Ogilvy, Geometry Get Musical with Glass in Suntory Spot

Here’s some interesting work from Ogilvy & Mather Japan and Geometry Global.

To support client Suntory, which also sponsors one of Japan’s premier concert halls in Tokyo, the agencies collaborated on a project in which the drink glasses of 300 volunteers were turned into musical instruments.

The audio on this one seems to be real (though possibly augmented, of course):

How did the agencies do it? They worked with “world-class conductor Mr. Yutaka Sado,” who helped coordinate or conduct the “audience of up to 300? who showed to observe and make music (or some approximation thereof) with “carefully crafted note-shaped ice placed in each glass.”

Masato Mitsudera, Head of Creative for Geometry Japan, says:

“…we looked to create a concept that would appeal to a younger audience – one that is increasingly interested in the classical music scene.”

From Ogilvy Japan CCO Ajab Samrai:

“This integrated campaign seamlessly brings together both the musical and drinks heritage of the company with the world’s first ‘drink instrument.’”

Not sure that it’s the world’s first, but if we may offer our humble opinion, this project was a bit more successful than a recent attempt by DDB Brussels to sell classical music to the young folks with some ill-timed twerking.

 

Agency?                             Ogilvy & Mather Japan (O&M) / Geometory Global Japan (GGJ)
CCO?                                  Ajab Samrai (O&M)
CD?                                    Masato Mitsudera (Head of Creative of GGJ)
PL?                                     Yasushi Arikawa
AD?                                    Akihiko Ono
C?                                       Shinichiro Fukushima
MD?                                   Masahiro Saito
AD?                                    Koichi Maeda
AE?                                    Ai Shimomura
Production?                      TOKYO / TAIYOKIKAKU
Pr?                                      Kazushige Fujie, Hidekatsu Nagasawa
PM?                                    Toshiaki Fujishima, Tomoko Morishige, Ryusuke Yoshida
Dir?                                    Eiji Tanigawa
Ca?                                     Senzo Ueno
Lig?                                    Masachio Nishida
Art?                                    Etsuko Akiba

Sound Design?                 invisible designs lab

Music?                               audioforce

Geometry Global Promotes Two Higher-Ups to Run New York Office

geometry

Geometry Global, the WPP-owned agency conglomeration that emerged from the ashes of G2, OgilvyAction and JWTAction, has promoted two of its EVPs to top posts.

Soche Picard, who has spent the last year at the agency as EVP/group account director, has moved up the ranks to managing director of its New York office while EVP/group account director Angela Burton now serves as SVP/general manager of the space.

Prior to her time at Geometry Global, Burton spent two decades at JWT, last serving as general manager of its New York headquarters. Picard had notable stints at major agencies as well; she helped launch the “Priceless” campaign for MasterCard while at McCann Erickson.

Geometry Global North American CEO Carl Hartman (who, as our tipsters noted, joined the agency in April of 2014) says in a statement:

“Both Soche and Angela are consummate professionals and will be a huge asset to our operation in New York. We are fortunate to have such accomplished leaders as part of our agency and tapping them beyond their current roles will help us make big strides on behalf of our New York operations.”

Picard will continue leading Geometry’s Team Unilever Shopper business in addition to her new responsibilities, and Burton will now work alongside North American leadership to implement technology solutions along with creating regional workflow.

Watch This Ad Agency Tell Its Staffers They Have to French Kiss Their Clients

Plenty of agencies describe themselves as full service, but one really wants to take that commitment to the next level.

At least, that’s the premise of a video Geometry Global Paris made as an uncomfortably literal love note to marketers, celebrating the New Year. In the clip, staffers at the agency are informed that, in 2015, they’ll be required to pucker up and French kiss their clients—because what better way to show the agency’s French-ness and devotion to its work?

Naturally, the whole thing is all a joke, but the reactions are pretty excellent. Some employees register, as you might expect, bewilderment. Others blurt out the sort of desperation for intimacy that can only come from marathon late nights in the office working on mind-numbing campaigns. Others still get indignant, which might be most surprising, given agency staffers are basically paid to debase themselves for clients on a regular basis.

The smartest guy by far starts bargaining for a bonus. At least he understands the terms.

Via Design Taxi.



We Hear: Geometry Global Wins General Mills Shopper Marketing

geometry-300x197In quick client news, we hear that Geometry Global, which recently appointed Jon “Not That One” Hamm (formerly of Momentum Worldwide) as its global CCO, will represent General Mills Shopper Marketing as part of WPP’s Shopper Marketing team.

Here’s the internal announcement:

We are pleased to announce General Mills as our newest client. Geometry Global will be part of the WPP Shopper Marketing team solution for General Mills named ShopperWorks.

ShopperWorks is a customized solution led by Geometry Global in partnership with Rockfish, Barrows, Bravo, and Kantar Retail. Together, the team will work to deliver Shopper Marketing solutions for General Mill’s brands in areas such as: retail and field activation, shopper insights, multicultural marketing, digital shopper, e-commerce and retail media.

You’ll note that quite a few agencies count themselves as members of that team, though WPP might want to update the page since JWTAction has been Geometry Global since June 2013.

In other Geometry news, the agency won a couple of awards for campaigns in Asia.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Geometry Signs Jon Hamm as Global CCO

Jon HammEarlier in the month we let you know that Jon Hamm would be leaving his chief creative/innovation officer position at Momentum Worldwide to move back to his hometown of London — and now we know why.

Starting in November, he will occupy the newly created role of CCO at Geometry Global in the UK just over one year after the agency came to life via the G2/Ogilvy Action merger.

Some background: Hamm assumed the global CCO role at Momentum in 2009, one year after his own agency Greenroom Digital was purchased by IPG/Momentum (clients included Sony PlayStation, Nestle, TopShop, and Twentieth Century Fox). In his own words, he moved to New York “to transform an ‘analogue’ agency” by both directing creative for clients like AmEx, Coca Cola, Nestle, Sony and by leading new divisions like Momentum Entertainment Group.

No word on the sort of work Hamm will be doing in London, though he will report directly to Geometry’s Global CEO Steve Harding.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Changes at Social@Ogilvy, Geometry Global

Social@Ogilvy appointed Fergus Hay as General Manager for the Asia-Pacific region in Hong Kong.

Hay, who previously served as Executive Marketing Director at Ogilvy New York and Worldwide Managing Director on the SC Johnson business based in Chicago, has helped develop work for clients like British Airways, Barclays, Coca-Cola and Fanta. He also writes and produces the video series “Creativity: Weapon of Mass Disruption”, for which he interviews various industry thought leaders who are not you.

Hay will report to Hong Kong-based Global Managing Director Thomas Crampton.

(more…)

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Nescafé Print Ads Include Pop-Up Paper Mugs for Two, So You Can Both Scald Yourselves

Ahh, the morning paper. You’ve just settled into your seat on the train, or perhaps a park bench, to enjoy the morning light and digest the news of the day. But there are two things missing: your cup of morning joe, and another person to enjoy this peaceful moment of solitude with you.

Yes, the folks at Nescafé France have deemed reading a newspaper to be “a rather lonely moment.” As a cure for this intolerable isolation, they’ve invented branded newspaper wrappers that come with pop-up paper mugs, apparently with coffee powder in them. If you happen to be near some hot water, well you’re in luck! Instant coffee!

There are two mugs: one for you, and one for the person you are now sharing your Metro newspaper with! 

See below as actors convincingly use these paper advertisements as actual mugs, filling them with scalding liquid. And note the relief on their faces as they once again avoid another moment of being totally and inescapably alone. 

Via Ads of the World.

CREDITS
Client: Nescafé
Agency: Geometry Global, Paris
Chief executive officer: Reza Ghaem-Maghami
Executive creative director: Yvan Hiot
International creative director: Patrick Sullivan
Art director: Nicolas Gagner
Copywriter: Romain R. Nonis
Account manager: Margaux Delacommune
Art Director: David Lin
Art buyer: Annette Hallum
Chief Creative Officer / Worldwide Creative Director: Michael Kutschinski
Designer: Olivier brechon
Print manager: Karine Prigent / Redworks
Media planner: Severine Bernelin / Neo
Production: Ateliers Marina, Marsellus



Geometry Global, Chivas Pay Tribute to the ‘Modern Gentleman’

Geometry Global, or the “recently merged entity of G2, OgilvyAction and JWTAction”, went all out to promote client Chivas 18/Hong Kong in this campaign specifically designed for distribution on Facebook.

While it initially appeared as three short films–each one celebrating a different modern, socially-conscious entrepreneur–you can now check out the whole thing at once.

You may note the complete lack of alcohol in this film. As the campaign itself notes, “Modern Gentlemen do not pursue material gains, but a legacy of changing the lives of others”. Understandable, then, that they don’t have the time or inclination to drink during the day.

The brand made a few cocktail suggestions for such gentlemen in the form of Facebook offers for drinks like “Lighten Up the Dark“, which sounds delicious if you like Cointreau.

Credits after the jump.

(more…)

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Lego Versions of Famous Artworks Are So Great, They're Now Official Ads

When most great spec projects make the rounds among the Internet’s creative community, it’s assumed the work will never see the light of day. Here’s a notable, wonderful exception.

Late last year, Italian designer Marco Sodano received global praise for his creative pixelation of famous paintings remade with Legos. At the time, he said he wanted to convey “the belief that every child with Lego can become a great artist like Da Vinci and Vermeer.”

This month, he posted a new gallery, this time empowered to call it simply a “campaign for Lego.” The official versions (largely similar but for the word “Imagine” embedded at the top left) were produced by agency Geometry Global in Hong Kong, with Sodano as art director.

Check out the four official executions below:

Via The Inspiration.



Geometry Global Appoints New North American CEO

geometryOur tipsters were ahead of the press release today. WPP‘s New York-based “world’s largest activation network” Geometry Global–which sprang to life last summer as the activation agencies at G2, Ogilvy and JWT merged–has appointed Carl Hartman as its new North American CEO effective May 1st.

The release, which describes Hartman as “one of WPP’s top shopper marketing experts”, notes that he led the Kimberly-Clark team for more than six years before this move; he will continue to hold that role while reporting to global CEO Steve Harding.

Regarding the agency’s two current co-CEO’s:

Before beginning his stint at WPP, Hartman worked as a director at MEC and an account manager at Y&R.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.