Hasta La Creative!

CP+B’s funny new spot for Kraft Macaroni & Cheese examines the desperate lengths people will go to for a bite of Kraft’s signature macaroni and cheese-like-product.

Set to Marvin Hamlisch’s “What I Did For Love,” the 45 second spot shows individuals engaging in some questionable behavior to get their hands on Kraft Mac & Cheese, ranging from the everyday sneakiness of a grandfather stealing a bite from his grandson while the family says grace, to the potentially unsanitary exploits of a man who desperately destroys his child’s macaroni picture, to the utter illegality of a woman willing to steal a Kraft Macaroni & Cheese truck. Directed by Hank Perlman, “What I Did For Love” is the latest in CP+B’s “You Know You Love It” campaign for Kraft Mac & Cheese, and is a perfect example of what the campaign is capable of. The new spot is a lot more thought through than the “Noodle Reunion” promotion we covered back in October, and while they push the irreverent humor to new heights — for Kraft Mac & Cheese it’s downright edgy — they balance the irreverence with Kraft’s standard wholesomeness to make a fun spot that works for the brand. Stick around for credits after the jump. continued…

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Toshiba just launched some pretty funny “field tests” on YouTube, including the cringe-inducing “Portege Ultrabook vs. Drooling Dog” featured above, in a series called “Field Testing with Matt & Jamie.”

In each of the videos, they mention a field test performed by Toshiba (for the dog drool one it’s a test to withstand 50ml of water), before Matt and Jamie perform their own, less scientific, more riduclous test, which Toshiba claims the products actually passed. Apparently, in another clip to be added later this week, the Toshiba product actually failed the test, which is refreshing to see from a company (and lends more credibility to the results of the other tests). Aside from the hard to watch “”Portege Ultrabook vs. Drooling Dog,” highlights from the (seemingly neverending) series include “Satellite Ultrabook vs. Paint Shaker”and “Encore Tablet vs. Block of Ice.” Stick around for these two after the jump. continued…

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EVB and Victors&Spoils are banking on the effectiveness of 90s nostalgia and/or attempting to make you feel old with their remake of Blackstreet’s 1996 hit “No Diggity” for JCPenney. The song has been changed to “Go Ligety,” for J.C. Penney’s campaign in support of U.S. Olympic skier Ted Ligety.

“Go Ligety,” which is performed by C-Black of Blackstreet, informs viewers that when you round up your purchase to the nearest dollar proceeds go to the United States Olympic Committee. “”I like the way you work it. Go Ligety. You got to round it up.” rhymes C-Black, a fun, if cheesy, way to get the word out about the promotion. Ted Ligety doesn’t make an appearance himself, but J.C. Penney has a small Lil’ Ligety puppet act as a stand in. C-Black has a puppet doppelganger as well, who handles piano duties on the song. Between the puppets and the reworking of Blackstreet’s mid-90s hit, “#GoLigety” is a lot of fun, with enough going for it to get people to sit through its 2:15 duration.

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On Jan. 13, Universal Orlando launched “Best Vacation Ever,” which shares more than a few similarities with Apple’s holiday spot, “Misunderstood.”

“Best Vacation Ever” shows a family enjoying their time at Universal, with a teenage daughter who seems to always be on her phone. At the end of the spot, it’s revealed that she was on her phone all that time making a digital scrapbook of the family’s trip, which she entitled “Best Vacation Ever.” When she sends the file to her father, her mother intones, “And you said no phones.” As you may remember, this calls to mind the big reveal in Apple’s “Misunderstood” spot, in which a seemingly aloof teenage boy puts together a slideshow for his family on Christmas.

According to our anonymous tipster, all these similarities are “completely (and unfortunately) coincidence.” The Universal spot was purportedly sold last spring, “as part of a larger effort, so it took some time to produce,” and wrapped in November. Universal decided to hold the spot until the new year, a decision they must have regretted after seeing Apple’s “Misunderstood” over the holiday season. Our tipster added this tidbit: “Universal contacted Lance Acord in October to direct, he saw the Universal boards, but he had already accepted the Apple job.” Let us know your thoughts on the similarities between the two spots in the comments section.

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About two weeks ago, we shared the teaser trailer for Jaguar’s Super Bowl ad, which features Ben Kingsley, Mark Strong, and Tom Hiddleston (although only Kingsley was featured in the trailer). Today, Jaguar and their in-house agency, Spark44, have debuted the full 60 second spot, “Rendezvous.”

“Have you ever noticed how in Hollywood movies, all the villains are played by Brits?” Kingsley asks at the opening of “Rendezvous,” featuring the three star British actors as vaguely defined villains who all drive Jaguars. Filmed in London by Oscar-winning British director, Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech), in collaboration with Smuggler, Spark44 and Jaguar clearly threw a lot into “Rendezvous” to make the spot cinematic, also employing Alexandre Desplat, who worked with Hooper on The King’s Speech, to compose the ad’s original soundtrack, which was recorded by The London Symphony Orchestra at Abbey Road studios. “‘Rendezvous’ was filmed with the realization that many of today’s television viewers have access to beautifully sharp picture screens and multi-channel surround sound not unlike the best movie theaters,” explained Brand Vice President of Jaguar North America, Jeff Curry.

“Rendezvous” marks Jaguar’s debut Super Bowl advertisement, and also launches their straightforwardly-titled “British Villains” campaign, which promotes the new Jaguar F-TYPE Coupe (available spring, 2014) and will run through July. The spot features the campaign’s #GoodToBeBad hashtag (a line also spoken by Kingley during the ad, which honestly sounds a little forced), but that’s only the tip of the iceberg in terms of Jaguar’s online and social engagement. They’ve launched a campaign landing page, that “hosts information about the F-TYPE Coupe, the commercial and some unique video content including teasers starring each of the three actors.” Jaguar is also hosting an event with Deadspin as part of their partnership with the latter’s parent, Gawker, as well as two co-sponsored events with Sports Illustrated, including during the magazine’s Super Saturday event the night before Super Bowl Sunday.

What’s more, Jaguar “aims to be the most real-time engaged advertiser during the Super Bowl through a unique physical space called ‘The Loop,’  developed by Mindshare, where multiple screens will monitor real-time consumer data and translate it into actionable insights, and ultimately, rapid marketing decisions…” Jaguar claims “The Loop” is “the first real-time marketing tool to impact paid media – whereby media dollars can be quickly shifted and redeployed to leverage opportunities uncovered by the data.” It will be interesting to see how Jaguar’s first Super Bowl advertisement, and their “The Loop” strategy plays out this Sunday. Stick around for behind the scenes footage of “Rendezvous” after the jump. continued…

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W+K Portland and Coca-Cola have pre-released their Super Bowl ad, “Going All The Way.” One of two big game spots for Coca-Cola, “Going All The Way,” was shot in Ashwaubenon, a suburb of Green Bay, Wisconsin, with the exception of the final moments, which were shot at Lambeau Field.

The 60 second spot, directed by Jake Scott and set to House of Pain’s classic “Jump Around,” tells the story of Adrian, a small high school football benchwarmer who finally gets his chance to shine. “Don’t mess this up again, Adrian,” his teammate says when he’s put in the game, telling us all we need to know about Adrian’s past on the playing field. But things break Adrian’s way, and he’s given the opportunity to make the play of a lifetime.

Most of the cast of “Going All The Way” was made up of actual Green Bay-area residents, and Lambeau Field’s groundskeeper of 17 years has a featured role in the spot. “‘Going All The Way’ is a story that celebrates a young man accomplishing his dreams. It’s also a celebration of the amazing town of Ashwaubenon, Wis. coming together and our wonderful partnership with the city of Green Bay,” said Katie Bayne, President, North America Brands, Coca-Cola North America.

The feel-good spot will air during the second half of the Super Bowl, while Coca-Cola’s other big game ad will air during the second quarter. This marks Coca-Cola’s eighth consecutive year advertising during the Super Bowl. To celebrate the launch of “Going All The Way,” Coca-Cola has pledged to donate $50,000 to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Triple Play program when the spot reaches 10,000 shares. So please feel free to share “Going All The Way” with friends, family and colleagues. Stick around for a behind-the-scenes video about the making of “Going All The Way” after the jump. continued…

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Coming on the heels of last year’s “The Scarecrow” campaign, Chipotle has just revealed the trailer for its upcoming original comedy series “Farmed and Dangerous,” produced in collaboration with New York-based studio Piro.

The Chipotle-sponsored series offers a satirical look at “the lengths to which corporate agribusiness and its image- makers go to create a positive image of industrial agriculture.” “Farmed and Dangerous” imagines a fictional product called the “PetroPellet, a new petroleum-based animal feed created by fictional industrial giant Animoil.” Animoil runs into a PR shitstorm, however, when security footage of an exploding cow goes viral. Buck Marshall, played by Ray Wise of Twin Peaks fame, is the Industrial Food Image Bureau member charged with damage control, and seems willing to go to any lengths to make his little problem go away. The show also stars Eric Pierpoint (of Parks and Recreation).

Like “The Scarecrow,” the new series doesn’t actively promote Chipotle, instead positioning the brand as the alternative to the industrial farming giant the show documents. “We think of ‘Farmed and Dangerous’ as a values-integration rather than typical product- integration,” explained Chipotle chief marketing and development officer Mark Crumpacker. “The show addresses issues that we think are important – albeit in a satirical way – without being explicitly about Chipotle. This approach allows us to produce content that communicates our values and entertains people at the same time.” It also allows Chipotle to position itself against the shadiness of large agricultural business without making any specific promises or concessions — although they claim to have a “commitment to finding better, more sustainable sources for all of the ingredients it uses” and have announced “plans to eliminate GMOs from the ingredients it uses” in 2014. The approach is nothing new for Chipotle, as its evolution can be traced back to the award-winning 2011 spot, “Back to the Start.”

The debut episode of “Farmed and Dangerous” will be avilablee for free on Hulu starting on Feb. 17, with further episodes slated to premiere on consecutive Mondays. Season one of “Farmed and Dangerous” will be made up of four half-hour episodes, but “the storyline is designed to be extended to additional seasons” should the effort prove a success. Head on over to the “Farmed and Dangerous” official website for further details. Credits after the jump. continued…

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Chipotle has announced plans to launch “Farmed and Dangerous,” a Chipotle original comedy series that they say will satirically explore the world of industrial agriculture in America. Produced by Chipotle and New York-based Piro, the initial four-episode season will be presented weekly on Hulu and Hulu Plus beginning Monday, Feb. 17, 2014. While the show intends to integrate Chipotle’s values, we are told there will be no explicit Chipotle branding.

The first season will focus on the introduction of PetroPellet, a new petroleum-based animal feed created by fictional industrial giant Animoil. PetroPellet promises to reduce industrial agriculture’s dependence on oil by eliminating the need to grow, irrigate, fertilize and transport the vast amount of feed needed to raise livestock on factory farms.

Before its new feed formula can take foot, Animoil’s plans go awry when a security video goes viral sending Animoil and their spin master, Buck Marshall (Ray Wise) of the Industrial Food Image Bureau (IFIB), into damage control mode.

“Much of our marketing is aimed at making consumers more curious about where their food comes from and how it is prepared,” said Mark Crumpacker (poor guy must have had a terrible childhood), chief marketing and development officer at Chipotle. “By making complex issues about food production more understandable — even entertaining — we are reaching people who have not typically been tuned into these types of issues.”

The show follows the brand’s two award-winning animated short films – 2013’s “Scarecrow” and 2011’s “Back to the Start” – both of which sparked conversations about agriculture and industrial food production in entertaining ways. The initial season consists of four half-hour episodes, but the storyline is designed to be extended to additional seasons.

The pilot episode of “Farmed and Dangerous” will be available for free on Hulu.com and via the Hulu Plus subscription service starting Feb. 17, 2014. Each additional episode will become available on the consecutive Mondays.

It could totally suck but it’s worth watching just for Ray Wise!

W+K Portland has been very, very busy for Old Spice. First it was body spray with the “Smellcome to Manhood” campaign aka “Mom Song.” Then last week it was the triumphant return of Isaiah Mustafa and the “Interneterventions” surprise online campaign. Now, breaking the consistency of strange portmanteau puns is “For Hair That Gets Results,” marketing Old Spice’s line of hair care and styling products.

The first 30-second spot, “Meeting,” finds a studly studs mop of hair jump off his head and get a girl’s number. The lesson? If, young man, you pull this move, you’ll get a phone number that connects to a voicemail message that says, “Hey, I can’t come to the phone right now. I’m either studying for my master’s degree or having a tickle fight with my friend, Consuela. (Giggles.) Stop it, Consuela, I’m going to get you!” Yep, pretty cool.

The second, “Boardwalk,” teaches young men another valuable lesson. You see, a lady wants your hair to tell her if you can put in baby in her. You know, through the means of sexual intercourse or via a mechanical claw. Credits after the jump.

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Agency Greens & Salad teamed up with global production company Great Guns for a stylish, star-studded new ad for Nike Flyknit.

Entitled “Light. Strong. Nike Flyknit,” the 1:20 spot was directed by Paul Shearer and Vincent Laforet, and features Kobe Bryant, Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman, Olympic Gold Medalist Allyson Felix, decathlon world record holder Ashton Eaton, and world champion distance runner Mo Farah. The spot withholds any dialogue or voiceover, instead relying on footage of its star athletes training in their Nike Flyknits delivered with a visual flair (courtesy of “a Red Epic and Phantom camera, on a combination of tracking vehicles, Movi and Steadicam rigs”) to make its product look good. Kobe takes center stage, both the first and last athlete featured, but otherwise screen time is share fairly equitably. The spot debuted globally this week, in anticipation of the Super Bowl and the NBA All Star Game (for which voting results were just revealed).

If the Nike Flyknit spot has whet your appetite for more Richard Sherman, never fear. Stay tuned for a timely Beats ad featuring the Seahawks star cornerback, along with credits for “Light. Strong. Nike Flyknit” after the jump. continued…

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