Ciroc Smooth

This has got to be some of the finest acting I've ever seen from Diddy. Co-starring funny guy, Aziz Ansari and produced by THE BLUE FLAME AGENCY (that Sean Combs himself co-founded), this is just one of several videos that add up to a very "smooth" campaign. It is special, however, in the way that it is what BLUE FLAME considers a "3 minute-long short film" and it can only be seen online. You can catch the other commercials (33 seconds or less) during Top Chef on Bravo or here. I'm particularly fond of the smooth shoe game advice given in "Smile/Toes" but it still doesn't get the laughs like this one!

Call Of Duty: Black Ops Commercial

Now, you may have played the game but have you seen the commercial??? For someone like me (not so much of a gamer unless you're talking about Just Dance for the Wii ...), its hard to tell which one's cooler. Ok, not really because leading advertising agency, TBWA/Chiat/Day nailed yet another campaign. You may recall some of their work from the original brightly colored, industry changing series of iPod commercials, or their work for the Grammy's. 

This time, they've taken on the task of delivery a commercial worthy of the highly anticipated Call of Duty: Black Ops. They delivered with the tag line "There's a soldier in all of us," and by humorously depicting sensible looking women, doctors, a basketball player (Kobe Bryant), a late night talk show host (Jimmy Kimmel) and one bad @$$ line cook letting off rounds at each other. For 60 seconds, these people are descending from roof tops, pitching grenades and taking out helicopters. Even better, they walk away in slow motion while things blow up behind them ... without turning around. Again, I repeat, bad @$$. 

Now, some would say that with its cult-like following already buzzing, advertising was unnecessary. I'm glad no one listened to them because I would have missed out on a seriously good laugh. Although, not everyone is taking it as lightheartedly as I am. Some (including gamers) say that the spot glorifies war and further proves the point of video games being too violent. I personally found the commercial to be successful in winning over people outside the game's primary target audience.  It's use of humor, celebrity and cinematography all help make Call of Duty appear more relatable to someone like me. Now, it's not quite good enough to make me want to buy a copy for myself BUT it is good enough to make me snoop around to see if a certain someone might need a copy for Christmas. Can you start to see how Call of Duty's already incredible numbers with "sales over 9 million across all platforms" (vgchartz.com), will continue to surge through the holiday season? So, for that reason, I say job well done but, to each his own. What do you say?      

OOPS on GMA!

Hey, I know it happened a while ago but did I ever mention that I was on tv representing team OOPS? No? Ok, I won't mention it then ...



OOPS.

Favorite Distractions - Installment #2: Foamy the Squirrel

I first found Jonathan Ian Mathers' "Foamy" and all his squirrelly wrath back in 2004 while I was attending the Art Institute of New York. I was a college student so it didn't take me long to see that Foamy was truly wise beyond his years and his species. So, when my English professor thought it would be a good idea to have the entire class stand up and creatively present the essays they wrote about procrastination, I decided that the very first Foamy cartoon that I had ever seen would make a nice prelude. That cartoon was ... "5 More Minutes." It was pure GENIUS! The video got everyone engaged, laughing and in turn, helped me to relax. I could have said practically anything at that point because I was obviously cool and funny if I was watching these kinds of videos. Needless to say, I killed it.

Now, quite some time has passed since that class and where I am today. Granted, I would check in on Foamy and his human, Germaine from time to time but eventually, fell off until more recently. Things have indeed changed. Still, I kept in touch just enough to see the transitions happening and was all too delighted to find a summary of all I had seen (and missed) over the years. For those of you into dark, cynical, yet funny animations, please proceed to illwillpress.com to check out Jonathan Ian Mathers' creations. Please be warned ... it is not for children. Actually, if you don't know what Foamy's all about, first have a look at what you're in store for:

[chuckle] ... oooh Foamy, love that voice, it's one of my favorite distractions!

Favorite Distractions - Installment #1: Simon's Cat

These days, I find it very hard to get any work done because I do practically all of my work on the computer and I'm always online. So as I "work" I know that hiding behind my photoshop window is my browser set up with at least 5 tabs for gmail, OOPSmail, facebook (of course), youtube and 1bigoops.com (I leave it open and refresh it every so often just to make sure it's still there).

Recently, I was forwarded a link to a fantastic animated series called, "Simon's Cat." Can I tell you that after the first video, I was sucked in for a good 20 minutes just watching this animated feline discovering the world as only a cat can. Everything it does is steeped in reality, highlighting the smallest, silliest moments that truly do happen (to cats and their humans) in a no frills kind of way.

I guess it should come as no surprise seeing how the creator, Simon Tofield, has 4 cats. If that doesn't say cat lover, get this; the animations are all hand drawn from frame to frame. In keeping with standard fps (frames per second) settings, that can land Tofield with anywhere from 12 to 25 drawings for a single second of video. Now that's love and dedication right there. Relatable, cute and clever, "Simon's Cat" is one of my favorite distractions.

This was the first video I ever saw from the series. Check out the "Simon's Cat" YouTube channel here.

Toyota's Swagger Wagon

Three things that most people just don't consider "cool" - (1) minivans, (2) still using the word "swagger" and, (3) gumby fades. Leave it to the people at Saatchi & Saatchi LA to revitalize 2 out of the 3 (those of you still rockin' the gumby fade ... STOP it) long enough to give us all a good laugh and the new 2011 Toyota Sienna a sensational internet marketing campaign. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you (better late than never), the phenomena that is the "Swagger Wagon."



Yes, yes, I know. You're welcome.

You have to admit that beat was pretty official. The lyrics and visuals are too funny and "Pops" is the truth! Catch more of their videos, including "Daddy Like: Swagger Wagon Supreme" on YouTube.

P.S. Double check the floor mats just to be safe. What?

I'm baaaaaaaaack

Let's see how long it lasts this time ...