A local actor and film student has two entries in the running for the Heinz "Top This TV Challenge," which invited amateur media makers to come up with clever 30-second commercials for their ketchup.
Eric Manke, a student of the Academy for Creative Media at the University of Hawaii, rallied his friends and many talents to produce "It's the Heinz Patrol" and "The Heinz Nightmare." Both commercials are embedded below the fold.
Heinz is offering a top prize of $57,000 and "eternal glory," with the winning ad to air during the Emmy awards on September 16.
There were hundreds of submissions, and Heinz judges are busy reviewing the entries this weekend. Fifteen finalists will be announced on Monday. Those finalists will then be put up for a public vote to choose the ultimate winner.
Manke is no stranger to success. He's a veteran of the local stage, earned ink for landing a rare gig as Goofy at Disney World (yes, really), and just this past May recieved a $2,000 scholarship from the Hawaii Association of Broadcasters.
Good luck, brah!
It's the Heinz Patrol
The Heinz Nightmare
UPDATE: Contrary to Wayne Harada's report, he played Pluto, not Goofy, per a source close to the issue. That's even better.