Hasta La Creative!

RPA launched a campaign for the new 2016 Honda Pilot with two new broadcast spots which position the vehicle as “Ready for Anything.”

The 30-second “The Incredible Pilot Elite” presents “a demonstration in adaptability” with a mix of practical and CGI effects demonstrating the vehicle’s features. A second, 60-second spot directed by Jason Reitman (Juno, Up in the Air), shows a family on a road trip. One of the children starts singing the opening lines to the classic Weezer song “Buddy Holly” and soon the rest of the family joins in for a full singalong, passing by another family who laughs at them right after they get to the line “I don’t care what they say about us anyway.” It’s an unlikely scenario, to say the least, briefly showing off the vehicles spaciousness while undoubtedly getting the song stuck in viewers heads.

Broadcast spots will be slotted for cable, late night and early morning, and will run on CBS NFL, ESPN NCAA Football and ABC/ESPN NBA in the fall. They will also run on online channels including YouTube and Yahoo and through digital partnerships with Amazon, IMDB, TripAdvisor, Pinterest and Xbox. The campaign also includes a print component, which will run in publications including MotorTrend, Road & Track and Autoweek.

Last week, an agency called Must Be Something promoted Nike with what it called The Fastest Ad Ever, a rapid-fire hodgepodge of athletes being athletic.

W+K Amsterdam has been working on a very different sort of campaign for the same client’s Russian wing. This one follows on the female-focused “Better For It” series with the help of several top Russian athletes brought to life in a series of films and murals across Moscow. The campaign aims to focus on talented people both famous and nameless in order to “inspire women to be more active” by “highlight[ing] a woman’s inner thoughts” as she takes on various physical challenges.

The digital films–shot by sport/fashion photographer Carlos Serrao–have been live for a couple of weeks, accumulating the attendant number of YouTube views.

This one stars a particularly intense yoga master/tattoo enthusiast whose name we can’t read:

A more recent entry featuring top ballet dancer Diana Vishneva invites some interesting comparisons to the Cannes-winning Under Armour spot from Droga5:

Several others may be found on the Nike Women’s YouTube page.

This campaign went well beyond video, though. From the release:

“The #betterforit movement culminated in Moscow when Nike took over Gorky park for a 10 day immersive sport experience. More than 25,000 girls came together over the course of the 10 days to participate in activities ranging from yoga to dance.”

That must have been quite an event. While we don’t have footage, W+K and Nike did enlist some artists to immortalize five Russian women in murals on buildings around Moscow. The client shared animated GIFs cut from the videos that served as source material for these murals. After shooting time-lapse clips of the buildings, the team superimposed videos of the athletes over them in order to create the loops, which were conveniently geo-located so curious followers could find the original works in the city. Here are three of the resulting GIFs.

First, “Jumper”:

Moscow mural “Jumper” via @nikewomen and @WKAmsterdam pic.twitter.com/jgEBeev57V

— Patrick Coffee (@PatrickCoffee) July 6, 2015

“Skater” with an image of the static mural for reference:

.@nikewomen, @WKAmsterdam Moscow GIF “Skater” pic.twitter.com/tel1hRvexW — Patrick Coffee (@PatrickCoffee) July 6, 2015

Finally, “Sprinter” competes with Moscow traffic:

“Sprinter” via @nikewomen @WKAmsterdam pic.twitter.com/LN2prWUg9r

— Patrick Coffee (@PatrickCoffee) July 6, 2015

W+K Amsterdam Creative Director David Smith explains the agency’s goals for the campaign:

“We wanted to give this work a sense of legacy. So many ads today are about a one second moment, and we wanted more, we wanted pieces that would be remembered for a long time.

The scale and beauty of the photography really gives these girls the heroic stature they deserved.”

Credits interestingly include production/activation work from BBDO’s Moscow unit.

NIKE RUSSIA WOMEN – ‘BETTER FOR IT’

WIEDEN+KENNEDY AMSTERDAM
Executive Creative Director: Mark Bernath, Eric Quennoy
Creative Director: David Smith, Alvaro Sotomayor, Craig Williams
Art Director: Ignasi Tudela
Copywriter: Zoe Hawkins
Head of Content: Joe Togneri
Planner: Danny Feeney, Michelle Arrazcaeta
Communications Planner: Josh Chang
Group Account Director: Kirk Johnsen
Account Director: Kathryn Addo
Senior Account Manager: Jorge Fesser
Broadcast production / Head of Art Buying: Maud Klarenbeek
Art buying / broadcast production: Javier Perroud
Head of Studio: Jackie Barbour
Retoucher: Dario Fusnecher
Project Manager: Janna Harrington
Business Affairs: Michael Graves

FILM / PRINT PRODUCTION
PRODUCTION COMPANY: TERRIE TANAKA MANAGEMENT
Director/Photographer: Carlos Serrao
Director of Photography: Monica May
Producer: Amy Lynne
Executive Producer: Terrie Tanaka
EDITING COMPANY: WHITEHOUSE POST
Editor: Sam Gunn

AUDIO POST: WAVE AMSTERDAM
Sound Designer/Mixer: Alex Nicholls-Lee

MUSIC: GLINTSHAKE / MASSIVEMUSIC
Katya Izotova: Glintshake
Olga Markes: Glintshake
Adelina Sotnikova: MassiveMusic
Diana Vishneva: MassiveMusic
Darya Klishina: MassiveMusic

POST PRODUCTION: GLASSWORKS
Flame: Morten Vinther
Telecine: Scott Harris
Producer: Jane Bakx

MEDIA BUY: MINDSHARE RUSSIA

DIGITAL PRODUCTION + SOCIAL ACTIVATION: INSTINCT BBDO MOSCOW

Following a seemingly endless stream of ads following the supermodel in skimpy outfit formula, including its recent “The Most American Thing Ever,” 72andSunny changes things up with two new ads for Carl’s Jr promoting the chain’s Ding Dong Ice Cream Sandwich (made with the Hostess treat) and Grilled Pork Chop Biscuit.

“Steam” (featured above) shows the makings of the chain’s new breakfast sandwich. Filmed in an actual Carl’s Jr. location, with a biscuit-making employee the spot shows the doughy origins and steamy, crunchy finished product. Directed by Claire Thomas, the spot provides close-ups of the biscuit over a voiceover waxing poetic over “the steam that rises from in between the flakes and folds of a biscuit that was just born from the oven.” The other spot, “Eclipse” is set to Richard Strauss‘ “Also Sprach Zarathustra” (which most viewers will recognize from 2001: A Space Odyssey)  and shows a ding dong eclipsing a scoop of ice cream Beyond showcasing the product food porn style, it also delivers the implication that the new creation eclipses other cold summer desserts.

While it would be jumping the gun to assume Carl’s Jr. has abandoned the tired supermodel approach (but we can hope, right?), it’s nice to see 72andSunny offer up a reprieve from the typical sexual objectification. Notably, the ads promote products other than the chain’s burgers, so it’s likely we’ll see more of the same when the chain returns to its more familiar offerings. For now though, the simplistic product-centric approach of “Steam” and “Eclipse” is definitely an improvement.

Credits:

BRAND: CKE
Project: Ding Dong Ice Cream Sandwich

Chief Executive Officer: Andy Puzder
Chief Marketing Officer: Brad Haley
SVP, Product Marketing: Bruce Frazer
Director of Advertising: Brandon LaChance
VP, Field Marketing, Media & Merchandising: Steve Lemley
Director, Product Marketing & Merchandising: Christie Cooney
Product Marketing Manager: Samantha Deese
Director of Public Relations: Kathleen Bush

72andSunny Team
Chief Creative Officer: Glenn Cole
Group Creative Director: Justin Hooper
Group Creative Director: Mick DiMaria
Creative Director/Designer: Tim Wettstein
Creative Director/Writer: Mark Maziarz
Designer: Ryan Davis
Jr. Writer: Reilly Baker
Group Strategy Director: Matt Johnson
Strategy Director: Kasia Molenda
Strategist: Eddie Moraga
Group Brand Director: Alexis Coller
Sr. Brand Manager: Scott Vogelsong
Brand Coordinator: Anthony Fernandez
Director of Film Production: Sam Baerwald
Executive Film Producer: Molly McFarland
Film Producer: Brooke Home
Film Production Coordinator: Taylor Stockwell
Business Affairs Director: Amy Jacobsen
Business Affairs Manager: Maggie Pijanows
Business Affairs Coordinator: Calli Howard

Production Company: Christina Productions
Director: Justin Hooper
Executive Producer: Christina Ritzmann

Editorial: 72andSunny Studio
Editor: Nick Gartner
Producer: Becca Purice

VFX: Brickyard VFX
VFX Supervisor: George Fitz
Producer: Diana Young

Telecine: Brickyard VFX
Colorist: George Fitz
Producer: Diana Young

Audio: On Music & Sound
Composer: Chris Winston

Sound Design: On Music & Sound
Composer: Christ Winston

MUSIC
“Also Sprach Zarathustra”
Written by Richard Strauss
Performed by Badische Staatskapelle Orchestra
Published by C.F. Peters Corporation
Used courtesy of Antes Edition

BRAND: Carl’s Jr. / Hardee’s
Project: “Steam”, Grilled Pork Chop Biscuit

Client: CKE- Carl Karcher Enterprises
Chief Executive Officer: Andy Puzder
Chief Marketing Officer: Brad Haley
SVP, Product Marketing: Bruce Frazer
Director of Advertising: Brandon LaChance
VP, Field Marketing, Media & Merchandising: Steve Lemley
Director, Product Marketing & Merchandising: Christie Cooney
Product Marketing Manager: Allison Pocino
Director of Public Relations: Kathleen Bush

72andSunny Team
Chief Creative Officer: Glenn Cole
Group Creative Director: Justin Hooper
Group Creative Director: Mick DiMaria
Designer: Sarah Herron
Writer: Rebecca Ullman
Group Strategy Director: Matt Johnson
Strategist: Eddie Moraga
Group Brand Director: Alexis Coller
Sr. Brand Manager: Michal David
Brand Manager: Ali Arnold
Director of Film Production: Sam Baerwald
Executive Film Producer: Molly McFarland
Film Producer: Brooke Home
Junior Producer: Kira Linton
Film Production Coordinator: Taylor Stockwell
Director of Business Affairs: Michelle McKinney
Business Affairs Manager: Maggie Pijanows
Business Affairs Coordinator: Calli Howard
Director of Communications: Jeff Sweat
Communications Manager: Ginny Adams

Production Company: Splendid & Co.
Director: Claire Thomas
Executive Producer: Taylor Ferguson
Executive Producer: Erin Tauscher
Producer: Ursula Baird

Editorial: Union Editorial
Editor: Rachael Waxler
Producer: Joe Ross
Assistant Editor: Ryan Khoury

VFX: Brickyard
VFX Supervisor: George Fitz
Producer: Diana Young

Telecine: BeachHouse
Colorist: Mike Pethel
Producer: Denise Brown

Audio: On Music & Sound
Composer: Chris Winston
Sound Design/Mix: On Music & Sound
Composer: Christ Winston

Doner launched a new campaign for Neato, taking a humorous approach with a series of five 30-second spots for the robotics company (and Roomba competitor).

In “Card,” featured above, an elderly woman is happy to receive a card from her grandson Kyle. That is, until she opens the envelope and glitter spills out everywhere. The spot ends with the grandmother about to let out a loud expletive and Neato taking care of the mess. Each of the spots ends with the message “Meet Neato, the smartest, most powerful robot vacuum” and the tagline “Neato Knows,” which is followed by spot-specific messages, in this case “glitter ruins everything.” Other spots explore a house sitter who brings along all of her cats, a late night junk food binge, a pinata filled with seaweed snacks and unforeseen consequences of a one night stand. It makes sense for Doner to employ humor for Neato, since they’re taking on a well-known brand in Roomba, and even if the spots don’t always hit the funny bone, they manage to be fairly memorable and leave plenty of room for further expansion of the idea.

Credits:

Advertising Agency: Doner, Los Angeles, USA
Executive Creative Directors: Jason Gaboriau, Chris De Abreu
Associate Creative Directors: Jason Tisser, Regan Kline
Art Director: Lauren Culbertson
Managing Director: Zihla Salinas
SVP Account Services: Maria Carr
SVP Strategy: Marlene Calderon
Producer: Robert Samuel
Brand Leader: Jason Villar
Production Company: GO
Director: Brigg Bloomquist
Managing Director: Gary Rose
Executive Producers: Adam Bloom, Catherine Finkenstaedt
Managing Partner/Producer: Aesli Grandi
Line Producer: Greg Jonesy
Production Supervisor: Carol Fahey
DP: Pablo Berron
Editorial: Cut & Run
Editor: Frank Effron
Executive Producer: Carr Schilling
Producer: Ali Reed

72andSunny launched two new spots in its “Progress Report” campaign for anti-tobacco group truth today, examining recent developments in changing attitudes towards smoking.

One spot (featured above) calls out Camel for not allowing employees to smoke at their desks. It mendaciously conflates allowing smoking indoors to “It’s okay for their customers to smoke…but not their employees?” accompanied by an annoying “mind blown” GIF, employing the kinds of manipulative tactics truth once called out the tobacco industry for. Another spot applauds Syracuse University’s recent decision to become a tobacco free campus, emphasizing that less money on cigarettes means more money for “school supplies.” The spot ends by inviting viewers to sign a petition to ban smoking on their own campuses. Both spots are clearly aimed at a young audience, inspired by Internet culture and targeting short attention spans. That makes sense, since this is the demographic most prone to take up smoking, but it doesn’t make it any easier to watch for the rest of us. And with tobacco companies still wreaking havoc elsewhere in the world, you have to wonder if truth’s efforts would be better spent on targeting these shady practices, rather than focusing on the dwindling appeal of smoking domestically.

Credits:

CLIENT: Legacy
CMO : Eric Asche
VP, Marketing: Nicole Dorrler
Marketing Director: Mary Dominguez
Marketing Brand Manager: Jasmin Malone

AGENCY: 72andSunny

CREATIVE
CCO, Partner: Glenn Cole
GCD: Mick DiMaria
GCD: Justin Hooper
Lead Writer: Beau Unruh
Lead Designer: Allbriton Robbins
Writer: Rebeccca Ullman
Designer: Sarah Herron
Designer: Brianna Lohr

BRAND
Group Brand Director: Judson Whigham
Brand Director: Kristine Soto
Brand Director: Max Kislevitz
Brand Manager: Everette Cooke
Brand Coordinator: Chelsea Gilroy

PRODUCTION
Director of Film Production: Sam Baerwald
Film Producer: Thomas Martin
Film Producer: Esther Perls

BA
Director of Business Affairs: Michelle McKinney
Business Affairs Director: Amy Jacobsen
Business Affairs Manager: Amy Shah

STRATEGY
Group Strategy Director: Matt Johnson
Strategy Director: Kasia Molenda
Strategist: Alexandra Mathieu

PRODUCTION
72Studio
Director: Roberto Serrini
Producer: Jonny Edwards
Production Manager: Michael Bergin

POST-PRODUCTION
72Studio
Editor: Jason Lewis
Executive Producer: Jenn Locke
Post Production Producer: Benjamin Bragg

MUSIC
Syracuse: Dawin: Just Girly Things
RJ: The Grouch & Eligh “Say Eligh! Say Grouch!”
Music Supervisor: Marisa Wasser

A year after introducing a bespectacled, bearded financial seer of sorts who warns customers about overdraft fees and more for KeyBank, Mithun revisits the character with a new campaign that deals primarily with the same subject matter.

The Minneapolis agency has unveiled two new spots for its Cleveland-based client that feature our hero providing on-the-spot financial interventions for two new consumers, once again helping out folks who are on the verge of making a critical error at checkout–something the parties involved dub “oops moments.”

Here’s the first:

Regarding the campaign–which ultimately promotes KeyBank’s premium banking offers and hassle-free account services–the brand’s marketing director Tom Wennerberg says in a statement:

“Avoiding fees is an important consideration when choosing a new banking relationship and the Hassle-Free account gives our clients the ability to make more confident decisions with their money. Mithun’s creative connects real life events to something consumers are looking for — clear and simple banking with no surprises.”

Along with the ads above, Mithun’s media unit Compass Point Media has handled placements in KeyBank core markets with an emphasis on television, radio, print and digital.

Portland, Oregon full service agency Must Be Something launched a celebrity-filled 60-second spot for Nike touting the brand’s Air Zoom Elite 8, entitled “Find Your Fast.”

In a marriage of form and function, the ad, directed by Chappelle Show co-creator Neal Brennan, flies by at a frenetic pace, cutting from one celebrity athlete to the next in its promotion of the fast running shoe. Among the thirteen athletes in the ad are Kobe Bryant, Serena Williams, Wayne Rooney, Rafael Nadal, Richard Sherman, Odell Beckam Jr. and Allyson Felix. In other words, the spot features as many celebrity athletes as it can muster, as quickly as it can. If that’s still not fast enough for you, the ad sandwiches “The World’s Fastest Ad” (with David Blaine and Kobe Bryant) in the middle of the action, complete with a cameo by the epitome of quickness: Roadrunner. As part of the campaign, Nike is calling on viewers to log their fastest-ever mile via the Nike+ community by August 30th.

As it turns out, not everyone is a fan of having a giant penis sneak up on them and splooge golden confetti everywhere.

When sex education charity RFSU tasked enthusiastically-named Norwegian agency Involve! with promoting condom use in the face of rising chlamydia rates in Norway, the agency thought big…big penis. They created a giant penis suit and hired 19-year-old student Philip van Eck to wear it, since he was tall enough to fit in the costume. He then sneaked up on unsuspecting passers-by and sprayed confetti from an opening in the top of the costume. The stunt was meant to illustrate the campaign message (and tagline), “Penis can surprise you” (“Tiss kan overraske,” in Norwegian). While younger audiences (probably the more important demographic here) generally found the stunt hilarious, not everyone was amused. Adweek claims that many in the over-30 crowd didn’t care for the stunt and called it “pointless and banal” (although perhaps “masturbatory” would have been a more appropriate criticism).

“If I can do a good thing for others, just by being a dick, there is nothing better,” van Eck told the publication. “The filming was not unproblematic, as passers-by wanted selfies with the giant penis. Suddenly, lots of people wanted to touch the penis and take pictures with the penis. I almost felt harassed.”

Apparently being a giant dick isn’t always easy, as our commenters can surely attest.

Anomaly gets in on the “sadvertising” trend with a new spot for Duracell, entitled “The Teddy Bear.”

The 90-second spot, based on a true story, shows how a teddy bear helped keep a military officer and his daughter close while he was away. At the beginning of the ad, he ships her a bear that plays a recording of him saying “I love you, baby girl” when squeezed. Throughout the rest of the ad, the girl squeezes the bear for comfort while playing outside, before bed, and even takes the bear to school. Even when she gets frustrated while talking to her father online, she still takes the bear to bed with her. “The Teddy Bear” ends with a familiar twist, by now employed in several similarly-minded ads. Still, the message is tied to Duracell’s promise of long battery life and the brand skirts accusations of emotional manipulation by promising to donate to the USO Comfort Crew for Kids, and asking viewers to do the same.

Duracell brand manager Ramon Velutini told Mashable the brand chanced upon the story while visiting a California home for market research. “We were basically in the house of this family and we asked the daughter to show off her favorite toy,” Velutini told the publication. “We were expecting regular toys — remote control cars and all this — and they came running with this battery-powered bear.”

Arnold launched a new campaign for New Balance, positioning the brand as more than just footwear as it expands into different realms of athletic apparel.

A new 60-second online spot entitled “The Storm” opens on a woman running on rough, rocky terrain. She stops to catch her breath and notices a storm approaching on the horizon. Soon, the storm overtakes her, as athletes come running out of the dark clouds. Among the athletes are 17 New Balance sponsored pros, including Miguel Cabrera, Robinson Cano, Jenny Simpson, Milos Raonic, Aaron Ramsey and Emma Coburn. As the storm passes the voiceover chimes in with the line, “There are those who stop and those who push on. So go, be something more,” and the woman continues on her run. It’s a bit of a goofy premise, to put it mildly, and the nonsensical “Always in Beta” tagline doesn’t exactly help. What the spot does have, obviously, is plenty of star power, which is something of a change in approach for the brand. That makes sense given their desire to foster a new, broader image as a company. “The Storm” made its debut online yesterday, and will be supported by social media and print components.

“As a brand we are always pushing and always innovating,” Hilary Keates, director of global marketing and brand management at New Balance, told Adweek. “We represent that through [our work with] some amazing athletes and we want to help consumers push and meet their goals.”

“New Balance wanted to do a reset on where they stand as a brand,” added Pete Johnson, executive creative director, managing partner at Arnold’s Boston office. “They’ve always been a brand that shunned partnerships and endorsements, but now that they are growing at the rate at which they are growing they’ve looked [at how to] be a real player in the space and the category.”

Credits:

Executive Creative Directors/Managing Partners: Pete Johnson, Wade Devers
SVP Creative Director/Copywriter: Greg Almeida
SVP Creative Director/Art Director: Travis Robertson
Executive Producer: William Near
Assistant Producer: Patrick Carney

Marketing and Strategy:
Managing Director: Paul Nelson
SVP Account Director: Todd Sperry
Sr. Marketing Manager: Will Gurney
EVP Head of Planning: Milla Stolte
SVP Brand Planning Director: Andrew Butler
Brand Planner: Mike Patrick

New Balance:
Hilary Keates, Director of Global Marketing and Brand Strategy
Chris Ladd, EVP, Director of Consumer Engagement and Demand Creation

TV Production:
Production Company: RESET
Production Company Executive Producer: Dave Morrison, Jeff McDougall
Production Supervisor: Moira Hurley
Producer: Annabel Ridley
Director:  Johnny Hardstaff

Editorial:
Editorial Company: Cosmo Street
Post Production Producer: Anne Lai
Editor: Paul Hardcastle
Versioning Editor: Mark Potter

VFX:
VFX Company: MPC NY
Managing Director: Justin Brukman
Executive Producer: Camila De Biaggi
Senior Producer: Armand Weeresinghe
VFX Supervisor 2D: Rob Walker
VFX Supervisor 3D: Vicky Osborn
Grade: MPC
Colorist: George K

Music:
Sound Mixing: Rex Recker (Audio Engine)
Music Company: Pivot Audio
Music Composer(s): Guy Amitai, Jan Kos