Jacob All Trades #336
New Work For Harris/Walz, AI That's Actually Good For Filmmakers, Food Waste, Fivequels, This Week In Chaotic Good, Things My Kid Said, and more!
Happy Thursday. I’ve never felt more sure of my creative ability and less sure of my career path. This industry is wild. If anyone needs a creative director, director, or anything else from my unique bag of tricks…. I am looking for work! Enjoy the newsletter, and thanks for reading. – Jacob
NEW WORK: MAN ENOUGH
I creative directed and directed this campaign for Creatives For Harris. In the last 24 hrs, it’s racked up half a million views on TikTok, been reposted by Vote Save America, and gotten a great write-up in Fast Company. I’ve felt validated by the response and the incredible experience of working with a crew of volunteers to bring this into the world. I plan to say more about the process, but for now, check it out!
I think this resonates with people because it’s a view of masculinity we see in our lives but is rarely reflected in the media — especially when some of the loudest voices on the subject are the most insecure and bombastic. Our friends, family, and neighbors are complex men. They can change a tire and enjoy a romcom; chug a beer and run to the store to get tampons for their wives and daughters — the strongest men are the most secure in their masculinity. With the rise of role models like Tim Walz and Doug Emhoff on the national stage, I think the left is finally finding its footing on how to talk about masculinity — I think we’re overdue for a redefinition of what it means to be a man in America and I hope this campaign can start to shape that conversation. Because even though it’s more sketch comedy than political ad, what these men are saying is true — except being afraid of bears. A bear will straight-up kill you.
Here are the :30s…
TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE: SEQUEL EDITION
Two of these are a real thing; one of them is not. Click through to find out…
DO SOMETHING
We’ve got less than a month before the election, and if you care about who wins but haven’t gotten involved, now’s the time. Here are some great orgs I recommend:
Environmental Voter Project Call folks who care about the environment but don’t always vote. There are (amazingly) enough in each swing state to tip things.
Vote Save America Volunteer with Crooked Media like one of the cool kids.
The States Project Focused specifically on the state legislature races that can swing control for civil liberties, redistricting, vote certification and more while building up a diverse and representative Democratic bench.
Ground Game LA If you’re in the Los Angeles area, canvas for progressive candidates and get paid $25/hr to do it!
CREATIVE RESOURCES
I’m constantly looking for images to help pitch my ideas to others and visualize them for myself. I love Shot Deck, but I was recently told about a(n even better?) tool called Flim.ai. Yes, it has AI in the name, it uses AI to search (presumably) but all the images generated are from actual media.
I did a test search for a short I’m working on and was delighted to see immediately helpful results. Also, it felt very validating that the image I had in my head references a Kurosawa film.
STATE LEVEL EXPERIMENTS
A new study from Science.org (and repackaged here on WaPo) shows that of the five states who have begun limiting food waste, the most successful has been Massachusetts. Bans in other states like California have had no measurable impact due to weak compliance.
So, what is Massachusetts doing right?
Extensive Composting Infrastructure: The state has developed a robust network of composting facilities, making it easier for businesses to divert food waste.
Clear Regulations: The food waste ban is straightforward, with no confusing exemptions for businesses.
Strong Enforcement: Massachusetts actively enforces its laws, increasing compliance through regular checks and penalties for noncompliance.
Outreach Efforts: The state conducted extensive outreach to educate businesses about the rules and the importance of participation.
THIS WEEK IN CHAOTIC GOOD
The story of an artist who got fed up with a road sign that made no sense… so he pretended to be a highway worker and fixed it himself. I’ve heard legends about this since art school, but here’s an Instagram story that packages it really clearly:
THINGS MY KID SAID
On Rosh Hashanah, I was explaining Tashlich to our five year old. Tashlich (literally “casting off”) is a Jewish atonement ritual performed on the afternoon of the first day of Rosh Hashanah where you metaphorically cast your sins (bread crumbs) into a moving body of water. The idea is to reflect on parts of yourself you want to improve by physically discarding the things you regret. Here’s how that convo went down:
Me: … so you think of something you want to do better at and then throw the bread in the water.
Five Year Old: Okay. I wish I was better at drawing princesses.
M: Oh. Yeah, I see. No, it’s more like things you want to change about yourself.
FYO: I don’t want to change anything about myself. I love who I am.
M: That’s really great. I love who you are too. What about things you do that you know you shouldn’t…. like, you could think about how sometimes you hit your sister instead of using your words.
FYO: I really don’t think we should keep talking about this.
LITERALLY JUST A BRAG
I got my first Sunday acceptance to the NYT Crossword. I’ve got three puzzles in the queue with them and can’t wait to share them with you. If you’ve ever succeeded at a very niche hobby that almost nobody cares about, you know how I feel!
Alrighty, that’s it for this issue. If you enjoyed what you read, please leave a comment and/or share the newsletter using the links below. (For real, please comment. More people come up to me in person and tell me they like the newsletter than comment on it online).
And, if you can afford to, I’d love for you to become a paid subscriber so that I can keep making cool stuff!
Party on,
Jacob
Great work! Also, that convo with your 5 yo is so golden! He really said - "No notes dad!"
Well done