Hasta La Creative!

If you ever hoped to pretend your phone were a fish or an aquatic plant, Sony would like to present its Xperia Z1S.

The brand, along with Wieden + Kennedy and development partners Motim and SoftFacade, is demonstrating the phone’s waterproof technology by developing apps designed to be used in and under the water.

A new feature on the phone uses ultrasound to sense when the phone is submerged. A handful of 30-second videos (directed by Sean Pecknold of Society) demonstrate the apps, which capitalize on that detection technology in ways unusual, somewhat amusing and mostly frivolous.

One of the apps is “Goldie,” an on-screen fish that flops around like it’s dying when you take the phone out of the water. Another is “Plantimal,” a modern cross between a Tomagotchi and a Grow Monster. There’s also “Rainy-oke” for, quite literally, singing in the rain, as proven by a drag queen performing Cyndi Lauper.

“Photo Lab” mimics the process of developing photos by hand, in an extra cutesy twist of the knife to a practice all but eradicated by the digital age. “Sink Sunk” offers perhaps the funniest and most practical application of the water detection technology: It’s a simple game for when you’re bored and cranky, hanging out in your kiddie pool.

That’s it, at least so far. The brand is making the source code for the feature available via Github, so other developers can play with different uses, too.

In the meantime, it’s a reasonably fun way for Sony to promote waterproofing, even though that feature is not unique to the smartphone manufacturer or model. And it fits well enough into the art-meets-engineering motif of the brand’s “Be Moved” platform, launched with W+K early this year—even if it does feel a little heavier on the engineering part.

The brand recommends you avoid submerging your phone for more than 30 minutes at a time, though. Just in case you were planning to take it on a nice long scuba dive.

Global design firm AKQA and ubiquitous shoe manufacturer Nike have collaborated on a full-size LED basketball court for Nike Rise, a program designed to train Chinese youth based on the techniques and practice drills of Kobe Bryant.

Called House of Mamba (a reference to Kobe’s Black Mamba nickname), the LED court guides and reacts to the players’ movements with an impressive range of visual displays, to the point where you wonder how the athletes aren’t distracted by it. 

Nike Rise centered on a reality show where 30 Chinese teens trained with Kobe and LeBron James, and three of them will go on to the Nike World Basketball Festival next month.

Via DesignBoom.

There was major media hubbub earlier this year about the death of the “Got milk?” campaign. But while it’s no longer being used nationally by the Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP), it’s still very much alive in California, where it originated with the California Milk Processor Board.

And now, Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, which created the legendary tagline back in 1993, is launching new “Got milk?” work in an unusual partnership with Grupo Gallegos, which created the “Toma leche” campaign—and acknowledging that milk sales have been in decline for years.

“Milk is losing relevance, and sales have been in decline as family life and diets have changed,” GSP says. To reestablish milk as the right choice for families, the two agencies have partnered on a campaign “that highlights how a person’s future self is determined by the nutritional choices he or she makes today—starting, of course, with milk.”

The agencies are approaching California as one whole market to deliver bilingual work that appeals to all consumers, regardless of ethnicity. The campaign launched Wednesday with two spots, each airing in English and Spanish, that couldn’t be more different.

“Champion,” directed by Dummy’s Harold Einstein, is an amusingly quirky set piece that takes place in a grocery store. “Brave,” meanwhile, directed by Anonymous Content’s Armando Bo, presents a much more emotional appeal by showing a firefighter rescuing a family.

“It’s time to start addressing the California market on the basis of things we all share,” GSP chairman Jeff Goodby said in a statement. “California consumers are extremely diverse, but when it comes to wanting what’s best for our children and their future, we are one united front. This campaign embraces every parent’s personal desire, which is preparing our children for a successful and healthy future.” Credits below.

CREDITS
Client: California Milk Processor Board
Campaign: Milk Fuels a Better Future
Spots: “Champion,” “Brave”

Agencies: Grupo Gallegos; Goodby, Silverstein & Partners

Executive Creative Director: Jeff Goodby
Chief Strategy Officer: Andrew Delbridge
Chief Creative Officer: Marty Orzio

Creative Directors: Eric Kallman, Kate Catalinac
Associate Creative Directors: Saul Escobar, Curro Chozas
Copywriter: Simon Bruyn
Art Director: Andrew Livingston

—Spot: “Champion”
Head of Broadcast Production: Tod Puckett
Senior Broadcast Producer: Leila Seghrouchni

Production Company: Dummy
Director: Harold Einstein
Director of Photography: Jonathan Freeman
Executive Producer, Line Producer: Eric Liney

Editing Company: Arcade Edit
Editor: Dave Anderson
Assistant Editor: Mark Popham
Producer: Fanny Cruz
Executive Producer: Sila Soyer
Managing Partner: Damian Stevens

Visual Effects, Final Conform: The Mill
Executive Producer: Jo Arghiris
Senior Executive Producer: Sue Troyan
Producer: Adam Reeb
Shoot Supervisor, 3-D Lead Artist: Tara DeMarco
2-D Artists: Timothy Crabtree, Jake Albers
3-D Artists: Lu Meng-Yang, Mike Di Nocco, Matt Neapolitan
Colorist: Greg Reese
Art Department: Jeff Langlois, Ashley Forbito

Music: Butter
Composer: Josh Canevari
Executive Producer: Ian Jeffreys
Senior Producer: Annick Mayer

Sound Design, Effects, Mix: Barking Owl
Sound Designer: Michael Anastasi
Mixer: Brock Babcock
Producer: Whitney Fromholtz
Executive Producer: Kelly Bayett

—Spot: “Brave”
Head of Production: Carlos Barciela
Producer: Valeria Maldini

Production Company: Anonymous Content
Director: Armando Bo
Editing: Luna Post
Editor: Pablo Piriz
Telecine: The Mill

Music:
Original Music Composition: Elias Arts 
Executive Creative Director: Brent Nichols
Creative Director: Dave Gold
Executive Producer: Ann Haugen
Producer: Katie Overcash

Sound Design: TruLove Post
Sound Designer: Gonzalo Ugarteche

Visual Effects: The Mill
Senior Executive Producer: Sue Troyan
Executive Producer: Enca Kaul
Producer: Adam Reeb
Production Coordinator: Kris Drenzek
Shoot Supervisor, 2-D Lead: Bill Higgins
2-D Artists: Steve Cokonis, Robert Murdock, Patrick Munoz, Jale Parsons
3-D Artists: Phil Mayer, Jason Jansky
Colorist: Adam Scott
Art Support: Jeff Langlois, Ashley Forbito

For the record, I don’t recommend this.

When Adweek reported yesterday that Taco Bell had rolled out a new dollar menu with nary a TV ad, I felt it was AdFreak’s responsibility to bring you vital information about exactly what you can expect from this cornucopia of consumer value.

So I slipped away at lunch and ordered “one of everything on the Dollar Cravings menu.” This seemed to cause confusion with the friendly voice taking my order, and a manager suddenly took the mic to ask: “You want one of everything? And this ain’t a game?”

No, this was business. Serious business.

They rang me up for the 11 items. I handed over $12.99. And a short drive later, I arrived home with two satisfyingly hefty sacks of warm, damp, processed food. It was time to get started.

First, I decided to spread out and record this bountiful feast:

Perhaps it was my air of supreme confidence that led them to think, “This is a man who’s only going to need two napkins. And, hell, three sporks.” But god bless ’em, they didn’t skimp on the Fire Sauce.

Since I was tackling the project at home, I settled onto the couch with the food arranged before me and fired up an episode of Cosmos featuring Neil deGrasse Tyson, my spirit animal on this fast-food vision quest.

Without further ado, here’s my take on each of the items on the new dollar menu. (I’ve also spared you actual photos of what I ate and instead bring you these delightful promotional images from Taco Bell HQ.)

 
• Beefy Mini Quesadilla

It’s more like a melted beef and cheese soft taco than a quesadilla, but it’s actually pretty good. Surprisingly spicy thanks to its creamy chipotle sauce, it’s one of the few Taco Bell items I can think of in recent memory that didn’t require Fire Sauce.

Is it worth $1? Definitely, though without the spicy sauce it would be a 75-center at best.

 
• Beefy Fritos Burrito

I assume the goal of adding Fritos to any food is to make it crunchy, but after sitting in their balmy burrito enrobement for 15 minutes or so, these corn chips have begun to break down into a sort of not-altogether-pleasant tamale mush. I bust out the Fire Sauce and muscle through.

Is it worth $1? Well, it’s one of the most filling options you’ll find on the menu, so let’s say yes. But try to eat it as soon after ordering as possible.

 
• Cheesy Bean and Rice Burrito

At this point, my fortitude is already starting to wane, and the last thing I need is a big roll of rice and tortilla. Unlike in the photo above, the beans in mine basically just hold it all together. After just one big bite, I set it aside, knowing it would only hold me back.

Is it worth $1? Not really, unless you’re a vegetarian grabbing food in desperation.

 
• Spicy Potato Soft Taco

It tastes like breakfast, but with lettuce. Once again, I don’t need to add sauce, and I knock the whole thing back in a few bites. But I can’t say the chewy potato texture was a culinary delight.

Is it worth $1? Yes, if you’re really into home fries and tacos. Otherwise, I’d say you have better options.

 
• Cheese Roll-Up

This is literally just half-melted cheese on a tortilla. It’s the kind of thing my 2-year-old would order, unroll out of curiosity and then slowly push toward the center of the table.

Is it worth $1? No way. This is the toast sandwich of Taco Bell cuisine.

 
• Shredded Chicken Mini Quesadilla

This one looks promising. And feels promising. Girthy. Sure enough, it’s a pretty satisfying selection, though way too salty. It gets about 20 times better when I add Fire Sauce, which admittedly doesn’t help my sodium levels any.

Is it worth $1? Yeah, I’d say so, especially if you’re not a beef person.

 
• Cinnamon Twists

I’ve always liked these more in theory than in practice, and sure enough, they’re basically just packing peanuts dusted with sweetness. I nibbled on them throughout the meal but probably only ate half. Every time I had one, I’d hear Marge Simpson in the back of my mind yelling, “No, Homer! Don’t fill up on bread!”

Is it worth $1? If you actually like them, it’s probably a good deal. But I don’t, so it’s not.

 
• Spicy Tostada

I’m officially full, and at any other point in my life, this is where I would stop. But this is legitimate journalism here, so I soldier on to the one item I’ve been most looking forward to: the Spicy Tostada.

It’s basically a one-layer Mexican Pizza, which I’ve been a fan of since forever. In true Taco Bell to-go style, the tostada and its toppings have been slammed into the corner of the box, making the whole sloppy mess impossible to pick up with your hands. But I’ve got two whole napkins at the ready, so I do it anway.

After getting through the gloppiest portion, I fold the rest into a sort of overstuffed hard taco, which really highlights how much more food you’re getting than with the rest of the menu. It’s earnestly good, but I’m officially in pain.

Is it worth $1? Oh, hell yeah. Maybe $2.

 
• Triple Layer Nachos

They’re super soggy by this point, and I have no one but myself to blame. I try one. It’s pretty tasty but could use some old-school Taco Bell jalapeños from the nachos of my childhood.

Is it worth $1? Yes, especially if you think about how much you’d spend for chips and cheese at a ballpark.

 
• Cinnabon Delights 2-Pack

Yessssssssss, I’ve been waiting for this, the best part of the mea … hey, wait a damn minute, Taco Bell! Where are the Cinnabon Delights? They’re not in the damn bag. I just pulled it out of the trash and checked. Honestly, I’m not sure if this was an omission at the window or if my location just didn’t carry them yet. Either way, it’s a heartbreaker. I throw open the window and yell “NOOOOO,” the sound echoing across the empty sidewalks as the camera pulls away into the sky.

Is it worth $1? Well, I guess I wouldn’t know, WOULD I, TACO BELL?

 
• Caramel Apple Empanada

Sigh. With no Cinnabon Delights, I’m left with this flaky fallback plan for dessert. Usually the crust is the best part of a fruit pie, but this one’s pretty bland and almost cracker-y. Still, I’ve got no real complaints, and it’s not as grossly sweet as I expected.

Is it worth $1? Yes, though you’d get more for your money with a fruit pie from a nearby gas station. (That might be the saddest sentence I’ve ever written.)

 
With the last bite gone and a pile of carnage around me, I’m back on the couch and not fit for human interaction. I feel like John Hurt in Alien, but without the pleasant dinner conversation. I’m not proud of what I’ve done, but I hope the sacrifices I’ve made will help you live a more bountiful and frugal existence. 

I hold my stomach and drift into a nap, imagining with my last waking thoughts that a medical examiner is standing over my akimbo corpse, shaking his head while my ghost silently screams: “No! This wasn’t how I lived! I did yoga on Saturdays!”

Feminine hygiene brand Carefree has released some videos from DDB Sydney promoting its new website, and they’re absolutely 100 percent not your typical feminine hygiene ads.

No mysterious blue liquid being poured onto a maxi pad. No woman in white walking along the beach looking unreasonably elated for someone who’s supposedly on day two of her period. Instead, the spots feature three different hosts—Harmony Freebush, Fanny Glitterwinkle and Stefan Van Der Blöed—who monologue emphatically about different aspects of vaginal care.

One is devoted entirely to vagina names. The hosts and their monologues are all ridiculous (that’s the point) and end with the on-screen text: “Really? For a more real take on [vaginas, periods, tampons, fill-in-the-blank], visit carefree.com.au.”

The videos range from funny to ridiculous to “watching a sex scene with your parents in the room” cringey. Stefan Van Der Blöed and his turtleneck get my vote for best videos, but you’ll have to watch them all and decide for yourself which is best.

With some exceptions, brands haven’t broadly embraced the immensely popular Ice Bucket Challenge craze, benefitting the ALS Association, and understandably so. You don’t really want to be seen as profiting off a charity campaign. And also—well, this could happen.

Samsung, though, doesn’t care. In the Ice Bucket Challenge, it saw yet another opportunity to slam Apple. And any opportunity like that, it does not pass up. The Samsung Galaxy S5, you see, is advertised as waterproof. The iPhone? Not so much.

Did anyone even challenge Samsung Mobile U.K.? Doesn’t matter. It made this 15-second video anyway—and gleefully calls out the iPhone 5S, HTC’s One M8 and the Lumia 930. ?

Sony’s Xperia Z1S, of course, was not challenged.

Arnold has enlisted a Chris McDonald (circa Thelma and Louise) doppelganger to tout the taste of water filtered with PUR.

The new spots feature Arthur Tweedie, a self-proclaimed water critic, and his milquetoast assistant Dave. Tweedie’s alternately eager and surly demeanor (the actor really goes full camp) is somewhat endearing, but the effort feels perhaps a little too wink wink nudge nudge. Still, the ads, which are the first for the brand since 2008, are quite educational.

Oh, and like any self-proclaimed spokesman, Tweedie’s got himself a blog.

If you’re just a regular, mellow cat, this electronic cat dance video might weird you out. But if you’re a super hip cat that likes to indulge in a little ‘nip now-and-then, this high-octane gem could be just your speed. 

Imagine you’re at the club and everything is going just perfect—amazing vibe, great tunes, awesome beat. And you’re all crunk on cat nip and half & half.

But then, just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, the beat drops and then the DJ’s eyes SHOOT LASERS WHICH EXPLODE THE DISCO BALL AND SHOWER YOU WITH CAT FOOD!

This basically sends you and your feline friends into a hysterical dance party frenzy and everycat goes nuts. 

This part music video, part ad brought to you by Meow Mix, DJ Ashworth and agency FCB, Chicago, is the first of a series of remixes of the original Meow Mix jingle helping to promote their latest contest, “It’s Meow Time.“ The next version will be recorded by Kelly Pickler in New York City where Meow Mix will setup a mobile sound booth from August 13-16.

Home users are also encouraged to submit their very own version of the jingle to win a trip to Hollywood to make another music video. Scroll down on the contest page and check out some of the entries … there you’ll see terrified cats being serenaded by vertical-video obsessed owners (who are possibly Meow Mix employees). There’s even a charity angle to the contest—for each user-generated jingle, the brand says it will donate 100 cat meals to the Food Bank for New York City.

Take a look below at the ad in all of it’s EDM-saturated insanity. This one makes the club for popcorn look like a broken toaster oven.

You might even say it’s the cat’s meow, if you’re in to that sort of thing. 

Via Ads of the World. 

CREDITS
Advertising Agency: FCB, Chicago, USA
Chief Creative Officer: Todd Tilford
Group Creative Director: Teddy Brown
Creative Director: Suzanna Bierwirth
Associate Creative Director: Tony Mavrelis
Senior Art Directors: Lauren Loehr, Dan Thorne
Group Management Director: Michelle Derderian
Account Director: Lindsay Tomek
Account Executive: Kate McGarrahan

Apple is sticking with a good thing, continuing the rollout of its “Your Verse” campaign with two new stories about how people around the world are using iPads as tools to support their passions.

In one, Yaoband, a Beijing-based electro-pop ground, use their gadgets to sample sounds, communicate with fans, and perform live while they tour China. In the second, Jason Hall, a Detroit resident, uses his tablet to help organize Slow Roll, a weekly group bike ride through the city that draws thousands of cyclists, in an effort to help revitalize the city’s sense of community.

The 60-second TV ads for each, below, do get the ideas across, but they’re really just teasers—the deep dives over at Apple’s website make for less impressionistic and more powerful experiences.

Even those are fairly ambitious, and rely on a premise that may not be obvious to anyone who hasn’t been closely following the brand’s advertising of late. The “Your Verse” tagline launched early this year by paying homage to Walt Whitman as brilliantly recited by Robin Williams, may he rest in peace, in the 1989 movie Dead Poets Society. It has since been the foundation for some of the brand’s most persuasive ads in recent memory. But even to newcomers to the campaign, the takeaway should be clear enough, and feel consistent with expectations for good tech advertising: These are vignettes that illustrate how engineering can help enrich lives.

Plus, it’s nice to see Apple’s marketing keep reaching high while also staying grounded. Especially when that’s what people expect—or at least hope—to get from the brand. 

Eli and Peyton Manning are back to rapping for DirecTV, and it’s still pretty glorious.

Last summer, the pro footballers and the satellite provider graced us with “Football on Your Phone.” Now they’re using song to hawk DirecTV’s dedicated fantasy football channel as a dream come true in its own right.

Like the first spot, “Fantasy Football Fantasy” leans hard into its own stupidity, delivering a 3-minute blitz that builds from a football filled with nachos to an auto-tuned Eli Manning floating in space, and includes cameos from Chris Johnson and Joe Namath. 

It’s not dissimilar in spirit from Toyota’s Swagger Wagon joke-rap work, which also made a recent comeback after a much longer hiatus. But the new DirecTV ad manages to be less cringeworthy, probably by being more insane.

So, extra points to the broadcast brand’s agency, Grey New York, for not dropping the ball on the sequel.

Full credits after the jump.

CREDITS

Advertiser: DIRECTV
Spot Title: Fantasy Football Fantasy
First Air Date: 8/11
Agency: Grey N.Y.
President, Chief Creative Director: Tor Myhren
Executive Creative Director: Dan Kelleher
Group Creative Director: Doug Fallon
Group Creative Director: Steven Fogel
Creatives: Kim Nguyen & Marques Gartrell
Agency Executive Producer: Andrew Chinich
Agency Producer: Lindsay Myers
Agency Music Producer: Zachary Pollakoff
Account: Chris Ross, Beth Culley, Anna Pogosova, Meredith Savatsky, Eddie Mele
Production Company: DNA, Inc., Hollywood, CA
Director: Director X
Executive Producer: Missy Galanida
Executive Producer: Patricia Judice
Producer: Justin Diener
Production Supervisor: Tara Martin
Director of Photography: Omer Ganai
Editorial Executive Producer (person & company): Maura Woodward, Cosmo Street
Editorial Producer (person & company): Heather Richardson, Cosmo Street
Editor (person & company): Tom Scherma, Cosmo Street
Assistant Editor: Dave Otte, Cosmo Street
Mixer + Sound Designer: David Wolfe for Mister Bronx Audio
Music: Butter Music & Sound
Creative Director : Andrew Sherman
Executive Producer: Ian Jeffreys
Produced and mixed by Glen Cavanaugh
Additional vocal mixing by Richard Furch at mixHaus studios
On-set recording services by Studio 101 NOLA
Post VFX (company): Method Studios NY
VFX Supervisors: Jay Hawkins & Doug Luka
Producer: Carlos Herrera
Casting: Caballero Casting & Avenue 3 Casting