Hasta La Creative!

BBDO New York has a new spot for Foot Locker that pits James Harden against the Internet in a best of three game of Horse.

It’s a really fun idea, in a “Why hasn’t anyone though of this before?” kind of way. Fans sent in their best shots to challenge Harden, and Harden attempts to recreate the shots. When he can make them, the Internet gets a letter, when he can’t Harden gets the letter. It makes for some compelling viewing for NBA fans, and fans of Harden in particular, and is a good way for the brand to offer original content to fans in what could easily be turned into a recurring series. Check out the video above to see how it panned out. (more…)

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Anyone who’s played squash knows it’s a frenetic game. Now, one British squash club has a fascinating new logo to match.

Melbourn Squash Club‘s new branding features a web of zigzag lines designed to look like a capital “M.” Created by Distil Studios, it’s meant to capture the spirit of smacking a ball back and forth against a wall with a racket.

The design studio explains on its site: “Avoiding generic silhouettes of players or two crossed rackets, our inspiration comes from every thwack, thud, squeak and sneaky drop shot to form their unique club initial.”

Distil creative director Neil Hedger tells Logo Design Love that the original sketch was pretty complex, and that the agency tried to simplify it—but in the end, couldn’t. “Some of the more simple approaches just lacked the energy of our original thought,” he says. “We kept much of the complexity of our first draft and opened up the spaces in between to help visual clarity. The rebounds from the left and right provide a much stronger form. We also put in just a couple of curved sneaky drop shots to break up the rigidity of the lines.”

Hedger adds: “To reflect a true squash match (and for animating the lines), we made sure the icon was formed from 2 continuous lines.”

Fast Company calls it “perfect.” For sure, it’s unusual and eye-catching. It actually seems to look kind of sinister, not unlike a mechanical spider. Or maybe “M” is for Mordor.

What do you see in this logo Rorschach test?

This ad from Major League Baseball honoring Derek Jeter is perhaps the simplest, least epic tribute we’ve seen to the Yankees captain, who, barring an unlikely postseason appearance by the team, will play his final game this Sunday against the Red Sox in Boston.

But for my money, the spot, from BBDO New York, is also the most poignant and moving Jeter tribute of the season, because it eschews grandeur and hype to focus on the future Hall of Famer’s most important legacy: the generations who grew up idolizing No. 2.

They’re embodied here by California Angeles outfielder Mike Trout, the most complete player in baseball today, along with college and high-school stars, right down to Little League phenoms Mo’ne Davis and Marquis Jackson.

In the low-key 30-second ad, we see youngsters copy Jeet’s mannerisms in the batter’s box and at shortstop, intercut with footage of the man himself, followed by the words, “A model of greatness. Thanks, Derek.”

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During his storied 20-year career, Jeter has always given 100 percent on the field—and in an era when so many professional athletes capsize in controversy, agents of their own destruction, the Captain has sailed above the fray, celebrated for his dignified demeanor and respect for the game.

Sure, it’s an image. But that’s the whole point. It’s an image worth emulating, a model for success that transcends Jeter’s many roles—team leader, five-time World Series champ, media celebrity—and gives kids hope that if they follow his example, they can overcome their struggles and achieve something great, whatever that may be.

The Jeter paeans from Gatorade (made with his input) and Nike’s Jordan Brand are each 90 seconds long and stand as suitably heartfelt, dazzling farewells to a player who’s meant so much to so many for so long.

The MLB spot goes deeper. It reminds us why heroes are important in an increasingly complex, confounding and cynical world, and gives Trout and his superstar peers a lofty standard—beyond wins, stats and multi-year contracts—to swing for.

David&Goliath launched a new campaign for VIZIO featuring Los Angeles Clippers star Blake Griffin cast in a different light.

Griffin spends the spots dishing out poetry on subjects like the mouthguard, tear-away pants and bobbleheads in what looks like a slam poetry cafe. Griffin’s “Slam Dunk Poetry” features an elementary rhyming scheme as he tackles his goofy subjects with apparent earnestness/seriousness, leading into the “see the beauty in everything” tagline. The campaign is timed to get basketball fans excited for the new season, which starts in October (and convince them to upgrade to a VIZIO Ultra HD). The videos launched on YouTube and VIZIO’s website Monday, and GIFS of Griffin’s performances are also available via Tumblr. (more…)

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Slam poetry nights can be awkward, but Los Angeles Clippers star Blake Griffin makes it look easy—his specialty in any environment—in a new series of videos for Vizio.

The ads, by David&Goliath, have the basketball star waxing poetic about his bobblehead, his tearaway pants and even his mouthguard. He’s got the requisite pauses and sighs down to an art. Still, he probably shouldn’t quit his day job.

The clips are part of Vizio’s slam dunk poetry campaign, which also includes a nifty feature on its microsite where it will compose a Griffin-esque poem based on your name and an item of your choice. Unfortunately, the power forward isn’t available to recite these ditties. (He is available in gif form on this Tumblr, though.)

So, grab yourself a seat at a dimly lit table, order a stiff drink and appreciate these works brought to you by Griffin.

Credits below.

CREDITS
Client: Vizio

Agency: David&Goliath
Founder & Chairman: David Angelo
Chief Creative Officer: Colin Jeffery
Group Creative Director: Ben Purcell
Group Creative Director: Steve Yee
Art Director: Mike Cornell
Copywriter: Andy Sciamanna
Head of Production: Carol Lombard
Agency Executive Producer:  Curt O’Brien
Agency Executive Producer: Christopher Coleman
Group Account Director: Jennifer Mull
Account Supervisor: Kammie Dons
Assistant Account Executive: Karolyne Crowe
Director of Business Affairs: Rodney Pizarro
Associate Business Affairs Manager: Camara Price

Production Company: RSA Films, Inc.
Director: Jordan Vogt-Roberts
Director of Photography: Mike Berlucci
President: Jules Daly
VP/Executive Producer: Marjie Abrahams
Executive Producer: Philip Detchmendy
Line Producer: Alejandra Quesada
Head of Production: Elicia Laport
Sales Representative: Shortlist

Editorial House: Spinach
Editor: Tony Orcena
Producer: Jonathan Carpio

Online & Color: Fell VFX
Flame Artist: Russell Fell
Executive Producer: Rachel Koch

Music: Human Music
Sound Design & Mix: Margarita Mix
Sound Engineer: Nathan Dubin

W+K Amsterdam launches a new campaign for FIFA 15 today, entitled “Feel The Game.”

In a 2:15 broadcast spot, W+K Amsterdam immerses fans into the on-pitch action as they experience what players in the game do. When it begins to rain, players are suddenly drenched in their apartments, when heavily tackled, they feel the hurt. It’s not exactly a new approach in gaming advertising, but it’s pulled off well. The agency also got Lionel Messi to join in on the action, both on the field and wielding a controller. The campaign airs globally beginning today, across broadcast and digital channels, with the full-length spot also broadcasting in the U.S. during the Manchester United match this Sunday.

“Fast-paced, raw, and explosive, modern football is a spectacle beyond belief. And FIFA 15 puts you right in the  middle of it. We wanted our film to do the same thing, to put you right in the thick of the
action, said David Smith, Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam’s creative director. “With the help of Mark Zibert, and the awesome studio at EA SPORTS, we believe we have created a football film that can live up to the best sport action sequences ever filmed.” (more…)

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BBDO New York has a new campaign for Visa showcasing how quick and easy the brand’s Visa Checkout service is.

In the campaign’s first spot, “Surfer,” BBDO New York teamed up with professional surfer Kolohe Andino, with voiceover from the inimitable Morgan Freeman. Over the course of the 60-second ad, Andino demonstrates how quick and easy Visa Checkout is by using it to order a Pizza Hut pizza while surfing a giant wave. The spot ends with the tagline, “Everywhere you want to be” (it appears they’ve dropped the “it’s”) before directing viewers to sign up for the service at visacheckout.com. “Surfer” debuted this past Sunday during FOX’s NFL broadcast, as Visa is using its NFL sponsorship to promote the campaign and get the word out about its recently-launched payment service.  (more…)

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The Los Angeles Clippers have announced the hiring of Santa Monica-based RPA as its new lead agency, tasked with heading strategy, creative, media planning and buying, digital/social marketing and branded entertainment, following a review launched in August.

The review was launched in search of an agency with experience “rebuilding an established, well-known brand” in the wake of the Donald Sterling scandal. Boston-based Pile & Co led the review, with a focus on agencies based in the area. New work can be expected soon, as the Clippers “will start the 2014–2015 season with a new creative platform that will be promoted across media channels.”

“The Los Angeles Clippers are poised for greatness. RPA will help the franchise become a first-class sports and entertainment brand,” said Kirt Danner, SVP, group account director at RPA. “The soon-to-launch campaign will help the franchise stand out and seize this unique opportunity to gain a competitive edge and increase its fan base.”

The team spent $433,500 in measured media last year, according to Kantar media, but that number could increase with the demands of the new campaign.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

M&C Saatchi is launching UGG’s first-ever global marketing campaign, entitled “This Is UGG,” which enlists the help of veteran brand ambassador Tom Brady in the brand’s latest effort to change its perception as the official fuzzy boot of Starbucks-toting girls everywhere.

Launching today, the campaign focuses on life’s smaller moments, centered around the 60-second spot “Time Out.” In the spot, Brady shares the message that in life you only get so many time outs and you need to make them count, because you can’t back pocket them or carry them over to another day. Tom’s voiceover plays out over a scene of him driving to play golf with his father, a pastime the two have shared since Tom was old enough to play. Another spot, featuring Brady and his mother, is set to follow in October, with a third entitled “Down Time” arriving in December.

“For the new UGG for Men campaign, we started with this premise: small moments can carry as much weight as the big moments,” explained Nancy Mamann, vice president of marketing for UGG Australia. “We conceptualized the spots to capture authentic moments that relate to men across the world. For Tom Brady in particular, we explored his life off the field, along with more personal settings, to show some of the moments that he considers meaningful.”

Whether that will convince men to rush out and buy UGG remains to be seen. Stick around for behind-the-scenes footage after the jump. (more…)

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

It’s no secret that Marshawn Lynch loves Skittles. And now, the brand’s real-life No. 1 fan is helping to kick off its official NFL sponsorship by showing how he (probably not in real life) works out with the candies.

The spot below, from Olson Engage—the first in a series of NFL-related Skittles marketing—claims that Skittles make game day “awesomer.”

Lynch, 28, whom Skittles honored last year with a special-edition “Seattle mix,” has known this for years. As his mother told Seahawks.com a couple of years ago: “When Marshawn was 12 or 13, we’d go to his games and I’d always have little candies in my purse,” she says.

“Before the game, I would say, ‘Here Marshawn, come and get you power pellets.’ I would give him a handful of Skittles and say, ‘Eat ’em up, baby. They’re going to make you run fast and they’re going to make you play good.’ “