Adidas: “Options”
On a gritty inner-city playground, Kobe Bryant dribbles down the court. He leaps and stops in mid-air (while the other players move in slow motion). Bryant has options: Should he shoot with his right hand? Left hand? Dunk? Finally, he decides to throw a behind-the-back pass to a teammate, who scores. The idea of a player being so much better than his peers that the game moves in slow motion is a good one. But Bryant isn’t the guy. That’s Michael Jordan territory.
Agency: Leagas Delaney, San Francisco CD/art director: Sean Ehringer CD/copywriter: Harry Cocciolo Agency producer: Ben Latimer Production co.: Propaganda Films Director: Dante Airola Editor: Dan Swietlik, Swietlik Composer: Chris Neilman, Machine Head
Banana Republic: “holiday”
The music in this delightful campaign is unforgettable. Once you hear “You’re Love Gets Sweeter Every Day,” it’s over. You’re singing the song for the rest of week. Combining the music with visuals of people of all ages and colors kissing and dancing and laughing makes for an enjoyable 30 seconds.
Agency: In-house Creative director: Brian Leitch Agency prod.: Liz Graves Director: Peggy Sirota Editor: Angus Wall Music: Finley Quaye
Charles Schwab & Co.: “holly and family”
“I had questions about investing and no one would answer my questions,” says a woman, her two daughters goofing around nearby. She then describes how she joined a stock club and learned about handling money at Schwab.com. It’s all to save money for her kids’ college education. Going for a real-life feel, this spot shows how easy it is for people to invest online–even novices have nothing to fear.
Agency: Partners & Simons, Boston Creative director/art director: Don Easdon Creative director/copywriter: Jeff Billig Copywriter: Rick Cohn Agency producer: Debbie Finlayson
Production co.: Tony K. Director: Tony Kaye
Cherokee Casino: “whiplash”
In his office, a man coughs, yawns and watches the clock tick. It’s a slow, rainy day at the job. But things pick up when a bus screeches to a halt, the passengers violently banging their heads on the seats in front of them. Whiplash! The guy is horrified at first, but once he realizes what’s happened, a smile slowly grows. Meet Frank Jones, personal-injury lawyer. “Feeling lucky?” asks the super. Nicely edited and beautifully shot, this ad gets three cherries.
Agency: Ackerman McQueen, Dallas CD/copywriter: David Lipson Art director: Kathy Redick Copywriter: Vincent Walker Agency producers: Tom Twomey, Matt Haworth Production co.: Concrete Productions Director: John Adams Editor: Tom Aberg
ESPN Hockey: “Happy Family”
“On our team, we’ve got Russians, Germans, Swedes. You name it, we got it,” says Brendan Shanahan about the Detroit Red Wings. “We’re all one big happy family.” Then Sergei Fedorov skates by and shouts, in Russian: “Go to hell, Shanahan. You freak.” Subtitles translate
for the viewer, but Shanny thinks it’s a compliment. Funny stuff from a guy who stiffed the Hartford Whalers in 1996. A central Connecticut native, Best Spots is still ripped the Whalers left town for the empty seats of North Carolina. After a year as team captain/savior, Shanahan asked out and he got his wish. There’s a lot more to the Whaler move than just this guy, but Shanahan played a role. Seems Fedorov knows of what he speaks. Long live the Whale!
Agency: Wieden & Kennedy, New York Creative director: Stacy Wall Art director: Temma Shoaf Copywriter: Mike Byrne Agency producer: Gary Krieg Production co.: Hungry Man Director: David Shane Editor: Tom Scherma, Consolate Ltd.
Florida Tobacco Pilot Program: “Cinema”
VO: “What if there was a deadly toxic substance that was harvested by man, capable of killing thousands of people in a single day? What if someone manufactured this substance in massive quantities and a select group of people knew about it? Then what if the knowledge began to leak out, would anyone believe it?” Sounds like it could be a trailer for The X-Files movie and looks like it, too. With filmic visuals of conspiracists, corpses and feds, this spot body-slams the tobacco companies. The truth is out there.
Agency: Crispin Porter & Bogusky, Miami CD: Alex Bogusky Art director: Paul Keister Copywriter: Tim Roper Executive producer: Terry Stavoe Production co.: Johns + Gorman Films Director: Jeff Gorman Editor: Jeff Sternberger, Jefferson Edit Music: Sean Callery
game.com pocket pro: “interrogation room”
Dismemberment seems to be the rage in advertising these days, as this spot attests. A rotting corpse enters a police station after being assaulted. “Do you know what it’s like to get it right between the eyes? To see the juice squirt out of your family like the Fourth of July?” he asks. Then his leg falls off and his eyeball drops into a coffee cup (sort of cool). It all leads to a police lineup, where the perp is a small cartridge system, the only portable to play Resident Evil 2.
Agency: Posnick & Kolker, New York Creative director: Paul Posnick Art director: Edward Rupp Copywriter: David Lanfair Agency producer: Helen Polise Production co.: Shadowrock Productions Director: Jay P. Morgan Editor: Billy Senia
The Gap: “Johnny Mathis holiday”
Great to see and hear Johnny Mathis sing “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” What a casting coup–anyone over 35 has a genetic kinship to the guy. After all, a Johnny Mathis record was probably playing in the background at the moments of our conception.
Agency: In-house Creative director: Lisa Prisco Art director: Carl Byrd Executive producer: Leigh Donaldson Agency producer: Susannah Nukes Production co.: A Band Apart Director/editor: Phil Harder
intel: “homer’s smarter brain”
“For years, Intel technicians have been making PCs smarter,” says the voiceover. “Now, they face their greatest challenge”–Homer Simpson. But before Homer allows the Intel guys to operate on his brain, he insists on getting sprinkles on his donut. With a processor inside his head, Homer uses his newfound genius for the good of all mankind; he creates a “superdonut.” “Many of you mock my interest in the pastry sciences,” he tells his lecture audience. Intel’s use of dumb-as-dirt Homer as spokescharacter in this hilarious commercial is a no-brainer. Next up in the OR: Police Chief Wiggums?
Agency: Euro RSCG Dahlin Smith White, San Francisco Creative director: Jon White Art director: Kevin Lee Copywriter: David Tessler Agency producer: David Yost Production co.: Film Roman Director: Matthew Nastuk
kmtt-fm Seattle: “All tied up”
As opera music wafts in the background, a hostage sits on a chair in a dank basement, his arms and legs duct-taped together. Spying a telephone on a nearby table, he tips the chair on the floor and starts crawling. Next he’s up on the table (how he did this is conveniently edited out, but that’s OK), where he throws the phone to the floor and changes the opera-playing radio station to The Mountain, 103.7 FM. Rock on. “We know how you feel about the music,” soothes the voiceover.
Agency: Copacino, Seattle Creative director/copywriter: Jim Copacino Art director: Lori Andrusky Copywriter: Dylan Tomine Agency producer: Patti Emery Production co: Pinnacle
Director/editor: Jack Barrett Audio: Scott Weiss, Clatter & Din
Levi’s: “friends”
To express their undying admiration for each other, two girls get stomach tattoos that say “friendship” in Tibetan. At least they hope it says friendship because neither can read the characters. The spot ends with the Levi’s red tag and the “What’s true” super. It may be what’s true, but here’s the harsh reality: In 10 years, these babes won’t remember each other’s name. The tattoos aren’t going anywhere, though.
Agency: TBWA/Chiat/Day, San Francisco Exec. CD/copywriter: Peter Angelos CD/art director: Rob Smiley Executive producer: Jennifer Golub Senior producer: Peter Feldman Assistant producer: Brooke Bowman Production co.: radical.media Director: Errol Morris Editors: Hank Corwin, Stephen Jess, Lost Planet
L.L. Bean: “Christmas 1998”
“So, hon, what do you want for Christmas?” asks the wife. “Oh, nothing,” replies the husband. Of course, like every person who has ever used the line, he doesn’t mean it. Pretty soon, whatever he sees during his daily routine triggers a gift request. The guy wants a couple of dress shirts, slippers, a pair of chinos, a picnic basket, bike rack, leather jacket, fly rod, sleeping bag, binoculars, telescope and a flashlight. It’s all in the catalog. Let’s just hope the greedy gus doesn’t forget to drop some coins in the Salvation Army pot this Christmas season.
Agency: Mullen, Wenham, Mass. CD: Edward Boches Assoc. CD: Greg Bokor Art director: Mary Rich Copywriter: Ted Jendrysik Agency producer: Alyson Singer Production co.: Tool of North America Director: Scott Burns Editor: Chan Hatcher, Cosmo Street Music: tomandandy
nike: “spike lee”
With the NBA lockout in its sixth month, Spike Lee can’t watch his beloved Knicks. To fill the void, he goes courtside at a girls’ game, where his taunting skills carry over. “Regina Miller, you stink. You ain’t got nothing,” Spike says. Not true. Regina’s got game and spunk, too–she tells Lee to shut up. “St. Ignatius eighth-grade girls’ basketball, it’s fantastic!” he says, mimicking the NBA’s slogan. Hey, Spike: No one cares if the NBA ever comes back.
Agency: Wieden & Kennedy, Portland, Ore. CDs: Chuck McBride, Hal Curtis Art director: Arty Tan Copywriter: Mike Folino Agency producer: Jennifer Dennis Production co.: Hungry Man Director: Hank Perlman Editor: Paul Norling, FilmCore
nissan: “fishing”
On a secluded beach, a sports fisherman sits in the back of his Frontier, dozing. Suddenly, the fishing line jumps–he’s caught a whopper! This thing is so big it’s pulling the truck into the surf. The guy jumps into the driver’s seat and guns the powerful new engine. Slowly, the truck wins the tug of war, and the man leaps out of the cab. What did he catch? A nuclear submarine. This spot keeps the viewer in suspense the whole way, with a decent payoff.
Agency: TBWA/Chiat/Day, Playa del Rey, Calif. Creative director: Rob Siltanen Associate creative director/art director: Joe Hemp Associate creative director/ copywriter: Rob Schwartz Agency producer: Elaine Hinton Assistant producer: Barbara Joy Laffey Production co.: HSI Productions Director: Zack Snyder Editor: Rich Shambaugh, Venice Beach
Editorial Composer: Jonathan Elias, Elias Associates
outpost.com: “foreheads”
“We want people to remember our name,” says a well-dressed guy. “That’s why we went to day-care centers across this great country of ours and met with the youngsters. Then we permanently tattooed their foreheads with our name.” Sure enough, Outpost.com is burned into their little brains, courtesy of a big, bad, bald tattoo artist. The sounds of the ink drill and crying children permeate the spot. Oh man. It may be sick and twisted, but Best Spots predicts viewers go to the Web site first chance they get.
Agency: Cliff Freeman and Partners, New York CD/copywriter: Eric Silver Art director: Roger Camp Agency producer: Nick Felder Production co.: Hungry Man Director: John O’Hagan Editor: Gavin Cutler, MacKenzie Cutler
saturn: “tuba”
Standing in the middle of nowhere, a kid plays (badly) “When the Saints Go Marching In” on a tuba. Behind him stretches the great outdoors–a big blue sky and amber waves of grain. Suddenly, a Saturn drives up and the kid and tuba get in the car–through the third door. “Arriving at last the world’s first three-door coupe. Why didn’t anyone think of this before?” asks the voiceover. Best Spots is not convinced this third-door thing is any great shakes. But getting that tuba into the backseat makes the point melodiously.
Agency: Publicis & Hal Riney, San Francisco Executive creative director/art director/ copywriter: Hal Riney Executive creative directors: Dave O’Hare, John Doyle Creative director/art director: Dennis Lim Creative director/copywriter: Greg Ketchum Agency producer: Elissa Singstock Production co.: Gartner Director: Jim Gartner Editor: Igor Kovalik, Inside Out
Sprite: “employment agency”
“Do you have a tree that needs pruning, a light bulb that needs changing or maybe there’s something you just can’t reach?” asks NBA star Grant Hill. “Now there’s help. Just call 1-800-TALL-MEN and we’ll send you a caring professional to help you with your needs.” Hill and Tim Duncan do the dirty work, including rescuing a roof-bound cat. This ad pitches Sprite’s $25,000 NBA salary game. Hey, who needs a season? The lockout is a creative gold mine for a number of clever campaigns.
Agency: Lowe & Partners/SMS, New York Chief creative officer/ copywriter: Lee Garfinkel
Executive creative director: Gary Goldsmith Creative group head/art director: C.J. Waldman Agency producer: Gary Grossman Production co.: The End Director: Kevin Kerslake Editor: Barney Miller, Ohio Edit
Target: “come on-a my house”
Using a great song by Rosemary Clooney, this Christmas spot hits the bull’s-eye. Swinging to a big-band beat, a dancing couple prepares to put on a party with items that can be purchased at Target stores: glasses, china, silverware, candles, tablecloths, various tchotchkes, even a Christmas tree. It’s a fun, fast 30 seconds that will have the viewer humming along. Best Spots mostly remembers Clooney as a celebrity game-show participant (“Rosemary to block, please”), but that woman sure can sing.
Agency: Peterson Milla Hooks, Minneapolis Creative director/art director: Dave Peterson Copywriter: Amie Valentine Agency producer: Gary Tassone Production co.: Nocturnal Commercials Director: Matthew Badger Editor: Brett Astor, Fischer Edit Music: Rosemary Clooney
ventura volunteer committee: “the thinker”
Pick an adjective–astonishing, refreshing, breathtaking. It barely begins to describe the election of Jesse “The Body” Ventura as governor of Minnesota. Of course, advertising influences these matters, and this spot helped put Ventura over the top. While the camera embraces the former pro wrestler posing as Rodin’s “Thinker,” the VO says: “Navy Seal. Union member. Volunteer high-school football coach. Outdoorsman. Husband of 23 years. Father of two. A man who will fight to return Minnesota’s budget surplus to the taxpayer; who will fight to lower property and income taxes; who does not accept money from special- interest groups and who will work to improve public schools by reducing class sizes.” The ad ends with a winking Ventura; the super says, “Our next governor.” Indeed.
Agency: Kruskopf Olson Advertising & North Woods Advertising, Minneapolis CDs: Sue Kruskopf, Bill Hillsman Art dir.: Bill Whitney CW: Beth Kinney Agency prod.: Anne Swarts Prod. co.: The Outfit Dir.: Scott McCullough Editor: Scott Ferril, The Chop Shop Music: Wow and Flutter
visa platinum card: “magic”
She’s in Paris; he’s in New York. Aw, they miss each other. With Visa Platinum, “You can throw caution to the wind and fly across an ocean to be with the one you need, you miss, you love.” The dude hops a Concorde and shows up in her elegant apartment. But she’s not there, having taken the Concorde to New York.
Agency: BBDO, N.Y. Chief creative officer: Ted Sann Sr. ECD: Charlie Miesmer Sr. CD: Jimmy Siegel Art dir.: Ron Palumbo CW: Cabot Norton Agency prod.: David Frankel Production co.: HKM Productions Dir.: Michael Karbelnikoff Editor: Chuck Ryan, Crew Cuts
Creative: Best Spots Of November
