The spot we shot was concepted in less than an hour, with one day until our shoot. The reason for this was that a Levi's spot had just come out with the same idea as our original script. Here are some other scripts I wrote for this brief, starting with the one that was similar to the Levi's ad.

Voodoo Jermaine :30

OPEN ON: A kid puts on a pair of Jermaine’s Shox Ups, fresh out of the box.

CUT TO: The kid reclining in a recliner, watching TV. Suddenly, his feet start bouncing up and down.

CUT TO: Jermaine, at home, in his kitchen hopping up and down and fanning his smoke alarm which is going off. On the stove are the remains of something burned.

CUT TO: The kid standing, talking to some classmates. Suddenly, he kicks someone standing behind him, causing him to drop his books and fall into a bush.

CUT TO: Jermaine, getting out of his car with groceries, using one foot to kick the car door shut.

CUT TO: Kid at the dinner table with his family. Suddenly, his legs start pumping up and down.

CUT TO: Jermaine, running up the stairs at his house.

CUT TO: Kid in school, jogging and skipping down the hall, running into people and spinning into lockers.

CUT TO: Jermaine, dribbling the ball from his mailbox back to his house, skipping and doing a few moves.

CUT TO: The kid in an ice cream shop. Suddenly he jumps up and out of the frame. We hear him hit the ceiling.

CUT TO: Jermaine dunking the ball at his home court.

SUPER: Finish Line logo

VO: Jermaine’s Nike Shox Ups, only at Finish Line.

Protect the Ball :30

OPEN ON: Jermaine walking down a city street, dribbling a basketball.

CUT TO: Fire hydrant moving slightly behind him.

CUT TO: Jermaine dribbling.

CUT TO: Garage door opens slightly as he passes.

CUT TO: Jermaine looks back over his shoulder.

CUT TO: The garage door closes quickly.

CUT TO: Jermaine continues dribbling, a bit suspicious. A mailbox moves slightly as he passes.

CUT TO: Jermaine continues dribbling and a garbage bin jumps out in front of him. Jermaine turns to protect the ball and does a move to get around it.

CUT TO: Jermaine is stopped as the branch of a tree lowers to steal the ball. He fakes the tree only to see an awning drop to steal the ball. He spins around and a lamp post challenges him. Jermaine dribbles furiously, spinning, faking and powering his way past the lamp post and jumping over an attacking newspaper machine.

CUT TO: View from across the street. We see Jermaine has passed the tree, awning, lamp post, etc., all of which appear completely normal. He relaxes into a casual dribble.

CUT TO: Jermaine walking towards the camera, coming up to the corner of a building, dribbling. We see that around the corner, pressed up against the building, are more opponents: a newspaper machine, a potted tree, another garbage bin, etc. standing perfectly still.

SUPER: Finish Line logo

VO: Jermaine’s Nike Shox Ups, only at Finish Line.

Jermaine’s Got Your Back :30

OPEN ON: Pacers basketball game. Jermaine sets a screen for a teammate.

CUT TO: the teammate’s shot bouncing off the rim, and Jermaine is there to tip it in. Jermaine seems to be everywhere on the court at once.

CUT TO: A man in the crowd is yelling at a hotdog vendor who cannot hear him. Suddenly, Jermaine is there to hand the man a hotdog.

CUT TO: The game. Jermaine blocks a shot, catches the ball and passes it to an open teammate.

CUT TO: One of the TV interviewers on the court. Jermaine shows up and motions that he has something in his teeth as he holds up a mirror.

CUT TO: A man in the front row is about to sneeze. Jermaine appears next to him with a handkerchief.

CUT TO: The court. Someone makes a pass to a wide open spot on the court. No one is there to catch the ball.

CUT TO: Jermaine, handkerchief in hand, looks at the court in horror.

CUT TO: Jermaine comes out of nowhere to catch the pass and put up a game-winning shot at the buzzer. He still has the handkerchief in his hand. There is no reaction from the crowd.

CUT TO: The man sneezes and the crowd watches it on the jumbotron.

CUT TO: The crowd moans, disappointed.

CUT TO: People walking out, as if their team had lost.

SUPER: Finish Line logo

VO: Jermaine’s Nike Shox Ups, only at Finish Line.

Leadership Q & A :30

OPEN ON: On-the-phone-with-Jermaine-O’neal graphic and photo of Jermaine

CALLER: Jermaine? Does a leader eat pork chops?

JERMAINE: Well, caller, that’s a very unusual question. I suppose a leader might eat a pork chop. If eating the pork chop were good for the team, then a leader would definitely eat the pork chop. That’s what a leader does.

CALLER: ...Eat pork chops?

JERMAINE: Well, maybe, but, to be honest, caller, I’m having trouble imagining how eating a pork chop would help a team. That would be a very strange situation.

CALLER: Yeah, I guess it would be. Okay, thanks, Jermaine.

CUT TO: Nike Shox Ups shoe and Finishline logo graphic.

VO: Jermaine’s Nike Shox Ups, only at Finish Line.

Another Leadership Q & A :30

OPEN ON: On-the-phone-with-Jermaine-O’neal graphic and photo of Jermaine

CALLER: Jermaine, you’re a leader. Do leaders like music?

JERMAINE: Yeah, sure. A leader is just a person who helps a team work like a team.

CALLER: Jermaine, I want to play some music for you.

JERMAINE: Okay. (music...)

JERMAINE: Caller, I don’t think we have time...

CALLER: Wait, this is the good part. (...music...)

CUT TO: Nike Shox Ups shoe and Finishline logo graphic.

VO: Jermaine’s Nike Shox Ups, only at Finish Line.