New Ad Campaigns

from Amy:

Excessive gaming leads to insignificant others. Cars used for escapism. Let's launch!

What does freedom smell like? A variety of flavors, according to a global print and TV campaign Old Spice created to support its Fresh Collection line of deodorants. A man wearing "Matterhorn" "is winning a habit you can't seem to quit." He also chisels ice sculpture self-portraits and carves turkey slices arranged to resemble his girlfriend. Watch it here. A new word is created in "Quad." Freshersest. Four armpits go from ordinary to extraordinary to denote the four flavors in the Fresh Collection. "Fresh, fresher, freshest and freshersest." A word I could get behind, despite my trouble pronouncing it. See it here. Print ads, some scratch and sniff, are running in April and May issues of Men's Journal, Men's Health, Maxim, ESPN and GQ. The "scents" as pictured remind me of floating bath toys inserted at the armpit; expect quirky copy to accompany creative. "As fresh as the day is fresh, but twice as fresh" and "It's not where you've been, it's where your armpits smell like you've been," are two nuggets. See the ads here, here, here, here and here. Wieden + Kennedy Portland created the campaign.

Eyewear designer Oliver Peoples created "The Children are Bored on Sundays," a branded short starring Shirley Manson and Elijah Wood. The 2:30 minute film follows the escapades of Fred and Ginger on a lazy Sunday. As the song "You and Me" by Zee Avi plays, the duo dance, drink, lounge, golf (and I use the word loosely), sit in a waterless bathtub and stand in a pool fully clothed, resulting in a bevy of wardrobe and eyewear changes. Watch the short here, directed by Autumn de Wilde of O Positive.

Sony PlayStation launched two TV spots promoting its "God of War III" video game. Customer service reps are so obsessed with "God of War III," they spend most of their work time playing. An insignificant other found out the hard way in "Ignored." She lost her boyfriend's attention once he bought "God of War III," and she can't even get the attention of a PlayStation rep who's in the midst of playing. See it here. "Kratos" is a 15-second spot that shows the main character in action, along with a set of high ratings bestowed upon the game. Watch it here. Deutsch Los Angeles created the campaign.

What is it about massive amounts of paint that turns an ordinary ad into something enjoyable to watch? There was Sony Bravia's "Paint" in 2006; Ray-Ban's "Paint Balloons" last year; and Nissan Qashqai's "Artistic Paintball" this year. The ad was filmed in Bangkok over a 6-day period. It's a giant paintball war between Qashqai and city streets, with Qashqai avoiding direct hits, leaving the city a colorful, dirty mess. My two favorite scenes are the billboard getting hit with black paint, resulting in a black eye, and Qashqai driving out of a parking garage as pellets of paint pour down. Watch the ad here, created by TBWA/G1 and TBWA/Paris.

Ever feel like escaping your job, family or big city atmosphere? Going as far away as possible, like the other side of the world? Land Rover will get you there. The brand launched a print campaign as part of its existing "Go Beyond" initiative. A picture of planet earth appears in each ad; atop earth are city congestion, overwhelming family obligations and a work desk stuffed with papers. Directly below stressors, on the other end of the earth, is Land Rover. "Defender" says each ad, shown here, here and here. Young & Rubicam created the ads.

The world is surrounded by data. So says "Data Anthem," a TV spot for IBM. Aerial LIDAR scanning technology was combined with images of cars, hospital patients, and electricity grids, to illustrate the importance of understanding data. The end result could lead to reduced energy costs and faster detection of diseases. "Let's build a smarter planet," closes the ad, seen here. Ogilvy, New York created the spot, directed by James Frost of Zoo Films.

How better to promote Chicago White Sox baseball, whose team colors are black and white, than with a black and white ad? The preseason ad brings viewers inside U.S. Cellular Field during winter; it's snowing and desolate. A voiceover describes the activities of White Sox players and managers, who are situated around the world during the off-season. "Somewhere in a Florida gym, A.J. is doing squats. Mark Buehrle is studying tape in Missouri..." The ad closes with The Sox's 2005 World Series Championship flag blowing in the wind while the voiceover says, "Twenty-five different men. Twenty-five different locations. One destination." Watch the ad here, created by Energy BBDO.

Here's an oldie but goodie from Absolut Vodka. "Anthem" would make an ideal New Year's campaign. Absolut bottles are hung in a forest, snow piles are erected, and lettered balloons are blown up. Each action seems out of place, until the camera pans out to reveal words spelled out. "Doing things differently leads to something exceptional," closes the global TV spot, seen here. TBWA/Chiat/Day New York created the ad.

Random iPhone App of the week: HowStuffWorks.com launched "Stuff to Rattle Your Brain." Who doesn't love a good batch of trivia questions? Players can choose from a dozen categories ranging from sports, geography, electronics and science. If a question is answered incorrectly, players can click on "Find Out More" to be connected to a corresponding HowStuffWorks.com article. Nice integration. The app also enables players to compare their scores to other players in real time. CUBiC Digital and HowStuffWorks.com created the app, available for free in the App Store.

Sphere: Related Content