This week's guest judge is Wil Boudreau, founder / chief creative officer of Boudreau Advertising in New York.
BEST TV
Winner: Tide 'The Jason Alexander Hoodie'.
There are so many things I love about this spot. I love how weird the
premise is. And I love all of Jason's facial reactions to the abuse the
hoodie is taking. But what I kinda love most is that it is an actual
product benefit and an actual strategic brief and an actual insight and
an actual brilliant idea in support of all of them. I know that's a lot
of actuals, but all those together are actually a rarity these days.
Particularly in a spot as hysterically funny as this one. Nicely done
Saatchi & Saatchi/Woven Collaborate! May you reach dizzying heights
on the USA Today Ad Meter.
Runner up: Bud Light Seltzer Lemonade 'Last Year's Lemons'.
Something tells me that of all the "2020 Sucked" commercials we'll see
this year, this one will remain my favorite. Linking apocalyptic lemon
showers to the news about Bud Light Seltzer Lemonade was a stroke of
genius. Not only did it make me laugh, it got me thinking about the
lemony deliciousness of this particular adult beverage. Mmmm, lemon
seltzer booze.
BEST PRINT
Winner: IKEA Greece 'Get The Look'.
I love it when brands pounce on something in culture and use it in a
cool way. Like Arby's tweet to Pharrell a few years back. And more
recently Jeep's Utah desert obelisk ad. This print ad makes me like
IKEA even more. And will likely become a viral sensation on top of a
viral sensation.
Runner up: Emprohogar 'Door to door moving'.
Maybe it's because it takes me back to my School of Visual arts
portfolio class. I'm sure this one would've made it up onto the wall.
And also it would've made everyone else in the class a little bit
jealous. It's so elegantly simple. And wonderfully clear. It's the
kind of print ad that teaches aspiring ad students how ads should be
done.
BEST OUTDOOR
Winner: Nanfu Battery 'Shaolin Kungfu Monks'.
This idea wins because it's not just an amazing, beautiful, and perfect
idea. But it's also just so amazingly, beautifully, and perfectly
crafted. It looks more like an art installation than an OOH execution.
I can't imagine anyone walking past this without stopping in their
tracks. And you betcha they'll be taking the selfies and doing the
sharing and the posting and the snapping and the chatting.
Runner up: DNB Insurance 'Evil Shopping Carts'.
This is the kind of idea that you show at the end of a deck and that
everyone loves and that never gets done. "That would be so great, now
getting back to the TV, we'd love it if Liam Neeson could do the AVO.
But not Irish accent Liam Neeson, more like 'Taken' Liam Neeson."
Anyway, this idea is as much fun to watch as it probably was to actually
do.
BEST INTERACTIVE
Winner: Coors Light + Coors Seltzer 'Dream Study'.
Sometimes you see an idea and you immediately know that it'll win every
award out there. And maybe they'll even make up a few more awards to
give it just because it's so good. What an awesomely cool way to hijack
the Super Bowl. I love the idea of enticing people to watch your ad as
a way of participating in a futuristic dream study. It's every
creative's dream come, nope not gonna say it.
Runner up: L'Auberge des Migrants 'L'Auberge des Migrants Hacks Amazon'.
I love how this idea sneaks up on you. By embedding themselves in
Amazon reviews, these real- world survivors are catching shoppers
unawares. And by pointing out how these mundane products will be used,
i.e. tying the toothbrush to a tree in the forest, it paints a poignant
picture of just how necessary these donations are. A truly novel and
powerful way to get people to listen to a story that needs telling.