W+K NY Serves Up ‘Chicken Curry’ for ESPN

In anticipation of tonight’s matchup between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors, ESPN is airing a new “This is SportsCenter” spot from W+K New York featuring Warriors star Steph Curry.

Curry joins SportsCenter anchors Stan Verrett and Neil Everett in the ESPN cafeteria, where he thanks two cooks for (accidentally) celebrating his recent performance on the court by serving chicken curry. The anchors try to convince Curry it’s a coincidence, but he’s not buying it, even after the cooks’ confused glances. It’s one of the more fun SportsCenter spots in a while, as, even if the premise is a little obvious, Curry plays his part well enough to make it work.

There’s also a “Kitchen Warriors” installment in which Steph squares off against his wife, Ayesha Curry, to see who can make the better chicken curry. With their daughter Riley as the judge, it soon becomes clear Steph’s skills are on the court, not in the kitchen.

Note: credits only apply to the first spot; “Kitchen Warriors” was created by the client.

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SportsCenter Experiences Technical Difficulties in W+K’s Latest, Starring James Harden

Houston Rockets star James Harden takes center stage in W+K’s latest “This is SportsCenter” installation, entitled “Satellite,” which also features SportsCenter anchors Neil Everett, Kenny Mayne and Stan Verrett.

In the 30-second spot, which will run for six weeks, Harden fields a call from a mission control center as Everett and Verrett call with a technical problem on the set of SportsCenter. From here things take an unexpected turn, with a cameo by Houston Astros mascot Orbit. Without giving too much away, we can say that as far as “This is SportsCenter” spots go, this one is certainly on the stranger end. Harden, who also appeared in this memorable spot for Foot Locker a few months back, plays his part well, but we think this one will leave some people scratching their heads. (more…)

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O Positive Crafts Ode to Nature for The Nature Conservancy

Production studio O Positive enlisted the services of actress Jessica Chastain in a new PSA for The Nature Conservancy.

Chastain reads a poem by Matthew Dickman entitled “Our Nature.” The spot, directed by Peyton Wilson sets Chastain’s reading of the poem to a dramatic piano track, coming across more like a short film about love than a PSA, until it’s revealed that the love Chastain is talking about is her love of nature. As the 60-second PSA continues, the camera turns more and more to shots of the beautiful Sierra Mountains, and Chastain interacting with the natural world around her, ending with the tagline “Your first love wants you back.”

“I chose to be a part of this remarkable campaign not just because it spoke to my own love affair with nature, but also because it’s imperative to find a way to co-exist with nature so that this valuable and beautiful resource is protected, ” Chastain said in a press release. “I hope this film encourages everyone to rethink their relationship with the natural world around them.”

The spot, the second nature PSA featured here in two days, like Conservation International’s effort, sees The Nature Conservancy take a different approach emphasizing emotion.

“This is a departure for the Conservancy,” explains Jordan Peavey, marketing director for The Nature Conservancy in California. “Instead of a typical PSA where we explain who we are sand what we do in a very intellectual way, we worked with Peyton, O Positive and Jessica Chastain to create an entirely different type of story. One we hope will intrigue and inspire new audiences to remember their love of nature and to get involved.” (more…)

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ESPN, W+K Enlist NFL Stars for Their Fantasy League

ESPN and the NFL have reminded us several times over the past week that the football season is about to begin with help from Wieden + Kennedy New York.

In the latest pigskin-flavored spot to promote SportsCenter, the network plays on familiar fantasy football tropes, twisting the narrative 180 degrees with a bit of help from Victor Cruz of the Giants, Jimmy Graham of the Saints and a few other league employees:

After learning that the U.S. military doesn’t really use “Call of Duty” to train soldiers, we’re a little skeptical when it comes to football stars participating in fantasy leagues.

But the image is too amusing to discard, so we’ll stick with it.

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W+K NY, Metallica Rock out ‘This is SportsCenter’

W+K New York have a new “This is SportsCenter” spot for ESPN featuring Metallica.

The agency has some fun with the idea that with Mariano Rivera now retired, Metallica doesn’t have a lot to do around the ESPN offices. Metallica looks for other athletes in need of entrance music, with less than satisfactory results, as well as other things to do around the office. Hosts Jay Harris, Scott Van Pelt and Stuart Scott also appear in the spot, which debuts today in anticipation of tonight’s Gillette Home Run Derby. The spot neglects to mention that Metallica still provide entrance/walk-up music for players including Rays reliever Grant Balfour, Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon and White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko, but then that would kind of ruin the premise. Stick around for credits after the jump. (more…)

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Fallon Continues the Goofiness for Loctite

Last month, Fallon launched a new campaign for Henkel’s Loctite Adhesives, promoting Loctite Super Glue with a thoroughly ridiculous 30-second television spot featuring fanny pack dancing. Now the agency has continued their campaign with two more television spots, which, unsurprisingly, continue the goofiness trend for the brand.

One of the new 30-second spots, “Breakage” (featured above), sees a man so enamored with Loctite’s adhesive power that he fantasizes about breaking things, just so he and his buddy can glue them back together. The similarly toned “Shoe” sees the same man apprehensive about a shoe emergency. He glues the shoe together and then decides to try to put some weight on it, ensuing in a fairly predictable scenario. Both spots, which were directed by Emmy-winning director David Shane and will debut this week, conclude with a clip from the original campaign spot “Win at Glue.” Stick around for credits and “Shoe” after the jump. (more…)

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W+K NY Unveils New, High-Tech SportsCenter Set

W+K New York unveils the new high-tech SportsCenter set, complete with a few bugs, in the latest in their long-running “This Is SportsCenter” series.

SportsCenter is set to debut their new studio on June 22nd, and the new spot takes place on the set of the 194,000 square foot Digital Center 2. In the 30-second spot, entitled “Universal Remote,” anchor Kevin Negandhi shows off the studio’s capabilities to fellow host Hannah Storm using a universal remote. The button on the remote that’s supposed to control the desk appears to be faulty, however, with Washington Nationals’ mascot Theodore Roosevelt, along with anchors Jay Crawford and Jay Harris, taking full advantage of the unintended and comical consequences. It’s a fun introduction to the new studio that manages to show off some of its new capabilities without taking itself seriously. Stick around for credits after the jump. continued…

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U.S. Midfielder Bradley Takes Center Stage in Latest SportsCenter Spot

With the FIFA World Cup set to kick off next week, the ESPN marketing onslaught continues, this time starring U.S, National Team midfielder Michael Bradley, who co-stars alongside the WWL’s anchor Bram Weinstein in the latest SportsCenter spot from W+K New York. In the :30 clip above, Bradley’s accompanied by a little sidekick as he makes his rounds throughout the Bristol campus of ESPN, which holds the English-language rights for the World Cup, which takes place place as you might know in Brazil.

This latest effort marks the 400th-plus “This is SportsCenter” spot from the network, which also marks its eighth World Cup broadcast. It’s a more subdued than previous ads, though the tinge of dry humor remains intact, and yes, this one’s for the kids (after all, the little ones accompany each player in the pitch). O Positive director David Shane once again returns to the fold, following up his Bubba Watson-starring SportsCenter spot from two months ago with a well-timed piece that has chanting USA ahead of the world’s biggest stage.

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Fallon Brings Fanny Packs, Bad Dancing for Loctite

Fallon Minneapolis launched a new campaign today for Henkel’s Loctite Adhesives, promoting Loctite Super Glue.

At the center of the campaign is a 30-second TV spot called “Win At Glue” which Fallon created along with production company O Positive.”Win At Glue” will air on national TV, “including major sports events, season finales, late night and syndication.” The campaign will also feature unique online content on Twitter (where users are encouraged to share their own glue victories with the hashtag #winatglue) and YouTube, which will roll out over the next several weeks. This will mark Fallon’s first campaign for Loctite after winning AOR duties back in December.

The”Win At Glue” spot (above) features a bunch of people dancing around, rather ridiculously, with Loctite fanny packs filled with Loctite Super Glue. Aiming for humor, Fallon arrives at…something else. Something kind of hard to watch for 30 seconds. Make of it what you will. Credits after the jump. continued…

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O Positive Adds Director Rodrigo Garcia-Saiz

Rodrigo Garcia-SaizNew York-based production company O Positive announced today the addition of director Rodrigo Garcia-Saiz to their roster for commercial representation in North America and internationally.

“I am an enormous fan of O Positive,” Garcia-Saiz said. “Talking with Jim [Jenkins] and David [Shane], I felt as if I knew them. They really love their work and enjoy their families; we share a similar vibe. Plus, they do some of the best work out there. I appreciate that O Positive is a small company where I can really focus and do great work.”

Garcia-Saiz has a steady track record of award-winning work, including a Cannes Gold Lion win for AMIS “Office” (Ogilvy & Mather Mexico), and the Bronze Lion-winning horror parody “Executed” for Gandhi Bookstores and anti-bullying spot “Playground.” After attending film school at University of Mexico’s prestigious El CUEC, Garcia-Saiz flexed his cinematic muscle at Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s production company as a commercial AD, before forming his own Mexico City production company, Central Films. continued…

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HBO GO, SS+K Screen Sex Scenes for You, Your Parents and Your Little Sister

In what we’ll call a creative take on those universally awkward coming-of-age moments experienced by everyone fortunate enough to live in a house equipped with HBO, SS+K advertises the network’s streaming service by reminding viewers of the scenes that would be particularly painful to watch with mom, dad and your little sister.

Our favorite part of this campaign is its acknowledgement–nay, embrace–of the fact that very few young people currently using HBO GO actually subscribe to the network.

The lineup of vices is extensive, covering everything from incest:

…to awkward body image issues:

…to that never-comfortable “It’s OK if you’re gay” conversation:

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KBS+, O Positive Share ‘Regrets’ for BMW

“So what do you think, you gonna take it?” asks a BMW salesman in KBS+P and production company O Positive’s new spot for the BMW 3-Series. This sends the man into a reverie of past regrets, from dumping a nerdy Brooklyn Decker in high school to passing up a chance to get in on the ground floor of Twitter. The 60-second spot, directed by David Shane is certainly memorable, showing the 3-Series in the beginning of the spot and linking passing up the opportunity to own it to some pretty poor decision making skills. Spoiler alert: the guy decides to buy it. “Regrets” is well produced, paced, and acted, effectively using humor to make a lasting impression. Just one thing though: Does anyone else find nerd Brooklyn Decker hotter than runway Brooklyn Decker, or is that just me?

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W+K NY Navigates SportsCenter Office with Bubba Watson

In anticipation of the impending Master’s Tournament, W+K New York has launched two new spots in their long-running “This Is SportsCenter” series, starring 2012 Master’s champion Bubba Watson.

In the first spot, Watson, whose “miracle” shot to get out of a difficult lie helped him win the Master’s, finds himself in another tricky situation in ESPN’s Bristol, Connecticut office, with the Stanford Cardinal mascot blocking their way. Watson and caddy Ted Scott try to decide how to proceed, when SportsCenter anchor Kevin Negandhi shows them the way without really thinking about it. The spot delivers the kind of fun goofiness we’ve come to expect from the “This Is SportsCenter” series and shouldn’t disappoint, especially for fans of Watson.

The 15-second “Pencils” is a little more straightforward, but no less fun, with Watson’s incessant sharpening of scorecard pencils posing a distraction for anchor Jay Harris. First and second round play of the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club will be televised on ESPN from 3-7:30 on Thursday and Friday, April 10-11. Stick around to view “Pencils” and credits after the jump. continued…

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Call Kevin Love for Some One-on-One in Latest ESPN RV Ad

We catch Minnesota Timberwolves All-Star Kevin Love and NBA commentator Mike Breen in medias res, driving through some nondescript green chunk of Basketballville in the latest NBA on ESPN RV spot from W+K New York.  With Breen’s steady hand at the wheel, Love turns to the passenger side window and notices a large billboard featuring his sultry face and a phone hotline called The Love Dial. They drive a bit farther and pass a second billboard. Love has no idea who’s behind this, so like any great detective, he decides to call the number. Another man picks up – it’s Love’s teammate/on-court soulmate Ricky Rubio, moonlighting as a sex-hotline entrepreneur in a dingy room that also has a video camera set-up to film something. I guess there isn’t much to do in Minnesota.

“Billboard” may not be as funny as a few of the more recent RV spots ESPN uses to promote its NBA coverage, but the clip has some edgy subject matter compared to the usually benign hijinks. The network probably won’t push the envelope any more than this, but this 30-second ad is an interesting sidestep in the NBA on ESPN commercial canon. Credits after the jump.

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W+K New York, ESPN Pull Back the Curtain in ‘The 10 Club’

W+K New York and ESPN are back again with yet another 30-second This is Sportscenter spot. This time, we follow Clippers dunker and terrible free-throw shooter DeAndre Jordan as he enters the illustrious Top 10 Club reserved for individuals who make Sportscenter’s famed nightly Top 10 plays segment.

However, it turns out that the Top 10 Club is not so illustrious considering the windowless room looks more like a  doctor’s moldy waiting room than a hangout for stars and celebrities. ESPN  usually pokes fun in the context of sports news, but here, we get to see self-satire as Sportscenter parodies its own highlight tropes – i.e. the lanky high school kid who hits a full-court buzzer beater and the college mascot who does ridiculous college mascot shenanigans. I say this frequently, but it’s worth repeating, these spots are almost perfect for what they’re trying to accomplish, and they almost make you forget that Sportscenter has actually become a caricature of itself. Credits after the jump.

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Steph Curry, Mark Jackson Hop into the RV for More NBA on ESPN Hijinks

We’ve covered a few W+K New York RV spots for NBA on ESPN in the past here at Agency Spy including this recent effort. In the latest installments including  the one above dubbed “Notebook,” we have yet another healthy dose of awkward humor from the cavalcade of ESPN and Association talent.

The spot features NBA commentator Mike Breen, Warriors head coach/former ESPN analyst Mark Jackson and his shooting star, Steph Curry. The trio stumbles upon Jackson’s old draft notebook while storing luggage, complete with some rather unflattering notes on Curry. Predictably, this results in the comic awkwardness that’s been synonymous with this ongoing campaign and continues the long line of funny RV spots W+K NY has created for ESPN.

The second spot of the campaign, “Clapper,” is not as noteworthy. It features Breen and Curry in some by-now old hat clapper humor. You can view this quick spot and credits after the jump.

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NBA on ESPN Crew Bunks Up for New RV Spot

Another day, another team-up between ESPN and W+K. “Inner Monologue,” the latest 30-second NBA on ESPN RV ad created by W+K New York, answers very important questions about the crew’s sleeping arrangements. Yes, some players and analysts do have to bunk up. Bulls All-Star center Joakim Noah has to sleep in the same bed as ESPN kingpin Bill Simmons, even though neither of them are happy with the situation. Noah, who stands 6’11″, probably has a better argument than Simmons, who is listed at an unconvincing 6’2″. Simmons, for all his Boston sports proclivities, is in bed with a Bull. He’s actually sleeping with the enemy. But wait…as with most of the RV spots, there’s a Jeff Van Gundy punchline. And as usual, it’s the best part of the clip. Not only is Van Gundy funny-looking, but if you’ve been following his RV escapades, whether getting stuck on the stunt double vehicle or trading glasses with Russell Westbrook, you know that JVG is also funny. And in a sports media world that is often lacking in self-deprecation and humor, the silly shtick from the NBA on ESPN panel is always nice to see. Credits after the jump.

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ESPN, W+K Go Back to Roots in Latest ‘This Is SportsCenter’ Installment

After taking a different direction with their last SportsCenter spot, W+K New York and ESPN have gone back to what has made the “This Is SportsCenter” series so popular, employing humorous situations in the network’s Bristol HQ.

The spot, “Double Double,” stars Minnesota Timberwolves star Kevin Love as the guy responsible for pushing the coffee cart that keeps the SportsCenter crew caffeinated (UCLA mascot Joe Bruin can also be seen in the spot). This is an important job, because, as anchor Scott Van Pelt says, the SportsCenter crew relies “pretty heavily on the coffee cart” to keep going throughout the day. Love’s specialty is making “the best double-double,” which is two double espressos. Host Stan Verrett swears by Kevin’s double-doubles. In fact, he’s a little too fond of them. He requests another double-double from Love while he still has his two espressos in-hand, but Kevin says “I think maybe you should slow down.” Verrett continues to hound Love for more espresso as the spot goes on, with Kevin responsibly telling him he should just get through his show. At some point Love must have given in, and the results on Stan Verrett‘s show are pretty funny, as well as startling to co-host Neil Everett.

It’s a return to form for W+K, who play to their strengths with “Double Double.” The strategy seen here has worked for the “This Is Sportscenter” series in the past, and “Double Double” is the best SportsCenter spot in recent memory, with a good setup and comedic payoff thanks to Love and Verrett’s delivery. Let’s hope agency and brand continue sticking with what works in the future. Credits after the jump. continued…

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O fim dos tradicionais comerciais de sites de namoro

O fim de um relacionamento, por qualquer motivo que seja, pode ser devastador para uma pessoa – comparável a um furacão ou até mesmo à morte. Neste caso, todos acabam passando por um período de luto, que pode durar mais ou menos. Recomeçar é sempre difícil, apesar de quase nenhuma história com final feliz – especialmente daqueles serviços de namoro online – mostrar isso. Daí chega o Nerve.com com Ghost Story e dá uma mexida nas coisas, deixando para trás toda aquela história de finais felizes, casais apaixonados e eternidade para focar nas dificuldades de se seguir adiante.

Dirigido por David Shane, o Ghost Story conta a história de Jules, uma mulher com um olhar triste, que finge sorrir e se arrasta pela vida desde que o fim trágico de seu último relacionamento. Jules se mantém presa ao fantasma do passado, um namorado charmoso que, sem que ela perceba, passa o tempo incentivando-a a continuar vivendo, lembrando que não foi ela quem morreu e que, por isso mesmo, tem todo o direito de viver e ser feliz.

Guardadas as devidas proporções, este filme me lembrou um pouco PS Eu Te Amo, sem as cartas, mas com o mesmo “espírito”: quem vai embora incentiva quem ficou a continuar vivendo.

O projeto é da agência O Positive.

jules jules1

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David Shane Writes a Sweet ‘Ghost Story’ for Nerve Dating

Dating–especially online–is nerve-wracking, funny, and requires the bravery of a preteen on a diving team (take a deep breath and pray your bottoms don’t fall off). Dating sites’ advertisements generally don’t help the cause. Match.com and eHarmony spots look like weight loss commercials, and How About We… goes for the student film aesthetic. In contrast, Nerve Dating’s “Ghost Story” is an authentic piece not only about starting a new relationship, but about moving on (which we’re all doing/hoping for every time we do this dating thing).

“Ghost Story” is directed by Emmy award-winning David Shane, the man behind Bud Light’s funny “Swear Jar” and Land Rover’s “Pathological Liar.” It features actors with charming, soft British accents. The heartwarming angle is a surprising move for Nerve, a site infamous for its explicit sex essays before Vice took over. It’s artfully done and helps carve them a unique space in the overdone online dating realm, not for people with dead boyfriends, but for those who need to come alive.

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