Hasta La Creative!

Chipotle is out with its latest animated film, “A Love Story,” as it tries to move past its food safety issues.

In the film, which hits the web Wednesday and movie theaters Friday, two young drink-stand owners have a growing rivalry that leads them to create massive fast-food enterprises laden with processed products. Spoiler alert: Love and healthier fare ultimately win out.

This is Chipotle’s third original short animated film, its first since 2013. Of course, it comes as Chipotle is trying to woo diners pretty much any way it can, with a new loyalty program underway after free food and buy one, get one offers did little to bring many people back to the “food with integrity” chain.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

As Twitter continues to reshape its board, Bret Taylor was appointed for his experience in consumer technologies and his prominent role with Facebook.

Hostess Brands, the baker of Twinkies and Ding Dongs, plans to become a publicly listed company, marking a revival for an iconic American baker that just three years ago was facing liquidation.

An acquisition vehicle linked to Gores Group will provide $375 million to the deal, and other investors have committed $350 million in a private placement, the companies said in a statement Tuesday. Hostess’s current owners — private equity firm Apollo Global Management and investor Dean Metropoulos — will hold a 42% combined stake in the vehicle, which will be renamed Hostess Brands.

The deal marks a comeback for a brand that was close to extinction before Apollo and Metropoulos bought Hostess out of bankruptcy in 2013. Hostess was founded in 1919 and gained popularity with its cream-filled, swirled-icing cupcakes. In 1930, the company introduced Twinkies, a snack that became a mainstay of American supermarkets and popular culture.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

Hisham Matar’s account of trying to learn the fate of his father, an imprisoned Libyan dissident.

Vancouver-based agency Rethink launched a tongue-in-cheek “Tell Your Friends It’s Awful Here” tourism campaign for Bowen Island in British Columbia.

Basically, the idea is that while they’d be happy to have you visit, Bowen Island’s draw is its unspoiled natural beauty, so, you know, don’t go blabbing to everyone about how great it is. In fact, tell them it’s awful.

A series of minimalist animated spots communicate the idea from the point-of-view of a deer, eagle, seal and slug mascot. The ads delivered by the deer and eagle stick to the message summed up by the tagline. As the deer explains, “Of course it’s not actually awful, but we don’t want this little piece of paradise overrun by humans.” The slug and seal spots, meanwhile, stick to extolling the virtues of the island, with does of goofy animal humor thrown in.

The campaign also includes a series of print ads which talk up Bowen Island’s dining options or scenic outdoors before delivering the “Tell Your Friends It’s Awful Here” tagline.

“We love to show off our island, but we don’t want it to be overrun with tourists,” Rethink founder and Bowen resident Chris Staples explained to AdFreak. “We want visitors, but only if they really ‘get’ what makes Bowen special.”

“The last thing anyone wanted was a traditional marketing campaign,” added Gordon Ganong, chair of the Economic Development Committee. “Residents and business owners are very proud of this place and more than a little protective. They wanted a community brand that welcomed people, but in a very quirky, slightly defiant way.”