Born: Chicago, Illinois USA
Worked in: New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Fort Smith, Arkansas
David Lang may only be in the agency business for 5 years, but he is certainly finding ways to transform it. The earlier portion of David’s career was spent as he humbly says, “as a TV executive.”
Not only is he an Emmy Award-winning producer for his work on the Rosie O’Donnell Show, but David adds writer, director, and former on-air personality to his litany of talents. He has developed and produced comedy,
reality, documentary and scripted programs for cable and broadcast networks.
In other words, David has the perfect background for a media agency leader in the expanding world of content development and branded entertainment for marketers. As a forward-thinker, he’s easily
demonstrating how any old boundaries between Hollywood and Madison Avenue continue to blur.
“We are living in a moment in time or in history where the possibilities have never been as huge—particularly with online and mobile. If we can’t create something wonderful for consumers to engage with, then shame on us.”
Speaking earlier this year at Telco 2.0’s Executive Brainstorm, he described his role by saying, “I oversee Mindshare Entertainment; we are a creative production group that sits inside a media agency. I’m a creative guy—a producer, but I now work at a global media agency, which is something very different. We create multiplatform content for clients based upon consumer insight, strategy, marketplace dynamics and target behavior. In fact, we’ve completed 40 projects in 5 years for all of Mindshare’s major clients, including Unilever, IBM, American Express, and Sprint.”
Among David’s award-winning projects is “In the Motherhood,” a multiplatform entertainment program for moms created for Unilever’s Suave and Sprint. The program, featuring King of Queens actress Leah Remini, was created first for the web, then crossed over to television as an ABC-adapted prime-time show after attracting 5.5 million online viewers. This was one of the first web shows to migrate to TV. The initial Webisode series was scripted on real-life experiences based on an online community with user-generated content.
David also initiated the “Life Tastes Good Championship” for LG Home Appliances, a global, multi-platform campaign based on an international amateur culinary competition. Mindshare Entertainment in collaboration with CNN produced 60-second spots to promote the cooking competition, LG products, and an array of contestants. Based on the Championship’s success, LG has now made this an annual competition in locations from Dubai to Thailand with varying themes to showcase its innovative and stylish home appliances to cooking enthusiasts around the world.
For Unilever’s Degree deodorant, David and his team collaborated with 20th Century Fox to create “The Rookie,” a web-based series inspired by antiterrorism agent Jack Bauer from “24.” Long-form Webisodes were available online at Fox.com and on high-definition, interactive television channels. Fans of the show could access additional content and enter a trivia sweepstakes. Mobile reminders prompted them about the next “Rookie” episode and the sweepstakes. The effort produced over 15 million video views. Other projects have featured 30 Rock's Jane Krakowski in Webisodes for Unilever's Breyers Smooth & Dreamy ice cream and Desperate Housewives' Felicity Huffman in the launch of Dove Calming Night products, a Web series directed by Penny Marshall. All of these original programs have not only made a positive impact on brand metrics, but most have also received awards for great advertising and effective work. David Lang certainly knows how to turn an interesting story and a good script into engaging, new solutions for brands. What divide between Hollywood and Madison Avenue?
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