Project: Go Army! commercial parody

Background

For the past year the U.S. Army has run a series of ads that seem directed at parents in lower middle class families. (article 1 , article 2 , article 3 ) The ads attempt to equate good parenting with allowing (or even encouraging) teenage sons to join the army.

In one ad, we see a young black man sitting at the kitchen table with his mother. He shows her some US army brochures and tells her he's “found someone to pay for college.” Before the mother has a chance to object, the son explains he's “checked the army out” and can get training in any field he wants. The son closes his argument with, “Besides… its time for me to be the man." The original ad, which should be familiar to most people, can be seen below....

 

Project Concept

The original commercial has the dutiful mother just accepting her son's "Time for me to be the man" bullshit. In the parody, the mother would instead react by hitting her son upside the head with a frying pan. Then, determined to beat some sense into him, she'd chase him around the kitchen and chew him out for buying into army propaganda and trying to peddle it to her.

Like the original commercial, the parody would be 30 seconds long. Until the mother's reaction at the end, the parody would mimic the original commercial as much as possible. The shooting script below includes screen captures from the original commercial as reference for casting, makeup, wardrobe, props, camera angles, scene composition, lighting, etc.

 
   

Shooting Script

 

  
shot 1 Son at kitchen table – drinks from water glass. Looks self-satisfied.
   
   

MOM:

Somethin' good happen today?
shot 2
   
shot 3 Son smirks sheepishly and looks down at his lap at…
   
… U.S. army recruitment brochures. He slides them onto table. shot 4
   
shot 5

SON:

I found someone to pay for me to go to college.
   

Sound of Mom putting her fork on plate. She is reserved – a tough sell.

 

MOM:

Go on.
shot6
   
shot 7

SON:

Okay now, before you ask Mom, I already checked them out…and I can get training in just about any field I want.

Son licks lips nervously

And besides…
   
Pause as we cut to expectant, cautious Mom. shot 8
   
   
shot 9

SON: (cont.)

…its time for me to be the man.
   
Mom's reaction shot. She mulls this over— like the original ad, you think maybe she's melting-- resigning herself to the fact that her boy's all grown up now. shot 10

 

 

  

shot 11

 

 But no, our Mom suddenly hits Son upside the head with a frying pan.

shot 12

We see incensed Mom chasing her son around the kitchen and yelling at him.

NOTE: Camera angles, blocking, and dialog open to improvisation in this final sequence.

MOM:

Hell no! Not in this house. Nuh uh. Be the man? Shit! Get your ass shot off in Iraq, more like. Don't peddle that Army propaganda bullshit to me, boy!

 

shot 13

Fade to black, but we can still hear the fight and Mom shouting.

First title card appears....

“Help them find their strength”

Then title switches to…

“Beat some sense into them”
   
shot 14