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My Most Popular July and August LinkedIn Posts

The commercials featured in the posts are by Advertising Agencies; AMV BBDO London; BBH London; Antoni Garage Berlin; Chiat/Day Venice California; Razorfish Berlin; and Wieden+Kennedy London.

The stellar directing of the featured commercials, are by filmmakers, Jonathan Glazer, Jamie Rafn, Sebastian Strasser, Ridley Scott, Stephan Wever, Alan Smith, and Adam Foulkes.

1. The Best Commercial of All Time by Popular Vote

Guinness, Surfer

Advertising Agency: AMV BBDO, London, UK

Production Company: Academy Films, London, UK

Referring to the slow-pouring necessary for a perfect pint of Guinness with a creamy white top, the “Good Things Come To Those Who Wait” brand signature, is a cleverly penned consumer promise with a broad smile, that became a memorable advertising theme.   

Filmmaker and director Jonathan Glazer’s famous ‘Guinness Surfer’ commercial, about a Polynesian surfer waiting for that perfect wave, was named by The Independent British tabloid in 2009, as amongst the “greatest advertising campaigns of all time”, and voted the “best of all time”, in a public poll, conducted by Britain’s Channel 4, and The Sunday Times.

Filmed on location in Hawaii over nine days, the monochromatic, multi award-winning, commercial, inspired by Walter Crane’s 1893 painting “Neptune’s Horses”, features spectacular images of white horses with their flowing manes, cresting rolling waves.

The music soundtrack, was specially composed for the commercial by ‘Leftfield’, an electronic-music duo from Bath in England, who later included the track as “Phat Planet” on their ‘Rhythm and Stealth’ album.

2. Johnnie Walker, The Man Who Walked Around The World

Advertising Agency: BBH, London, UK

Production Company: HLA, London, UK

The six minute short-film, directed by filmmaker Jamie Rafn, stars Scottish actor Robert Carlyle who, while walking along a path in the Loch Doyne Scottish Highlands, recounts how a local Kilmarnock farm lad, Johnnie Walker, created his own whisky, and turned it into the world famous brand it is today.

In a seamless monologue penned by creative conceptualiser, and Copywriter, Justin Moore, Robert Carlyle times his words to the exact second, in a masterly performance as the narrator of the Johnny Walker company’s history, that astoundingly, was done in one continuous take.

It’s a remarkable filmic achievement that deservedly was honoured with a Best of Show Gold Pencil award, by the One Club For Creativity.

3. Mercedes-Benz, The Journey That Changed Everything

Advertising Agency: Antoni Garage, Berlin, Germany

Production Company: Anorak Film, Berlin, Germany

Post Production Company: The Mill, London, UK

The 3 minute short-film, based on a true story, centres on Bertha Benz’s decision in 1888, to ‘test drive’ her husband Carl Benz’s motorised carriage invention, on a 160-km journey from Mannheim to Pforzheim, and back again, was brought to life by storytelling filmmaker Sebastian Strasser’s masterly direction.

With the intention to motivate her husband to keep faith in the sustainability of his invention, and to prove to skeptics that his motorised carriage was ‘fit-for-purpose’, Bertha and her two sons Eugene and Richard, made their way to Carl’s workshop early in the morning while he was still asleep, and from there started their journey, that became a milestone in the history of motorised transportation.

In reality, the history of Mercedes-Benz, is inseparable from the history of the automobile. Not only did they invent the world’s first self-propelled ‘motorwagen’ in 1886, Mercedes-Benz relentlessly continued with innovative engineering initiatives to introduce many automotive ‘world-firsts’.

Some of their ‘world-first’ achievements, include the Honeycomb Radiator in 1901, Electric Powered vehicles in 1906, the Multivalve Engine in 1910, the Supercharged Engine in 1921, Four Wheel Independent Suspension in 1931, Anti-Locking Braking System (ABS) in 1970, the Air Bag in 1981, and in 1995, the Electronic Stability Program (ESP).

4. 60 Seconds That Made Advertising History

Apple Mackintosh, 1984

“On January 24th, Apple Computer will introduce Macintosh. And you’ll see why 1984 won’t be like 1984”.

Advertising Agency: Chiat/Day, Venice, California, USA

Production Company: Fairbanks Films, New York

The 60 second personal computer Apple Mackintosh commercial, stunned the world, after just one national airing, during the 18th Super Bowl American Football Championships, held at the Tampa Stadium in Florida, where the Los Angeles Raiders defeated the Washington Redskins by 38-9. And as the saying goes, the rest is history. 

Conceived by Chiat/Day’s Creative Director Lee Clow, Copywriter Steve Haden, and Art Director Brent Thomas, the commercial was directed by inimitable filmmaker, Ridley Scott, and features English athlete Anya Major, in a powerful performance as the unnamed heroine that saves humanity from conformity.

5. Joy At Long Last

Audi, The Comeback

Advertising Agency: Razorfish, Berlin, Germany

Production Company: Stink Films, Berlin, Germany

Post Production and VFX Studio, Sehsucht, Hamburg, Germany

I remain enamoured by the inventive and masterly produced ‘The Comeback’ Audi commercial of a few years ago.

Skilfully directed by filmmaker Stephan Wever, the surprising focus of Razorfish Berlin’s inspired scenario, is a congenial, talking-dinosaur, in a touchingly metaphoric and filmic narrative, for Audi Piloted Driving.

After enduring a depressingly long humiliation because of his short arms, the hapless T-Rex finally finds joy thanks to Audi.

Not surprisingly, the commercial rapidly went viral to global public and automotive industry acclaim.

The scenario was inspired by George Orwell’s famous dystopian novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four, about a world ruled by a televised “Big Brother”, and alludes to IBM’s global ‘Big Brother’ dominance at the time.

Often referred to as the best commercial of the Twentieth Century, it was filmed in London, using local ‘skinheads’ as extras, and other than a vague, stylised line drawing on the heroine’s white tank-top, the commercial intriguingly does not feature an image of the Apple Mackintosh, nor does it reveal it’s actual size, and what the personal computer would be capable of.

6. Honda Diesel i-CTDi, Grrr                                                           

Advertising Agency: Wieden+Kennedy, London, UK

Production Company: Nexus Productions, London, UK                                                                                                          

Wieden+Kennedy’s integrated launch campaign, for Honda’s i-CTDi diesel engines, was spearheaded by a TV and cinema commercial, directed by animation filmmaking duo,  Alan Smith, and Adam Foulkes.

The narrative theme of the ‘Grrr’ commercial, was fittingly provided by American author Garrison Keillor singing “Hate Something Change Something” for the accompanying soundtrack.

Winner of the 2005 Cannes International Festival of Creativity Film Grand Prix, and lauded by ADWEEK as ‘the overall ad of the decade’ in 2009, the Honda ‘Grrr’ commercial is a remarkable automotive, advertising classic, that is in a uniquely creative class of it’s own.

It is the first animation commercial for an automotive brand to win a Cannes Film Grand Prix, and the first, and maybe only commercial to date, to promote a diesel engine without showing a brand model.   

Honda’s overall sales of their i-CTDi diesel engines in the United Kingdom increased by 35%, which in a highly competitive automotive market, was a dream result for Honda.