TCOLab

Huck’s April Update: A monthly dispatch from Emma Garland.

"There’s a pervasive belief that Gen-Z and Millennials are hard demographics to crack. A large part of it comes down to money. Struggling studios over-strategize to make sure they get a bang for their buck, taking a ‘tick box’ approach that produces nothing of resonance but makes bigots cry that everything has “gone woke!” because they brought back Gladiators without the cheerleaders and made the Power Rangers gay. The other side of it is more generational. Since the upper-echelons of the entertainment industry are filled with freaks still refusing to retire at 80, there’s a serious lack of awareness around how people who grew up with the internet consume things. Have you ever had a family member or colleague over the age of 55 catch you listening to Phil Collins or something, and they will furrow their brow and say to you with genuine shock and confusion – almost accusatory – “how do you know about this???” It’s like that on a mass scale. Decision-makers still seriously underestimate how much cultural information young people raised online are exposed to. So while it’s a nice idea to ‘introduce’ new audiences to films like The Crow by updating them with modern signifiers, it doesn’t work because the zeitgeist – which hasn’t been confined to its own time period for decades – has long been flooded with references to the 1994 original. Slowly but surely we’re remembering that authenticity is something people can feel, and its absence is overwhelming. You can't just chuck it about as a marketing tool and expect audiences to respond like they’ve just seen The Craft for the first time. People don’t want remakes with women and minorities shoehorned into someone else's story. They want things they can believe in. They want shit that feels honest, even if it’s not that great, see: The Crow (1994). There’s a similar ethos emerging in music, with James Blake railing against the way the industry is organised around tech platforms rather than artists that populate them. In response, he’s pushing for a model driven less by viral moments and streaming numbers – something anti-algorithmic. Rediscovering the organic means making room for the risk of failure again, which is bad news for big businesses but feels like an inevitability. Real authenticity will be rewarded, and become an even more valuable currency, the more we’re force-fed the algorithmically dominant and AI-generated. In fact, I think that’s already starting to happen." Huck Magazine March newsletter excerpt - expertly written by Emma Garland Sign up https://lnkd.in/eB75M9RD

82% of Gen Z feel their generation has expanded language around fashion. According to the Business of Fashion Report, Gen Z see complicated jargon as a cop out or a way to hide the real details. “With no standardized language, deciphering what companies are actually doing is extremely challenging.” Instead, they encourage real talk and spread their own language. More here: https://lnkd.in/eSMEJF5Z 👀

The Outdoors and Diversity - How Are We Getting On? After releasing the trend report on Beyond Representation: The Future of Diversity and Inclusion in the Outdoors in 2022, Phil Young, founder of The Outsiders Project, gives his view on the state of play.  “The last couple of years have seen the biggest movement in this space I’ve seen. Statements have turned into action, promises have been honoured and ballsy moves have been taken by some of the largest in the game to help push the needle.” ON REPRESENTATION - There has been a real move to tell stories that are less focused on performance, giving time to explore marginalised experiences. A redefinition of success feels refreshing, offering up a new perspective and a form of vulnerability that is often absent in traditional outdoor storytelling. ON SUPPORT - In an industry, like many, driven in the most part by a singular demographic, it takes bravery to stand your ground and make the case for diversity. There are a growing number of individuals who are doing just that and using their influence within their business to lobby for a shift in direction.   ON LEADERSHIP - One of the biggest challenges faced in moving things forward is creating opportunities for those on the frontline. All too often we see brands reach out for advice yet rarely offer internal positions of power in their own businesses. Those leading are opening positions on boards, giving contracts, and general empowerment to work in traditional institutions. STILL A WAY TO GO - Things do appear to be heading in the right direction, athletes, content, conversations, activism, and a general acknowledgment from the outdoor industry and community in the UK and NA suggest there has been a real sea change, recognising diversity as a vital part of thinking and strategy moving forwards. In Europe, however, political and social differences mean there is a lot of work to do around basic understanding and acceptance of the existing barriers. "Our biggest hurdle in this is to understand what change actually means and that nuance is vital. We need to establish goals, acknowledge our oversights and commit to revising how we operate as individuals and an industry." 👀 Read the full article packed with examples here: https://lnkd.in/e2nH5276 📘 Read more about Beyond Representation: The Future of Diversity and Inclusion in the Outdoors: https://lnkd.in/eFjfKPZu 💡 More on the Outsiders Project: https://lnkd.in/eNvz6weh

Phil Young, founder of The Outsiders Project, gives his view on the state of play of diversity in the Outdoors.

Huck Magazine's 2023 wrap-up on culture.

"Countries like the UK are historically the biggest climate polluters and have developed strong economies off the back of fossil fuels. They need to take the lead in tackling this threat... But astonishingly, rather than taking more action to cut emissions, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has actually decided to do less. In recent months Mr Sunak has vowed to “max out” North Sea gas and oil and watered down key green policies, and continues to allow a new coal mine to be built in Cumbria. If we want to play our part in confronting the crisis, and encourage other countries to play their part too, we must do much better." Read the full article on Huck: https://lnkd.in/eCbDsG6e

While UK politicians are "accused of trying to 'reset' climate credentials at Cop28" by The Guardian, UK creatives are getting serious about the climate and where our money goes. Meet Oblivia Coalmine: https://lnkd.in/ewAEz6f3 She's fracking grateful for all the money pension funds invest in fossil fuel companies: £88Bn to be precise - that's £3,000 per pension holder. Make My Money Matter's latest campaign follows a string of more daring creative from Channel 4's Change Climate season trailer calling out big business and politicians wearing carbon skid-marked underpants to the Climate Science Breakthrough project boiling the science down to the absolute basics into something more emotional and human via comedians, like Jo Brand, who says, "if people like me have to get involved, you know we're in deep sh*t." 👀 Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/e33G2ys 👀 💥 Here: https://lnkd.in/eEH8zxKX 💥 ✊ And here: https://lnkd.in/eE_qMWVW ✊

Three lovely examples of purpose-led brand work with plants: 🌾 Patagonia's Brewery Collaborations - changing to sustainable grain, one craft beer at a time 🌾 Eleven of the most acclaimed craft breweries in the US are making their own beers using a sustainable grain called Kernza, in a partnership programme with Patagonia leading to 11 exciting new beers coming to market as a result. Participating breweries will contribute 1% of their Patagonia beer sales to local nonprofits supporting environmental initiatives, with the outfitter matching donations. 🌱 Innocent’s Big Rewild – ‘giving nature a helping hand’ 🌱 A Europe-wide campaign, launched by innocent drinks to support local orchard projects, protect global forests and bring nature to urban areas. In London, Innocent turned Trafalgar Square into an overgrown garden filled with 6K flowers and trees. Seeds and plants were given to visitors to create further pockets of nature across the city. 🌼 Future Society Fragrances - tapping the DNA of extinct flowers 🌼 As a sustainable alternative to traditional ingredient-sourcing methods, distinguished perfumers collaborating with Future Society have used DNA sequencing as a starting point to recreate lost scents. Its Invisible Woods fragrance, for example, is from a flower native to the western mountains in India that became extinct in 1917 due to drought. More here: https://lnkd.in/ekyUAQEt What an inspiring bunch 💚 #purposewithplants #botanicals #rewilding #nature #sustainable #alternatives #collaborations

Can ChatGPT be used to inspire real human connections with nature? The North Face, a VF Company thinks it can with 10000 Reasons to Get Back to Trail. 🌱 👀 🏃♀️ After a 3-year hiatus and a challenging pandemic period leaving millions in Shanghai confined to their homes, The North Face launched a campaign to promote TNF100, the iconic 100km ultra trail race in China. “TNF 10000 Reasons to Get Back to Trail,” reignites the spirit of outdoor exploration leveraging the power of AI. ChatGPT was posed a question on why go back to the trail and embrace nature. It responded with 10,000 reasons(!) inspiring the creative team to produce a fully AI-generated 2-hour 42-minute film, along with an expansive billboard at TNF100 race camp in Moganshan, and a collection of campaign posters. Here are the first 10 reasons ChatGPT came up with - based on all the reasons, somewhere deep down, we inherently know: 1. Nature has the power to heal your soul and calm your mind 2. Walking in nature can help you connect with your spiritual self 3. Being in nature can give you a sense of inner peace and tranquility 4. The natural beauty of the world can inspire creativity and imagination 5. Nature is a reminder of the miracles of life and the power of creation 6. Healing in nature can make you feel more connected to the earth and its energy 7. Being surrounded by nature can make your feel a sense of oneness with the universe 8. The sounds of nature can be soothing and healing to the body and mind 9. Nature is a source of beauty that can uplift your spirits 10. Walking in nature can give you a sense of purpose and direction Watch the full film here: https://lnkd.in/eY7vh6dw More on the background here: https://lnkd.in/ep3EW7nh #trailrunning #natureconnection #AI #chatgpt