Will self-hating smokers help others to quit?

To explain its latest salvo for the Washington State Department of Health, WongDoody asks: "Amid mounting home foreclosures, worsening unemployment and an ugly healthcare crisis, how do you convince the working poor to give up what is often their only stress-relief tool -- cigarettes? Simple. You can't. They need to convince themselves." Though well intentioned, these 60-second documentary-style "Dear Me" spots, with low-income smokers reading letters to themselves, have a few things going against them. First, they're a bit manipulative, with overly bleak shots like the collection of kids' toys around a filthy ashtray. But they also leave you wondering, if these people are so self-aware that they would shred themselves in TV anti-smoking ads, what hope is there is for every other smoker out there? Besides, the folks in the spots appear so miserable, it would almost be adding insult to injury to deny them a cigarette.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Published on July 6, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0)
Filed under Anti-smoking, Gianatasio, WongDoody

Odd beasts abound in Seattle's film-fest ads

I'm pretty bad at finding stuff, so I was initially nervous about WongDoody's ads for the Seattle International Film Festival that challenge you to "Find the unexpected." I figured I would fail miserably. And yet, I did unexpectedly well. I quickly found a hammerhead chicken and a human-heart video-game console. I also found a Saturn pineapple, and a spider growing vegetation out of one arm, and a crazy octopus-squid creature holding a magnifying glass, a lantern and a pickaxe that ripped the Space Needle out of the ground and has little guys climbing all over it. Totally unexpected, and I found it. That wasn't so bad after all.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Published on May 26, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (5)
Filed under Gianatasio, WongDoody

WongDoody improves penguins for zoo ads

"We took a very simple, recognizable element, the penguin, and made it artful and unexpected. It's eye-catching for adults and children." So says WongDoody chairman and executive creative director Tracy Wong of his agency's "More colorful than ever" ads for an upcoming penguin exhibit at Seattle's Woodland Park Zoo. Visually, the ads are imaginative and appealing, and perhaps they even evoke the sense of childlike wonder the shop says it was striving for. Still, they imply the birds' familiar monochrome color scheme wasn't quite up to snuff. And parents could be in for a long day at the zoo trying to explain that no matter what the posters suggest, penguins don't come in paisley. Except maybe in the gift shop.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Published on April 29, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (11)
Filed under Animals, Gianatasio, WongDoody, Zoos

Alaska Airlines spots stuck in the bathroom

WongDoody takes an odd tack for Alaska Airlines in the spot above, set in an airport men's room, with a flustered patron battling malfunctioning automated technology. When flying, airport restrooms are usually the least of one's worries, unless a U.S. senator happens to be lurking in the next stall. And that "butt shot" at the end (the guy has resorted to wiping his hands on the back of his pants) is patently unappealing. The ad below shows airline personnel changing a guy's seat so he doesn't have to sit next to an obnoxious fellow passenger chattering on a cell phone. I say, go with the devil you know. Cell boy just has verbal diarrhea. By changing seats, you could end up wedged against someone with the real thing, or a colicky kid prone to spitting up. Or Sarah Palin. Worst of all, no matter who he sits next to, he may wind up in Alaska! I assume he's heading to the 49th state. If he were returning, he'd be so glad to be leaving that moose-infested wasteland that seating assignments wouldn't matter.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Published on April 13, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (3)
Filed under Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Gianatasio, WongDoody

Classic stars come out to play in Emmy ads

WongDoody has created the ad campaign for the 60th annual Emmy Awards, airing Sept. 21 on ABC. The tagline, "Where TV comes together," is unfortunate, but less so than the name of the agency that created it. The campaign's visuals, however, are lots of fun, focusing on the small-screen characters we've come to know and love over the past 60 years. A wrap shows them riding the bus! Ha-ha! Hardly a new idea ... but look, there's the Incredible Hulk and Eric Cartman! I bet neither paid the fare. Hey, Fonzie, "sit on it!" No really, take my seat, you shouldn't have to stand. But … why would Superman need to take the bus? A collage of more than 400 characters and personalities will run as a poster or two-page spread in magazines and newspapers. But seriously, why would Superman be taking the bus? Is Lex Luthor on the bus?!

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Published on August 29, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1)
Filed under Emmys, Gianatasio, Outdoor, Print, WongDoody