Author StopPress Team

Our weekly wrap of good things, strange things, funny things and other things from inside the intertubes.

Netflix has finally arrived on New Zealand’s shores, and naturally one of our first responses is to parody the service in true Kiwi fashion, with the help of Taika Waititi.

Tim Murphy, the editor-in-chief of the NZ Herald has decided to step down after a 30 years with the publication. This announcement brings an end to Murphy’s three-year stint in the role that he took on after serving as an NZ Herald editor for ten years.

There are currently only 29,000 rhinos left in the wild, and this number continues to reduce every year as poachers continue killing these magnificent herbivores for their horns. And given that the conservation efforts are failing to stop this from happening, tourists on safaris often take advantage of what is becoming a quickly diminishing opportunity to take snapshots of the animals in their natural habitat. However, the problem with this is that smartphones often geo-tag images, giving poachers pinpoint coordinates to the the rhinos they so desperately covet.

Recent market research has forecast the economic impact of drone technology in the USA alone to be $82 billion dollars by 2025 and it’s predicted that 80 percent of the commercial market for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) will eventually be for agricultural uses. Given our reliance on that sector, and our history of agricultural innovation, New Zealand stands to benefit from this development. But Callaghan Innovation is also hoping to drive its use in the film and screen industry through an innovation competition.

Japanese advertising agency TBWAHakuhodo created amazingly intricate 3D-printed ice cubes for a campaign for its client Suntory Whisky.

After some high-profile accidents, there’s plenty of attention on cycle safety at the moment—and some positive signs that the powers that be are taking heed and starting to create cyclist friendly infrastructure in our bigger cities. Various campaigns have tried to get drivers to look for cyclists—and tried to get cyclists to make sure they can be seen—and now Volvo has developed a cool new product that will help both sides: Life Paint.

For the most part, recruiters serve as the link between the skills employers want and the capabilities employees have. At its simplest, this implies that a clearly defined role necessitates an employee with a very specific skill set. However, when it comes to digital roles, specificity is exactly what’s absent. These roles are constantly evolving, meaning that employers sometimes don’t even know exactly what they should be looking for. And to overcome this problem, the Digital Store founder and consultant Louise Lawton believes that agencies should turn to recruiters who specialise in digital recruitment.

Sadly for the French, they often have to wait up until a year for an American show to broadcast after its US launch. BETC Paris has depicted their struggle through this Game of Thrones-esque parody ad that seems stuck in slow motion.

A non-profit organisation in India has come up with an incredible initiative to ensure Indian women are getting enough iodine by administering the essential mineral through bindis (or ‘life-saving dots’ as they have been dubbed).

JP Sears is an infinite pool of spiritual wisdom. Through his YouTube channel you can learn ‘How to Make Real Friends’, ‘How to Become Ultra Spiritual’, ‘How to Become a Vegetarian’ and more. And in one of his latest clips he takes aim at those who are gluten intolerant.

Approximately 300 hours of video content are uploaded to YouTube every minute—and the vast majority of it is created by regular users who capture personal experiences with Go Pros, smartphones and laptop cameras. So prolific is this trend of user-generated content that millennials are now sometimes referred to as Generation C, for Generation Content.

Vodka brand J.A. Baczewski created a short film, which really pulls on the heartstrings, about a 94-year-old man who is in the possession of a very old unopened J.A. Baczewski vodka bottle, which he wished to return to the legal heirs of the brand owners after stealing it during the second world war.

Social TV agency Darewin has released a new campaign to promote the third season of the 13ème Rue (part of NBCUniversal) series Bates Motel. And for it, the agency has created a site that puts you in the skin of famous Psycho character Norman Bates.

The creative process is difficult enough to explain, let alone visualise. Yet, this is exactly what 8com director Michael Humphrey has attempted to do in a video promoting and exhibition of artist Dick Frizzell’s work.

Every year, brands engage in a bit of April Fools’ banter by devising ridiculous new offers. And in keeping with its quirky promotional tone, Pak ‘n Save has this year sent out a release claiming to have have launched Pak ‘n Save, an on-site beauty service called Pak ‘n Shave.

A new PSA launched by the California Department of Public Health aims to to take on the E-cigarette industry and the harm that it is causing to the younger generation. Often marketed as the healthier alternative to standard cigarettes, E-cigarettes are in fact also addictive and can cause a high number of health risks to users.

David Beckham and James Corden have created a hilarious juxtaposition in an underwear ad parody on the Late Late Show.