RPA Goes Back to Basics for Honda

Yesterday we posted on an RPA campaign in which the agency dove into comedic short films for client Honda with the help of funny man Nick Thune.

In today’s offering, RPA does things a bit more traditionally for the same client. Here’s “Music Festival”:

The theme of the spot is “hipsters growing up,” and all the boxes have been checked: Austin, Texas; Portugal. The Man; comfort food; facial hair; throwback fashion.

We like the double twist at the end, though we still wonder whether the guy with the beard would be driving a new Honda.

What is he, an art director?

(more…)

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

72andSunny Goes Big with Trailer for Activision’s ‘Destiny’

72andSunny has just released a live action trailer for Activision’s new game Destiny, from the creators of the popular Halo franchise, which will be released on September 9th.

72andSunny and Activision went big for the trailer, teaming up with Academy Award winning VFX studio Digital Domain, Academy Award nominated FX studio Legacy Effects, and director Joseph Kosinski, who created most of the worlds for the ad in-camera, shooting at locations in Mexico, Arizona and Utah. The spot follows the adventures of Fireteam as they attempt to reclaim locations in our solar system from alien invaders. Levitating AI character Ghost is voiced by Peter Dinklage (who also voices the character in the game) and the spot mixes humor, action and Led Zeppelin’s iconic “Immigrant Song” to hype up the game and give a sense of its feel without any game footage. (more…)

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Fred Armisen Hugs Bruce Willis for Honda, RPA

Since few would argue that the commercials were more interesting than the game last night, chances are you saw RPA’s “Hugfest” spot, featuring Bruce Willis and SNL-alum/Portlandia star Fred Armisen.

The simple, straightforward spot features Willis urging viewers to hug those around them that they care about — “the people that matter to you, matter to us” — as a way of emphasizing Honda’s commitment to safety. Armisen then appears and hugs Willis for the duration of the 60 second spot.

“Our simple, yet engaging, big-game spot is intended to highlight not only Honda’s deep concern for the safety of our customers, but the actual industry-leading crash test results that back up our commitment,” explained Mike Accavitti, senior vice president of auto operations at American Honda Motor Co., Inc.

The campaign extends beyond the big game spot, with a large social media component utilizing the hashtag #hugfest. During the Super Bowl, Honda posted “real-time video reactions from Willis about events such as penalties, fumbles and referee calls on the brand’s @Honda Twitter feed.” Immediately after the spot aired, Honda encouraged viewers to send virtual hugs (actually Willis hugging the camera) to loved ones who they couldn’t be near during the big game. Today, Honda is collecting hugs via Twitter by asking people “to send a picture or Vine of their hug with the hash tag #hugfest.” Bruce Willis will then respond with a “meme appraisal of the hug.” Additionally, Honda will have a homepage takeovers at MSN and ESPN, where a 30-second spot “How to Hug” video featuring Willis and Armisen will greet visitors to the sites. You can view “How to Hug,” along with credits after the jump. continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

David&Goliath, Kia Reveal Extended Version of Super Bowl Spot, ‘The Truth’

Yesterday, we brought you news of David&Goliath’s teaser for their big game spot, “The Truth,” promoting the all-new 2015 K900, Kia’s first-ever luxury car. Today, David&Goliath and Kia revealed the extended, 90 second version of their Super Bowl ad, designed to “dispel the notion that tradition and history are what makes a luxury sedan,” according to Michael Sprague, executive vice president of marketing & communications, KMA.

“The Truth” features Laurence Fishburne reprising his role as Morpheus from The Matrix. Morpheus offers a couple waiting for the valet outside a restaurant a choice: “Take the blue key, you go back to the luxury you know. Take the red key, and you’ll never look at luxury the same again.” (Spoiler alert: They take the red key.)  Fishburne repeats the word “luxury” ad nauseum during the spot’s first 30 seconds or so, really hammering home that Kia is now offering a luxury vehicle. The spot manages to contain a lot of the Matrix references you’d expect, like a bending spoon and an explosion filled action sequence. But at the same time, “The Truth,” via Fishburne, manages at least one big surprise.

The 60 second version of “The Truth” will debut during the third quarter of the Super Bowl this Sunday, Feb. 2, launching the Kia’s campaign for the 2015 K900 in earnest, and marking Kia’s fifth consecutive year advertising in the big game. You can expect more Matrix-themed advertising from David&Goliath and Kia. Before and after the Super Bowl, David&Goliath’s integrated campaign “will incorporate TV, cinema, digital, print, experiential, social media and CRM components, all drawing heavily on imagery and ideas from the films.” Credits after the jump. continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

David&Goliath Reveals Teaser for Kia K900 Super Bowl Ad

With the big game less than a week away, the folks at El Segundo, CA-based David&Goliath have released a teaser for their Kia K900 Super Bowl spot.

The “Official K900 Game Day 2014 Teaser” sees Laurence Fishburne reprising his role as Morpheus from The Matrix trilogy. Morpheus returns to the Construct, where he fiddles with a classic Radiola TV set in an attempt to kick back with some chips and watch the big game. The trailer doesn’t really let us know what to expect on Sunday, other than Fishburne as Morpheus sometime in the third quarter, as it’s designed to keep us guessing. The spot won’t be the first featuring Fishburne promoting the K900, as he narrated December’s “Preconceived Notions” ad, which may offer more clues to the Super Bowl spot than the teaser itself. Stick around for credits after the jump. continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Activision, 72andSunny Bring the House Down with ‘Epic Night Out’

“Epic Night Out,” the splashy new 90-second Call of Duty: Ghosts spot from 72andSunny for Activision, is indeed epic, and easily riffs on the four-guys-who-have-fun-in-danger motif made popular by The Hangover. There are a few celebrity cameos, a crumbling Las Vegas set, and classic music, Sinatra’s “Live Until I Die.” Very epic. But no baby, though. Instead, the four heroes and their dog travel from desert wasteland, to cityscape, to outer space, and then to a frozen tundra. With the music and quick editing, it’s hard to pay attention to anything else.

I’m all for first-person shooters, and I don’t think they are ruining kids. If this spot were for the U.S. Armed Forces, that would be different. But, it’s worth pointing out that guns, explosions, apocalyptic Vegas, Frank Sinatra, and Megan Fox is way past the boiling point of glorying violence for a TV spot. That’s sensory overload for all of the juiced up gamer-guys who are going to sit in the basements and pretend not to pee in empty soda bottles. It’s also brilliant misdirection.  And if not for the Grand Theft Auto V ads, this would be the best video game spot I’ve ever seen. Credits after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

And Now, a First Kiss That Smells Like Doritos from Taco Bell

We all remember our awkward first kiss stories, full of nervousness and rapid heartbeats. Based on “First Kiss,” the new 30-second ad in the Taco Bell Live Mas campaign that came through the tips line, we can now add sticky fingers and spicy breath to the list of uncomfortable descriptors.

Mixing Doritos Locos Tacos and kisses may not seem like the best idea, but this spot might strike the right cord for those who value some teenage sentimentality and John Hughes movies. Associating Taco Bell with cuteness is a tough trick to pull off, you know, with the greasy smells and penchant for attracting drunk college guys as a significant customer base, but Deutsch LA and director Zach Math found a way to pull it off. Taco Bell seems to have tapped the right nerve with Doritos Locos Tacos: the product helped create 15,000 new jobs. Maybe the company can use the profits to provide complimentary mouthwash with any purchase, so young lovers who want to make out in Taco Bell parking lots can have pleasant memories.

Credits after the jump.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.