ESPN’s in-house agency, ESPN Creative Works teamed up with content production studio Big Block for a new ad promoting the ESPN mobile app, entitled “Fan’s Best Friend.”
The 30-second spot, directed by Cody Stokes, trades in lighthearted humor, overselling the importance of the app for comedic effect, complete with overly dramatic piano score.
“They say you don’t choose the app, the app chooses you,” says a man who wishes sports “could be with me always.”
He goes on to call the app “everything you could want in a sports companion” over footage of the two together on the bus, at the park and during a stroll on the beach, parodying the kind of approach you’d expect to see promoting a dating app.
“I never thought I could find an app that loves sports as much as I do,” the man says, almost tearfully, at the spot’s conclusion, “until now.”
The spot is pretty clearly timed to coincide with the upcoming start of the NFL season and remind any fans who don’t have the app that it’s a handy way to keep tabs on the action. In one particularly ridiculous scene, the fan can be seen throwing the pigskin around with the app, which doesn’t appear to be a very good receiver. The spot also finds time to briefly promote the U.S. Open and SportsCenter as well.
Credits:
Agency: ESPN Creative Works
Senior Creative Director: Jay Marrotte
Creative Director: Jamie Overkamp
Content Production Studio: Big Block
Director: Cody Stokes
Managing Director: Kenny Solomon
Chief Content Officer: Tom Flanagan
EP/Live Action: Geno Imbriale
Line Producer: Dan Gartner
DP: Tristan Nyby
Production Designer: Ali Isaksen
Post Production: Big Block
Creative Director: Curtis Doss
EP/Post Production: Rhys Demery
Editor: Andrew Andersen
Post Producer: Andrew Gilson