Tanaka Family Trying to ‘Crash the Super Bowl’
By J.K. Yamamoto
For most kids, having a dad who works for Pixar would be cool enough — a dad who has been an editor for such films as “Up,” “WALL-E,” “Ratatouille” and “Cars.”
But the Tanaka family of San Rafael — David, his wife, Dorianne, and their sons, Mitchell and Benjamin — have their own side career: making videos and entering them into national competitions.
Since his days at George Lucas’ Industrial Light and Magic, where he worked on visual effects for such films as “Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace” and the remake of “Planet of the Apes,” Tanaka has had his own projects, such as a commercial he produced and directed for a veterans’ rights organization.
Today, the family is a force to be reckoned with. Their track record includes winning first place in Esurance’s “Biggest Trekkie” Internet contest, which earned them an all-expenses-paid trip to Hollywood for the premiere of the new “Star Trek” movie earlier this year. In the video, Mitchell plays a kid who has adopted Mr. Spock’s persona.
Dorianne also stars as his mom.
That experience was particularly meaningful, Tanaka says, because he and Dorianne first saw the original “Star Trek” series when they were about the same ages as Mitchell (10) and Benjamin (7), and have been fans ever since.
The Tanakas made the top 12 in the “What Would You Do for a Klondike Bar?” online contest (in their video, a grandma who is stronger than she looks fights her way to the front of the line for a Klondike bar) and the top 10 in Nestle’s Quick’s “Where Does Nesquick Take You?”
YouTube challenge (in which Mitchell had to endure a cold chocolate milk shower).
The Klondike commercial stars Tanaka’s mom, Frances. “I had to drag her into it,” he recalls with a laugh. Tanaka himself plays the unfortunate ice cream man.
The family has also entered contests sponsored by Skinit.com (sticker products for portable game players, laptops, MP3 players and cell phones) and, on a more serious note, the “Obama in 30 Seconds” contest, in which their entry showed alternate visions of the future depending on the outcome of the 2008 election.
Tanaka won a 2007 competition sponsored by the Fox reality show “On the Lot,” placing first out of 500 entries with a “documentary” about people who drive around without realizing that they’ve left their coffee cups on the roofs of their cars. The phenomenon is treated as though it’s a terrible affliction.
The family’s latest project: Doritos’ “Crash the Super Bowl” Internet contest. Their entry, “Lil’ Chipster,” features a character who transforms people’s lives through the magic of Doritos. Again, there are Tanakas both on screen and behind the camera.
Tanaka explains, “Doritos is going to choose six finalist entries ... which will each receive $25,000 come this December. Out of the six finalists, the public will then be asked to pick the top three next January. The top three will then air nationally during the Super Bowl, with the potential of winning as much as $1 million if they rate high enough on the USA Today Super Bowl Ad Meter.
“Although the six finalists will be chosen in-house by Doritos, everything in the meantime helps ... posting a favorable comment, obtaining as many hits as possible, and spreading the word to friends and family regarding our entry.”
To view the video, go to www.crashthesuperbowl.com/#/video/1917 and click “Skip Intro” on the first page. Viewers must register and log in to add comments to “Lil’ Clipster (Fix @ :21/:22). Multiple viewings are allowed.
“There are over 4,000-plus entries for this particular contest, so it’s all about number of viewing hits and positive comments in order for the judges to really take notice of our submission,” said Tanaka.
“(Also) outside blogging, Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, etc., anything you can think of, is hugely appreciated.
“Of course, I hope you get a good laugh out of it too.”
