Winter. Blah. But there’s a blip of hope, a sign that the madness will eventually bleed into heat and barbecues and the Command Post party: in the advertising world, it’s beer time again.

Canada’s two major beer companies are revving up to go after the hearts and lips of the cottage-going public and, not surprisingly, all eyes are on MacLaren McCann to see the next evolution of its award-winning campaign for the Molson brand Canadian.

Masterminded by MacLaren creative director Rick Davis and 27-year-old Mark Fitzgerald, senior copy writer, both installments of the ‘I Am Canadian’ campaign drew rave reviews and much scuttlebutt after the agency decided to go with a then-rookie director, Pete Henderson, to helm the second pool last year.

Between the two sets, the first directed by Imported Artists’ Richard D’Alessio, and the second by Spy Films’ Henderson, the campaign has raised the profile of Molson’s signature brand, and within the industry has racked up a stack of Bessies, Marketing, and Top Spots awards that stand it in good stead heading into year three.

No word yet on whether this year’s creative will flow from the same quick-clip, Gen-x savvy style that has become the ‘I Am’ trademark. Apparently the agency, instead of drawing from the more seasoned directors pool, is on the lookout for some raw young talent and is scouting what is thought to be as many as 30 directors.

Off off-line

Bruce Copeman’s new editing company, Axyz Edit Inc., is up and running at 425 Adelaide, temporarily housed on the eighth floor while renos wrap on the 10th.

It’s full steam ahead from here on in but the start-up hasn’t been without its trials which may end now that Copeman is officially opting out of the off-line business.

Sources say competitors were a little perturbed that Axyz was handling editing and finishing responsibilities with its Henry suite, which is capable of both editing and the finishing film processes which are traditionally the territory of the post-production houses.

Copeman says he’s finishing off some projects contracted before the decision was made but that within the next two to three weeks, Axyz won’t be in the off-line business.

‘There’s no hard feelings and it’s really not an issue anymore,’ says Copeman, adding that he’s excited to spend the next three to four months building the editing house. Eventually Axyz may handle some off-line work but for longer format projects, not commercials, he concludes.

People

Apple Box Productions has signed Vancouver-based director Randy MacDonald, formerly with Dalton Films.

Lorna Lambert has left dvla’s Miami Beach office. Executive producer Miguel Urdaneta has taken the reins.

Doug Linton, formerly vice-chairman and director of creative services at Ambrose Carr Linton Kelly, has been appointed chairman of aclk, succeeding Don Ambrose.

And not just for a song I bet

Louder Music and Sound Design inmate David Krystal inked a side deal with Sony Publishing last month for his catalogue plus song writing and scoring services. Sony Music brass also took a shine to Krystal’s demos and gave the expat Brit rocker an artist to work with on the producing side. Perhaps a sequel is in order to a doc billed as exploring youth band failure in which Krystal had a star turn back in his humble Rock Garden days.

Meanwhile, back at Louder, in between study of world politics and bouts of bodysurfing, Krystal and the gang have been tuning their musical muses into Panasonic, Paramount Canada’s Wonderland, Unitel, Publix, Grand Bahama Island (wishing there was a way to convince the client that going on location was necessary), the Canadian Liver Foundation and Sega Channel ads – all recently wrapped.

DOP pressure pays off in digital reels

Partners’ is taking the digital plunge, ripping out some 3/4′ machines and putting in a pair of D-Beta machines, at $71,000 a pop in order to churn out digital master reels. This fall, with the advent of a digital interface, Partners’ hopes to plug into Avid for music video and lower-cost commercials and output to broadcast-quality tape.

Early eagle eyes in L.A.

The morning our Jan. 29 issue hit the street here in Toronto, Playback received a call to the effect that l.a.-based director Rachel Harms is not repped in Canada by comm.bat films, contrary to comm.bat roster claims to that effect (‘dga, dvla go into comm.bat,’ p. 16). The two are still in negotiations.