You could call it the new simplicity. Or the old. It really doesn’t
matter. As many of the top creative directors found when choosing their
ad of the year, the simplicity of great ideas is timeless.
Commercials such as VW’s ’hiccups’, Alka Seltzer’s ’lifeboat’, the
entire Fiesta campaign, ’amore’ from Whiskas and ’skid marks’ from
Mercedes would feature in any awards ceremony of the past 30 years. Or
the next.
Like the best comedians, they let the audience supply the punchline and,
having done so and laughed, it’s fixed in our memories. Perhaps this is
the true meaning of interactive television.
The advantage of short spots such as these is that the product is
central.
Ironically, this seems harder to achieve with longer films. Although
Tango, Ford Puma, VW Passat and One-2-One manage to do so with great
style, in a few of the favoured commercials the product comes second to
the camera’s brilliance.
VW’s ’protection’, for example, risks confusion with safety films for
smoke alarms, while Virgin’s ’grim reaper’ takes too long to say too
little (losing out in comparison with the Helen Mirren spots). Then
Nike’s ’park life’ may be the best film featuring famous footballers
but, even to soccer fans, the brands are surely tending to merge,
because their commercials are so alike.
Now, admittedly, the motoring sector is the second biggest spender after
retail (nil points) but it’s still remarkable that 12 creative directors
chose a car ad. Of these, congratulations to BMP DDB, which picked up
half the votes.
But does this imply that other sectors are barren? Groceries,
publishing, financial, clothing don’t feature, while even alcoholic
beverages is left to drown its sorrows with a solitary Guinness.
Nonetheless, this year has seen the sea-change we’ve been waiting
for.
Out goes the ’I dazzle therefore I sell’ school of commercials with a
thousand cuts (’and how would you like them edited, sir?’). Out, too,
are moody actors miming to old pop songs. In has come a wit and a
pared-down style where product and idea are inseparable.
Of course, the choices of the creative directors don’t just tell us
something about the state of the advertising industry, they also tell us
about the state of the creative directors. Alas, for those of you who
like to see them fall on their famous mug-shots, none of them chooses
anything execrable.
There is commonality of view on what is good. Perhaps - just perhaps -
too much agreement.
Aren’t we lacking a strong opposition - the sort that used to be
supplied by the likes of Don White and Peter Marsh?
Isn’t it time for another guy or girl with attitude to strut on, kick
sand, tell clients that the rest of us are wet dreamers, and do work
that’s so ballsy and so uncool that we cringe while we find ourselves
saying the words on the postcard in Bill Bernbach’s wallet, ’Maybe he’s
right’?
Tony Brignull is a copywriter and advertising consultant
Nike Parklife
’At least three teams in BMP told me I’d like this commercial. So word
of mouth had already prepared me for the seemingly effortless way in
which Nike has forged this emotional bond with its audience. It’s a joy
to watch and to listen to. Its use of personalities is original. The
opening shot is a corker. And the endline is the perfect summation of
all that’s gone before it. What more can I say?’ Tony Cox, BMP DDB
Agency: TBWA Simons Palmer
Art director: Guy Moore
Copywriter: Tony Malcolm
Production company: Academy
Director: Jonathan Glazer
Ford Puma Steve McQueen
’Putting one of the biggest movie stars of all time into the car to
demonstrate it seems like a very good idea to me. Brilliantly executed
and very watchable.’
Jaspar Shelbourne, J. Walter Thompson
Agency: Young & Rubicam
Art director: Lee Goulding
Copywriter: Leighton Ballett
Production company: Streetlight Partnership
Director: Paul Street
Ford Fiesta
TV/print launch campaign
’Ford is not the world’s most exciting brand, the Fiesta is not its most
exciting car, and Ogilvy & Mather is not always included in lists of the
most exciting agencies (erroneously, I believe). However, this is quite
simply the best campaign I’ve seen so far this year.’
Peter Souter, Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO
Agency: Ogilvy & Mather
Art director: Dorte Nielson
Copywriters: Meg Roscoff, Vicki Maguire
Production companies: Pink, Outsider
Directors: Harald Zwart, Stein Leikangert
Blackcurrant Tango St George
’We open on the marketing manager of Tango talking about his new
blackcurrant flavour. Not the most promising start to a script. But the
commercial that evolved was just about perfect. Full marks to the
creative team, director and brave client. Nil points to the D&AD jury
who decided not to give it a gold.’
Mike Cozens, Young & Rubicam
Agency: HHCL & Partners
Art director: Jim Bolton
Copywriter: Chas Bayfield
Production company: Eclipse
Director: Colin Gregg
Alka Seltzer Lifeboat
’Simple, audacious and memorable. Three good reasons for liking anything
- and, of course, I wish I’d done it.’
John Hegarty, Bartle Bogle Hegarty
’A great idea can be extremely simple. Here is the definitive
example.’
Jeremy Pemberton, DMB&B
Agency: Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO
Art director: Patricia Doherty
Copywriter: Greg Martin
Production company: Park Village
Director: Roger Woodburn
Virgin Atlantic Grim Reaper
’It’s a very lateral and intriguing way to sell an airline, but it fits
the Virgin brand and is endlessly enjoyable to watch as the frenetic
memories are counter-pointed by the gradual wearing down of the reaper.
Did they ever consider Blue Oyster Cult’s memorable Don’t Fear The
Reaper as a soundtrack?’ Nick Welch, Ammirati Puris Lintas
Agency: Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe
Art director: Andy Blood
Copywriter: Richard Beesening
Production company: The Paul Weiland Film Company
Director: Frank Budgen
Whiskas Amore
’The Whiskas ’catisfaction’ campaign sells catfood with charm and humour
(not many petfood ads do that). Lovely soundtrack. Great, seductive
cat-acting. Wish I’d done it.’
John Kelley, TBWA Simons Palmer
Agency: M&C Saatchi
Art director: Kevin Thomas
Copywriter: Kevin Thomas
Production company: Park Village
Director: Roger Woodburn
Wallis Metro
’Shot in a very distinctive, unconventional style by Bob Carlos Clarke -
a famous fashion photographer - they have deliberately decided not to
make the clothes the focus of the ads. In each execution, a
well-dressed, self-assured woman is oblivious to the excitement she’s
causing as she walks by in everyday situations. In that snapshot, we are
seeing something before the ensuing mayhem. I’ve always thought of
Wallis as older women’s attire, but these ads really reposition it.’
Adrian Kemsley, CDP
Agency: Bartle Bogle Hegarty
Art director: Steve Hudson
Copywriter: Victoria Fallon
Guinness Statistics
’I find this seriously entertaining. It can stand repeat viewing. It’s
beautifully and cleverly shot and it leaves me feeling very well
disposed towards the product.’
Richard Myers,
Saatchi & Saatchi
Agency: Ogilvy & Mather
Art director: Clive Yaxley
Copywriter: Jerry Gallaher
Production company: Gorgeous
Director: Chris Palmer
Coca-Cola
The Commentary
’It’s powerful, bold and thought-provoking.’
Larry Barker, WCRS
Agency: Wieden & Kennedy
Art director: Ollie Watson
Copywriter: Nick Wray
Production company: @ radical Media
Director: Lenny Dorfman
Mercedes Benz SLK
Skid Marks
’It’s instant.’
Simon Dicketts,
M&C Saatchi
Agency: Leo Burnett
Art director: Mark Tutssel
Copywriter: Nick Bell
VW Passat Test Track
’The Passat advertisement is a breath of fresh air. Unlike a great deal
of today’s commercials, it is not coy, but celebratory about the
product.
It has none of the moody, po-faced attitude so evident elsewhere,
choosing instead to speak with wit and charm. Most refreshingly of all,
it has a plot that the consumer actually has a chance of following. I am
not saying it is the greatest commercial ever made. But at least it
faces in the right direction.’
Paul Weinberger, Lowe Howard-Spink
Agency: BMP DDB.
Art director: Richard Flintham
Copywriters: Andy McLeod, Nick Gill
Production company: Limelight
Director: Daniel Kleinman
VW Polo Hiccups
’It’s a simple, pure idea. And it makes me laugh.’
Rooney Carruthers, WCRS
’This is a campaign that actually credits the viewer with a modicum of
intelligence. Imagine how crass it would have become if the endline
spelt it out for you (’You too will be shocked by our prices’). A brave
client gets a brilliant ad.’ Gerard Stamp, Leo Burnett
Agency: BMP DDB
Art director: Andrew Fraser
Copywriter: Andrew Fraser
Production company: Outsider
Director: Paul Gray
VW Polo Chair
’Low price is never the most promising brief. This campaign achieves its
objectives with economy, wit and the rarest of all advertising
qualities, surprise.’
Gerry Moira, Publicis
Agency: BMP DDB
Art director: Andrew Fraser
Copywriter: Andrew Fraser
Production company: Outsider
Director: Paul Gay
