Flying Notebooks Chase Students Around in This Drone-Packed Ad for a Scanning App

What’s an appropriate visual metaphor for an app that lets you scan handwritten notes to your smartphone? If you’re U.K. stationery brand Oxford, it’s a drone that follows you everywhere, lugging your paper notebooks.

In this new video from gyro Paris, flying reams of study materials distract. haunt, and taunt a bunch of stylish teens. All that to promote Oxford’s SOS Notes app, which lets users scan Oxford notebooks and save them to various devices as .pdf files.

Setting aside whether that’s a task that really needs its own app, it’s hard not to wonder if Oxford should really sell it as an oppressive, inescapable nuisance. Then again, that’s probably how most students feel about their homework already. And theoretically, the product is actually making their lives easier—mostly by reducing work to share notes with friends, but also by lightening their physical load, while they, say, skateboard.

That makes the playful, unencumbered tone of the clip, fit pretty nicely—even if it does seem weird for Oxford to introduce this new element of its brand as an extension of the surveillance state. The kids would probably roll their eyes at that kind of handwringing, though, then hop on a hoverboard and high five a robot. 

And in fairness, it looks like it must have been a lot fun to shoot, given the fleet of drones. Interrupting a make-out session is just rude, though.

CREDITS

Brand: Oxford?
Agency: gyro Paris
?Executive Creative Director: Sebastien Zanini, Pierre-Marie Faussurier?
Art Director: Aurelie Casimiri?
Copywriter: Margaux Castanier
?Business Director: Rebecca Cremonini?
Account Executive: Marion Lasselin?
Head of Strategy: Evelyne Bourdonne, Zoe Sabourdy
?Media Strategist: Pascal Deneuter?
TV Production: Yelena Nikolic?
Director: Romain Quirot?
Production Company: Fat Cat

Old Idea looking young? / Une vieille idée sans cesse rajeunie?

Cliquer ici pour voir la vidéo.

Cliquer ici pour voir la vidéo.

THE ORIGINAL?
Volkswagen New Beetle « Senior Rebels » – 2012
Source : Luerzer’s Archive
Agency : DDB Beijing (China)
LESS ORIGINAL
Taco Bell « Viva Young » Superbowl – 2013
Source : Superbowl
Agency : Deutsch LA (USA)