Favorite Spots

It's Clio season, which means that the advertising community is giving out awards for the best spots from the previous year. Clios are given world-wide, so a lot of the best spots aren't things you can see on TV. Here's a selection of things that I thought were fantastic.

Of the Clio winners, this one is probably my favorite. It's a spot for Carsburgh Draft beer that's a great parody of all the overblown movie trailers you've ever seen. It really made me laugh when they draw out the word "bloody". Supposedly the advertising professionals just loved this one as well, but mostly because it celebrated everything they like. Great concept, exotic location and very, very expensive.

This ad for Sony BRAVIA tvs just blew me away. They took a quarter of a million superballs to the streets of San Francisco and just let 'er rip. This is just the kind of thing that appeals to me, the visuals are just stunning and I've got enough 10-year-old boy in me to love the sheer beauty of potential energy in action. I'm not saying it makes me desperate to get a new TV or anything, but I think that the best advertising doesn't go out of its way to force a brand on you. The ad barely mentions the brand. Advertising is omnipresent enough these days without being beated over the head by ads. Unless it's done ironically.

This American Express Ad is probably one of my favorite things on TV right now. It's part of their series of short films by famous directors about thier lives and passions. It's got all the hallmarks of a film by Wes Anderson; fantastic art direction, self-referential parody, sly humor and Jason Schwartzman. It's a great ad for American Express, though it really isn't until the end that you're really aware that the product being advertised. Someone wrote that this is the best Wes Anderson film they've ever seen, mostly because he didn't have enough time to indulge his faults like clunky characters and too-clever setups. I don't know, I quite like Wes Anderson films. Give me "Rushmore" anyday!

If you've got a favorite ad, I'd like to know about it. Post me a comment!