Van Wagner, the outdoor advertising company, has created billboards to advertise advertising on billboards. Catch that? It's kind of meta.
When a billboard doesn't get sold, its owner can keep the old ad up, thus devaluing the space, leave the board blank or put a placeholder on it in the meantime. Van Wagner chose to go with the latter, but didn't want a simple black-on-white "Your Ad Here" sign.
Instead, the company is now into its second round of posting its own curious ads on unsold billboards in New York and Los Angeles. The new ads, featuring bold colors, simple fonts and minimalist headlines (a mix of words and pictures), are fairly cryptic. They say things like, "An Apple a Day," "Cool as a Cucumber," "The Big Cheese" and "Easy as Pie." Prettier and more compelling than "Your Ad Here"? Yes. Confusing as well? Perhaps.
The earlier round of ads was more straightforward, showing animals alongside single-word headlines ("Reach?" next to a giraffe, "Buzz?" next to a bee, etc.) that hinted at the power of outdoor advertising. (Those ads also included Van Wagner's logo and phone number.) The new ads are playful in a pop-art kind of way, but will they get someone to pick up the phone and beg Van Wagner for ad space? Time will tell.
At the very least, they've succeeded in making me kind of hungry.
More images below. Via City Room at The New York Times, which has lots more about the campaign and an interview with the creative director.
The iconic M&M's candies call for filmgoers to turn off their cellphones and respect their fellow theater patrons in this mock blockbuster action-movie trailer from BBDO that marks the first time all six characters have appeared in a single spot.
Speed and Die Hard-type flicks are among those deftly spoofed in the 40-second PSA, which will run in theaters nationwide. "Cellphones ruin movies. Please turn them off" is the tagline. Lobby posters starring the Red and Yellow M&M's are also part of the push.
Sugar-coating the theme in such fashion is pretty sweet, and the approach actually makes me want to see the M&M's cast in a feature for real. They're always hanging around movie theaters anyway, usually in the snack case. And judging by the "trailer," the Blue M&M could out-act Vin Diesel any day of the week (though an M&M's wrapper could probably do that, come to think of it).
Credits below.
CREDITS Agency: BBDO, New York Client: Mars/M&M's
Video Credits Chief Creative Officer: David Lubars Executive Creative Directors: Tim Bayne, Lauren Connolly Senior Art Director: Eduardo Petersen Senior Copywriter: Christopher Cannon Senior Producer: Regina Iannuzzi Junior Producer: Samantha Errico
Senior Account Director: Susannah Keller Account Director: Carrie Lipper Account Manager: Tani Nelson
Production Company: Traktor Director: Traktor/Sam Producer: Richard Ulfvengren Head of Production: Rani Melendez
Visual Effects: Laika/House President, Executive Producer: Lourri Hammack Animation Director: Kirk Kelly Producer: Zilpha Yost Producer: Julie Ragland Editing House: PS260 Editors: Maury Loeb, Ned Borgman Assistant Editors: Matt Posey, Colin Edelman Senior Producer: Laura Patterson
M&M'S 2013 Cinema "Teeth" Poster Creative Credits
Print Credits: Chief Creative Officer: David Lubars Executive Creative Directors: Tim Bayne, Lauren Connolly Art Directors: Jonathan Bjelland, Vanessa Castaneda Copywriter: Tifanni Lundeen
Executive Art Producer: Betsy Jablow Print Production Manager: Michael Musano Retoucher: Steve Lakeman
Senior Account Director: Susannah Keller Account Director: Carrie Lipper Account Manager: Tani Nelson
CGI Rendering: Laika Animation Director: Kirk Kelly Producer: Zilpha Yost
As huge of an advertising juggernaut as the NFL is, commercials starring NFL players often feel interchangeable. Here, though, is a great piece of work from Duracell starring Derrick Coleman, the 23-year-old Seattle Seahawks fullback who happens to the be the first legally deaf player to be part of an NFL offense.
Bravely narrating the ad himself, Coleman tells his own story of being picked on as a kid, being told he could never make it—and being passed over by the NFL draft. "They didn't call my name, told me it was over," he says. "But I've been deaf since I was 3, so I didn't listen." That's a great line. The tagline: "Trust the power within."
Coleman seems enamored with that line. He tells the Sporting News of his Duracell deal: "They came to me, and said they liked my story, and I said OK, I want to join up. I just hope to inspire people, especially children, to trust the power within and achieve their dreams."
Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi, New York.
CREDITS Client: Duracell
Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi, New York Executive Creative Director: Peter Moore Smith Creative Directors: Garrett Jones, Billy Leyhe Chief Production Officer: Tanya LeSieur Director of Content Production: John Doris Senior Producer: Danny Miller Senior Art Director: Nathan Wigglesworth Senior Copywriter: Lincoln Boehm
Production Company: Park Pictures, Los Angeles Director: A.G. Rojas Director of Photography: Linus Sandgren Executive Producer: Mary Ann Marino Line Producer: Gabrielle Yuro
Editing House: Whitehouse Post, Los Angeles Editor: Shane Reid Assistant Editor: Keith Hamm Producer: Jonlyn Williams Executive Producer: Kristin Branstetter
Sound Design: 740 Sound Design, Los Angeles Sound Designer, Mixer: Rommel Molina Executive Producer: Kate Vadnais
End Animation: Mass Market, New York Executive Producer: Louisa Cartwright
Getting ripped at a luxury gym will make you want to get more naked everywhere, says luxury gym Equinox.
OK, if your prerequisite for being comfortable getting more naked everywhere is having the body of a super-fit fashion model, sure, makes sense. Getting ripped at a luxury gym will also make you want to get a black eye, though, or stow away with your buddy in the trunk of a luxury Mercedes, says Equinox. That makes less sense, because it's dumb to get punched in the face, or cram two people into the trunk of a sedan.
The images in the new print and digital campaign from Wieden + Kennedy in New York, shot by photographer Robert Wyatt, feature the tagline "Equinox made me do it," because writ large, getting ripped at a luxury gym will make you feel like a badass, says the company. That means all kinds of new confidence and adventures with your high-end fashion accessories.
It's not dissimilar in spirit to a highly sexualized campaign, shot by Terry Richardson, that the brand pulled amid criticism late last year. It's just toned in favor of a more ambiguously suggestive and playful sort of mischief, which makes it right on target for a health club that likes to hire fashion photographers to give it that vague haute glow.
The new campaign even approaches direct relevance to the brand's actual product—fitness—with the shot of the guy in the ice bath, assuming he's recovering from a particularly intense workout … though he probably doesn't really need to bring that fancy watch into the tub with him.
More images, a video and credits below.
CREDITS Client: Equinox Agency: Wieden + Kennedy, New York
Print and OOH credits Executive Creative Directors: Colleen DeCourcy, Mark Fitzloff, Ian Reichenthal, Scott Vitrone Creative Directors: Gary Van Dzura, Stuart Jennings Copywriter: Nick Kaplan Art Director: Cyrus Coulter Designer Director: Serifcan Ozcan Account Team: Patrick Cahill, Jacqueline Ventura Creative Services Director: Chris Whalley Project Manager: Yann Samuels Art Buyers: Michelle Chant, Molly Dowd, Hillary Frileck Print Producer: Kristen Althoff Photographer: Robert Wyatt Wardrobe Stylist: Simon Robins Hair Stylist: Owen Gould Makeup Artist: Jo Strettell Business Affairs: Quentin Perry Brand Strategist: Erik Hanson Retouching Agency: Loupe Digital Imaging Retoucher: Mark Baxter
Video credits Executive Creative Directors: Colleen DeCourcy, Mark Fitzloff, Ian Reichenthal, Scott Vitrone Creative Directors: Stuart Jennings, Gary Van Dzura Interactive Creative Director: Gary Van Dzura Copywriter: Nick Kaplan Art Director: Cyrus Coulter Head of Content Production: Lora Shulson Producers: Luiza Naritomi, Kristen Johnson Brand Strategist: Erik Hanson Account Team: Patrick Cahill, Jacqueline Ventura Business Affairs: Quentin Perry
Director, Director of Photography: Hugo Stenson
Editing Company: Rock Paper Scissors Editor: Carlos Arias Post Producer: Lisa Barnable Post Executive Producer: Eve Kornblum Editing Assistants: Chris Mitchel (senior assistant), Alex Liu (assistant)
Telecine Company: Company 3 Colorist: Tom Poole
Mix Company: Heard City Mixer: Eric Warzecha Assistant Engineer: Jeremy Siegel Producer: Sasha Awn
The Powerpuff Girls have been rebooted for a onetime special with a new animation style, and the first look anybody has gotten of the new design is this short where Ringo Starr dons a dress and sings, "I wish I was a Powerpuff Girl."
The song, written by director Dave Smith, is a delightful little ditty about shooting stars out of your eyes and wearing dresses while saving the world. Ringo's animated alter ego starts out on the drums, then dons a yellow dress and adorable pink hair ribbon to join the girls as they fly through the sky and bring peace and love to the city of Townsville. The whole thing is as trippy as Yellow Submarine and as cuddly as a puppy.
Ringo will also appear in the special, Dance Pantsed, airing Jan. 20, as Townsville's flamboyant mathematician, Fibonacci Sequens. Smart move, Cartoon Network. It's always a good idea to leverage your Starr power.
The scene opens with a young couple on an awkward date. We assume it's awkward because the guy is shirtless and gently cradling a purple stuffed giraffe that he's brought along. Needing something to fill the silence, the girl takes out her grape-flavored Rio Burgundy mints, and he accepts one. A moment after he pops the mint in his mouth, the giraffe's tongue grows and begins to caress the guy's nipple, causing him to moan in pleasure. We can't look away. Neither can his date who bites her lip, bounces up and down and finally looks forward with a smile, seemingly titillated by the whole experience.
If you are, too, enjoy the extended outtakes below, where the actor really gets in touch with his O face. Does the nipple-licking puppet approach work? Well, what are you really going to say about mints?
Christian singles in the U.K. seeking like-minded partners to share romantic dinners of fishes, loaves and vino on Saturday nights might want to check out these cheeky posters launching today in London's Underground that use headlines like "Christians make better lovers" and "Another dating website? Thank God!"
The work, by ad agency Noah for Christian Connection, contends that, for the faithful, " 'Love one another' is written into their code. So if you are a single Christian person, why not give our award-winning dating site a try?"
Agency creative director Chas Bayfield, who designed the retro ads with artist Alex Fawkes, tells Co.Create that he strove to take the message "away from cloying sentimentality and into the mainstream through wit and [by] tapping into popular culture, with a campaign that is contemporary and relevant—something many church organizations aren't always known for."
Need some copywriting help with an international flair? Does your hiring budget consist solely of expired Cliff Bars and six coupons for Vitaminwater? If so, I've got good news: You can still hire Mark van der Heijden.
Calling himself The Backpacker Intern, the Dutch writer is offering to intern anywhere that will provide him food and a place to sleep. "He doesn't want to get paid," his video explains. "He just wants to trade a day of his work for food and a place to sleep."
The pitch already seems to be working. On his blog, van der Heijden reports he has accepted internships with Amnesty International Thailand, followed by McCann Worldgroup Bangkok. "I’m getting a lot of responses from all over the world," he writes. "Beijing, Dubai, India, Stockholm, Dublin and so on."
If you're interested in luring him to crash on your agency's cot, check out his contact page on TheBackpackerIntern.com.
UPDATE: Looks like the offers started pouring in quickly after we featured van der Heijden's project:
Just arrived in Bangkok. Opening my email: 30 job-offers from all over the world. And a feature on Adweek! Not bad f…http://t.co/9yV8epk6Fa
With those saucy Two Broke Girls hosting and a category that pits the Bible against Sharknado, the People's Choice Awards, airing live Wednesday night on CBS, should be a hoot. No, not really. It'll be a snoozefest. For a much more entertaining time, check out the Kroll Choice Awards, a Comedy Central-produced set of digital promos hyping the Jan. 14 second-season return of sketch comedy-based Kroll Show.
The videos feature star-writer-producer Nick Kroll's coterie of ridiculous characters in a glitzy awards show setting, complete with a J. Law tumble up the stairs, lord-and-savior shout outs, prodigious bling and false modesty. The cable channel execs said they wanted to trot out as many Kroll creations as possible, like gigolo Bobby Bottleservice and white-trash homie C-Czar, treating the characters' shows-within-a-show like award-worthy contenders. Alas, their statues are only make-believe.
Kroll Show, known for its star cameos, will continue its relationship with Hollywood's honored crowd in Season 2 with the likes of Amy Poehler, Will Forte, Seth Rogan, Lizzy Caplan and Zach Galifianakis.
Raise a giant Cherry Coke and toast Denny's for this great tweet after the BCS title game—offering distraught Auburn fans a road map for where they can comfort-eat their miseries away on the long drive back home to Alabama. It's great partly because it could have so easily been killed, for perhaps being a tad scornful and for sort of making fun of Denny's as well. In other BCS news, Charmin posted the tweet below—apparently having made peace with almost-profanity after getting spooked by its own famous "Asgard" tweet back in November.
Wow. We have a feeling there are lots of college football fans about to sheet their pants right about now..
Don't think of your tax return as an annual blood sacrifice to our merciless bureaucratic overlords. Think of it more as a delightful recap of your exciting and eventful life!
That's the upbeat message of TurboTax's new campaign from Wieden + Kennedy, themed "It's Amazing What You're Capable Of." With ads already running on TV and online, the campaign will also include a 60-second Super Bowl spot—the brand's first. (In addition, parent company Intuit is donating a 30-second Super Bowl ad slot to a small business selected by voters.)
Each ad in the TurboTax campaign focuses on the major life decisions you make each year that can have an impact on your taxes. "That's what taxes are: a recap, the story of your year," notes the narrator. And speaking of the narrator, it sure sounds like character actor John C. Reilly, but as with many celebrity-voiced campaigns of late, the agency couldn't confirm that due to contractual obligations.
Check out the anthem spot below and a few more executions after the jump.
The Tonight Show is moving from one smug cultural petri dish to another, thanks to Jimmy Fallon, who will be taking the show back to NYC when he replaces Jay Leno next month. To commemorate this historic shift into reverse gear, NBC has released a print ad of a snappily dressed Fallon walking the edge of a high-rise building in Manhattan. I have to say, it's weird to see Fallon looking directly into a camera without corpsing like an amateur. It's a pretty standard ad for this sort of thing, but it gets the point across and the skyline is cool, which is all they need to prompt New Yorkers to pat themselves on the back about yet another thing. Below is the first TV promo, which features all the past hosts of the show—even, for literally half a second, Conan O'Brien.
At this year's Super Bowl, Wonderful Pistachios will take a break from its usual "what's hot this minute" approach and feature a star with a bit more lasting power: Stephen Colbert. The host of Comedy Central's Colbert Report will appear in two game-day ads for the brand, kicking off a campaign themed "Get crackin', America." Ads will continue to roll out throughout 2014 as part of a yearlong contract with Colbert.
In a statement, the marketing chief for Wonderful Pistachios parent Paramount Farms praised his brand's 2013 Super Bowl ad. "Last year's Super Bowl spot featuring Psy drove significant brand awareness and incredible buzz among consumers," said Marc Seguin. "This year, we wanted to extend and deepen that enthusiasm beyond the Super Bowl with talent that excites and resonates with our core consumer target over the full year. Mr. Colbert is the perfect fit for our brand and for this campaign."
You guys remember that blog post about that ad that did a familiar thing in a fresh way? When a creative team took a clichéd trope and offered a meta commentary illustrating how hackneyed it was, but tied it to the client anyways? When it left at least one viewer with a smile on his face, and a vague sense of unease about what it was actually saying? That's what happens with this Canadian spot, featuring a coach appealing to his players by referencing a rousing, generic locker-room speech from a movie on Netflix. It's a fun idea. Too bad it sells the product as nondescript. Then again, nobody watches a sports flick looking for anything but the same old warm and fuzzes anyways. Agency: DDB Vancouver. Director: Michael Downing of Partners Film.
This eerie safe-driving PSA from New Zealand employs an Outer Limits-style time freeze to impressive, heartbreaking effect as we watch two drivers, poised to collide in a matter of seconds, emerge from their vehicles and discuss the situation.
One driver, with his small son in the back of his SUV, has misread the other's excessive speed while pulling into an intersection. Both concede it was "a simple mistake." But as the oncoming car creeps ominously ahead, shattering the otherwise frozen backdrop, they realize with mounting horror that there may be nothing they can do to avoid the inevitable. They walk back to their cars, and we share their sense of anguish and helplessness.
"This campaign aims to reframe the way people look at their speed when they're driving," the New Zealand Transport Agency says. "We usually get to learn from our mistakes, but not when driving—the road is an exception. Even the smallest of mistakes on the road can cost us our life, or someone else's."
The spot, by Clemenger BBDO, marks a departure from the agency's recent work for the client, which successfully used humor and charm to highlight the dangers of driving while stoned. Here, the tone is intensely serious, and the riveting results are memorable and stand up to repeat viewings. Amid the terrifying prospect of a side-impact crash, this ad's power hits you head on.
Today in crazy Russian advertising news: A restaurant in Yekaterinburg decided to promote its flame-broiled steaks by flame-broiling its billboard as well. It is a pretty hot idea, if maybe overly literal. Russians, of course, love insane outdoor advertising, from horrifying drunk-driving billboards to parasailing donkeys. They also get pretty worked up about cooked meat generally, as we saw in this classic Burger King ad. Via The Denver Egotist.
You've got to hand it to "Finger Cleaner" for nailing an edgy, icky tone that really sticks out among the five finalists in Doritos' annual "Crash the Super Bowl" contest for consumer-generated commercials.
In the spot, created by Thomas Noakes of Sydney, Australia, a frizzy-haired, greasy-cheesy-fingered Doritos eater is encouraged by his auto-shop co-workers to clean his fingers using a hole in the wall. The results are impressive, and unnerving.
Two of the five finalists, one picked by Doritos and another by fans in an online poll through Jan. 29, will air during Fox's Super Bowl broadcast on Feb. 2. There's also a $1 million grand prize for the ad that receives the most votes.
"Cowboy Kid" should do well, if only because it has two elements that always score in this particular competition: cute kids and a lovable dog. One kid actually rides the dog. We've also got a pair of so-so stolen Doritos/office-humor scenarios—one features an ostrich, which thankfully nobody rides—and a time-machine spot, which, despite the presence of a cute kid and a canine, probably has no future.
But only "Cleaner" merits a big thumbs-up, and I sincerely hope Doritos gives us all the finger on game day.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
