Monthly Archives: June, 2012

News
No dice for radio and design at Cannes, as triple Kiwi treat make film shortlist
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No local acts made the shortlist for the design lions, not even Alt Group’s well-received Auckland Art gallery identity, but a rightful grand prix winner emerged: Serviceplan Munich for its solar powered report for Austria Solar. The two local radio shortlistings—Saatchi & Saatchi for Tui’s ‘Father’s day Morse Code’ and BCG2 for Jesters pies—didn’t have anything to write home about, with Brazilian agency Talent Sao Paolo taking top prize for its ‘repellent radio’ work for Go Outside, which saw a high frequency broadcast essentially turn a radio into a mosquito repellent.

News
DraftFCB places stake in titillating advertising
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Earlier this week we pointed out a billboard for the new True Blood series on Prime. And the folks at DraftFCB and Phantom have sent us even more billboard fodder confirming the adult-orientated humour of the campaign. Sally Willis, Prime’s account director at DraftFCB, says the aim was to shake any teenage preconceptions people held about the show, differentiating it instead as a “raunchy, intense and gritty raw drama”. And as these latest examples from the campaign show, there’s more raunchy humour than you could stab a stake at.

News
Cage fighting: tensions bubble over in South African soda stoush
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Last year, we wrote a story about SodaStream’s The Cage, a global PR campaign that aimed to draw attention to the effects of packaged soft drinks on the environment. But the campaign has earned the ire of one of its targets, Coca-Cola, with the South African outpost issuing a cease and desist letter to SodaStream demanding its bottles be removed from The Cage at the Johannesburg airport because it claims to own the used bottles.

Opinion
Nefarious business or holy grail? The thorny business of endorsements
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We were interested to read about Ian Smith’s apparently coincidental attack of the Pures during his commentary of the first All Blacks vs Ireland test, a three match series being sponsored by Steinlager, which is soon to launch its 2012 campaign featuring a new ambassador ($10 says it’s Ian Smith). Lion and Sky denied there was any attempt at nefarious aural product placement. But even if there was, it’s highly unlikely it would do anything: remember the old wives’ tale about subliminal messages being played in movie theatres that supposedly made people buy more Coke and popcorn?

News
A bit sketchy: Air New Zealand’s new animated safety video takes flight
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Just as Braniff airways shook up the fairly dull US airline sector in the ’60s by painting its planes bright colours and putting its hostesses in bright uniforms, Air New Zealand changed the way everyone looked at inflight safety videos by making them entertaining and, with its previous agency .99, it basically created a whole new—and quite powerful—media channel. So far we’ve seen painted bodies, All Blacks, lycra-clad, OTT aerobics instructors and puerile puppets. And for the first time the airline has decided to take an animated approach, with a new ’hand-drawn’ safety video featuring the voice talent of Kiwi-born actress Melanie Lynskey and Modern Family’s Ed O’Neill, as well as a range of “cameo appearances”.

News
Welly’s media silvers keep Cannes metal coming, as radio and cyber shortlists announced
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Kiwi agencies have added to the Cannes Lions haul, with two silvers and two bronzes in Media. Clemenger BBDO/OMD Wellington picked up two silvers, one for Dulux ‘What’s your Dulux colour of New Zealand‘ in best use of integrated media and the other for Tranz Scenic ‘See more of New Zealand by train’ in best use of print. Saatchi & Saatchi NZ/AIM Proximity Wellington/Starcom took bronze for Toyota FJ Cruiser ‘Top to Bottom‘ in best use of social media marketing, as did Colenso BBDO for Monteith’s ‘Sorry about the twigs, folks’ in FMCG.

News
Colenso feels the roar with another Cannes Gold
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Slowly but surely New Zealand’s Cannes tally continues to rise with the announcement of the Outdoor category winners. Eight Kiwi entries made the shortlist of 588, with three taking home awards. First hat tip goes to Colenso BBDO for taking out New Zealand’s only Gold in the category, awarded for its ‘Sorry about the Twigs’, folks‘ campaign for Monteith’s Crushed Cider, adding to the gold, silver and bronze the campaign picked up in the Promo & Activation category. The agency’s ‘Skate Pinball’ campaign for Mountain Dew also nabbed a Bronze Lion.

News
Tui’s half-time mercy dash takes out May’s Ad Impact Award
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As one brave man does the half-time mercy dash to the liquor store to replenish stocks for the group during a footy match, it seems there’s little that can distract him from his sport, not even a slew of hot women who just happen to be lining the liquor store route. And, whether you agree with the stereotype or not, Tui’s ‘Halftime Distractions’ campaign by Saatchi & Saatchi and The Sweet Shop’s Stuart McDonald certainly seems to have hit its mark, taking out Colmar Brunton’s Ad Impact Award for May.

News
By air and sea
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Who’s it for: RNZAF by Saatchi & Saatchi and 8com

Why we like it: Showing the range of exciting things recruits can get up to if they join the Air Force certainly isn’t a new approach. But this fast-paced, well-made TVC does its job and gets that message across very well. And almost 26,000 views on YouTube isn’t too shabby.

News
Good vibrations: DraftFCB gets very grown up with new True Blood billboard
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Vampires have been a part of fictionalised culture for some time now. From Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula, to the fuzzier Count von Count in Sesame Street, and heroine Buffy the Vampire Slayer, humans seem endeared with the idea of blood sucking creatures roaming the earth. But popular culture seems to now, more than ever, be entranced by the mythology of these fanged creatures. There’s The Vampire Diaries, movie series Twilight and you may have been unfortunate enough to catch the movie preview for, wait for it, Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter. Which is why the folks at DraftFCB are keen to make sure their billboard for the new series of Prime’s True Blood differentiates the show from the rest of the teen-vampire genre.

News
Powerade Challenge expands its reach to Wellington, taps into Olympic elite
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Kiwis have quite the penchant for running and even in the colder months it’s not uncommon to see many a dedicated runner pounding the Winter pavement. But while it’s all too easy to snigger as you drive past in your heated car whilst stuffing a bag of chips down your throat, Powerade is hoping to lure in these avid runners with its Powerade Challenge after a successful debut of the event last year saw over 2000 runners take part.

News
It’s all about the booze—and the dogs—as Colenso and DDB claim first Kiwi Cannes wins—UPDATED
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The first awards show has taken place at the Cannes Festival of Creativity, with the Direct, Promo & Activation and PR category winners announced. And Colenso BBDO is off to a good start, winning a gold for Pedigree ‘Donation glasses’ Adoption Drive and a gold, silver and bronze for Monteith’s ‘Sorry about the twigs, folks’ in the Promo & Activation category and a bronze Direct Lion for its ‘The Wine That Sold Beer’ campaign for DB Breweries. DDB scored bronze for Steinlager’s ‘We Believe’ in Promo & Activation. There were no New Zealand entries awarded in the PR Lions.

News
V’s motion-powered audio witchcraft hits the streets
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We wrote about the launch of Colenso BBDO’s very cool V Motion Project a few weeks back. And after an “epic journey to create music using the body’s movement”, the creators took their bootleged technology and a projector to an Auckland carpark on Saturday night to show the people what happens when the power of dance is harnessed.

News
Sovereign switches to Carat
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New Zealand’s largest life insurer Sovereign, which is part of the ASB group of companies, has appointed Carat to manage its media strategy and buying, taking the account from OMD without a pitch.

News
Very long shortlists reveal the first of the Kiwi hopefuls at Cannes
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As we delve further into the depths of winter and you busy yourself with avoiding the rain and eliminating unsightly goosebumps and chapped skin, we warn you the following story includes references to lucky bastards lapping up the Summer sun in the South of France. The 59th Cannes International Festival of Creativity kicked off Sunday evening (local time) and the first two shortlists (which are actually very long ) have been released, revealing seven New Zealand finalists, a number of which have also received finalist nods in multiple sub-categories.

News
New Zealand Woman’s Weekly blows out 80 candles with women and nostalgia-infused special edition
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As far as years go in the history books, 1932 wasn’t exactly a winner, after all, it was a time when New Zealand was plunged deep in the murky depths of the Great Depression. But that apparently didn’t mean women had to forgo their love of lace knit jumper, cut pattern services or home craft competitions and on December 8 that year, journalists Otto Williams and Audrey Argall launched New Zealand Woman’s Weekly, a magazine that preached the “gospel of usefulness, cheerfulness and happiness”. Eighty years on, in a more exuberant way it continues to equip women with their weekly fixes of fashion, food, weddings and gossip and to mark the auspicious milestone, it’s released a special birthday collector’s edition.

News
Invivo shakes it up for the love of wine and art
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Wine may be heralded as a sophisticated and premium product, but it seems an increasing number of wine labels are seeking to expand their reach by matching their liquid offering with newfangled and arty presentations, most recently exemplified by Kiwi winery Invivo. The label, founded in 2007 by Tim Lightbourne and Rob Cameron, has released a limited edition range of bespoke graffiti wine boxes produced by prominent Kiwi and British street artists, in a move to target a younger audience of wine enthusiasts.

News
Don’t be an idiot, have a Glossie. Colenso BBDO takes out May Glossies win with DB Export Dry ad
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As you wind down and get set for your two days off ahead of the next week, spare a thought for Colenso BBDO’s copywriter Simon Vicars. The poor bloke was sitting in an airport lounge when we called him, getting ready to wing his way to Fiji for a week’s “work”. Then we had to break the news Colenso BBDO had won the May round of The Glossies with 34 percent of the votes for its ‘Idiot’ print ad in NZ Rugby World. ‘Idiot’, part of DB Export Dry’s ‘The Wine is Over’ campaign, put itself a fare distance ahead of its closest rivals. Bettle’s Langham ad, featured in New Idea, placed second with 22 percent of votes while BCG2’s effort for Audi in Metro earned it third place with a 16 percent share of votes.

Movings & Shakings
Movings/Shakings: 15 June
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Komli brings all its businesses under one banner, VW adds another high-profile sponsorship to its list, Ispos announces two big hires, Prodigy gets a pair of Underpants, plus ça change at Jobmedia and All Good and KidsCan dish out the bananas to schools.

Opinion
State of the experiential nation
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I was lucky enough to recently attend the largest Event & Experiential Marketing summit in the world in Chicago. I immersed myself in three days of learning with over 500 others from around the world and came away feeling a whole bunch of things: inspired (absolutely), brain whipped (definitely), and connected (in a myriad of ways). But mostly I feel charged up about the future of the industry in New Zealand.

News
Hi ho silver at One Show Entertainment awards for Special Group’s Smirnoff Night Project
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Most of the One Show Awards were handed out last month, with Colenso BBDO taking a gold and Publicis Mojo taking a silver. And the winners of the One Show Entertainment Awards, which honour the world’s best entertainment concepts, television ideas, branding and mobile or online content, were announced yesterday in Los Angeles, with Special Group’s Smirnoff Night Project taking a silver pencil in the television/reality/unscripted category.

News
Multiple choice: Saatchi & Saatchi keeps it real—and varied—for Air Force campaign
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Certain industries usually do quite well in recessions. Supermarkets, debt collectors, discount retailers, education providers, ‘sin industries’, the armed forces and plenty of others. And at a time when life is pretty tough for many young folk in New Zealand, a new campaign launched this month by the New Zealand Defence Force, Saatchi & Saatchi New Zealand and Starcom Worldwide aims to offer potential recruits a peek at what their life could be like as a member of the Royal New Zealand Air Force.