Violeta- Toilet Paper Can Save Your Ass!
A campaign aimed at increasing public awareness in Croatia about colon cancer symptoms.
For anyone who is curious to check out the “poster inside”, click here.
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Ford EcoSport- Surf Tag
São Paulo city, Brazil, has an estimated 150,000 surfers. But pursuing that passion isn’t easy. Getting to a good surfing spot means travelling upwards of 100 miles, often a lot more. With that in mind, Ford launched Surf Tag for owners of its EcoSport SUV. It’s a special toll tag offering surfing weather forecasts and toll-free access on select days. Here’s a link to the campaign video.
Volvo Trucks- The Tower
The latest commercial from Volvo Trucks is drawing comparisons with the 2013 Epic Split commercial. No question: stacking up four trucks is an impressive feat. And there is something to be said about getting the CEO to stand on top of the moving stack. Still, in my opinion, the stylistic choices come in the way of conveying the awesomeness of what was accomplished. In that respect, I think that the behind-the-scenes video does a better job.
KFC Palace (NSFW)
I haven’t seen any critical reviews but this struck me as an ethically questionable marketing campaign. To be fair, the campaign appears to have been in response to a rather dubious expansion of the acronym KFC prevailing among young people in Spain. Also, the promotion was in Spanish and I may have missed something in translation.
Here’s a link to the English campaign video. Warning: it features explicit language.
Shitstorm in a Teacup
Yorkshire Tea is one of the most popular tea brands in the UK. But when Rishi Sunak, Boris Johnson’s chancellor, posted a pic of himself along with a large bag of Yorkshire Tea bags, it set in motion a misdirected social media backlash of epic proportions towards Yorkshire Tea which had neither authorized nor sponsored the pic.
For those who may be wondering what made such a pic so provocative, here is one tweet that might explain the anger,
I’ve stopped using Yorkshire tea since then as I don’t want to use a product that received publicity from an xenophobic fascist racist Political Party. I got rid of Yorkshire tea from all three of my offices and from home. All staff and other family and friends feel same.
— Limited Ferry Services (@Wade73605662)
But through it all, the most remarkable aspect was how Yorkshire Tea engaged with the commenters. Consider, for instance, its reply to the above tweet:
Why not build a guy from the boxes and burn it on the lawn? That way we'd really get the message.
— Yorkshire Tea (@YorkshireTea)
And it even found time for some cheerful banter.
Dear Yorkshire Tea - Satan could post a picture of himself with a box of your teabags but I wouldn’t mind because you gave us this. Best brew ever. Thank you
— chrisn (@chrisnixon93)
This is relieving news, as we've recently gained a listing at a small supermarket in Hell!
— Yorkshire Tea (@YorkshireTea)
In the end, it summed it up with a thoughtful and poignant message.
So it's been a rough weekend. On Friday, the Chancellor shared a photo of our tea. Politicians do that sometimes (Jeremy Corbyn did it in 2017). We weren't asked or involved - and we said so the same day. Lots of people got angry with us all the same.
We've spent the last three days answering furious accusations and boycott calls. For some, our tea just being drunk by someone they don't like means it's forever tainted, and they've made sure we know it.
It's been pretty shocking to see the determination some have had to drag us into a political mudfight. But it's been lovely to see others speak up for us - we're so grateful to everyone who's done that in a civil way (and gutted to see some use it as a reason for more nastiness).
Speaking directly now, as the person who's been answering these tweets, I know it could have been much worse. It's easier to be on the receiving end of this as a brand than as an individual. There's more emotional distance and I've had a team to support me when it got a bit much.
But for anyone about to vent their rage online, even to a company - please remember there's a human on the other end of it, and try to be kind.
— Yorkshire Tea (@YorkshireTea)
License to Adult
A fun ad from Eastspring Investments, Malaysia, pitched at first time millennial investors.
Old Spice- The Way Thick Hair Was
The latest commercial from Old Spice finds a good balance between being absurd and effective.
Burger King- Valentine’s Day Free Whoppers
Two very different Valentine’s Day promotions from Burger King: both leading to a free Whopper.
In the US, across select cities, and select outlets, to get a free Whopper you needed to bring physical evidence of a broken relationship.
On the other side of the world, in India, the pitch was a bit more audacious. You needed to upload a selfie with someone whom they dubbed as “the loneliest man in the world”.
LIAR Wine
You could say that it is built on a sort of deception: it is a white wine made of red grapes. The people behind it have been quoted as saying this:
Whilst the growing trend amongst brands is to achieve greater honesty and transparency, our goal is to own the unexplored territory of lies. The product in itself represents a lie, as it poses as a white wine but is actually made of red Merlot grapes.
In what appears to not have been a coincidence, it was launched on Brexit day last month.
And if that was not curious enough, on Valentine’s Day, it launched a tongue-in-cheek promotion: buy 6 bottles of LIAR wine, and get a free bottle sent to your ex-partner. Why? Perhaps this video holds the answer to that.
What is Truly Scandinavian?
I’m with those who found the latest ad from SAS to be bewildering. I am baffled by the way it has been scripted, the choice of words, and by its tone.
For the record, two days after its release, SAS replaced it with a “shorter and clearer version”, while saying this:
It is regrettable that the film is misunderstood, that some choose to interpret the message and use it for their own purpose.
We are now continuing the planned campaign and we hope that it emphasizes the core message that travel enriches us.
I guess that in saying that the ad was “misunderstood”, they were alluding to the “thumbs down” votes on their YouTube channel that vastly outnumbered the “thumbs up” votes. If so, the new ad doesn’t seem to have remedied that.
Cry Me a Cockroach
Strange as it may sound, that’s the title of a Valentine’s Day event, organized by San Antonio Zoo in Texas. It’s not the only thing that is unusual about it. From the website of the zoo:
Have you ever been crushed by an ex? If so, we have the perfect opportunity for you to mend that broken heart. This Valentine’s Day, San Antonio Zoo is hosting our first ever ‘Cry Me a Cockroach’ event.
You will be able to name a cockroach after your ex, and we will serve it up as an enrichment treat to one of our animals for only $5. If you ex was a snake, you can even name a pre-frozen rodent after them, and we will feed it to a reptile for $25! The certificate you will receive can be shared on your own social media pages.
On Valentine’s Day, February 14th, we will be live-streaming our ‘Cry Me A Cockroach’ feeding frenzy! Birds and reptiles from San Antonio Zoo will join in on this feast. Will your ex be offered to our animals? Tune in this Valentine’s Day to find out!
Olivia Colman- Oscars 2020
After her delightful Best Actress award speech last year, I doubt if anyone expected Olivia Colman to top that this year. She wasn’t in contention for any awards this year but as she presented the Best Actor award, her candid confession and wit ended up being one of the high points of the night. As someone said, it deserved an award of its own.
Mumbai Police- The Punishing Signal
Extreme circumstances call for extreme measures. That seems to be the thought behind a radical experiment by the Mumbai Police, to curb needless honking, as this tongue-in-cheek campaign video shows.
Jeep- Groundhog Day
If you love the movie, you’ll love this ad. That’s assuming you haven’t yet seen it (50 million views and counting on YouTube since being uploaded, the Sunday before last).
Apparently, this is Bill Murray’s first appearance in a “national commercial” (Bill Murray has been quoted as saying this is his first and last commercial).
Here’s a link to a piece which gives the amazing story of how this ad came about.
The Future of Film Enhancement?
A digitally enhanced version of a 124-year old film clip, recently uploaded on YouTube, has been generating a lot of buzz. By most measures, it is quite an accomplishment, all the more so because it uses publicly available technology.
Here’s a link that helps compare the original with the enhanced version.
Here’s a link to a piece that explains in some detail the technology that was used.
Honeyland (2019)
This 2019 documentary is a mesmerizing portrait of a female beekeeper living in a remote mountain region of North Macedonia. It also doubles as a fable with a strong environmental message. And as with many documentaries, it has a fascinating back story.
It started off while the filmmakers were on an assignment to make an ecological documentary in that region. It seems they stumbled upon handmade beehives in the middle of nowhere. That led them to the 50 something Hatidze Muratova who, it turned out, was the last remaining beekeeper from a clan that had been harvesting honey for generations in a specific sustainable manner.
They didn’t speak her language and so the communication was limited, but they were drawn to her native charisma and her spartan way of life. They got her to agree to be filmed. One thing led to another, and the filming continued intermittently over 3 years. But it was only during the editing process, once the audio had been translated, that they had a real sense of the profoundness of what they had accomplished. Sure enough, the final product is, to quote one reviewer, “a work of staggering beauty and a priceless encounter with an exceptional human.”
Alongside For Sama and American Factory, both of which I reviewed earlier, it is one of the nominees for the best documentary feature at the Oscars tomorrow. What’s more, it is also in line for the best foreign film Oscar and is in fact, the first documentary ever to secure both nominations.
Here’s a link to the trailer.
Here’s a link to a 14 minute feature of an interaction with the star of Honeyland.
American Factory (2019)
I just got around to seeing this Netflix documentary and while it has been widely praised, I am on the fence on this. To be clear, it is well made and is worth seeing. I found the individual reflections, conversations and scenes to be mostly compelling. It’s just that, overall, it felt a bit underwhelming.
It depicts life in a US factory that was abandoned by General Motors, then acquired and retro-fitted by a Chinese billionaire. On one level, the documentary presents what the change has meant for those working in the plant. But for the most part, it showcases the differences between the American workers, the Chinese workers, and the Chinese owner, especially in their expectations of each other.
The contrasts are fascinating and are presented mostly in an even-handed manner. Every view point is shown to have its merits. What also comes out clearly is that their expectations- especially those of many (maybe, most) American workers and the Chinese owner are hard to reconcile. The documentary benefits immensely from the fact that the filmmakers had access to candid conversations within and across groups, and some very heartfelt reflections by the owner.
Which brings me to my fundamental issue: the documentary doesn’t give me a sense of where that leaves everyone. Is there any hope for reconciliation? If yes, how might it be accomplished? Is there anything to take away for other owner-investors and workers considering being part of such an experiment? To be fair, answering these questions may not have been the objective of the filmmakers. In one interview they said that their hope was that film would spark conversations about “the future of work”. I believe that the film would have been much more impactful (and satisfying) if it had presented some clear opinions on these questions.
For some reason, the trailer of the documentary struck me as being somewhat glossed up. I would rather suggest checking out this 6 minute Vice report on the factory and its owner, released three years ago.
What Makes a Great Film?
This is a talk given last year by film reviewer, Mark Kermode, at EffWeek, the annual event of the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising.
A Dramatic Take on Eco-Anxiety
This new ad from environmental charity, Friends of the Earth, takes eco-anxiety to a dramatic extreme. According to one of the people leading the creative team:
We wanted to create a high-intensity, Hollywood-esque chase scene that got pulses racing. The more dramatic we made it, the more humour there would be in the reveal…
Coinciding with the launch of the ad, Friends of the Earth released findings from a recent poll commissioned by them suggesting that 70% of 18-24 year olds in UK are more worried about climate change than they were a year ago.
For Sama (2019)
For Sama will be the single most heart-wrenchingly honest film you have ever seen. No amount of acting, elite accolades or story manipulation will ever compare to the genuine truth captured by a woman with a camera in Syria. It is truly an honor and a privilege to see this film.
This feature-length documentary is an extraordinary account of the war in Syria in general, and the siege of Aleppo in particular. It was carved from over 500 hours of footage, filmed by the director out of a compulsive need to document what she saw and went through. As much as it is about the turbulence and turmoil, it is also a deeply personal account. It spans her transition from student to revolutionary to journalist, and her experience of kinship, love, and motherhood. What stands out is her ability to coherently capture all of that.
It is a rare war documentary in which you don’t see the frontline or any guns going off. There are a few bombings, and you frequently see the ravages up close, but the focus is clearly on what the civilians are going through. You sense their fears and tensions, you see their grief and agony, but all throughout, you also see the strong undercurrent of resilience and hope that drives them forward and is their biggest uniting force.
Here’s a link to the trailer.
Here’s a link to a 3 minute introduction to this film from Channel 4 News, along with links to where this can be streamed. I also noticed a reddit post with additional upload links.