Los Angeles 6/10
Owing to an abrupt halt in board flow, which began in mid-February and continued into early March, most EPs had time to chew the fat - speculating on what caused the downturn. "Is it because of the housing slump or because of the Eliot Spitzer hooker scandal?" pondered one EP. Well, Spitzer's alleged escapades may not have been the bang heard around the world but something is to blame.

"It's really simple," offered another EP. "With a couple of exceptions, we have no new TV shows thanks to the writer's strike." Indeed, both NBC and CBS recently announced the cancellation of their traditional upfront presentations for smaller affairs that lessen the focus on broadcast and shift it toward digital. "That has a theme: it's called no money," maintained the EP. "I know it's totally cool to be doing this stuff, but I'm not interested in six, five-minute webisodes for the grand total of $25,000."

Packaged goods boards seemed to be the only dominant sector trickling through. "There are some boring spots coming up for antacids and fast food," warned an exec.

Still, there was hope for a boom from the Olympics and the activity surrounding the US presidential election. "That's what we're all depending on: spending less on the war and more on toothpaste."

Toronto 5/10
Over the phone, you could hear the tumbleweed blowing through the production company offices in this round of board flow calls. "It's a bit of a snore fest in the city," yawned one EP. "You can just put down ten 'z's as my response." We were left wondering if we'd be without much to report this month when another EP saved the day with a profusion of insightful gems on the state of creativity. "I would say that wacky for the sake of wacky ends up being stupid," reported the EP. "There's no real idea...." Wait a second, this sounds familiar; like a quote we printed from another EP in February! "OK, I'll think of something new," laughed the exec. "But times are desperate. People are stealing quotes because there's not much going on."

There's no secret as to the culprit behind the dearth of work - March Break descended on the city. "This March Break thing gets in the way every year because all the heavy hitters go away and nobody can sign an estimate," explained an EP. "Then we have Easter Monday - two weeks back-to-back where nobody is doing anything. I'm willing to accept that we need more religion and children in our lives, but just not in our business."

Agencies do seem to have work in the pipeline, it's just stuck in testing. For now, expect to only see banking spots and bored EPs.

New York 7/10
Though the sky may be perennially falling in Washington these days, in New York, it's turning a crisp April blue as production executives click up their heels and skip into springtime. "Even with the quote-unquote 'recession' looming, things are at least staying average," said one. "Lots of board flow going around, and lots of stuff for good brands timed to come out later in the year."

In stark contrast to the "batten down the hatches" talk in the UK, the economic talk in New York is still of the cautiously optimistic variety, with prodcos reporting varying degrees of busyness. "Actually, it's been unusually busy on the PSA front," said a producer. "We're putting a ton of good will and good karma out there."

So in short: it's nicely busy in New York in spite of the recession talk. But what of creativity? "Nothing to write home about," said an exec. Visual comedy, pharma, electronics, fast food, finance, testimonial-type ads and run-of-the-mill VFX-driven car spots - "where it's up to the director to make it work" - are all making the rounds. As always, there are a few unexpected gems out there. And there's more cause for celebration, as spring is almost here.

"I'm happy because the weather is getting nice so we can start shooting in New York again," said one exec. "Everyone's shooting in LA; it gets lonely around here."

London 5/10
When Boards caught up with London's production executives this month, memories of a smashing night out on the town for the BTAAs ("most people seemed to be there to the death") were already fading - but not the board flow hangover. After a crazy start to the year, a few Londoners found themselves nursing mid-March migraines.

"Two weeks ago it was really busy," said an exec. "But we're getting lots of reel requests so I feel like lots of things are coming up. Much more people are looking to do big brand work to air in the summer."

For some, "big brand work" is code for, as one EP puts it, "lots of fluffy stuff, colored balloons and colored streams, you know, Fallon-like." With the agency claiming top prizes as of late, it's not surprising there are imitators in British boards, but unfortunately the budgets never seem as bright as the ideas. And with few scripts out there, everyone is undercutting everyone else - including the big guys.

Cars, charity and comedy are all in the mix, and directors who don't bid low enough are flexing creative muscle in viral, digital and (gasp!) music videos. Meanwhile some execs are taking the time to pause and take stock. "I've definitely been more excited," observed one. "But until now we haven't had a moment to stop and collect our thoughts, work out a plan. Now is the time for that."