This post was created by one of the small but mighty StopPress team of journalists. Among their number are: Zahra Shahtahmasebi, Niko Kloeten, Penny Murray and Rachel Tsai. Send your news to [email protected].
As the videos of people attempting the Cinnamon Challenge or Hell’s Pizza Roulette attest, watching reactions to strange and unpleasant mouth sensations usually makes for compelling viewing. And, as part of TedX Sydney, Saatchi & Saatchi and Heckler have given us some more with ‘The First Taste’.
Naked’s loss is Y&R’s gain, Jeanette Paine leaves school, VW’s Denise Goodwin swaps cars for floors, Will Radford gets a fresh pair and the MPA welcomes two new board members.
Anyone with a bit of boganic blood in their veins who’s driven the Crown Range has probably wondered what it would be like to have the road to themselves. And, by the power of Red Bull, this wish was granted to New Zealand-based drift driver Mad Mike Whiddett, who left plenty of skidmarks with his pimped our Mazda RX7.
New York was all about the awards last week, with the Clio Awards and New York Festivals announcing their winners. And DraftFCB came way with the most hardware of the Kiwi agencies at both events, winning two golds and two bronzes at Clio and a gold, silver and two bronzes at New York Festivals.
They say there’s nothing new under the sun. That’s not true. But, as demilked.com shows, it might be true in the world of popular movie posters.
Getting rugby players to act is often a thankless task and there is a long history of cringeworthy ads where sponsors have demanded their pound of athletic flesh. But HSBC has nailed it with a trailer for its historical epic to promote the upcoming British & Irish Lions tour to Australia, starring the likes of Brian O’Driscoll, Jason Robinson, George Gregan and Warren Gatland.
The Parenting Place, a 20 year old New Zealand charity that works alongside government, schools and communities to give families and young people positive, practical and cost-effective help, has launched its Funds for Families 2013 campaign with Behind These Doors, an honest, heartfelt and inspiring video with a simple message: family is everything.
Space Studio has given Rembrandt and 3 Wise Men’s retail flagship stores a smart, modern twist in an effort to save bewildered men from shopping trauma.
Back in the day, being a dad seemed to be about stern discipline, bringing home bacon, brief (and often awkward) chats and occasional moments of softness. Things have changed considerably over the years, of course, and according to this ad for Robinsons cordial by BBH, being a dad is now more about being a mate.
Mother, entrepreneur and lover of food, Cecilia Robinson has one successful business on her hands with Au Pair Link and she’s hoping for another with My Food Bag.
As part of our push to remind you marcomms folk to get your entries in for the 2013 TVNZ-NZ Marketing Awards, we’re asking some past winners to tell us about their glorious victory, what it meant to the business and why these awards are different. First up, ex-New Zealand Lotteries head of marketing and now Coca-Cola general manager of marketing, Wendy Rayner.
Whybin\TBWA has taken out News Works NZ’s April Newspaper Ad of the Month with its ‘Transparent Newspaper’ ad to showcase Mercury Energy’s new GEM product. And, in the first month of the brand new Newspaper Ad of the Month Agency League competition, it means the agency picks up five points and goes to the top of the table.
Clemenger Group chief executive Jim Moser’s been pretty busy buying and selling things recently. So we really don’t know where he finds the time to play the lead role on Aaron Sorkin’s Newsroom.
We couldn’t help but notice an interesting tweet (thanks @jaredvh) pointing out that the first Yelp review for New Zealand post-launch is a one-starer from a Richie Bramley. Coincidence or marketing rivalry gone awry?
After going through 58 entries from the corporate, consultancy, not-for-profit and government sectors, the Public Relations Institute of New Zealand (PRINZ) has announced 23 finalists in its annual industry awards—as well as the addition of Daniel Tisch, chief executive of Argyle Communications in Canada, and chair of the Global Alliance, to the Supreme Award judging panel.
Changes ahoy at VodaClear, Anthony Gardiner to go it alone, new hires for iSite, Ooh!, Shout, PR Shop and PPR, APN flicks off its southern titles, Madant starts a new experiential division and NZ PC World gets a new editor.
Apple smartphones are on the decline while Samsung’s star is burning brighter, but the iPhone and iPad manufacturer is still leaps and bounds ahead of competitors in New Zealand, according to mobile ad network InMobi.
For the second year in a row ASB Bank has topped Canstar’s Online Banking report for providing the best online banking experience to customers.
Google recently released a video showing how its new Glasses would work. But the internet is having plenty of fun imagining how the new tech will really end up being used.
Powershop has got plenty of marketing mileage out of showing dictators, warlords and hard nosed politicians in oxymoronic situations as part of its long-running and at-times controversial ‘Same Power, Different Attitude’ campaign. Given recent global events, many wondered why its last ad chose to show Mao Tse Tung dancing to Gangnam Style rather than North Korea’s Kim Jong-Un. But it has now obliged, with another image by Doublefish showing the portly ‘Supreme Successor’ embracing his inner MAMIL, squeezing in to some lycra and going for a pedal.
If you liked Chuck Testa, then you’ll also probably like this classy musical number by renowned ad cheese merchants Rhett and Link.
PopPress regularly marvels at Google’s might, its remarkable products and its creative use of technology. But after seeing a video detailing how Google Glass will work, we have a sneaking suspicion this might just create more humans who have forgotten know how to interact with real people. And in case you’re wondering, it’s already happening, because screens are bad, mmmkay.
Getty Images recently asked for submissions for creative projects that would help tell the stories of charities. And now applications are open for the 2013 Grants for Editorial Photography and Emerging Talent Award.
Last week was an interesting one for Ben Uffindell, editor of The Civilian and recipient of a letter from Colin Craig’s lawyers demanding an obviously satirical quote relating to Maurice Williamson’s ‘big gay rainbows’ speech be removed. Much guffawing ensued at the expense of Craig, and, after a few interviews, The Civilian went back to publishing its Onion-esque news stories, including an ‘opinion piece’ by an All Black that brilliantly juxtaposes the the mana of the black jersey with the game’s increasingly commercial focus.
Outdoor is enjoying a bit of a resurgence at the moment, with an increase in revenue and creative campaigns like the MetService see-through billboard and Fly Buys’ ‘Little Bit Good’ using the medium to good effect and capturing a fair swag of attention, both in the real world and online. And now Ogilvy & Mather has come to the party with its campaign for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority, which shows exactly how much consumers could save if they owned an appliance bearing the Energy Star mark.
It’s widely agreed that Daniel Day Lewis is the Cliff Curtis of America: an actor with the ability to play a wide range of ethnicities, from Mohican to Irish to old American. But his latest foray into method acting is quite possibly his best yet: Obama.
It’s always interesting to observe how brands have evolved over the years. As this infographic shows, companies like Canon and Mercedes-Benz have refined their iconic logos in fits and starts over the decades, but some are more or less unrecognisable alongside their original incarnations.
The pet industry is massive. And growing. And at-times completely ridiculous, as evidenced by Purina’s new “cat soufflé”. Yes, that’s right, a cat soufflé.
In 2009, bcg2’s James Blackwood came second in the New Zealand Geographic photographer of the year competition. In 2012, Saatchi & Saatchi’s Chris Leskovsek received a highly commended in the landscape category for ‘Te Paki Dunes, Northland’. So who from the image-loving creative realm will it be this year?
Avid Twitter users will no doubt be familiar with the ‘Fail Whale’, a picture that regularly showed up when the service was over-capacity. That has become increasingly rare, however, and Yiying Lu, who designed the first image, has come up with a new one: the Success Loch Ness.