What does a mascot say about a brand? Do manly brand mascots convey qualities that build consumer confidence, likeability, and trust? See if you can identify these brand icons and the product each represents. Then consider what attribute they evoke – tough, unflappable, suave, protective, devil-may-care, jovial, helpful, fearless — and decide whether he is the right guy for the job. See answers after the jump.
If the existentialist playwright Jean-Paul Sartre had a house cat, it would undoubtedly have Henri’s morose outlook on life. This video short is written and directed by Will Braden, with narration in French by Will Braden, who lives in Seattle, Washington, and doesn’t speak French as his first language. Braden’s video production business is mostly engaged in making videographs of wedding receptions and producing special video projects for local organizations. He keeps his creative senses and his sense of humor sharp by producing his own film shorts. This one is a sequel to Henri’s first appearance in a short that Braden made as a student film project in 2007.
This video was produced to promote the launch of the TV channel TNT in Belgium. We’d tell you more but don’t want to spoil the tagline. The viral stunt was produced by the Duval Guillame Modem agency, with Geoffrey Hantson as creative director and Koen Mortier as director.
De Lijn, the public bus company run by the Flemish government in Belgium, has launched a new ad campaign showing that it is smarter to take the bus or tram than travel alone. The concept for these commercials came from Duval Guillaume Modem in Antwerp, and the 3-D production was done by CC (Creative Conspiracy). Don’t know if there is safety in numbers by taking a bus in Belgium, but in the U.S., it’s crowded and a good way to get elbowed by strangers and attacked by psychopaths. Still, the ad is memorable and cute.
The Guardian, the UK’s leading media organization, just launched a major brand repositioning campaign with a TV ad that reenacts how its “open journalism” approach works. Created by ad agency Bartle Boogle Hegarty (BBH) and directed by Ringan Ledwidge, the two-minute TV spot follows a breaking story of the Three Little Pigs being arrested in a police raid after boiling the Big Bad Wolf alive. It goes on to show how The Guardian coverage invites interaction with readers and internet users through the newspaper, website, blogs, tweets and video. Eyewitness reporting along with participatory analysis and opinions are facilitating an open exchange of information that has the potential to bring about real change — and The Guardian wants the public to know that it is leading the way.
