Intel's CHASE Web Video Is Kicking Ass On The Viral Charts

To build excitement around the 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i5 processor, Intel launched this action-adventure video titled "The Chase." The spot demonstrates the performance capabilities of the new processors by creating an action-movie style chase sequence that takes place through a wide variety of program windows on a computer desktop.



Ad Age reports that "With 1.8 million YouTube views and its first entry onto the chart, Intel's "Chase" mini-movie makes it to the straight to the top for a good reason -- it's a great action flick with a sexy heroine and two leather-jacket-and-gold-chains bad guys. The campaign won 1.1 million views in its first week alone."


Credits
Advertising Agency: Venables Bell & Partners, USA
Executive Creative Directors: Paul Venables, Will Mcginness
Creative Directors: Paul Foulkes, Tyler Hampton, David Kim
Copywriter: Josh Parschauer
Art Director: Beau Hanson, Dan Kenneally
Director Of Integrated Production: Craig Allen
Agency Producer: Kacey Hart
Interactive Producer: John Eagan
Interactive Design Director: Ezra Paulekas
Production Company: Nexus Productions
Director: Smith & Foulkes
Director Of Photography: Oliver Wood
Executive Producer: Tracey Cooper
Production Manager: Alistair Pratten
Editing Company: Trim
Editor: Paul Hardcastle
Sound Design: Human
Music: Human
Composers: Edmond Dunne & Gareth Williams
Music Producer: Jonathan Sanford
Mix: Play, John Bolen
Color / Flame: Time Based Arts, James Allen & Sheldon Gardner
Aired: January 2011

Martini Gold by Dolce & Gabbana; The Fellini-esque Film, Ads, Stills & More.

Two Italian flavors, Martini & Rossi and Dolce & Gabbana, collaborated a few months ago to launch MARTINI®Gold, a special edition vermouth with a unique recipe which includes orange, ginger and cubeb pepper, inspired by the fashion duo.

The libation was launched with a Fellini-esque film starring the stunning and sexy Italian actress Monica Bellucci:



Directed by Jonas Åkerlund (shown shooting the movie below), the MARTINI® Gold short film is set in Rome, Italy - a beautiful backdrop for the visually lush story.






Inspired by Fellini's La Dolce Vita, it celebrates Italian lifestyle as well as Monica Bellucci's all-Italian beauty, with surprise appearances by designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana:


Stills from the film:






The print ads:


On the set images:








The special bottle and packaging bear the name of both Martini and Dolce & Gabbana



The Russian issue of Vogue even included the actual video within the pages of their December issue, making it their first video advertisement in a print medium:


MARTINI Gold
Martini
Dolce and Gabbana

New Call Of Duty: Black Ops Commercial Makes Even Peace Lovers Want To Shoot Someone.

The latest 60 second spot (shown after the stills in this post) for Activision's soon to be released Call of Duty: Black Ops video game, conceived of by TBWA Chiat Day and directed by Rupert Sanders, makes even me want to pick up a gun - or at least a game controller - and I'm about as far as one gets from a war monger.



Despite your stance on war or video games, one cannot deny the visceral appeal of this commercial. Set to the Rolling Stone's Vietnam-era classic Gimme Shelter, the gamers (a variety which includes, amongst many, a medical technician, a scientist, an electronics store clerk, a hotel concierge, a businessman, Kobe Bryant, Jimmy Kimmel and not one, but three women - even a Birkenstock wearing Granola) find themselves so immersed in the experience, they appear engaged in real life combat. To present a video game as so life-like that the players appear in the virtual world may not be a new concept or idea, but in this case, it is beautifully executed.








The everyday folk - and avid gamer celebs Kobe Bryant and Jimmy Kimmel who make appearances in the spot - are adeptly brandishing weapons while donning their civilian garb (love the Chanel shoulder bag), amongst the thunder of helicopters and flying shrapnel.



above: Video game fans Jimmy Kimmel and Kobe Bryant make appearances in the spot.

There's only one word of dialogue uttered in the whole script... when the hotel concierge, Vic, stops to answer his phone and identify himself while in the midst of combat.



And the final shot of a fast food cook with guns a-blazin' is the Creme de la Combat.



God damn, they were right when they said "There's A Soldier In All Of Us" and I didn't even know it. Now where's my Bazooka?

There’s a Soldier in All of Us (:60)


Call of Duty: Black Ops is a first-person shooter video game developed by Treyarch and published by Activision, scheduled for release on November 9, 2010. The game is the seventh installment of the Call of Duty series since the original game published in 2003, and the third game in the series to be developed by Treyarch.

Pre-order/Buy Call of Duty: Black Ops

Activision is an American video game developer and publisher, with well known titles such as the Tony Hawk series, and the Guitar Hero franchise.

CREDITS
Agency: TBWA\Chiat\Day, Los Angeles
Chief Creative Officer: Rob Schwartz
Group Creative Director: Brett Craig
Associate Creative Director: Blake Kidder
Associate Creative Director: Patrick Almaguer
Creative Director:
Head of Production: Richard O’Neill
Executive Producer: Anh-Thu Le
Producer: Stanton Hill
Art Director: Chase Madrid
Copywriter: Chris DeNinno
Group Account Director: Stan Fiorito
Account Director:
Account Supervisor: Paul Sears
Assistant Account Executive: Rohit Bal
Group Planning Director: Oke Mueller
Sr. Planner: Natalie Puccio
Director of Business Affairs: Linda Daubson
Business Affairs Manager: Jill Durand
Senior Broadcast Traffic: Jerry Neill

Production Company: MJZ
Director: Rupert Sanders
Executive Producer: David Zander
Executive Producer: Eric Stern
Producer: Laurie Boccaccio
Director of Photography: Greig Fraser
Production Designer: Dominic Watkins
Costume Designer: Nancy Steiner
Editor: Neil Smith
Post Production Producer: Carolina Wallace
Visual Effects: Asylum
Visual Effects Executive Producer: Michael Pardee
Visual Effects Post Producer: Ryan Meredith

Visual Effects: Asylum
Visual Effects Supervisor/ Lead Compositor: Jason Hicks
Executive Producer: Michael Pardee
Producer: Ryan Meredith

Converse Launches New Campaign With "Dr. J" Commercial By Antoine Fuqua.

This is one of those posts inspired by actual events. A few nights ago I was watching tv --Family Guy, if you must know-- and this commercial came on. I paused the dvr (oh, the wonders of technology) and rewound it to watch it again and again. As an advertising creative for over 20 years, I can assure you this happens very rarely. Turns out, the spot is the part of new marketing effort conceived of and executed by Anomaly for Converse.

Basketball legend Julius "Dr. J" Erving, Carlos Arroyo of the Miami Heat; musicians Jim Jones and Doug E Fresh, legendary ball-handler and God Shammgod, Harlem streetball player Adrian "A-Butta" Walton, Kenny Anderson, Converse skaters, Sammy Baca, Eli Reed, Rune Glifberg and more 'Join The Procession' in Brooklyn for this new :60 commercial for Converse, shot by the director of "Training Day."



The white-haired guy under the hood is basketball great Dr. J., looking better than he did in his heyday. Don't roll your eyes... I had to explain that, given that most people under 30 have no idea who he is (including my 19 year old dog walker and her friends).





The spot, directed by Antoine Fuqua from Pittsburgh, has stunningly composed shots, editing, music ("Hello Operator" by the White Stripes) and color transfer. Each frame in the spot is composed and lit like a miniature piece of art.





Coincidentally, director Antoine Fuqua landed a college scholarship to play basketball, but the power of cinema drove him to a successful career as a film director. He is best known for the award-winning film Training Day.

Behind the Scenes


In this behind the scenes video, Director Antoine Fuqua talks about the concept behind the commercial, while participants like Jim Jones, Carlos Arroyo, Doug E Fresh, and Luam Keflezgy talk about the passion around the culture. And the struggle. And the sunshine:



a 15: cut about Dr. J, the blueprint:


“[Basketball]…it’s like a ritual. The basketball being the thing that brings everybody [together]. The rhythm and the beat,” says director Antoine Fuqua. “Converse is taking it to the streets. The streets are the heart beat.”



On their blog, Converse asks you to "Join the Procession" and in addition to the ad, each of the stars are featured in a series of online vignettes taken from outtakes that illuminate their mutual admiration for each other and that blur the lines of sport, music and lifestyle. The resulting short clips showcase new cultural, iconoclastic moments including Kenny Anderson teaching Dr. J a kickflip, and God Shammgod showing Sammy Baca how to do the “Shammgod”, his signature crossover move.

Check them out here.

Full Credits
Agency: Anomaly
Client: Converse
Executive Creative Director/Partner: Mike Byrne
Creative Director: Ian Toombs
Head of Production: Andrew Loevenguth
Account Person: Stanley Lumax
Production Company: Anonymous Content
Director: Antoine Fuqua
Director of Photography: Harris Savides
Executive Producer: Dave Morrison
Producer: John Bennet
Editorial: Beast
Editor: Lucas Eskin
Executive Producer: Elizabeth Krajewski
Producer: Elizabeth Krajewski
Editorial Assistant: Jai Shukla
Post: Company 3
Telecine: Tim Masick
Flame Artist: Tom McCollough
Executive Producer: Angela Lupo
Mix: Audio Engine
Mixer: Tommy Goldblatt
Music: “Hello Operator” by The White Stripes
Music Clearance: Sara Matarazzo

Information and images courtesy of Converse. Some text portions in this post were directly taken from the press release.