Hasta La Creative!

RPA has two new spots for Honda that highlight the features and competitive advantages of Honda’s two core vehicles — the Accord and the Civic — continuing the “Start Something Special” tagline introduced last September.

While the copy is a relatively straightforward rundown of features and what sets Honda apart from the competition, the footage was a bit more complicated to capture. The spots use “a complex camera technique called parallax, whereby the camera and scenery are moved in such a way that the car appears to be moving when in actuality it’s standing still.” The Accord spot, for example, was filmed in one single shot, with the last take being the one used in the ad. All effects were done in camera, with elaborate lighting and choreography used to simulate different locations within the spot. RPA collaborated with production company Reset to create the desired effect. Stick around for credits and “Lydia’s Civic” after the jump. continued…

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This one’s been making the rounds for awhile, but we figured we’d add our two cents since it involves the ruining of a classic Beach Boys track. BBDO New York employs the Beach Boy’s “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” for their latest AT&T campaign. In the debut spot, “Sing Anthem” people in everyday situations randomly start singing the song as if they’re on Glee or something.

To be fair, BBDO does a passable job of connecting the song to AT&T’s message of helping “people and things speak the same language” and a good job of illustrating the point visually. But people of various walks of life (including an operatic news reporter) randomly bursting into song is a lot to swallow, and that the song is a personal favorite makes it even harder to take. The spot, which BBDO collaborated with Biscuit Filmoworks and editorial company Rock Paper Scissors to make, is part of a broader campaign that employs “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” as a theme song in each of its commericals. Thankfully, “Sing Anthem” is the only one of these to turn everyday life into a cheesy impromptu musical. Stick around for credits and “Sing Network” after the jump. continued…

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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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At this point, Nike and AOR W+K are just showing off. Their latest spot, “Possibilities,” is a fat, splashy kick-off to the 25th anniversary of its ubiquitous slogan, “Just Do It.” These type of Nike ads have always had a mythical quality, compared to other sports brands – like certain BBDO Foot Locker commercials – that are solid and funny. Nike is serious. W+K Portland is serious. Nike, Inc. is set to earn $25 billion in revenue this year, meaning we must be serious, too, when it comes to our purchases.

Being serious does not preclude Nike from a certain playfulness if you look hard enough. For “Possibilities,” the lightness comes from some Bradley Cooper voiceover that makes the viewer want to just do it, even though said viewer knows he/she can’t do it as well as professional athletes. That’s where stars like footballer Gerard Piqué and basketballer LeBron James come in, cameos that are almost taking the money out of your wallet before you know it.

For LeBron, the unofficial king of the summer, Nike has been creatively pumping out his spots for a few years now. This one may be a joint venture, but he subtly dominates the end with some clever winking done in the form of a fake dunk content. LeBron has never entered the NBA dunk contest. Maybe this is a hint for 2014? Or maybe it’s just smart marketing? Plenty of possibilities to choose from.

Credits after the jump.

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I’m sitting in Salt Lake City Airport, shocked at the number of people wearing flip flops, and I want nothing more than to be in Myspace’s fun room of young, beautiful artists grabbing at one another amidst fluorescent confetti. Their instruments and skateboards may be breakable but they are not. They smash faces and tangle limbs and fall on the floor, but this video gives us the sense that these fiery singers, models, DJs, and rappers will never flame out.

After Justin Timberlake’s reboot, can the same be said for Myspace (capital S begone)? We weren’t sure the social network could drag itself away from obsolescence, but this spot seems to be doing just that, and with a bang. If Myspace is a room filled with the likes of DIIV, Iggy Azalea, Pharrell Williams, Sky Ferreira and Schoolboy Q, then it is anything but irrelevant. If you don’t know those names, you better learn them. And check out the new Myspace while you’re at it; it seems to be the cool thing to do.

Credits and MySpace announce note after the jump.

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New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.