Hasta La Creative!

The newly re-branded Philly-based Red Tettemer O’Connell + Partners (who recently expanded with an L.A. office) are behind this super adorbs spot for The Big Ten Network’s BTN2Go mobile platform. Who knew tiny mascots could be so cute? Who knew that I could squeal like a teenage girl upon seeing mini-Bucky Badger? Oh man, I have a lot of self-reflection to do, huh?

For those wondering how BTN2Go works, here’s a write-up:

This multi-platform mobile extension gives fans the ability to watch the network streamed live from wherever they are. Available on desktops, smartphones and tablets, the app is free for any cable subscriber with BTN in their line-up. More than just a live simulcast of games, the app is customizable to set fan’s team preferences, highlights and stats.

But who cares, right? It’s just too cute. Holy shit, so cute. It’s just inspired Kiran to tell me he wants a pet. Bfljeabf! Credits after the jump.

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Allen & Gerritsen of Boston unveiled a new campaign for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts today, their first since Blue Cross named A & G its agency of record.

The campaign, called “Blue Cross Blue Shield of You” (pretty lame name, we know) features three TV spots highlighting the stories of actual Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts plan members. Each of these stories is very different, highlighting that each Blue Cross plan is unique to the needs of its policy holder. These vary from a man competing in a “Spartan” race, to a woman biking to work for physical and spiritual health, to a startup offering Blue Cross Blue Shield to its employees. All these stories have a very Massachusetts flair to them, or as Allen & Gerritsen Creative Director Doug Gould puts it, “This campaign celebrates the fabric of our region through individuals, while mirroring the values of the Blue Cross Blue Shield brand.” Spolier: You might hear a Boston accent or two in there. Its a pretty no-nonsense approach that’s refreshing compared to the more schticky approaches certain other insurance agencies take.

In addition to the :30 and :60 second TV spots, the campaign also spans radio, digital video and banners, and out of home.

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Question: What would a contemporary soccer-related version of “Les Miserables” look like if we replaced all the singing actors with kids and threw in the craftiest living man in cleats? Answer: This tw0-minute Leo Burnett commercial promoting Samsung’s Galaxy Note 3 and accompanying smart watch. When Lionel Messi isn’t dominating the pitch or allegedly evading taxes, he’s also rebuilding cities as an urban developer! For the kids!

From a narrative perspective, this spot is about as corny as it gets – I think it will be very tough to top the new pair of Samsung ads that show the progression of pop-culture smart watches over the years and harp on some brilliantly revealed nostalgia. But “The Developer” is enjoyable on a micro level if you don’t think about it too hard, kind of like every James Cameron movie. Messi on his suit and tie. Kids singing a cute version of Lorde’s single “Royals.” There’s even a building demolition scene if you’re into that. And if you’re not, there’s always Messi, on his suit and tie, smiling, playing soccer with kids. Everybody loves that.  Credits after the jump.

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September 14th saw the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series return to the Blue Lagoon on the scenic Pembrokeshire coastline in Wales. Red Bull decided to use a slightly different approach to capture the excitement of that day, including the dives from a 27 meter high platform.

They’ve released a stop-motion film, created using thousands of photos taken at the event by three top UK Instagramers: @danrubin, @jeera and @chaiwalla. The two minute video was stitched together out of photos taken over the course of just a few hours. It takes the viewer on a tour of all the action, capturing people’s reactions to the dives, divers climbing the ladder, the dives themselves, and (of course) the Red Bull stand. You get a nice mix of the excitement of the event, the natural beauty of the location, and  a quick glance at the kind of people making up the audience. Everything is put together so seamlessly, you might not even notice it’s stop-motion.

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For the first time, Burt’s Bees is promoting its seven mainstay, “classic” products as a group. These “classics” include Beeswax Lip Balm, Coconut Foot Cream, Shea Butter Hand Repair Cream, Hand Salve, Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream, Almond Milk Beeswax Hand Cream and Res-Q Ointment. To promote their classic lineup, Burt’s Bees is reinterpreting a few classics in a new format. Burt’s Bees and agency Baldwin& are using 6-second stop motion animated Vines interpreting seven classics of literature: Little Women, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Gulliver’s Travels, Metamorphosis, Moby Dick, The Scarlet Letter, and Julius Caesar.

The humorous Vines highlight the time-tested nature of Burt’s Bees products, suggesting they will last as long as the classic literature they pay homage to. Of course, Burt’s Bees products are actually featured in the Vines, such as the lip balm in “Little Women” who declare “We really are quite little. And each of us women.” These classic vines are staged by Vine animator Jethro Ames of San Francisco, using in-camera stop-motion shooting for each Vine. The process takes about four hours to complete, with no post-production possible.

The first two “Classic Vines” to roll out are Little Women (featured above) and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (featured after the jump).” In a small, prequel campaign that marries the new and the classic in a different way, founder Burt Shavitz will post about his backwoods Maine life on Instagram. This “Classic Burts” campaign contrasts a classic, traditional lifestyle with the hustle and bustle of modern social media, such as a photo of Burt splitting logs with the caption “Innovative home heating system.” This campaign from Baldwin& is refreshingly non self-serious and makes sense for a company whose selling point is that they make a no-frills, quality product out of classic materials. We’re guessing it didn’t exactly break the bank either. continued…

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Details are a bit vague at the moment on this, but yesterday, we received a tip that McCann was awarded integrated ad duties for Lockheed Martin. We inquired throughout the day and were left in the dark until last night when we finally received this reply from a Lockheed spokesperson that confirms the integrated win: “We recently conducted a review of our advertising and media agencies and selected McCann to be our agency of record beginning in early 2014.” No word from Lockheed on who the incumbent was (if there was one, though we’re digging) but we’re hearing that the Bethesda, MD-based defense contractor, which is also furloughing approximately 20 percent less workers than planned due to the government shutdown, actually made its decision last week.

By our count, this marks the third notable account win for McCann in the last six months following the USPS and Cuervo. We’ll keep you posted if and when we find out more about its latest.

Update: Well, to fill in the blanks a bit, folks on the Spy tell us CT-based Keiler & Company was the incumbent on Lockheed. As for the review, we’re being told other agency finalists included Arnold and Doremus.

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Could a  nearly 20-year relationship between DDB and Wells Fargo be coming to an end? Not sure yet, but late last Friday, we first heard that the San Francisco-based financial institution was putting its lead agency account into review. After some follow-up this morning, we received this brief comment from a spokesperson for the brand that basically confirms it: “We are very proud of our advertising. As we continue to evolve our brand to align with our growing business and broader marketing and brand strategies, it is the right time to explore agency options.”

DDB California, appropriately enough, handed ad duties over the years for Wells Fargo, which of course also acquired Wachovia back in 2008. DDB still currently serves as lead ad agency for the brand but we’re checking to see if they’ll defend the account. We’ll keep you posted if and when we hear more.

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M&C Saatchi gained the attention of passing pedestrians in Milan by creating an installation that looks like a submarine emerging in Milan’s Piazza Mercanti, crashing into a nearby motorist.

The surreal stunt was created for insurance companies Genertel IT and Europ Assistance IT as part of their “Protect Your Life” campaign. It featured a rescue team, a group of stunned sailors, and one irate Smart Car driver. To make sure the point (Which is what exactly? It’s really hard to extract from this confusing scene) was not lost on pedestrian witnesses, “a man in scuba diving gear was on hand to speak to people about the importance of safeguarding their possessions.” Because anytime people need something explained to them: bam, a man in scuba gear.

I’m a fan of good old-fashioned Italian surrealism, so I can appreciate this from that point of view. But I can’t really make much sense of it from a marketing standpoint. Protect your possessions because you never know when a submarine will emerge out of nowhere? If you can make some sense of this, let us know in the comments section.

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In a follow-up to the earlier NBA 2K14 spot which heralded Lebron James‘s first game cover, Zambezi returns with the official launch ad for the game featuring who most believe is the best in b-ball today. Yours truly hasn’t been much of a gamer since Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter 2 were in existence, but hell, we’re down to revisit the days when we were on fire in NBA Jam. Along with the spot, Zambezi curated an interview with the one and only Michael Jordan dubbed “Uncensored” in what perhaps the greatest basketball player ever actually goes against the grain and dubs Kobe Bryant the only one he probably couldn’t beat in the NBA today. Well, he did emulate his style to perfection after all, so maybe MJ’s on to something. Credits and the Jordan interview after the jump.

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In case you haven’t read, Newell Rubbermaid, which has previously worked with Minneapolis-based Carmichael Lynch and Definition 6, has shifted its business to BBH and PHD as lead creative and media agency, respectively. BBH, which also works with leading brands including Johnnie Walker, British Airways, KFC, Audi, Barclays Bank, Westin Hotels & Resorts, and Axe, will support work by the global agency network including offices in London, Sao Paulo and Shanghai.

In a statement,  Richard Davies, chief marketing/insights officer of Newell Rubbermaid, says, “For the first time, we are aligning all our brands and categories behind one set of agency partners to drive big ideas that create a strong point of difference for consumers. BBH and PHD are the best in the business at what they do.  With their partnership, we now have the power to achieve much greater scale, reach and impact as we invest behind growing our brands worldwide.”

The new agency relationship has started two days ago and will go into full effect in early 2014.

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