insights and intelligence second to none. Reach out to Peter Csathy at peter@creativemedia.biz to explore working with us.
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