Out to Launch
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Zombies, werewolves and gorillas, oh my! Let's launch!
  • visaVisa launched the latest ad supporting the 2013 NFL season and its #MyFootballFantasy initiative. In “Dance Fever,” a lucky fan gets to fulfill his football fantasy of teaching Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones a new touchdown dance. What would your football fantasy be? Throughout the season, fans can tell Visa by using the hashtag #MyFootballFantasy on Twitter and Instagram. See the ad here, created by BBDO New York and Atmosphere Proximity.

  • VolkswagenCanadian band Walk Off The Earth teamed up with Volkswagen Canada to create interactive music videos for their latest single, “Gang of Rhythm.” Instead of bandmates sharing a single guitar, they all play a Volkswagen Beetle. The video features three different versions of the song: a playful, soulful or powerful version. Playful is my favorite. Viewers can watch each video back-to-back or click links inside the video to move from location and song. Filmed over the course of two days in Toronto and Cobourg, Ontario, the videos take place in a salt shed, a tunnel, and on a pier. Watch the videos here, created by Red Urban and directed by Wendy Morgan of Untitled Films.

  • mizunoTo launch the Wave Prophecy 3 running shoe, Mizuno added a supernatural vibe to its online video campaign. The shoe’s Wave Technology may give runners the feeling that something bigger than themselves is propelling them forward. So a set of supernatural teaser videos launched online where subjects (runners) are transcended from a normal run to a Super/Natural one. In one teaser, the subject runner is found repeating one word constantly: Mezamashii, in honor of the brand’s Mezamashii Run Project. Another teaser featured a mystery fire caused by an unknown force. The last teaser showed wild horses galloping, heavy winds of change and a man running through the woods. A 60-second video launched today to officially unveil the Wave Prophecy 3, with a test subject who is performing remarkably better than his handlers are expecting. The runner’s workout results in seismic shifts to his environment, or euphoric Mezamashii. See it here. McKinney created the campaign, directed by Michael Lawrence.

  • teen wolfTo promote the season three premiere of "Teen Wolf" on Oct. 26, MTV France wanted to stand out on Twitter. So the folks at the Darewin agency took advantage of a bug in Twitter’s graphic code that produces visual irregularities. Since they’re promoting “Teen Wolf,” the agency made a claw graphic appear, which made the tweet look as if it were slashed by a werewolf. Within the first 24 hours of the initial tweet, more than 4,600 retweets were "slashed," and anyone who tweeted the hashtag #TeenWolfFR would also receive a slash mark in their tweet. Claw marks will also appear on the MTV France Facebook page, and in emails throughout the week.

  • hoosierIf there’s one theme in advertising lately, it’s zombies. And I’m not complaining one bit. The latest ad promotes The Hoosier Lottery and its “The Walking Dead”-themed scratch-off game. It’s also the most graphic ad I’ve seen, so if you’re a squeamish zombie fan, be warned. Much like the series, the ad takes place in the woods, where walkers are shown doing what they do best: grunting and breaking into a cabin. Inside the cabin is a lone woman, frantically looking for a weapon. She picks up a hammer, knife and ice pick and ditches them all to grab a chainsaw by the door. When a walker’s hand breaks through, does the woman crab the chainsaw and begin hacking? Hardly. She grabs the walker’s hand, breaks off its index finger and uses it to scratch off her zombie-themed lottery ticket. Watch it here, created by Mortenson Safar Kim.

  • Gorilla GlueGorilla Glue wasted no time in creating a parody video for Bruno Mars’ song “Gorilla.” The three-minute video shows a frustrated wife who quickly changes her mood with her husband once he becomes a DIYer and tackles chores on the “Honey Do” list. Following a hard day at work, hubby pops a bottle of Gorilla Glue and starts fixing household fixtures like a broken broom and loose brick. Naturally, hubby fixes everything with his shirt unbuttoned and his chiseled abs on display. My favorite part of the video is the pottery reenactment scene from “Ghost” -- only this time the couple is fixing a broken vase rather than creating one. Who knew glue could be so sexy? Watch it here, created by Convoy Entertainment.

  • rightbyyouThe Partners for Mental Health, a charitable organization that transforms the way Canadians think about and support mental illness, launched a PSA educating viewers on the sad statistics surrounding youth suicide. After car accidents, suicide is the leading cause of death among young Canadians each year. The PSA uses a dramatic door slam to illustrate an angry teenager shutting the door on the world around them. “Living with a teen is hard,” begins the ad. “Living without one is harder,” continues the PSA, as a mother is shown crying in her teenage daughter’s empty room. The PSA encourages Canadians to visit rightbyyou.ca and sign a petition to change the way youth mental health is funded. See the PSA here, created by UNION.

  • snappleWith the World Series in full swing, let’s take a look at Snapple Real Fact #376: A professional baseball player introduced the “high-five” in 1977. This random tidbit of knowledge was reenacted as part of Snapple’s “ReenFACTment” digital campaign by ESPN anchor Kenny Mayne. In an effort to preserve the sanctity of the high-five, Mayne sets out to teach proper high-five etiquette to kids on a playground and businessmen after a successful meeting. Mayne’s strategy is to just high-five a person, rather than asking for one. Watch it here, created by Code and Theory.

  • touchroomRandom iPhone App of the week: This app turns the phrase, “reach out and touch someone” to an advanced, technological level. Touch Room allows friends, relatives and loved ones to touch one another from faraway distances, using mobile devices. The concept is quite simple: two people enter a virtual room, each denoted by a circular touch point. When both touch points (or fingers) reach the same spot, the phone vibrates. See how the app works here. The app, created by GSP BETA Group, part of Goodby Silverstein & Partners, is available for free in the App Store.