• by April 26, 2011

From the pro bono department: Matthew Bottkol, associate creative directive at Dentsu NY, was at his local Brooklyn bar, B61, when he learned of bartender Jamie Mandel’s plans to play ping-pong for 15 straight hours this Saturday. The cause? Raising $35,000 to replace nine teeth Mandel lost in a car accident 16 years ago.

Thus was born "Pong 4 Teeth." Bottkol and fellow Dentsu associate creative director Todd Eisner enlisted Chris Stocksmith of commercial production company Twist to shoot and edit two YouTube videos they hope will go viral: a teaser ( http://youtu.be/pns9LYyIjGU) promoting the ping-pong marathon and a tongue-in-cheek challenge ( http://youtu.be/GooY9h2Jlzs) to Susan Sarandon, actress and co-owner of table-tennis social club SPiN New York, a table-tennis social club in Manhattan.

Both Dentsu and Nylon “The Studio,” an L.A.-based music and animation house, have also signed up to contribute to a documentary film about Mandel to be made by Stocksmith.

If Saturday’s event raises more than $35,000, the additional funds will be donated to local non-profit Project U.S.E. (www.projectuse.org ). That organization provides adults and young people with experiential learning opportunities, one of which will be the chance to play ping-pong against Mandel on Saturday.