Hasta La Creative!

Educational video games typically offer up half-hearted gaming experiences that grow staler by the click. It’s like the developers weren’t sure how to balance the knowledge with the fun, so they just half-assed both parts. Rarely do we get to enjoy the two like in an Oregon Trail. Who knew caulking a river could be so much fun?

Based on the screenshots and trailer for the Royal Canadian Mint’s new digital children’s game, Cossette has teased enough creativity to at least get kids interested in checking it out. The release marks the 100th anniversary of first Canadian Arctic expedition (although according to the trailer, the timeline should start in November 1913). I haven’t played the game myself – I’m a bit outside the 6-11 year-old age range – but in terms of advertising, I was surprised by the amount of storytelling and suspense in the trailer. The graphic aren’t exactly going to challenge the Grand Theft Auto franchise, but this actually looks like a game rather than a textbook pretending to be a game. Credits after the jump.

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Dare Toronto teamed up with Penguin Books Canada to create a digital companion to Khaled Hosseini’s best selling novel And the Mountains Echoed, a project almost a year in the making.

Entitled “The Echo Project,” the site is a “a digital exploration of each of the 402 pages of the novel.” It’s an interesting proposition, and one that attracted many collaborators, including “contributions from Khaled Hosseini himself, magazine editors, TV & Radio personalities, producers, authors, painters and illustrators” — each of whom chose a page of the novel and either offered up ideas of what that page should look like on The Echo Project or told the team at Dare how the page made them feel and left it up to them to develop further. The pages represented on The Echo Project include a “unique assortment of interactive puzzles, motion graphics, videos, illustrations, audio and video that allow the reader to explore themes that are complimentary to the story, like references to history and culture.”

“We hoped it would evolve and take on a life of its own. And it has,” said Paul Little, Dare’s executive creative director. “The concept was a framework to allow any content that helped embellish, explain or express. And because of the range of content, it needed it to be flexible enough to allow for spontaneity and fan contribution.”

Dare Toronto and Penguin believe that The Echo Project “is a sign of how book publishers will evolve their launch strategies to offer different reading experiences for avid and casual book readers.” As André Louis, director of planning at Dare explains, “Avid book readers got to co-create and live a more immersive book experience; casual readers get the ‘DVD-extras’ that go along with the paperback. We’re leveraging avid Hosseini fans’ word of mouth to influence those who buy a few books a year in an attempt to sell more to casual readers.”

Dare and Penguin are no strangers to exploring the intersection of books and digital, having “created the MyFry app which allowed users to read British writer and actor Stephen Fry’s second autobiography in a non-linear, theme-based fashion via mobile” back in 2011. The Echo Project will be unveiled in its entirety and promoted in the paperback edition of And the Mountains Echoed scheduled for publication this June. For an idea of what to expect from The Echo Project, check out the video above, or head on over to the site for a more complete experience. Credits after the jump. continued…

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Arnold Worldwide tapped actress/comedian Grace Helbig, who recently starred in the film Camp Takota, for a 1:47 ad.

The long form ad sees Helbig extolling the virtues of St. Ives’ new “Fresh Hydration Lotion Spray” — which was just released on February 25th — with her brand of manic humor. St. Ives’ new spot plays off the inherent ridiculousness of lotion ads, amping things up to 11 and letting Gerbig riff of that and generally run around like a lunatic. After using the spray, Helbig is whisked away to the magic “land of St. Ives,” a sort of tropical paradise. She tracks down a waterfall made out of lotion, at which time the apparent psychedelic effects of the spray wear off and she’s transported back to her house.

Whether or not you like the new St. Ives spot, which Helbig describes as “wonderfully stupid,” will depend in large part on how you feel about Helbig’s brand of humor. Her fans, who must make up a sizable portion of the video’s 100,000-plus views, will undoubtedly find the spot endearing (and just may purchase the product on her recommendation), while those who find Helbig’s personality grating won’t find anything to enjoy here. As the YouTube views indicate, the spot is certainly getting some eyes on it. Helbig has also garnered attention for the new product by mentioning it on her YouTube series, and even posting a behind-the-scenes video on her channel that has garnered more views than the ad itself. Stick around for that behind-the-scenes video, along with credits, after the jump. continued…

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Milan-based agency DUDE has launched a new worldwide campaign for Diadora called “The City is What We Make of it.”

A follow up to last year’s “Free to be Me,” shot in New York, DUDE’s latest finds the agency heading to L.A. for an homage to city sports. “Wake up early, look at it: this is our place” the spot begins, before following a group of young people making the city their playground. The 75 second spot is well shot, with intriguing footage of skateboarding, street bowling, rooftop golf and other wholesome urban activities, but the strained copy and smug voiceover have a tendency to undercut the spot’s potential. “Some ride in the gym, we gym on the ride” is an actual line (in reference to bicycle basketball) spoken in said voiceover.

While “The City is What We Make of it” is a clear follow up to last year’s campaign, retaining the “Free to be Me” tagline and spotlighting L.A. the way that campaign did New York, it also feels like a slight departure in certain areas. The new spot has a different tone than the more wistful “Free to be Me,” as well as some more energetic pacing. We’ve included that spot for reference after the jump, along with credits for “The City is What We Make of it.” continued…

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Inspired by the Mars exploration rovers, Cheil UK built a “web user-controlled camera-bot, the first of its kind, called the NX Rover, for Samsung to showcase the unique connectivity of the Galaxy NX Camera.” Needless to say, it’s pretty badass.

To demonstrate the Galaxy NX’s capabilities, Cheil UK is sending the NX Rover on an international trip to “a series of extraordinary places and events.” Planned stops include London Super Comic Convention, an FC Bayern Munich training session, on-location in Iceland, and an after-hours visit to a major London museum. Samsung will also be giving interested parties the opportunity to take control of the NX Rover and snap shots with the Galaxy NX camera. To accomplish this, Cheil “built an interface which will give users real time control of the camera via a ‘point and click’ function.” Users can also control the arm of the Rover which can extend up to 2m high. Among the other Rover functions are up/down movement of the arm, 360-degrees pan and tilt/pivot of the camera, as well as focus and zoom.

“We wanted to reignite the spirit of adventure and put the NX in to the hands of the photographers everywhere, and do it in a way that did justice to this game-changing product,” says Cheil UK COO Matt Pye. “Through the NX Rover keen photographers will have the opportunity to see and capture some of the world’s most interesting places and characters in an entirely new way.”

If you’d like to try out the NX Rover experience yourself, head on over to Samsung’s microsite and check it out.

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Detroit-based, family-owned and operated apparel company Carhartt collaborated with former agency creatives to create an in-house online video examining what makes Michigan unique.

Entitled “Hands in the Mitten” the 4:27 video asks “What Makes Michigan?” and whether Michigan came pure or was built that way, investigating Michigan landmarks and interviewing natives before arriving at the answer. The video’s tone and message are reminiscent of McCann’s award-winning “Pure Michigan” campaign, but stretched out over several minutes. It does a lot to hammer home Carhartt’s status as a local company, in a state that takes a lot of pride in itself and keeping business within the state. “Hands in the Mitten” is well done, offering a look at many different parts of the state, even if its run time could have been cut a little bit. Credits after the jump. continued…

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“Sport Doesn’t Care” is the platform behind 72andSunny’s and Worldwide Paralympic Sponsor Samsung’s new campaign, showing that no matter who you are, your excuse doesn’t matter in the world of athletics.

The 90 second spot from 72andSunny Amsterdam, dubbed “What’s Your Problem? Sport Doesn’t Care,” features paralympic athletes Jessica Gallagher (alpine skiing), Seung-Hwan Jung (ice sledge hockey), Katarzyna Rogowiec (cross country skiing and biathlon), Anna Schaffelhuber (alpine skiing), Evan Strong (snowboard cross), and Greg Westlake (ice sledge hockey). These paralympians share their problems, such as “I am not a morning person,” “It’s so cold,” “Side wind. I don’t like it.” I hate the rain,” and “I’m too tired” and other problems any athlete might face, followed by the “Sport Doesn’t Care” message.

“Conversations around the Paralympic Games tend to focus on disability over athleticism,” explains Younghee Lee, EVP/global marketing, IT & mobile at Samsung Electronics. “As a brand with a passion for sport, Samsung aims to make the dialogue more empowering, focusing on the courage and performance of athletes and encouraging participation.”

Australian alpine skiier Jessica Gallagher expressed excitement at being involved in the campaign. “I think that Samsung’s commitment to the Paralympic movement is incredibly important. It calls much-needed attention to the fact that we as Paralympians are really not different from our Olympic Games counterparts — we work just as hard and want to win just as much,” she said. “I ski the same as any Olympian, I just use adaptive equipment to help negate my vision loss. Whether you’re a top athlete or a young child just starting out, sport doesn’t discriminate.”

The spot follows on the heels of a kickoff manifesto spot which launched February 20th, with a third spot in the series set for release on March 7th. Stick around for the manifesto spot after the jump. continued…

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Siltanen & Partners have released a follow up to Coldwell Banker’s GRAMMY “Home Sweet Home” spot called “Your Home,” which will debut during the Oscars this Sunday.

The new spot is the latest in Coldwell Banker’s #HomeRocks campaign, and will mark the third straight year the company has worked with Tom Selleck, who lends his recognizable voice to the 60 second ad. “Your Home” is in much the same vein as the campaign’s previous work, emphasizing the sentimental attachments people make to the places they live and tying it to the brand with the “Where home begins” tagline. While a continuation of Coldwell Banker’s second annual awards season campaign rollout, this particular spot was also strategically timed for this year’s Oscars.

“The Oscars are perfectly timed to reach consumers with our message of how home plays a role in the story of our lives while also aligning with the spring homebuying and selling season,” explains Sean Blankenship, senior vice president of marketing for Coldwell Banker. “It’s also fitting that the Oscars will pay homage to the 75^th anniversary of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and Judy Garland’s classic line, ‘There’s no place like home.’”

Selleck, as you may remember, has deeply rooted ties to the company. “When I was four, my father put the Sellecks in the family car and left Detroit for Southern California to pursue a career in real estate. He worked for Coldwell Banker for 38 years, retiring as an Executive Vice President. Over that period, my two brothers and sisters were with Coldwell Banker, as well. I was the one exception. I’m proud to say that I’m now part of the family business, ” said the man once known as Magnum PI.

As part of the campaign leading up to the new spot, voters on Coldwell Banker’s Blue Matter blog voted Apollo 13 as having the best homecoming scene in movie history, beating out the likes of The Wizard of Oz, The Best Years of Our Lives, and Home Alone, which finished dead last. Keep an eye out for the new “Your Home” spot during the Oscars this Sunday, and stick around for brief credits after the jump. continued…

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Soubriet Byrne & Associates worked with the Swiss Tourism Board to create a series of lighthearted videos called “Swiss Myths,” featuring host and “travel investigator” Michael Delaney.

In the series, Delaney goes about dispelling myths from “The Swiss only eat fondue” to “The Swiss don’t have fun” to the notion that there’s always snow in Switzerland and that you have to speak the language. Throughout the series employs a kind of lighthearted, and somewhat cheesy, humor that wouldn’t be out of place on a Travel Channel series from back before the Travel Channel was all about food.

The highlight of the series is definitely “Fondue or Fondon’t?” (the title of which should give you an idea of what to expect). In the video, Delaney goes to an upscale Swiss restaurant and is astonished to find that they don’t serve fondue. Disappointed, Delaney still finds use for his long fork. The rest of the videos follow the same formula: humorously debunking commonly held misconceptions or generalizations about Switzerland while extolling the country’s appealing tourist aspects. A couple of these, namely “Nice Pass!” and “Speakin’ Swiss,” seem a little out of touch, as I’m not sure many people think it’s hard to get around the country or don’t know that its citizens largely speak English. The video series is the Swiss Tourism site, where visitors can enter to win a “Grand Prize of an eight-day all expense paid trip, from Swiss Int. Air Lines and Globus Journeys, throughout the magnificent country,” as well as navigate through photos and funny quizes. Stick around for “#%&@% Palm Tree!” and credits after the jump. continued…

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Zula Alpha Kilo created a new campaign for Interac, promoting their e-Transfer service with a comical website containing historical parodies of various time periods.

The website has three videos featuring Dr. Trapasso, “Doctor of Money Transferology, a man who has dedicated his life to studying money.” Trapasso takes the viewer on a tour of three historical time periods where his mangled historical accounts demonstrate the “perils of archaic money exchange” in attempts at humor that mostly fall flat. One of these, featured above, features Leonardo da Vinci’s failed attempts at getting reimbursed for a pizza he fronted for Michelangelo. The other two videos are in much the same goofy vein, with accounts of the first Olympic games and the westward expansion of Canada.

“People resist change,” exaplains Shari Walczak, Executive Planning Director at Zulu Alpha Kilo. “We know that consumers are not in love with cheques as a form of payment. However, we are creatures of habit and need to be reminded that there’s a better way to exchange money other than cheques or cash,” said Shari, completely ignoring the existence of debit transactions.

Zulu Alpha Kilo’s campaign also includes “video pre-rolls, standard and rich media banner ads, along with paid and organic social media support to tease audiences with the absurdity of these stories” and will run until the spring. The creative is supported with a national digital media campaign handled by Media Experts, as well as a French adaptation for the Quebec marketplace developed by TANK. Stick around for credits and “Let The Games Begin” after the jump.  continued…

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