Animals Audition For Spike Jonze Miller Commercials

miller_auditions.jpg

In the works since last Summer, Miller, along with Spike Jonze and Y&R Chicago, has created six commercials featuring talking animals that mock all the animals Budweiser has used in its ads over the years. The "auditions" for the ads, which feature animals babbling on frustrated actor-style, can be viewed here. Who knows. Perhaps they'll appear in the Super Bowl.

Written by Steve Hall    Comments (14)     File: Celebrity, Commercials, Television     Feb- 2-06  
Advertising Jobs

Enjoy what you've read? Subscribe to Adrants Daily and receive the daily contents of this site each day along with free whitepapers.

ad:tech Conference Headlines
-->

Comments

Are these the Spike Jonze spots I read about?

Posted by: Ed Landen on February 2, 2006 04:00 PM

I'm not positive about this, but I think A-B's 5-minute Super Bowl buy includes category exclusivity. Coors might escape A-B's blanket because they paid handsomely to be the official beer of the NFL, but I think Miller's only option is the pre-game broadcasts on ESPN & ABC.

Posted by: Mark Paul on February 2, 2006 05:33 PM

Lame Dr. Doolittle stuff.

Posted by: makethelogobigger on February 2, 2006 05:54 PM

funny how y&r just lost the miller business.

Posted by: dave on February 2, 2006 07:15 PM

oh and one other observation: spike jonez' real (and obviously much less cool) name is adam spiegel. same name as the bear.

and spike, aside from changing his name and doing lots of cool skateboarding stuff, didn't just fall on his talent.

he's an heir to the spiegel catalog fortune.

money does buy you everything, even if you were born with a name that suits a bifocaled skinny kid, you can always reinvent yourself.

he didn't change his checking account and trust fund, however.

Posted by: dave on February 2, 2006 07:21 PM

If memory serves me right, “Always use babies and animals” was one of David Ogilvy’s rules.
This is 2006. Move on, Mr Jonze.

Posted by: Sunil Shibad on February 3, 2006 03:42 AM

I think these are really funny. They used real auditions, and the animation is brilliant! I especially love the cat-hatin turtle. "I don't like cat."

Posted by: shake one on February 3, 2006 11:26 AM

Here's what I like about the commercials: they work on so many levels. They are not gratuitous animal spots (Bud does that); they are not sophomoric (Bud does that); the premise is purely self-effacing to Miller which means they understand that consumers don't watch animal spots then run off and buy that exact beer (Bud tries to play that stupid psychology). And thank god they do not include a frozen train that adds ruin to my already winter blues - stop it Coors.

I find the TV spots (if that's what they are) to be deep in emotion,...well, for beer commercials anyway. This isn't stuff Coors, Bud, Corona or Captain Morgan could or would do.

I give Miller an A+ for trying to break out of the mold. You have to look well past the animals to see that this is not about animals, at all; rather the joke on advertisers who use animals. I'm not sure some people will get it.

Are these on TV? I’d like to see how the shorter versions work.

Posted by: Josh Freeman on February 3, 2006 11:53 AM

i can't see them working on tv. sophmoric works for beer, and david ogilvy would have added that if he would be around right now. perhaps some of the euro beers have gone past sophmorism to make their beer ads work, but i'm not so sure about that.

these ads are cute, no doubt, but i can't watch the full length. too boring.

john, you hit the nail on the head with the coors comments; i didn't realize till now what bothered me about them (other than lack of sophmorism, but hey who am i to complain). i love the ojays song, but frozen trains cooling people off at a football game? with the exception of pre-season, most people are in parkas already. coors, move it to MLB.

Posted by: dave on February 3, 2006 01:57 PM

Dave...why does sophomoric work for beer? It's not needed for other alcohols or for most other advertized products. For some reason beer is in a rut. Farting horses and crotch chewing dogs got unfunny around 5th grade. Or, maybe I achieved Maslow's Hierachy too early in life.

And Ogilvy strapped on the maple pajamas long ago, so I'm not too interested in conjecture.

We agree on the Coors Light Frost Train. My average penis just got smaller thinking of the Frost Train here in Minneapolis.

Posted by: Josh Freeman on February 3, 2006 02:13 PM

Given Bud and Miller have been taking shots at each other for the last few years, I think it's pretty safe to assume this is a direct hit on Bud for using animals in their spots. Pretty clever by Miller.

Posted by: Tom on February 3, 2006 02:53 PM

Why don't these kind of ads nmake the Super Bowl. And do I really need 5 blades in my razor? Would 47 blades be even better? Oi vey.

Posted by: Mike McNeil on February 6, 2006 01:13 PM

Y&R did not lose the Miller business.
O&M is out ...

Posted by: Bill on February 12, 2006 04:44 PM

Y&R did not lose the Miller business.
O&M is out ...

Posted by: Bill on February 12, 2006 04:45 PM

Post a comment