Start the Commotion

I subscribe to EditorsNet, an online magazine and a free daily e-mail newsletter on the world of film and television editors.

I bring it up because I read an article about Steve Prestemon, the editor for two thirty-second television commercials that have stuck themselves in my head.

The commercials are car commercials for Mitsubishi. The Eclipse commercial features a bunch of youthful people driving around, singing to a song which ends with a clip "Wind it up baby!" The Gallant commercial features a mellow tune, sung by passengers and drivers. It starts "I wish that I knew what I know now when I was younger."

I was drawn to these commercials, and I've always wondered about the songs. Well, the article lists them as "Start the Commotion" (Eclipse), by The Wiseguys, and "Ooh La La" (Gallant), by The Faces. Yes, I downloaded the songs with Napster.

Like all good commercials, the song is catchy, and so is the mood. The combination of images and music puts you in 'a certain place' for less than one minute, and I'm fascinated by the process of how these are mixed together.