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Buy Better Bulbs; WWF Will Do the Heavy Lifting

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The industrial pollutants in the World Wildlife Federation's "Light Bulb" ad are only tired toys. But these miniatures -- small things we can easily control -- still convey the helplessness environmentalists feel when faced with oversized, eco-negligent businesses.

"Light Bulb" concludes with a male doll holding an energy-efficient light bulb. "You're doing your part," the ad assures us. "It's our job to help government & industry do theirs."

This message of gentle aggression is fast replaced by the image of a panda, an animal known to unfailingly melt hearts -- or in extreme conditions, cause brain explosions.

more »

by Angela Natividad    Jan- 7-09    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Cause, Commercials, Magazine, Online, Television



Make Love, or Don't.

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Sunil Shibad, the brains behind this whole debacle, just linked us to his new year greeting card.

Illustrated by the image of a gun barrel loaded with a single, heart-shaped bullet, the card reads, "Make love not war. Make love get AIDS. Either way you die."

We're still uncertain what to make of it ... but we're pret-ty sure that logic could use some retooling.

by Angela Natividad    Jan- 7-09    
Topic: Online, Strange



Mommy Cow Bloggers to Unite Against Ray-Ban

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Dear Chuck McBride,

Assuming you had a hand in its creation, we just watched your Cow Gives Birth to a Guy commercial in which, yes, a cow gives birth to a guy...wearing Ray-Bans and we're, well, disgusted. No wait, freaked out. No wait, astonished. No wait, horrified. No wait, laughing out loud. No wait, what? We have no idea.

Fake sunglass tossing videos are one thing. This thing falls into an entirley different category. OMFG, we're calling the SPCA. Or is it PETA? Or is it NICFA? NDFA? ADA? DFA?

Surely someone's gonna have a problem with a 6'2" guy getting extricated from a mommy cow! Oh wait, that's it. The manure storm is about to hit! Mommy Cow Bloggers are gonna be all over your ass about this one!

by Steve Hall    Jan- 7-09    
Topic: Agencies, Brands, Good, Strange, Video



Because Who's NOT Trying to Get into a Disco Queen's Pants?

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For its Grease-tacular Disco Pant, American Apparel slays another guileless chick on its altar of unrepentantly exploitative ad banners. Meet Shermine, who loves! disco!

Like our compromised heroine at 2AM, the ad dramatically blacks out with the closing sell: LE DISCO PANT.

American Apparel: sure, it's seedy as all hell. But if you've followed it as long as we have, then you must admire its unwavering loyalty to a single brand persona: rain or shine, in sickness and in health, in grayscale or by low-budget lamplight.

Even Microsoft can't be that consistent.

by Angela Natividad    Jan- 7-09    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Online, Trends and Culture



Primordial Ooze Becomes Winter X Games Athlete

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So what happens when an illustrator and an extreme sports athlete get together? Strange snow swimming creatures are created which morph like the proverbial fish that emerged from the sea and grew legs.

In this new Martin Agency-created, Superfad-produced, Pierce Gibson-illustrated commercial for ESPN's Winter X Games "live-action, 3D, illustration, and stop-motion ... track the evolution of a trick from its inception in the snow to its thrilling culmination on the course."

Seriously, anything can be a sport these days.

by Steve Hall    Jan- 7-09    
Topic: Commercials, Good



How to Be An Idiot In Three Steps by Mountain Dew

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1. Open a can of the caffeine-fueled stuff and down it.

2. Strap on a snowboard/skateboard.

3. Film yourself being pulled behind a train until...

by Steve Hall    Jan- 7-09    
Topic: Commercials, Strange



Madonna Spreads Wide for Marc Jacobs and LV

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Jeremy Dante -- a human repository of unbearably fashionable things -- sent us more imagery from the ongoing Madonna for Marc Jacobs/Louis Vuitton campaign.

These shots are decidedly more burlesque and pushy than the last ones, which pushed the aesthetic envelope but still maintained a semblance of cool grace and timeless decadence, yada-yada.

Hear me out. Madonna rocks hard and all, but she's past the point where we're willing to see her deep-throat lollies or -- heaven forbid! -- give us a youthfully woozy crotch shot in her Diamond Dog undyroos.

Diggin' this naughty spread of her draped over the chairs, though. It's so Virgin meets the New Wave.

by Angela Natividad    Jan- 7-09    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Celebrity, Magazine, Poster



Economy Be Damned! Affiliate Summit to Rock Las Vegas

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If you'll be in Las Vegas for Affiliate Summit which begins Sunday and runs through Tuesday, here's a list of known events occurring prior to and during the conference.

If you know of other events occurring during Affiliate summit or in association with CES which overlaps with Affiliate Summit, let us know and we'll add them to the calendar. Click "more" to see the calendar.

more »

by Steve Hall    Jan- 6-09    
Topic: Industry Events



Versus Wants to See Your Hooha

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Sporting site Versus has launched a recent promotion entitled Show Me Your V. Yes, this is where that is going. Of the promotion Yahoo Sports blog Puck Daddy wrote, "Maybe our minds are so far in the gutter that we've got rats scurrying across them, but even Roger Moore's James Bond would believe this double entendre is a tad too telegraphed."

A thunderstorm of commentary followed.

more »

by Steve Hall    Jan- 6-09    
Topic: Campaigns, Online, Racy, Strange



Trust Me. It's A Modern Day Mad Men. Seriously.

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Written by actual creatives, Hunt Baldwin and John Coveny, TNT's Trust Me (premiering January 26 at 10PM) will, one hopes, bring life to the tired scenario of family man working with single slacker. While cigarettes and Old Fashions aren't likely to be seen on the show, the premise pairs workaholic family man Mason (Eric McCormack) with "impulsive copywriter with the attention span of a teenager" Conner (Tom Cavanagh), a successful creative team at fictional Chicago agency Rothman Greene & Mohr, and examines their relationship as one becomes the other's boss.

The men, of course, are paired with beautiful women. Erin (Sarah Clarke) is Mason's wife and Sarah Krajicek-Hunter (Monica Potter) plays the role of an award-winning copywriter "whose personality has a tendency to rub people the wrong way."

It will be very interesting watching Mad Men and Trust Me. It's a fair bet the ad business hasn't changed much in 45 years. On TV or in real life.

by Steve Hall    Jan- 6-09    
Topic: Cable



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