Oddball Films presents I Want it All! - Consumer Culture on the Skids, a program of vintage films that fall on both sides of the issue of wealth, consumption, and advertising. With long and short-form commercials, cartoons and capitalist-skewering satire, it's an evening that will make you think differently about pulling out your wallet. Pick the color of your refrigerator to Match Your Mood (1960s), a swingin' promotional film from Jam Handy and an Oddball audience favorite. Then, pick the color of your shiny new 1951 Chevy in The Rainbow is Yours (1951). Woody Allen and Joanne Worley try to answer that burning question in a segment from the show Hot Dog-How Do They Make Dollar Bills (1971). Learn how credit can change your life, or just burden you with crap and debt in the bizarre, hilarious and musical The Good, Good, Good Life (1974) Three groovy young girls and their dad get a lesson in over-shopping in Consumer Education: Budgeting (1968). We all know sex sells; learn the tricks of its best sellers in a Special Edition segment on Frederick's of Hollywood (1970s). Unrelenting advertisements and the implied pressures impede young love in the bittersweet mixed-media animation Harold and Cynthia (1971). The grocery witch is here to teach you how to spend your money wisely in Magical Disappearing Money (1972). Plus, a slew of real commercials and a reel of bizarre faux commercials with the head-scratching It's Not Commercial (1950s).
Date: Thursday, December 11th, 2014 at 8:00pm
Venue: Oddball Films, 275 Capp Street San Francisco (map)
Featuring:
The Good, Good, Good Life (Color, 1977)
Not to be missed, and good enough to be repeated, this tongue-in-cheek look at the American Dream of consumption and debt strikes with humor, music and thought-provoking juxtapositions. One old man’s family takes it upon themselves to cheer him up after his wife’s death. They inspire and encourage him to use shiny credit cards to buy many shiny things, but gramps isn't buying it! Directed by experimental filmmaker Rolf Forsberg (Parable).
Consumer Education: Budgeting (Color, 1968)
Swinging sisters Ruth and Samantha recently graduated college and are settling into life on their own, with an apartment and shopping sprees. That also means they are going into debt. Fortunately, their worldly father stops by to offer advice before things get out of hand. Special guest star: their new roommate and proto-hipster, an Asian woman named ‘George’.
The Rainbow is Yours (1951, Color)
See the real-life Mad Men in this portrayal of vibrant young couples in America's innocence age, i.e. consumer age, as “Mr. and Mrs. America” buy their first four door Chevrolet.
From industrial giant Jam Handy.
Brand Names and Labeling Games (1973, Jack Sameth)
The absurdity of USDA labeling gets a thorough skewering by our flustered consumer advocate, Marshall Efron. Anarchic, off the cuff, and eye-opening, these highlights from PBS’s delightful Great American Dream Machine endure as bright shining moments in the history of consumer education.
Harold and Cynthia (Color, 1971, John Strawbridge)
Explores the impact of advertising on human beings by showing an ordinary man and woman whose attempts to establish a relationship are hindered by the contrived ideals espoused in modern advertisements. Using real advertisements and a stark backdrop, this unique line animation shows the pressures that advertising can put on us as imperfect human beings. With a groovy soundtrack that includes a little Paul Simon.
Magical Disappearing Money (1972, Dan Bessie)
Grocery shopping takes a bizarre turn when a bargain-obsessed witch stalks the aisles on a crusade against processed foods. It’s not the sugar and starch that has her hackles up, uh-uh: it’s the price! Her Get-off-Your-Ass-and-Cook philosophy is sound, but it was an uphill battle: We’re sure the very idea of Lunchables would make her head explode. From the same folks who brought us Credit Cart Bouquet!
Hot Dog - How Do They Make Dollar Bills? (Color, 1971)
As Dolly Parton once said, “You can never have too much money”. Filmed at Bureau of Printing and Engraving in Washington, D.C. this is one film in a series featuring comedians Jonathan Winters, Jo Anne Worley, and Woody Allen showcasing the various processes that go into the production of dollar bills, from the initial checking of the plates all the way through the extremely detailed counting of the finished bills. Watch it and wish that money was yours!
Match Your Mood (Color, 1968)
Wild, amazing promotional film by Westinghouse touts the latest fad: decorative pop art/psychedelic refrigerator covers. Transforms any kitchen into a swinging go-go party! Jaw-dropping visuals and a groovy soundtrack will make you wish you lived in the 60s!
It’s Not Commercial (1950s, B+W)
One of the strangest if not THE strangest collection of commercials in Oddball’s 6,000 commercial archive. Created by an unknown studio this collection of short “fake” commercials meant as a parody manages to be simply creepy and weird for no apparent reason. Watch jaw-dropping weirdos that look like rejects from a David Lynch film as they attempt to poke fun at weight loss, deodorant and more.
About Oddball Films
Oddball films is the film component of Oddball Film+Video, a stock footage company providing offbeat and unusual film footage for feature films like Milk, documentaries like The Summer of Love, television programs like Mythbusters, clips for Boing Boing and web projects around the world.
Our films are almost exclusively drawn from our collection of over 50,000 16mm prints of animation, commercials, educational films, feature films, movie trailers, medical, industrial military, news out-takes and every genre in between. We’re actively working to present rarely screened genres of cinema as well as avant-garde and ethno-cultural documentaries, which expand the boundaries of cinema. Oddball Films is the largest film archive in Northern California and one of the most unusual private collections in the US. We invite you to join us in our weekly offerings of offbeat cinema.
