People Sacha Wigdorovits has resigned from the Board of Directors of 20 Minuten (Schweiz) AG.People Sacha Wigdorovits has resigned from the Board of Directors of 20 Minuten (Schweiz) AG. The board seat could have led to conflicts of interest with the new PR mandate of his company Contract Media, Wigdorovits told Werbewoche. He answered the question of whether the new PR mandate came from Tamedia in the negative.

Local radio The organizers of the Zurich Latino festival Caliente are allowed to broadcast on the airwaves from 25 May to 23 June.Caliente was trembling for approval because Bakom announced in February that it would not allow special broadcasts in Zurich this summer. This is to prevent applicants for the youth radio frequency from gaining an advantage.

Noureddine Ennair has been Director of Sales for Switzerland at Broadcasting System's newly opened Swiss sales office since the beginning of the year. She was previously Management Supervisor at Universal McCann in Zurich....
The Swiss publicist Roger de Weck has been engaged by SF DRS for further episodes of "Sternstunde Philosophie".
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Peter Maag is to become the new Director of the Thurgau Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IHKT). The former business editor of the Thurgauer Zeitung will take up his new post at the beginning of June, succeeding Martin Fehle.
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The advertising agency Spillmann Felser Leo Burnett (SFLB) has strengthened its team with the experienced production manager Dani Strickler. Strickler was previously realization and production manager at Aebi & Partner and ASGS/BBDO. He worked for Publicis for eight years and for McCann-Erickson for five years.
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The advertising agency Publicis has brought Pete Watman on board as CD. He will be responsible for UBS's international brand budget. He was previously in charge of the mobile communications group Orange.
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At the beginning of March, Rainer Borer will become the new head of the business desk at Schweizer Radio DRS. He succeeds Michael Hiller, who wants to devote himself to program work again.
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Adriano Valeri is to become the new area sales manager at the Tages-Anzeiger. He replaces Reto Feurer, who will be working in cinema spot marketing from spring. Valeri was previously a member of the Swiss Family sales team.
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Rafael Suter is to become the new editorial director at Radio Basilisk. He takes over from Thomas Aebischer at the beginning of June, who will be taking on new professional challenges, according to a statement from the Basel local radio station.
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Deputy Director and Chief of Staff Christoph Reichenau will leave the Federal Office of Culture in July 2003. His decision is related to the reorganization of the Office.

Insurance - XL Capital is one of the world's largest total risk management insurers - but few know it. McCann-Erickson, Zurich, wants to change that.After critically reviewing its bancassurance strategy, Credit Suisse Group refocused its insurance business on its core European market in 2001. Among the divestments was Winterthur International. This insurance arm had become famous primarily thanks to the multiple award-winning "Experts" campaign by McCann-Erickson, Zurich.The buyer of Winterthur International, XL Capital, domiciled in Bermuda, wanted to profit further from this appearance. So during the two-year brand-equity migration, the new owner pushed a new squadron of testimonials, but they continued to carry the Swiss insurance company as the sender. A "stealth campaign," so to speak.
That deadline has now passed, necessitating a stand-alone presence. Since its founding in 1986 by broker March & McLennan, J. P. Morgan and 68 Fortune 500 firms, the company has experienced rapid growth. President and CEO Brian O'Hara attributes its success in a tough market to efficient capital management, prudent underwriting, conservative reserving and strategic acquisitions and joint ventures. Not least, however, to the 68 Fortune companies that failed to find coverage in higher insurance areas at the time.
Lamentable awarenessWith a good 3,000 employees in 30 countries and a market capitalization of over 14 billion dollars, XL has now also gained a foothold in the reinsurance and financial services sectors. All the more surprising is the gap that opens up between the size of the company and the awareness of XL Capital. Measured against the company's vision and culture, XL's external communications have been a wallflower, a fact confirmed by a survey conducted in Europe and the U.S.: XL performed miserably in terms of awareness. "On the other hand, it achieved very good image values among people who know XL," explains Urs Jaermann, the person responsible at McCann-Erickson.
However, the good asset must also be communicated. After all, the technical business is gaining in importance again in view of the stock market and financial crisis. To this end, XL had the logo developed by Futurebrand and the first global brand campaign by Zurich-based McCann.
Under the XL Capital master brand, the Insurance, Re and Financial divisions are joined by subbrands covering other areas of expertise. The challenge now was to build an integrated communications concept that embraces all disciplines and strengthens the brand.
"In our research, we found that classic advertising is also the driving force in creating awareness in the B-to-B market," says Jaermann, explaining the choice of strategy. Daniele M. Isenegger, Head of Corporate and Marketing Communications at XL, adds, "Although it's broker business, we now need to be highly visible to decision-makers first. Only then will product-related information follow."
The agency strategists singled out financial and know-how strengths as the USP for the campaign. "Since 'XL' means a dress size and not the scope of risks XL Capital insures, we wanted to turn the disadvantage into an advantage," Jaermann says.
Difficult shootings with stone "To emphasize the strength, the XL is symbolized with the help of the material stone," emphasizes AD Charles Blunier. And Isenegger adds: "We had the thing built, we didn't just want to put a template there." Not an easy thing to do: "Because that made the shootings and the transport more difficult," Blunier knows.
The first of these was the symbolically striking XL "monument" in the US national park Monument Valley, reminiscent of the computer-animated Pro 7 trailers for its blockbusters. Although thematically divided into landscape, city and industrial motifs, the ads are intended to function across all segments.
In the more competitive TV spot, the people concept comes to the fore. In it, an XL employee defines his job - unlike the competition - with a focus on the customer: "I help leading companies achieve their business objectives," he says, after which a vertical tracking shot from a bird's eye view reveals the roof of a skyscraper whose floor plan consists of an XL. We don't want to reveal the secret of whether this skyscraper was also built especially for the campaign.
Set in stone: XL stands in prominent places for the size of the US insurance company.
XL floor plan: The XL consultant in the TV commercial does everything for his customers to achieve their goals.
In the previous campaign - still under the sender Winterthur International - star photographer Richard Avedon put celebrities from Gianni Agnelli to Desmond Tutu in front of the lens and had them philosophize about risks. International awards reaffirmed its creators, and countless copper campaigns confirmed the advertising concept.
Luca Aloisi

Internet Moto Sport Switzerland magazine is launching an online marketplace for motorcycle obsolescence. Advertisements can be placed on the Internet alone or in combination in the print magazine, and the advertiser has the option of entering their machine directly by entering a type certificate number. The data is automatically imported from a database with Eurotax values.

Guest commentary Irony, emotionality and honesty are becoming increasingly important when addressing customers. Creatives who only know their way around the humorous corner are now at a dead end - at the latest since the commercial for "The Independent" with its "Don't" catalog of social correctness won the Grand Prix in Cannes in 1999, it should have become clear to every advertiser that there is other excellent advertising than just humorous advertising. "But that's not funny" has never been a convincing argument against ideas that rely on authenticity, emotion or objectivity. The big howler, the crude thigh-slapper, they are no longer a guarantee of success. Creatives who voluntarily settle solely in the humorous corner are now at a dead end. Especially when their overused scheme with the unexpected ha-ha climax produces more of a tried-and-tested na-ja punchline - a double-axe tripe with minimal half-life. The ADC film jury is no different to any other renowned jury, whether in Cannes or New York. They have become a little tired of larmoyant comedy and old-fashioned jokes. They are no different to the rest of humanity. Today's society of failure and mishap rewards a little more reflection, content and wit than ever before. Nothing against the fact that factory workers only gawk at Fox Sports Television during the baseball playoffs, which is why no screw fits and the most curious disasters occur. And even less against the blind man who walks past the garbage dump and puts his bag at the feet of the woman waiting next to it, who just doesn't use Rexona deodorant. Bucolic wit and infectious mischief remain one of the recipes for winning prizes.
But the ironic wink, the pure emotionality and the matter-of-fact honesty are hard to beat. The woman who knows how "long" sex with her guy takes and is therefore back in the kitchen just in time for her "Ready in two minutes" soup from Heinz. The overcoming of all boundaries by the couple who are able to run through all the walls for Levi's. The beautiful hip picture that an anorexic holds in front of her body: "Perfect pictures for an imperfect world" by Fotoprix. From charmingly ironic to winningly touching to aptly sad. Heart-to-heart and head-to-head advertising in one.
Significantly, none of the five advertising films rewarded with cubes by the ADC this year touches the top-of-the-range slapstick. The subtle dialogs without the "M" for Migros' Expo.02 commitment. The highly emotional opus of solidarity for Swisscom Fixnet. The lyrical, inverted images for ZVV. Orange's gold-worthy barbershop soap opera: a double-meaning, multi-layered dramaturgy. The spots for Die Gelben Seiten, which naturally aim for a laugh, are also a clearly informative concept in themselves. Incidentally, all of the above are threadbare, stringently realized without gimmicks and to the point.
If I may (as someone who was allowed to contribute a corner to three of these film cubes) allow myself a little tip without being asked: Get rid of your fixation on gimmicks, dear colleagues, the medal heaven will be worth it.
> Jean Etienne Aebi is Chief Creative Officer of Publicis and has been a member of almost all renowned creative juries.

Cinema marketer Media marketer Cinecom is offering 28 outdoor screens throughout Switzerland this year. The majority of the screens are located in German-speaking Switzerland. The number of visitors ranges from 1200 (Wangen a. A.) to 14000 (Volketswil) to 32000 people (Lausanne). In 2002, the open-air cinemas marketed by Cinecom counted 197600 viewers on 502 screening days.

Mode Schlumpf & Partner wants to make Oviesse better known in Switzerland. Melanie Winiger is the ambassador for the
Italian fashion chain for a Mediterranean image transfer.
Oviesse has quickly become a popular fashion label in Italy. This has not gone unnoticed by the Swiss. Here in Switzerland, the Globus Group is the franchisee. Globus currently operates 28 stores for Oviesse, some of which are in former ABM locations. However, sales development in Switzerland is still below expectations. With a new marketing strategy and Melanie Winiger as the fashion chain's ambassador, the aim is not just to polish up the image. The ex-Miss Switzerland from Ticino should also bring a little Italianità to the people and achieve a rapid increase in awareness of Oviesse as a provider of trendy fashion for the whole family at affordable prices. As a young and uncomplicated but always chic mom, Melanie is the ideal figurehead for Oviesse, says Theophil Butz. The retired advertiser has once again been inspired by an assignment. Butz acted as CD for this campaign for the agency Schlumpf & Partner, Zurich, and developed the concept together with Hansjörg Bahl and Walter Bosch. Ten advertisements and seven commercials were designed. All photos and films were realized together in the same decor and light at Willi Mohler's new studio in Maur. Hansjörg Bahl directed the commercials and Jost Wildbolz the photographs. "Once again, we had a wonderful time together," enthuses Butz.
The old masters of Swiss advertising enjoyed working with the 24-year-old ex-Miss. "Melanie is a good actress, a professional photographer and the ideal cast for our concept," says Butz. "A likeable cheeky girl," adds Hansjörg Bahl.
Love at first sight
As both the commercials and the advertisements rely almost exclusively on Melanie's likeability, this casting was given the appropriate importance. The effect of the new Oviesse ambassador was tested with a market survey. Then the commercials were "tailor-made" for her, as Butz says. Melanie Winiger begins all the commercials with "Ciao Amici". At the end, the logo appears with the claim "Oviesse. Amore a prima vista".
For Theophil Butz, there should be a close stylistic and content-related connection between the commercials and the print campaign. At one point, Melanie can be seen in the midst of a crowd of cheerfully noisy children. A slightly frivolous subject with Melanie and three naked men is intended to emphasize that Oviesse also has fashion for men. An equally erotic spot, in which Melanie takes off her jacket, blouse and finally, after turning around, her hat and bra, is intended to illustrate that everything fashionable from head to toe can be bought in the range. The campaign is linked to various competitions. It starts with a Prosecco subject. The likeable Melaine announces that she will personally welcome customers with a glass of Prosecco in some new stores from March 3. Salute.
Not only models carry her on their hands: Oviesse ambassador Melanie Winiger, former Miss Switzerland.
OviesseOviesse is a subsidiary of the Coin-Warenhaus Group in Italy, operates over 200 stores there and is "very successful", as Werner
W. Kuster explains. The former CEO of ABM and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Epa now works as a consultant for Oviesse/Switzerland with his own company for corporate and marketing strategy. He conducted a focus group study to determine Oviesse's market positioning in the competitive environment. The main reason for the current inadequate market penetration was found to be a marginal level of brand awareness. Schlumpf & Partner's advertising campaign is intended to create a precise strategic position for Oviesse. The aim is to communicate the good price-performance ratio, the Italian fashion style and the high degree of product range renewal.
Andreas Panzeri

Commuter newspapers 20 Minuten has to look for a new title for its nightlife magazine. 20 Minuten's announced lifestyle and nightlife magazine will definitely be published in the first half of 2003. 20 Minuten managing director Rolf Bollmann could not or did not want to give a more precise launch date. He also did not want to announce the title of the 40-page independent magazine. What is certain is that the names "What's up" and "What's on" are only suitable as working titles. Internet addresses with these names were reserved by third parties more quickly than by 20 Minuten.
Bollmann said that the magazine will be distributed by colporteurs in Zurich, Berne, Basel and Winterthur at 4 p.m., and will later also be available in the boxes. It will also be available in bars, clubs, trendy restaurants, McDonald's branches, Kitag cinemas and ExLibris and CityDisc stores. Nevertheless, the circulation will be less than half that of a daily edition (currently 320000 copies).
The concept envisages an identical magazine for the entire "Golden Triangle". The content includes the cinema programs of the three agglomerations, shopping tips, events, concerts, parties, trends in home electronics (DVD, video, games, CD), the TV program for a week and 20-minute cooking recipes.
The advertising rates have not yet been finalized. However, it is clear that the magazine can be combined: On the one hand with the daily edition and on the other hand with the youth pool marketed by the Mediabox agency, which consists of the monthly titles Forecast, Kult and Seventh Sky. The combined discounts are still being negotiated.
(mk)

Last week, Alberto Venzago, known for his photojournalistic work, but also as a maker of industrial and advertising films, presented his first feature-length film entitled "Mounted by the Gods" - an artfully realized documentary about the voodoo cult in the African dwarf state of Benin.The story of Venzago's film began twelve years ago when he was working on a photo reportage for Geo in Benin. Venzago's vehicle broke down in the town of Ouidah; the helpful man he met turned out to be the head of the local voodoo monastery. This was the beginning of an extraordinary friendship, during the course of which Venzago made further trips to Benin and produced around 120 hours of film material on the African nature cult.
A religious topic such as the voodoo cult should be approached with due respect, not to say the necessary caution. Venzago has succeeded in doing this with his film. Venzago explains his fascination for the animistic African primitive religion by saying that you can see that inexplicable things happen, and he is able to draw on his own experiences.
Not only did the blessing of the voodoo pantheon always have to be obtained during filming - the technical equipment was also often splattered with chicken or goat's blood in accordance with the requirements of the cult. A first copy of the film was lost and burned on the way from Zurich to Munich because the car courier was involved in an accident. Shortly before another premiere attempt in Solothurn, the power failed in the entire district, which also caused the screening to be canceled. So Venzago traveled to Benin again to get the goodwill of the gods for the premiere. However, the event at Le Paris went off without a hitch and around 400 people did not want to miss it.
The documentary is worthwhile, even if it is not for the faint-hearted. Venzago opens a door into a world that is completely unknown to us. Even hardened rationalists who have resisted all the esoteric trends of recent years may find their world view shaken by this film. The black-and-white images chase you around the screen without any gimmickry.
which often sends a cold shiver down the spine. Venzago's camera is sometimes very close to the action. And what he shows has nothing, absolutely nothing to do with the Mickey Mouse voodoo seen in the James Bond film "Live and let die".
Essential to voodoo is the animistic view of the environment, i.e. the understanding of an animated nature. Every tree, every animal, every plant has a soul, possibly even that of its own ancestor. The cult is characterized by respect for nature, which is much more untamed in the places of origin of voodoo and has a much stronger influence on people's lives than we know. Voodoo was exported virtually worldwide through the slave trade. We know the Caribbean voodoo cults, and in Brazil the African tradition continued in Candomblé and Umbanda. But we are also closer to the roots of such natural religious approaches than we sometimes think. After all, there are also legends and myths from the Alps about mountain spirits, forest gnomes and nature goblins that are part of our cultural heritage.
The concept of "Mounted by the Gods" is designed as a small Gesamtkunstwerk. Images from the film have been on display on billboards in Zurich, Bern and Basel for the past two weeks, and Facts magazine has published an exhibition guide (WW 06/03). An illustrated book is available, and the CD, on which Boris Blank from Yello, among others, transformed the original African sounds into an exciting soundtrack, is also worth listening to, as could be heard at the subsequent party in the "Purpur". Apart from that, the most memorable thing about the event was probably the crowds in the In-Bar; the "Purpur" was bursting at the seams.
Thankfully, we didn't hear anything about employees being pierced and tortured by their bosses the next day, and the bosses in turn piercing and torturing customers' dolls with sharp needles. And if we did, it didn't work, because the whole industry is reportedly still in good health.
Beat Fritsch in front of the ethno-inspired door of the "Purpur" bar in Zurich's Seefeld district. Alberto Venzago's premiere audience gathered there for a voodoo party after the screening. The location was soon so packed that some guests threw in the towel and fled home. Where the communications, media and publishing industries meet for their events is where we find the most diverse events in the scene. Do you already have something to report? Pick up the phone (01 296 97 98) or hit the keys ([email protected]). Event tips and occasional shortlist images are available online at www.werbewoche.ch
After four years of work on the film, screenwriter Kit Hopkins and visual artist Alberto Venzago are a well-rehearsed team.
Gave Venzago a motivational boost during his project: HR consultant Hélène Müller (left), with Angie Broger.
"A bit creepy, but also enormously fascinating," concluded Nicole Steinegger and Schoscho Rufener.
Taking care of the structural affairs of their advertising clients: Lawyer Heinz Steffen (l.) and Roli Hofer, BTO Treuhand.
Venturing into the "Purpur" crowd: Shadia Dietschy (l.) from Wirz + Fraefel with Catherine Stroppel from Webatelier 10012.
Regula Bernasconi with Wolfgang Lechenmayr, who mixed the sounds for "Mounted by the Gods".
Film specialists at the premiere: Johannes Bösiger (l.), freelance screenwriter, with Cinecom boss Matthias Luchsinger.
Encountered in the middle of the party hustle and bustle of the "Purpur": Erna Höltschi, Flavia Schlittler and Patrizia Haller (from left).
Finding a seat at the party despite the huge crowd: Désirée Lehmann (l.) and Cash journalist Marianne Fassbind.
Stayed in the front rows of seats during the screening: Jean-Claude Bruhin (l.) and Christian Gartmann.
Not a Voodoo original, but still a suitable accessory for the party in the "Purple".

Beverage market JWT+H+F launches Smirnoff Black Ice, a new premix drink on the Swiss market for Diageo and creates collages to go with it.Smirnoff Red Ice, Bacardi Breezer or Campari Mixx are just some of the more than 50 different alcopops. And new mixed drinks are launched on the market every year. No wonder: since the introduction of the standard tax on domestic and foreign alcoholic beverages in 1999, business has exploded. In 2000, 1.7 million bouteilles were sold over the counter, while the Federal Alcohol Board estimates that 40 million bottles of alcopops were consumed in 2002. Ready-to-drink beverages - RTDs for short - were originally intended to steal consumers from the beer market: the target group was (and still is) predominantly young, male adults. However, market research has shown that the designer drinks are mainly consumed by women and young people due to their mostly sweet taste.
The international drinks group Diageo now wants to change this. The company has created Smirnoff Black Ice especially for the core target group of 18 to 25-year-old men. It is characterized by a black bottle design and the clear liquid. This is associated with the taste of pure vodka rather than a sweet mix.
Hand-glued unique collages
The new Smirnoff mix, which Diageo hopes will transfer its image to the entire brand, is now to be introduced with a national campaign by JWT+Hofstetter+Fabrikant (JWT+ H+F). In keeping with the product branding, the campaign subjects are also masculine-cool in the truest sense of the word: Black and blue-grey are the predominant colors. The claim "Cool is not cold enough" matches this. The visuals were not created on a PC: the creative team glued and scanned the collages by hand.
JWT+H+F consultant Manuela Zwald explains: "We are aiming in an artistic direction, away from pure product advertising." With its cool implementation, the agency based in the Maag-Areal joins the ranks of advertisers who have mastered the balancing act between advertising idea and legal requirements - because alcopops also fall under the category of spirits by law.
Gluing work by JWT+H+F: Smirnoff ad collage.
Simone Keller

Column In the past, being determined consciousness. For Kenneth Angst, appearances take precedence over reality today. Everything used to be clearer and more manageable. Because in the past, you simply were what you were. Or rather, what you had, what you could do, what you said. In old Marxist terms: consciousness was determined not by appearances, but by being. Self-perception and the perception of others were dictated by sheer reality, by bare facts and figures, by the brutal (over)power of the factual. It was difficult to fool oneself and others, to (de)deceive oneself or them. You were what you were. No less, but unfortunately never more, and we have long since said goodbye to clarity. Legions of journalists, advertisers, photographers, filmmakers and PR specialists are waging a concerted war against the dictates of the disdainful reality. Today, reality is no longer simply accepted and depicted, but artfully selected, interpreted and staged. "Communication society" essentially means nothing other than the "emancipation of appearance from reality". What is perceived is increasingly becoming true. Or to put it another way: perception is reality!
This progress has little in common with lies and deception. The sheer diversity, availability and accessibility of information about anything and everything ensures this. Under such conditions, it is no longer possible to manipulate, suppress or deny. The postmodern dictate Perception is reality is also extremely demanding, as it means nothing other than that today all organizations and their representatives are dependent on their respective environment believing and trusting them.
However, this does not happen by itself. If you want people to trust and invest in you today, you have to take care of how you are perceived, interpreted and evaluated in the relevant environment. To do this, you have to expose, position, integrate and engage.
Part of this communicative balancing act is that it raises hopes and aspirations that somewhat exceed one's own possibilities. Today, however, this is not only allowed, but almost expected. After all, the discrepancy between perception and reality is the key characteristic of our communication society. However, one's own reality must never openly contradict the staged perception of others. Anyone who forgets this will inevitably fall, be punished, disenchanted and scandalized. Just as in the past not everything was good, but at best simpler, today some things are better, but everything is also more complicated and riskier.
> Kenneth Angst worked in the editorial offices of NZZ and Weltwoche before taking over the management of Mediapolis Zurich in 2002.