Hasta La Creative!

This one’s been making the rounds for awhile now, but we thought we’d give some love anyway. McgarryBowen New York’s new spot for Verizion, “A Lot Can Happen in 48 Hours” features the talents of Ed Norton. It originally aired on December 5th, although it was posted to YouTube about a week before that.

In the spot, directed by Matthijs van Heijningen, Norton is thrown into a variety of dicey situations, with his Droid helping him get through most of them relatively unscathed. “A Lot Can Happen in 48 Hours” opens with Norton waking up to find himself in a strange room, with his Droid still at 3% power. “It’s been an interesting 48 hours,” Norton says, followed by a flashback. We then follow Norton through his series of misadventures, which begins with him finding a lost wallet and using Droid to find the location. This leads Norton to a karaoke bar, where he ogles a taken woman while singing “If I Could Turn Back Time” (the funniest part of the spot).

From here, Norton’s misadventures include attempting to land a plane, being held captive, having a key found in his stomach, playing a high-stakes game of Connect Four, and being held captive once again. Its everything-goes-wrong brand of humor borrows a little bit from The Hangover series, and although the spot seems to employ the kind of random connections Grey NY used in their 2012 DirectTV campaign, the superior execution helps keep it from feeling too easy or derivative. The spot uses a clever setup to promote the Droid’s impressive battery life, and then finds ways to showcase the phone’s other features in the process. This is certainly a far cry better than McgarryBowen Chicago’s disastrous “Denskies” campaign for Sears. Bonus points for the excellent use of a Lykke Li song. Credits after the jump. continued…

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W+K Portland tapped some of the world’s greatest athletes for their new holiday spot touting the advantages of Nike Hyperwarm Performance Baselayer, directed by Rupert Sanders. ”Winning in a Winter Wonderland” features the talents of Giants defensive end Justin Tuck, skier Julia Mancuso, snowboarder Scotty Lago, soccer stars Alex Morgan and Sydney Leroux, and former Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano, who now appears to be headed to Seattle. Ohio State football coach Urban Meyer also makes a brief cameo appearance.

While undeniably cheesy (hey, it’s the holidays) the spot does an admirable job at promoting the Nike Hyperwarm Performance Baselayer. People are prone to listen to endorsements from star athletes, and W+K got a wide, varied group together for the spot. They emphasize that the Nike Hyperwarm Performance Baselayer makes playing in cold, harsh conditions seem almost enjoyable by keeping you warm without restricting movement, perfectly matching the song selection. “Winning in a Winter Wonderland,” of course, changes the words of the holiday classic, which gets a bit cringe-worthy in spots but mostly comes across as cheesy holiday fun. The words are sung by the star athletes in the spot, mostly while in action, and they seem to have a lot of fun with it — which makes it hard to hate.

The campaign features both a one minute and thirty second version of the spot, as well as a digital takeover and social media elements.”Winning in a Winter Wonderland” premiered during college football’s Big Ten NCAA Championship game and will run throughout the holiday season. Credits after the jump.  continued…

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Today, Southeastern Conference commissioner Mike Slive and ESPN senior vice president Justin Connolly debuted a new brand campaign celebrating the planned launch of the SEC Network. Both national television spots and previews of print ads “were revealed as part of a series of SEC Network programming announcements made at a press conference prior to the SEC football championship game at the Georgia Dome, in Atlanta.” The new campaign, developed along with North Carolina agency McKinney, is called ”Take It All In,” which may or may not be a reference to butt chugging.

The campaign includes “a series of print, TV and online ads that not only focus on the overarching SEC Network, but also on each of the 14 schools of the SEC.” The full “Take It All In” campaign will roll out next year, leading into the launch of the network in August.

The debut TV spot, called ““Not Just a Casual Fan” (which, come to think of it, would have made a better campaign title), can be viewed above. It, in Justin Connolly‘s words, ”bring fans the grandeur of the SEC in a celebratory, immersive and real way.” As the title of the spot suggests, it features die-hard fans both old and young, many of them ridiculously dressed. This is a solid tactic, since these are the kind of rabid SEC fans who might shell out for the new network. It’s just too bad they didn’t think of all the implications to their tagline/campaign title. Or maybe they did. Credits after the jump. continued…

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LA-based agency David&Goliath has crafted a new campaign promoting VIZIO’s M-Series Smart TV and VIZIO Sound Bar, complete with the new tagline, “Beautifully Simple.”

The TV campaign contains three new spots: “So Easy,” “My Station” and “Tiny Dancer.” Each of these was directed by Michael Downing, with cinematography by Masanobu Takayanagi (who has worked on Silver Linings Playbook and Babel). Together, the spots form a kind of narrative, beginning with “So Easy” (featured above). This spot, and the campaign as a whole, play on the fact that children often understand new technology better than their parents. In “So Easy” a young girl helps her dad through problems with his laptop and smartphone. The father then jumps at the opportunity to help his daughter pick a program on VIZIO’s M-Series Smart TV. A cute idea, that is unfortunately followed by the theme-line ”So easy, even an adult can figure it out.” This wouldn’t be a problem, if it wasn’t for the fact that Geico ruined the lines “So easy, even a…” for everyone, forever.

The next spot, “My Station,” is probably my favorite of the bunch, featuring the dad discovering his daughter’s Pandora station. “Tiny Dancer” concludes the series by upping the cute factor, as well as the father’s competence with the M-Series Smart TV. David&Goliath’s approach of creating a series of ads meant to be viewed in a certain order is interesting, and they pull it off by making each of them able to stand alone as well. I just wish they’d get rid of that theme-line.

Clearly targeted at dads, the campaign will run through the college football season on ESPN’s networks and Hulu into early 2014. Stay tuned for the final two spots, as well as credits, after the jump.  continued…

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BBDO NY’s new holiday campaign for Champs Sports helps kids hack their wish lists into their parents’ browsers, through fake viral videos and a browser extension that turns all banner ads into ads for their wish list. The campaign is a mix of sneaky and clever, and kids whose wish lists are full of Champs merchandise should be happy about this one.

The 56 second video promoting the campaign (see above) features Jon Gruden, who introduces himself as a “football coach, TV personality, and overall tough guy.” Gruden always gets what he wants for Christmas, because all he really wants are pork rinds. He appeals to kids to make sure their parents see their wish list via “Hard Hinting,” so they don’t end up getting a clarinet, instead of the Jordan Retro 1 they asked for. (Hey, what’s wrong with the clarinet?) Gruden then goes on to describe Champs Sports’ two methods of Hard Hinting: viral video hacks and banner ad takeovers.

Although Champs Sports does have products for girls, this ad is clearly aimed squarely at the young male, sports fan market (the only audience that doesn’t find Jon Gruden overwhelmingly obnoxious). You have to wonder a little bit about targeting such a specific demographic, but then I suppose that audience accounts for a lot of Champs’ business this time of year. It just might have made sense to do so in a way that wasn’t so alienating to everybody else. While the hacking your wishlist to get your parents attention schtick is pretty clever (and I’m sure kids will appreciate it), I imagine a few parents will feel it crosses the line. And they’re the ones ultimately doing the shopping, right?

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How do you take attention away from the fact that you were recently declared the worst cellular network in a consumer report? If you’re Sprint, apparently you get agency DigitasLBi to work with you to create a gesture-based, interactive retail experience. Because that’s the future: being able to shop online without having to use a pesky mouse and keyboard. But where to unveil such a creation? What is an event where people would see the Sprint name and not know any better?

Sprint will unveil the new “Shop. Hands Free. In 3D.” experience during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion’s Week in Las Vegas, tomorrow, Dec. 6. This follows on the success of the pilot unveiling, during NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race weekends at the Chicagoland in Septmber, and Kansas Speedways in October. NASCAR fans seemed pleased with the Sprint’s new magical technology, as evidenced in the above video.

So how does it work? Well, according to the announce, “…users move their hands through the air above a Leap Motion controller, which displays their actions onto a large screen ahead.” But wait, that’s not all. There’s a podium. A branded podium. To appeal to Nascar fans, DigitasLBi created “an eye-catching branded podium to house the technology.” Those who tried out the shopping experience then “supply their email addresses to receive their picture from the virtual photo booth as well as a link to the items they browsed.” Combining technology used in next-gen gaming with a theme park-esque photo service, that’s their strategy, because Sprint is “more than just a wireless company,” according to Sprint Program Manager Lane Allison.

Perhaps I’m being a bit hard on Sprint. After all “Shop. Hands Free. In 3D.” is sort of an intriguing prospect, if only for the novelty value. It’s just that this does absolutely nothing to repair Sprint’s damaged reputation. Since most people now view Sprint as something of  a joke, maybe that’s what they should be working on. Or maybe Sprint is just for NASCAR fans now.

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I’m not sure we’ve ever featured a Namibian ad here on Agency Spy, so here’s one. This spot by Advantage Y&R for MTC is just brimming with friendliness. The agency imagines the interaction fueled by the cell network as spreading hugs across the country. It’s a cute idea, and the production — by Fly On The Wall — rises to the occasion. The music they chose fits perfectly, too. The 90 second ad begins with a young man at a bus stop getting a text, then turning and hugging the old woman next to him. Soon everyone is hugging, from a guy in a chicken suit hugging a security officer to two boxers hugging in the ring. The spot ends with the young man from the opening scene sharing a hug with his girlfriend, who has just arrived on a bus, adding some nice closure to the scenario.

With the dwindling energy that comes with the shortening days, and the leftovers in the fridge starting to run out, this just might be the kind of happiness spreading video you need to get you through the middle of the week. It’s pretty hard not to smile watching this one, and on the Wednesday after Thanksgiving that is much appreciated. Credits after the jump. continued…

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Last year, Lionel Messi and Kobe Bryant faced off in an ad for Turkish Airlines, competing for a young fan’s attention. The ad, “Legends on Board,” became a gigantic viral success, now with over 105 million views on YouTube.

For better or for worse (definitely for worse), 2013 might as well be the “Year of the Selfie.” The ubiquitous word found its way into the vocabulary of everyone from grade schoolers to their grandparents and was even named Oxford English Dictionary’s Word of the Year. If you’re sick of hearing people jump at every opportunity to use this word, we’re with you. At any rate, it’s undeniable that the selfie has won itself a lasting position in our culture.

In an attempt to recapture the success of last year’s “Legends on Board” spot, CP+B has brought back the Bryant Vs. Messi formula, this time positioning the two in a “Selfie Shootout” in which each attempts to one-up the other with self-shot photos in exotic locations. The spot is the first ad CP+B put together for Turkish Airlines since winning ad duties for the airline back in September, and it’s a fine first effort. Without giving too much away I can say that Bryant and Messi both jump through hoops to one-up each other, and their photos get more and more exotic and over-the-top as the minute long spot progresses. CP+B manage to work something of a surprise ending into “The Selfie Shootout,” incorporating another Internet photo phenomenon.

Can “The Selfie Shootout” hope to match the success of “Legends on Board”? We would say yes. The entertaining ad incorporates the selfie phenomenon, has a much larger production budget than Alametifarika’s work last year, and is designed to jumpstart conversation. “The Selfie Shootout,” which was uploaded to YouTube yesterday, has already surpassed the 5 million view mark, and is certainly not showing any signs of slowing down. Its combination of star power, humor, and topical references make it just about unstoppable. Make no mistake, people will be talking about this one for some time. Our reservations about the overuse of “selfie” aside, we can’t blame them. “The Selfie Shootout” is just plain fun. Credits after the jump.  continued…

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Deutsch NY and TNT are using Mob City‘s Twitter handle, @MobCityTNT, to debut the screenplay of the series’ premiere, 140 characters at a time. This will make Mob City, “the first television screenplay ever to be adapted for, and published through, Twitter.” They’ve dubbed the process “adaptweetion.”

The first tweets of the Mob City screenplay were made on Monday, with new tweets appearing every 45 minutes between 10 AM and 7 PM (and later tonight). They’ve also taken advantage of Twitter Cards to inject photo and video footage into the stream. Those late to the game can also catch up by visiting the microsite for the script, where it is presented in chronological order. This all leads to the debut of Frank Darabont‘s three week television event this tonight at 9. Deutsch NY and TNT will make their last tweet tonight at 8:30, but they’re not giving everything away. To experience the final scene, you’ll have to turn in to TNT tonight at 9 and catch the episode. The cast and crew of the show — including @frankdarabont, @miloventimiglia, @simonpegg, @edward_burns, @jonnybernthal – also added their commentary to the feed to keep things interesting.

Tweeting (almost) the entire screenplay of a debut episode is a risky move, but it’s a good way to get people talking about the show before it even airs.“Today, fans are tweeting in real time with their favorite shows, and we wanted to stoke preshow chatter by providing fans with an experience that will invite them in before the show even airs,” explains Kerry Keenan, Deutsch NY’s chief creative officer.

Clearly, TNT is betting that the writing will suck you in and make you want to watch Mob City tonight. Leaving out the final scene is an obvious necessity, as some might wonder why they’d tune in to see a premiere when they know how it ends. I’m curious to see how this plays out, and what kind of effect this social campaign has on Mob City‘s ratings tonight, if any. Head on over to mobscript.com and @MobCityTNT, and let us know your thoughts on this campaign in the comments section. And tune in to TNT tonight at 9 for the show, if you’re interested. Credits after the jump. continued…

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For the new campaign for Stoli Vodka, Toronto shop Jacknife asked directors to tell an origin story of their choice. Stoli’s tagline is “The Original Vodka for Original People,” whatever the hell that means, but the origin-story theme can make for some interesting recreations. Director Sean Wainsteim decided to focus his efforts on the origin of The French Exit, when people leave a party without saying goodbye. We’ve all been there. A clingy come-on at a bar, friends of friends who you don’t really know that well, the weird Uncle. For the anti-social, goodbyes are unnecessary social conventions usually meant for people you don’t care about.

You’ve probably never heard of Bentley Theodore French, but he invented The French Exit while at a stuffy, waspy party that may be set in the 1930s, at least according to Stoli’s two-minute narrative ad. Bentley even passes up the chance to dance with two ladies at the same time on his way out the door. I’m not sure why he’s at this party if he dislikes everyone in attendance, but he is a social innovator who will never be forgotten. I still use his work to this day. Credits after the jump.

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