There’s been a buzz on the internet over the last few days as the highly anticipated John Lewis Christmas ad appeared to have launched. However, the 86-second story about a snowman was not the work of the UK retailer, instead it was produced by a student as part of their A-Levels.
This morning the Commerce Commission published a preliminary decision, declining the merger between NZME and Fairfax. We look at what this means for the publishers and, more broadly, for journalism in New Zealand.
Side projects are nothing new in the industry. Most creatives have a few quirky non-commercial ideas they work on outside of work hours. But for that to go from a hobby project to a global success is not an everyday story. However, achieving just that is Justin Harwood, director and founder of Tomorrowland Sound and Vision, and director and producer of the international award winning High Road web series. As the series enters its third season, we talk to Harwood about its humble beginning, the idea of companies funding content and how creatives can make it big on the Internet.
What is it with SUVs and superlatives? After StopPress covered SsangYong’s schooling on the use of ‘best’ by the ASA, we have another case of the absolutes.
Round of applause to Long White Vodka, Tegel, The Warehouse and Interislander.
Ad blockers blissfully enjoying their favourite tech websites without having to dodge annoying pop-up ads have had a rude awakening.
With sky-high goal posts the All Blacks and Air New Zealand’s in-house creative team set their sights on transforming a passenger plane in the latest, special effects-driven Project Blackout video.
In a somewhat surprising announcement this morning, the Commerce Commission has a Twitter personality.
If you catch yourself singing ‘Tegel has the meal for you’ after watching the chicken brands new TVC you will be forgiven.
TBWA is stripping everything right back as it launches Long White Vodka’s ‘Lovers of Less’ positioning. The new creative campaign, originally launched online over Labour Weekend, features a protagonist performing a monologue railing against the expectations in her life and championing simplicity.
Fly Buys is helping to make Kiwis’ birthday wishes come true through a quirky online wish machine, developed by one-to-one agency JustOne.
Halloween and Guy Fawkes have been and gone, marking the time to get into the Christmas spirit with in-store carols and themed campaigns. And getting in early with a new festive ad is The Warehouse, and DDB, which has created a holiday themed version of its ‘Bargain Feeling’ brand campaign that launched earlier this year.
StopPress has received confirmation that 2Degrees has retained Special Group as its creative agency, following a pitching process involving a number of agencies.
A look at the bespoke solutions Fairfax is creating with its content studio, and the results they deliver.
The poignant ‘Mistakes’ TVC by Clemenger BBDO has taken out two top awards at the prestigious IPA Effectiveness Awards in London this week.
With the US election now days away, Powershop has brought back the wig wearing kids in another series of Donald Trump themed satirical videos, via Special Group. However, this time Powershop is inviting Kiwis to enjoy the power by replacing his words.
TVNZ, Pandora and Starcom have found a way to make the romance from TVNZ 2’s First Dates New Zealand last all week, with the creation of the ultimate date night station.
Industry happenings at TV3, MediaWorks, Us&Co, The Sweet Shop, Hootsuite, and Sparcmedia.
The music industry contributed $484 million to New Zealand’s economy over the course of 2015 and led to the employment of more than 4,500 full-time workers. We chat to Recorded Music NZ chief executive Damian Vaughan about what has been a good year for the industry following a long period of decline.
Whirling around a cinematically beautiful 19th and 20th century England, Europe and Egypt, the latest Christmas campaign by Burberry is more an epic trailer for a historic dramatisation of the luxury English brand’s founder than a TVC. It’s an action-packed musing on what, Thomas Burberry, might have been.
Our weekly wrap of good things, strange things, funny things and other things from inside the intertubes.
It took a new range of sausages for the Premier Beehive to produce its first brand campaign in over a decade. And now, with advertising partner Contagion, the previously bacon and ham brand has launched a nation-wide campaign to get bacon lovers to embrace the banger.
NZME is expanding the scope of its Vision studio by entering the lifestyle genre with a series of new shows to be rolled out across its digital channels. And not only are they only set to appeal to audience demand for lifestyle shows, with some already piloted for advertisers and agencies, they’re extending NZME’s commercial offerings.
Former Colenso business director Sarah Williams has crossed the floor from agency to client side to take on the role of head of brand, communications and experience at Spark. PLUS: Spark releases two more micro moments.
Auckland 21-year-olds Harriett Maire and Ferris Bradley’s short film has been chosen as a finalist for a NASA film competition, where the winning film will be enjoyed by astronauts in the International Space Station. Maire explains how the surreal opportunity came to be.
Herbal Essences is taking on cap-crackers in a new campaign running across Australia and New Zealand.
Hunch managing partner Michael Goldthorpe explains why retailers should focus on selling products, rather than selling promotions.
TRA consultant Vanisha Narsey sheds light on the importance of website, app and prototype testing by divulging a few first date stories.
CreateMe managing director Fiona McLeod explains the formation of CreateMe, how it’s going nearly one year in, and where to next for both it and New Zealand media.
In the past year, we’ve seen media organisations take advertising services in-house, with TVNZ Blacksand and NZME’s CreateMe, and now 99 is taking on the work of journalists, by launching its Newsroom, which will see it create editorial content marketing for its clients with a writer and editor. We talk to managing director Paul Manning about how the agency is taking on media organisations.