{"id":11609,"date":"2020-08-03T14:56:32","date_gmt":"2020-08-03T13:56:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/?post_type=news&#038;p=11609"},"modified":"2020-08-27T11:19:25","modified_gmt":"2020-08-27T10:19:25","slug":"despite-the-difficulties-make-em-laugh","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/news\/2020\/aug\/despite-the-difficulties-make-em-laugh","title":{"rendered":"Despite the difficulties, make &#8217;em laugh"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"lazyblock-two-column-text-quote-image-ZN0dmb wp-block-lazyblock-two-column-text-quote-image\"><section class=\"fullwidth fullwidth--overflow \" data-aos=\"fade-up\">\r\n  <div class=\"container container--spaced-lg\">\r\n    \r\n    <div class=\"row\">\r\n      \r\n      <div class=\"col-md-6\">\r\n                \r\n                <blockquote class=\"blockquote blockquote--md-right\">\r\n          The secret to great comedy, they say, is 10 rounds of internal feedback and two rounds of amends from Clearcast.                  <\/blockquote>\r\n                \r\n  \t\t\t  \t\t\t<div class=\"img-inline img-offset-left-md\">\r\n          <picture class=\"embed-responsive-item\">\r\n            <source data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laura-Muse-Pic.jpg 768w\">\r\n                        <img data-src=\"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Laura-Muse-Pic.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"lazyload img-fluid img-1-1\">\r\n          <\/picture>\r\n        <\/div>\r\n              <\/div>\r\n      \r\n      <div class=\"col-md-6\">\r\n    \t\t<p>No, as you all know very well, it\u2019s timing. And there\u2019s never been a better time to be funny in ads than right now. In fact, you could say it has never been more necessary. Creative responses to shared tragedy have long been shared laughter. You only have to look at Hollywood\u2019s output following the Great Depression and World War II to see that audiences are hungry for a good belly laugh and the cathartic escapism that it brings. And by heck, do we need it.<\/p>\n<p>Creating commercial comedy gold can be hard, says\u00a0<strong>Laura Muse, Creative Director at VCCP London\u00a0<\/strong>but ignore the Twitterati and let your funny bone lead the way. Read her feature on Shots Magazine\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/shots.net\/news\/view\/despite-the-difficulties-make-em-laugh\">here<\/a>.<\/p>  \t\t<\/div>\r\n  \t\t\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    \r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/section><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":11,"template":"","categories":[191],"class_list":["post-11609","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry","category-agency-news"],"acf":{"capability_ids":[],"client_id":"","websites_to_publish":["3"],"author":false,"hero_video":"","hero_image":{"ID":11611,"id":11611,"title":"Screen Shot 20200803 at 165110","filename":"Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110.jpg","filesize":88749,"url":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/news\/2020\/aug\/despite-the-difficulties-make-em-laugh\/attachment\/screen-shot-20200803-at-165110","alt":"","author":"11","description":"","caption":"","name":"screen-shot-20200803-at-165110","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":11609,"date":"2020-08-19 13:57:40","modified":"2020-08-19 13:57:40","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1920,"height":720,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-300x113.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":113,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-768x288.jpg","medium_large-width":640,"medium_large-height":240,"large":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-1024x384.jpg","large-width":640,"large-height":240,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-1536x576.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":576,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":720,"Header":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-1920x720.jpg","Header-width":1920,"Header-height":720,"Wide":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110.jpg","Wide-width":1920,"Wide-height":720,"Square":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-1152x720.jpg","Square-width":768,"Square-height":480,"Tall":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-768x720.jpg","Tall-width":307,"Tall-height":288,"Mobile":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-768x720.jpg","Mobile-width":768,"Mobile-height":720,"Facebook":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-1200x630.jpg","Facebook-width":1200,"Facebook-height":630,"Grid-Item-Square":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-768x720.jpg","Grid-Item-Square-width":768,"Grid-Item-Square-height":720,"Grid-Item-Wide":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-768x384.jpg","Grid-Item-Wide-width":768,"Grid-Item-Wide-height":384,"Grid-Item-Tall":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110-384x720.jpg","Grid-Item-Tall-width":307,"Grid-Item-Tall-height":576}},"meta-title":"Comedy","meta-description":"Comedy","social-media-image":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Screen-Shot-20200803-at-165110.jpg","news_id":"191","relateditems":[{"relateditem":{"ID":11604,"post_author":"22","post_date":"2020-08-03 14:43:06","post_date_gmt":"2020-08-03 13:43:06","post_content":"<!-- wp:lazyblock\/two-column-text-quote-image {\"text-right\":\"\\u003cp\\u003eWe strike a balance between a glass half full and a glass half empty.\\u003c\\\/p\\u003e\\n\\u003cp\\u003eThat said, it can sometimes feel that the balance is getting more one-sided, that our default psychological setting has become more receptive to negative messaging. Coronavirus inevitably heightens this impression. We have become habituated to bad news and traumatic headlines.\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003e\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003eAnd yet the evidence is that, for the vast majority of people in the UK, the threat of coronavirus has relented considerably. According to Public Health England, in 87% of test locations, there have been no new cases for 4 consecutive weeks to July 25. This good news is reflected in ONS excess death figures, which have been significantly below their 5 year average for the last 4 weeks (to week 28). The good news is further underlined by data from Worldometers which ranks the UK as the leading country in the world for tests per million of population, enabling British health authorities to identify and move swiftly where there are local flare-ups (eg Leicester, Luton and Blackburn) or where holidaymakers returning from specific areas are at risk.\\u003c\\\/p\\u003e\",\"quote\":\"No one, unless deranged, is a pure optimist. The same is true of pessimism. Most people, most of the time, fluctuate between the two outlooks.\\n\",\"blockId\":\"MlaCi\",\"blockUniqueClass\":\"lazyblock-two-column-text-quote-image-MlaCi\"} \/-->\n\n<!-- wp:lazyblock\/image-full-width {\"image\":\"%7B%22alt%22:%22%22,%22title%22:%22BRCR20001_British_Red_Cross_Covid19_CONTENT_16x9%20(4)%22,%22caption%22:%22%22,%22id%22:11606,%22link%22:%22https:\\\/\\\/www.vccp.com\\\/?attachment_id=11606%22,%22url%22:%22https:\\\/\\\/www.vccp.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/08\\\/BRCR20001_British_Red_Cross_Covid19_CONTENT_16x9-4.jpg%22%7D\",\"blockId\":\"1NTtM8\",\"blockUniqueClass\":\"lazyblock-image-full-width-1NTtM8\"} \/-->\n\n<!-- wp:lazyblock\/text-full-width {\"text\":\"\\u003ch4\\u003eWonderful news. And cause for celebration. Or at least the odd positive headline. Of course it isn't. Of course we aren't celebrating. Of course the headlines aren't trumpeting good news.\\u003c\\\/h4\\u003e\",\"blockId\":\"Z24L2lR\",\"blockUniqueClass\":\"lazyblock-text-full-width-Z24L2lR\"} \/-->\n\n<!-- wp:lazyblock\/two-column-side-by-side-text-inline-image-button {\"items\":\"%5B%7B%22text%22:%22%3Cp%3EFor%20the%20simple%20reason%20that%20we%20aren't%20ready%20for%20good%20news%20yet.%20It%20is%20understandable%20that%20we%20are%20stuck%20in%20pessimistic%20mode,%20receptive%20to%20negative%20messages%20about%20mask-wearing%20infringements,%20second%20spikes%20in%20Spain,%20Hong%20Kong,%20France,%20the%20failure%20of%20our%20authorities%20etc.%20We%20are%20in%20fact%20like%20a%20test%20case%20for%20Leon%20Festinger's%20seminal%20work,%20The%20Theory%20of%20Cognitive%20Dissonance.%3C\\\/p%3E%22%7D,%7B%22text%22:%22%3Cp%3EAs%20a%20social%20psychologist,%20his%20theory%20was%20based%20on%20a%20study%20of%20rumours%20following%20an%20earthquake%20in%20India%20in%201934.%20These%20rumours%20took%20hold%20amongst%20people%20living%20in%20the%20earthquake%20region,%20who%20had%20felt%20its%20shock%20but%20hadn't%20experienced%20any%20damage%20or%20loss.%20Although%20the%20rumours%20were%20baseless,%20they%20became%20widespread,%20involving%20dire%20predictions%20of%20worse%20disasters%20to%20come.%3C\\\/p%3E%22%7D%5D\",\"blockId\":\"Z1xUCsY\",\"blockUniqueClass\":\"lazyblock-two-column-side-by-side-text-inline-image-button-Z1xUCsY\"} \/-->\n\n<!-- wp:lazyblock\/two-column-text-quote-image {\"text-right\":\"\\u003cp\\u003eHowever, after looking at similar precedents, Festinger realised that the rumours were entirely explainable. They weren't 'fear-provoking', they were 'fear-justifying'. Fear casts a long shadow, and people were not yet ready to feel relief. In fact, relief would have been in direct conflict with their\\u00a0fearful emotions. The rumours, Festinger concluded, were a way for people to balance the dissonance of their cognitions.\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003e\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003eGiven the shock of Covid-19, it is natural for us to be similarly disposed towards bad news. Gloomy headlines indirectly serve to reassure us by echoing our negative feelings. But if Festinger is to be believed, we should be wary of allowing the brands we work on to spend too long echoing the prevailing gloom. The best brands are built for the long term, and the long term favours optimism, confidence and certainty. It favours brands that offer us a view of how things can be rather than a reflection of how things are. There is, of course, a vital need to recognise the here and now, but this should not be mistaken for long term strategy, and we have seen in this crisis how easy it is for advertising to start emphasising similarities rather than differences.\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003eThis is a point Jeremy Lee highlights in his excellent article (Campaign, July 27) on whether, given the cultural context, our industry is ready for a return to laughter. My view is that the time is probably right to start harnessing the optimism of humour again. Nor is this simply a gut instinct. In the two years after the Great Depression, the proportion of film releases that were comedies increased from 19% to 33%. In the two years after 1939, comedies increased from 31% to 40% of all releases. Laughter is often the best medicine.\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003e\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003eWhether or not it is appropriate to return to humour straight away, it seems increasingly clear that the cultural moment is imminent where we pass from codes of solace to codes of optimism. We will soon be more receptive to stories of progress in containing the virus and, ultimately, defeating it.\\u00a0\\u003c\\\/p\\u003e\",\"quote\":\"Festinger was intrigued by this apparently counter-intuitive response, just when people should feel relieved, they were actually growing more anxious.\",\"image\":\"%7B%22alt%22:%22%22,%22title%22:%22Cadbury%20Posters%20landscape%20(1)%22,%22caption%22:%22%22,%22id%22:11605,%22link%22:%22https:\\\/\\\/www.vccp.com\\\/?attachment_id=11605%22,%22url%22:%22https:\\\/\\\/www.vccp.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/08\\\/Cadbury-Posters-landscape-1-1.jpg%22%7D\",\"blockId\":\"NvlJ\",\"blockUniqueClass\":\"lazyblock-two-column-text-quote-image-NvlJ\"} \/-->\n\n<!-- wp:lazyblock\/quote-full-width {\"quote\":\"And when that moment comes, when the threat is gone, one thing is for sure. We won't look back to the brands who echoed our past anxieties. We will look forward with brands who faced the future and told us it's going to be ok.\",\"blockId\":\"ZkKAch\",\"blockUniqueClass\":\"lazyblock-quote-full-width-ZkKAch\"} \/-->","post_title":"A Glass Half Full","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"a-glass-half-full","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2020-09-08 09:43:16","post_modified_gmt":"2020-09-08 08:43:16","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/?post_type=news&#038;p=11604","menu_order":0,"post_type":"news","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}},{"relateditem":{"ID":11630,"post_author":"11","post_date":"2020-07-13 16:00:35","post_date_gmt":"2020-07-13 15:00:35","post_content":"<!-- wp:lazyblock\/two-column-text-quote-image {\"text-right\":\"\\u003cp\\u003eCOVID-19 has accelerated the already rapid growth seen in ecommerce, encouraging new behaviours and challenging existing customer loyalties.\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003e\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003eMore of us are shopping online for the first time, buying products we\\u2019ve not previously bought online and switching brands and retailers if products are unavailable.\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003e\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003eNew research from Kantar shows that more UK consumers now want to support local businesses and with BigCommerce reporting a 62% rise in curbside fulfilment during the pandemic and Google a 150% increase in \\u201cnear me\\u201d retail searches in the past two years, it is clear they are.\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003e\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003eThis growing appetite for immediacy, coupled with a desire for local services, is becoming a potent catalyst for smaller scale ecommerce.\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003e\\u003cbr \\\/\\u003eFind out the three key principles for smaller retailers, regardless of category, in a post COVID-19 world from Experience Strategy Director Jasper Bell\\u00a0\\u003ca href=\\u0022https:\\\/\\\/insight.madfestlondon.com\\\/article\\\/want-to-challenge-the-ecommerce-elite-heres-3-things-you-need-to-do\\\/\\u0022\\u003ehere\\u003c\\\/a\\u003e.\\u00a0\\u003c\\\/p\\u003e\",\"quote\":\"A more level and more local playing field.\",\"blockId\":\"HtlA3\",\"blockUniqueClass\":\"lazyblock-two-column-text-quote-image-HtlA3\"} \/-->","post_title":"Want To Challenge The Ecommerce Elite?","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"challenging-the-ecommerce-elite","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2020-08-27 12:46:13","post_modified_gmt":"2020-08-27 11:46:13","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/?post_type=news&#038;p=11630","menu_order":0,"post_type":"news","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}},{"relateditem":{"ID":11640,"post_author":"11","post_date":"2020-06-30 16:52:44","post_date_gmt":"2020-06-30 15:52:44","post_content":"<!-- wp:lazyblock\/two-column-text-quote-image {\"text-right\":\"\\u003cp\\u003eNicky Palamarczuk, our Head of Social \\u0026amp; Influence, has been announced in\\u00a0\\u003ca href=\\u0022https:\\\/\\\/adage.com\\\/article\\\/special-report-women-watch\\\/2020-class-women-watch-europe\\\/2263166\\u0022\\u003eAd Age's 2020 class of Women to Watch\\u003c\\\/a\\u003e.\\u003c\\\/p\\u003e\\n\\u003cp\\u003eNicky has had an eventful few years. As well as being integral to a number of pitches, her brilliant social-first team are responsible for concepting and creating best in class social content for clients such as Domino's, easyJet, Cadbury and Nationwide Building Society.\\u00a0\\u003c\\\/p\\u003e\\n\\u003cp\\u003eBut two and a half years ago, Nicky was diagnosed with breast cancer when her daughter was just one. After six months of intensive treatment, she returned to VCCP and Founded\\u00a0\\u003ca href=\\u0022http:\\\/\\\/backtoworkafter.co.uk\\\/about\\\/\\u0022\\u003e'Back To Work After...\\u003c\\\/a\\u003e', a series that features high-profile speakers from the communications and media industry talking about how they went back to work after a life-changing moment.\\u003c\\\/p\\u003e\\n\\u003cp\\u003eNicky believes passionately in changing the narrative around taboo topics like miscarriage, cancer, divorce the menopause and addiction. But on top of this, she also recently put together a social media festival; 'RethinKin'. The two evenings of unconventional thinking featured panels and speakers including The Beano, Twitch, TikTok and Boiler Room and challenged people to think differently about everything from Gen Z to over 50s and Gamer stereotypes.\\u00a0\\u003c\\\/p\\u003e\",\"quote\":\"Congratulations!\\n\",\"image\":\"%7B%22alt%22:%22%22,%22title%22:%22Nicky%20(2)%22,%22caption%22:%22%22,%22id%22:11641,%22link%22:%22https:\\\/\\\/www.vccp.com\\\/news\\\/2020\\\/06\\\/nicky-palamarczuk-in-ad-ages-2020-class-of-women-to-watch\\\/attachment\\\/nicky-2-2\\\/%22,%22url%22:%22https:\\\/\\\/www.vccp.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/08\\\/Nicky-2.jpg%22%7D\",\"blockId\":\"1fhnLQ\",\"blockUniqueClass\":\"lazyblock-two-column-text-quote-image-1fhnLQ\"} \/-->","post_title":"Nicky Palamarczuk in Ad Age's 2020 Class of Women to Watch","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"ad-age-nicky-palamarczuk","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2020-08-27 12:57:49","post_modified_gmt":"2020-08-27 11:57:49","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/?post_type=news&#038;p=11640","menu_order":0,"post_type":"news","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}}],"related_content_title":"YOU MAY ALSO LIKE","visible_on_home_page":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/11609","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11609"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vccp.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11609"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}