American Speech, Humberto Cruz, The Hollywood Reporter's Key Art Awards, Haas Scholars, Levi Strauss & Co.

In the winter of 1997, the linguistics journal American Speech published in its appropriately titled recurring column "Among the New Words" a citation of the new word, co-branding:

Credited to the Chicago Tribune writer Humberto Cruz, the clever turn of phrase clearly establishes that, as VISA tells us, consumers of today are as "savvy" as they are "inquisite." Published alongside the co-branding entry in "Among the New Words" is a citation for co-branded card, providing further elucidation of the concept and of the article by Cruz from whence it springs:

One might argue that Cruz is simply providing a venue for VISA PR one-liners that themselves create "the hottest trend in the card industry" through publicity hype. Yet, the trend did become/remain popular and expand to other industries. In 2004, The Hollywood Reporter's Key Art Awards, which yearly recognizes excellence in the field of motion picture marketing, added new award categories for co-branded audiovisual and co-branded print advertising. That year, The Matrix Reloaded teamed with Heineken beer in a television spot titled The Waitress to take audiovisual honors. S.W.A.T. met Nextel to win for co-branded print.

That films would pair with products, as VISA pairs with "toys and even pet food," is perhaps unsurprising. After all, films and advertising have, since the inception of cinema, been involved in a mutually shameless relationship. However, actually viewing these co-branded advertisements, considering the ramifications of each pairing, forces an appreciation of them as cultural products inextricably linked to the current historical moment in both entertainment and consumption. In fact, it is entertainment and consumption that are inextricably linked to each other in our present moment, and that is where the importance of understanding co-branded film advertising comes in.

With this blog, I will attempt a deeper analysis of TV spots like "The Waitress," to understand more than to mock, but always to highlight how truly bizarre these pairings can be. Along with consideration of individual TV spots, I will provide crucial historical background info, as I trace the histories of film, advertising, television and corporate branding in coterminous juxtaposition. Eventually, my research, which is funded by Bob and Colleen Haas of the Levi's pant jean company, will form the better part of a larger paper historically situating the film/advertising relationship over the last 100 years.