Holman + Hunt – AMC UK Launch
Even if you're one of the few remaining people who haven't seen Breaking Bad (and if so, get on it, trust me) you're undoubtedly familiar with the work of Bryan Cranston as the now iconic anti-hero Walter White. So it was quite a coupe for Holman + Hunt to score the man himself and get him to front the campaign for the UK launch of AMC, the US channel that first gave us Breaking Bad, as well as hit dramas such as Mad Men and The Walking Dead. The campaign is based on a poem about stories written by the firm's co-founder and creative director Richard Holman. Currently there are two different executions with more to come: in the first the poem is read in extreme close up by Cranston, and in the second, the poem is read by a young boy, alone in the strange nowhere land.
Holman + Hunt have got Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston to front the campaign for the UK launch of AMC
Holman explains the thought processes behind the campaign: “Of all the channels available today I’d argue that AMC stands alone as the storyteller par excellence, so it felt right to create a campaign that was all about the celebration of stories. I’d also been wanting to do a campaign with a series of different spots using exactly the same dialogue for a while. We knew asking Bryan to read the poem was a long shot, so I was delighted when I heard he was up for it. The hitch was finding out on a Saturday morning in Wales that the only time he could fit it in was the following Monday in LA!”
Wieden+Kennedy – FIFA 16
Of all the EA Sports franchises, FIFA is perhaps the most critically acclaimed. What was once seen as a poor mans alternative to Pro Evolution Soccer has overtaken Konami's competing franchise in recent years to become the definitive football gaming experience. It's fair to say that releasing what is essentially the same game every year with slightly improved graphics and a few new features has gone pretty well for them recently, but with FIFA 16, the franchise is attempting to give players more freedom with their movements, so it feels like they are actually in control of their actions. They are backing up this new direction with a new campaign from Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam called “FIFARO,” which kicks off with a two-minute commercial dramatising the nature of football, and FIFA in particular, that drives players to make the game look and feel more beautiful, and literally sings an ode to the sport in the accompanying soundtrack; a specially rewritten, football-focused version of the famous Aria from the “Barber of Seville” opera (you might not know it by name, but trust me, you'll know it).
A new campaign from Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam for FIFA 16 kicks off with a two-minute commercial dramatising the nature of football
The film (from Traktor) stars football stars such as Lionel Messi, Sergio Agüero and Alex Morgan, along with a special appearance by the legendary Pele. David Smith, Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam creative director, said: “For a game that provides as much beauty as football it's surprising more operas haven’t been written about it. So it seemed appropriate to add one to the world's oeuvre.” It launched globally this week, with versions of the film running across TV and online channels, along with social activations. If nothing else, it's convinced me to give this year's game at go.
BMF – P&O
I'm not usually one for spots featuring Hollywood celebrities pushing glamorous vacations. It often comes across as a lazy and uninspired way to draw people's attention to a brand, and the resultant spots are usually smug, occasionally embarrassing, and rarely memorable. Owen Wilson, however, is a likeable presence in a trio of spots by BMF for P&O Cruises, which serves to celebrate the launch of its two latest ships, (“Pacific Aria” and “Pacific Eden') which will join the cruise line’s fleet in November this year. Wilson, famed for his roles in Zoolander, Meet The Parents and Wedding Crashers, is the star of a short-film trilogy, titled “The Conspicuous Awakening of Owen Wilson,” with each film showing the star enjoying the ships’ features through a series of dream-like and surprisingly humorous flashbacks.
Owen Wilson stars in a trio of spots by BMF for P&O Cruises, which serves to celebrate the launch of its two latest ships
BMF managing director, Steve McArdle, said: “P&O Cruises briefed us to develop something that had real scale and social currency. Bringing together the 'Be Free Earthlings' idea and one of the biggest movie stars on the planet, felt like a pretty good place to start.” Owen Wilson added: “It’s a really fun, sophisticated atmosphere. Different to the cruise ship ideal that maybe your grandparents would have experienced. It’s pretty tough to top the ship’s Blue Room!” The campaign includes: Film, Content, Digital, Social, PR and an exclusive on-set interview with Owen himself.
Adam&eveDDB – Sony Xperia
Ahead of the release of the heavily anticipated latest James Bond film SPECTRE (it's Bond so it's earned it's capital letters), Sony has unveiled the “Made for Bond” advertising campaign by Adam&eveDDB, which stars Naomie Harris as Moneypenny. Developed to show off the features of Sony's new Xperia Z5 phone (the official phone of Bond this time around), the short film follows a tense chase across London’s South Bank as Moneypenny fights off mysterious villains (using a variety of Sony gadgets of course) to deliver Bond his Z5. It's a little daft and overly dramatic, but it's classic Bond, and does manage to show off Sony's swag without coming across as tech pornography.
Sony has unveiled the “Made for Bond” advertising campaign by Adam&eveDDB, which stars Naomie Harris as Moneypenny
The 60-second piece has been produced by the legendary British director Danny Kleinman with production company Rattling Stick. Kleinman said: “The campaign film truly captures the excitement of the chase, being on a mission and taking the viewer on the journey, all set against an iconic London backdrop.” Harris, who also stars in the upcoming film, adds: “London provides the perfect setting for the campaign film. Ultimately, at the centre of Bond is Britishness, so it was really important that the ad was shot here. It is not your traditional commercial; it’s an action-packed mini movie in itself.” The campaign officially launches with the TV commercial, which will first air in the UK on 1st October 2015 and will run up until 8th November, just in time for the launch of the movie. The media campaign led by MediaCom also encompasses print, retail, digital and OOH.
Saatchi & Saatchi – Elmsta 3000 Horror Festival
This is one of my absolute favourites, and whilst it's not technically an ad, it's something I absolutely had to shoehorn in somewhere this week. When they were asked to come up with a novel way of encouraging visitors to attend the Swedish Horror Fest Elmsta 3000, Saatchi & Saatchi Stockholm placed a small ad in the classified section of a local newspaper, inviting people to the baptism of a little girl called “Lucy.” The seemingly innocent ad had a satanic twist though; Lucy quite obviously had the number of the beast carved into her forehead, and the email address attached to the ad when read backwards spelt “Satans Mother.” It's a sly, decidedly creepy, and really rather cheeky idea that quickly went viral and created a dramatic surge of interest in the small horror festival.
Saatchi & Saatchi Stockholm placed a small ad in the classified section of a local newspaper, inviting people to the baptism of a satanic little girl called “Lucy”
Saatchi & Saatchi Stockholm ECD Gustav Egerstedt said: ”We have worked with this client for eight years and every year we try to push the work a little further. The festival's yearly theme is always part of the brief and this year's theme 'Evil Kids' was rich territory. It quickly lead us to a bunch of strong and scary ideas. But in the end the little baptism ad was without doubt the most interesting one. We were also intrigued with the media strategy coming with it and knew we had to see it through.”
Benjamin Hiorns is a freelance writer and struggling musician from Kidderminster in the UK.
