#BRANDSTORMERS, a new web series somewhere between an all-out war on and a loving embrace of start-up visionaries & brand creatives, is a brief but wondrous gem. Clocking in just over 20 minutes, the series takes us on a branding journey of a new start-up called ‘Chupz, offering slices of ketchup with the hopes of tackling a major global issue: the water that comes out of the bottle when squirting ketchup. JP, the ‘Chupz CEO, a recent DePaul University grad, comes to Pippa Coldpepper & Kendall/Kendall, two “woke” brand execs who show him the ropes of positioning, market research, and getting to know your own product.
Each episode varies in length, but it’s best to just watch the entire series all the way through: it allows the series to build up its Portlandia-esque humor of repetition, steeped character study, and satire of the modern era. Scathing representations of twenty-somethings who see themselves as visionary legends aside, the series gets an A+ for joining of the two millennial constructs many of us dread most. It really calls to mind that bright eyed sophomore we all knew in college that was going to change the world one day with his start-up focused on soccer socks made of recycled & organic… yeah, the series is quite cathartic.
#BRANDSTORMERS is the creative child of Kristina Pedersen and Mary Lee Costanza. Kristina Pedersen is an awakened millionaire writing and directing comedy under the names Jimmy Coyote and Metabrand Productions. She works as a photographer in NYC, shooting for WSJ, Pitchfork, Vice, Google, and Samsung. Kristina created the series—based on some very real experiences in the branding world—and wrote it with Mary Lee Costanza, an illustrator & designer living in Chicago and enjoying its many grocery stores, eating Mexican food, and summer.
Kristina and Mary Lee met in art school where they developed a shared aesthetic language and love for those strange little ads that say things like “Eat This Never Diet Again” next to a picture of an egg with a bandaid. They are currently conceptualizing an unauthorized live-action reboot of Casper the Friendly Ghost.
More for more information on #BRANDSTORMERS check out their website. For more information on the creative minds behind the project see Kristina Pedersen’s website here and Mary Lee Costanza’s website here.
