Hasta La Creative!

I’m not sure where the “myth” that gum-chewing gives a bad impression comes from, but Beldent and Del Campo Saatchi & Saatchi set out to disprove it in a social experiment called “Almost Identical,” which was conducted October 1st at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Buenos Aires.

The experiment, conducted under the assumption that such a myth exists, employed five pairs of identical twins. Each pair of twins were dressed and presented identically, with the only difference being that one of the twins was chewing gum. Onlookers were then asked a series of questions about their impressions of the twins, ranging from “Which one seems like he has more friends?” to “Which of these bosses would give you a raise?” to “Which one has a better sex life?” The gum-chewing twin received the more positive answer 73% of the time. Beldent would like that to mean that they’ve proven that “chewing gum doesn’t give a bad impression” but, rather, does the opposite. Obviously, that’s extrapolating a bit much from the limited survey, but this is marketing, not social science. I just feel bad for the twins that had to chew gum all day. That must have been hell on their jaws. Credits after the jump. continued…

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Yesterday, Air New Zealand announced its latest campaign entitled “Middle Earth is Closer Than You Think,”  a continuation of its association with The Hobbit Trilogy. The airline, dubbed “the official airline of Middle Earth” rolls out the campaign two weeks ahead of the launch of the second film in Peter Jackson‘s saga. The campaign was announced with a 2:30 video, “Just Another Day in Middle Earth,” featuring Dean O’Gorman, who plays dwarf Fili, and the voice of Sylvester McCoy, The Hobbit Trilogy’s Radagast the Brown.

Tolkien fanatics are well aware of New Zealand’s association with Peter Jackson’s Middle Earth films, but stoking their interest with a Hobbit-themed campaign makes a lot of sense for the airline. Tourism New Zealand survey figures from last year’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey marketing campaign “showed 82 percent of international survey respondents stated the campaign increased their interest in New Zealand” and “8.5 percent of international visitors to New Zealand during January-March this year said The Hobbit Trilogy was a factor in stimulating their interest in New Zealand.” So using Tolkien to sell New Zealand is a proven method, and Air New Zealand doesn’t disappoint with their latest installment.

The “Just Another Day in Middle Earth” video employs a cheeky sense of humor to merge Middle Earth references with Air New Zealand’s friendly approach. Tolkien fan boys will undoubtedly eat this one up, even if there aren’t quite as many cameos as in last year’s “An Unexpected Briefing.” My only complaint would be that in a 2:30 spot, I’d expect to see more shots of New Zealand’s stunning landscapes, but I imagine most people are here for The Hobbit factor and I’m in the minority. It’s a cute little video, and if you’re a Tolkien obsessive, it should make you want to visit New Zealand even more than you (presumably) already do.

Another important component of the campaign is a contest allowing participants to choose from entering for one of two prizes: tickets to the Hollywood premiere of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, or a “once-in-a-life-time Middle-earth experience for two in New Zealand.” Personally, I don’t see why you’d take the Desolation of Smaug premiere over a chance to visit New Zealand, but I’m sure a certain breed of Tolkien/Jackson fanatic would rabidly disagree with me. Air New Zealand is also resurrecting the idea of decking out one of its planes, Hobbit style, from last year’s campaign. This year, they will be turning a Boeing 777-300 into a flying billboard for Jackson’s latest installment. The plane will be unveiled December 2nd, leaving that night in time to touch down for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug premiere in Hollywood. Most Tolkien nerds would kill a bag of puppies for a spot on that plane.

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BBDO’s solid streak for Foot Locker continues with a new spot promoting the chain’s annual “Week of Greatness” event, “the one time each year when the most premium kicks come out.”

Entitled “All Is Right,” this latest effort is part of the agency’s ongoing “Foot Locker Approved” campaign for the brand and features the talents of Kyrie Irving, Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, Dennis Rodman, Brett Favre, Craig Sager, and Craig Sager‘s suits. Directed by Jim Jenkins, “All Is Right” opens with Kyrie Irving stating that with Foot Locker’s “Week of Greatness” it “feels like all is right with the world.” Irving then daydreams about what else would happen if all were suddenly right with the world. This daydream sequence features all the aforementioned stars. We see a lot of ads here at AgencySpy that attempt to be funny. Most of them miss; a few elicit a chuckle or two. Few of them are as genuinely funny as the daydream segment in this spot. I won’t give away too much, but the part featuring Mike Tyson (almost always comedic gold) made me laugh out loud. If the whole spot ended there it would still be classic, but the portions featuring Dennis Rodman and Craig Sager are almost as funny. We hope BBDO continues to make laugh-worthy work for Foot Locker in the future. Credits after the jump. continued…

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You may have read about the controversy surrounding Draftcb Chicago’s new Joe Boxer spot for Kmart, “Show Your Joe.” If you actually watch the spot (featured above) and have any sense, you may wonder what all the fuss is about. Kmart, of course, is no stranger to controversial advertising: a recent Kmart spot featured Satan and Genghis Khan, and their “Ship My Pants” spot is still our favorite of the bunch.

“Show Your Joe” opens with a group of tuxedo-wearing men behind a curtain, ringing bells. After a few seconds the curtain is whisked away to reveal the men clad in only boxer shorts from the waist down, and they begin playing “Jingle Bells” by shaking their hips. Presumably the, uh, bells, are tucked away somewhere in those boxers. The men perform the chorus of the song…and that’s it. To be clear: there’s nothing all that risque about the execution — the camera is panned way out and these dudes are in boxers, okay? No junk visible. Repeat: no junk visible.

The holiday effort is a little juvenile perhaps, but offensive? Hardly. The most offensive thing about it may be that it’s not all that funny. Either the cries to arms are coming from those who feel this ad violates the “sanctity of Christmas” (you can see these people riding around in cars with “Put the Christ back in Christmas” bumper stickers and complaining about government handouts), or they are the typically hypocritical complaints that arise from anything remotely provocative associated with male body parts. Overtly sexualizing women in every single women’s underwear ad ever? That’s okay. Suggesting that a group of guys are playing “Jingle Bells” with parts tucked away in their boxers, away from view? Congratulations, you’ve just awakened the seven horses of the apocalypse.

Kmart has reportedly refused to pull the ad, despite a long list of complaints on their Facebook page (although a quick glance at the page while writing this turned up at least as many comments supporting the ad). Good for them. If anything, the controversy will just call more attention to the spot, Kmart and Joe Boxer. Let us know what you think about the so-called controversy surrounding “Show Your Joe” in the comments section. Credits after the jump. continued…

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Have a tattoo that you regret? Maybe that Alex Rodriguez ink seemed like a good idea at the time. Maybe you thought you’d always love 98 Degrees as much as you did in 1999. But getting a tattoo removed is hard, right?

McCann, Toronto is working on dispelling that conception with their new work for laser removal center Fading Fast. They’ve created an outdoor campaign featuring billboards of tatted-out individuals. The catch? The tattoos can be peeled off to reveal that they are, in fact, coupons for 50% off tattoo laser removal at Fading Fast. McCann’s video for the campaign, featured above, shows people interacting with the posters and gradually removing all the tattoos. Bonus points go to the agency for featuring the music of The Ramones.

The campaign is a clever way of making tattoo removal seem easy, while also giving those who might be interested in removal incentive to go directly to Fading Fast. We suggest Chris Brown avail himself of their services if he’s in Toronto any time soon. Credits after the jump. continued…

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If there’s one thing the Internet loves (aside from cats and pornography), it’s cheesy celebrities from bygone eras. This has accounted for the revival of figures like Rick Astley, who has reemerged in the public consciousness thanks to rickrolling. RPA seeks to cash in on the phenomenon with their “Happy Honda Days” campaign, featuring Michael Bolton, the man once referred to as a “no-talent ass clown” in Office Space who returns to advertising after stints in spots like the one for Optimum earlier this year.

The campaign contains four new spots, all of which feature Bolton singing. Each spot begins by asking “What does it feel like to get a great deal at Happy Honda Days?” before answering with an original holiday song from Michael Bolton. (These would have been much funnier if they had made Bolton sing “When a Man Loves a Honda,” but I digress…) Our favorite is the spot featured above, in which Bolton’s singing is met by blank stares (probably the most honestly depicted reaction of the four spots/how we would react in that situation). As you can surmise, RPA went for the goofy approach with this campaign, in the hopes that people find the spots memorable. It would help if there was a little more variation among the four 30 second ads, as they all feel like basically the same spot. In addition to the TV campaign, there will be a live social media event on November 22nd featuring Bolton delivering personalized messaged under the promoted hashtag #XOXOBolton, as well as print and radio campaigns.

We don’t know about you, but we can’t see or hear anything about Michael Bolton without thinking of this. Credits and second “Happy Honda Days” spot after the jump. continued…

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Ryse: Son of Rome “Path of Vengeance” from H.K. McCANN on Vimeo.

Twofifteenmccann’s new campaign for Xbox One exclusive “Ryse: Son of Rome” is cinematic in approach and scope.

At the heart of the campaign is the 60 second TV spot “Path of Vengeance” (featured above) which sees the game’s protagonist, Marius, “fight his way from the wilds of the Roman frontier in Brittania, across the Coliseum floor and into the Imperial Palace itself.” In one of the spot’s more interesting touches, the action is accompanied by whispers from Roman citizens spreading his legend. Twofifteen wanted to represent how in ancient Rome “deeds of epic heroism were quickly spread by word of mouth, and the story changed based on who was doing the telling,” which they mimicked with the differing accounts of Marius in the spot. It’s a nice, immersive little detail that’s telling of the overall approach to the campaign.

In addition to the TV spot, Twofifteenmccann, in conjunction with production company Smuggler, created a web series featured on Machinima. Entitled “The Fall,” the series features four, five-minute mini-epics detailing Marius’ backstory, history and motives. The agency claims that each installment is a “mini epic film unto itself.” While that may be overstating a point, this is a very large-scale approach to market the game, and “The Fall” is a solid accomplishment in its own right. It also succeeds quite well at making the game look badass, with what appears to be a pretty compelling story. You can check out the first installment of “The Fall” after the break, along with campaign credits.  continued…

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Wow. Google’s advertising has always been solid, irrespective of agency and market. But Ogilvy Mumbai’s new spot “Google Search: Reunion” for Google India has taken it to the next level. I’m a pretty sensitive guy, but this is probably the first spot I’ve ever seen that makes me so emotional that I actually have to hold back tears. It makes Pereira & O’Dell’s recent “Stay Together” spot for Skype seem tame in comparison. Not only is the spot emotionally affecting, it manages to address the India-Pakistan partition, “a moment that has left a deep imprint across many generations on both sides of the border.”

“Google Search: Reunion” begins with a man telling his granddaughter about his long-lost childhood friend Yousaf. The pair would fly kites together every day, and steal candy from the candy shop run by Yousaf’s family. The old man, Baldev, misses his friend, who he was separated from during the partition of India and Pakistan. It would appear hopeless that Baldev and Yousaf would ever see each other again.

But Baldev’s granddaughter, Suman, does the seemingly impossible. She uses Google to track down the sweet shop still run by Yousaf’s family, using clues from her grandfather’s stories of his childhood. Suman then arranges for Yousaf to reunite with her grandfather for his birthday. When the two see each other for the first time since their childhood, it’s so overpoweringly emotional that it’s almost too much to take. This is advertising as storytelling, and it puts to shame so many lesser attempts to do so. It’s sentimental (in a good way) without being melodramatic, and positions Google as the tool that makes the whole incredible episode possible.

According to Google India director of marketing Sandeep Menon, “India has well over 150 million Internet users, and most of them use Google in various formats, be it from desktops, or mobile devices. We wanted to strike up a conversation to showcase the different uses of Google, and at the same time, tell magical stories that show why ours users love the product. One of our core philosophies is that our users are smart and intelligent. Hence, the attempt was to have a conversation and tell users that they can do a lot more, and a lot quicker, by showcasing some of the innovations that allow the product to be used in different ways.”

The 3:32 video is tremendously popular, going viral on YouTube, where it’s already approaching two million views. We really can’t say enough good things about this spot. This is how you win at advertising. (Impending firebombing of comments section with bile hatred and jealousy to commence in an estimated five seconds.) Credits after the jump. continued…

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I grew up reading the classic Choose Your Own Adventure book series, so Ogilvy’s new Choose Your Own Adventure video series “Yourope” for British Airways has brought on a welcome rush of nostalgia.

The initial video positions you at a British Airways terminal with a choice of four destinations which you can choose to visit: Barcelona, Paris, Berlin, and Rome. The “choose your own adventure” aspect doesn’t end with choosing a destination, however. When you choose Barcelona, you’re given a choice between night and day; when you choose Rome you get to choose between “old” and “new”; in Berlin the choice is between “punk” and “posh”; and in Paris it’s “classic” and “curious.” A different video, each directed by Brandon LaGanke, will play based on which side of the destination you choose. Once it’s complete, you can choose to explore the other side of your destination or to travel somewhere new. For example, if you chose night Barcelona you could then check out daytime Barcelona.

It’s a fun idea, and the execution is well done. Not stopping at choosing a destination, but adding different aspects of the same city creates depth and really adds to the illusion that you’re choosing your own destiny. That each side of each city is given not only its own video, but a different feel — complete with a unique music selection — is the icing on the cake. I’m sure we’ll have haters in the comments section decrying this as a lame, digital gimmick, but I found it to be good fun. If this series left you hungry for more Choose Your Own Adventure style shenanigans, check out this kickass Freaks and Geeks interactive game. Credits after the jump. continued…

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Last year, Goodby Silverstein & Partners celebrated the holidays with their “BIG: Color” spot for the NBA, which they sometimes refer to as “Carol of the Balls” (sounds a bit gross to me.) Following on the success of that spot, the agency has put together another NBA Christmas carol for hoops fans, this time taking on the ubiquitous Christmas song known variously as “Jingle Bells” and “One-Horse Open Sleigh.”

The spot, “Jingle Hoops,” (the folks over at Goodby are undoubtedly referring to it as “Jingle Balls”) features five of today’s biggest NBA stars – Derrick Rose, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, James Harden, Steve Nash and LeBron James – wearing Special Edition Christmas Day Uniforms and shooting hoops rigged with jingle bells, to a certain famous Christmas tune. Since the song normally ends with a shout of “Hey,” they had LeBron finish things out with an enthusiastic dunk. It’s a simple idea, well executed (personally I think they did a better job than with “Carol of the Bells” last year), that I imagine most NBA fans can appreciate.

Personally, I think it’s a bit early for Christmas/holiday stuff (Can we please wait until Thanksgiving?), but that’s a losing argument since the entire world has decided that November 1st (and sometimes earlier) is the proper time to start the winter holiday onslaught. Given that, the song choice is kind of appropriate, since “One-Horse Open Sleigh” was originally composed for Thanksgiving.

The Special Edition Christmas Day Uniforms are part of the Adidas Winter Court collection and will be worn by NBA players exclusively during Christmas Day games. Interested parties can purchase the uniforms online at the NBA store. Credits after the jump. continued…

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