Martin Österdahl is the executive producer for the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö, Sweden in 2013.
Now SVT have issued the tender for the graphical platform for the 2013 edition of Europe’s favourite TV show and it is PR agency Happy Forsman & Bodenfors who have been handed this big responsibility.
"We are ecstatic to have been given this task. We are going to have a big task group at both Happy F&B and F&B as this is an extraordinary opportunity. Who knows when Sweden will win again? We know that all of Malmö, Sweden and Europe are going to celebrate together. When Loreen won, it felt like the beginning of something new, and we hope to be able to manage this in the best way”, says Lise Careborg, Creative Director at the company to Melodifestivalen.com.
"They (F&B) have presented a basic concept that we really liked and that we are now going to refine together. The choice fell upon the agency because we thought that they had found a really good way of reflecting our ideas in connection with Eurovision”, says Martin Österdahl, executive producer for the Eurovision Song Contest in 2013.
Unique Graphics
In previous articles here on Eurovision.tv and Melodifestivalen.com, Martin Österdahl has explained that the work is about reconnecting with the original idea behind the Eurovision Song Contest.
"We want to take advantage of the wealth of cultures and expression that is unique for the competition; discuss the value of our diversity and underline that we at the end of the day are the same and are all worth the same”, he says.
The graphics will be different from previous years
"We have worked very hard in order to create a unique identity that is distinguishable from all other year’s editions of Eurovision. It isn’t easy as this show has a tradition spanning over 50 years, but we believe that we’ve found it now”, says Martin Österdahl
Considering a slogan
During the past three years, the competition has had slogans like "Share the Moment", "Feel Your Heart Beat" and "Light Your Fire". It isn’t yet clear whether the competition in Malmö will have a similar catchphrase.
"It’s definitely our ambition to have one, but we are not sure if we’ll manage it yet. It is linked to the visual identity as a whole”, says Martin Österdahl.
The graphical platform that is now being worked on will be used on everything from websites, printed materials, tickets and decorations all over Malmö and will also, as usual, be seen in the three live shows. Martin Österdahl has revealed that the completed graphics will be presented to the press and public very soon.
Thanks to Gustav Dahlander from SVT for providing the above information. Translation provided by Simon Storvik-Green (EBU).
