Hasta La Creative!

W+K Amsterdam looked to Blake Griffin to celebrate the arrival of the new Nike Jordan collection to Foot Locker with a new ad entitled “Above Expectations.”

The 30-second spot, filmed in black and white by director Paul Hunter, addresses Griffin’s naysayers, who pigeonhole the Clippers star as “just a dunker.” Addressing those expectations right away, the voiceover advises viewers, “If you expect another Blake Griffin dunk compilation, change the channel,” before going on to commend the star on his rebound, passing and ball-handling skills. Thankfully, it doesn’t highlight Griffin’s slam poetry skills. “That’s the thing about expectations,” the spot concludes, “you can live up to them, or rise above them.” Playfully, the online version of the ad then advertises a link to “See the jump man dunk, man” which links to a video where Griffin concedes “Alright, you’ve come this far, I’ll give you just one.”

The spot is airing on broadcast in France and Italy, as well as online across Europe, where it is supported by digital and social initiatives.

“The Jordan brand has a long tradition of showing athletes in a unique light, so it was nice to show the world a whole other side to Blake Griffin,” said David Smith, Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam creative director, in a press release. (more…)

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Back in October, we brought you news of David&Goliath’s new campaign for Kia Optima starring L.A. Clippers power forward Blake Griffin and Jack McBrayer (an actor best known for his work on 30 Rock) as a superhero team saving people from non-Kia purchases. We were a bit disappointed with the initial spot, but hoped that the spot’s title “Trailer” indicated it was just a teaser for things to come. Now, David&Goliath have released two new spots for the campaign, “Zipline” (featured above) and “Apologize to You.” Unfortunately, both fail to live up to the potential of the premise.

“Zipline” features Blake Griffin and sidekick Jack McBrayer crashing in on a lame Internet shopping session. They present the Optima as a better option, to a man who is understandably freaked out by this series of events. Griffin and McBrayer have good chemistry together, but the spot fails to capitalize on it and ultimately falls flat. It might help if the two interacted more, instead of seemingly splitting screen time in separate shots.

That “Zipline” is actually the better of the two spots should tell you something about “Apologize to You.” The spot features Griffin and a fire extinguisher-wielding McBrayer demanding a passerby apologize for not selecting the Optima. It’s repetitive to say the least, lacking any real substance in exchange for a failed attempt at cheap laughs. Hopefully, the folks over at David&Goliath can rebound from these efforts, as we still think this campaign has the potential to be funny. Credits and “Apologize to You” after the jump. continued…

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Leo Burnett’s “Design Your Life” campaign for the new Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Gear, which the agency hopes to present as “vehicles of inspiration,” kicks off with the 2:51 length “Sweet Dreams.”

“Sweet Dreams” tells the story of a young woman who wants to save her grandfather’s failing toy shop. The ad follows the woman around as she utilizes six of the phone’s distinct features, all leading to a puppet performance that presumably will help revive the shop (somehow). While “Sweet Dreams,” directed by music video veteran Paul Hunter, sets the bar very high in terms of production, direction and cinematography — Samsung and Leo Burnett go as far as to call it a “digital short film” (a bit self-congratulatory if you ask me) — the writing and overall concept are a bit of a head-scratcher. Why isn’t anyone going to the toy store, it looks awesome? Is the puppet show really going to help? The store is closed at the time of performance and the stage seems to be blocking any view of the store itself.

If you can put aside the strange and poorly realized premise, the stylization works well, and Leo Burnett does a good job of showing the phone’s features in action. Plus, what’s not to love about dancing puppets? (Although the “puppets” in question were actually real dancers converted to CGI, rather than actual marionettes.) Whether or not it works as a story (or “digital short film”), “Sweet Dreams” does a good job of showcasing Samsung’s Galaxy Note 3 and Galaxy Gear. A promising start to the campaign, hopefully next time Leo Burnett can pull off a better realized concept to fulfill the potential of their impressive production.  continued…

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And now, for something, er, lighter. These back-to-school posts almost make me wistful for the days when a new pencil case was the joy of my September. But as I have grown, so has the sophistication of academic shopping. To keep with the times, Best Buy is branding themselves America’s go-to “Techfitter” of the season.

To show that they’ll equip students with not only the best technology, but the right technology for their pursuits, CP+B and Best Buy found real students and surprised them with personalized Best Buys, “tech-fitted” to their academic interests in a pair of new Paul Hunter-directed spots. Greg, Aerospace Engineering Major, gets a semi truck parked in front of his house. It opens, and he’s presented with the planetary system, plus a launchable rocket (sadly not available at a Best Buy near you). Lidia, a Marine Biology major, gets an underwater tech experience complete with dolphins and jellyfish. Both personalized surprise scenarios are scattered with Windows 8 laptops and tablets.

Additional spots will air later this month, and my guess is the lucky students will not include an English or PoliSci major, because those experiences would involve sheafs of paper and alcohol. Let’s expect an aspiring architect and an ambitious pre-med; they provide ideal landscapes for Best Buy’s eager urban tech-fitter to make a difference. Credits after the jump.

continued…

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