It’s 8 a.m. You log on to your first Zoom call of the day and, thanks to your shoddy Wi-Fi, you immediately freeze on screen. Cue a frantic restart. Next, you contend with a day of relentless buffering as you try to finish a work project, your stress levels rising so high you want to…
We spend a lot of time with clients—trying to make them laugh and drink, reassuring them of our endless (sometimes even slavish) capacity to do anything they put their mind to. And however much they like us as people, clients are keenly aware of this dynamic … this sense that they’re holding our balls between their (for now) relaxed hands.
It’s a relationship designed to make them as comfortable as possible. The result is that sometimes they end up saying some pretty weird stuff.
If you want the best pizza, you’re not going to order Domino’s. But if you want your pizza delivered in the most innovative way, well, Domino’s may have that market cornered.
The chain took four years to modify a car to become the perfect delivery vehicle. And now it is testing drone delivery in New Zealand. And by all accounts, its first drone test went well, with the pizza landing gently and without major damage—save for a little cheese stuck to the top of the box.
If you love yourself some Carpool Karaoke, Air New Zealand’s hoping you’ll be willing to watch celebrities hit new decibel levels in an airplane cockpit.
The below video is a public pitch aimed straight for late-night talk show host James Corden, who has created viral hit after viral hit with the popular segment, featuring musicians and other stars singing along with him to popular tracks while driving around Los Angeles. Corden notably even convinced Michelle Obama to jam to Beyoncé last month).
“Mate, we’ve got a pitch for you,” the Air New Zealand video begins. “Picture this: You. Us.”
Jaguar’s “Actual Reality” prank from a few months ago just won big at Cannes, taking home four Lions (a gold, two silvers and a bronze). It also would have probably given me a heart attack if I’d participated.
Sometimes finding the right Valentines gift is a little tricky, and sometimes you forget to get anything … No worries, Tui and Saatchi & Saatchi, Auckland to the rescue. All you have to do is roll up the ad and presto, perfect gift. Well, at least it looks like there’s a bunch of roses in your hands, but only if you got her drunk on TUI I s’pose.
To help enforce safety, Maritime New Zealand and FCB New Zealand developed the world’s first “Virtual Coast Guard”, an always-on system that patrols more than 9,000 miles of New Zealand’s coastline powered by using geo-fence technology. Knowing that boaters are on their phones capturing photos and checking weather conditions, the virtual system is able to target them through ads on mobile apps and websites to serve them a reminder to wear their life jacket, a warning if danger is imminent based on their location and other important safety messages.
Vodafone New Zealand is out with a heartwarming ad that tells the story of a mailman who finds and befriends a lost pig, then goes on a mission to reunite it with its owner.
It’s a path fraught with people who don’t know anything, except that pigs taste pretty good (truth). Eventually, thanks to Vodafone’s mobile network, the pig’s knight gallant is able to track down its home—though the story doesn’t end there.
The mailman’s escape might not be very smart, because doesn’t the woman already have his name and number, and all the necessary info to brand him a pig thief?
But ethics aside, the subtitled and punctuated oinks are pretty great, and Piggy Sue the Vodafone pig is definitely way less annoying than her American cousin Maxwell the Geico pig, even if she doesn’t actually have a Buddy Holly soundtrack.
CREDITS
Client: Vodafone
Creative Agency: FCB New Zealand
Executive Creative Director: Regan Grafton
Group Account Director: Karla Fisher
Head of Content Production: Pip Mayne
Planning Director: Simon Bird
Account Director: Dave Munn
PR: Angela Spain
PR Director: Joanna James
Producer: Amanda Langkilde
Regional Creative Director: James Mok
Senior Art Director: Freddie Coltart
Senior Copywriter: Matt Williams
Senior Planner: Hilary Dobson
Recording: Hammond Peak
Producer: Pen Cooper & Sarah Yetton
Music Production: Liquid Studios
Composer: Peter van der Fluit
Sound Production: The Coopers
Sound Engineer: Jon Cooper
Online Editor: Nigel Mortimer
Editor: Bernard Garry
Post Production House: Blockhead
Colourist: Ben Eagleton
Production Company
Production Designer: Margot Wilson
Production Company: Revolver
Managing Director: Michael Ritchie
Executive Producer: Michael Ritchie & Pip Smart
DOP: Nicolas Karakatsanis
Director: Steve Rogers
Holy mackerel, this octopus can use a camera!
Sony and FCB Auckland trained a female octopus named Rambo (no relation) to take pictures with a Cyber Shot TX30 camera for this captivating minute-long video.
This particular sea creature was used to promote the water- and shock-resistant camera because octopuses are among the most intelligent denizens of the deep. (Besides, clams can’t take direction, and lobsters are too darn tasty.)
A special rig helped Rambo push a shutter button to capture images of visitors outside her tank at Kelly Tarlton’s Sea Life Aquarium in New Zealand. Rambo’s trainer, Mark Vette, says it took her just three attempts to understand the process, though at times she behaved like an eight-armed diva, smashing several cameras to bits during a two-month training process. (Elsewhere, this little dude mastered octo-selfies in no time!)
Sony’s “Octographer” ad has gotten nearly 400,000 YouTube views in a week and lots of media play. Still, the brand message, while present in most coverage, has been somewhat overshadowed by the sheer novelty of a photo-taking octopus, especially in casual social mentions. For many, Rambo is the breakout star, while the camera is an afterthought. Props to the cephalopod for playing her mammalian, land-lubbing overlords for suckers.
FCB group account director Toby Sellers answered some of our questions about the stunt.
Why use an octopus?
We wanted to show the world that even an amateur photographer can take amazing underwater photos with Sony’s TX30. That led us to the idea of using a photographer who actually lives underwater.
They are one of the most intelligent underwater creatures, so we felt they would be a really good fit with our amazing underwater camera. We enlisted the help of Mark Vette, the animal expert behind our hugely successful “Driving Dogs” campaign (for Mini and the SPCA). He was really excited about the chance.
Was the concept a tough sell?
FCB Auckland had a lot of success with the “Bottled Walkman” campaign, so Sony was keen to see what we could do with their TX30. Their first reaction to the idea was amazement that it could be pulled off. We talked them through the plan we had developed with Mark, and they got very excited.
Was it more difficult than you imagined?
This project was far harder than any of us imagined it would be. Rambo got her name because the first few times we put the rig in the water she wanted to fight it. You could say she drew first blood. Despite the reports that it only took three tries [to learn the process], Rambo and Mark worked their way through 10 rigs and nearly as many cameras.
What would you say to activists who disapprove of using animals in ads?
Mark Vette and Kelly Tarlton only agreed to be involved because the process was enriching for the octopus. These creatures thrive in an environment where they are being mentally stimulated. When you have nine brains, you need to keep yourself occupied. So the project was not only fun for the octopus involved, it was also a chance to show the public how amazing these creatures are. The money people paid to have their photos taken goes to Kelly Tarlton’s Marine Life Trust.
Tell me about the April 10 photo event at the aquarium.
Rambo had a great time. She photographed over 100 visitors. Many were there because they had seen the story on TV, but a few foreign tourists just walked in and lined up. They were blown away to have their photos taken by the world’s first Octographer, and we were happy to give them a unique memento of their visit.
CREDITS
Client: Sony
Agency: FCB Auckland, New Zealand
Regional Executive Creative Director: James Mok
Executive Creative Directors: Tony Clewett, Regan Grafton
Writer: Peter Vegas
Art Directors: Leisa Wall, Christiaan Van Noppen
Head of Content, Executive Producer: Pip Mayne
Head of Art: Nick Smith
Director, Director of Photography: Michael Braid
Group Account Director: Toby Sellers
Account Director: Hannah Downes
Account Executive: Laura Little
Lead Behaviourist, Animals on Q: Mark Vette
Assistant Handlers, Animals on Q: Jazmin Vette dal Bello, Rosie Miles
Curator, Kelly Tarlton’s Sea Life Aquarium: Andrew Christie
Marketing Manager, Kelly Tarlton’s Sea Life Aquarium: Claire Wheeler
Rig Developers, Harrison & Watkins Ltd.: Harry Harrison, Blair Muchamp
Director of Photography, Event Coverage, Traction Films: Nic Fay
Editor, 6Twenty: Simon Wade
Editor, FCB: Grant Nicholson
Media Director: Rachel Leyland
Media Planner, Buyer: Erin McCaughley
General Manager, Public Relations: Angela Spain
Senior Account Director, Public Relations: Kimberley Kastelan
Digital Director: Kate Grigg
Customer Experiences Director: Ele Quigan
Music Composer: Peter van der Fluit
Music Composition: Liquid Studios
Studio Producer: Sarah Yetton
The wizards at Air New Zealand have conjured up their third J.R.R. Tolkien-themed video in as many years, ahead of the final installment of Peter Jackson’s second Middle Earth trilogy, “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.”
Directed by Taika Waititi, the new clip is modesty titled “The Most Epic Safety Video Ever Made,” and it features appearances by Elijah Wood, Dean O’Gorman and Sylvester McCoy, all stars of the upcoming movie. No Ian McKellen, though. I guess he took the bus. Jackson also appears quite a bit, and his production company, WETA Workshop, helped develop the spot, along with Kiwi ad agency True.
“This latest offering combines members of our cast and our locations with Air New Zealand’s unique personality.” says Jackson. “I had a lot of fun on the set with Taika and the team and look forward to seeing the video on board.”
Elaborate effects—including one big-ass bird—and pointy-eared pageantry propel demonstrations of life vests, oxygen masks, aircraft exit procedures and the like. There’s plenty to savor, but one of the coolest elements is among the simplest: wood-carved tablet-type devices that perfectly capture the “magic mirror” ambiance of modern technology. MGM should market them as movie tie-ins. I want one!
“May your path always be guided by the light of the stars,” Wood says at the end of the fantastic journey. It’s a fitting way to wish viewers well and drive home the safety message once the enormous eagle has landed.
Air NZ’s first Hobbit-inspired flight-safety foray, “An Unexpected Briefing,” took off in 2012. A second spot, “Just Another Day in Middle Earth”—a fanciful long-form commercial sans safety message—taxied down the runway a year ago.
Apart from its elvish travels, the carrier’s taken off on other flights of fancy through the years. Far from the Shire, Air NZ visited a different land of enchantment in this Sports Illustrated safety collaboration, made its cabin attendants’ clothing disappear for no good reason, and let Richard Simmons exercise his own strange magic.
Y&R New Zealand turns manly beards into cute animals for Schick’s “Free Your Skin” campaign, which takes a bold anti-beard stance in this golden age of hirsute ruggedness.
Of course, sneering observers are all calling the Schick models hipsters, so maybe the ads also tap into a sort of cultural exhaustion with all things bearded, buttoned-down and knit-capped. Seriously, I think Tony Montana said the F-word fewer times than I’ve read the word “hipster” doing research for this post.
Y&R did a brief interview with Metro about the campaign, claiming that the bearded creatives in the agency’s employ “all confessed that their beards aren’t actually that pleasant to live with.” Lies and slander! They also claim that “women actually find beards kinda gross,” which science would argue is only half-true.
Via Design Taxi.
Beck’s recently made an unorthodox contribution to New Zealand’s Music Month by unveiling a touch-activated street poster that lets passers-by play or even remix tracks from local musicians.
The posters are made with conductive ink and special sensors that react to human touch like an iPad screen would, with audio coming from a rear-mounted speaker. Most of the music provided is feckless indie rock, but it’s a nationally sponsored music festival, so no one should be expecting Meth Drinker or anything.
The posters were a collaborative effort between Novalia and the Shine agency, and one of the posters has been put up for auction to benefit the New Zealand Music Foundation. You may recall that Beck’s came up with a playable beer bottle last year, which makes me wonder if Beck’s has a hidden agenda to make music come out of anything. If so, I eagerly await the singing toilet seat.
Beck's recently made an unorthodox contribution to New Zealand's Music Month by unveiling a touch-activated street poster that lets passers-by play or even remix tracks from local musicians.
The posters are made with conductive ink and special sensors that react to human touch like an iPad screen would, with audio coming from a rear-mounted speaker. Most of the music provided is feckless indie rock, but it's a nationally sponsored music festival, so no one should be expecting Meth Drinker or anything.
The posters were a collaborative effort between Novalia and the Shine agency, and one of the posters has been put up for auction to benefit the New Zealand Music Foundation. You may recall that Beck's came up with a playable beer bottle last year, which makes me wonder if Beck's has a hidden agenda to make music come out of anything. If so, I eagerly await the singing toilet seat.
Timestorms Films a passé 4 mois à filmer des paysages magnifiques situés en Nouvelle-Zélande, à dormir à la belle étoile ou encore à explorer des routes
et chemins soulignant la grandeur de la nature. Une vidéo en timelpase d’une superbe qualité tournée au Canon EOS 6D et montée sur une musique de Hans Zimmer.
The Internet really is a boon for pet-food marketers clever enough to capitalize on animal-obsessed Web culture without seeming too mercenary.
Pedigree New Zealand gets extra brownie points for this video of cute dogs being cute, which attempts to leverage YouTube's revenue-sharing model to raise money for dog charity … as if you needed another reason to watch dachshunds eating hot dogs. (No, it's not cannibalism, though it might count as a sort of professional discourtesy.)
The concept is all the more impressive in the way it take two things that are usually annoying—seeing ads on other ads, and being asked to share ads—and makes them kind of feel-good (even if, given YouTube's meager ad rates, it's hard to imagine the campaign actually making significant money).
Regardless, the spot, by Colenso BBDO, is a knockout delight when measured against the high bar for misery-inducing commercials in the pet-adoption genre. Unlike the Sarah McLaughlin ASPCA sob fest that haunts an entire generation of U.S. TV viewers, this one doesn't hinge on making everyone feel awful about themselves.
Plus, the dogs are awesome to watch. Except for that winking puppy at the end, which clearly needs help for having confused itself with a cat. Only cats are supposed to be creepy.
Credits below.
CREDITS
Client: Pedigree
Agency: Colenso BBDO, New Zealand
Creative Chairman: Nick Worthington
Creative Director: Levi Slavin
Senior Copywriter: Matt Lawson
Copywriter: Ben Polkinghorne
Art Director: Scott Kelly
Business Director: Helen Fitzsimons
Senior Social, Digital Strategist: Neville Doyle
Senior Planner: Tamsin McDonnell
Production Company: Finch
Director: Nick Ball
Executive Producer: Rob Galluzzo
Producer: Karen Bryson
Associate Producer: Amy Dymond
Director of Photography: Crighton Bone
Production Designer: Sara Mathers
Animal Wranglers: Animal House
VFX Supervisors: Andrew Timms, Mat Ellin
Offline: Method Studios
Editor: Seth Lockwood
Visual Effects: Beryl
Grade: Pete Ritchie
Flame: Andrew Timms, Mat Ellin
Sound Design: Franklin Rd
Composer: Jonathan Dreyfus
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.
