The Story of 'Footprints,' the Brilliantly Stealthy Navy Seals Ad Nobody Saw Coming

Cindy Gallop picks her three favorite ad campaigns

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On Dec. 14, 2005, Campbell Ewald and director Stu Maschwitz arrived at Will Rogers State Beach, just up the Pacific Coast Highway from Santa Monica, and spent 10 hours shooting a 30-second spot that would become known as one of great military recruitment ads of all time.

It was for the Navy Seals. The agency’s idea was simple: Communicate the legendary stealthy nature of the Seals by showing a beach scene at night, with footprints mysteriously appearing in the sand after a wave, and then disappearing with the following wave.

The

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