OK, who doesn't love Scooby Doo? But this spot featuring the clan just doesn't seem to click. It's not really the agency's (Deutsch LA) fault. It's more the fault of the notion you can just suddenly implant a commercial message in the middle of a cartoon and everything will go swimmingly; no one will notice the blunt transition from show-focused action to commerce-focused action. Everyone notices.
In this commercial for DIRECTV, the sleuths have caught a cable guy who was trying to stop everyone from switching from cable because DIRECTV carries more high definition programming, We go from Shaggy's "Zoinks!" directly to Velma's droll commercial message quicker than you avert your eyes from that Donny Deutsch Speedo shot. While these transitions are never seamless, this one just seems a bit blunt. Hmm. Maybe that's why they're calling it the 4th wall campiagn.
Adland has unearthed an old 1979 ad for Pakistani Airlines promoting its flights to New York City using an ominous plane shadow cast upon the Twin Towers. Certainly in the seventies, everyone was enamored with the stature and size of the the then amazing looking towers but unless you were Irwin Allen, even in your most imaginative moments you weren't envisioning this ad's imagery would foretell the horror that occurred September 11, 2001.
Barring that horrific day in 2001 and placing oneself in 1979, it's actually a good ad. The Towers were the premiere iconic image of New York city and they retained their iconic status through three decades until they fell that fateful day. No one in 1979 could seriously have believed an image like this would become reality. Sadly, it did. Similar images from the past will continue to pop up from time to time in old magazines, in old ads, in old movies and we'll wince a bit each time we see them remembering our connection to that day. Sally Martin.
When the vanity that is Hair Club for Men Hooks up with the vanity that is Playboy, it's clear we've entered a new chapter in the book of cultural vanity. When otherwise perfectly good looking but folically challenged men are paired with perfectly airbrushed (oh wait. that's so 70's. Photoshopped) Playboy Playmates, well, you have an online game, of course. Yes, really. After all, it's likely the only time you'll see a balding guy with a hot chic.
The game, Photo Hunt was created by Cowboy, an agency George Parker recently riffed asking, "Cowboy!!! Fucking Cowboy!!! They have to be kidding, right?"
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Continuing its Anomaly-created Disruption campaign launched last month, Converse, in two new spots debuting tonight (Grateful, Pageant), attacks the idiocy of beauty pageants, American Idol, democracy, mindless sitcoms, reality shows and video games. While it seeks to set apart the viewer from the idiocy it highlights and, perhaps by disassociation, elevate the viewer in some way, one has to wonder whether or not calling everyone else an idiot is smart marketing.
For sure, the above-mentioned items are idiotically mindless but in a capitalistic society such as the one in which we live, nothing gets created unless people want it. Even if they are idiotic and mind numbing. As current culture indicates and as Converse points out, perhaps a lot of people are suffering from some form of idiotic mindlessness. Or at least the creators of this so-called mindless stuff are.
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Been meaning to get to this one for a few days. it's a campaign for ArriveAlive, an organization created by a father whose son was killed while driving drunk. The site touts the importance of the decisions and consequences that affect one's life. Calling attention to the site is a bathroom stall campaign which adheres images of drunken women to the floor and wall.
One woman is on her hands and knees in front of the toilet apparently puking. Another woman appears to be sitting against the wall in the mens room next to the urinals. Both are dressed slut-like with exposed thong, fishnet stockings and pumps. While no one really wants to look at a fat ugly drunk woman (or man for that matter), Copyranter wonders if we're supposed to think only sluts get drunk.
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We've thought this at the end of every year for a long time but now it's ben made official. It seems 2007 has been dubbed The Year We Finally Ran Out of Ideas and that sentiment has taken on the for of a cartoonish re-cap of the year in which sequel-itis, Orville resurrection, the Dentsu scandal and Sony's rabbits are given their proper spot in the compendium of the year's work.
Yes, it's car ad. Yes, it shows the car. Yes, it shows the car driving briskly on a snow covered road. Yes, it's Christmas (oh, sorry...holiday) themed. But this one is a bit different. Not that much different but different enough to keep our attention. but only just. And, if we arrived home with that poorly cared for thing atop our car, we'd head right back to the farm and get another. Yea, yea, Audis can drive fast on snow but not that fast.
It was created by Venables, Bell & Partners and edited by Phoenix Editorial & Designs. And despite what you might think, we like it. Just the right amount of sell. Just the right amount of holiday tie in. And just the right amount of hook to make it interesting.
Trying to capitalize on the success OfficeMax has had with ElfYourself, American Express' new Holiday Rockstar campaign invites users to turn themselves into one of Oddcast's "virtual characters."
If you're not familiar, Oddcast creates those creepy characters whose eyes follow your cursor and start blabbing away without first asking permission.
Though songs from Mariah Carey's holiday album are strangely missing, the service also allows you to sing one of three holiday songs by calling a number. You can then send your holiday greeting to a loved one, most likely resulting in uncomfortable laughter.
However, when we tried uploading two different headshots, it ended in the window crashing, immediately evoking the disastrous SimpsonizeMe tool. Good thing there are back-up characters.
If you're sick of winding mountain road car commercials, check out this mountainous region road car website for Land Rover. Really, it's different. As you wind your way through beautiful vistas while an orchestrally supported piano swells in the background, you can stop at various points to check out the vehicles features. It's all very Zen. And slow. And visually beautiful. And slow. And soothing. And slow. And...zzzzz...oh, sorry, we fell asleep there for a minute.
OK, now that we've downed our grande, non-fat, extra hot, extra shot, no whip, no foam, white mocha latte, we feel better and can you the site also offers you the ability to select the features you are interested in and create a customized, downloadable PDF for your offline viewing pleasure which is a good thing because you're going to need to lay down in bed to read it as you drift gently into a restful sleep, soothed by the site's relaxing music and...zzz...
It must suck being a premium vodka maker when you're not one of the two or three brands that, for whatever unknown reason, seem to take off and get adopted by those enjoy emptying their wallet just to get drunk. While Grey Goose sold 700,000 cases in 2006, Belvedere sold just 380,000.
In a new $20 million Berlin Cameron-created campaign, Belvedere is crashing the party with ads featuring Vincent Gallo and his posse literally crashes uptown parties with downtown attitude. There's also a Terry Richardson-shot print campaign with lots of red lipstick and provocative stares.
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