People who aren’t football fans tune into the Super Bowl to watch the advertisements. You’ve probably seen them, and read about them, already. The talking stain, Shaquille O’Neal as a race jockey, and so forth.
I was fascinated by another ad, part of a fascinating project by the National Football League which gathered stories from over 200 NFL players, and had fans vote on their favorites. The winner was made into a 60-second film, broadcast during the Super Bowl. It’s a narrated story, partially dramatized, about an NFL player who meets a large man working at the grocery store. He convinces the man to try out for the college football team. You’ll have to watch the video for the rest of the story.
The final product is excellent. But it’s also interesting to view the original story, told one-on-one by the Houston Texans’ Ephraim Salaam, and see how it changed in the more polished retelling. (Sadly, as of October 2009 the NFL has taken down the link to the original story. You’ll have to take my word for it; it was better.)
storytelling, narrative, marketing, advertising, football, Super Bowl, sports
