Creative: Best Spots Of August

Adidas "Rest That Arm, Dave" In the tradition of "What the hell is A-N-S-K-Y?" this spot throws nothing but strikes. Pitcher David Cone is told to rest his arm, so the YANKS guys pitch in. They carry Coney's backpack, push away autograph seekers, hold his cell phone and help him take care of business in the men's room. This campaign's a winner, much like the baseball team it represents. Hey, Yankee haters: Can you deal with two world championships in three years? Go Yanks! Agency: Leagas Delaney, San Francisco Creative directors: Harry Cocciolo, Sean Ehringer Art director: Peter Nicholson Copywriter: Scott Wild Agency producer: Ben Latimer Production co.: Headquarters Director: Joe Public Editor: Bob Spector, Bob & Sheila's Edit World Music: Dave Shapiro, Shapiro Music Bugle Boy "Nation Young Men" Wild colors. Bizarre shapes. Strange camera angles. Funhouse-mirror people. Fast-cut edits. Electronic music. No voiceover. If the Bugle Boy nation is inhabited by teenagers and Gen Xers, this spot hits the target. Agency: DDB Needham, Los Angeles Chief creative officer: Rick Carpenter Executive creative director: Pat Burnham Art directors: Kevin McCarthy, Richard Mirabelli Copywriter: Allen Hannawell Agency producer: Connie Myck Production co.: Chelsea Pictures Director: Simon Blake Flame operator: Verdi Sevenhuysen, Encore West Editor: Fred Fouquet, Riot Music: Asche Spencer Music Carl's Jr. "Dueling Drips" Doing his laundry, a guy chows down on a Carl's Superstar and drips ketchup on his shirt. Taking the shirt off, he throws it in the wash. Across the way, a babe eats an ice-cream bar and drips chocolate on her blouse. Taking the blouse off, she throws it in the wash. Let the striptease begin! Food droplets splash like hemoglobin in a Freddy Krueger flick. At the moment of truth, he drops his drawers--but she hits the highway in her just-washed jeans. It's a cool way to sell a juicy hamburger. Agency: Mendelsohn/Zien, Los Angeles CD/art director: Jordin Mendelsohn Associate creative director: Claudia Caplan Art director: Michael Kaden Copywriter: Betsy Hamilton Agency producer: Brittany Stevenson Assistant producer: Amy Lyngos Production co.: The End Director: Jaume Editor: Jon Hopp, Jigsaw Editorial Composer: Brian Banks, Ear to Ear Cherry Coke "Canine Car Washer" A nice change from the usual frenetic soft-drink ad, this retro-style spot offers "New thinking from Cherry Coke." When the car needs a cleaning, Fido gets the job. Wearing sponges, the dog lathers, scrubs and rinses the vehicle: the ultimate pet trick. Growing up, Best Spots had a mutt, a little Benji dog named April (don't ask). Smart as a whip, she played a mean hide-and-seek (the seeker) and a meaner fetch the slipper. Her best trick? A daily 22-hour nap. Agency: Cliff Freeman and Partners, New York CD: David Angelo Art director: Taras Wayner Copywriter: Kevin Roddy Agency producer: Maresa Wickham Production co.: Propaganda Films Director: Vaughan Arnell Editor: Doug Walker, FilmCore Graphic design: Paul McMinean, A52 Dupont Silverstone "Newlyweds" In this hilarious ad, two hot-blooded newlyweds prefer the taste of amore to the taste of food cooked in their Farberware pot. It seems our kissing couple never quite gets to the oatmeal and casserole; in fact, they never quite get to the bedroom either. Sort of gives a whole new meaning to the line, "Let's do lunch." Agency: Young & Rubicam, New York Exec. CD: Janet Kraus Creative directors: James Caporimo, Bob Murphy Art director: Kat Keeley Copywriter: Kevin Browne Agency producer: Adam Isidore Music producer: Paul Greco Production co.: Celsius Films Director: Mark Tiedermann Editor: Tim Squyres, Spin Cycle Editing Co. Duracell "Break Down" Stranded in the middle of nowhere, a guy calls Mike's Towing on his cell phone, thanks to new Ultra batteries "with a concentrated power force to give more life to your high-tech devices." Put on hold to the clear-sounding music of "Play That Funky Music, White Boy," the dude becomes a dancing fool. As for his sense of rhythm, the term "white boy" applies. Agency: BBDO, New York Chief creative officer: Ted Sann Executive creative director/art director/copywriter: Dennis Berger Senior creative directors/art directors/ copywriters: Mike Campbell, Janet Lyons Agency producers: Lisa Grossman, Edie Bonner Production co.: Pytka Director: Joe Pytka Editor: Chuck Willis, Crew Cuts Footlocker "What's Up With Jimmy?" Keith Van Horn is "helping players win on the court and in life." In this spoof of '70s television, Keith saves fellow teammate Jimmy from looking too "hippy" in his uniform. Q: Who's the towel boy in "today's episode?" A: Ken Howard of The White Shadow. Agency: Deutsch, New York Exec. CD: Kathy Delaney Group CD/art director: Craig Markus Assoc. CD/copywriter: Cheryl Van Ooyen Agency producer: Cheri Anderson Production co.: Hungry Man Director: Hank Perlman Editor: Dick Gordon, Mad River Post Music: Killer Tracks Hanes Her Way "Moon Dance" Silhouetted by a gigantic moon, a woman in her underwear performs back flips, somersaults and other death-defying leaps. As the camera pans her firm breasts, silky thighs and taut abs, Best Spots couldn't help but notice the artistry and athleticism of this trampoline-jumping actress. The song, King Harvest's "Dancing in the Moonlight," strikes a chord, too. Agency: Long Haymes Carr, Winston-Salem, N.C. Executive creative directors: Bill Puckett, Frank Campion Creative directors: Grant Pace, Bob Ranew Associate creative director/art director/ copywriter: Mike Foley Agency producer: Sara March Barber Production co.: RSA USA Director: Marcus Nispel Editor: Dick Gordon, Mad River Post Heineken "Ball Boys" As each bar patron places the empty green beer bottle on the table, a hand swoops in and takes it away. You know it must be U.S. Open season--they're tennis ball boys. "Good get," says one kid to another. Good spot, too. Agency: Lowe & Partners/ SMS, New York Chief creative officer: Lee Garfinkel Exec. CD: Gary Goldsmith Creative group head/art director: C.J. Waldman Creative group head/ copywriter: Todd Godwin Art director: Chris Brignola Director of broadcast production: Bob Nelson Production co.: radical.media Director: Frank Todaro Editor: Ian MacKenzie, MacKenzie Cutler Hollywood Video "Birds" A sales guy tells a customer where to find the new releases and how titles are "guaranteed" to be in stock. All the while, a flock of seagulls attack an elderly woman on the street. Finally, the clerk gets tired of the lady's screams and calls off the birds. Best Spots film trivia: In The Birds, what was Hitchcock doing in his cameo? Walking poodles. Agency: Cliff Freeman and Partners, New York Creative directors: Cliff Freeman, Arthur Bijur Art director: Matt Vescovo Copywriter: Eric Silver Agency producer: Nick Felder Production co.: Tate & Partners Director: Baker Smith Editor: Gavin Cutler, MacKenzie Cutler Midway NFL Blitz "Target Practice" "Arm's looking good," says coach. "Haven't missed one yet," replies QB Kordell Stewart, who is firing footballs at marching-band members, dropping them like ducks in a shooting gallery. We learn that Midway's NFL computer game is "a wretched assault on the sense of fair play." The game has: "No refs. No rules. No mercy." And people wonder why their kiddies act the way they do. Agency: DDB Needham, Dallas Creative directors: Jim Ferguson, Mike Fazende Art director: Andy Mahr Copywriter: Russell Lambrecht Executive producer: John Adams Agency producer: Karen Junkens Production co.: Stiefel & Co. Director: Peter Darley Miller Editorial: Tom's Easy Way Sound design: CHK+W NikeC "Dangers" "When golfing Everest," says a parka-clad dude, "there's more than just traction to consider." Nike golf shoes "may keep you stable, but they offer little protection from oxygen deprivation." The effects are first noticed in conversation. "What club did you use?" asks one golfer. "My father is a wonderful dentist," is the oxygen-starved reply. It's a funny goof on the extreme-adventure craze. Agency: Wieden & Kennedy, Portland, Ore. Creative director: Jamie Barrett Art director: Rob Palmer Copywriter: Mike Smith Agency producer: Patty Brebner Production co.: Shelter Films Director: Jonathan David Editor: Peter Wiedensmith, Joint Sound design: Bob Redpath, Warner Bros. Studios Norelco Reflex Action Razor "Hockey" With the toughest beards around, the Hartford Wolfpack AHL team tries an electric razor for 21 days. Resistant at first, the players are won over by the improved shave. Everyone notices: "Look at you, pretty boys. So smooth," says a rival team's mascot before being slammed into the boards by the clean-shaven 'Pack players. Agency: DMB&B, New York Executive creative director: Cathy Aromando-Donovan Creative director: Joe Staluppi Assoc. CD: Bill O'Brien Art director: David Nickel Copywriter: Shiraz Gani Executive producer: Gail Zeltman Production co.: Lovinger/ Cohn Director: Paul Goldman Editor: Chip Smith, Blue Rock Payless Shoesource "Ocean" Atop a seaside pier, a woman gets a dance lesson. "Quick, quick, slow," says the instructor, dipping his vivacious protƒgƒ with a little too much verve. Look out below: Her red shoe flies off and splashes into the briny blue. Time for new pumps. Agency: Foote, Cone & Belding, Chicago Creative directors: Chris Schipke, Heather Haley Art director: Sabrina Jenkins Copywriter: Matt Horton Agency producer: Tom Cronin Production co.: HKM Productions Director: Richard Sears Editor: Martha Kelly, Avenue Edit Music: Tomandandy RCA "Player & Ump" After a linesman calls a match-winning point "in," the losing tennis player goes John McEnroe. With a German-Dutch-Swedish accent, the dude yells: "Are you insane? The ball wasn't even close." He follows the ref into the clubhouse dining room screaming his case. But a replay on a big-screen TV proves the ump correct. "Good call," says bratface in perfect English. "How's the chicken?" Agency: Ammirati Puris Lintas, N.Y. CDs: Adam Goldstein, David Harner Art dir.: Ian Bery Copywriter: Glen Hunt Agency prod.: Marcy Sansolo Production co.: X-Ray Director: Roger Terry Editor: Ron Len, Madhouse Sears "Squeaky Sneakers" Using odd camera angles, this ad puts teenagers on a school-cafeteria line. The kids are blowing bubbles, playing with yo-yos and squeaking their sneakers on the floor. Sears may be pushing Reeboks in this one, but the wildly colored caf food and art direction helped sell Best Spots. Agency: Young & Rubicam, Chicago Exec. CD: Tom Shortlidge Group CD/art director: Betsy Erickson Copywriter: Stacey Schwarz Agency producer: Melissa Barany Production co.: Big Dog Films Director: Hype Williams Editor: Ruth Epstein, Cutters Music: Rodney Jerkins, Dark Child Entertainment Trojan "Restaurant" In this over-the-top ad, an amorous couple prepare to share "dessert." But before the sweet stuff, Trojan Man rides to the rescue, placing a condom on the table. The latex, our hero says, is "designed with unique textures for her and a special shape for him to enhance both partners' pleasure and excitement." Check, please! Agency: Bates USA, New York CD: Bob Froelich Art director: Chris Haden Copywriter: Belinda Broido Agency producer: Ed Bishal Production co.: Open Films Director: Michael Givens Editor: Gil Goren, Chainsaw Sound design: Pomann Sound USTA/U.S. Open "Defending A Box-Baseball" In baseball, "a man defends a box 1 by 2 feet against a ball traveling 90 mph. If he succeeds three out of 10 times, he's in the Hall of Fame." In tennis, "a man defends a box 21 by 13.5 feet against a ball traveling 135 mph. There's a word for a tennis player who succeeds three out of 10 times--unemployed." It's apples and oranges, but this attitude ad works. Agency: Grybauskas Beatrice, New York Creative director: Roland Grybauskas Art director/producer: Randy Rosand Copywriter: Hank Stewart Production co.: NFL Films Director: Greg Kohs Valvoline "Shrinks" With only his legs showing, a man lies underneath a car, tinkering. VO: "Some people have shrinks. Some people have their garage." Super: "You can always tell the guys who use Valvoline." That's it. That's enough. Simple and effective, this spot no doubt will reach its target audience. Agency: Lowe & Partners/SMS, New York Chief creative officer: Ted Sann Executive creative director: Gary Goldsmith Creative group heads: Seth Fried, Steve Kashtan Art director: Barbara Eibel Copywriter: Mark Teringo Producer: Rachel Novak Production co.: Palomar Director: Melodie McDaniel Editor: Eric Pomert, MacKenzie Cutler Visa Check Card "linda evangelista" In an "Identity" perfume ad filled with mirrors and flowing curtains, Linda Evangelista says stuff like "You asked me who I am, but who am I really?" and "Does anyone know who they really are?" Surprise: It's a Visa spot. Asked to flash ID by a salesclerk, Evangelista emotes: "I don't have identity." Indeed, art may imitate real life: After dumping longtime boy toy Kyle MacLachlan, Linda was last seen on the back of a jet ski with French World Cup goalie Fabian Barthez. Supermodel midlife crisis? Ya think? Agency: BBDO, New York Art director: Russell Sinclair Copywriter: Peter Smith Agency producers: David Frankel, Lisa Channell Production co.: Nitro Films Director: Tom DiCerchio

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Creative: Best Spots Of August

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