The Proposal: A bi-weekly or monthly comic series housed on the Regeneration microsite featuring an anthropomorphized 50-something dog learning new tricks.
The Purpose: To draw traffic to the Regeneration microsite and to demonstrate that BMO Financial Group understands the changing face of retirement. The idea behind the comic strip is to comment on self-identification themes (e.g. “that captures my life perfectly” – i.e. BMO “Gets It”)
Possible topics include:
– The offensiveness of being referred to as a “senior”
– The allure of new styles that make you look ten years younger
– Managing a 20-something kid living at home
– Becoming a sommelier at 55
The comic strip will be pushed out virally through the Regeneration microsite.
The Concept: “Old Dog: New Trix(ie)”
Meet Trixie, our anthorpomorphic dog protagonist. She is a dog of a certain age. Namely, Trixie has just celebrated her 8th birthday (or, in
human years, roughly 55).
This milestone in her life brings both challenges and opportunities. One of the biggest challenges is managing everyone’s competing expectations (including her own) of what this new phase in her life is all about. 2006 was the Year of the Dog, and Trixie took this to heart; she swore to make every year from now on The Year of Trixie. She has worked hard and played hard but now she is ready to make the most of what her years of experience offer her.
Each comic strip will have Trixie confront a situation which challenges everyone’s expectations of what a dog of her years “should be” doing. Each time she will be a different Trixie – one time a bank executive, another a teacher, this time a lawyer, next time a magazine publisher. Trixie is different each time, yet each time she is the same Trixie.
The Pilot Script – Old Dog: New Trixie
PANEL ONE
[We see a bull terrier-type in a suit moving a banker’s box full of desk equipment from a corridor into a window corner office. On the nameplate beside the door is written TRIXIE WEIMERANER. A poodle-type in suit with tie askew addresses the bull terrier.]
POODLE: Moving into Trixie’s old office, Bob?
BULL TERRIER: I’ve been waiting for this office for 10 years.
PANEL TWO
[Inside the office as Bull Terrier unpacks his box. Poodle leans in holding onto the doorframe.]
POODLE: So, what do you think old Trixie’s doing now?
BULL TERRIER: Don’t know, don’t care but I’d be bored after about two days.
PANEL THREE
[Close up on a rounded board sticking up out of the bottom right corner of the frame at about 30 degrees. There is some suggestion of air and board movement.]
POODLE off-frame along the top border of the frame: Yeah, bored would be the word.
PANEL FOUR
[Full frame of TRIXIE WEIMERANER in lifejacket and pearls absolutely kicking it in full flight on a windsurfer with high waves, sun and wind. On the bottom of the board is written TRIXIE.]
PANEL FIVE
[Extreme close-up of TRIXIE’s huge smile.]
BULL TERRIER off-frame in small letters off to the bottom right of the frame: I don’t know what I’d do with myself.
END