A Guide to ANZ Immortal Creativity
Australia and New Zealand are often known for their dry sense of humour within the advertising world. The ability not to take oneself too seriously (even when the topic itself is serious), is what makes ANZ creativity sought after around the globe.
As the deadline approaches for this year’s Immortal Awards, we’re taking a second to explore the ‘immortal creativity’ from ANZ to the Netherlands and everywhere in between. Celebrating each other and removing the oceans that separate us in order to explore creativity at its finest.
Hearing from LBB’s Casey Martin and few notable locals, we’ve put together a list of just some of ANZ’s most iconic ads. Let us know what we missed!
Rhonda & Ketut - AAMI Insurance - Ogilvy
Nothing beats a summer romance. AAMI Insurance and Ogilvy went big with the romance between icons, Rhonda & Ketut. What was meant to be a once off spot turned into all Australians waiting on the edge of their seats for the next instalment. Across the country, couples were comparing themselves to Rhonda and Ketut, speaking their lines like it was a Shakespeare sonnet.
Taking the risk to move away from the classic insurance genre of falling trees, flat tires and accidents waiting to happen, these spots were like a breath of fresh air within the genre. The impact of this campaign was brought back during tough times for all in COVID-19, with the couple showing off their new baby and encouraging audiences to get the vaccine.
When a spot is loved so much that it not only impacts culture but also can provide a sense of comfort during a very trying moment in history, it’s no wonder that it continues to inspire Australian creativity.
Carlton Draught - 'Big Ad' - George Patterson/Y&R
Carlton Draught’s ‘Big Ad’ has to be one of the top Australian ads where the theme is to ‘take the piss.’ A lesson in not taking oneself too seriously, Michael Ritchie, owner of Revolver described the impact of the campaign brilliantly.
“Obvious Choice?…yeah perhaps...In 2005, I saw this. I am cynical, critical and competitive but I saw this all those years ago. I laughed and loved it and wished we had done it.
It was a parody on the scale phenomenon that was prevalent at the time, and really was also a pastiche on the evergreen British Airways ad from 1989 from Saatchi London and shot by Hugh Hudson.”
“Big Ad, penned by Grant Rutherford and Ant Keogh, under James McGrath was back in the world where there were a few major beer brands, and they were fighting hard for significant market share - would not happen now with the incredible proliferation of micro breweries and market fragmentation. Such a simple, funny and immensely pleasing film shot brilliantly by Paul Middleditch, I think, along with Toohey Extra Dry “Tongue," it started the beer wars and that delivered awesome film based advertising. The sign off, Made from Beer, did cap off a perfectly orchestrated and universally loved Australian Ad,” he said.
“Last Performance” - Partners Life Life Insurance - Special New Zealand
Special NZ took home a Gold, Silver, Bronze AND a Grand Prix for insurance advertising in last year's Cannes Lion awards, as well as a commendation in the 2023 Immortal Awards.
Teaming with the theme of insurance companies thinking outside of the box when it comes to advertising their services. This series of spots aired after the very popular NZ tv show, The Brokenwood Mysteries, each instalment saw the episode's victim come back to life and encourage audiences to take out life insurance. Integrating seamlessly into the credits of the tv show, the campaign racked up a huge following online for ‘tricking them’ into watching an advert.
Special NZ’s ECD Lisa Fedyszyn, commented on an LBB article, “It was so clear to us that a dead person should be the spokesperson for life insurance. They really are the perfect people to talk about hindsight, and we actually couldn’t believe it hadn’t been done before. The answer had been under everyone’s noses all along: to use people in TV shows to advertise life insurance.”
While Rory Gallery, Special NZ’s CSO noted its effectiveness, “The campaign smashed all of its objectives. Brand awareness increased 29% - attaining the highest awareness score for Partners Life in the last three years. Consideration saw an uplift of 5%.More New Zealanders now see the value in the importance of having life insurance (12% uplift),”
Dumb Ways to Die - Metro Trains Melbourne - McCann Australia
Apologies in advance to the readers who will have this song stuck in their head after this article. This 28 Lions ( including five Grands Prix) winning PSA for Metro Trains Melbourne took the world by storm when it was released.
The funky animation, the catchy song, the absurdity of its nature is what makes this campaign so appealing to those who watch it. It made adults and children alike laugh and sing at the demise of the characters. It caught audiences off guard before reminding them of the importance of being safe around trains.
Since its release, the brand ‘Dumb Ways to Die’ has released more renditions of the song, mobile games and recently used in a TikTok trend. Its presence was known around the globe and continues to be referenced to this day.
‘Flipvertising’ - Samsung - CHEP Network
Another Grand Prix winner and Immortal Awards commendation, Flipvertising was revolutionary in the way the algorithm was used within advertising. Instead of using social algorithms to target particular audiences, this campaign encouraged audiences to change their algorithm to target them.
With the preface of giving away free Samsung products using hidden messages in videos that could only be found if the user searched for the correct terms, the spirit of competition saw Samsung’s revenue and customer engagement skyrocket.
In an LBB article, CHEP’s senior art director Will Winter-Irving, “The mechanics behind Flipvertising had never been done before, and we only had 8 weeks from landing the idea to be live in the market, so we needed a tight group of collaborators to work together and make it a reality. We couldn’t have pulled it off without our CHEP teams partnering together across Media, Technology, Data, Creative, Experience and Social, along with production partner The Sweetshop, who made the hilarious films, Google’s local and global teams who helped us crack their own algorithm, the notable influencers who helped us cut through, plus of course Samsung Marketing, Online and Legal teams. All of these were amazing to work with through the twists and turns that led us to the final campaign we took to market.”
Happy Little Vegemite - VEGEMITE - J. Walter Thompson
Nothing is more iconically Australian than VEGEMITE, it is only right to honour the spot that started it all, ‘We’re Happy Little Vegemites.’ A song known to all Australians, it is sung in primary schools across the country, with the phrase ‘it’s put a rose in every cheek’ among the first things learnt to say.
During VEGEMITE’s 100 year anniversary, Thinkerbell released an updated version of the song, featuring Trish Cavanagh who was just seven years old when she first started in original rendition.
Adam Ferrier, Thinkerbell CEO commented on the appointment and VEGEMITE’s incredible legacy and said, “When we won the pitch we went and spoke to a food scientist at Melbourne University and asked him how countries form the iconic foods that they are famous for. In short it's got a lot to do with the ingredients and resources available in that country, peoples lifestyle, and the general culture of the place. In short the taste of VEGEMITE is a cultural construction, and yes it's very fitting that it's born out of yeast extract leftover from brewing beer. So we wanted to communicate that Australian's created the taste of VEGEMITE, and VEGEMITE Tastes Like Australia. That's our guiding north star.’
‘Not Happy Jan’ - Yellow Pages - Clemenger BBDO
If an Aussie replies to you with ‘not happy Jan’, you know you’re in trouble. A cultural reset as Gen Z would say, ‘Not Happy Jan’ became iconically Australia within a matter of moments. The spot itself isn’t long at only 30 seconds but the impact was massive.
Depicting an angry boss, who ironically couldn’t see their companies ad in the Yellow Pages and a runaway employee, the campaign encouraged business owners to act quickly, if they wanted to be represented in the since forgotten Yellow Pages directory.
While Google has now become the place to find a business, the Yellow Pages was a staple for local businesses to find customers. The legacy of the spot continues to bring a sense of community to all Australians.
‘World Famous In NZ’ - L&P - Saatchi and Saatchi
An ad depicting the highlights of Kiwi culture from burger bars to public swimming pools, the iconic ‘World Famous in NZ” campaign for L&P understood what it meant to be a New Zealander.
It’s got that classic dry sense of humour that is known across the world. Cementing the understanding that while it might not be famous everywhere, it sure is famous in New Zealand, the spot pokes fun at itself and lets the audience know that it doesn't have to be ‘world famous’ for it to be great.
The giant L&P bottle is still standing after all of these years and has become an attraction for tourists familiar with the brands legacy and the phrase ‘world famous in NZ’ is commonly used by Kiwi’s across the country.
PAK'nSAVE - Stickman - FCB New Zealand
PAK’nSAVE, Stickman was first aired during the great financial crisis of 2008 as a response to the hardships faced by many people at the time. Over the course of 15 years, the PAK'nSAVE Stickman has reappeared on New Zealanders tv screens to remind them that they will always be mindful of price.
To showcase the promise of low-costs, the advertising couldn’t be flashy and over the top. This campaign remains true to its ideals and brand message. The Stickman is an easily recognisable character for all Kiwi’s, much like Rhonda and Ketut, he brings a sense of comfort into homes when he pops up on screen.
It’s art direction and copywriting at its finest and most simple and serves as a reminder that often the most simple campaigns can stand the test of time.
Matilda Bay Brewery - Rejected Ales - Howatson+Company
Winning a commendation in 2022, Howatson+Company took a story of rejection and made it into a success. Matilda Bay brewers created 27 different batches of beer before stumbling across the perfect batch.
In order to promote this ‘perfect brew,’ they released the almost perfect rejects under the premise, ‘ Rejected Ales, the best beers you were never meant to taste.’
An ode to the journey of perfection, this activation caused quite the stir within the beer industry and increased sales of not only the new product but the rejects as well. Using fun names such as ‘yeah… nah,” ‘Keep dreaming’ and ‘ballpark’, the rejects housed a sense of degrading charm that Australians are known for.
Go Gentle Australia - Stop The Horror - Revolver
Go Gentle Australia released a 6-minute horror film that was only ever watched for an average of 3 minutes before being turned off by the public… while others may see this as a failure, it was exactly what Go Gentle Australia intended.
The film, created by Revolver, was awarded an Immortals commendation in 2018 and depicts the true story of a terminally ill patient, Greg Sims. Directed by Justin Kurzel, this ‘horror’ movie aimed to capture the unrelievedable pain and suffering that Greg Sims endured during his final moments in life.
The film was described as distressing by audiences and included a ‘stop the horror’ button that redicted viewers to the Go Gentle Australia site. Once on the site, audience members were encouraged to educate themselves on what voluntary assisted dying entailed and to perhaps re-think the stigma that surrounds it.
The site detailed all of this information and made it clear that Greg Sims didn’t have a choice in his final moments and encouraged viewers to get in contact with local politicians so they could express their support for a Voluntary Assisted Dying Law, if they chose to do so.
NZ Transport Agency - Belted Survivors - Clemenger BBDO Wellington
To promote the idea that nothing was more ‘metal’ than wearing your seatbelt, Clemenger BBDO Wellington and the NZ Transport Agency encouraged crash survivors to show off their scars and bruising caused by the seat belt that ultimately saved their lives.
Using the understanding that the demographic who weren’t wearing seat belts, were also a demographic that were sceptical about the government, Clemenger BBDO Wellington and NZ Transport Agency knew that they would listen to their peers.
Surviving anything makes for a good story, no matter what it is. With each survivor placed on billboards, social media and TVC, it was impossible to escape the scars that saved their life. It encouraged more people to come forward with their stories and ultimately made diving on NZ streets safer for all.
Pedigree - SelfieStix - Colenso BBDO
An idea that took the world by storm was produced by Colenso BBDO and Pedigree. A selfie stick designed to house a dog treat so pet owners could snag the very best selfies with their beloved dog.
Designed to fit any phone, it was a fun idea that saw the increase of Pedigree DentaStix sales by 24%. Sometimes the all the world needs is cute dog photos and the ability to capture memories with ease and thats exactly what Pedigree and Colenso BBDO aimed to achieve.
"Mum Knows" - Channel 9 Perth
Part of a series of PSA style ad’s produced for Channel 9 Perth, this ad see’s a sketchy animation detail all the good things for our bodies. Titles ‘Mum knows’, its stylistic animation coupled with a gruff song worked wonders for spreading helpful information to families across the country.
Paul Meetes, ECD of CHEP commented on the immortality of the ad saying, “Back in the ‘80s and ‘90s, Channel 9 Perth seemed to be putting out a series of certified bangers in the form of public service announcements. These were the days when jingles were the unquestionable go-to for this kind of work, and it seems that Channel 9 had gotten very good at them. Chalk it up to practise. To me, the "Mum Knows" jingle is so good, its only true rival is the Pinball Number Count on Sesame Street. And even now, some 30 or 40 years later, I suspect most people who grew up in Perth during that time will be able to recite this ad to you word for word (including the bit at the end when the singer starts scattering and blows a raspberry into the microphone).”
Pedigree- The Child Replacement Programme - Colenso BBDO
Another immortal idea that came out of the Colenso BBDO office for Pedigree was ‘The Child Replacement Programme.” Teaming with Pedigree’s promise to look after all dogs, including those who unfortunately end up in shelters, this campaign encouraged empty nesters to go out and find companionship in a rescue dog.
Using a series of videos, the campaign targeted parents of adult children, adding DIY projects, including turning a child’s duvet into a dog bed and turning a jacket into a dogs jacket and showcasing the joys that can be found in having a pet, especially during the golden years.
The campaign matched rescue dogs with owners through a quiz and saw a huge increase in adoptions.
New Zealand Transport Agency - ‘Blazed’ - Curious Films
Another PSA to come out of New Zealand was ‘Blazed’ and was an anti-drug driving campaign directed by the now famous Taika Waititi. Using stoner humour, Clemenger BBDO and Curious Films’ highlighted the problem without lecturing audiences.
The perfect performances of children imitating their stoned parents when they are driving really drove home the message that our actions don’t always only affect us. It was cheeky without being degrading to drug-users and served as a gentle reminder rather than a harrowing PSA.
The engagement on social media at the time of it’s release saw a positive response from all Kiwi’s and continues to be talked about today.
Transport Accident Commission Victoria - 'Meet Graham' - Clemenger BBDO Melbourne
Last but certainly not least on this list is ‘Meet Graham’, a PSA designed to shock Australian’s and the rest of the world to the dangers of driving on the road. Clemenger BBDO and Transport Accident Commission Victoria designed Graham, the only person who could survive a car crash.
His huge body and lets face it, his disgustingly alien nature had everyone talking about road safety. His presence shocked audiences to their core and made its way around the world. Graham was talked about in news segments from Australia to the UK and everywhere in between.
Graham won a Cannes Cyber Lion Grand Prix in 2017 and this was a well-deserved win, to this day Graham is circulated around the internet and brought back to life to showcase the importance of being safe on our roads.
