The Jealousy List 2021, the Mere Exposure Effect and Art That Changed Attention

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10 stories we've enjoyed this week

Illustration by Camila Rosa - Work with her

Hi All,
We're working with a couple of clients at the moment who produce events such as conferences and convenings. We're designing formats for before, during and after these events.

We'd really love to hear about any experience you have of sharing what you learn after attending events. Do you do this and if so how? Do you blog about your experiences, give talks to your teams, or curate reading lists? Have you seen any interesting ways others do this? Get in touch with your tips.

Enjoy this week's stories and have a fantastic weekend.
Hugh

The Short Story

Jealousy List 2021
(multiple reads)

A Twitter Thread of Ads Made By Famous Filmmakers
(Twitter thread)

9 Works of Art That Changed Our Attention
(9 min read)

Ghost Signs of London
(2 min read)

Formats Unpacked: The Beatles - Get Back
(5 min read)

The Mere Exposure Effect - Why Content Marketing Works
(4 min read)

The Hidden Melodies of Subways Around the World
(6 min read)

Three Useful Bits on Crafting, Presenting and Recognising Stories
(2 min read)

I Love This New York Public Library Gift Idea
(1 min read)

The Rebrand Trend of 2021
(5 min read)

How can we help you?

Storythings is a strategy and content company based in Brighton and London. We'd love to help you with some creative and bold ideas.

Here's 3 reasons to get in touch.

1. You want to talk to us about content production: podcasts, videos, animations, illustrations, editorial.

2. You want to talk to us about content strategy or format development.

3. You want to create a brand or an identity that makes it easier to communicate your message.

We do other things too. We're very friendly and always enjoy meeting people, so get in touch.

The Full Story

Jealousy List 2021
What a smart format this is. Love it: "At Bloomberg Businessweek, we read—a lot. We also listen to podcasts and watch a ton of stuff (often with borrowed passwords). Sometimes we read, watch, or listen to something that we wish we had published. To recognize a job well done, the magazine’s staff and many of our contributors in the Bloomberg newsroom have compiled our annual yearend Jealousy List. Congratulations to those on this year’s list, we hate/love you. —The Editors"
(list)

A Twitter Thread of Ads Made By Famous Filmmakers
Featuring adverts made by Wes Anderson, Francis Ford Coppola, Jean-Luc Godard, Steve McQueen and more.
(Twitter thread)

9 Works of Art That Changed Our Attention
A useful reminder that despite over a decade of declarations that attention is getting shorter, attention is a spectrum. This piece from the always interesting Believer Mag looks at nine works that explore some of the new forms of engagement, using our attention in different ways, demanding a lot or a little of it, but always deliberately.
(9 min read)

Ghost Signs of London
I enjoyed this short but interesting look at the history of London's ghost signs. It turns out that being a signwriter was a pretty dangerous job back in the day: "Work was hard: all-seasons, and using hazardous materials such as lead paint, solvent and turpentine, and all of it at height. Indeed, data from around the period give an impression of just how dangerous jobs like these could be in the days before health and safety measures. Mid-19th century figures in accidental death from London’s Guy’s Hospital find that, after burning, 'falls from a height' was the second-most-frequent cause of accidental death."
(5 min read)

Formats Unpacked: The Beatles - Get Back
A lot has already been written about The Beatles: Get Back since it hit Disney's streaming service this Thanksgiving. Much of the commentary is about the band, their creative process and the new perspectives we get about their personal and professional relationships. The series really has struck a chord with a lot of people. The structure that all of the above wraps around is what caught my attention, so I wrote about it for Formats Unpacked.
(5 min read)

The Mere Exposure Effect - Why Content Marketing Works
This piece explains how the 'mere exposure effect' works and why it's important to understand for anyone interested in content marketing. It's also why formats are so valuable. As we say at Storythings, audiences come for the format and stay for the story.
(4 min read)

The Hidden Melodies of Subways Around the World
This is a nice piece of scrollytelling from the New York Times. We all like to record our travel in some way. Often via photos or videos of famous landmarks. But Ted Green likes to record the sound of subways wherever he goes. Everything from the sound of doors opening, the beeps, the station announcements and the commuters: "I think the appeal is the simplicity,” Green said. “You wonder, how can there be so many different variations of beeps? And then you listen, and they’re all so different.”
(6 min read)

3 Useful Bits on Crafting, Presenting and Recognising Stories
If you haven't seen these before, I can't think of a better way to spend the next two minutes.
(2 min read)

I Love This New York Public Library Gift Idea
Do you want to get a loved one's name in a book? Make a small donation and the library will print your loved one's name and a personalised message inside a book circulating in The New York Public Library!
(1 min read)

The Rebrand Trend of 2021
This year, heritage brands such as Burger King, Peugeot and Campbells looked to their pasts to create visual identities for the multi-platform era. But it's not only heritage brands. Find out why new brands are going for a heritage look too.
(5 min read)

We hope you've enjoyed this week's newsletter. I'm sure some of your friends would love to read it. Sharing it would be really appreciated. If you've received this from a friend you can subscribe here and get it direct to your inbox every Friday.

Thanks for reading and see you all next week,

Hugh, Matt, Anjali and the team at Storythings

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