Hasta La Creative!

Did you know that 2015 marks the 250th anniversary of the Hennessy brand? Neither did we. The company, however, has organized various high-profile stunts to ensure that the public remembers.

On the first of July, a ship faithfully designed to resemble the one that brought the Marquis de Lafayette into Manhattan in 1780 docked in New York Harbor as part of a larger effort to honor the role France played in the American Revolution. One of the first guests to greet the ship when it reached Yorktown, Virginia in June was Miles Young, who is both the soon-to-depart global CEO of Ogilvy & Mather and the president of the Friends of Hermione-Lafayette in America.

Among the distinctly French items on that boat were two barrels of limited edition, very expensive cognac. From the Hennessy summary :

“Only 250 barrels were created of the Hennessy 250 Collector Blend and just 15 of those will be made available globally, in this single barrel lot format.”

The two barrels were created “in tribute to those carried in 1780? with the plan that they would both be auctioned off in the United States–first in Mount Vernon, Virginia and then in New York.

We hear from a source close to the matter that the buyer of the first barrel was the founder and leader of one of North America’s hottest ad agencies, who paid more than $150,000 for the equivalent of “250 bottles of the 250 Collectors Blend” in an online auction. (This agency didn’t win the top honor in France last month, but it did go home with a considerable collection of new lions including two of the biggest prizes in the ad world.)

The executive in question may have gotten a deal: the auction listing estimates the fair market value of the entire package to be $215,000, but it appears to have sold for only $150,000. The barrel will now be “gifted to the purchaser as a treasured souvenir of the extraordinary milestone in the history of cognac,” and that purchaser may join fellow Hennessy enthusiasts like Tupac, T.I., Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg among the ranks of those who have gone to extra lengths to express their admiration for the brand.

In case you thought this purchase to be completely gratuitous:

“100% of the auction proceeds will go to Robin Hood, New York’s largest poverty-fighting organization.”

So it was all for charity, though Robin Hood will not receive a “three day/two night visit for two to the Hennessy estate in Cognac, France.”

Now someone has to drink that stuff.

PornHub is really excited about its new product innovation, the TwerkingButt. The collaboration with adult novelty manufacturer Topco Sales (which we’re relatively sure is not just an elaborate hoax) is backed by Cyberskin technology (which warms to body temperature) and features “multiple twerking patterns, customizable rhythms, massage speeds, sensual vibration, and simulated body heat.”

The device is controlled via an accompanying remote, or with a smartphone app, and also includes virtual reality goggles and 3-D content. On the TwerkingButt website, PornHub promises “the ultimate in cyber passion” while daring users to live out their wildest (wet) dreams. An accompanying video takes a lighthearted approach, presenting the “top secret program” that led to the development of the “revolutionary new product,” which mostly consists of goggle-wearing men and women in lab coats “working around the clock” watching live models twerk…and a lot of celebratory butt slapping. But all that twerking won’t come cheap; the Twerking Butt is being released in two versions, the $699 Classic and $999 Deluxe.

“We can barely contain our excitement for the new TwerkingButt,” PornHub vice president Corey Price told Adweek. “I think we can honestly say that the release of our new product will mark a new benchmark in the convergence of emerging technology and immersive pleasure to deliver one of the most lifelike sexual simulation experiences on the market today.”

Hey there, agency creatives: are you and your significant other expecting yet still struggling to decide whether your first-born will be Jayden, Reagan or Madison?

Damjan Pita and Derek Evan Harms–who both happen to be ACDs at BBDO New York–have a solution: Tinder for baby names.

They started the project in collaboration with “a bunch of friends all over the world.” The team was inspired by another former colleague who described how he and his wife have been making lists of monikers for their prospective kids and comparing their results in the interest of finding common ground.

So they made an app: swipe right if you like the name and left if you don’t. It’s simple and very pastel. As Pita tells us, “finding a name for your baby should be as fun as making it.”

Your own side project may well be cooler than this one, but the app taught us that Gray means “grey-haired” and Yunus means “dove.” Did you know that?!

Here’s a nugget we almost missed last week amidst all the rose liquor and self-congratulations: an artist sued Starbucks and 72andSunny for allegedly ripping off her work.

The New York Post, of all places, first broke news of Maya Hayuk’s plans to take the coffee brand to court for co-opting her artwork in the packaging of its new mini-frappucino product.

The lawsuit filed by Saunders & Silverstein (full doc shared here via Animal New York) names both Starbucks and 72andSunny. Hayuk told The Post that a rep from the agency contacted her last October, writing “we love your work,” but the artist declined to collaborate with the company after the parties involved spent several days trying to negotiate a deal.

Several months later, Hayuk noticed a resemblance between her own murals (image via her Facebook page):

…and the rainbow-colored imagery Starbucks used on the product’s packaging when it launched:

Get your hands on one RT @frappuccino: Ta-dahhh! Meet the Mini Frappuccino! pic.twitter.com/W8vnqB9IU9

— Starbucks Coffee (@Starbucks) May 11, 2015

More specifically, Hayuk told the Post that the image on the cups was very close to that of five specific paintings that she recently completed.

Here is a side-by-side comparison via Artnet (images taken by Hayuk herself):

As the suit puts it, “Hayuk has a unique and distinctive style that is very recognizable” and does not resemble the work of Jordan Kay, the artist credited with creating the Starbucks packaging (portfolio here).

You may be reminded of a case from 2012 in which the band Beach House was approached by Volkswagen and DDB regarding a song the company wanted to use in one of its UK ads. The band said no, so the agency got the music production studio involved in the subsequent campaign to create a song so similar that fans started emailing the video to Beach House’s Alex Scally, who later told The New York Times that the whole ordeal felt “very invasive.”

In this case as in that one, the accuser will probably not win in court because the ad does not appear to be a direct copy of one of her pieces. (As noted by Artnet, Hayuk has sued various parties in the past for using her work in promo campaigns without receiving permission to do so.)

In other news regarding agencies taking credit for work they didn’t create, Geometry Global Dubai was forced to return its Cannes Grand Prix for product design after various parties noted that no one at the agency actually played an active role in designing the winning product. They just promoted it.

Good to know that the ad industry continues to respect the creative process above all other things.

Today in completely unsubstantiated “news,” a source tells us that a certain big-name agency owned by a certain big-name holding company is experiencing some technical difficulties in its New York office.

Specifically, our source claims that the office’s air conditioning system has not been functioning properly for over a week. Because Manhattan is trending “very hot” at the moment, many employees currently “[camp] out like refugees” in the space’s corridors in hopes of catching the slightest hint of a natural breeze.

In addition to this unforgivable offense, our source also tells us that the office elevators are kaputt and that company email isn’t functioning properly either. (It must be Outlook, the worst tech product ever released on an unsuspecting, undeserving public.)

This “story” somehow includes every element of our recurring work nightmare.

But it’s not all bad news for this agency, which is in the midst of revealing its new face to the world at large. We hear that “staffing changes” are pending and that employees are not terribly happy about reports of a sky-high salary for the parent company’s chief executive, who’s too busy listening to brand strategy insights from the guy on Entourage and the woman with the clickbait butt to pay attention.

Here is Shutterstock’s approximation of our tipster’s daydream:

Employees could always visit the Hulu Seinfeld pop-up apartment a few short subway stops away. This real-life marketing stunt presumably includes working AC units in addition to other attractions like “Kramer’s reverse peephole.“

So AKQA has had a nice string of wins recently: just this week, the agency expanded its digital role on the Verizon account. Last month it became Volvo’s lead digital agency, and in April it named three members of its global creative team to ECD roles.

That said, something seems to be happening to the agency’s Glassdoor profile.

Just this week, several people who identify themselves as current employees shared their conspiracy theories:

Where are these “fake” reviews?

Does the agency not “appreciate its employees”? Is it not “inspiring?” Can it not be “rewarding and challenging in equal measure?” Does working at this particular shop not allow one to make “friends for life?”

We will choose not to disbelieve these sentiments, but some employees doubt the sincerity of the five-star reviews, classifying them as the ad agency equivalent of “astroturfing.”

This is not an uncommon practice in many industries! Take Edelman, the world’s largest PR firm. Not only does it have more big-name clients than its competitors…it also happens to have a whopping 1,100 reviews on Glassdoor–the vast majority of them suspiciously positive given what we’ve heard from former employees. It often appears on the “best places to work” list, and in 2014 its chief was the third-highest rated boss on the site.

Coincidence? Probably.

Grey Shanghai launched what is very likely the strangest ad you will ever see for California Walnuts, with the K-Pop inspired music video ad
“Recess for the Mind,” aimed at the Chinese youth market. Yes, you read that correctly, a music video for walnuts.

The nearly three minute ad touts the brain-boosting powers of walnuts with a catchy tune featuring such classic lines as “California Walnuts…kakakakakakaka/Boost brainpower, score higher…kakakakakakaka” and “Brain cells, brain cells jumpstarting quickly.” It opens on some struggling students receiving failing test scores. Walnuts are launched into the classroom, and a girl group known as Recess Princess magically emerges, delivering the feel-good walnut anthem of the summer and promising “Better marks and no more worried family.” Just try to get this one out of your head.

Daniel Sheppard is a commercial director who’s worked on campaigns for Hershey’s, Jolly Rancher, LG, Sprint, etc. and collaborated with creative teams at Leo Burnett, DDB, Chiat, Ogilvy and more. (In the past, we covered a Mother campaign for Jagermeister on which he served as editor.)

His real passion is comedy in advertising–and this year he wants to reward those he most admires in the “funny ad work” field with Dannes Lions, his own twist on the event at which everyone spends a week in France getting drunk and gossiping about co-workers.

Here’s the video call for entries, which debuted on the Lions’ YouTube page this month:

There will indeed be “100 Real Trophies,” which will go to the agencies/teams responsible for what Sheppard deems to be the funniest ads of the past two years. The image above is a prototype we received from him a few weeks ago.

Sheppard tells us that the Dannes Lions seed started “because every year when Cannes results come out, I always run to see who the winners are–but I’m only interested in the stuff that’s funny. Why isn’t there any [awards program] that celebrates comedy?”

From his own press release:

“For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated by advertising and the idea of mixing my own body with a lion’s body and turning it into a trophy. This is an effort to celebrate both.”

Sheppard decided to remedy that lack of recognition for funny ads by creating an alternative to the Cannes Festival. He tells us that, while “this is [only] the first year,” the Dannes will be back in 2016. “If it keeps going, maybe it will be a fun thing.”

Sheppard calls his event “the most prestigious comedy award in advertising,” adding, “I guess it’s the only one, but it’s also the most prestigious.”

He tells us that “for the first year, I’m the only judge,” but notes that he would like to recruit some creative directors to help him pick next year’s funniest.

The Dannes homepage tells us that 365 campaigns have been submitted so far–and Sheppard says that he has received work from TBWA, Grey, DDB, BBDO, McCann, Leo Burnett and more since announcing the competitionvia Facebook on June 1st. The submissions to date include work created for Oreo, Skittles, Esurance, Hotels.com, Buffalo Wild Wings, Pepto Bismol, etc.

Some of that participation came directly from mailing key figures within the industry, but Sheppard attributes much of his project’s success to “word of mouth” among creatives.

While Sheppard doesn’t think “there are any specific brands to beat” in the competition, he does believe that certain companies are “doing consistently good work” and names Old Spice, DirecTV, Kayak and Dish. He also mentions “really great breakthrough stuff from brands like Quilted Northern” like Droga5’s recent “Designed To Be Forgotten” campaign.

The Dannes will not include any free food, alcohol, egos inflated by designer drugs, or incidents fit for this blog–but all 100 winners will be listed on its homepage when Sheppard announces his results on June 25th.

Stay tuned, etc.

You may have heard that the media is dying. Or something like that.

A couple of Miami Ad School students/freelance art directors would like to help remedy that situation in their own way with the assistance of a very potent weapon: Kim Kardashian’s butt.

In what cannot possibly be a ploy to win attention from those very same clickbait-crazy media enablers, art directors/interns Jen Garcia of 360i and Carl Larsson of Havas came up with an idea to bring more attention to serious events around the world via the aforementioned reality star’s famously plump posterior.

Their website, The Big Ass News, shares primarily tragic international stories from outlets like the BBC, The New York Times, The Guardian and more. In order to read these stories, however, one must literally click on Kim’s butt.

Here’s another example:

Garcia tells us that the two came up with the idea when discussing the fact that most people their age “probably know more about Kim Kardashian’s ass” than other, more important matters affecting the world at large. They labeled the project “a cultural wake-up call” and they aim to take the focus away from Kim’s butt…by forcing readers to focus on Kim’s butt.

In explaining the side project, Garcia calls it “a serious issue expressed in a humorous way” and compares the current state of media to that of fast food, writing:

“We’re slowly changing…now we’re questioning our food more and more and altering our food habits, and so are fast food companies.

We as a society know we need to improve…The media is going to give us whatever is getting them clicks. So it’s up to us to want to make that change.”

We can’t say whether projects like Big Ass News will in any way make the average reader more conscious about clicking on things like this very story, but it has earned the pair a bit of attention…and it will probably make for a good addition to their portfolios as they look for work in the agency world.

It made you click, didn’t it?

(No media outlets were harmed in the making of this completely disposable blog post. But the meta is making us dizzy.)