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GEICO | Crushed | 2017
Wait, how does an ad "shrink"? / GEICO "Crushed"
In the frozen food aisle, the walls slowly close in, squashing both the people and the products. The idea here is to physically "shrink" a pre-roll ad.
Emotion
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315 articles
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FIAT | Love Affair | 2017
You Can't Help But Smile / FIAT "Love Affair"
A woman pauses in front of a puddle. Stepping out of her red 124 Spider, she realizes her high heels are about to get soaked. That's when the man parked next to her, driving a 500X, lays his jacket down over the puddle. Then his shirt. Then his jeans. Until he's down to just his underwear. And then comes that scene — the woman deliberately spills her coffee. His right eyebrow twitches up in a priceless expression.
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湖池屋 | スゴーンなダンス | 2017
That Legend Returns After 29 Years / Koikeya "Sugo-n na Dance"
Do you remember that ballroom dance commercial Masahiko Sato made back in 1988? With its catchy jingle, it was a legendary ad that swept through the era on rhythm and nonsense. Now, 29 years later in 2017, Koikeya launched an upgraded snack called "Sugo-n," and that very commercial came back to life in the 21st century, done up with EDM music and lightning-fast footwork dancing.
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Skittles | Romance | 2017
Known for "the finger thing," steady as ever this year / Skittles "Romance"
This is the 2017 version of Skittles' 30-second Super Bowl spot, from the brand known for "the finger thing." A boy keeps throwing candy at a window—looks like it's shaping up to be a romantic scene, but it's not just his girlfriend who ends up catching them. That reliable punchline strikes again.
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日清食品 | HUNGRY DAYS | 2017
Destiny Begins with a Teaser / Cup Noodle "HUNGRY DAYS Teaser"
This teaser is too cute. Eisaku Kubonouchi's illustrations are too cute. The narration is too cute too.
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UQ mobile | 紀香の誕生日 | 2017
Now That's a Move I Didn't See Coming / UQ mobile "Norika's Birthday"
The moment Norika showed up on screen, I went "huh?"—and then about two seconds later it hit me with a full "whoa!" I'd been watching the UQ Three Sisters series because I love Mikako Tabe, so having Fujiwara Norika suddenly turn up was a real shock. This feels like one of those ideas that must have felt amazing the second someone thought of it.
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Brother | Next time label it | 2017
You can see the punchline coming, but it's still fun to watch / Brother "Next time label it"
This is the over-the-top "what if you didn't have it" style of ad: show what happens without labels. You can tell where the chaos is headed the moment it starts, but it's still a lot of fun to watch.
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Levi's | COLORS & Tight Fit Jeans | 2017
30 Seconds You Can't Stop Watching / Levi's "COLORS & Tight Fit Jeans"
It's only 30 seconds, but somehow you can't look away. Jennifer Love Hewitt dances in Levi's commercial, made exclusively for Japan.
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Old Spice | Odor Blocker Body Wash | 2017
POWERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR / Old Spice "Odor Blocker Body Wash"
It's Premium Friday, so I figure now's a good time to grin at something wonderfully ridiculous.
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GINZA SIX | メインストリート | 2017
Shiina Ringo's "Full Happiness Mode" Takes Over Ginza / GINZA SIX "Main Street"
The "full happiness mode" that Shiina Ringo sometimes shows is exploding along Ginza's Chuo Dori. A dream duet with Tortoise Matsumoto, an orchestra, dancers, balloons, magic. The 90-second film is so full of joy it feels like a musical movie, and by the end you'll want to walk Ginza's main street yourself.
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サントリーBOSS | 働くって、いいもんだ。THE LAST TRAIN | 2017
Will anyone do this for me when I retire? / Suntory BOSS × Tokyo Metro "Working Is a Wonderful Thing. THE LAST TRAIN"
This is the story of a surprise staged for a station manager's retirement, at Akihabara Station after the last train had gone. On a platform where no one should have been at that hour, his coworkers were waiting for him. Just imagining someone close to you reaching their "last shift" is enough to bring tears to your eyes.
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Gap | Boyfriend Trousers | 2017
Steal the pants, put them on, nail the pose. / Gap "Boyfriend Trousers"
I found myself clapping. Claire Danes and Patrick Wilson dance and sing, and at the end, she yanks the trousers off the guy and puts them on herself to strike a pose. And it looks so, so good.
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WOWOW | WOWOWに入りましょう。 | 2017
If You Ask Who'd Actually Be Happy to Watch This, Well, That's Exactly the Point / WOWOW "The Encounter"
"♪Should I join the hmm-hmm-hmm~" Yuya Yagira hums to himself on a train platform, and the lyrics are so mysterious that Kasumi Arimura can't help but call out to him. I've been watching this series for a while, but thinking about it again, this really is a celebrity commercial, isn't it.
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SK-II | Your Statement. Your Bottle. / Change Destiny Limited Edition | 2017
I Ran as Hard as I Could, and the Energy Just Came Pouring Out / SK-II "Your Statement. Your Bottle."
I couldn't tear my eyes away from this commercial of Haruka Ayase sprinting at full speed through a park in a hoodie and leggings. In one shot, it blew away SK-II's image as a brand for wealthy, beauty-obsessed older women.
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KENZO | MY MUTANT BRAIN | 2017
A Perfume Ad Where a Woman Shoots Laser Beams / KENZO "MY MUTANT BRAIN"
In this perfume commercial, a woman shoots laser beams out of her hands. And somehow it won a Titanium Lion at Cannes. Perfume ads finally broke.
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THE BLAZE | TERRITORY | 2017
A Story of Homecoming That Starts With a Man Crying for 30 Seconds Straight / THE BLAZE "TERRITORY"
In the first 30 seconds, a man just keeps crying. He tries to hold back the tears, but they spill over, his family wraps him in a hug, and he can't stop anymore. This five-minute music video, built from just 22 shots, won the Grand Prix in the Film Craft category at Cannes Lions 2017.
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AP PUBLIC COMPANY LIMITED | The Unusual Football Field | 2017
A soccer field doesn't have to be a rectangle / AP Thailand "The Unusual Football Field"
The assumption that soccer fields have to be rectangular gets broken here with an L-shape and a zigzag. In Khlong Toei, a densely packed slum area in Bangkok, a real estate developer built soccer pitches in oddly shaped lots. The moment you see it, you think "oh, this actually works" — that's how strong the idea is.
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CHEETOS | CHEETOS MUSEUM | 2017
120,000 People Peered Inside the Bag / CHEETOS "CHEETOS MUSEUM"
Finding oddly-shaped Cheetos inside the bag, then putting them on display in a museum. This ridiculous idea led to the best sales week in the brand's history.
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BMW RUSSIA | ULTIMATE GIVING PLEASURE | 2017
Spreading the Joy of Driving — Even to Rivals / BMW "ULTIMATE GIVING PLEASURE"
For BMW's 100th anniversary, they built a dedicated free gate. And it wasn't only BMW owners who could pass through it.
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EXPEDIA | Visit Britain | 2017
Just tilt your phone to travel across all of Britain / Expedia "Visit Britain"
Tilt your phone north and you're in Scotland. Tilt it west and you're in Wales. A video experience where the direction you tilt decides your destination.
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NETFLIX | Spanish Lessons | 2017
They just made what the internet was already asking for / NETFLIX "Spanish Lessons"
Scrolling through Twitter, they noticed fans all tweeting the same thing: "Watching Narcos is teaching me Spanish." So they thought — let's actually turn that into a lesson.
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UPSIDE DOWN & INSIDE OUT - S7 AIRLINES | Upside Down & Inside Out | 2017
A 10-Year Dream Fulfilled in 27 Seconds × 8 / S7 AIRLINES "Upside Down & Inside Out"
Shooting a music video in zero gravity — a dream OK Go had been holding onto for ten years finally came true when they crossed paths with S7 Airlines.
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Channel 4 | We're The Superhumans | 2016
Not handicapped — superhuman / Channel 4 "We're The Superhumans"
A mother with no arms holds her baby with her feet. Kids with prosthetic legs play soccer. A woman flies a plane with her feet. For three straight minutes, it just keeps going like this. It won the Film Grand Prix at Cannes Lions 2017, and racked up 23 million views in just four days. It hits just as hard no matter how many times you watch it.
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トヨタ | Loving Eyes | 2016
The Moment the Song Started, I Lost It / Toyota "Loving Eyes"
A story about a father and daughter, released for Father's Day. Ads about fathers and daughters aren't exactly rare, but the turn it takes in the second half will definitely make you cry. The first half alone is pretty intense, but once the song starts playing in the girl's voice partway through, it's completely over for you.
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Getty Images | From Love to Bingo | 2016
Of Course You Can Make a Movie Out of Photos / Getty Images "From Love to Bingo"
What do you even show in an ad for stock photos? The answer: shoot a movie using nothing but photos. By stringing together 873 still images, they packed love, family, bingo—basically all of life—into one minute.
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家庭教師のトライ | Try IT はじまる | 2016
Is a Thin Font Costing You Something? / Try IT "Try IT Begins"
Dancing to Taylor Swift's "Shake It Off," all kinds of people shake their phones and dance along. This is the launch commercial for Try IT, a free video lesson service. Heidi, Peter, and Grandfather all dance too, in a bright, fun world.
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Volvo Trucks | The Hamster Stunt | 2016
A Hamster (Not the Driver) Nearly Causes a Disaster / Volvo Trucks "The Hamster Stunt"
A 175-gram hamster takes the wheel of a 15-ton truck. The setting: a bumpy road right next to a cliff edge at a Spanish quarry.
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JR東日本 | JR SKISKI | 2016
An Ostrich! / JR East "JR SKISKI" Triple Jump
An ostrich! An ostrich is skiing! Set to upbeat music, it tears down the slopes with turns, jumps, and Cossack moves—impossible tricks that had me completely glued to the screen.
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smart | The Dancing Traffic Light | 2016
Waiting at a Crosswalk Became Entertainment / smart "The Dancing Traffic Light"
Waiting at a crosswalk is boring, so people cross on red anyway. smart figured: why not make the waiting itself fun?
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BEAMS | TOKYO CULTURE STORY｜今夜はブギー・バック(smooth rap) in 40 YEARS OF TOKYO FASHION & MUSIC | 2016
40 Years of Tokyo Fashion History, Flashing By in Five Minutes / BEAMS "TOKYO CULTURE STORY｜Tonight's the Boogie Back (smooth rap) in 40 YEARS OF TOKYO FASHION & MUSIC"
From 1976 to 2016, a single unbroken shot races through 40 years of Tokyo in just five minutes. It's simply overwhelming.
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ソフトバンク | プロポーズ | 2016
The Beauty of Contrast / SoftBank "Proposal"
How do you capture a marriage proposal, one of life's big climactic moments? The chemistry between two distinctive actors, Mikako Ichikawa and Ryo Kase, creates an atmosphere that sticks with you in an odd way.
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GEICO | Unskippable | 2016
It's Already Over, So You Can't Skip It / GEICO "Unskippable"
YouTube ads get skipped after five seconds. 96% of people hit that button. But when a voice tells you "This ad has already ended, so it can't be skipped," your finger stops.
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PlayStation | できないことが、できるって、最高だ。 | 2016
Celebrating the Core Value of Gaming in a Long-Form Ad / PlayStation 4 "It's the Best Feeling, Doing What You Couldn't Do Before."
"It's the best feeling, doing what you couldn't do before." This tagline gets turned into a long-form celebration of life itself. I don't think it got much buzz, but I honestly think it's pretty amazing.
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Nike | Unlimited You | 2016
Gentle Violence That Smashes the Tagline / Nike "Unlimited You"
It starts out like your typical brand film: a warm narrator's voice, a child growing into an athlete. But the moment a gymnast rips through the "The End" logo, this ad becomes something else entirely.
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江崎グリコ | Smile.Glico みんなとハグハグ篇 | 2016
The gentle line: "Glad I was born as a sweet." / Glico "Smile.Glico Hug Hug with Everyone"
A character called Hug Hug goes around hugging people all over the world. Watching the smiles spread from person to person, you can feel something inside you loosen up.
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Honda | UNI-CUB | 2016
This level of quality, right when everyone else was just jumping on the trend / Honda × OK Go "I Won't Let You Down"
Right around the time everyone started making drone-shot music videos, this one came in and knocked everyone flat with how polished it was. Five and a half minutes, and I watched the whole thing without skipping once.
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マルコメ | 世界初カワイイ味噌汁 原宿味（Definition of Japanese Kawaii） | 2016
Can You Define "Kawaii" in Two Minutes? / Marukome "World's First Kawaii Miso Soup Harajuku Flavor"
Packaging miso soup as "kawaii" sounds like a strange combination, but somehow it works. In 2016, Marukome launched a new product aimed at young people: the "world's first" cute instant miso soup. The promotional film made for it was done with insane levels of commitment, and it ended up winning Gold at ADFEST 2017.
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John Lewis | Buster The Boxer | 2016
A Quiet Night of Longing Over a Trampoline / John Lewis "Buster The Boxer"
John Lewis's annual Christmas ad is a tradition by now. The star of 2016 is a dog named Buster. He wants, more than anything, the trampoline hidden in the garden—but it's actually a present for a little girl named Bridget. Night after night, wild animals sneak out to bounce on it, and Buster just watches. On Christmas morning, it's Buster who bolts outside before the girl even gets there.
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JR東日本 | 北海道新幹線開業 | 2016
Is it okay if I go chase my dreams? / JR East Hokkaido Shinkansen "Dancing Boy: For Real!?"
I caught this 30-second spot on TV after a long while of not watching, and it made me go "oh!" For a boy, the shinkansen coming to his town is super big news—he can't just sit still, and before he knows it, his body is already moving. That's the feeling this ad captures.
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キリン プラズマ乳酸菌 | SPECIAL STUDENT | 2016
It Starts With "Dekushi!": Designing Buzz for the Lowest Common Denominator / KIRIN Plasma Lactic Acid Bacteria "SPECIAL STUDENT"
Dekushi! Barrier! Short sleeves and shorts! There was always one of those kids in your elementary school class. The "Dekushi master" who whips out mysterious sound effects, the "short-sleeves-and-shorts kid" who shows up 365 days a year—snow or storm—in short sleeves and shorts, the girls who perform the hand-clapping game Alps Ichimanjaku at lightning speed. It's so nostalgic I can't stop laughing.
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キリン 午後の紅茶 | あいたいって、あたためたいだ。 | 2016
"Your voice is way too loud!" laughed the senior. Viewers cried. / Kirin Afternoon Tea "I Want to See You, I Want to Warm Up"
A quiet train platform. A high school girl with white headphones suddenly bursts into song, loud enough to reach the skies over Mount Aso. There's a bit of a puzzle about whether Moka Kamishiraishi's character could actually hear the sound of a drink dropping from the vending machine, which leaves you a little unsettled—but even setting that aside, this is still a wonderful piece of work.
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キングレコード | RUN and RUN MV for Smartphone | 2016
Now That's a Clever Idea Award / King Records "RUN and RUN MV for Smartphone"
You hold your phone upright and watch the screen, and without you noticing, it shifts from the lock screen to Twitter, FaceTime, and the camera app. A music video where six members run around inside all of it. This is exactly what you'd call a "now that's a clever idea" moment.
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銀のさら | 秘密篇 | 2016
All-In on Behind-the-Scenes Jokes / Ginnosara "The Secret"
I honestly can't understand why Ginnosara made this commercial. But that's exactly what's great about it. The world would be a richer place with more things like this in it.
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Nike | The Switch | 2016
An Ad Strong Enough to Carry You Through, Even When You Know the Twist / Nike "The Switch"
Cristiano Ronaldo collides with a ball boy and they swap bodies. Spoiler: that's the whole story. And yet for almost six minutes, you can't look away. It's the kind of ad that makes you think, "So this is how far you can go if you really commit."
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ミエライス | いただきます、ミエライス | 2016
This Is Exactly What We Wanted / Mie Rice "Itadakimasu, Mie Rice"
A local commercial that feels truly local. Honestly, that alone tells you everything - I think this is exactly what I'd been wanting to see.
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湖池屋 | ジャガッツ 主婦と犯人 | 2016
An idea so brilliant it takes just 10 seconds to explain / Koikeya "Jagatz" Housewives and the Culprit
You know that scene from crime dramas where they rewind the security camera footage to check the culprit's face? That's exactly what happens here. But what's caught on screen is a group of housewives talking about a product. Every time the tape rewinds, they repeat the same line: "Koikeya's Jagatz—these ridges are what make it so tasty." Just 15 seconds long, but it's an invention.
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Spotify | New Music, New Me | 2016
Why Mom Chops Vegetables to Techno / Spotify "New Music, New Me: Mom's Techno Edition"
Mom is chopping scallions in the kitchen. That's all there is to it — but set it to Takkyu Ishino's techno, and the whole world changes.
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リクルート フロム・エー ナビ | 熱唱 | 2016
"Your Voice Is Tenryu! Totally Tenryu!" / Recruit From A Navi "Passionate Singing"
Right at the start of 2016, a new series for From A Navi kicked off with a back-and-forth between Mayu Matsuoka and Panda Ichiro. Matsuoka hears Panda Ichiro singing live and blurts out "Tenryu!" - that surreal moment was the best part.