Well, the relationship fairly briefly, but as you may heard, Burger King has parted ways with Mother New York. You might remember that said agency joined BK’s roster and became the fast-food chain’s lead agency in early 2013, in the process coming up with ads like the Mary J. Blige-starring spot that drew somewhat agreeable comments from Translation chief Steve Stoute and was also lampooned by Second City. Anyhow, here’s your succinct statement that was just sent to us from the agency:
“We were optimists going into the relationship and after a substantial test ride, it did not work out. We wish our friends at Burger King all the best.”
Gerry Graf’s Barton F. Graf 9000 NY has worked with production company Psyop, fresh off their game-developing debut with the Susan Sarandon-narrated Nightmare: Malaria, to develop this charming spot for the Supercell-developed strategy game Clash of Clans.
The one-minute anthem ad places the viewer in the middle of the action, on the same level as the melee taking place. To bring the game to life in the spot, Psyop “embraced the bright, stylized and saturated look of the game,” explained Psyop Director Fletcher Moules. “We wanted to fully conceptualize what the world would look like if we were running alongside the horde of barbarians, what would it feel like to be covered in their saliva.”
The impressively animated ad really does a good job transporting the viewer into the world of Clash of the Clans, thankfully without any saliva. One noteworthy moment occurs when two giants chuckle as they are hit with cannonballs. It was one of Psyop’s favorite segments to animate, as well. “It added the heart and the warmth that was only achieved when we removed ourselves a little from the ruckus to enjoy it from their perspective,” said Moules.
It would appear that Supercell’s audience is enthusiastic about Clash of Clans as well. The video was released on December 23rd, and garnered 14 million views in its first week. Credits after the jump. continued…
W+K’s new “It’s Amazing What You’re Capable Of” campaign for TurboTax, which kicked off last week with the excellent “The Year of You” spot, continues on with two new 30-second spots that capture humor and sentiment in equal measure.
The first, “Life is Full of Whys” (above), finds a recently dumped guy, a guy being encouraged by his wife to move, and a sad clown wondering some incredibly depressing questions. However, viewers should note that even in the darkest times, taxes can be your redemption. Sure, everyone hates your clown jokes, but at least you can write off your squeaky shoes as a business expense.
The second, “Did I Get Married?,” is shot from the perspective of a man falling in love with a Manic Pixie Dream Girl, whose questions range from cute to sort of off putting and bizarre. But, isn’t that the kind of girl every guy wanted to marry after watching Garden State, Elizabethtown, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, etc.? And then brag about to web-based financial software? In any case, these spots both hit their target (MEN!) in an engaging, lighthearted fashion. Who knew doing your taxes could be so emotionally rewarding? Credits after the jump.
Is there anything more heartwarming than watching children of all ages fall over repeatedly?
From Proctor & Gamble and W+K comes “Pick Them Back Up,” a new spot that’s part of the “Thank You, Mom” campaign running during the length of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. If you’ll recall, P&G and Wieden have been leaders in mom joy, child guilt and intermittent bouts of crying since a 2010 Mother’s Day campaign, which set the stage for the very viral 2012 London Olympics spot “Best Job.” Since the initial broadcast of “Best Job,” most of the world has been stuck in a routine of enthusiastic weeping followed by hugging their mom until it hurts.
Adding a little humor to the affair (this is, if you’re a sociopath like me), “Pick Them Back Up” sees attractive young mothers repeatedly watch their children fall down before picking them up, thus transforming them into successful Olympic athletes. For those mothers whose children didn’t grow up to be competitive in winter sports on an international scale, well, your time was better spent leaving your kid on the ice and just working on you for a while.
Of course, this spot also begs the question, how did they film so many babies falling over? Were they stunt babies, or did they trip them with invisible wires or something? In any case, after seeing this on TV, your mother’s gaze will slowly drift over to the photo she has of you as a baby on her nightstand, and she’ll sigh a million disappointed sighs because you were once so cute and loving and now you apparently don’t “have the time” to give her a call once in a while. She’s right, you know, because you just watched this and it caused you do to nothing. Credits, and one in a series of new athlete-specific video, follow after the jump.
From Pereira & O’Dell New York comes a new spot already being hailed by SB Nation as “weird” and “gross.” Starring FOX Sports’ Big East basketball commentators Gus Johnson (who FOX has been marketing as an overly loud spaz, as though that was a good thing) and Bill Raftery (who announced he was bringing his trademark nonsensical “onions!” catchphrase from ESPN to FOX in November), the spot imagines what it would be like if this odd duo was to analyze childbirth.
In addition to SB Nation‘s glowing review, Sports Grid is boldly declaring the spot an “early contender for worst ad of the year.” But don’t just take their word for it! “Terrible commercial. A bit disturbing. Not funny,” says one YouTube commenter. “Fire the idiot who approved this commercial,” says another! Well, you know what they say: When Gus Johnson pounds a desk and causes a newborn baby to come rocketing out of his mother’s vagina, you’re bound to get a big reaction. Credits after the jump.
I don’t own a PS4, but I catch myself periodically humming the cover of Lou Reed‘s “Perfect Day” in BBH NY’s video game spot with the same title. For a brief refresher: the 60-second spot shows two gamers as iterations of the characters they’re competing with, such as medieval gladiators and race car drivers. If you watch enough TV, you’re bound to watch it. And it sticks with you, mainly because of the song, but compared to typical ad humor and action, this spot just marches to the beat of a different drummer.
One of those drummers – Ari Weiss, executive creative director of BBH NY – recently sat down with ADC for their Behind the Cube series to talk about the creative decisions that helped shape “Perfect Day.” Weiss talks about how the song actually guided the visuals, how the gamers were established as characters, and how editing set the spot’s unique pacing.
And on a somewhat-related note: ADC just announced they are launching an iPad app to show off their annual work developed in conjunction with Brazilian shop the goodfellas, ADC member/Google Creative Lab motion designer Monica Eunji Kim and U.K.-based creative director, Pete Rossi. It is the first time in the company’s 92-year history that the annual book will not be in print. ADC is also giving away free limited-edition iPad cases to the first 500 people who download the app.
There are a lot of bars in the state of New York, and from Brooklyn to Utica, it would cost a ridiculous amount of money to buy a round for however many patrons there’d be on any given night. But that’s what fictional Steve did. He gave a drink to everyone from the club dancer to the scarfed Bubbe, and everyone toasted to Steve even though nobody knew his identity. That’s what you can do when you win the lottery.
The minute-long spot ultimately drags a bit from relying on such a drawn-out punchline that cutting it in half would’ve been a good idea. However, “Toast” is another adequate ad for New York Lottery’s “Yeah, that kind of rich” slogan. The slogan is not be the cleverest or the simplest, but it lends itself to all kinds of silly plays on how lotto winners can spend their money. In the past, we’ve seen commercials about winners who paid for alien recreations and celebrity joke-writers. You have to ask yourself, would somebody drop that much dough for an anonymous act of bar charity? Maybe, maybe not. But it’s certainly possible, and the next time you’re in a convenience store, you might think about it, too.
Just a few weeks after making some “staff adjustments,” word from sources familiar with the matter is that Kansas City-based agency Barkley will lose client Big Lots “in the coming month or two”–though they’re still currently the brand’s agency of record. The employee-owned ad agency won AOR duties for the closeout retailer just over a year ago and was tasked with handling brand strategy, broadcast, print, web strategy and in-store executions. Big Lots, which is based in Columbus, OH and operates over 1,400 stores in the US of A and Canada, previously worked with various agencies on a project basis before consolidating creative at Barkley at the beginning of last year.
The image of fat, overpaid athletes who don’t care about what they do as much as they should is an easy shot for fans to take. It’s occasionally true. But this angle almost never comes from the house, since gambling companies don’t need to take a stance one way or the other to make money. But in the UK, bookmaker Paddy Power has teamed with CP+B for “Fat Watch” a contest to the bottom that rewards soccer players who take the least shots or spend the most time on the bench. Fans who support the clubs of the laziest players (Fernando Torres) will win some undisclosed prize, which seems more like compensation for rooting for FC Shame.
The 30-second spot is pretty funny and plays more like a comedy sketch than a commercial. I don’t think this idea could play in America, but for the stodgy fans across the Atlantic, the campaign’s sneering tone feels like a great fit. Credits after the jump.
I remember the Easy Button last being at all interesting about five years ago. People could actually buy a product that embodied Staples’ marketing strategy in Staples, some mixture of cool/scary meta-advertising that got old once you pressed the button more than 10 times. Staples has actually been running with “That Was Easy” for a decade, but McGarryBowen just retired it in favor of the less punchy “Make More Happen.”
Would you prefer your supply store to make things easy or to make more things happen? Rhetorical, but the rebrand is meant to change the perception of Staples as just an office supply store. The logo changed slightly, too, with the now-rotating “L” you can see in the new promo above that includes dog food, rain boots, paint brushes, etc. They sell dog food? Is this Staples or Walmart? It’s hard to tell. I’m not sure that’s a good thing, since Staples can’t do Walmart as well as Walmart can, but at least they’re trying to adapt instead of coasting down an easy route to irrelevance. Credits after the jump.
Hollywood-based agency Troika helped Encore with a re-brand of their eight premium channels, including “eight new logos, network packaging, channel IDs, an image spot, and trade & consumer ad templates.”
The rebrand was crafted by a team of “15 strategists, writers, designers, animators, editors and producers” to play off and expand Encore’s existing “Playing Favorites” brandline and position. “We wanted to bring more meaning to the position by building a brand that takes the role of friend and fellow movie-lover, and express this in unique ways across ENCORE’s
premium channels through language and visuals,” explains Dale Everett, creative director at Troika.
Part of the rebrand will be a new programming strategy designed to take advantage of “market opportunities amidst evolving demographics and viewing preferences.” This includes a shift from Encore Drama to Encore Black, and Encore Love to Encore Classic.
The new brand voice is catered to speak directly to different audiences across Encore’s channels, with “He’s Full of Shh” for Austin Powers on Encore and “Yes We Remember” for The Alamo on Encore Westerns, for example.
The rebrand, which also features a redesigned logo and new, bold graphics debuted on December 2nd. You can view a montage of the rebrand above, or head here for an in-depth case study.
W+K again? Yes, and now it concerns W+K Portland’s “It’s Amazing What You’re Capable Of” campaign for TurboTax with the launch ad, “The Year of You.”
The spot marks the first creative work W+K have completed in partnership with TurboTax since nabbing AOR duties back in July. As you might expect from the title, the :90 “The Year of You” reminisces about all the things that “you” have accomplished in 2013, paying homage especially to new parents, newlyweds and new home owners. This leads in to the suggestion that since you’ve done all these things, you’re the best person to do your taxes. The types of accomplishments applauded in the ad correlate with the simple questions that TurboTax uses, such as “Did you get married?” and the ad does a good job making TurboTax’s system look very easy. The voiceover during the ad (which sounds a lot like John C. Reilly) is lighthearted and endearing, making the whole thing unexpectedly likeable for an advertisement for a tax service, which should help assuage some of the inevitable tax season anxiety it triggers.
“The Year of You” launched yesterday and will run until April 15th. During that time, W+K will gradually roll out other initiatives in the “It’s Amazing What You’re Capable Of” campaign. Stick around for credits after the jump. continued…
If a Levi’s ad had a one-night stand with a Dos Equis commercial and the lovechild was baptized by a former Abercrombie art director, this “Equinox Made Me Do It” campaign by W+K New York would be the result. Equinox’s sensual shenanigans – mainly, turning gym memberships into sex – has graduated from bad joke that everyone is in on to an accepted norm at this point. The over-the-top sexuality even made its way into Aziz Ansari’s most recent standup special. But the appeal seems to be growing: gyms have spread across the country, celebrities are frequent guests, and Equinox now boasts a “Best Gym” award from a handful of publications including Fitness Magazine. The accolades should come in handy as people line up to sign up for a New Year’s resolution gym membership. So should the pretty people running naked on big billboards. If you live in a city with an Equinox gym, get ready to see butts.
The “Made Me Do It” campaign is W+K’s first work for Equinox, but you probably couldn’t tell the difference, because the gym is still selling the same amount of sex. And why shouldn’t they? While copycat fitness centers fight against each other, Equinox separated itself from the competition by rethinking the old adage of less is more. Credits after the jump.
And here we are, the final day of 2013. With that, we give you our second and final installment of our most popular posts of the year, which, as we mentioned yesterday, weren’t all too surprising compared to previous years (save for the #1 item). Anyhow, we thank you one and all for reading, glancing at, commenting, loving and/or hating the site in 2013. We sincerely appreciate it. Have a happy new year and we will see you on the other side. Now, on with the show.
Hey, look at that! It’s former All-Pro NFL receiver and notable public nuisance Terrell Owens getting paid for his time by appearing in a 72andSunny spot for Carl’s Jr. It’s a post-Christmas miracle!
Sure, Owens hasn’t played in an NFL game since 2010. And, it’s been eight years since he last suited up for the Philadelphia Eagles, where he was let go after getting into a beef (get it?) with the team owner and QB Donovan McNabb (who he accused of getting “tired” during the Eagles’ Super Bowl loss in early 2005). But, agency and client needed someone to shit on Philadelphia’s notoriously vocal fans to contrast them with the deliciousness of their Philly Cheesesteak Burger, and Owens was more than happy to oblige.
But, should you feel any sympathy for how he was treated in Philadelphia, or during his multiple attempts at an NFL comeback over the last few years, remember how he he frequently implied that San Francisco 49ers QB Jeff Garcia was gay despite it having no bearing on anything. Remember how he called out Donovan McNabb for not playing through a sports hernia and implied he wasn’t a warrior like Brett Favre. Oh, and remember his terrible VH1 reality show. Because we should really bring that up more often. Credits after the jump.
Publicis Kaplan Thaler created the first ever TV spot for car shopping destination Edmunds.com to receive a national release. The spot, “Edmunds Price Promise,” debuted on Christmas Day during NBA programming on ABC and ESPN and “will remain in regular rotation on several networks through at least the next three months.”
“Edmunds Price Promise” highlights the price promise Edmunds offers its customers, “an instant, locked-in price that the dealer will honor,” while positioning Edmunds employees as “car people” — quite literally. While the humor falls flat, the national campaign will likely bring the company newfound exposure and the Edmunds Price Promise should be a selling point with its audience.
Well, looks like our tipsters jumped the gun last week on who actually won the NAPA account, but it’s now official, as you may have heard, that Kansas City-based, WPP-owned VML has been named agency of record for the auto parts chain. From what we’ve heard, DDB was also in the pitching mix for the account, which includes all national creative duties including TV, radio, print, sponsorship activation and digital. The 88-year-old NAPA brand previously worked with what is now Publicis Kaplan Thaler, which had handled the account since 2009.
Jon Cook, CEO/president of VML, says in a statement, “We’re incredibly proud to be selected as NAPA’s agency of record. VML’s focus has always been about challenging conventional thinking and delivering more relevant, innovative and category-changing ideas. These were some of the priority ingredients that NAPA wanted in an agency partner, and we can’t wait to get started.”
Making bad advertising is easy. But, every now and then, somebody produces something so atrociously heinous that it almost makes you want to stand up and applaud.
Congrats, Samsung. “Are You Geared Up?” may be the absolute worst thing we’ve seen this year. You found rock bottom, and you dug even deeper. You combined bad acting with a nonsensical script, added in a dash of uncomfortable pacing and stretched the whole thing out to a cringeworthy two-and-a-half minutes.
Not only did you create The Room of online advertising, but your ad was so shitty that it went viral. Your spot was featured on the front page of Reddit under the headline “Hands down the worst ad I’ve ever seen. Take a bow, Samsung.” On top of that, the online legions have taken to your Samsung Mobile YouTube page, where you’ve received 13,000 thumbs down votes to 2,000 thumbs up votes. And, some genius left the comments on, which just adds to the chaos of terrible. Here are just a smattering of some of our favorite comments:
“There’s no way this is a real ad from Samsung. That would mean someone from Samsung had to actually watch this train wreck of a commercial and approve it. So it has to be fake. Right?”
“I feel like I just watched porn without the porn.”
“I’m almost speechless because of how terrible this is. I’m embarrassed that it’s for an Android product.”
“Thanks Samsung, I forgot for a moment that women are prizes that can be won through the creative use of technology and being creepy as fuck.”
“HAY GURL CHECK OOT THEESE COOL PICS I TOOK OF YOU SEECRETLY WHILE I FOLLOWED YOU. TEE HEE YOUR PICTURES OF ME ARE SO FLATTERING HERE IS MY CONTACT INFORMATION ANONYMOUS STRANGER I WILL BE ALONE IN MY HOTEL ROOM TONIGHT. HAHAHA I AM GOING TO HAEV SEX WITH YOU BECAUSE MY WATCH IS A PHONE!”
In other words, it’s been a pretty fun morning. However, one Reddit-er has an interesting theory for why this terrible, terrible thing exists:
This was shot in Korea (that’s why everyone has a Russian accent). It was probably never meant to be seen in English. The main audience will see this with a Korean dub (that’s also why the actors speak so slowly).
The English script was probably written and edited by non-native speakers, and the company probably doesn’t give a shit what the English version sounds like, because the Korean dub is the one that will be seen. All that matters is that the white people look cool and pretty. It’s like that other commercial with the Samsung hard drive or whatever.
It’s an interesting theory, but as one commenter replied, “I wonder if Samsung has heard of the Internet.” Judging by this, it seems unlikely. If anyone has any info on the agency behind this, or would like to nominate anything else for Worst Ad of the Year, please do so in the comments.
Right about this time every year, TBWA\Chiat\Day LA debuts its TV spots for the Grammys. And, every year, they’re pretty underwhelming. A few years back, we got a swirly, graphics overload with CGI re-tellings of artists like Eminem’s life story. Last year, we got the hashtag-happy #TheWholeWorldIsListening, which aimed to put viewers into the shoes of stars like Rihanna while trying to convince them that the awards show was still in any way relevant.
This year’s first spot, “Anthem,” looked more like a VH1 commercial than anything else, and it seemed we were in for yet another year of mediocrity. But then, dare we say it, the Grammys and Chiat LA ctually surprised us. The latest spot in the Music Unleashes Us campaign, “Drive” (above), does a fantastic job of convincing viewers that they owe it to the artists who get them through times of sorrow and heartbreak to watch their performances on the Grammys.
From Pink and fun., we move to Macklemore and “Doughnut Shop,” another well-produced and compelling spot filmed outside of Inglewood’s famous Randy’s Donuts. Again, these spots excel at following through with what the campaign promises – portraying the affect that popular music has on the average TV viewer. It both ignites and unleashes, an important sentiment for the Grammys to glom onto as the show still figures out its approach to celebrating an industry that doesn’t know what to do next. One more Katy Perry-tinged spot, and credits, follow after the jump.
To kick things off today, let’s start with Kaz/Helen of Troy, the parent company of water filtration brand PUR, which has selected Arnold Worldwide to serve as its new agency of record. Yes, there was a review and the incumbent was TBWA\Chiat\Day, which sources say did not defend the biz. As a result, Arnold will handle brand communications strategy, creative development, and digital marketing strategies. In a statement, Kaz CMO Christophe Coudray says, “We selected Arnold for its breadth of experience, its unique combination of analytical strength and strong creative capability. This will help us meet consumer needs and our business objectives. Identifying a strong agency partner is extremely important to our leadership team and our business. We’re very excited to begin working with Arnold, and look forward to the partnership.”
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