Hasta La Creative!

The C3 ratings for the second quarter are in and it would appear that there is no end in sight for cable’s ongoing demo drought.

According to the Nielsen data that’s TV-land currency, three-day commercial ratings among 18-to-49-year-olds, ad-supported cable networks saw their prime-time deliveries drop 9% in the second quarter.

Wall Street-watchers say the decline will have an impact on big media’s upcoming earnings calls. In a note to investors, MoffettNathanson analyst Michael Nathanson said he expects cable ad sales revenue will have fallen 3% in the quarter to $9.21 billion, with Viacom (-8%) and NBC Universal (-8%) likely to take the biggest hits.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

The New York Times on Monday defended its decision to exclude Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz’s book “A Time for Truth” from its bestseller list after discovering “strategic bulk purchases,” though it did not offer any further details behind the decision.

“The Times’s best-seller lists are based on a detailed analysis each week of book sales from a wide range of retailers who provide us with specific and confidential context for their sales,” newspaper spokeswoman Eileen Murphy said in an e-mailed statement. “We are confident in our conclusion about the sales patterns for the Cruz book for the week in question.”

The newspaper’s response comes after Politico reported that online retailer Amazon and the book’s publisher, HarperCollins, questioned the Times’ decision.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

TBWA/Media Arts Lab launched a new spot celebrating the popularity of Apple’s iPhone among its userbase, entitled “Loved.”
The spot even claims that “99 percent of people that have an iPhone, love their iPhone,” which it claims makes the device unique. Without going into detail about what sets the device apart, the 30-second spot champions the device as the smart phone to have. It does show off the phone in action, in split-scene shots of two, three, four and then dozens of the device all engaging in related tasks before ending with the unfortunate tagline, “If it’s not an iPhone. It’s not an iPhone.” Still, it would have been nice if TBWA/MAL could have done a little more to point out what exactly makes the phone so “Loved” as the action of the spot is ambiguous and a bit flat. Surely some of those iPhone-lovers could offer some insight into what sets the device apart from the rest. As it is, detractors can point to the lack of substance as indicative that it’s the hype itself that makes people flock to the iPhone, but perhaps TBWA/MAL will get more specific in future ads.

Chick-Fil-A is reaching out to creative agencies, Ad Age has learned.

The focus of the work in play was not immediately clear, but the company said it’s not for the core creative duties on its account, which is at Richards Group. That could mean it revolves around a new product, a particular meal time or a specific new campaign.

“While we have issued an RFP for an isolated project, The Richards Group is still our agency of record,” a company spokeswoman said in a statement, declining to elaborate.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

Online
Lean Cuisine

Advertising Agency:Grey, New York, USA
Worldwide Chief Creative Officer:Tor Myhren
Chief Creative Officer:Andreas Dahlqyist
Executive Creative Director:Linda Mummiani, Caitlin Ewing
EVP Global Account Director:Rick Reilly
Svp Account Director:Mercedes Campos
Account Supervisor:Melissa Saks
Account Executive:Abel Gachou
Project Manager:Stephen Samelko
EVP Director of Film Production:Bennett Mccarroll
VP Executive producer:Adam Seely
Associate Producer:Suzie Davidson
Production Company:Bodega
Director:Adam Reid
Executive Producer:Clint Goldman
Head Of Production:Michael Flexner
Line Producer:Rayna Saslove
Director Of Photography:Evan Jake Cohen
Production Design:Alex Pacion
Editorial:WildChild NY
Editor:Deirdre Bell
Audio:Dante Desole, VisionPost
Music:Human

Deutsch L.A. launched an unusual campaign for Volkswagen, calling on viewers to “Unleash Your Rrr” in an AI-fueled campaign built around Deep Learning, a subset of Machine Learning artificial intelligence which “analyzes each unique vocal pitch to create customized film of Golf R driving in sync with the sound of the user’s voice.”

“The King of Sound Effects” Michael Winslow demonstrates the technology in a 40-second online video. He appears to be responding to the footage of professional racecar and stunt driver Tanner Foust driving the Golf R, but really it’s the other way around, with the footage chosen to correspond to the sound effects. The Deep Learning technology works by analyzing users’ vocal pitch and choosing matching footage from hundreds of clips. You might not have the vocal chops of Winslow, but you can give it a try for yourself over at www.rrr.vw.com. It’s certainly one of the stranger, and attention-grabbing stunts we’ve seen for an automotive brand recently, although we’re not sure it will make anyone run to the car dealership.

Credits:

Agency: Deutsch LA
Chief Creative Officer, North America: Pete Favat
Chief Digital Officer, North America: Winston Binch
Executive Creative Director, Digital: Jerome Austria
Executive Creative Director: Todd Riddle
Executive Creative Director, Platforms: Tara Greer
Group Creative Director: Heath Pochucha
Creative Director: Andrew Hsu
Creative Director: Daniel Barak
Senior Interactive Creative: Karan Dang
Senior Art Director: Neph Trejo
Senior Art Director, Social: Rocio Alvarado
Senior Copywriter, Social: Marijke van Niekerk
Copywriter: Eddie Babian
Copywriter: Shiran Teitelbaum
Art Director: Alice Blastorah
Designer: Erica Park
Experience Design Lead: Paolo Benvenuto
Executive Director, Digital Pam Scheideler
Executive Integrated Producer, Digital: Nick Ngai
Digital Producer: Jenny Court
Executive Creative Technology Director: Marc Gowland
Executive Creative Technology Director: Josh Hirsch
Creative Technology Director: Martin Legowiecki
Associate Technology Director: Jeremy Bunting
Associate Technology Director: Mike Dyer
AI Engineer: Sabri Sansoy
Senior Creative Developer: Hassan Elzein
Senior Creative Developer: Jesse Pinuelas
Quality Assurance Manager: Chris Suchy
Quality Assurance Tester: Tito Goldstein
SVP, Director of Digital Analytics: Sailesh Patel
Data Strategy Analyst :Brad Nogle
Director of Integrated Production: Vic Palumbo
Executive Integrated Producer: Erik Press
Executive Producer, Video and Motion Design: Ted Markovic
Senior Integrated Producer: Eric Kaufman
Integrated Producer: Win Bates
Associate Integrated Producer: Eric Kunau
Music Director: Dave Rocco

Account Management Credits:
Group Account Director: Tom Else
Group Account Director: Monica Jungbeck
Account Director: Alex Gross
Account Supervisor: Erin Shanahan
Account Executive: Ashley Su
Assistant Account Executive: Sheila Ashouripour

Account Planning:
Chief Strategic Officer: Colin Drummond
Director of Digital Strategy: Zach Gallagher
Group Planning Director: Susie Lyons
Senior Digital Strategist: Brendon Volpe
Senior Account Planner: Armando Potter

Product:
Director of Product Information Jason Clark
Product Information Supervisor Eddie Chae

Business Affairs/Traffic:
Director of Integrated Business Affairs: Abilino Guillermo
Group Director, Integrated Business Affairs: Gabriela Farias
Associate Business Affairs Manager: Jade McAdams

Live Action Production Company: Steelhead
Director: Eric Kaufmann
Executive Producer: Ted Markovic
Line Producer: Eric Kunau

Editorial Company: Steelhead
Editor: Ian Paxton
Assistant: Tony Bernard
Executive Producer: Ted Markovic

Post Facility: Big Block Entertainment Group
President: Scott Benson
Producer: Pete King
Senior Colorist:  Brandon Chavez

Licensed/Composed Music, Credits and Track Info:
Track: “Snake Juice”
Composer: Sanford Livingston
Track: “Contact”

Composer: Nico Mansy

Mophonics
Executive Producer, Partner: Shelley Altman
ECD, Partner: Stephan Altman
Managing Partner: Adam Harriman

Audio Post Company: Steelhead
Executive Producer: Ted Markovic
Mixer: Chase Butters

For the past two weeks, metro and subway riders throughout Western Europe looked up from their phones to find enormous close-up posters of toddlers whose expressions can only be described with words the Bible used for newbies to hell: There is much weeping and gnashing of teeth. These images are explained with little more than a hashtag: #MakeAChildCry.

Created by DDB Paris for Doctors of the World, the campaign aims to raise funds for pediatric medical supplies for developing countries. Over 4 million kids a year die of diseases that could be avoided. The creative stems from a simple truth that many parents cringe to consider: Sometimes inducing your child to tears is proof of love.

In phase two, follow-up ads will pull away from the children’s faces to reveal more context (like a needle closing in), coupled with the words: “Make a child cry. Save his/her life.”

We’re on board with the idea that proper parenting is not about tiptoeing around pain or fear; sometimes it’s about facing it head-on for a long-term benefit that children can’t immediately understand.

The teaser phase, which has lasted two weeks so far, is uncondescending and simple: To understand what it’s all about, surprised commuters must remember the hashtag and look it up. It’s like a call to research before raging—an idea that’s especially compelling in the context of the anti-vaxxers movement (which has now crossed the Atlantic! Good job, celebrities!).

Whatever side of that conversation you’re on, this subject is so sensitive that many people will scream out of their necks without considering, or researching, what those other, crazy parents are trying to say. (It turns out many anti-vaxxers are middle-class professionals who don’t consider themselves anti-science. They think vaccinations should be researched more closely before being fast-tracked into the mainstream—which is a fair point, especially if you scaled it beyond pediatric medicine to, say, TSA body-scans. I’ll also seize the moment to say I’m pro-vaccination, was thrilled to never have rubella or polio, and practically peed myself with glee when I heard chicken pox was finally avoidable.

You can find the #MakeAChildCry campaign in Germany, Argentina, Canada, Spain, Greece, the Netherlands, Portugal, Switzerland and the U.K.. It’s supported by TV, print and outdoor.
 

 

Anyone else seen this vaccinatio campaign in the metro ? Kinda funny #makeachildcry #imevil

A photo posted by Roxanne Varza (@rvarza) on Jul 7, 2015 at 2:50am PDT

 
CREDITS
Client: Doctors of the World
Account Directors: Luc Evrard, Alexandre Jalbert, Justine Roche
Agency: DDB Paris
Executive Creative Director: Alexander Kalchev
Creatives: Gautier Fage, Sébastien Henras, Julien Bon, Benoit Oulhen
TV Producer & Achat d’Art: Marine Rolland
Sound: Studio 5
Digital Producer: Alice Kraft
Account Management: Matthieu de Lesseux, Marine Hakim, Sophie Colus
PR: Anne-Marie Gibert
Director – Photograph: Achim Lippoth
Production: Magali Films