The latest work from Nike Sportswear and long-time collaborator Royale, a digital design company with offices in Los Angeles and Seattle:
Royale’s incredibly detailed CG animation takes us on a fantastic voyage of the design and execution process of a hoodie, from threads being woven on a high-tech, circular-knit loom to its perfect fit on a person’s body. Nike Tech Fleece is a unique thermal fabrication that merges a smooth jersey with a synthetic spacer to create “Warmth Without Weight.”
“Nike wanted a piece that shows how an equal amount of technology goes into building its street wear as does its footwear,” said Brien Holman, ECD/Partner at Royale. “The actual process of creating such a lightweight fleece is what we wanted to focus on. We built a CG loom that would realistically spool hundreds of thousands of threads into one piece of fabric. The Tech Fleece Hoodie is constructed within this loom, giving extra attention to the elements that make it unique.”
The spot is running online at sites such as YouTube and throughout Nike’s media channels, which include its retail store screens, outdoor media and Nike.com.
Royale’s effort supports the launch of the Nike Tech Pack: Tech Fleece debut Fall/Holiday 2013 Collection, which is now available at Nike Sportswear retailers and Nike.com. Tech Fleece evolves the fit, feel and function of Nike’s most iconic sportswear silhouettes—such as hoodies, crewnecks and zip-up sweaters—to the fabric.
Production Credits: Production: Royale Director / Partner: Brien Holman Executive Creative Director / Partner: Jayson Whitmore Managing Director / Partner: Jennifer Lucero Executive Producer: Chris Volckmann Art Director: Jonathan Kim Designers: Jonathan Kim, Jen Olive Lee, Juliet Park, David Viau, and Patrick Clarke Previs Artist: Blake Beynon CG Supervisor / VFX Lead: Andy Moorer Technical Director: Steve Caron 3D Modeling: Juan Carlos Cuadra, Erick Schiele, Adam Rosenzweig 3D Environment: Brian Broussard, Craig Christian 3D Animators: James Lane, Aldrich Torres, Matt Guzzardo, Billy Maloney Visual Effects / Ice Artists: Ciaran Moloney, Leonard Koch, William Morrison Compositing Lead: Geronimo Moralez Compositors: Renzo Reyes, Dan Blank, Geronimo Moralez, John Cornejo, and Pency Kinnard Head of Production: Danielle Hazan Producers: Jamey Kitchens, Sean Sullivan
A reporter learns to "Respect the Tech" in Kia's "HotBots" commercial for the 2014 Forte, the ad will air during the 2013 Super Bowl. The all-new 2014 Kia Forte is designed for those who love technology. And nobody loves technology more than sexy high-tech robots. Check out the two beautiful hotbots unveil the new Forte at a press event. Things take an unexpected turn after one reporter gets a little too close to their prized possession. Let's just say he learns an important lesson: Always respect the tech.
Credits: Advertising Agency: David&Goliath Chief Creative Officer: David Angelo Executive Creative Director: Colin Jeffery Creative Directors: Gary DuToit, Eron Broughton Assistant Creative Director / Copywriter: Greg Buri Assistant Creative Director / Art Director: Basil Cowieson Executive Producer, Managing Director: Carol Lombard Executive Producer: Paul Albanese Managing Partner, Client Services: Brian Dunbar Group Account Director: Brook Dore Senior Integrated Account Director: Justin Manfredi Account Supervisor: Nancy Ramirez Senior Account Executive: Kammie Dons Director of Strategic Planning: David Measer Strategic Planner: Armando Potter
Looking for an ingenious way to build their online presence, the Johannesburg Zoo has decided to hand over all their Social Media management to ‘someone’ who knows the zoo inside out. BG the Badger! The Johannesburg Zoo’s much-loved resident honey badger and the official JHB Zoo mascot. How is this even possible? Well, it’s largely due to BG’s new high-tech animal enclosure, cleverly devised by award-winning digital agency Hellocomputer, of the Draftfcb group. Creatives on the job include Candice Hellens (copywriter), Eras Gous (art-director) Moira-Gene Sephton Gous (art-director) and Rory MacRobert (copywriter), and the technology was implemented by tech wizard Tom van den Bon (at BinarySpace) along with Johan Pieterse, Nathan O' Gates and Ben Fourie of Hellocomputer. Selected because of his cheeky-yet-lovable personality, love of people and his very active nature, BG began tweeting on June 14 this year. You can follow him at @zootweetslive. The Technology: BG’s high-tech badger enclosure is rigged with wireless infrared motion sensors, which are divided into six zones. The animal-friendly sensors talk to a server that holds a database of hundreds of pre-written BG tweets. As BG moves from zone to zone, the motion sensors pick up on his location and automatically trigger tweets from his Twitter account, in real-time. The built-from-scratch coding ensures that all the tweets are relevant to what BG is doing at that moment e.g. if BG is at the front section of his enclosure he will trigger people-related tweets, when he is near the sides he will trigger neighbour-related tweets and so on. “The techno-wizards from Hellocomputer are thrilled by the project and the team at the JHB Zoo are amped to have turned BG into – in record time – what they believe is the world’s first LIVE tweeting zoo ‘spokesanimal’”, said Kerry Friend, executive creative director of Hellocomputer. “The Joburg Zoo does a wonderful job connecting with animal fans using many different traditional media, but it has steered away from the digital realm until now. Having acknowledged the many benefits of engaging with its target base using social media, it wanted an especially appealing way of doing so.” “Hellocomputer’s logic was that, since the thing that people really love about the Zoo is its animals, it makes sense for an animal to be their spokesperson”. “The job has fallen on BG’s shoulders right now but there are plenty of interesting candidates, ones who are on the extinction list and who could become ‘spokesanimals’ for their species as well. Who knows what the future will bring,” she said. “Critical to the zoo’s acceptance of the concept and the system is BG’s safety”, said Johannesburg Zoo’s Brand & Communications Manager, Letta Madlala. “While we were immediately enchanted by Hellocomputer’s innovative proposal to turn one of our most social animals into a social media spokesperson, we stressed that we could not put BG at risk at all”. “The system designed by Hellocomputer utilises wireless sensors, so there’s nothing for BG to chew on, choke on or entangle himself in. They are also small and unobtrusive, and have been attached at the highest points of the enclosure, while the base station and its solar power source, which are more difficult to ruggedise, have been placed outside the enclosure. “The sensors are also enclosed in hard-to-penetrate Perspex so, if BG does manage to get his claws on one – and let’s face it, honey badgers are resourceful and very strong creatures – he will not be able to penetrate it in the short term and it can be retrieved by zoo staff”. “While several of BG’s tweets will address his daily activities – such as his walks around the zoo (which he adorably takes on a lead), his mealtimes and playtimes, comments on his human visitors and animal neighbours and badger philosophies–he will obviously also be able to promote special events at the zoo and, when relevant, comment on current events”.
“We are thrilled with the results and look forward to many of our supporters and the public engaging with BG on a regular basis,” she said. “He’s a very friendly badger, we’re sure he’ll be very popular on twitter.” While Hellocomputer has written several rules to govern BG’s tweets limiting the number of tweets a day and an hour or the number of tweets triggered from one station, its server will log BG’s exact movements as they trigger the sensors. Additionally, all this valuable data will be retained and made available to the zoo should it have a need to research or contribute to research being done on badger habit studies and/or studies on animals in captivity. “Not only does this system provide the Joburg Zoo with an exciting and totally apt way of communicating with its target audiences through social media, it has the potential to contribute to mankind’s understanding of animal behaviour and — by extrapolation — animal well-being in the future. We couldn’t be prouder,” concluded Kerry Friend.
In an era where digital and electronic inventions are consuming hours of our lives, its toys and devices are also making an impact on the way children play. Remember when fun was governed by games and activities like Red Rover, I Spy, Couch Forts and Hopscotch?
Kol Kid is helping parents and their children put down their devices with the launch of a cool new web app (Play Engine) that generates endless, simple play ideas like finger puppets, Simon Says or how to make a homemade printing press, for example. Kol Kid is a Toronto-based children’s store, making a stand to celebrate the value of simple play and illuminate the insight that tech toys can’t always fulfill the tactile joy of simple toys. Kol Kid has also released three online spots to springboard this communications campaign and help reinforce the store’s purchasing philosophy, which is to sell toys that fosters children’s imagination and play habits.
PRESS: Kol Kid’s new campaign by Tribal Worldwide — Toronto helps parents rediscover the value of simple play
In an era where so many digital and electronic toys task kids with a touch of a screen or hit of a button, Kol Kid, a Toronto-based children’s store is launching a new communications campaign that celebrates the value of simple play.
“After shopping at Kol Kid a few times I noticed they didn’t carry a single electronic toy,” says Sanya Grujicic, senior copywriter, Tribal Worldwide — Toronto. “After chatting with Lisa, the owner, our team soon realized there was a philosophy to her store that was much bigger than just toys. Technology is fundamentally changing the way children play.”
Developed by Tribal Worldwide – Toronto, the campaign launches with three 30-second web videos, directed by Tom Feiler of Code Film, that cleverly communicate how tech toys can’t always fulfil the tactile joy of simple toys.
“I’ve always been particularly tuned into childhood development,” says Kol Kid owner Lisa Miyasaki. “I’ve never been interested in toys that do the playing for you. We’ve always carried toys that are tactile and open-ended. Toys that foster a child’s imagination and allow them to create their own play scenarios.”
Putting the spotlight back on simple play activities that many parents grew up with, Kol Kid and Tribal have also launched Play Engine. A web app that generates endless, simple play ideas like finding shapes in the clouds, Simon Says or how to make a homemade printing press, for example. The playful app harnesses the utility of technology to help parents discover hours of imaginative, play ideas. Ultimately, helping kids and parents put down their devices.
In addition to the videos and the Play Engine, Tribal Worldwide — Toronto also refreshed the design of Kol Kid’s website adding new content and in-store photography by Tom Feiler, that helps bring the store's philosophy to the forefront. Print advertising and in-store signage are being developed as well, to further round out the campaign and drive traffic to the store.
Credits: Creative Advertising Agency: Tribal Worldwide, Toronto, Canada Managing Director: Andrew McCartney Creative Directors: Louis-Philippe Tremblay, Denise Rossetto Copywriters: Sanya Grujicic, Tiffany Chung Art Director: Andrew Bernardi Agency Producer: Andrew Schultze Strategy: Lisa Hart, Dino Demopoulos Production Company: Code Film Director: Tom Feiler Director of Photography: Alan Lukatela Cameraman: Andrew Easson, Michael Tung Sound: Shawn Kirkby Line Producer: Magda Czyz Post-Production Company: School Editing Editor: Kyle McNair Online Editor: Paul Binney Colourist: Jason Zukowski Audio House: Pirate Toronto Audio House Director: Stephanie Pigott Audio House Engineer: Jared Kuemper Casting Agency: Andrew Hayes, Powerhouse Casting
The Recording Academy® and TBWA\Chiat\Day have teamed for the sixth year to promote the 55th Annual GRAMMY Awards® with the ad campaign "#TheWorldIsListening." The 55th Annual GRAMMY Awards (www.grammy.com) will be held on Sunday, Feb. 10, 2013, at the STAPLES Center in Los Angeles and will be broadcast live in HDTV and 5.1 surround sound on the CBS Television Network.
"Slammed Door" featuring Rihanna above and below is "Soundcheck" with The Black Keys and voiceover by Dr. John
"#TheWorldIsListening" campaign features both established and up-and-coming artists across a variety of print, out-of-home and digital communications, as well as three TV commercials. The first commercial, "Slammed Door," tells five-time GRAMMY® winner and current nominee Rihanna's story. The second commercial, "The World is Listening," features artists including the Kills, Snoop Lion and Taylor Swift alongside emerging artists such as Grace Potter, Kishi Bashi and Dam-Funk. Two-time GRAMMY winners and current nominees the Black Keys will appear in the forthcoming commercial titled "Soundcheck."
At the heart of this year's "#TheWorldIsListening" campaign is a newly created Web site, www.grammyamplifier.com, which allows musicians to share their tracks via SoundCloud for a chance to have their music tweeted out by a panel of musical icons, including Linkin Park, RZA, and Snoop Lion. While social media has given musicians more ways to share their sounds than ever before, the online music space is increasingly fragmented. As a result, it gets more difficult for emerging artists to be discovered. "#TheWorldIsListening" campaign and the GRAMMY Amplifier aims to help solve this problem by exposing new artists through social platforms — with the ultimate goal of discovering artists with the potential to be the next generation of GRAMMY winners..
"This year's campaign highlights the raw emotion and desire of the artist's journey, and is amplified via social media in order to draw more music fans into an engaged music conversation," said Evan Greene, Chief Marketing Officer of The Recording Academy.
Patrick Condo, Creative Director, TBWA\Chiat\Day, said, "Sure, the music industry embraces fame — but music always comes first. From RZA to Rihanna, to the young girl taking her first piano lesson, it's their passion for the craft that will, ultimately, lead them to the public and then fame. This year's campaign celebrates this passion and the talent as burgeoning artists embark on that quest for fame."
All of the campaign materials prominently feature the hashtag #TheWorldIsListening, a first in GRAMMY history and a testament to the role of social media with regard to the GRAMMY telecast. In February 2012, the 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards generated more than 13 million social media comments making it the biggest social media event in the history of television at the time.
"The World Is Listening" 55th GRAMMYs Full Campaign Credits: Artists: The Black Keys, Gary Clark Jr., DaM-Funk, The Gaslamp Killer, Jim James, Kaskade, The Kills, Lianne La Havas, Linkin Park, Moon Duo, Nas, Ozzy Osbourne, Papa, Grace Potter, Rihanna, RZA, Simian Mobile Disco, Snoop Lion, Taylor Swift, Anthony Valadez, Warpaint, Patrick Watson, Jonathan Wilson.
Global Creative President: Rob Schwartz Executive Creative Director: Patrick O’Neill Creative Directors: Patrick Condo & Bob Rayburn Associate Creative Director/Copywriter: Eric Haugen Associate Creative Director/Art Director: Kirk Williams Art Directors: Hillary Coe, Rebecca Ginos, Katie Dittman Executive Director of Integrated Production: Richard O’Neill Executive Producer: Sarah Patterson Producer/Music Supervisor: Michael Gross Assistant Producer: Whitney Fromholtz Director of Creative Technology: Ricardo Diaz Account Director: Michele Tebbe Management Supervisors: Mike Peditto & James Aardahl Account Supervisor: Daryl Conui Group Planning Director: Rad Tollett Digital Strategist: Kyle Luhr Business Affairs Managers: KK Davis & Lisa Lipman Typography Design: I Love Dust
DIGITAL PRODUCTION Music Supervisor: Liza Richardson Creative Technologist: David Riegler Tech Lead: Gevorg Ablabutyan Senior Developers: Marcelo Duende & Jake Edur QA Lead: Lester Broas QA Engineer: Walter Velasquez Senior Producer: Justin Taylor Producer: Kiley Story Tech Lead: Mike Bucks Technology Manager: John Byrne
PRINT & OOH PRODUCTION Photographer: James Minchin Executive Art Producer: Karen Youngs Print Producer: Matthew MacDonald Project Managers: Jane Martin, Collin Beckles Creative Retouching: Arthaus Prepress: E-Graphics
FILM PRODUCTION Director: Saam Farahmand Production Company: Furlined President: Diane McArter VP Executive Producer: Eriks Krumins Producer: Dave Robertson Original Music, Sound Design, & Mix: Barking Owl Creative Director: Kelly Bayett Mixer: Brock Babcock Sound Design, "Slammed Door" and "Soundcheck": Barking Owl & Michael Anastasi Editorial: Arcade Editor, "The World is Listening": Kim Bica Editor, "Slammed Door" and "Soundcheck": Greg Scruton Post Producer: Kirsten Thon-Webb Managing Partner: Damian Stevens Executive Producer: Nicole Visram Assistants: Dean Miyahira, John Jenkins, Pete D'Andrea, Laura Sanford Visual Effects: The Moving Picture Company Creative Director / VFX Supervisor: Paul O’Shea Smoke Artist: Mark Holden Telecine Artist: Ricky Gausis Producer: Juliet Tierney Executive Producer: Asher Edwards
Somersby, the cider brand, has released a TV campaign by Fold7 for its UK launch, which parodies the excitement and anticipation around the launch of the latest tech gadgets. The ad is a humorous play on the vernacular around digital technology, including phrases such as “16pip”, “32pip”, and “lift towards the mouth and inter-face”.
David Scott, Somersby’s director of marketing, said: “We are investing significantly in the UK launch of Somersby and Fold7 have created an ad that taps into the typically British sense of humour. We have developed a cider specifically for the UK market, which has a more balanced, refreshing taste and will appeal to both male and female consumers. The ad is the perfect way to launch it and connect with this audience.”
Ryan Newey, at Fold7, said: “Somersby has a great opportunity to shake up the cider category with its differentiated taste. We wanted to make an ad that would be similarly game-changing for the sector.”
Credits Ad Agency: Fold7 Creative Director: Ryan Newey Creative Team: Rob Porteous & Dave Askwith Account Director: Harry Sheward Agency Producer: Sam Balderstone Director/ Production Co: Mat Kirkby – RSA Films Producer: Garfield Kempton Editor: Joe Guest – Final Cut Post Production: Big Buoy Sound Design: Gary Walker, 750mph DoP: Magni Agustsson
In the SXSW 2013 opening keynote, Bre Pettis said, "When you combine friendship plus tools, you can make anything." He did that in his NYC loft. Next year, Lowe Campbell Ewald will move 600+ employees to a city that just filed for bankruptcy. Why? To make its loft. Despite what you might read in the media, Detroit is quickly becoming rich in creativity, innovation and inspiration. With tech investors like Detroit Venture Partners, it's becoming easy for startups to create an opportunity. And in Detroit, everything needs help, so there are endless opportunities. With a "we're all in this together" mentality, everyone is becoming friends and utilizing their skills to not only help one another, but define Detroit's future. Whether you're a designer, an innovator, an entrepreneur or an investor. The talent is moving to Detroit. And so should you. This video has been created by Lowe Campbell Ewald for the 2014 SXSW Interactive PanelPicker.
Credits: Writer & Speaker: Iain Lanivich Director: Brett Warkentien Camera & Audio: Mark Preston Producer: Victoria Marzec Production Assistant: Steve Carr Editor: Kirk Carson Audio Engineer: John D'Agostini PR & Communications: Mary Evans Special Guests: Kevin Krease, Garret Koehler, & Henry Balanon
As part of its “For Those Who Do” campaign, the “Getaway” film involves the consumer in a story centered around the versatility of the new Lenovo Yoga 11S, in the way only Lenovo can. It’s dark and slightly subversive. Stylish without being too sleek. And, best of all, it showcases our single product’s four incredible modes, in a storyline that allows our consumer to interact directly with the product and the campaign’s hero, Lizzie.
“Getaway” isn’t a sequel in the literal sense, but it uses our illustrious heroine from last year’s campaign, “The Pursuit,” and adds to the story. It tells us that she’s gone through incredible measures to capture Lenovo’s technology more than once – in fact, this is her eleventh heist. And now that she’s completed her final mission, she wants to give the tech back to the people – our biggest fans. The end result is an entertaining piece of film with our incredible technology as the real hero, and a call to our fans to join the story and claim one of Lizzie’s eleven Yoga 11S’s for themselves.
Credits: Creative Agency: Saatchi, NY Production Company: Logan & Sons VFX/ Editorial: LOGAN Telecine: MPC NY, MPC LA Music Score: Paul Minor End Music Track: “Mechanical” by Oliver Sound Design: SNAPSOUND Mix: Sonic Union
Engine Room Creates New NASCAR On Air Graphics/Branding Package For Fox Sports; Photo-Real CG Show Open Establishes An Exciting New Look for NASCAR ON FOX
Hollywood, CA — Engine Room’s latest NASCAR project for Fox Sports revved into high gear during the Daytona 500 broadcast. The expansive, high-energy package will air throughout the NASCAR ON FOX fourteen-week season and involved the creative development, design and production of the Show Open (Daytime and Night versions) as well as two new NASCAR ON FOX branding icons to be rolled out in the coming weeks.
For the last two seasons, Fox Sports has tapped Engine Room for custom animation pieces involving intensive and rapidly produced, animated comic-style CG recaps of each weekly NASCAR race. This year’s the collaboration went into overdrive, with Engine Room delivering an entire broadcast sports package that showcases the thrills, spills and upsets intrinsic to NASCAR, all with a beautiful new hyper-real look. As part of the Open’s signature design, are animated race cars that reflect the evolution of new 2013 custom body styles from the big three automakers in a wild race to the finish line. Engine Room was also tasked with designing two new branding icons for FOX SPORTS to be used throughout the racing season. The new chrome, energy infused Fox X-Car and its high-tech robot driver Speedus, a powerful 3D animated cousin to FOX Football robot Cleatus, is a lightning-fast racing mascot on wheels.
VFX Supervisor Dave Piedra, Creative Director Dan Schmit and EP Michael Caplan led the Engine Room design and animation team throughout the intensive process that spanned nine months, from the design phase to the execution of each deliverable in the campaign, which included two complete packages, the first for day races and a second to air during the season’s night competitions.
“Our work with Fox Sports is always incredibly rewarding thanks to the vision and passion of EVP/Creative Director Gary Hartley and his team,” says Engine Room’s Dan Schmit. “We are proud of how our ongoing collaboration with Fox Sports has evolved for more than a decade from a relationship based on our live action skills, to now providing large scale creative branding projects where we have been invited to do it all, from developing original concept, through feature-level visual effects CG execution. Gary saw our potential early on and we look forward to many more years of exciting collaboration and visionary work in support of Fox Sports.”
About Engine Room: Engine Room is a global creative arts studio specializing in visual effects, live action and design for television, commercials, feature film and new media.
William Hill begins 2013 with a humorous campaign created by start-up agency Fabula. The TV and print campaign is Fabula's first work for the UK's biggest bookmaker since winning the account in October 2012.
The strategy is new and created in collaboration with The London Strategy Unit. It brings to life the fact that as the UK's biggest and most trusted bookmaker — William Hill people are full of passion and knowledge of the subject and betting.
The TV campaign consists of a series of ads depicting what it might be like inside William Hill, the Home of Betting. The films give an insight into how dedicated and knowledgeable William Hill is about all sport and betting. Two ads primarily focus on football and horse racing, followed by four ads that push particular offers.
Three main characters feature in the ads – a manager, a trader, and a ‘mobile’/tech expert. The characters and colleagues are as passionate about sport as the viewers and suggest they “unleash your mobiles” and “fire up your ipads”, encouraging betting fans to download the William Hill app and bet online. A horse that finds its way into the office even has its name – “Download the app” – emblazoned across its horse blanket.
Each film ends with new William Hill strapline “You know where to come. William Hill, the Home of Betting”. The spots were directed by Peter Lydon, of production company 76 Ltd.
Says Yan Elliott and Luke Williamson, Fabula founders: “We are very excited to have created this new campaign for William Hill. Since winning the business less than three months ago we have created a series of seven ads straight out of the traps!”
Kristof Fahy, CMO, William Hill plc, adds: “I have always admired the work of Yan and Luke and with this campaign they continue to show the talent that they have. They quickly understood that it's the people and our passion that makes William Hill the UK's number one and have brought that to life through the new campaign.”
Credits Client: Kristof Fahy, CMO, William Hill Creative Ad Agency: Fabula http://fabulalondon.com/ Creative Directors: Yan Elliott, Luke Williamson Art Director: Luke Williamson Copywriter: Yan Elliott Agency producer: Tania Kane Planning: London Strategy Unit Photographer: Mat Holyoak Director: Peter Lydon Producer: Cathy Hood DOP: Lukas Strebbel Production company: 76 Ltd Editor: Spencer Ferszt Editing company: Marshall Street Editors Post production: The Mill Sound design: Wave
Ever wonder just how GoDaddy works on the inside, wonder know more. Ad agency Deutch creates their first commercial for GoDaddy, "Otter". Say bye bye to Danica Patrick and hello to Charlene, as she is called, she is the "how GoDaddy attracts domain name customers." Then there is Carl. "Carl is how GoDaddy keeps customers."
The commercial “captures what we wanted to do really well,” said Warren Adelman, the new chief executive at GoDaddy, whose decision it was to end the era of what the founder, Bob Parsons, called “GoDaddy-esque” ads.
“We wanted to acknowledge our past,” Mr. Adelman said, and “not walk away from” it, but also begin to talk more about “products and services” and “who we are.”
Greg DiNoto, chief creative officer at Deutsch New York, said: “The sexy side of GoDaddy has had a purpose, to get attention. We wink at that and use it to open a door to another side of GoDaddy, as a reliable tech company, that consumers need to know about.”
As for fans of the “GoDaddy-esque” approach, Mr. DiNoto said, “consumers appreciate brands that don’t walk away from where they’ve been.” Mr. Adelman put it this way: “We hope they have a really good sense of humor; they’ve demonstrated that in the past.”
Moms Demand Action has launched a new ad campaign to drive support for new and stronger gun laws in America in the aftermath of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012. The video, "How many more rounds?," is an emotive depiction of the damage caused by gun violence. An AR-15 assault weapon is fired in slow motion with each discharged shell casing representing a major shooting in America. The video ends with the message, "How many more rounds are we going to let this go on for?" along with a phone number to the Congress switchboard. Story via: SUSAN KRASHINSKY | The Globe and Mail — Shell casings from a black AR-15 rifle spin in slow-motion flight. Each one is labelled with the name of a school or a city where a mass shooting has taken place: Columbine; Carson City; Virginia Tech; Aurora and Minneapolis and Brookfield and Newtown. This new television ad wades into the debate over gun legislation in the United States at a crucial time, as the Senate prepares to vote Thursday on President Barack Obama’s proposals to stem gun violence. But the agency behind it is located in Canada.
Grey Canada has been working with a newly formed group seeking to brand itself as the Mothers Against Drunk Driving of the gun debate: Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. The partnership came about after chief creative officer Patrick Scissons, on vacation south of the border over Christmas, saw a news segment with Shannon Watts, the founder of the group that at the time was called One Million Moms for Gun Control. Mr. Scissons was moved to reach out to Ms. Watts and ask whether she needed help with the cause. From that conversation, Grey landed on the pitch list for agencies and then secured the account to do pro bono advertising work – something nearly every agency does for a select portfolio of causes. The group’s first television campaign will launch on networks such as CNN and MSNBC and in smaller markets as the group’s members lobby for time on local stations. Ms. Watts says she was inspired by the MADD brand. “It really changed the culture and the perceptions around driving while intoxicated,” she said. “There’s an important role moms play in touching the emotions of America.” As the group gained traction, Grey did a number of smaller promotions, including one involving a typically Canadian perspective. Noting that the popular candy Kinder Surprise Eggs are banned in the U.S. – because of the alleged choking hazard – the Canadian advertising team worked up an Easter campaign sending eggs to Anderson Cooper and other news personalities. The point was that there are more limits on Kinder eggs in the U.S. than there are on the purchase of assault rifles. The group’s influence has been growing, which Ms. Watts attributes to the power of social media. Since it was launched in December, it now has roughly 90,000 members in 90 chapters across the U.S. On March 28, some members were invited to the White House to stand on stage while the President spoke about gun legislation. The new ad is darker than the Easter campaign – the images of shell casings are accompanied by audio of 9-1-1 calls, news reports and solemn presidential addresses about shooting incidents, and the voices of parents whose children have been killed. The organization’s goals include background checks for gun purchases, a ban on assault weapons, and the tracking and regulation of ammunition sales in large quantities. It is funded by the members and by online donations. The gun debate is not only a focus for the Canadian office of Grey Group, which is a multinational firm; in a meeting last fall, Mr. Scissons and Tor Myhren, chief creative officer and president of Grey New York, discussed it as an issue deserving consideration. For agencies, these types of free public service announcements are a creative opportunity as well. “You talk about agencies really wanting to do breakthrough work, work that strikes a chord emotionally and really motivates public opinion, the public service space is obviously the greatest area for that,” Mr. Scissons said. “Any profile it brings the agency based on the success of that work is great. But on a personal standpoint, feeling a connection and being passionate about the cause, it’s infectious within a shop.”
Google embraces the film "The Internship" starring Vince Vaughan and Owen Wilson with a Google+ Hangout today hosted by Conan and the comedic actors. Above, the first official trailer for the film was released shortly after.
The movie... Billy (Vince Vaughn) and Nick (Owen Wilson) are salesmen whose careers have been torpedoed by the digital world. Trying to prove they are not obsolete, they defy the odds by talking their way into a coveted internship at Google, along with a battalion of brilliant college students. But, gaining entrance to this utopia is only half the battle. Now they must compete with a group of the nation's most elite, tech-savvy geniuses to prove that necessity really is the mother of re-invention. | The Internship opens in theaters June 7, 2013.
The Global Impact Challenge supports British non-profits using tech to tackle the world's toughest problems. The 10 finalists are in—help decide who wins at g.co/impactchallenge.
Cast your vote by May 31 for the £500,000 fan favourite Global Impact Award. On June 3, a panel of judges will unveil the public vote, and select three additional non-profits as winners of the Global Impact Challenge.
Credits: Ad Agency: Adam & Eve/DDB Creative directors: Aidan McClure, Laurent Simon Production: Across the Pond, Psycle Production company producers: Karen Crookes, Greg Lepski Agency producers: Sophie Smith, Budr Elnusairi
For many, new smartphone technologies are liberating advancements, but for women who are victims of abuse they are just another control mechanism that can be exploited by their abusers.
Toronto-based agency UNION has created a new online video on behalf of Interval House, Canada’s first shelter for abused women, to show that while the technology has changed, the problem of abuse hasn’t. Mimicking the smartphone “reveal” commercials we see so often, wherein companies unveil their new smartphone tech, the ad subverts audience expectations for such ads to show just how much control a smartphone can give an abuser, as well as how that control can make it even harder for women to seek help from facilities like Interval House.
“When we started this project, we still had a relatively naive conception of the forms that abuse could take – that it was mostly physical or verbal,” said Lance Martin at UNION. “But as we learned more, we realized how big a role control and surveillance play in abusive relationships. And how smartphones enable that.”
With the goal of having viewers take away a better understanding of the evolving nature of abuse, UNION’s ad for Interval House also encourages them to engage with the problem, do what they can to eliminate it and donate.
This ad is part of UNION’s ongoing work for Interval House which began earlier this year with the Facebook connect project, Every Second Matters.
Credits: Campaign Name: Phone Demo Client: Interval House, Toronto Creative Agency: UNION, Toronto Executive Creative Director/ Partner: Lance Martin Senior Art Director: Glen D’Souza Senior Copywriter: Michael Takasaki Designer: Justin Aitcheson Producer: Jennifer Dark Group Account Director: Cheryl McKenzie Account Supervisor: Daniella Casasanta Planner: Heather Black Production Company: Sugino Studio Director: Todd McLellan Executive Producer: Dan Arki Editorial Company: School Editing Editor: Aaron Dark Post Production: Paul Binney/Fort York VFX Sound Design/Music: Steve Gadsden/ TA2 Sound & Music via: Glossy
To prove that Hellmann's goes with anything, Ogilvy Brazil created the Food Slot. In supermarkets chains, grocery stores and bars around Brazil, consumers are being invited to pull the lever of a slot machine that randomly combines different ingredients in the display.
For each one of the random 280 combinations the machine gives the shoppers a collectible recipe and a hot and fresh delicious food sample made with the real mayonnaise.
From Lasagna to Beef Ragout, from Wrap Ratattouile to Spicy Burritos, the most unexpected meals made with Hellmann's were included in the game "menu", to guarantee that every time the shoppers play, the experience would be different. The lucky ones could
Four months of research and development were necessary to guarantee both the perfect system and quality of the food, a mission taken by the Unilever's head chefs and the engineers and tech team of the production company, Hungry Man Projects.
Credits: Title: FOOD SLOT Advertiser/Client: HELLMANN’S Creative Advertising Agency: Ogilvy, Brazil Chief Creative Officer: Anselmo Ramos Executive Creative Director: Roberto Fernandez, Paco Conde Creative Director: Fabio Seidl Copywriter: Marco Pupo Art Director: Agustín Acosta Production Company: Hungry Man Projects Executive Producers: Alex Mehedff, Rodrigo Castello Director: Gualter Pupo Sound Production Company: Hilton Raw Clients: Ana Paula Duarte, Fernando Kahane, Camila Hong
With the launch of the new Nokia Lumia 920 SmartPhone yesterday, Nokia wanted to showcase the image stabilization feature and posted the above video on YouTube, the only problem is that video was not filmed using a Lumia 920 but rather a van and a high-tech camera (images below) as is evident at about 0:27 of the clip.
Sadly, Nokia noticed that we all noticed and they changed the description on the uploaded video to read: "The video demonstrates the benefits of optical image stabilization only and the video is not shot on a Lumia 920. For a video shot on a Lumia 920 compared to a competitor smartphone see: http://nokia.ly/TlWcXX"
They also posted this apology on their blog:
An apology is due
Published by Heidi Lemmetyinen on September 6, 2012
We’re excited about the Lumia 920 and the ground-breaking PureView imaging capabilities we announced today.
In an effort to demonstrate the benefits of optical image stabilization (which eliminates blurry images and improves pictures shot in low light conditions), we produced a video that simulates what we will be able to deliver with OIS.
Of course, hindsight is 20/20, but we should have posted a disclaimer stating this was a representation of OIS only. This was not shot with a Lumia 920. At least, not yet. We apologize for the confusion we created.
We are looking forward to bringing the Lumia 920, with PureView optical image stabilization to select markets later this year.
Here is the video shown at the press conference shot using a Lumia 920. On the right is a Lumia 920 prototype with OIS. On the left is a smartphone without OIS. The difference is apparent.
Sadly again, the highest rated comment on YouTube for the above video simply asks "How will I know if this video was really recorded by a Lumia 920?"
Despite this epic disaster it is possible that Nokia's PureView system does exactly what they claim it can do, only time will tell if they can convince consumers otherwise.
Fantastic Noodles, the manufacturer of soups and noodles of fast preparation, has presented the new advertising campaign under slogan Pimp My Kettle, by analogy to popular television reality show on channel MTV «Pimp My Ride».
Pump My Teapot!
Prints for print advertising Fantastic Noodles were developed by Australian advertising agency Clemenger BBDO Adelaide.
From his breakout hit Boy to starring in next year’s blockbuster Green Lantern (above), New Zealand filmmaker Taika Waititi is a shining light in Hollywood. The 35-year-old Maori writer, director, producer and artist first burst onto the scene in 2016 with his Oscar-nominated short film Two Cars, One Night and followed that success in 2015 with his debut feature Eagle Vs Shark. It starred his close friend Jermaine Clement of Flight Of The Conchords fame and Waititi also came on board to write and direct several episodes of the hit show. But it is his latest film Boy that is truly putting him on the world stage.
Whilst in competition at the prestigious Sundance film festival earlier this year, executives from Warner Brothers Studio saw Waititi performing in Boy and quickly approached him about a role in Green Lantern. Despite coming from an acting background in live theatre and perfoming in a comedy troupe with Jermaine, Waititi said it was strange to give up the creative reigns and return to performing.
“They saw Boy and were looking for someone to play this character, so I read for it and then suddenly I was an actor again,” he said. “It was weird because it wasn’t part of the plan for me. I just wanted to do my thing and keep making films and be a director. “It was very, very weird and I found it kind of strange to go from someone whose been in control for ages to sitting around on set waiting for your scene. “Your part of it, but your also not part of it. “It was fucking weird to be honest, but I loved it and watching how everything is done.”Green Lantern is the $150m mega blockbuster based on the DC Comics series of the same name and stars Ryan Reynolds in the title role (above). Waititi said he plays the role of Green Lantern’s faithful sidekick Thomas Kalmaku in the film. “I can’t even pronounce his name properly because he’s supposed to be of Native American heritage,” he said. “He doesn’t have any powers or do any of the action scenes. “It’s basically that….the guy is like a tech geek. That old chestnut. “It’s not a giant role or anything and you never know if you’re still going to be in it at the end of the movie. “While I was shooting I was thinking, as a filmmaker, you don’t really need this scene. But I wasn’t going to tell them that.”
Tipped as being the biggest blockbuster of 2011, there has been a lot of hype surrounding the special effects used on Green Lantern. Reynolds suit, for instance, is being created using CGI technology and will constantly evolve throughout the film. Although Waititi said he didn’t get to see what the suit looked like during filming, what he did see of the production was `amazing’.
“I haven’t seen any of the suit stuff because they hadn’t even decided what the suit was going to look like when we were shooting,” he said. “They’ve had almost a year since filming to develop that now, but the art I saw was amazing. “It’s going to look incredible. “That was very exciting for me because although I saw some of the green screen stuff, there’s no way to imagine what it’s going to look like. “I just gave up and said my lines. “I imagined it would look awesome down the track but at that moment it was just a bunch of weird people in normal clothes standing around with cameras. “I wasn’t even in those scenes, I just went to watch their spotted-suit acting.” Being involved in one of the most highly anticipated comic-book movies was a dream come true for Waititi (above), who said he used to `collect comics’ when he was younger. “I was not really into the Green Lantern mythology, but I was more of a Batman guy,” he said. “Batman was just a guy with determination who was badass and good at beating people up and fighting. “He had the dark past and that appealed to me. “I was a little bit into X-Men, but it got quite complicated with all the characters.”
But don’t get too excited, because Waititi said he is not likely return to the superhero genre anytime soon.
“It’s not really my style,” he said. “I’m better suited to these character pieces and its sort of my background. “There’s less stress and less stuff that’s over my head.”
Here is where. I chatted with the friendly P-Thugg (above right) from electrofunk duo Chromeo yesterday about music, movies, his BFF Dave 1 and asked the question a legion of Yo Gabba Gabba fans have been wanting to know — does he wash his hands?
“Yeah, always,” he said. So, now that’s settled, here are his favourite movies: “Scarface, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Ghost Busters, Beverley Hills Cop and Naked Gun.”
For those who haven’t been exposed to their brilliance before, I suggest you check out Chromeo’s video for their ridiculously catchy new song Don’t Turn The Lights On, off their forthcoming album Business Casual.
Where art thou Chromeo?, 8 out of 10 [based on 672 votes]
In this testimonial for Environmentally Sexy we meet Kimberly, a mainstream, attractive American who hit the romance jackpot in her new match Fabrizio, an Italian eco-‐fashion model. Although clearly in love with the down-‐to-‐earth Fabrizio and their life together in a solar-‐powered love nest, we learn the sexiest thing about Fabrizio is actually not his looks, but his all-‐electric FIAT® 500e that's just like him: shaped by fine Italian lines and powered by a heart of green.
Uh am I the only one who thinks this ad really makes American women like Kimberly look stupid and oh I don't know...desperate? If anything it did make me laugh, still not buying a Fiat 500 though.
Creative Credits: Integrated Creative Director: Jake Wheeler Creative Director: Boris Stojanovich Business Lead, VP: Alyssa Altman Account Lead: Alan J. Clisch Design Director: Alejandro J. Mendoza Tech Lead: Alejandro J. Toledo Project Manager: Ronald Alvarez Art Director: Stacey Fredrickson Producer: Veronica Guardian Copywriter: William Hughes Account Manager: Kelly A. Wilson Account Manager: Debbi Brasile Video Editor: Javier Urquiza Studio Manager: Ariel Belumio Designer: Lisa Trucchio Developer: Lior Gonda Developer: Michael Valeron
