Work of the Week: 17/11/23
This week's best work offers both a sporty selection and a few festive favourites - and comes with a reminder to keep heart at the core of creative.
As the holiday campaigns keep rolling out, November continues to provide a range of engaging creative - seasonal or otherwise. Both IKEA Canada and Australian telecommunications company Telstra released their own Christmas creative this week - the former being a relatable tale of finding some much needed respite during the sociable holiday season, and the latter, a story of a girl helping a lost reindeer find its way home. It will warm the cockles of your cold, wintry heart!
ALDI Australia's Christmas cracker of a spot will also have you (dirty) dancing on the tables - just watch out for the turkey and trimmings. Soundtracked by a tongue in cheek rendition of '(I've Had) The Time of My Life', the film tells people to appreciate the little things this winter, shrinking down some people to carve the roast beast with chainsaws, climb mountainous Christmas puddings and... become slightly disconcerting potato-human hybrid men? It's a sensational stocking stuffer to get you in the Christmas spirit.
Honouring a very different occasion, however, sports retailer JD Sports is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its iconic duffel bag. Reliably used as a school bag, an accessory and more by people across the UK, the yellow bag has become engrained in British streetwear and culture. Uncommon's campaign makes the bag the star of the show in a series of dynamic, stylish vignettes starring some recognisable cameos.
Also in this week's selection; Apple puts on a musical for its love letter to showbiz, Merman serves up an ace of love story for Tennis apparel brand SellaV, and Broken Heart Love Affair reminds the industry to bring heart back to advertising.
See all of the work below.
JD Sports - Bag for Life
The JD Sports duffel bag has become an icon of the British streetwear culture and this year, its celebrating its 25th anniversary. To mark the occasion, Uncommon and Iconoclast director Amara Abbas created a campaign that stars the bag and a few familiar faces - Kano, Central Cee, Joy Crookes and Nia Archives - in a series of dynamic, city-life sequences that herald 'The Bag for Life'.
ALDI Australia - Go Big on The Little Things
Celebrating all the little things this Christmas, ALDI Australia and agency BMF honed in on the insight that 7 in 10 Aussies (73%) look forward to the sides just as much, if not more, than the main protein of a traditional Christmas dinner. Set to the 'Dirty Dancing' track '(I've Had) The Time of My Life', the comedic and energetic film shrinks people down to traverse tabletops of food and features other brilliantly bizarre scenarios.
Apple - On with the Show
With the Hollywood strikes finally coming to an end, Biscuit Filmworks' Steve Rogers directs an ensemble cast of showbiz crew members in a musical film that embraces the magical chaos of filmmaking. The film puts Apple's iPhone 15 pro, however, firmly in the spotlight to showcase its ability to deliver professional-level filmmaking, whatever the genre.
sellaV - The Tennis Date
To launch the new SellaV brand of tennis apparel, Merman director Eva Michon shot this flirtatious film that gives a new meaning to 'singles' matches. Introducing the new line of high-end tennis skirts, created by designer and artist Kaylie Schiff, the frisky film follows a tennis player's search for love through tennis matches.
IKEA Canada - Take a Holiday from Your Holidays
Many people can relate to this campaign - the dreaded time of the holiday season when your social meter is at an all-time low. You can drink no more mulled wine, chat to no more distant relatives, and hear no more stories around the fireplace. Sometimes, you just need five minutes alone, locked in your bedroom to recharge. Created by Rethink and Steam Films director Rachel Morrison, this spot for IKEA Canada focuses on that precise feeling, celebrating the joyful moments of reprieve found among the noise of the festive season.
Telstra - Hello Christmas
Created by The Monkeys Melbourne and directed by Exit Films' Glendyn Ivin, Telstra's Christmas campaign is a heart-warming tale of a little girl helping a reindeer return home. It's as sweet as a mince pie and will get you firmly in the Christmas spirit.
Broken Heart Love Affair - Heart
Canadian advertising agency Broken Heart Love Affair has launched 'Heart', a film that calls for the industry to bring the love back to advertising. In the film, the animatronic organ attends a creative pitch, only to cease beating as the idea is revealed to lack any... well, heart. It's a darkly humorous call to arms, directed by Scouts Honor's Fugitives, that makes the agency's ethos clear as day - and encourages others to join them too.
