Friday 11 April 2008

Vegemount

We know nothing about where this little clip has come from, but the owners of Vegemite need to get this artist on their payroll.



Mmmmm, toasty.

Thursday 10 April 2008

Lager Than Life

We like beer at The Reel. Frankly, give any of us a fermented alco-drink and we’re happy as Larry. However, beer ads often don’t live up to the lovely stuff they’re promoting. Sure, Carling produced some tasty spots recently for matey pub-goers, and Guinness can always be called on for eye-popper of an ad, but when it comes to a joyful celebration of a brew there’s one country that towers above all others – Australia. With the recent launch of Carlton Draught’s new execution ‘Skytroop’, we thought it was time to take a look at some of the beauts the brand has dished out in the past.



In August 2005 Carlton Draft took larging it to the next level with its ‘Big Ad’. Visually reminiscent of the enormous battle scenes seen in movies such as Lord Of The Rings and Troy, the spot subverted its appearance by drawing attention to the scale of itself. Therefore, instead of troops’ rallying battle cries we instead hear lyrics alluding to the fact that the ad is ‘freaking HUGE’. Seeded virally beforehand and hosted on its own website two weeks before its on-air launch, the ad captured imaginations and awards (including a Gold Lion) in its wake. We’ve found a cool little Making Of here if you want to know more.


Following on from the majesty of the ‘Big Ad’, the folks at George Patterson Y&R decided to scale down the cast and scale up the dance. The result is ‘Flashbeer’, a sublime Flashdance spoof in which portly brewer applicant Kevin Kavendish chooses to wow the interview panel with his moves rather than experience. Despite the movie being consistently subject to a number of homages (both ad and promo alike – watch at your own risk!), Flashbeer - continuing the brand’s brilliantly nonsensical ‘Made from Beer’ campaign - joyously won hearts and yet more awards with its charming execution and wonderfully 80’s coda.



So on to ‘Skytroop’, the latest execution in the campaign. Continuing the tradition of not taking itself too seriously, the spot focuses on the impressive display of an oversized skydiving troop. However, a slight lack of forsight leaves the heavy beer-can container to blaze its own trail through a suburban setting. Again formulated by creative team Ant Keoth and Grant Rutherford and directed by Plaza Films’ Paul Middleditch, the spot retains the feel of its predecessors (not least the scale of the ‘Big Ad’) and may well be one to look out for come awards season.

For Reel subscribers wanting to get all the credit info on the ads mentioned here, or just interested in Carlton’s TV history, click on this link.

NewsReel 10/04/08

Tributes to Paul Arden

Adland lost one of its legendary faces last week with the death of Paul Arden. The former ECD of Saatchi & Saatchi passed away last week of a heart attack. Rather than list the man's numerous achievement and character traits, we'll simply link to a site where those that new him best can do just that - www.paularden.com

Moves Airside

Airside - our uber cool design/animation/graphics/agency pals have moved!


The new Airside studios are located at 339 Upper Street.

For more info, check www.airside.co.uk

Santo Blighty Bound
Santo, one of Argentina’s top creative agencies, is to open in London. The agency is set to launch in May of this year with creative director Pablo Minces and consultant Martin Cole relocating to the capital. Santo’s spot for Lux titled ‘Neon Girl’ featured on The April 07 cover of The Reel and went on to be nominated at Cannes. What can we say but welcome to the smoke. www.santobuenosaires.com

OK DONT!

Witness the majesty of OK GO!'s Video for 'Here It Goes Again'



And now look at this Berocca ad below...

Normally we let it slide when we see ads being influenced by other forms of art or creativity… I mean you have to have inspiration right!?

However – we felt the need to point the finger on this one…

Berocca… Hang your heads in shame…