Movies for TV - Early Television Foundation

CHAPTER 17
FILM COMMERCIALS
Elsewhere in this book mention is made of the fact that the three
minutes of commercial time in every half-hour is the sole reason
for the advertiser's investment in television. Similarly in the case
of ten-, twenty-, or forty-second spots or station breaks the message
that the sponsor wants to get over is the only purpose he has in
buying the time and preparing his sales message.
every case he wants to be as sure as humanly possible
In each and
that it will
be telecast the way it was rehearsed to give it maximum impact
on the buying public.
In the case of operating products, demonstrations are usually
the best means of drawing attention to good features and high-
lighting comparison with competitors. But live demonstrations are
not always satisfactory for various reasons. The demonstrator may
not be familiar with the equipment, some external agency may
fail, such as a power failure in the middle of a washing machine
demonstration. There are so many things which may go wrong
that even thinking about it can give a sensitive sponsor a headache.
Apart from the commercial, which is, of course, the most important
thing in the program, special effects or tricks are best done
on film. If certainty of operation and best performance are re-
quired, then film is the only medium which can guarantee it as far
as mechanical perfection is concerned. Of course, in this statement
we include slides, which, although static, are also capable of error
as far as the limit of human care is concerned.
only
Before film for both commercial and program use can really
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