Vince Squibb's Ladybug's Picnic

I was looking through the Gorgeous site for some inspiration today and found this little gem for Heinz. It's old but I love it. I know the quality it bad in this version, you can view it the way it was meant to be on the Gorgeous site.



...and just for kick's here's the Sesame Street inspiration.

Lisa Mitchell "I'll See You When You Get Here"

In researching Lisa Mitchell, who provided the tunes for Hutchinson 3, I found this video of hers (among other important info like she was a contestant on Australian Idol and is only 17...)

It's an eerie fairy tail, like Little Red Riding Hood with a death wish, but I couldn't keep my eyes off of it. I love the color palette and the art direction, it creates such an innocent stage play atmosphere or dream world with beautiful childish representations of blood and death.

Hutchinson 3 Sets Mobile Users Free to Roam Around

"Have No Fear" is another playful carefree spot topped off with a sweet memorable soundtrack. It reminds me a little of the recent Extra commercials, minus all the lovey-dovey stuff...

Mobile 3 users tear up the city in giant inflatable human hamster balls, rolling over cars and even walking on water - looks like fun to me.


The spot was directed by Matt Murphy of GoodOil Films, Australia. The song is "Neopolitian Dreams" by Lisa Mitchell.

Brand New School Recycles Old Technology for HP

I think what I like most about this spot, (aside from the proud shiny tric that emerges from the garage excited to take on a sunny new day,) is the foundadtion it supports, E-Donor.

In an age where technology is changing and improving daily ( yeah, I bought the iPod mini - who knew they were gonna go smaller?) and at the same time we are more and more conscious about how our by-products affect the planet, recycling our electronics should become normal practice, shouldn't it?

I feel like not too long ago I couldn't give and old printer away-Goodwill wouldn't take it, recycling wouldn't take it-so I ended up with a museum dedicated to the evolution of the computer printer in my basement...time to clean that out!



The spot directed by Brand New School, via Goodby, Silverstein and Partners is called "Evolve." The song is "Regret"by Wye Oak.

Missing Pieces Wins the Now Film Festival

I'm proud to announce that a film I posted a little while back, Missing Pieces by Samah Tokmachi, not only made it to the final round of MySpace's Now Film Festival, but it won the whole thing! Woohoo!

If you are in the area you can catch Missing Pieces being screened at the LA Shorts Fest and the Palm Springs Short Film Festival.

You can check out Missing Pieces here.

Chromeo "Momma's Boy"

The newest from Chromeo "Momma's Boy." The mix of rotoscope and animation almost reminds me of A-Ha's "Take On Me."

The video was directed by artist Stephane Manel

Devendra Banhart and Natalie Portman Summon Baliwood for Carmencita

The color, melodrama, and special effects of this video are so over the top and kitsch I absolutely love it. I also really love the jump cuts-even the subtitles themselves are extremely entertaining.

The directing team, Skinny is responsible creating this bit of gilded goodness.

"Shuang City" the Lastest 2008 Olympic Commercial from Coca Cola

PSYSOP and Stink turn "Shuang City" into a star studded Olympic wonderland with Coca- Cola. Massive Music composed the original music for the spot.




You can also watch a behind the scenes video here.

Oldie But Goodie, Pharcyde "Drop" Video

I saw the Rock the Bells Tour this weekend, featuring A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Nas Mos Def, Redman, The Pharcyde and more.

During The Pharcyde show they played the "Drop" video - I forgot how great it was, directed of course by Spike Jonze

Presidential Election Ad Campaigns

Since news of Barack Obama's big Olympic ad buy has just surfaced I thought that sometime soon I would want to showcase commercials from both sides of the 2008 Presidential Election.

To prepare I thought a nice Friday review of campaigns past would be nice (ok, I've been watching a lot of Mad Men too and had to dig up the Kennedy/Nixon spots.) Enjoy, if you have any other classics please share!

1992 Bill Clinton "Read My Lips"


1984 Regan "Morning in america"


1984 Mondale 'Rollercoaster"


1972 "Nixon Now" He caught onto the song idea...


1972 McGovern "Newspaper"


1964 Lyndon Johnson "Daisy"


1964 Barry Goldwater "In Your Heart-You Know He's Right"


1960 Kennedy "Song" Commercial


1960 Nixon "Russia" commercial


1952 Isenhower "Ike for President"


1952 Aldia Stevenson " Music Man"

Gorillaz Team up with the BBC for the 2008 Olympics

In what I found to be a pretty interesting collaboration the Gorillaz (Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett) have become BBC spokesmen for the Olympics. I think the Olympic Games just became a whole lot cooler.

The first animated video, "Journey to the East" plays off of a traditional Chinese tale, "Journey to the West." You can check it out by clicking the image...
Animation was done by Zombie Flesh Eaters and of course the music was produced and composed by Damon Albarn.

Jonas Odell: Better When Your Naked

For this new video from FilmTecknarna's Jonas Odell, Ida Maria gets a punk rock wash reminiscent of Nevermind the Bullocks. The almost florescent colors and black and white clip art contrast are so Sex Pistols and Velvet Underground, there is even an appearance by the banana.



I'm a huge fan of Jonas Odell, one of my favorite pieces is his short film, "Never Like the First Time." An animated documentary recounting stories of - the first time.You can watch it on the FilmTecknarna website.

The Instant: An Exhibition in Polaroid

The Instant is an exhibition to be held July 26th in Long Island City NY and will feature artists that focus on the medium of Polaroid in their work.

Looks like a great show to attend...In looking through the artists work on the site I had a thought. Why do we feel the need to take pictures of vintage or run down things with Polaroid? It seems more often than not we match the retro medium with the subject matter, kinda interesting...

Anyway, two of the artists being featured really jumped out at me, Grant Hamilton who gets in real close and focuses on color and clean lines that tap into your visual memory and lead you to make connections with everyday items or icons, and Jordan Greehalgh who uses the medium to produce on of my favorite things, a stop motion film.

Dell Portaits in Color

I guess I must be part of this ads target demographic because it caught my attention - Vespa, records, and a sweet little song by Kira Willey, called "Colors"



The spot is via Mother and Park Pictures.

Gary Panter Chats with VBS.tv about Art, Comics, and Pee- Wee's Playhouse

VBS.tv is featuring a series with Artist/Illustrator/Designer Gary Panter as their newest ART TALK! program.

Only the first 2 segments are now showing but you should check them out. As always it is a very personal and informative interview, at the artists home.

Part 2 includes an inside look at the fly by the seat of your pants set design for Pee-Wee's Playhouse...

Extra Gets all Warm and Fuzzy

These spots put a huge smile on my face today, don't they just make you want to find someone to snuggle?

I also love the music, by Joey Ryan, who's sound was also featured in the Los Angeles Tap Project. Take a peek - I'm gonna go do somersaults.

R.E.M. Man Sized Wreath

The newest video from REM's Accelerate album, "Man Sized Wreath," by Toronto design firm Crush, is animated social commentary magnifying our 21st century vices, with images of burning oil fields and obnoxious billboards invading the airspace.

The Dark Knight

OK, who isn't excited? I am, and admittedly even a little frightened.

Most Post-It Animation: Yellow Sticky Notes by Jeff Chiba Stearns

This biographical animation is equal parts heartfelt and entertaining...not to mention inspiring.

You can see more from Stearns here.

HP Enlists Director Bucky Fukumoto to Discuss 3M's Green Initiatives

What I love most about these spots are the animation and art direction. Animation using everyday objects is one of my favorite things and the bright colored post-it's give it such a fun carefree pop.

The director is Bucky Fukumoto of The Directors Bureau, the animation was done by Brian Covalt, and the production design was tackled by Eric Archer.

Mats Gustafson for Carolina Herrera

Picking back up on the fashion imagery for the Fall 2008 season, I came across these illustrations for Carolina Herrera on Le Book. The slight, elegance of the images are a perfect match for the simple sophistication of the Carolina Herrera brand.

The watercolor works of illustrator Mats Gustafson have been attached to such brands as Tiffany's, Hermes, and Vogue. it's worth taking a moment to flip through his portfolio, here.

Amnest International and Reporters Without Borders Create their own Olympic Campaigns

I couldn't talk about the ads for the 2008 Beijing Olympics without posting some of the human rights centered ads that highlight the injustices that continue to exist in China. I think the handcuffs and the barbed wire motif are both really strong graphic re representations of the iconic logo.

The Amnesty International ads come from MUW Saatchi& Saatchi
The Reporters Without Borders ad was from Alice/Paris.

Freddy Beijing Olympics

This Olympic campaign is from an Italian apparel brand Freddy. There are both print and video ads promoting the athletic wear, a mix between live action and animation, and full of imagination.

Beijing Olympic Commercials

I grew up as a competitive swimmer, so once every four years I remember what it was like to be an athlete - I love watching the Olympics. As we approach the games more and more ads are rolling out from official sponsors, and while some are pretty standard- stock footage montages, some are pretty good, and I'm sure many of the best are yet to come.

The most recent batch is from Coca-Cola, they released a spot featuring Yao Ming and Lebron James, a few days ago "Unity."


"Birds Nest Stadium" is set to roll out in the next few weeks, both spots come from Wieden & Kennedy, "Unity" out of Portland, "Bird's Nest Stadium" via Amsterdam.


This next spot was one of the first I remember seeing in support of the Beijing Games, I think the animation and full concept are pretty amazing, there are number of spots in the campaign. The animation and VFX were completed by Psyop and the creative is from TBWA/China.

Adidas "Together"

This next print ad comes from GE as a part of their Green Inititive, showcasing the Olympic Stadium constructed out of windmills.

I already told you I was a swimmer so I couldn't resist getting at least one Michael Phelps spot up here. It's simple but really well done I think, I love the idea of sharks lurking in the water - It's an analogy I remember hearing once or twice in my own small swimmers world. "Power to Push" is out of Publicis/Dallas.

Power Bar "Power to Push"


This final animated spot, "Higher," is in support of the French Olympic Team, I think it's really sweet and dreamy and different from a lot of the Olympic ads, or any competitive advertising at all. It was directed by Joris Clerte, via Mister Hyde.



I'll be sure to ad more spots to this collection as they roll out...

The Look of Current/Elliot Fall 2008

Though it seems like summer just started it's about the time fashion designers start unveiling and promoting their new lines. One new line caught my eye not only for the new jeans I want in my closet but because of the photography and general aesthetic of the spread.

The Current/Elliot line focuses on well worn denim in flattering 70's cuts. The color palette, film stock and lighting all evoke a well worn, comfortable life that works in chorus with the line. I love the screen doors, lawn chairs, and wash lines, these details remind me of growing up in the early eighties - precisely the time when the 70's trends would be worn so perfectly by my young parents.
The photographer is Hilary Walsh.

New Music Obsession: Daniel Ahearn and Ill Lit

Maybe I'm missing LA but damn this sounds good. The videos rock too...


"Down for the Count" video by Dion Labriola and Jerry Pyle




"Los Angeles" by Ill Lit, video by Dion Labriola, June Park, and Jerry Pyle

Reverse Graffiti finds a Brand: Clorox

Reverse Graffiti artist Moose aka Paul Curtis teams up with Clorox Green Works.

The idea of reverse graffiti isn't a new concept, but it is finally hitting the mainstream. Moose talks about how he stumbled into this relief art form, our dirty world, and how it feels to be part of a Green campaign.



Aside from the branded content, the reversegraffiti youtube page features some other worth watching making of videos. My favorite though is not part of The Reverse Graffiti project. It's this creation and destruction video that poses the question:

"Once you do this, you make people confront whether or not they like people cleaning walls or if they really have a problem with personal expression." -Paul "Moose" Curtis

Western Spaghetti From PES

Speaking of Stop Motion Animation, the genius that is PES has recently completed a new short film, "Western Spaghetti."

Chock full or retro trinkets and everyday items "Western Spaghetti" had me wide eyed and smiling for almost 2 minutes straight. So good, I love the butter. Thanks to Motionographer to spreading the word!

Finalists Announced for Radiohead's Animated Music Video Contest

A little while back I mentioned the animated music video contest that Radiohead was having with aniBoom.

The final five videos have now been selected. What do you think? I think my vote is for Transmutation, bytstretch1976. I'm such a sucker for stop motion, I can't wait to see the finished product.


I think 16tracks vs videotape is an amazing visual treatment, so unique and so fitting for the song, it also stands out for me.

The other finalists are Reckoner, Reckoner V2, and 15 step. Check them out, they are all really amazing projects.

Pin Ups and Pot Leaves for Weeds

Showtime has released new ads for Weeds, the series that once used scratch n' sniff marijuana print advertising has embraced pin up girls in pot garden's for the newest season of the show.





















The photographer is Michael Elins.

Rubik's Cube x Two

I found two sets of Rubik's Cube Ads today, and both caught my eye. The first are ads for Sao Luiz Hospital that use the Rubik's Cube aesthetic to illustrate the mystery a baby can be to new parents, via Neogama/BBH Brazil











The others are actual ads for the classic puzzle via DDB New Zealand, celebrating the 25th anniversary by illustrating those who have been trying to crack the game since it's release...

Operation Freedom - Happy 4th of July from American Apparel

Nothing says holiday weekend like babes in gold swimsuits with supersoakers...thanks American Apparel...

Fireworks from Schoolhouse Rock

They made learning so much fun...



Schoolhouse Rock was the genius of ad man, David McCall of agency McAffrey & McCall. The music came from jazz musician Bob Dorough, and the animation duties were performed mostly by the animation studio Phil Kimmelman & Associates.

Fourth of July - Galaxie 500

I feel like playing a bit in honor of the holiday weekend and posting all things Fourth of July. The first is a music video from the long since defunct Boston band Galaxie 500.

Shark Sighting on The Charles

No, they aren't shooting the next installment of Jaws, the shark attack mania comes from the Mullen Agency for the Sharks and Rays Exhibit at the New England Aquarium which opened yesterday.

The campaign features shark fins and teeth on iconic Boston landmarks, and fins on the roof of taxis to be seen as they navigate through city traffic.









There is one poster that shows a man struggling to levitate only feet above a fin, and also a viral that taps into the universal fears we all have for the signifier of the beast. Smart I think, and affective. The exhibit itself hopes to alleviate some of these exact fears.

Virgin Atlantic Revitalises the Safety Video

On my recent trip I had the pleasure of flying Virgin Atlantic, gotta say one of my favorite airlines. One thing that I couldn't help but notice is that they had their own branded animated promo tags before all of the programing and this animated safety video. Much more entertaining than watching the steward in the purple tie show you how to buckle your seatbelt.




If anyone knows any of the production credits please share!