Human trafficking PSA too easy on the eyes

Young & Rubicam, MTV Exit, music collective Black Iris and others joined together for the video below, titled "Planet Better," designed to raise awareness and funds to combat human exploitation and trafficking. The animated clip, set to Bethany Cosentino's bittersweet pop-folky "When Will I Feel Love" and directed by Edouard Salier, tells the story of a girl who journeys to what she thinks will be an idyllic world, only to find herself enslaved in the sex trade. The effort boasts exceptional attention to detail, but veers too close to animé-style dark fantasy to be entirely effective. For example, the lipstick-tube rocketship with high-heeled shoes for fins (symbolizing the glamorous but ultimately empty promises used to lure victims) is memorable, but in an artsy, metaphorical way. More explicit, visceral imagery is needed to deliver this particular payload with maximum impact. And the pale, lanky, black-garbed villain, with his retro shades and serpentine fingers, isn't scary or imposing. He looks like an indie rocker or a refugee from a teen vampire flick: bad news for sure, but "cool" to hang out with just the same. Overall, "Planet Better," while well intentioned, is just too pretty. Human trafficking and slavery are ugly, degrading and devastating, and generally need PSAs that match in order to spur empathy and action.

Filed under Gianatasio, MTV, PSAs, Y&R
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Y&R's ad awards now selling at flea markets

The ad industry's seemingly irrational obsession with creative awards has a rational basis: It can mean big bucks for the lucky winners. Now, it turns out some spare change can get you an award, at least if you head to Toronto's St. Lawrence flea market. Sean Ganann, creative director at Zulu Alpha Kilo, noticed this weekend that someone from Y&R Toronto decided to offload a passel of awards from the New York Festivals, Mobius and Clios. It's pretty funny to see these sought-after awards for sale next to model cars and used books. Then again, it's not as if Y&R was clearing out One Show pencils or Cannes Lions. Maybe those go for the big bucks on eBay. Second photo after the jump. UPDATE: Wait until the Brazilians get wind of this. No need to go to the trouble of making a scam ad. Just scrape together $5.

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Filed under Award shows, Canada, Morrissey, Y&R
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Man proposes via LG's good-news billboard

What is it about a public forum—a Jumbotron at a ballpark or a digital billboard anywhere—that makes guys pop the question? Granted, it's holiday time, when the pressure to drop to a knee and produce a ring is never more intense. LG, capitalizing on both its "Life's good" tagline and the relentless optimism mirrored across so much brand advertising these days, has given men another option to ask for someone's hand in front of hundreds of random strangers. It's in the middle of Times Square, features a fluffy animated character named Gil, and spouts only good news from around the world. (Goodwill Ambassador Gil does not read the papers.) There's an option, also, to add one's own bit of seasonal cheer in the form of affirming Tweets and texts. That's where the beret-wearing dude below comes in—he proposed to his lady love, Natasha, via the five-story board (see above). Word is she said yes. LG's agency, Young & Rubicam, launched the project last week after research showed 83 percent of Americans think the country is suffering from "a good news deficit," and six in 10 say they don't even know where to look for good news. The answer, if you're anywhere near 7th Avenue and 45th Street, is, simply: Look up!

Filed under LG, Stanley, Y&R
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Ad likens your menstruating wife to a Viking

This may not go over well with approximately half of the population. The Chilean commercial below, for Kitadol menstruation-relief pills, compares menstruating women to Vikings. And that's not meant as a compliment. "Get her back" is the tagline. Send your nasty comments to the agency—Prolam Y&R in Santiago. Via Jezebel.

Filed under Nudd, Pharma, South America, Y&R
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LG vacuum cleans your polluted sea carpet

The most (overly?) dramatic vacuum-cleaner commercial ever? It could be this new offering from Young & Rubicam in New York and Psyop for LG's cleaners, featuring Kompressor technology. It depicts a living-room carpet as a churning, Perfect Storm-like sea of lurking filth, infested with marauding shark microbes and ready to drown innocent toys and dolls, not to mention your kids, in muck. "Protect your family from things that are lurking," says the scary tagline. It's all pretty ludicrous, but it looks awesome.

Filed under LG, Nudd, Psyop, Y&R
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Land Rover has a clay old time in U.K. spots

If your travels ever take you through an endlessly changing clayscape, a Land Rover might just be the car for you. The animation in this British ad from RKCR/Y&R is really smooth (a video after the jumop explains how they did it), and it's a unique way to suggest the car's mastery of different terrain (not to mention, driver Clay Mason apparently needed the work). There are numerous ethical and dietary issues associated with cups of coffee that spontaneously turn into birds, though. So, try to avoid those whether you end up buying a Land Rover or not.

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Filed under Automotive, Europe, Kiefaber, Land Rover, RKCR, Y&R
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Hair straightener helps Cinderella go glam

Cross an ultraglam take on Cinderella with an '80s MTV flashback, add some shades of Fellini, and you've got the new commercial/music video for hair straightener GHD. The spot by RKCR/Y&R serves double duty, also introducing the agency's record label and its first band signing, L.A.-based Le Rev, who should get the hook until they learn how to write one. Cinderella actually looks hotter before she fixes her 'do with the client's straightener. With that mane flying in every direction, smeared mascara and torn dress, she goes from warmed-over new waver to post-punk/pseudo-goth priestess. Trash it up, baby! Via Creative Review.

Filed under Gianatasio, Hair care, RKCR, Y&R
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Flying is dreamy in global Virgin Atlantic ad

Virgin Atlantic has just released its first-ever global TV ad, the dreamlike 90-second extravaganza below from RKCR/Y&R, with the tagline, "Your airline's either got it or it hasn't." By "it," they apparently mean pilots who are rock stars and flight attendants who float around doing somersaults and falling into milk baths. Virgin passengers, meanwhile, shimmy through metal detectors and dance with 20-foot-high forks spearing shrimp the size of Vespas. The crew ends up standing on the wing of a plane, which usually only happens on US Airways flights. According to Virgin, the campaign "takes the viewer on a metaphorical flight—a surreal and glamorous world of airline iconography dramatizing how it feels to fly with the airline." It's certainly stylish. The music is a reworked version of Nina Simone's "Feeling Good," a song used expertly in this old promo for the fourth season of Six Feet Under. Via Ads of the World.

Filed under Airlines, Nudd, RKCR, Virgin Atlantic, Y&R
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Wounds are endless in Y&R anti-abuse PSA

Bruises heal on this battered woman's face—only to bloom anew—in this harrowing anti-abuse PSA from director Dave Myers and Y&R Chicago. The approach evocatively illustrates the tagline, "It rarely stops," and the bathroom, with its door cracked open and spooky windows, heightens the feeling of unease. So does the dirge-y soundtrack (a version of Peter Gabriel's "Mercy Street"). It's a quietly sad and hypnotic experience. So much so that the woman's sudden movement at the end—she looks off to the side in terror, startled, presumably by her abuser—is exceptionally jarring. It puts the viewer right in the moment, giving us a taste of her existence. Perhaps it will jar some out of their complacency.

Filed under Domestic violence, Gianatasio, PSAs, Y&R
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Condom ads urge you to get extremely dirty

"Spring has arrived," say these Tulipán condom ads from Y&R Argentina, celebrating the first day of that season (in the southern hemisphere) on Sept. 21. It's a day that also happens to be Student's Day, when schools are closed and the kids traditionally convene in parks for picnics, and apparently less G-rated activities. Our favorite Tulipán ad, however, remains this one from 2000, in which the Argentine brand visually threatened anal violence on the Brazilian soccer team. See three more ads after the jump. Via Ads of the World.

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Filed under Condoms, Nudd, South America, Y&R
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Campbell's says soup is pretty amazing, too

Looks like oatmeal isn't the only amazing food on the shelves these days. Days after Quaker urged us to "Wake up and be amazing," Campbell Soup Co. is rolling out a big new campaign under the theme line, "It's amazing what soup can do." Campbell's intends to make a strong case for its soups, which suit every lifestyle, from dancing alone in your huge living room to eating in front of expensive drapery. More than that, Campbell's fills your body with "good nutrition [and] energy." And sodium, but they don't mention that, probably because it isn't very amazing—aside from the effect it has on your blood pressure, I mean. The New York offices of BBDO and Young & Rubicam collaborated on the campaign.

Filed under BBDO, Campbell Soup, Food and drink, Kiefaber, Y&R
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Y&R welcomes other brands into Xerox ads

In a muddled crossover we could surely live without, Xerox is welcoming other brands (and in some cases, the brand icons, including Mr. Clean and the Target bull's-eye dog) into its advertising. One TV spot is below; see two more, and some print work, after the jump. Brandweek says the Y&R campaign is "meant to show how Xerox enables each of these businesses to succeed, illustrated by the various tasks each of the brand mascots juggle." In one print ad, Mr. Clean is seen wiping a table while working some office equipment. "We focus on digitizing P&G's documents worldwide. So they don't have to," the text explains. The Target ad is really muddled. It shows the brand's familiar pooch delivering a package from the retailer. The ads are supposed to tout the depth and breadth of Xerox's expanded services. But having other brands' mascots duplicate their familiar shtick, rather than trying something wholly original, just reinforces the notion that Xerox is best at making copies.

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Filed under Gianatasio, Xerox, Y&R
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Back to school is quite a trip in BBC promo

Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe Y&R trots out David Bowie's "Space Oddity" in this weird but affecting promo for the new season of the TV program BBC Schools. "Every September, thousands of children begin the biggest adventures of their lives. Are we sending them in the right direction?" the voiceover asks. I'd say not, if parents in England are dressing up the kids in spacesuits and sending them into orbit. The local school's probably closer and more safely reached by bus. Kids watching this are surely already dreading the new term. Now, as well as fretting over arithmetic and wedgies, they have to worry about drifting helplessly through the cosmos. Truancy will skyrocket. Via Campaign.

Filed under BBC, Europe, Gianatasio, RKCR, TV, Y&R
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PSA aims to stop women falling down stairs

One of the most striking PSAs of the year so far, this spot from Young & Rubicam in Germany tackles the problem of women falling down stairs. Or rather, not falling down stairs. Worth a look.

Filed under Domestic violence, Europe, Nudd, PSAs, Y&R
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Dude rides mower across America for Sears

Sears is in the midst of a social-media campaign this summer in which a guy is riding a Craftsman lawn mower from Los Angeles to New York. Lucas Van Engen, a New York actor, is the lucky dude. He should be glad they've given him a riding mower, rather than making him push a hand mower across the continent. Y&R Chicago and Designkitchen hatched the campaign. They're tracking Lucas with a Posterous blog, Facebook profile and Google Maps integration. He's uploading photos and videos along the way. The tractor maxes out at a top speed of 9 mph, but Lucas is making progress: He's made it to Aurora, Mo., in two months. That leaves him a little over a month to cover another 1,600 miles—doable if he spends a good six hours a day on the mower.

Filed under Designkitchen, Lawn care, Morrissey, Sears, Y&R
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Stanley Cup glory goes unspoken in Y&R ad

Young & Rubicam in New York finds just the right words—none at all—in the excellent NHL promo below for the Stanley Cup Finals, which Chicago currently leads Philadelphia by 2 games to 1. Check out a couple other spots from the NHL's "History will be made" campaign after the jump.

—Posted by Tim Nudd

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Filed under Hockey, NHL, Nudd, Y&R
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Huge candy bars make very bad roommates

Cadbury's Boost had better be a good candy bar, because living with one would suck pond water. Check out these Australian ads (two more after the jump), and let's go down the list: Neglects bills? Check. Sore loser at Scrabble? Check. Chumps you out in front of hot girls? Big check. I wonder why his pansy roommate doesn't just eat him, since you know his name isn't on the lease. By George Patterson Y&R in Melbourne.

—Posted by David Kiefaber

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Filed under Australia, Cadbury, Candy, Kiefaber, Y&R
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Protex cleans dogs, sneakers off you hands

Young & Rubicam New York makes a strong case for Protex antibacterial soap with a point-of-purchase and out-of-home effort that shows people's filthy fingers. The tagline is: "The things you touch stay with you." At a glance, the fingers look like they've got fleas and crud on them. But take a closer look, and you see they're actually dogs and sneakers. (That better be one large billboard, so people can actually see that.) The sad thing is, my fingers aren't much better than this. They need a cleaning. They don't have much sneaker, but they could use a lot less dog.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Filed under Gianatasio, Protex, Y&R
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Crazy people can't hurt you in a Land Rover

Land Rover's "wacky workplace" scenario in this spot from Y&R, stressing vehicle safety, scores by taking a low-key approach. There's a crazy guy who keeps swords and daggers in his office. We all have one of these types at work. At AdFreak, it's me. In the ad, the guy's manager summons him for a chat, and they wind through corridors and traipse down stairs, a deadly blade dangling at the crazy worker's side. Their destination is the parking garage, where the boss feels safe enough in his Land Rover LR4 to tell the oddball to cut out the cutlery. It's offbeat but not over the top and memorably conveys its message. My supervisor tried something similar with me a while back, but he drives a Toyota. Get well soon, chief!

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Filed under Automotive, Gianatasio, Land Rover, Y&R
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Fat dogs forced to watch thin dogs have sex

No one wants to have sex with a fat dog. That's the solid premise behind some diet-dog-food ads from Prolam Y&R in Chile. Check out three ads here. "Life's hard when you're a fat dog," says the tagline, as the chubby pooches watch sadly at slimmer compatriots getting some action. We've seen fat dogs humiliated in diet-dog-food ads before. At least the mutts here don't have flowers sticking out of their butts. Via Adland.

—Posted by Tim Nudd

Filed under Animals, Nudd, South America, Y&R
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Ad perfectly captures guy's music snobbery

Normally, I take perverse pleasure in revealing "surprise endings" to ads, if only because they're usually predictable and lamely executed (and so little else in my empty life provides satisfaction these days). I must admit, though, that in the case of this French spot for the Trax music magazine, I didn't see—or more to the point, hear—the David Cronenberg-style gross-out denouement coming. Kudos to Y&R for crafting an impressively distracting slow build to a truly freaky finale. The crooner didn't sound so bad to me. Then again, I've never had an ear for music.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Filed under Europe, Gianatasio, Magazines, Y&R
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Kid can't stop himself in U.K. teen-abuse ad

Hopefully this rounds out our gloomy Friday of depressing PSAs. This spot is the centerpiece of a new RKCR/Y&R campaign for the U.K.'s Home Office that's aimed at curbing abuse in teenage relationships. As with the human-trafficking spots we saw earlier, this ad features a scene of realistic violence and a powerless bystander—though this time it's the abuser, who's been able to step outside himself and see what he's really doing to his girlfriend. The tagline is: "If you could see yourself, could you stop yourself?" Unfortunately, the answer here is no, as the kid is blocked by an invisible wall. Though maybe that's a good thing. If he rushed up and attacked himself, we'd be in a Parkinson's commercial.

—Posted by Tim Nudd

Filed under Domestic violence, Europe, Nudd, PSAs, RKCR, Y&R
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Ginormous clothes love LG's roomy washer

Humongous clothing gets hung out to dry in this spot (posted below) from Young & Rubicam New York touting the large capacity of LG's standard-size washer. Now, with my luck at laundry, those blue jeans (shown draped off the side of a suspension bridge) would shrink down to a size 400 after the very first tumble dry. As for the giant sock spinning on the wind turbine, it just goes to show that no matter how large these things get, it's impossible to keep a pair together. Which brings us to the ginormous bra. The owner should call me sometime: We could have dinner, or just meet up and do laundry some Saturday night. Wear the big lace camisole. I'll be the guy in the enormous onesie!

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Filed under Gianatasio, LG, Y&R
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James Lipton's beard protecting teens' junk

LG and Young & Rubicam have enlisted James Lipton, and his great and powerful beard, for some amusing PSAs urging young texters to "give it a ponder" before spreading hurtful gossip and/or pics of their junk across the interwebs. The Inside the Actors Studio host literally lends his beard to each troubled youngster to get them to do the right thing. One spot is posted below. See all four here, along with four print ads. They're all hair-larious. It's just really fun to hear Lipton say things like, "The last thing he needs is tweets about his beets." Over at the Web site, JL's talking beard will guide you through the standard social-media components. Will these ads break through to jaded teens? My husband happens to have a whole class of 9th graders who saw the ads during homeroom. What did they say? "Why does she have a beard? I don't get it. That's retarded." But you have to know how to read a 9th grader. Apparently, they hate everything. The important thing is: They didn't say it was gay.

—Posted by Rebecca Cullers

Filed under Cullers, James Lipton, LG, PSAs, Telecom, Y&R
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Talking food is well done in U.K. TV promos

Talking food is everywhere in advertising, but it doesn't get much more strange or awesome than this. These short, comical clips from RKCR/Y&R in London show healthy food items chatting with their unhealthier alter egos (e.g., a grilled sausage and a fried sausage, veggie pizza and pepperoni pizza, etc.) to promote Family Supercooks, a new U.K. show about eating familiar foods in healthier ways. It's hard to pick a favorite from among the motley cast of characters, though the sadistic ketchup is well up there. Adland has more, including the fun fact that some of the characters are loosely based on people at RKCR.

—Posted by Tim Nudd

Filed under Europe, Food and drink, Nudd, Y&R
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