STUNNING

Fallon's latest campaign for FRENCH CONNECTION, some of the best art direction and copy i have seen. the primative man and sophisticated woman. love it.

SPRING SUMMER CAMPAIGN
AUTUMN WINTER CAMPAIGN

VOYEURISM

a fantastic exhibition at the tate modern, exposed.

since its invention, the camera has been used to make images surreptitiously and satisfy the desire to see what is hidden. the exhibition, entitled Exposed: Voyeurism, Surveillance & the Camera hosts an impressive array of candid shots, some being quite powerful and even grotesque. below feature some of my stand out snaps.

john goodman - tremont street #3

harry callahan - atlanta 1984

lee friedlander - new york city 1966

helmut newton

designated driver

more budweiser class from DDB chicago.

QUOTE:

"they say when you get what you want you don't want it anymore. that depends what you get"

superlative pay off for the new Mercedes advert.

QUALITY ADVERT, MAN

in my third year at university i remember one option for a work brief was to relaunch one of the classic men's scents, Brut or Old Spice. i am pretty confident no-one came up with anything this good.

the two guys at widen+kennedy have nailed the tone of voice with this advert and the concept is the perfect persuasion, not only for the man, but also for the actual target market of buyers - girlfriends.

magnetic man + annie

dubstep has been creeping more and more into the mainstream ever since its initial leak from Skream early last year with his remix of La Roux's In for the Kill. being a massive fan of the genre, i have some reservations about this but can also draw some positives from it's increasing popularity.

i witnessed one of the major bonuses whilst at Manchester's Parklife festival earlier this month. Magnetic man, the collaboration of Skream, Benga and Artwork, put on a production to finish the night that Daft Punk would be proud of. the video below fails to capture the impact of this immense light display but gives an idea of just how impressive it was.

guilty of starting the my obsession:

i love her.

South America

a few snaps from the amazing and diverse continent have made their way onto my flickr page.

show offs

when this advert first appeared on my TV after England's penultimate pre-World Cup friendly against Mexico, i sat absolutely glued to my screen, actually gobsmacked. the concept behind the advert is brilliant, epitamising the impact such small events in one football match can have around the world and the tagline 'write the future' could not sum this up better. however, i feel that Wieden+Kennedy slipped up with the cameo from Homer Simpson (not to mention the inclusion of Brazil's non-participating aged star). the inclusion of this comic cartoon slob feels very awkward and for me really takes away from the spectacular and inspirational tone of the advert.

the sheer length of the ad combined with the overwhelming cast and genius concept make for what has to be one of the best sports brand adverts ever made, and acts as a perfect reminder of just who is top dog.

a single man

having read and thoroughly enjoyed Christopher Isherwood's A single Man, the news that Tom Ford was to direct the film adaptation was somewhat exciting. unfortunately, being in South America at the time the chance of me catching it at the cinema was slim but as luck would have it, what was the feature film on the flight back to Paris?...

although not the ideal setting for the first viewing of an anticipated film, i decided i couldn't wait so tuned in. considering who was directing, it was clear that the film was going to ooze effortless cool. however, i thought the first half an hour or so had a touch of the try-hard about it. the constant close-up camera work, varying angles, slow pans and freeze frames all give the feel of a first time director who is dying to bring out his style in his work, and all succeed to give the feel of a fashion ad rather than a motion picture. even though the 1960's period style is somewhat over-indulgent, every item of clothing and every set piece, from Colin Firth's tie clip to his shoe brush, is clearly meticulously chosen and each give a clear reminder to just what the director made his business in. the portrayal of the story itself is great, and the film is so accomplished visually that, after the slow and shaky start, i was gripped.

impatience is a virtue

Absolutely brilliant ad from Samsung. The whole premise of the advert and the contrasting vibes it puts across give such a strong message. Unfortunately I feel I am more of a 'waiter', but this advert definitely inspires impatience.

mr hudson

As great as it is to see such talent make it to the big time, it's such a shame that it took an ego like Kanye to make it happen. Seeing videos of them on stage together, Mr H comes across as an unknown, jumping around the stage while Kanye takes in the cheers and 'sings' through an artificial tuner. It makes him look like a bit of a wannabe. A total contrast to his performance and presence when he is on the stage at his own shows, where he gives across an effortlessly cool, note perfect performance every time.

portraits cachès

a great set of images from french photographer thomas millet.

male drivers beware (again)

M&S appear to have adopted the same approach for their latest billboard campaign as Wonderbra did so infamously in the mid-90's, with the provocative shot of Eva Herzigova:

Only time will tell if Marks' poster causes as much buzz (as well as car accidents)...

sound mantra

comical voice of authority

the voice of Stephen Merchant has to be one of the most versatile in the business. the bristol accent tends to have certain farmyard connetations, however, Merchant seems to be able to adapt it into both comical and authorititive dialogues. seeing him recently performing a rare stand up gig in islington I witnessed this first hand. a funny man, fucking funny.

advertisers have put this to great use in the Sky movies ad (looked at in an earlier entry) and the latest comical Barclays campaign. people listen to what he has to say.

hepatitis leap

i heard a rather interesting radio ad for a campaign raising awareness of hepatitis C, it is part of a campaign covering also press and tv (the latter two I have yet to see). the rather bizaare set up went as follows:

"Have you ever pranged a mates car? Have you ever pulled a sickie after a night on the lash? ...Have you ever been to a party with some mates... and ended up injecting drugs?"

Strikes me as quite a big leap.

pola-void

a little mock up of an advert for polaroid, done for my university course. polaroid has to be the most raw form of photography, and is one that needs to be saved!

my flickr.

diesel xxx

absolutely amazing viral from Diesel. perfect use of potentially offensive yet eye catching footage.

mr h

more quality from mr hudson. and again in Bread & Roses.

the new coke ad

the description of this advert on radio 1 prior to the campaigns release, was one that made the advert sound shocking and hard-hitting. in my opinion it couldn't be further from this. firstly, David Mitchell narrating - did the casting team not do their research?, as I seem to remember him being somewhat involved in the killing, cooking and eating of a dog in a particular Peep Show episode.

if I used cocaine, then the only thing that would have a chance of getting through to me would be facts relating to the damage it could do to me, and how it could affect me directly. if the fact that it is illegal isn't going to put people off, then I dont think the thought of a little dog being used in the logistics is quite going to cut it.

it's mad that the government feel the need to advertise not to break the law.