US Creative Works: Featuring Fitzgerald & Co, OKRP, FCB Six and more

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Welcome to The Drum's US Creative Works, in partnership with Workfront.

As always, this section is dedicated to showing the best creative work in North & South America and gives you, the reader, the chance to decide which work we feature as our US 'Creative Work of the Week.'

To vote for your favorite, make sure you click on the stars. The winner will be chosen based on the average rating and the number of votes cast. Voting closes on Wednesday, March 8.

Fitzgerald & Co: Synovus Bank 'Gym Rats'

Agency: Fitzgerald & Co

Client: Synovus Bank

Date: February 2017

Synovus Bank has teamed up with Atlanta-based agency Fitzgerald & Co to create a PSA for Hurricane Boxing Gym, a nonprofit based in Tampa, Florida that helps underprivileged youth through a boxing program that encourages integrity, discipline, values, respect and morals. In the spot, a young man explains why he's proud to be a "gym rat" despite the term's negative connotations. The ad, which is airing on local network TV affiliates in Tampa and online, is intended to increase awareness of the nonprofit and its mission. According to Fitzgerald & Co, Hurricane Boxing was recently "one of the bank's new checking account customers that received $200.00 to invest back into their communities and small businesses." The ad is part of Synovus Bank's "bank of here" effort, which aims to position the company as one that is deeply involved in its communities.

Credits:

Chief Creative Officer: Noel Cottrell
Executive Creative Directors: Mitch Bennett, Wes Whitener
Art Director: Erin Fillingim
Copywriter: Matt Shoemake
Executive Director of Integrated Production: Christine Sigety
Production Company: Caviar
Director: Jordan Bahat
Executive Producer (Production Co): Darren Foldes
Line Producer: Michael Sarkissian
Director of Photography: Michael Gioulakis
Post Production: Caviar
Editorial Company: Caviar
Editorial Producer: Terry Huynh
Editor: Jack Price
Music Production Company: Score A Score
Music Executive Producer: Jordan Passman
Producer: Jake Weinreb
Composer/Arranger: Daniel Ciurlizza
Group Account Director: Jeffery Quick
Account Director: Allison Sherrill
Assistant Account Director: Lauren Gourley
Business Affairs: Lisa Holloway

Tags: United States

Terri & Sandy: Peeps 'Easter without Peeps Delights is a Crying Shame'

Agency: Terri & Sandy

Client: Peeps

Date: February 2017

Terri & Sandy has created a 60-second ad for Peeps to promote the candy brand's chocolate and fudge dipped varieties. In the video, parents throw childlike tantrums when they find out that their kids have eaten their Peeps Delights.

Credits:

Tags: United States

David Miami: Burger King 'Flame-grilled Since 1954'

Agency: David Miami

Client: Burger King

Date: February 2017

Burger King’s special brand of off-the-wall advertising has reached a new level: in its latest print campaign, the fast food chain is featuring three photographs of actual restaurants that have caught on fire in recent years.

The photos, which show Burger Kings aflame in Italy, Pennsylvania and Oregon, serve to (somewhat sadistically) remind people that the brand takes its flame-grilling seriously. A quick Google search of the incidences reveals that no one was seriously hurt in the aforementioned BK fires, which took place in 2004, 2015 and 2016, respectively.

According to David Miami, the agency behind the campaign, “more Burger King restaurants have burned down than any other fast food chain” since 1954. Which is apparently something to be proud of.

Credits:

CCO, Founder: Anselmo Ramos
Creative Director: Russell Dodson
Creative Director: Antony Kalathara
Associate Creative Director: Jason Wolske
Associate Creative Director: Danny Alvarez
Art Director: Curtis Caja
Copywriter: Ian Holmes
Design Director: Carlos Lange
Strategy Director: John Carlaw
Head of Global Production: Veronica Beach
Producer: Carlos Torres
Associate Producer: Marina Rodrigues
Managing Director, Head of Account: Paulo Fogaca
Senior Account Director: Carmen Rodriguez
Account Director: Lucila Mengide
Account Supervisor: Rafael Giorgino
Senior Business Affairs Manager: Barbara Karalis

Tags: United States, burger king

FCB Six: Drug Free Kids Canada 'The Call That Comes After'

Agency: FCB Six

Client: Drug Free Kids Canada

Date: February 2017

Canada’s Drug Free Kids has rolled out a harrowing PSA campaign that it hopes will make teens think twice about smoking marijuana before getting behind the wheel.

The crux of the campaign is a two-minute film called “The Call That Comes After” that follows a fairly predictable story arc, at least as far as PSAs go. In the spot, a “goody two shoes” girl decides to get into the car with her crush even though he’s been smoking pot. While she’s texting in the passenger’s seat, he turns up the radio and zones out for a bit, which causes him to crash into another vehicle. The spot ends with a cracked phone screen that shows frantic texts from the girl’s mother.

While the spot itself isn’t particularly noteworthy, the twist is that parents who email their kids the video can trigger customized text messages and videos to send right when their son or daughter is almost finished watching the PSA. So while the crash unfolds and the girl’s cracked phone appears onscreen, teens will receive actual “texts” from their mom or dad that say things like “Where are you?” and “I’m worried. Please call me.”

Parents can go to thecallthatcomesafter.com to fill out a form that will automatically email the video and subsequently send the texts once their child has started watching. While a flaw of the campaign is that the texts are sent from a random number and not the actual number of the parent who sent them, the effort does a good job of planting the viewer into the narrative of the story so they can experience firsthand the devastating impact that driving while high can have on loved ones.

Created by Toronto-based FCB Six, the pro bono campaign is intended to start a conversation between parents and teens about the dangers of high driving. According to a study that was released in 2012, driving after marijuana use doubles one’s risk of getting into an accident.

“Research shows that parents are one of the biggest influence on their kids when it comes to drug abuse, so we took an approach of reaching out to parents directly to help get the message to their kids, with an innovative use of technology that we thought would best grab their kid’s attention,” said Vicki Waschkowski, managing director of FCB Six, in a statement.

According to the agency, the PSA’s technological tie-in was brought to life with help from IBM’s Marketing Cloud, Oracle Marketing Cloud, SMS, YouTube and an “on-demand video rendering engine.”

Credits:

Executive Creative Director: Ian Mackenzie
Associate Creative Director: Krystle Mullin
Associate Creative Director: Graham Tingle
VP, Group Account Director: Vicki Waschkowski
Account Supervisor: Shannon Harvey
Project Manager: Gillian Largey
Lead Developer: Dov Atlin
Campaign Manager: Andrew Yang
VP, Data & Technology: Jacob Ciesielski
President: Andrea Cook
Agency Producer: Kelly Cavanaugh
Media Planning: UM
Director Connection Planning: Cynthia Steele
Production Company: Circle Productions
Executive Producer: Andria Minott
Director / Cinematographer: Jesse Blight
Line Producer: Robbie McNamara
Editorial: School Editing
Editor: Lauren Horn
Exec. Producer: Sarah Brooks
Post Production: Red Lab
Executive Producer: Laurie Kerr-Jones
Producer: Pallavi Joshi
Visual Effects Artist: Andy Hunter
Colourist: Jason Zukowski
Music & Sound Design: Vapor RMW
Producer: Ted Rosnick
Casting: Shasta Lutz, Jigsaw Casting

Tags: Canada, FCB

MullenLowe: Hyatt 'For A World of Understanding'

Agency: MullenLowe

Client: Hyatt

Date: February 2017

Hyatt recently kicked off a new global campaign with a 30-second spot that aired during the Academy Awards.

The ad, which marks the first time in nearly a decade that the hotel company is advertising the overarching “Hyatt” name in a television spot rather than one of its individual brands, is centered around the idea that travelers should embrace and try to understand the different cultures they visit rather than be fearful of them.

Set to a rendition of “What the World Needs Now is Love” sung by Andra Day, the ad shows different instances where people let their guards down so they can enjoy the new people and experiences around them. For example, in one scenario, a man visiting Thailand ends up bonding with a Thai food stand worker after trying a few samples that he was at first skeptical of. Created by MullenLowe, the spot will air internationally throughout 2017 with a focus on the US, China and India.

Hyatt is the latest in a string of travel brands to promote a message of acceptance in today’s politically contentious environment. During Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration, Expedia aired a spot called “Train” that featured a woman traveling the world and immersing herself in new cultures. At the Super Bowl earlier this month, Airbnb garnered buzz for its “#WeAccept” spot that indirectly criticized President Trump’s travel ban.

Hyatt’s is using its latest spot to launch a new global brand platform as well. Called “World of Hyatt,” the positioning is “grounded in the simple idea that a little understanding goes a long way,” according to the company.

“World of Hyatt is an expression of who we are,” said Mark Hoplamazian, president and chief executive officer of Hyatt Hotels Corporation, in a statement. “It’s a platform powered by our purpose – caring for people so they can be their best – and it inspires how we engage with guests, interact with colleagues and owners, and operate our business. Importantly, it’s designed to deepen our relationship with our community beyond traditional hotel stays.”

Credits:

Tags: United States, MullenLowe

Chandelier: Old Navy 'Girl's Night'

Agency: Chandelier

Client: Old Navy

Date: February 2017

In Old Navy's latest ad, comedian Amy Schumer becomes upset when she finds out her friends went to Old Navy without her. The ad is the latest in a string of spots that Schumer has appeared in for the brand.

Credits:

Creative Director: Lena Kuffner
Creative Director: Richard Christiansen
Copywriter: Josh Meyers & Laura Kraft
Executive Producer: Sara Fisher
Account Director: Eileen Eastburn
Producer: Gulshan Jaffery
Account Coordinator: Taylor Kraus
Production Company: Hungry Man
Director: Wayne McClammy
Executive Producers: Mino Jarjoura, Dan Duffy
Line Producer: Dave Bernstein
Director of Photography: Matthew Libatique
Editorial: Rock Paper Scissors
Editor: Christjan Jordan
Executive Producer: Raná Martin
Telecine: C03
Colorist: Dave Hussey
Audio Post: Heard City
Mixer: Philip Loeb
Finishing: MPC NY
Executive Producer: Camila De Biaggi
Finishing Producer: Brendan Kahn

Tags: United States, Chandelier, Old Navy

360i: New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation 'Always Open'

Agency: 360i

Client: New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation

Date: February 2017

Ahead of Mardi Gras celebrations, the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation recently hosted a "Reverse Parade" to remind locals and tourists alike that the city stands with the LGBTQ community.

Staged in partnership with agency 360i, the parade kicked off with members and supporters of the LGBTQ community walking backwards instead of forward when their accompanying music began to play at New Orleans' famous Bourbon and St. Ann streets. As they walked backwards, the marchers started to shed their festive beads and wigs, wipe make-up off of their faces and retreat into nearby doorways.

As the streets turned quiet and perplexed observers looked on, a flag reading "we are never going back" appeared in the streets. The brass band then resumed their music as marchers returned to the streets with their parade garb on to march forward in celebration.

The parade, which was captured in a film directed by Trent Jaklitsch, was put on to send the message that New Orleans is "always open." According to the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation, roughly 400 citizens gathered and volunteered their time to help spread the organization's message of diversity and equality.

“New Orleans has a history of welcoming all people all the time,” said Mark Romig, president and CEO of New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation, in a statement. “The amount of excitement and numbers of citizens who came to participate in the parade and film is a testament to the city’s determination to never relinquish its achievements in human rights.”

Credits:

Tags: United States, 360i, New orleans

O'Keefe, Reinhard & Paul: Groupon 'Save on Restaurants' and 'Save on Massages, Manicures & More'

Agency: O'Keefe, Reinhard & Paul

Client: Groupon

Date: February 2017

Groupon's latest campaign, created by OKRP, is running under the new tagline "Save Up to $100 a Week on What You Do Every Day." Targeted towards working millennials, the campaign emphasizes that its users can incorporate Groupon into their daily routines by using the app to do things like go out to eat or get a manicure.

Credits:

Tags: United States, OKRP, groupon

Wieden + Kennedy Portland: Samsung 'The Rest of Us'

Agency: Wieden + Kennedy Portland

Client: Samsung

Date: March 2017

During the Oscars, Samsung revealed its new brand rally cry "Do What You Can't" via a spot starring vlogger Casey Neistat. In the spot, Neistat makes his own "acceptance speech" of sorts by paying tribute to makers like him who create what they want despite not having huge budgets and fancy cameras.

Credits:

Tags: United States, Samsung

Barton F. Graf: Bulleit '32 Foot Tattoo in Los Angeles'

Agency: Barton F. Graf

Client: Bulleit

Date: March 2017

Diageo-owned whiskey brand Bulleit has launched a series called "Frontier Works" that puts a spotlight on "creative people living and working on the modern cultural frontier." Created in partnership with Barton F. Graf, the first project is a 32-foot tattoo wall that the brand installed on the corner of Sunset and Hyperion in Los Angeles. The wall was created in partnership wit 24 local tattoo artists who each were assigned an individual section to showcase their own art.

Credits:

Founder/Chief Creative Officer: Gerry Graf
Group Creative Director: Nick Kaplan, Nate Naylor
Copywriter: Christopher Stephens
Art Director: Michael Hagos, Kate Overholt Placentra
Head of Production: Josh Morse
Producer: Theresa Reyes and Saul Metnick
Account Director: Yvette Ames and Jennifer Richardi
Account Supervisor: Julie Carroll
Head of Communications Strategy: Dominic Poynter
Strategy Director: Deepa Sen
Video Production Company: Barton F Productions 9000
Line Producer: Saul Metnick
Director: Arianna LaPenne
Production Company: Milk Agency
Head of Creative and Integrated Production: Diana Frame
Brand Partnerships Director: Samantha Lim

Tags: United States, diageo, Barton F. Graf