Work of the Week: 22/07/22

Do you ever suffer from what Heinz have dubbed 'Friestration'? Apparently, this term is defined as the frustration of not being able to get enough sauce on your fry / chip, depending on where you are reading this from. Heinz and Brazilian agency Africa think they have a solution: 'Spoon-Friez', which are, quite literally, fries in the shape of spoons. 

The brand has put its research in here too. According to a global study commissioned by Heinz, 95% of people refuse to eat fries without sauce and 84% of us get annoyed - or friestrated - by not getting enough lubrication on one singular fry. It's a bit silly, but I'm into it. Just don't tell Heinz that I'm a mayo guy. 

There are a lot of bad things happening in the world, which seems to have been the case for a terribly long time. One annoying - and potentially dangerous - knock-on effect of such frequent mental instability is the disruption of sleep. Droga5's latest effort for Mattress Firm, 'Don't Sleep on Sleep' is a reminder that we aren't alone in our quest for a better night's slumber. It introduces somewhat of a sleepless, surreal purgatory - a world in which everyone is deprioritising their sleep. Directed by MJZ's Steve Ayson, the series of films depicts a sinister underbelly of 2022's always-on culture in an engaging, dark but neon-lit world. 

There are a whole bunch of films included in this campaign - check them all out here.  

It hit 40 degrees (104 °F) in London this week; the causes and ramifications of which are a discussion for another time. Ice cream brand Magnum and LOLA MullenLowe Madrid reacted with a series of posters that took just 24 hours from idea to launch. Placed on bus shelters around London, the print ads demonstrate the repercussions of not eating your ice cream quick enough in a much more luscious way than the sticky, messy reality of it dribbling all down your forearm. The posters were crafted by photographer Ed Sanca and illustrator Nicolas Germani. You can see all of them here.

'The Adventure' is a fun, fictional origin story of adidas Football's latest football boots, the 'X SPEEDPORTAL'. In a nod to the 'portal' element of the product's name, Amsterdam agency TBWA\NEBOKO enlisted the help of Rick & Morty - who travel from dimension to dimension in the Adult Swim series of the same name - for its launch. The end result doesn't feel at all forced, which is a testament to the client, agency and the team at Adult Swim, who TBWA and adidas spoke with on a weekly basis during the creative process. 

Racism - along with discrimination and toxic behaviour of other kinds - is a stain on the gaming industry, with little to no consequences for offenders. Melanin Gamers, a community that promotes diversity and inclusion in the video game industry while providing a safe space for all gamers, has partnered with Leo Burnett Toronto to announce the launch of The Watch, a digital community watch designed to eliminate racism in the gaming community. The campaign's accompanying film is a powerful and quite shocking rallying cry that shows real, discriminatory experiences that some gamers have endured. Melanin Gamers also has a checklist for game developers like Activision Blizzard, the creators of Call of Duty, to work towards anti-racism in-game. Check it out here.  

Lebanon is grappling with a crippling energy crisis, which is putting hospitals and essential services under immense pressure. Outdated energy infrastructure and an over-reliance on private operators and fuel imports have impacted the people of Lebanon for the past 47 years, with power cuts a daily reality. In this harrowing spot, NGO LOGI and Publicis Groupe Middle East & Turkey highlight the issues by depicting 47 seconds of a father's helplessness as a power cut shuts off the life support keeping his daughter alive. It was all shot in one take and was directed by Tahaab Rais, who is the chief strategy officer at Publicis Groupe Middle East and Africa.