Sarah Hall2013-05-21T12:57:04-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.news.moviefone.com/author/index.php?author=sarah-hallCopyright 2008, HuffingtonPost.com, Inc.HuffingtonPost Blogger Feed for Sarah HallGood old fashioned elbow grease.Viva La (Smartphone?) Revoluciontag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/theblog//3.30647202013-04-19T16:56:07-04:002013-04-19T17:09:39-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/
I've just arrived back in Los Angeles, fresh off the plane from a whirlwind trip to Brazil. Harley and Company was there to talk to venture capital firms, companies and brands about the newly emerging and incredibly complex startup scene in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
The 12-hour, internet-free plane ride gave us ample time for contemplation and led to some words I never thought would come out of my mouth: "Smart phones might be one the biggest social empowerment tools that has ever been invented."
There I said it, and I sort of hate myself for it, but it doesn't make it any less true.
In places like America, many of us take for granted that we walk around every day with a pocket-sized source of limitless information and decision making companion.
Thanks in large part to smart phones, TV networks no longer control what we watch because of streaming. Family, friends and even strangers can find us no matter where we go (if we allow them to). Traffic jams are thwarted, local businesses are made and destroyed on the strength of a Yelp review.
This new paradigm of consumer empowerment has created a ripple effect felt in every part of our society, perhaps the very fabric of our culture. We're now led to believe that what we say about companies or products matters, well, because it does.
The power of crowdsourced review, and the platforms it's created, have shaken the boots (and wallets) of titans in every industry.
We've also democratized the creation and provision of content. We live in a world where anyone can make the next app that ends up in the pocket of millions (perhaps billions). That app could be a distraction from life, could be a photosharing service that changes how we see the world, it could be educational content. We're on a path to creating previously unimaginable efficiencies, from better traffic patterns to robust peer-to-peer share economies.
These thoughts have led me to my latest high-minded fantasy. What if tomorrow one of these guys, who has more money than anyone, ever, will know what do to with decided to give millions of people in Brazil smartphones, broadband access and all the data they could ever use. What would happen?
Now this is not to say we don't have more pressing global concerns like access to education and healthcare. Those, of course, should come first, but can you imagine if this came second or third?
Suddenly people all over Brazil would be able to watch whatever shows or content they wanted, exposing them to new ideas and products. Doctors could use health apps with remote diagnostics on the elderly in rural villages. Children could receive tutoring for entrance exams or learn English, regardless of economic status. The possibilities are truly endless.
Then, of course, there's the rash of unintended consequences that one couldn't even begin to predict, some good and some bad. Maybe thefts would spike or people would sell them for money.
But then again, if you flooded the market the right way, maybe not.]]>Startups, Taking Risks and the Myth of the Edgetag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.22503752012-12-12T18:18:21-05:002013-02-11T05:12:01-05:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/
Unfortunately, not everyone gets to work with startups. Our company interacts with them nearly every minute of the day. Sometimes it's easy to forget that many people don't have the up-close and personal experience with this incredibly dynamic, high-paced section of the workforce. It's a lot of laughs, headaches, tough problems, big choices and many, many wows. While there are some things I would never advocate for anyone to replicate, there are many amazing lessons to be learned from the startup community, a couple of which I want to talk about below. Not every company can be a startup or be like a startup, but every company, every person and every community can implement some aspects of what -- in my humble opinion -- make startups a driving force in creating people who are dreamers, fighters and builders.
Take Risks
We are all too often governed by fear, due to a combination of biology and past experience. We have been programmed to retreat more often than we advance. Our brains create defenses for us to avoid fear, displeasure and dislike. At the same time, a negative past experience can hold us back from trying again. It takes four to five positive experiences to supersede a negative experience. At our core, we are more often professionally risk adverse then we should be. And it's contradictory because we are often able to incorporate extreme risk taking behavior into our personal lives. Think about all the times you stay out too late, date the person you shouldn't and book the vacation you can't quite afford. These are all the types of risks that we take frequently, often with impulsiveness. When it comes to our professional lives, we are less likely to expose ourselves, and act without trepidation and rumination over all possible consequences. We are uncomfortable asking for the raise, nervous about taking a project that we aren't sure we can excel at, and often fail to create company culture where risks are encouraged and rewarded.
This is not usually the case in startups. In fact their cultures are often built around the notion that risk isn't just accepted, it's an inherent part of growth and day-to-day functioning. New is the norm and to try things that you don't know and that haven't been done before is a daily reality. This doesn't mean everyone and everything comes up roses. In fact, there are dangerous consequences to this that often manifest themselves in negative aspects like pompous founders and incoherent strategies. However, I think the negative effects are worth it. Encouraging people to dream big, to try new things, and to constantly improve is something worth building a company culture around. It makes people more resilient and creative both at work and at home.
Finding the Edge
There is a pervasive myth in our society about what we are "capable of" and what we can bear. Sadly, these myths are often based in stories we start creating for ourselves at an early age. "I'm not good at math." "I can't do that because I don't understand it and I would fail." "If I fail it means there is something wrong with me." Without examination, these narratives about our capabilities can evolve into imaginary rules that define our lives. And who wants to be defined by what they think they can't do? These ideas of what we are and what we are not become our edges. They are the places we fear to get too close to lest we step out into empty space and enter into some kind of risk induced free fall.
When you work at a startup, you test your edges daily. You have to learn how to do things because there is no one else at the company who can do them. You have to work longer and harder in circumstances that you never thought you would or could. You have to solve problems that no else has. You have to find that one "big idea" and then you have to get hundreds and maybe millions of people to believe in it with you. Because that's what most of these companies started as, a shared idea. A couple people sitting down and saying, wouldn't it be amazing if there was a way for all of us to create beautiful photos and then share them with each other (Instagram). Or a guy listening to taxi drivers talk in short hand and deciding that it would be a cool way for everyone to communicate (Twitter).
It's a messy, complex, and difficult process, and for each Instagram there are hundreds if not thousands of companies that fail. But on an individual level that doesn't always matter. Even if your company didn't make it, you will often be changed for finding out that the edge was just an illusion. Those places that you and others were afraid to walk were just solid ground. You find out that the closer you got to the things you thought you couldn't handle, the further away they moved. So while everyone else was standing still and trying not to fall, you just kept walking.
Obviously there are many, many more lessons to be learned from startups that are more specific to operations or business strategy, but this isn't the HBR. There are already lots of places where we discuss cultivating demand and rapid product iteration, but (in my opinion) too few places where we talk about taking positive risks and pushing ourselves past our limits. And since it's rapidly approaching that time of year when we all get to imagine the ways we want to be better (New Year's), I hope that some of those resolutions involve giving your family, your employees and yourself permission to do more of what I talked about above. You will be amazed at what will happen when you allow others to try new things and push them into situations that force them outside their comfort zones.
As the esteemed Cecil Beaton once said we must all "be daring, be different, be impractical, be anything that will assert the integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers, the creators of the commonplace, the slaves of the ordinary." Let's make 2013 the year that we walked to all of our edges and beyond.]]>Reputation Capital and the Dawn of the New Era of Credentialingtag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.18528632012-09-04T17:43:50-04:002012-11-04T05:12:01-05:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/
This may all be changing. There is a new cadre of start-ups springing up to help alleviate this "pain point" by providing you with tools to assess and store your "digital" reputational capital. This includes companies like Connect.Me, TrustCloud, TrustRank, Legit and WhyTrusted, which are trying to correlate and analyze this data by building "reputational" APIs. While this concept is interesting, it also creates a whole host of new challenges, raising many questions like:
How do you integrate online reputation building actions with "offline" behaviors? How to they make this new "credentialing" process safe from fraud and hacks? Will third-party players like Etsy and Airbnb make their data accessible for true API integration?
This push into reputational capital analysis and storage is just one small piece of a growing credentialing market, which is primarily focused on employment and education. For far too long, we have relied on static resumes and numbers to represent our abilities and potential. Resumes are imperfect and un-engaging at best, damaging at worst. They do not give any real insight into an applicant's talents or skills. When we send resumes out into the abyss, we typically get little to no feedback in terms of how they were received. This makes it extremely difficult to refine them for more successful outcomes in the future.
The numerous potential pitfalls of the current resume carries huge ramifications. Particularly now, when a large percentage of the population is unemployed and bad hires have a large financial and organizational culture impact. Luckily, this is starting to change and companies like Pathbrite and Seelio are leading the way. They are developing products that enable users to create rich, multimedia "portfolios" showcasing their achievements and skills. These portfolios can then be personalized and shared with potential employers and education institutions, revolutionizing the way we assess, represent and understand our individual and aggregate human capital.
Underlying these beautiful achievement capture and storage machines are rich data insights. Since these portfolios are dynamic, users will be able to see what parts of their achievement and experience resonated with which educational institutions and different types of employers. Companies providing these services will be able to aggregate this data and it will ultimately reveal deep insight into admission and employment trends and outcomes. These aggregate insights will help both individuals and companies to be more successful in the long run.
It's easy to imagine a day when the new employment/education portfolio platform will be as ubiquitous as Facebook. The majority of people will have one and it will change the way that we educate, hire and retain. Some of the most basic and fundamental collective actions we undertake in both imaginable and unimaginable ways.]]>Cannes Lions, Sonic Branding and the Importance of Soundtag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.16183602012-06-26T11:27:04-04:002012-08-26T05:12:05-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/The whir of a fan at night ... The rev of a starting engine ... Your sister's laugh ... The sound of your father's steps on the stairs
These make up the soundtrack to our lives, as much, if not more so, than our favorite songs. They orient us to the things we remember, the people we love and the experiences that have defined us. They are part of a language that we never forget.
Like it or not, brands are as much a part of our life's landscape as anything else. Our memories of our grandmothers are linked to the Oreos they fed us on holidays. There are certain airlines that will always make us think of coming home. A particular Gap shirt reminds us of that guy/girl we fell in love with one hot summer in July.
When we think about these brands, we usually think of the product or the service -- the color of the Coke can, the taste of a Peep, the feel of the airplane seat against the back of your legs. What we don't think of as readily, but what is also always present, is the sound of the brand. The song from that iconic Pepsi commercial, the pinging sound your Mac makes as it fires up, the clicking of the blinker on your old Ford as you signal right. These are equally, if not more important, than the visual cues that usually come to mind first.
There are a small number agencies in the marketing world that work or even dabble in the business of sound. One of few that does, and arguably one of the best, is MassiveMusic. More than 10 years ago, this agency had its genesis at Cannes, after the repeated success of its opening night party. It is now one of the most coveted events of the week. The agency also usually take home a few awards. This year MassiveMusic is entered in Film Craft for Best Use of Music for Fiat "Get Ready," as well as Sound Design and Editing. It also worked on a beautiful film with Fitzgerald & Co for Bulwark titled 451º, which is entered in several categories.
What's interesting about the agency is that it has found incredible success in something we often overlook. Yes, it matters what something looks like and feels like, but just as importantly, it matters what it sounds like. As Elijah Torn, their creative director describes it,
"Sound is such an important aspect of all of our lives. This becomes even more apparent as everything in our lives is becoming digital. Shutter sounds on digital cameras let us know that our memories are being captured even though there isn't a mechanical connection. Certain frequencies -- such as that of the human voice can resonate more deeply and convey their message more clearly. With music we can have a enhanced memory recall -- music puts us in a specific place. Tying the proper music and sound design to a brand can then extend this is into our daily lives. Instead of only being thirty seconds of someone's daily life from a web or television commercial, you create a sense of familiarity, comfort and of course a direct memory."
This "sonic branding" reminds us of the importance of sound. A sense that we can sometimes forget about when we are so caught up in the acts of seeing and feeling. Hearing is hard-wired to our emotions and sound can allow us to experience things with a depth that wouldn't otherwise be present. Just imagine a day at the sea without the music of the waves hitting the shore. What would it be like to be more conscious and connected to the things we hear? Maybe we should all try it out. At some point today stop what we are doing, the same way we would pause to take in a view, and just...listen.]]>A Road Trip Of A Lifetimetag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.15343992012-05-29T07:30:00-04:002012-07-29T05:12:04-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/
If you're like me, your first road trip was over a decade and a half ago. It took place before cell phones and GPS. You made it in a car that was well past it's prime but completely loved, irreverently named and covered in high school sport and band stickers.
You got lost often, but it didn't matter because you knew what to do: pull over at gas stations in small towns and flag down passing cars or spread maps over hoods that were smoking hot because while the cruise control on your 1985 Camry still worked, the cooling system didn't.
You still possessed that magic ability to be exactly where you were: in the moment. You weren't worried about work emails, updating your Facebook status or checking neurotically to see if that guy you like texted you back. When something amazing happened, you wrote it down. Or you took pictures of it with a disposable camera, knowing that you would be reminded of those moments next winter when you finally got around to picking up your prints at CVS.
I miss those days, and I've always regretted never having some people as my co-pilot, especially my sister. At five years my junior, she was always too young -- and by the time she was old enough, I had moved on to other parts of the country and occasionally the world. She often came to visit and sometimes to live. We traveled around by bus, plane and train, but never by car.
Last month I got to change that. My sister and I spent the weekend in California, driving around the hills of Napa in a car that quickly became the third member of our road trip. Betsy, as we named her, was the new Ford Escape. We quickly realized she was smarter than the two of us combined and probably could have driven herself there while we drank wine in the back seat. The dashboard computer synced to all our technology, the trunk opened when you kicked under it and the side mirrors lit up when there was something in your blind spot -- feature we quickly decided we wanted for our lives.
It was a short three-day trip to celebrate a milestone. Six months earlier, my sister took a ride on a very different set of wheels: a hospital bed. Thousands of miles from the green hills of Napa, I watched her slip through the operating room doors so that her left kidney could be removed and given to my father, effectively saving his life.
It is to this day, and maybe for the rest of my life, one of the most incredible things I've seen one person do for another is give a piece of oneself so that someone else can live. I didn't qualify as a donor. I didn't have to have surgery, all I had to do was hold my mother's hand and watch. But even though it wasn't me, it's changed my life.
It's made me realize how important journeys are, and how little destinations matter if you love every minute of how you got there. It's shown me how silly we all are, running around, worried about the imagined, allowing our fear of the unexpected and the uncontrollable to make our lives smaller than they ever should be. I've learned what real risk looks like and how some people answer the question: What would you do for the people that you love?
We live in difficult times. Aliens for president, a stagnant economy and a job market that slopes the same way as the hills that run down into San Francisco. There isn't a big fix for all of our problems, but there are little ones like taking someone that you love on a drive, rolling the window down and putting on your favorite song. Laughing and talking as the road unfurls itself below you. Remembering that how you get there, and who you get there with, can be just as important as the places you end up.]]>I Went Country Music Speed Dating With Keith Urban... and I Liked Ittag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.14282232012-04-16T14:42:39-04:002012-06-16T05:12:01-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/ The Location: a massive arena in Nashville. The Attire: someone else's cowboy boots. The Beverage: 24 oz Bud light lime. The Line Up: All the best group acts in country that are still breathing, although I'm fairly confident Keith and Vince may have figured out how to resurrect people from the dead based on the age of some of the performers. The Cause:The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.
The concert was a three hour revolving door of country acts. Each band performed two songs, and then it was on to the next, the equivalent of auditory speed dating. The exception to this being Keith Urban and Vince Gill, who never left the stage. This was the exact opposite of what it might sound like. In a move refreshingly devoid of ego, Vince and Keith spent three hours just playing back-up guitar for all the other bands. Can you imagine some other major stars, say Mick Jagger, spending three hours singing back-up vocals for Adele and Paul Simon? I don't think so.
This reflects something about country music when it's at its best. It is accessible, and it is real. As Michael McCall, one of the historians from the Hall of Fame, said, these aren't songs about life as we would like it to be, these are songs about life as it is. The lyrics of country music are stories of heartbreak and small towns, of high schools crushes and hard times -- of nights where we drink too much, and the way we feel when we fall in love. It's the soundtrack to life in many parts of America, and it's all there in the lyrics of Jimmie Rogers and the chords of Vince Gill.
If the songs are our stories, the instruments are our ancestors. There are mandolins from Ireland and Italy that came to the music by way of porches in old mountain towns. There are steel guitars, first made in California, and strummed alongside banjos from Africa, set to the beat of a Texas drum. When you combine these influences and instruments, just like when you combine the countries of our grandparents and great grandparents, it produces a sound that's wholly unique and completely American.
It might seem ironic that one of the two organizers of this concert is Australian, but I couldn't think of anyone more perfect. Although he wasn't born an American, through country music Keith Urban has become one. This is because country music, like America, is where a guy from Australia can find his voice and make a name for himself. He can move to Nashville with a demo and a dream. He can make mistakes, he can stumble, and he can fall. He can pick himself back up and build a life on hope and hard work. There is nothing more American than that.
Sure, country music isn't everyone's cup of tea, but if you dismiss it entirely you're missing the point. We are the sum of our parts. We are the diverse and eclectic places that we came from, and we all carry within us the stories of the little towns many of us have called home.
If you want to hear stories about where in America we came from, listen to country music. If you want to learn where country music came from, go to the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville.
If you want to go speed dating with Keith Urban... well for that one, you're on your own. ]]>The True Story Behind The Hunger Gamestag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.13849692012-03-28T12:52:58-04:002012-05-28T05:12:02-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/The Hunger Games is already breaking box office records. It's the new heir to the young adult fiction throne. Katniss has completely kicked Bella's ass in the teen heroine department. To use an old Sheenism, Suzanne Collins probably has her feet up on a solid gold ottoman and is yelling "WINNNNNINGGG".
Or maybe not.
What Suzanne Collins has done with The Hunger Games is something subtle, remarkable, and hopefully, intentional. She has created and executed one of the most exquisitely crafted, mass entertainment social commentaries in recent years. She has shattered the invisible force field and broken out of the arena. The question is, who is going to follow her?
Those of you who have not read the book are probably wondering what the hell I am talking about. Those of you who have read it might be wondering the same thing.
Either way, let's quickly recap what happened.
First Collins wrote us a world that in many not so distant ways echoes our own. But she changed all the names, gave us an unusually kick ass female heroine, and put the book in the young adult section to throw us off the trail.
But regardless of what you call the places or the people, the themes were the same.
- Class inequity
- Food shortages
- Insufficient education + training
- Population control through imports/exports
- Threat of nuclear war
- People from other districts, or maybe we should call them ethnic groups, fighting to survive
Then she wrapped these themes up in a story about a shining Capitol filled with silly people who only concern themselves with frivolous things. They never have to worry about their children starving or having to make unthinkable decisions in order to survive. These Capitol people even turn the sufferings of others into entertainment.
Finally, with the perfect environment created, Collins stepped back because she knew that we would automatically do the rest. Take this story about suffering for entertainment and turn it into into further entertainment. A movie and a franchise that will earn millions of dollars while people around the world play hunger games every day to survive.
The question is would we notice? Like some of her characters would we just keep playing the game as if the rules were unchangeable or like Peeta would we see things for what they were and rebel. How far would we go to emulate Katniss and the other heroes of the books? How much of the meaning would we acknowledge?
Let's hope that this will become something more than people flocking to learn archery and visit North Carolina. That people will realize that to emulate Katniss it isn't enough to be as strong or as smart as the boys. That to really be like her, you have to fight for people who don't have what you have and refuse to play into an unjust and broken system.
The majority of the people who can afford to read the book and see the movie will probably never experience chronic hunger or the life and death choices that Katniss is forced to make. However, what we don't experience we can at least understand. This is no fantasy story, this is real. Every day people around the world are forced make the choices that Katniss makes. Many of them are her age and younger, making it all the more tragic. Children and young teenagers must fight like Katniss fights and die like her friends die.
We can't change all these people's circumstances, at least not immediately. However, we can effect some of them and what we can't effect we can witness. Their choices and their lives can remind us that there are greater tragedies than being left off birthday invitation lists and not getting to go to prom with the boy that you like. We can continuously remember that The Hunger Games are real and we all play them every day, some as citizens and some as district members. We can believe that change is possible if we are willing to risk the status quo. ]]>Surviving St. Paddy's FAQ: Leprechauns, Getting Lucky and Pint Pouring tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.13471582012-03-16T10:25:04-04:002012-05-16T05:12:01-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/
We thought you might have some of the same burning questions we had about that special day so we compiled all our research for you in a green-themed FAQ. Clark and Sarah will be celebrating this magical holiday in Ireland so be sure to check out our behind the scenes of the parade and the festival instagramming @revlmassive and tag us your own candids #getgreen.
How do I find a Leprechaun?
In addition to looking for the perfect parade viewing spot, you may be wondering "how do I find a leprechaun." I know we were. Given that we had no idea how to go about this, we spent at least ten minutes searching the Internet and compiled the best advice we found for you.
Step One: The Equipment -- Find a net or build a trap
According to some website for Moms, you should build a trap and then decorate it with green stickers and glitter. This lead Sarah to wonder if many of the girls who went out on St Paddy's were walking Leprechaun traps. Alternatively, you could just get a big butterfly net, like a REALLY BIG ONE, and put some Lucky Charms under it to lure the little man in. Although we were a little concerned about this approach considering that with the amount of beer consumed someone might get confused and trap a small child. It's easy to do seeing as how they also like lucky charms, are short, and enjoy wearing green.
Step Two: The Finding -- Look for tracks/ Check near lawn gnomes
Apparently Leprechauns leave small doll sized prints or other types of tracks. Think Chucky but with more money involved. What you want to do is follow the tracks and keep your eyes peeled. If you are anywhere that has nature or a bar crawl, they tend blend in on account of all that green. We read that one place to check is near lawn gnomes. This is because sometimes Leprechauns get confused and start talking to lawn gnomes thinking that they are real gnomes. Can you blame them? It's happened to the best of us.
How do I get Lucky?
Not only is St. Paddy's a celebration of all things green, it's also a day of courtship. It's spring and in addition to the daffodils, libidos are emerging. It's that celebrated time of year when young men put on shamrock pants and women squeeze into green baby tees. We'd like to say that on St. Paddy's there is someone for everyone, but that would be a lie. Just like any other day, there can still be some stiff competition.
So how do you make yourself stand out? Don't worry, we got you. Nothing gets the ladies, or sometimes the men, going like a demonstration of athletic prowess. You will not have enough room in the public house for a good rugby tackle so go for second best. Yes! The Riverdance!
The problem with Riverdance is it's trickier than it looks. Try getting more ups than Michael Jordan while kicking yourself in the ass. Clark did and hasn't been walking the same since.
Before performing this maneuver you are going to want to check the following things:
- Is the ceiling high enough? Concussions sustained from doing the Riverdance pogo stick are only going to slow you down.
- Do your shoes have good traction? The floor is going to have some serious spillage at this point. Make sure whatever you have on your feet is up to the challenge.
What do I do if the barman goes down and I have to pour the perfect pint for hordes of screaming people wearing green?
So there you are, waiting for your pint when suddenly your bartender slips on a puddle of Jameson the size of the Atlantic and goes down like a sack of potatoes. What do you do? Your internal dialogue is screaming "MUST GET PEOPLE PINTS" so you grab the person next to you and use them to help you vault over the bar. However, upon arriving at the draft beer taps you are dismayed to realize you have no idea how to operate this thing.
How to Pour the Perfect Pint (appended from a great video tutorial courtesy of the Guinness Storehouse)
1 - Grab the Right Damn Glass
First of all make sure it's clean and not a shot glass. If you can find the one that makes your beer look like it's in a corset -- aka the tulip glass -- you are golden.
2 - It's All About Angles and Percentages
Remember your protractor? You are going to want to employ those geometry skills by holding your beer at a 45 degree angle to the tap. Fill the beer up about 3/4 of the way or until you get to about the harp thingy if you are using an actual Guinness Glass.
3 - Take a Time Out
We know, everyone looks like if they don't get their beer soon it might be the end of the world as they know it. Tell them to RELAX because this beer is going to need to settle for about two minutes. Explain that like their exes, the nitrogen bubbles will be trying to get back with the rest of the beer. Eventually, they will be DENIED and forced to chill at the top.
4 - Finishing Touches
Now that everything is settled, top that puppy off by adding some more beer until the top looks like a dome. Now hand it over to some happy person in green and high five yourself for a job well done.
Where do I go if I suddenly have some extra green prior to St. Paddy's Day?
Go to Switzerland. Just kidding. Go to Ireland, duh. Some people like to say that Americans invented the debauchery that surrounds St. Patrick's Day. That's probably true, but who cares. Whoever invented it, the Irish are now better at celebrating than we are. This is probably due to the fact that they have actual Irish people at their parties and access to places that make things like Guinness and Jameson. It's a no brainer. Should you find yourself with some spare green, head over there and join the festivus (and Clark and Sarah) to celebrate in high Irish style.

If you can make it, come find us and we can do things like this together:
Get on a parade float shaped like a shamrock
Throw green potatoes at each other
Get our Guinness Storehouse Festivus on
Trick each other into eating black pudding
See you in the green! And if you can't make it watch our behind the scenes on instagram @revlmassive and hashtag your instagram photos with #getgreen so we can see you.
]]>Mouth to Mouth Resuscitation Needed: Watching the Oscars 2012tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.13040712012-02-27T20:48:06-05:002012-04-28T05:12:01-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/
multiple camera angles on an iOS app;
a hottie playing the electric violin; and Emma Stone acting like a normal person even though she had a fabric parrot on her shoulder.
Yeah, we know it was pretty exciting when Sacha Baron Cohen threw the contents of his vacuum cleaner on Ryan Seacrest and pretended it was a dead dictator... but that's just not enough. Everything about the Oscars this year left us wanting more or at least the split screen function so we could simultaneously watch the all star game.
Making the Oscars better, or at least watchable, isn't that complicated. We think that with three adjustments, the Academy could make 2013 a better award show place for all of us.
1. Stop talking about their dresses already.
We are so over talking about what everyone is wearing. It takes everything the people (particularly the women) have worked for their entire careers and reduces it to something Mario Lopez could drink with a hot orange swirly straw. Next year let's even the playing field. Attention Hollywood, forget the designer outfit and wrap yourself in a bed sheet. That way no one can judge you on physicalities. Just think how fulfilling it would be to take the focus off your upper arms and put it back on your career.
Alternatively we could turn the Oscars into a costume party. We think awards shows might be more entertaining if they were themed. Clark suggested everyone come dressed like a Dragon, but that doesn't make any sense and it's probably due to the bottle of wine he had to consume to stay awake. And by awake we mean surfing the consumer reports app for a new dishwasher.
2. What award is this? Tell me, then give me a reason to care.
There are only about four awards that people remember. Take some of that "movie industry" creative genius and find some way to make everything else relevant, or don't put it on prime time TV.
We're sorry, but let's be honest, half the time we weren't sure what award was being presented. It's like WTF could Transformers possibly have in common with Drive, definitely not chiseled cheek bones. Clark kept yelling out "it's Harry Potter," which was clearly some kind of apathy induced Oscars Tourettes. Of course most of the time the unrecognizable award went to Hugo. What was that movie anyway? After it won 318 times, we were left wondering if maybe we shouldn't just forget about this debacle on ABC and head straight to the Clearview cinema for a late night Hugo viewing.
3. A little less country club and little more dive bar.
What's with the orchestra and the bow ties? This thing might be more interesting and/or relatable if we bring it down a little. Things to consider for next year: work in some starched jeans and PBR on tap. Sound a little like the Country Music Awards? Whatever, at least we were able to sit through those without texting our exes out of a desperate attempt to entertain ourselves. The best part of this Oscars (the only thing they should expand on) were the montages where actors talked and dressed like normal, accessible people. They effectively broke down the importance of film, told us what inspired them, and why they made a commitment to a project that 99 times out of 100 wouldn't come to fruition.
Their inspiration and their passion is something we can all relate to. It's not the million dollar necklaces combo'd with the perfectly constructed side pony tails that represent why we love movies. The Oscars should be just as captivating and entertaining as the movies it celebrates. The people who are recognized should be just as accessible and diverse in thought and appearance as the characters from the stories we love. ]]>NYFW: Desperately Seeking (and Kind of Finding) Substancetag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.12844512012-02-17T12:32:06-05:002012-04-18T05:12:01-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/
Hi haters. That's right, we know fashion week has some serious haters. Sarah was one of them on Friday night. After an excess of poorly prepared vodka sodas and confrontational encounters with power tripping door folks, Sarah had THE Fashion Week meltdown. Luckily, she bounced back so that she and Clark could continue their NYFW treasure hunt for all wonderful, shiny things of substance (or utility). We bet you are scoffing right now and thinking we didn't find anything meaningful/useful in a land of weird outfits worn by underage girls. WRONG. We found AT LEAST five...
The State of Style Summit presented by Ford, Stylecaster and 92yTribeca
Attending this series of panels, held as a kickoff event for NYFW, felt like a mental massage before the big race. We loved pondering topics like the anatomy of fashion while listening to the moderator use lots of swear words. We also spent some serious QT with Anthony Prozzi, senior interior designer at Ford, learning about the design DNA of the new Ford Fusion. Yes, we realize this is an article about fashion week but forget clothes, your car (assuming you don't live in NYC) is one of the most expensive accessories you can buy. Plus, you wear it practically every day. After talking to him, we were hooked on the car and the fact that Ford is turning itself into an American lifestyle brand focused on sustainability, smart technology and uncompromising design. We wish the rest of our closet was doing that, too.
The Gen Art Show
Move over stuffy weird plated dinners with irrelevant celebrities, there is a new kid in philanthropy town. Gen Art is making a strong push to incorporate social causes into its events, thanks in large part to their CEO Marc Lotenberg. For NYFW, they partnered with Crest to create a showcase for new designers hosted by the luminous Emmanuelle Chriqui and benefiting Raise Hope for Congo. We loved that Gen Art didn't employ the traditional move of tacking the cause onto the show as an afterthought. At this event, Raise Hope for Congo was front and center. They also had what was, in Sarah's opinion, the best thing that happened on any catwalk all week. First out of the gate were five super models wearing t-shirts that will be sold to benefit the charity and beautiful smiles. They were the first women we saw who looked normal and happy, probably because they were promoting a better life for people, not an asymmetrical hemline.
Future Fortified Dinner
The other cause/FW pairing we loved was Future Fortified, which hosted a dinner to bring greater exposure to their very important mission of promoting better nutrition for women and children. The room was packed with fascinating people, and we got some delicious food thanks to Top Chef Texas contestant, Ty-Lör Boring. At the dinner, it wasn't just the vitamin/nutrient packets that everyone got a lesson on. Sarah also noticed several of the women around her learning something she'd already picked up at Sundance: if it's a tasting menu, take it easy on the wine. Two bits of monkfish cannot protect you from the relentless onslaught of alcohol. After dinner, we had a few minutes to talk with the head of the Future Fortified campaign, Adrianna Logalbo, who shared with us why we should care about this issue. "Good nutrition is the game changer... it puts children on the right path to be able to grow and learn and thrive".
Porsche Design Store
Most of the other men's fashions we saw were a strange attempt to make the male race sexually attractive to aliens -- not the case here. There wasn't a repurposed seat cover in sight. Instead, we saw a parade of great casual wear. New motto: if you can't cover yourself in a Porsche 911, you might as well wrap yourself up in one of their expertly-tailored leather coats. We also loved the DJ, Alexandra Richards, who was a welcome relief after too many nights of music that sounded like a rave and the top 40 were trying to make a baby.
Free Cabs
Finally, someone got it right, Glamour Magazine and L'Oreal. We don't need free dry shampoo that smells like a magical bouquet. We need things like free cab rides. There are very few times in life when people give you useful SWAG (Shit We All Get). Usually, they give you things that THEY want you to want. It's difficult to adequately express our delight at rounding the corner in front of the Standard to find very lovely Glamour Magazine women who offered us a free cab ride to anywhere in the city. All we had to do was take a picture (as seen above). Naturally,we insisted that we lie on the hood of the cab for maximum effect, much to the delight of the cab driver. Then we were whisked off to our new location while being serenaded with advertisements about some kind of lipstick thing that Clark was oddly not tempted to buy. Yeah, sure, it was shameless product promotion, but here's to a brand actually doing something nice for us while they blanket us in commercial messaging. ]]>NYFW: Art Plus Analytics = Who the F Knows?tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.12816172012-02-16T14:58:19-05:002012-04-17T05:12:01-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/Imagine a world where...
Picasso checked his Klout score daily
The Rolling Stones were signed because of their YouTube views
Hemingway got a book deal because people "liked" his short stories.
We don't know if the increasing overlap between art and web analytics is making culture better or worse. Either way, we wish more people were talking about it. We first started thinking about this dilemma in the context of fashion week after being exposed to the MADE app, created by Milk. This new "must have" fashion app makes it possible for people to download the latest trends/looks while sitting courtside at the runway and then email/share/like them. Apparently this is a great utility for fashion editors, who previously had to partake in A to Z shenanigans involving all types of outdated methods (email, phone, picture sharing) to get a hold of their favorite designs.
An unanticipated output of the app is all the data it's capturing when fashionistas/editors/onlookers start interacting with the designs the minute they hit the runways. It's a whole new world where suddenly people see the outfit on the catwalk and BAM, designers get instant feedback. As Mazdack Rassi ,the creative director from Milk, noted at a panel, the response of designers to the data has been varied. While some have been anxious to see it, other have specifically asked him not to share. Mr Rassi didn't seem to have a particular position on the designers response or the use of the data. We were hoping he was going to hit us with some sweet words of cultural guidance. That didn't happen and we were left feeling a little like our Dad just told us to set our own curfew.
Never ones to not try something, Clark and Sarah decided to take that app for a test drive. After attempting to download it numerous times, finally succeeding, then being trapped in a closet turned runway, we still weren't convinced. The app is very neat and probably pretty useful, but we were still wondering where the responsibility lies with all this data it's collecting. Let's be clear, we aren't suggesting that the app creators are completely accountable for how it's used. We just hope that someone is driving this bus, not just putting a brick on the gas pedal and hoping we don't hit anything.
Here's our thinking. As we rapidly approach a point where we can collect data on pretty much anything, it's important that we are thoughtful about how it's going to be used and who it's going to be used by. It's not that it can't be freely available, but if it is, we should probably have a conversation about the affect it could or is having. Not that anyone asked us, but we'd like to throw that into the panel suggestion box for next year. What happens when you integrate consumer preferences and large scale feedback into the creation of art and culture? What do we gain and what do we lose? ]]>Why NYC Fashion Week Is Just Like Your High School Cafeteriatag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.12734342012-02-14T10:13:26-05:002012-04-15T05:12:01-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/Teen Mom, they found Fashion Week. After countless shows, parties and events that we didn't understand, but went to anyway, we started to realize that we were stuck in an adolescent time warp.
It matters where you sit. Fashion shows have assigned seating. High school cafeterias basically do as well. Are you sitting with the cool kids or are you a solo sitter? Are you at the table nearest to the door or are you wedged next to the fry station? A big fashion show win is to get seated in the front row. You can either allow them to place you there or you can employ Clark's move: go rogue and sit where you want. If you sit in the front row you can make sure everyone is looking at you while you preen, plus it's easier to take pictures. The drawback: when you start laughing hysterically because the models have spray painted halos on their heads, everyone can see you. Sarah actually preferred standing, it felt more rebellious and little like skipping lunch all together to smoke cigarettes in the bathroom. It also allowed for a quick exit and easy access to the bar.
Everyone is staring at you. Remember how you thought everyone in high school was looking at you, even when you weren't stoned? It's that paranoia that always seems to accompany adolescence. Everything you think, do, and say is the center of the universe. Fashion week is just like that. Every time you walk into the room half the people in it give you the hairy eyeball. That dreaded covert eye flick accompanied by a completely neutral facial expression that 16-year-olds all over the world seem to have perfected. The kind of glance that send chills down your spine and has you wondering if your left shoe is waving a white tepee flag across the floor.
It's all about the buzz. The cafeteria food line and the runway have more than a little overlap. Remember how it was the first place to hear what "everyone is talking about"? Gossip, buzz and hype are just as prevalent along the runways at fashion week. We can't tell you how many times we heard things like the following. "Is she serious with that outfit?" "I can't believe Lindsay Lohan did that at the AMFAR dinner." Nothing's changed.
It matters who you know. Remember this scene? It's lunch period on Friday. You heard Dougie is having an amazing party at his house while his parents are in Myrtle Beach. You thought Sue might invite you because you were besties in 7th grade. You thought wrong. If you want to go to Dougie's party you better show your credentials or somehow prove to Sue that you are going to up her cool factor. As if that was even possible, she already shops at Contempo Casual instead of the Limited Too. Fashion week = Friday lunch period. There are places you are going to want to go if you want to remain socially "relevant" but unless the cool kids invite you can forget it. The saving grace, unlike high school there is some rational adult part of yourself that remembers that you really didn't want to go there anyway.
It's full of social castes. NYC Fashion week is full of complex, daunting social intricacies that in many ways are just like high school. Missing the head cheerleader? Look no further than Anna Wintour. Everyone love/hates her and she's the coolest girl in the room. You want to sit near her, but you would never actually talk to her because she'd probably make fun of your jeans. Plus there is no way in hell she is inviting you to her party on Friday night. What about the varsity football players? Oh don't worry, they are there too. Except now they all work the door at New York's most exclusive night clubs. You know the ones where you perform all manner of demeaning acts to enter, only to get in and realize it's the worst place on earth. Art nerds. Check. Now creative directors and designers, they have moved from sticking things in the hall display cases to pinning them on people.
Sure, the cafeteria factor is just one aspect of fashion week. There are plenty of hidden gems that come in the form of great outfits, funny PR girls and people who seemed to have accidentally wandered into the wrong event. Hell, we even saw a few of our fan favorites from Sundance. This was obviously our least favorite part and while "we joke, we joke" let's get real about something. Fashion week is interesting and does add some value in respect to art, design and self expression. The problem with all the unpleasant social politics that get layered over the top is it takes away from what the experience should be about. No one really wants to go back to high school, unless as Sarah's sister likes to say you "peaked too early." It was an awkward time when many people were tormented just so a few other people could feel better about themselves. Forcing people to relive that social trauma shouldn't be linked to what we will all be wearing in six months. So we hope that next year, smiling, accessibility and substance become the new top trends in fashion.]]>Who Cares About Sundance? You Shouldtag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.12391312012-01-28T15:08:31-05:002012-03-29T05:12:01-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/
Clark and Sarah thought they would find their Sundance inspiration in the movie seats, and sometimes we did. We also found a couple naps and some stale popcorn. What we didn't expect was to have a microcosm of the Sundance experience, night after night, at dinner tables around town. People think Sundance is about the films, and they are sort of right, but mostly wrong. Sundance is about the experience of being with people who are recognized for telling their own stories and who are celebrated for the things they are most passionate about. That's the gift of Sundance, and we saw it play out every night over shared meals.
Luckily there was plenty of dining to go around, thanks to a new(ish) trend at the festival, the Supper Club. Clark and Sarah attended at least four of these spreads prepared by famous chefs for the independent film glitterati. Our hands down "I would eat here every night" favorite was the Ford/SHFT/W Hotel event that focused on sustainability. Ironically, this was probably the one Sarah wanted to attend least. It was her last night of the Sundance marathon and the two block walk from the car mostly consisted of her using her butt as a sled. But that all changed about five minutes after walking through the doors.
Every detail of the event was thought provoking and considered, from the little recycled denim envelope her menu came in to the food. These details are important because they created a seamless experience that provoked conversation around sustainability at every turn. It also showcased the passions and commitments of the organizers. This wasn't just a case of a brand slapping its name on an event. There was a clear commitment on behalf of Ford towards creating sustainable products and changing consumer behaviors. We also saw this passion for a cause at the Elle/Lanmark/Moroccan Oil event, which used their dinner as an opportunity to put the spotlight on women in film. As Pat Mitchell, President and CEO of the Paley Center for Media, recently perfectly articulated, this is something we should all get behind.
Like the Ford/SHFT/W Hotel event, Sundance is a larger experience that is more than just the sum of its parts. Seen from the outside, Sundance is just a bunch of movies, some brands and the people who flock to this snowy Utah town. But when you put everything together, just as when you combine ordinary ingredients into your favorite dish, some alchemy takes place. People are better just for being here. Sundance creates a space that provokes conversations around important issues ranging from sustainability to how we reconcile the imperfections of the people we love.
We know we already gifted you some fantastic snow pants, but we'd like to give you one more thing before we go... a little piece of Sundance. In this often difficult, reality TV saturated, shitty economic time there are still places where thousands of people can come together to be inspired. If you peel back the glitz, over the top branding and weird A-list movie stars in leggings, one of those places is here. ]]>Get Your Sundance Swag On: Sarah and Clark's Top Pickstag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.12342302012-01-26T16:02:48-05:002012-03-27T05:12:01-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/Look what we got you at Sundance! OK, not really. We intended to bring you home one of everything we came across, but we couldn't afford the extra baggage fee when we tried to get on the airplane. Instead, we are linking you to our favorite products/people/organizations from Sundance through a new social shopping site that benefits great causes. That way if you want to get your purchase on, you will be doing some good while you do your credit card some bad.
Sarah's Swag Bag
Sorel Boots -- Sarah literally doesn't ever want to take these off. Everyone should own a pair. They are warm and they are comfortable. They work with leggings, jeans and dresses. But most importantly, they saved her from busting her ass about 837 times a day.
A snowboarding lesson with Danny Kass -- He was adorable with little kids, only laughed at us a little bit and was endlessly patient. At one point, probably out of pity, Danny also showed Sarah how you snowboard in tandem. It involved riding directly behind her so he could carry her entire body weight while going a million mph down the slope. Snowplay beats foreplay!
Sean Jean Jacket -- Who even knew he made jackets for women? Sarah usually hates these coats because she looks like a stay puff marshmallow of an indeterminate gender. Not the case in this one. It belts, so she actually has a waist. It's also light and form fitting.
Oakley Snow Pants -- Sarah's obsessed with these. They are black and lie low on your hips. She got hit on because of them at least three times, so they must be flattering. Who gets hit on in snow pants? They also went the distance when she was rolling around on the ground every two seconds as she fell down the bunny slope.
Illegal Mezcal -- Clark and Sarah had this at one of the parties they attended. It was so smooth, Sarah put a couple bottles in her purse. She probably shouldn't admit that. The aged one was perfect for the martini they had that night, and the bloody marys they made their house mates the next morning.
Veuve Clicquot's Fresh Beauty Bag -- Sarah loves Fresh. The stuff smells amazing and they always have good product ideas. Sarah particularly liked the roll on perfume that came in the beauty bag and was based on the scent of champagne. It made her feel saucy and let's be honest, who doesn't want to smell like a bottle of bubbly.
Clark's Swag Bag
Issey Miyake Sport -- Clark scored this manfume on the way out of some dinner party. He immediately sprayed it on himself and got great reviews for the rest of the night. We tried to spread the love by re-gifting the body wash at the Bing Bar, but oddly no one was in the mood for a shower.
Tout.com -- This is a new social video network that had a video booth at the festival. They are totally integrated into FB and Twitter, which makes everyones' life easier and potentially more embarrassing. We made a great one of Clark whipping his hair back and forth while doing full leg extensions on the dance floor. Get some.
Chopin Vodka -- This vodka was featured at the Fender Lodge and it was oh so smooth going down. Most vodkas these days think that branching out means creating flavors like pink dingleberry and raspberry dazzleberry. We like the fact that Chopin was keeping it classy and simple with it's single ingredient rye, wheat and potato vodkas.
Hail Merry -- We think we had three meals in the first four days of Sundance. Part of Clark's technique for survival was stuffing packets of these delicious treats into his pockets and pulling them out at completely inappropriate moments to snack on. We don't know about the whole vegan thing, but these snacks may be the first step in a long road to winning us over.
Fuck Cancer -- We love philanthropy and we were really excited to see this cause at Sundance. They do amazing work around cancer education and early detection. You can never have too much of a good thing like that. Plus we just like to say the word fuck. ]]>Sundance and the Battle of the Brandstag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.12300192012-01-25T14:30:10-05:002012-03-26T05:12:01-04:00Sarah Hallhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-hall/
Search engines vs. directors
Sundance vs. beverage companies
It's not just the movies that square off at The Sundance Film Festival, the big brands and the festival itself are in the ring facing off too.
Walking down Main Street in Park City during the dance can feel a little like taking a stroll down a freezing cold, snowy mall. Brands throw up all over you. You have the Bing Lounge, the VEVO PowerStation and T-Mobile's Village at the Lift just to name a few. Behind each of these doors is an oasis from the cold where you will be given free stuff and plied with alcohol. If you're lucky, you might even be able to sit on a couch next to a quasi-celebrity and complain about the crowds together. This is, of course, assuming you can get in. If you aren't a celebrity, press or someone with an amazing talent for bullshit, chances are you won't be going past Door #1.
Clark and I have visited the majority of these places, and it's been quite the experience. We tried on boots with Common in a lounge. We ate weird meatballs with Ron Livingston at some bar. Clark got really excited about that because he loves Office Space. Sarah got really excited about it because she loves Sex and the City. Neither one of us knew what the other was talking about. We got force fed chocolate Cream of Wheat with a celebrity whose name we didn't recognize and can't remember. Apparently, she won an Oscar. We wanted to talk to her, but got distracted by some sheets with naked scuba diving women wearing pearls on them. They were simply amazing.
We also saw some films. Good movies and not so good movies. Luckily, Sarah had practiced the face she talked about. She was confronted with a director of a movie that made her eyeballs ache. Somehow, she managed to make her face look un-offended and tell him he did a great job. Regardless of whether we liked the movie, all of the filmmakers and actors we have met have been one of a kind. They are like five-year-olds at Christmas, and just being near them feels like standing in the sun.
After seeing both sides of Sundance, we think that the dynamic of Festival vs. Brands produces less than desirable results. There are a few brands that officially sponsor Sundance, but most don't. The lack of affiliation is not ideal for many reasons. Sundance is a nonprofit with an amazing mission, and it needs financial support. When brands aren't officially integrated, they don't have to cough up any cash to the festival. They should. If they don't, it's kind of like spending the weekend at your buddy's house, using all his stuff and not buying the dude a drink at the bar. Not cool. Sundance is also year-round. The brands just breeze into town for the weekend to get you drunk, but Sundance is here 365 days a year providing support to filmmakers. Brands should be helping them help us have better movies.
Sundance also benefits from the brands. They host the after parties for the films, the dinners for the directors and provide everyone with lots of fun. There is nothing wrong with that. We are also, for better or worse, a product-driven society and some of them had some great stuff. Sarah might have gotten 43 concussions without her new boots. She never found those high heel crampons.
We hope that next year the brands and Sundance will be holding hands in the ring instead of facing off. Greater integration would only strengthen the festival experience for attendees and add value to both parties. If we were driving this bus, we would ask that all brands make a financial contribution to Sundance and promote the festival while they promote their presence here. It's a simple thing for a large brand to do and it would produce big results. It would also get them lots of warm fuzzys from their consumers for being a supporter of film and the arts.
The Sundance vs. the Brands battle is also an interesting discord in the context of what many anticipate will be a drastic change in how T.V. and movie content is financed and distributed in the coming year or two. If the cable model breaks, it may just be that brands play a greater role in directly sponsoring television and movie content. Festivals like Sundance are some of the places where the entertainment industry and the brands are already in bed together. If Sundance can find a way to make the brands work for the Institute and the Festival, it could be an interesting lesson for all of us. ]]>
