I'm shortlisted at Cannes for copywriting and illustrating

I'm not personally attending the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity that's happening this week. But I've just learned that a couple of things I worked on have been shortlisted. Which is almost as exciting as cavorting on a beach in the South of France. That's what I'm telling myself, anyway.

In terms of my Copywriting - The Mr. Clean facebook page, for which I helped develop the Mr. Clean character and wrote many of his status updates, is in there:

http://www.canneslions.com/work/2012/interactive/entry.cfm?entryid=32848&award=101&order=0&direction=1

And get this... I'm in this James Ready Beer campaign as an Illustrator. That's right, I was asked to draw some of the newsletters that came in the beer boxes. I knew that doodling on my school notebooks would come in handy one day.

http://www.canneslions.com/work/2012/effectiveness/entry.cfm?entryid=3856&award=101&order=1&direction=1

Can you bear how cute this cartoon is?

For their latest shelf display sign, eco-friendly soap company The Soapworks wanted to teach people that hand sanitizers aren't enough to keep your hands germ-free - you also have to wash with soap. I wandered into the forest for inspiration and came across this poignant scene, which I quietly captured with pen and paper while crouched unseen in the bushes. Yes, that's the level of commitment you get when you commission an illustration from Josh Rachlis.

My heroic assembling of this superhero cartoon

A woman recently responded to my Kijiji ad asking for a very specific cartoon. She even provided visual references of everything. I'm attaching the items so you can see how it was all put together. She wanted the superhero body, with the sports team insignia on the shirt, holding up the company logo, with the face of her loved one. You can see how I put it all together, in full colour and in my special Josh style. The client was very pleased. You might say I passed the test with "flying colours." Or, if you don't enjoy horrible puns, you might not say that. Regardless, if you want your own personalized cartoon, email me at josh.rachlis (AT) gmail.com

Mother duck teaches in my cartoon for soap company

For The Soap Works, the holiday season wasn't just a chance to sell eco-friendly gifts, it was a chance to remind us the importance of hand-washing to stay healthy. I came up with a few ways to convey this. And a loving mother duck and her duckling kids won out. Note: Do NOT read that last sentence out loud ten times fast. We're trying to keep things "clean." Ha ha, get it? Anyway, to order your own personalized cartoon, email me at joshrachlis (AT) gmail.com

Frogs open their gifts in my xmas cartoon for the eco soap company

For the Christmas season, The Soap Works hired me to do another cartoon for their in-store displays. This one was to get out the message that soap is a gift people will actually use - which is yet another eco feature of the soaps. I came up with a few concepts, and this was the winner. I'm sure I could end this post with some double-meaning eco/frog pun playing off the expression "It's not easy being green," but, hey, write your own. Why do I have to do all the work here? To order a personalized cartoon of your very own, email me at: joshrachlis (AT) gmail.com

I drew a beaver in a bathtub for a soap company

As you know if you've seen me picking up litter or I've asked you to stop idling your car, I'm out to clean up this world. So when I was approached by Andy, the owner of The Soap Works, to draw a cartoon for his in-store displays, it was a match made in eco-heaven. After all, his soaps are natural, biodegradable and don't even have packaging - they're just bars of soap with the logo stamped on! The only thing more eco would be to not bathe at all. And from my experiences with roommates, I know that's not a good thing. Andy had a clear vision that he wanted a beaver with a bathing cap in a bathtub. I threw in a moose whose antlers are being used as a bathrobe hook. Because that's how I roll. Look for it soon at a health food store near you, and let the drawing's whimsical charms seduce you away from buying toxic soaps in plastic containers. To order a personalized cartoon of your very own, email me at: joshrachlis (AT) gmail.com

Commissioned to draw a "going away" cartoon

Those of you who spend all your time trolling Craiglist will know I have an ad peddling my cartooning. For those of you who spend their time more productively, here's what it says:

Cartoon illustrations for cards/invites/books/articles and more! (Downtown Toronto)

Want to make a cute personalized card for a loved one? A neat invite for a party? A sign for your business? Need some illustrations for a book or brochure or presentation you've written? I'm a cartoonist whose work has appeared in The Ottawa Citizen, in newsletters for James Ready Beer, and in countless posters, brochures, T-shirts and daily planners. Check out my latest work at http://joshrachlis.blogspot.com/search/label/illustration and see a wider range of my illustration work at http://picasaweb.google.ca/josh.rachlis/Illustrations#. Contact me today and let's make your project cartoon-iriffic! :)

Now, I know what you're thinking: "Nice Craiglist ad, Josh. But you're a Copywriter like on the show Mad Men, so I'd expect your ad to be brilliant. What I want to know is, does the whole cartooning process actually work?" Well, my skeptical, Don Draper-watching friend,  here's an example: This past Friday,  a gentleman responded to my ad with this email: "I'm looking to do a quick last minute cartoon/illustration gift for some friends that are moving to Vancouver. It's a completely last minute idea on my part and would like to present it for dinner tomorrow (Saturday) night at dinner. Is it possible you could turn something around that fast?" Little did he know, he was dealing with Josh Rachlis. Early Saturday afternoon, he emailed me photos of the people to put in the cartoon, a description of what everyone should be doing and a list of little inside jokes (such as a 3-jeweled ring, a multi-olived martini and a couple of timid black cats). I drew a pencil sketch, emailed it to him for his approval, then finished it in ink, and he picked it up mid-afternoon. I followed up with him and he emailed back that it was "a big hit." When's the last time a generic drugstore greeting card was a big hit? Just sayin'. See the cartoon by clicking here or check it out above.

I illustrate the James Ready Beer Newsletter a 4th time!

For their latest newsletter, the good folks at James Ready Beer are putting out a giant calendar. Since this is a very new idea for them, they thought it was important to include some instructions on how to get to most out of the calendar, and how to use it safely. I was asked to provide some visuals for the instructions. So I read the instructions and came up with some ideas for pictures that might help make things more clear. Hopefully I succeeded better than when I try to make myself understood to my girlfriend (when I have a girlfriend).

I illustrate the James Ready Beer Newsletter a 3rd time!

I've been called back into illustrating action! This time, a James Ready Beer employee took the computer and printer to Newfoundland and forgot them at his parent's house. So I was asked to hand-write the James Ready Newsletter, and once again took the liberty of adding my own little illustrations, thoughts and comments. Like me, these drawings look a lot better after a James Ready or two. Just sayin'. :-)

I've illustrated the James Ready Beer Newsletter! (Twice!)

The good folks at James Ready Beer are doing everything they can to keep their beer costing just a buck a bottle. That means cutting expenses around the factory. So when their old computer printer broke recently, they had to find another cheap way to publish their popular in-case newsletter. And nothing's cheaper than, well, me. So I drew their newsletter. I took the liberty of adding a few of my own personal flourishes and I guess people liked them, because I was asked to draw the next newsletter too. (Anyone know a cheap printer repair guy? My hand's starting to cramp up.)

Check out the brochure I drew for kids visiting the Ottawa Citizen!

You already know my mom's brilliant. But here's yet more proof. Last year, I was up in Ottawa the weekend of Doors Open Ottawa. I was keen on seeing the green roof at the water filtration plant. My parents, ever tolerant of my quirks, took me to see it. At the filtration plant, they had an educational brochure for kids feature cartoon illustrations of Mr. Drip, a big water drop with legs and arms and a face. Not sure if this was educational or just made kids terrified of water drops. But anyway, cut to a year later, and it's Doors Open Ottawa time again. My mom faxes me the Mr. Drip brochure that she presciently saved for some reason and calls me up with the idea to do something similar for kids who'll be visiting the Ottawa Citizen. Well! I love the Ottawa Citizen. And I love kids. And I love drawing. So this was the perfect storm. Feast your eyes on what resulted. Take that, Mr. Drip!