Ad of the Day: Amy Poehler Brings the Funny for Old Navy

Once upon a time, Old Navy commercials were generally accepted as wonderful. They were bright, colorful, kitschy, silly and instantly recognizable. But eventually, as these things go, they got old. The public moved on, while Old Navy, with its mannequins and goofy taglines, remained stuck in the 2000s. Since the retailer split with Crispin Porter + Bogusky last summer, though, its advertising—from Chandelier Creative in New York—has experienced a bit of a revival. First, there was the Black Friday ad with the delightful Melissa McCarthy. Then, last month, it was a spot featuring comedian Debra Wilson as an overexcited TSA agent. Now, Old Navy is debuting a new campaign starring yet another female comic, national treasure Amy Poehler. The first 30-second spot, "Meet the Pixie Pant," has Poehler playing a wacky lawyer who interviews a potential job candidate. But rather than discussing, you know, lawyer stuff, Poehler becomes fixated on the interviewee's outfit—a pair of skinny blue gingham pants and white T-shirt (which, cuteness notwithstanding, probably isn't the most appropriate ensemble for an interview at a law firm)—and proceeds to ask her a bunch of bizarre questions about them. After learning that the pants were just $25 and the shirt free with purchase, Poehler gives the young woman the job and dashes out to Old Navy. In a second, extended version of the spot, we get some more riffing from Poehler on her pants obsession ("Would it be weird if I got the same ones? And we wore them on the same day? And we went to the beach together?"), her law firm ("You know what we do here? We represent cats in criminal trials") and the job requirements ("You do some light housekeeping? Great, because I live in a lighthouse and it's filthy"). Admittedly, none of this is exactly groundbreaking, and if the star were anyone but Poehler, it might even be forgettable. But Poehler, who also helped write the spots, gives a deadpan performance that's hard not to love. She's proven capable of making average material seem much better than it actually is (Season 1 of Parks and Recreation, anyone?), and she works that same magic here. And magic is something Old Navy sorely needs. CREDITS Client: Old Navy Agency: Chandelier Creative Creative Directors: Richard Christiansen, Lena Kuffner Managing Director: Sara Fisher Art Director: Michael Scanlon Writer: Matt Murray Producer: Jill Andresevic Production Company: Caviar Content Director: Jonathan Krisel Executive Producers: Michael Sagol, Jasper Thomlinson Line Producer: Eric Escott Director of Photography: Christian Sprenger Editorial: Rock Paper Scissors Editor: Carlos Arias Assistant Editor: Alex Liu Executive Producer: Eve Kornblum Head of Production: Justin Kumpata Post Producer: Lisa Barnable Telecine: Color Collective Colorist: Alex Bickel Producer: Claudia Guevara Audio Post: Sonic Union Mixer: Mike Marinelli Assistant Mixer: Pat Sullivan Visual Effects Studio: Rock Paper Scissors 2-D Visual Effects Artist: Edward Reina Producer: Melanie Gagliano Executive Producer: Eve Kornblum

Brand Marketing

Ad of the Day: Amy Poehler Brings the Funny for Old Navy

Retailer sure loves its female comics

Emma Bazilian

About

Subscriptions

Events

Publications

WORK SMARTER - LEARN, GROW AND BE INSPIRED.

Subscribe today!

Emma Bazilian