Reilly Out at CP+B

robreilly1Wow, figured the encroaching holidays would be a slow time but just got official word that Rob Reilly, 10-year vet and partner/worldwide chief creative officer at Crispin Porter + Bogusky is leaving the agency to “pursue new ventures.” According to the Crispin camp, which also lost UX lead Matt Walsh recently, the creative department has been restructured as a result of Reilly’s departure, which will now all allow all of its camps including Boulder, L.A. Miami, London and Gothenburg to have “increased autonomy.”  The “restructuring,” which follows Reilly leaving along with his wife, 16-year CP+B vet and managing director/partner Laura Bowles, was concocted by Reilly, CEO Andrew Keller and CP+B chairman, Chuck Porter. From the announce,  executive director of creative development Evan Fry  (who rejoined CP+B over a year ago) and director of art & design Dave Swartz (the CD who we most recently noted in this Roman Coppola-directed Microsoft effort) will help guide the new creative structure while still reporting to Keller.

So, what does CP+B CEO Andrew Keller have to add? Well, in a statement, he says, “I am extraordinarily lucky to have Rob and Laura as friends and to have worked with them as partners through some of the most exciting and courageous times at CP+B. This structure really speaks to the immediate needs of our clients and our vision for meeting those needs. This is an incredibly exciting step in delivering outstanding creative work to our clients.”

During their career, both Reilly and Bowles led CP+B accounts including Domino’s, Burger King and more. As for Bowles, the MD moved up the charts during her career at CP+B from content supervisor to VP/account director to her most recent role as partner/managing director, working with other clients including Hotels.com and on new biz efforts. Sources say the parting was on good terms but we no word as to what Reilly and Bowles are up to next.

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Parents Get Feisty in New Microsoft Advert from CP+B, Roman Coppola

In CP+B’s new Roman Coppola-directed spot for Microsoft, sweet children sing in asparagus suits while their parents frantically capture every moment using their iPhones and Androids. A brawl ensues, with parents fighting for the perfect panorama, jostling one another to avoid phone photobombing, and climbing into the ceiling pipes for the ideal aerial shot. Of course, the couple with a Nokia Lumia 1020 sits calmly in the back with their superior cameraphone, knowing they got a great photo of their daughter dressed as a carrot.

This spot is in line with Microsoft’s last video, “The Wedding,” where the same scene occurs, but at a church. Both ads end, “Don’t fight. Switch.” Considering photo sharing has become one of the most important parts of owning a phone, it’s not a bad idea. Ad-wise, this spot is a great portrait of modern day life. If only an unintelligible child vegetable chorus could always soundtrack petty adult hysteria.

Credits after the jump.

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Windows Denounces Apple-on-Samsung Fan Violence in Latest Spot

Son of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now director, Francis-Ford Coppola, Roman Coppola was on a bit of a winning streak after co-writing Wes Anderson films The Darjeeling Limited and Moonrise Kingdom. However, after directing the near-universally panned Charlie Sheen vehicle, A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III, Roman lost a healthy portion of the goodwill he had racked up. As The A.V. Club put it, the film “it isn’t a movie so much as a feature-length perfume commercial for a Charlie Sheen signature cologne with gorgeous packaging and absolutely nothing inside.” So, yeah. It was pretty bad.

Seeking solace from tomato-throwing critics, Roman did what all directors attempting to recover from a stinker do: Join forces with CP+B for a Microsoft TV spot. Here, we see Roman channeling his own life experiences to sell Windows Phones. Sure, says Roman metaphorically through this spot, there are haters are either side of the aisle. But you can’t have the naysayers keep you down, you know? Yes, some people like Apple phones and some people like Samsung phones, just like some people like good movies and some people like other good movies. But, just because your movie isn’t “good” or your phone isn’t “good” either, doesn’t mean to have to be part of the fighting. As Jay-Z once said, “Get that dirt off your shoulder.” Most assuredly, Roman was playing this track on set throughout the production of this ad.

Embrace Roman Coppola, and embrace Nokia Windows phones. Credits after the jump.

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