Stunning Ikea Ad

Looking for some touching advertainment? Time to check out Martin De Thurah’s beautiful ad for Ikea that was recently featured by the good people at Coudal.

Martin de Thurah has done an amazing job of portraying the ideals and mission of Ikea with a broad and powerful stroke. Ikea as a brand brings to mind sleek composite wood furnishings that are applicable to a wide audience of folks.

De Thurah’s commercial reminds us that it doesn’t matter what type of dwelling we live in just as long as it’s a home. It’s nice to have a message with such a broad appeal and in this case it feels genuine.

Watch it now. Need more Martin De Thurah? Check out the rest of his directing portfolio.

– chris

p.s. I’ll be doing my best to post more often than I have been in the last week. Thanks for all the comments and emails!

Facebook Diaries Launches

Buckle yourself in, Facebook has released Facebook Diaries, an “actual reality” show featuring user-submitted video edited by experienced producers. The show clocks in at the traditional 21 minute mark and will be distributed on the web and on Comcast.

Personally, I found the show to be bit boring, a little cheesy and a little heavy handed, but it did feel surprisingly honest. Of course it’s an impressive feat of editing, direction and let’s be honest here, logging.

I’d venture that this is the first time that a show made this way will be hitting the airwaves and for that reason alone you should make note of it.

To check it out on facebook you’ll need a facebook account. You can also see it at ziddio.com, their distribution partner in this one.

– chris

(via NewTeeVee)

The 12 Kinds of Ads

Slate has put together a comprehensive guide to The 12 Kinds of Ads that comprise the gamut of television commercials. It’s a really informative collection of Ads for anyone looking to get a handle on how the media is addressing them.

Start your Monday off fresh and check out The 12 Kinds of Ads so that you can begin to appreciate all those ‘subtle’ cues that have been affecting your shopping habits for the last couple of years.

Here’s a great example of Slate’s analysis:

The 10^th format is “associated user imagery”: The advertiser showcases the type of people it hopes you’ll associate with the product. Often these will be hip, funny, or good-looking people. But sometimes the associated users are goofy or geeky—it depends on the target market.

This Nike spot is one of my favorite ads ever. I love its brilliant editing (watch the cuts accelerate), its ass-kicking AC/DC track (I air-drum each time I hear it), and its inspirational vibe (it makes me want to just, I don’t know … do it). It’s also classic associated user imagery. Who wears Nike? Dedicated, hardworking athletes, like Tom Brady, Alex Rodriguez, that kid practicing soccer, and that gray-haired jogger lady. Those sprinkled shots of everyday people are key to the ad’s genius. In some ads, we just see the star jocks on screen and are expected to make the associative leap on our own. (Hey, I’ll be like Tom Brady if I buy Nike stuff.) This ad helps make the leap for us.

Here’s the ad:

Check out Slate’s in-depth slide show for all the ads!

– chris

Advertainment: The Wind

The Power of Wind is an amazing commercial. It’s smart, funny and poignant. The creators took an excellent concept and executed it to perfection. You’ll probably want to watch this one twice through.

I won’t ruin the fun, so go ahead and watch it now.

The Power of Wind won the prestigious best film advertising spot at the International Advertising Festival in Cannes. To learn more about the ad check out Epuron’s official site.

– chris

Clark and Michael: The Ultimate Webshow

Clark and Michael is a hilarious new web-based mockumentary featuring the talents of Michael Cera, of Arrested Development fame, and newcomer Clark Duke. The premise: Clark and Michael, two best friends trying to make careers in Hollywood, hire a camera crew to document their journey to fame.

The show features the dry humor of The Office and the awkwardness of Curb Your Enthusiasm. This amazing combination, has succeeded in keeping me engaged through the entirety of each 10 minute show, an impressive feat for a web show.

The show is written and directed by its two stars and funded by CBS. So far 6 of the 10 episodes have been released, with new episodes coming out each Wednesday. Clark and Michael is surely a sign of things to come, so pay close attention.

Check it out starting with episode 1.Enjoy!

– chris

(via trendmaster Vinit)