Hasta La Creative!

Britain’s Ad Standards Authority has delivered the first body-image smackdown to an advertiser in 2015 by banning an Urban Outfitters photo of a model whose thigh gap looked too wide.

The ASA justified the ban, which reportedly came after one complaint about the “polka dot mesh briefs” photo in question, by saying a “noticeably underweight model was likely to impress upon that audience that the image was representative of the people who might wear Urban Outfitters’ clothing, and as being something to aspire to.” It decided from there that “the ad was irresponsible.”

Perhaps, being English, they’re so used to hearing “mind the gap” as they board the train that it’s poisoned their thinking on other issues. Anyway, Urban Outfitters quickly replaced the photo with a less gappy one, so I guess it’s all resolved.

You might remember Newcastle Brown Ale’s antics around last year’s Super Bowl—a little stunt from Droga5 called “If We Made It” that imagined what a Newcastle Super Bowl ad might have looked like if they could have afforded one.

The whole thing went pretty well, to say the least.

Given that success, Newcastle obviously had to screw with this year’s game, too. And so it begins its 2015 Super Bowl ambush with the video below—in which the brewer, which still doesn’t have $4 million lying around, pretends to crash a certain “Crash the Super Bowl” contest by a certain unnamed snack maker (OK, Doritos), so that it can get on the Super Bowl for free.

Newcastle’s fake Doritos ad, also made by Droga5, is amusingly bad—which frankly is a step up from some of the actual Doritos finalists, which are short on the amusing part. It’s full of stupidly obvious Newcastle product placement, in keeping with the brand’s ethos of undercutting typical marketing tactics. There’s even a case study (see below) about the “failed attempt to infiltrate a snack chip contest.”

“We had such a good time almost making that Huge Sports Match ad last year, we decided we’d stop at nothing to finally make our way into the Really Large American Football Contest in 2015. Even if we still can’t afford it,” the brand tells us.

It’s a bit of a convoluted premise—Newcastle’s meta anti-advertising stunts often have a kind of pretzel-like structure to them. But the brand confirms there’s more silliness to come in the next few weeks, so it should be fun to see what else they have in store.

CREDITS
Client: Newcastle Brown Ale
Campaign: Newcastle: Chores. A beer ad disguised as a snack chip ad.
Title: Chores

Agency: Droga5 NY
Creative Chairman: David Droga
Chief Creative Officer: Ted Royer
Group Creative Director: Scott Bell
Senior Art Director: Dan Kenneally
Senior Copywriter: Ryan Raab
Chief Creation Officer: Sally-Ann Dale
Head of Broadcast Production: Ben Davies
Senior Broadcast Producer: David Cardinali
Broadcast Producer: Bill Berg
Global Chief Strategy Officer: Jonny Bauer
Head of Strategy: Chet Gulland
Strategist: Nick Maschmeyer 
Social Strategist: Rebecca Russell 
Communications Strategist: Kevin Wang  
Group Account Director: Dan Gonda
Account Director: Nadia Malik
Account Manager: Ashton Atlas

Client: Heineken USA, Newcastle Brown Ale
Senior Director, Portfolio Brands: Charles Van Es
Brand Director: Priscilla Dohnert
Brand Manager: Brett Steen

Production Company: Droga5 Studios | Film
Director: Mike Long
Line Producer: Jessica Bermingham
DP: Brian Lannin

Editorial: Droga5 AV
Editor: Joseph Schulhoff

Sometimes a mistake is so embarrassing, it cycles all the away around the shame circle and becomes kind of awesome.

Today’s case in point: Kyrzbekistan, a country accidentally invented by a New York Times piece that meant to reference the Central Asian nation Kyrgyzstan.

In fairness, the story is otherwise quite compelling and dramatic, telling how a climber escaped captivity by shoving an armed militant off a cliff. Unfortunately, the newspaper accidentally portrayed the events as happening in Kyrzbekistan, which has the unfortunate distinction of not being real.

“An earlier version of this article misidentified the country whose army chased Tommy Caldwell’s kidnappers,” notes the newspaper’s online correction. “It was Kyrgyzstan, not Kyrzbekistan, which does not exist.”

Or at least, it didn’t exist before. Today it has its own Twitter feed and a Fodor’s Guide worth of sarcastic tweets.

Beyond the parody account, the mockery has already begun to roll in:

Rumour has it that #Kyrzbekistan has been given the go-ahead to enter Eurovision 2015.

— deedee (@del_souky) January 8, 2015

We Austranians don’t like Kyrzbesistanis ever since they have sided with Luxemstein in the United States Of Amigos question #Kyrzbekistan

— Martin Hovezak (@MirrorOfMirrors) January 8, 2015

I suppose, if all nations are “imagined communities”, the NYT making one up just took that to its logical conclusion. #kyrzbekistan

— Oliver Bullough (@OliverBullough) January 8, 2015

You can’t just will a country out of existence… Stand up for #kyrzbekistan!

— Lew Ayotte (@LewAyotte) January 8, 2015

2014 was a busy year for logo redesigns, but who actually improved on their old marks?

PM Digital put together the infographic below showing 11 major logo revamps from 2014. For each one, PM says whether it loved the new design, liked it, or would have preferred the old one be left alone. There are some oddities here: PM likes the new Olive Garden logo, which was widely panned, and doesn’t like the new Netflix logo, which we felt was a nice evolution.

What did you think of each redesign?

Below the chart, check out some analysis from Roy DeYoung, svp of creative strategy at PM Digital, about each mark.

Roy DeYoung, svp of creative strategy at PM Digital, analyzes each new logo:

Airbnb
Airbnb made waves with its logo redesign. Whether or not Airbnb intentionally created a provocative and somewhat sexual image, the flat redesign did accomplish the challenge to communicate the brand’s overhauled messaging and positioning. The company named this new symbol Bélo to indicate a sense of belonging and connectivity. Airbnb no longer thinks of itself as a simple home exchange provider, but a global connector. Bélo aside, the company also cleaned up and contemporized the wordmark. We’ll have to wait and see if this redesign becomes as iconic and universally recognized as Airbnb is hoping.

Pizza Hut
This year Pizza Hut overhauled its menu and needed an updated logo to support the change. To capture a millennial and mobile-focused audience’s attention, and communicate its new, slew of customized menu options, Pizza Hut de-cluttered and introduced a flat logo reminiscent of a blank pizza pie covered in sauce, and awaiting customers’ personalized choices. While this is definitely a radical change, the restaurant chain still managed to incorporate their iconic slanted roof symbol.

Hershey
It’s difficult to look at the new Hershey logo objectively as there is a significant heritage associated with its brand emblem. However, from a pure design standpoint, the new logo is far superior as it is cleaner, easier to decipher the hierarchy and will likely pop across a variety of devices and environments. In introducing a new logo, the brand also quietly dropped the ‘S, and essentially diluted ownership through this slight name change. Although, because of the historical connotations, it’s likely that people will continue to refer to the brand as Hershey’s rather than Hershey despite the new logo.

MLS
Coming off the heels of the World Cup, and the soccer frenzy it inspired in the United States, Major League Soccer needed to make a smart branding move to maintain interest and capitalize on the momentum of the global tournament. Their previous and outdated youth soccer patch-like logo was desperate for a more relevant overhaul. By introducing a crest as the face of the league, MLS is not only signifying that it’s ready for a new era of American soccer, but it’s also playing homage and leveraging the historical equity of the sport’s European roots. With this redesign, it took a complex, unclear illustration and added more visual integrity to the organization. Additionally, the crest will reproduce well across a range of environments, from flags at matches to mobile applications.

Foursquare
Foursquare completely changed the direction of its brand this year, and this logo redesign aptly communicates its new story. Now that Foursquare has siphoned its signature check-in feature to another app, the company is focused on serving customized local reviews and suggestions. The new logo is highly reminiscent of a pin you would place on a map signifying the company’s authority in location targeting. The brand has also graduated from its previous rounded, multicolored and playful typeface into a clear and commanding wordmark.

Southwest
As far as the typography goes, the wordmark treatment is a nice evolution, eliminating the dated convention of all-caps. While I think Southwest needs to move away from the oversized jet, the inclusion of the heart is puzzling. The brand is clearly trying to indicate a position of customer first, but it doesn’t align with the brand. Southwest has carved out its niche in the industry by putting price first—and the strategy seemingly works for the airline. Travelers choose Southwest to get the best price, not necessarily the best flying experience. The updated logo deviates from the essence of the brand.

Reebok
Reebok’s logo redesign offers a slight, yet contemporary, clean-up of the typographic treatment of its brand name. While the font evolution is positive, the symbol within the new logo is challenging. Although the previous logo shared undertones of Reebok’s competitors (Adidas and Nike), the new logo also does not feel completely original. The red triangle is reminiscent of both Citgo and Mitsubishi and will likely fail to achieve an instantly recognizable and differentiating status. Although introducing a color into the logo was a strong choice, this logo feels like a cop-out, or at least an unfinished product.

Netflix
Netflix’s logo update managed to fly under the radar because the changes were fairly minimal, which doesn’t necessarily constitute diminishment. Netflix must have decided it was time to clean up as this update, and the elimination of the drop shadow, has introduced a logo that is tidy and unblemished. Yes, the drop shadow might be dated from a design perspective, but it gave Netflix’s previous logo a hint of nostalgia for the vintage, back-lit cinema marquees. In following the design trends of today, Netflix has forgone the subtle homage to classic Hollywood movies to usher in a new brand era.

Olive Garden
Olive Garden’s logo update was a long-needed move. The predecessor to this update was not really a logo, it was a sign. Now with the shift to a logo, Olive Garden can confidently deploy its brand emblem across a range of environments and screen sizes. Olive Garden also implemented subtle repositioning through switching out Italian Restaurant in favor of Italian Kitchen under the brand name. This update showcases cleaner lines and more balance, which will help make an impact within digital promotions.

Black + Decker
Like everyone else this year, Black + Decker went flat. The previous Black + Decker logo was iconic and ingrained within the mind of consumers across every generation. The updated logo is straightforward and painstakingly clean. Additionally, the company also switched out the “&” in favor of the more timely “+” sign. Black + Decker is completely on top of the design trends of 2014, but in favor of gaining a trendier status symbol, it may have ceded some emotional connectivity that identified the brand to so many consumers.

PayPal
To mark the dissolution of its longtime marriage to Ebay, PayPal introduced a logo overhaul fit to usher the brand into this new era. The eye-catching overlaid Ps express motion and, subliminally, transaction. However, the redesign feels incomplete due to inconsistencies within the typography (kerning between the letters is slightly off). While this is a good step in the right direction, PayPal should reconsider another round of touch-ups to finish the job.

Three elderly couples recount the happiest moments of their lives in this sweet slice of branded content from British insurance company Beagle Street.

The four-minute film, directed by Gary Tarn, features interviews with Maurice and Helen Kaye, each over 100, who have been married for 80 years; Doug and Betty Hale, married for 73 years; and William and Maureen Norman, wed for 60 years.

The stories they tell aren’t especially earth-shattering, yet each tale is special and poignant in its way. The couples recall first meetings, wedding days and the births of their children. Recollections of a hospital visit to a wounded spouse during World War II, and the arrival of a dazzling engagement ring years after the nuptials, might have you reaching for the Kleenex.

Matthew Gledhill, Beagle Street’s managing director, says “Happiest Moment” was made to encourage the younger generation to “worry less and live in the moment with the people you care about most.” What’s more, he says, “the film and our research clearly show that happiness is linked much more heavily to relationships, friends and family than societal or monetary status.”

The video accompanies a survey of 1,000 Brits over 70 years of age. More than 12 percent said their happiest moment in life was the birth of their first child (suck it, younger siblings!), followed by their wedding day (11.5 percent) and the birth of their grandchildren (10 percent). For the record, the birth of other kids placed fourth at 8.5 percent.

Not taking loved ones for granted and believing in yourself were the top pieces of advice they had for living a happier life. Choosing the wrong career was the biggest regret. (As a journalist and blogger, I’ve got nothing to worry about. Right?)

Sure, the survey’s hardly scientific, and some might object to the film’s predictably treacly tone. Still, Beagle Street’s approach is compelling, and provides a refreshing change of pace. Older people are often the punch lines of jokes in commercials. It’s high time marketers (and all of us) respected their life experience and paid attention to what they have to say.

Via Hello You Creatives.

UPDATE, Jan. 10: Justin Bieber’s team insists the unretouched Calvin Klein photo below, showing a scrawnier, less well-endowed Bieber, is fake. The photo was posted to BreatheHeavy.com, but after getting a cease-and-desist letter, that site has now removed it and published a retraction. “Bieber denies the photo is real, and I respect that and will believe him,” the writer says.

See our original story below:

Well, it looks like Justin Bieber’s controversial Calvin Klein ads aren’t quite what they seem.

When Bieber’s ad campaign launched earlier this week, the Internet went wild over how chiseled (and fake) his body looked next to model Lara Stone. The pop star has apparently spent years preparing for the campaign, telling Women’s Wear Daily, “It’s always been a dream. Last spring, I posted a picture on Instagram in my underwear, using the #mycalvins tag. Thankfully the brand saw it and liked the reaction it was getting, and a relationship started from there.”

Website BreatheHeavy.com has now gotten its hands on an untouched campaign and uploaded it to Instagram.

As you can see, CK bulked up the pop star’s biceps, torso, chest and ahem—package—pretty significantly. Bieber’s head was also scaled down to fit the new buffed-up body. Yes, in this campaign, Justin Bieber has less of a big head.

BreatheHeavy.com’s photo came from a source who claims Bieber was a pain to shoot the spot with. “He was basically a douche,” the source told the pop music site. “He hit on Lara several times, and she had to stop him, basically calling him out on being just a child.”

While Photoshopping is nothing new to the fashion industry, it’s come under quite a bit of scrutiny lately. In August, Modcoth vowed to do away with the photo-retouching tactic when it signed the “Heroes Pledge for Advertisers” petition. And when American Eagle-owned Aerie decided to ditch Photoshopping last year, sales went up 9 percent.

Justin Bieber sure made a lot of noise on the Internet this week.

On Friday, the music website BreatheHeavy.com published what it claimed to be an untouched image from the pop star’s new Calvin Klein ad campaign, but has now issued a retraction. The GIF suggested that Bieber’s head, arms, legs, chest and below-waist area were exaggerated in the final image.

While it’s still possible that the unretouched photo could be real (and that BreatheHeavy simply wants to avoid a lawsuit), the image does look a bit fishy, particularly since Bieber’s head seems sizably larger compared to the after photo.

“We sincerely apologize to Bieber for the hit to his ego and to the millions of tweens on social media we upset,” BreatheHeavy writer Jordan Miller says.

Indeed, the untouched photo sparked a storm of chatter about the CK campaign on Friday (see some examples of reactions on Twitter below).

BreatheHeavy.com obtained the photo from a source who also claimed that Bieber caused a scene on the set of the shoot.

But CK CMO Melisa Goldie tells US Weekly a much different story. “We shot the print and video campaigns over several days at Silvercup Studios with photographers Mert and Marcus and Johan Renck, who directed the campaign video,” she said. “Justin showed up early every day with amazing energy; he completely trusted us and gave it his all.”

“Justin Bieber’s body is photoshopped” Yeah whatever makes u sleep at night but he’ll still model for a brand you can’t even afford

— S (@JUSTlNFTGRANDE) January 9, 2015

When someone says @justinbieber was photoshopped. ? ?|? ? ??? ??? ?? ?/ ?? ??? ??

“@JBCrewdotcom: Fans in New York went to visit Justin Bieber’s Calvin Klein billboard. pic.twitter.com/Gi5OYVnVa9“

Cut out and keep a little bit
of finely granulated sandpaper
with you at all times.

Let it be your magic charm,
helping you, bit by bit, day by day,
rub out all the corporations in your life.

• Aesthetico
• #117
• corporations

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The last taboo is the myth of civilization.

It is built upon the stories we have constructed about our genius, our indestructibility, our manifest destiny as a chosen species. It is where our vision and our self-belief intertwine with our reckless refusal to face the reality of our position on this Earth. It has led the human race to achieve what it has achieved, and has led the planet into the age of ecocide. The two are intimately linked. We believe they must be decoupled if anything is to remain.

We believe that artists­?—?which is to us the most welcoming of words, taking under its wing writers of all kinds, painters, musicians, sculptors, poets, designers, creators, makers of things, dreamers of dreams?—?have a responsibility to begin the process of decoupling. We believe that, in the age of ecocide, the last taboo must be broken —?and that only artists can do it.

— ?From Uncivilization by Paul Kingsnorth and Douglas Hine

• Aesthetico
• #117
• ecocide
• civilization

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Pete Solza

There is a solemn, noble air in the United Nations Security Council.

This is the good people chamber, the justice HQ, where democratic champions gather to defeat poverty, battle epidemics and keep peace in the world.

But the champions are missing, and the resolutions are putrefying.

The five permanent members of the Security Council are the biggest arms dealers in the world. The United States, Russia, France, China and the United Kingdom are responsible for 75 percent of international arms exports over the past five years.

War is Peace

Welcome to the anti-world.

We cannot, we will not allow them to get away with it!

Go to mindbombs.org.

• Aesthetico
• #117
• Gang of Five
• United Nations
• UN Security Council
• #mindbombs

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