River Film: Best TV Commercials
Apparently John Lewis got their 2019 Christmas TV ad wrong, it was too sad and left children “traumatised” – oh no! This, however, got us to thinking about how, for big brands in particular, TV is not dead, in fact TVCs are still the pinnacle when it comes to marketing campaigns. And with this in mind, we decided to compile some of our favourite TV commercials from 2019 – here’s what we came up with.
Snowbrawl: iPhone 11 Pro | Apple
“A cinematic snowball fight Shot on iPhone 11 Pro by director David Leitch.” With some wonderful performances from the young actors, not even a glimpse of the product, the new Apple iPhone 11, this TV ad really captured our imagination. It’s fun and it’s very well produced, but for us there’s another reason why we think this ad is great – it was shot on an iPhone and we have a little experience of doing just the same thing. We worked with French production company Bollywood to make a series of TV commercials for Ibis – Fixing Ibis Selfie Style.
Manifique: A Father’s Day Gift | Dad Bod | Dollar Shave Club
We’ve been fans of the Dollar Shave Club commercials ever since the first one, “Our Blades are F***ing Great” was released back in 2012. In Manifique, we see yet another example of how to engage with your audience, by using humour and by using actors whose appearance is a celebration of ordinary guys with dad bod’s. This ad has you hooked from the get-go, it’s hilarious and beautifully produced by DSCs in-house marketing team.
Witch: Skittles | Mars Wrigley Confectionery
“Beware of witches who promise a lifetime supply of free Skittles, but also beware of teens that agree to such terms with little or no forethought.” Simple, goofy, great – anyone who has kids will totally be able to relate to this, the unrelenting focus on one thing – “are we nearly there yet?”
Blinding Lights: Mercedes-Benz EQC | Mercedes-Benz
“Since 1886 Mercedes-Benz has written automotive history. Let’s start a new chapter – with the all-new EQC that takes electric driving to the next level.” If your brand has an outstanding heritage, then why not shout about it? That’s just what Mercedes-Benz have done with this amazing commercial that also applauds the popularisation of electric vehicles.
Don’t Die Till That Day: Central Midnight Sale | CENTRAL Department Store
“From shoppers’ insight that nothing could stop their determination to shop at the best sales event of the year, nothing even death itself.” Any TV commercial that features fart jokes and the potential for characters to die from embarrassment is a winner in our books.
Silence the Critics: IKEA
“When it comes to hosting, we all have those little voices in the back of our heads that say our home isn’t up to the job.” Take a catchy tune, throw in some basic anthropomorphic animation and then shame people into buying your products before they invite guests around for festive frolics.
Anti-Ad: Doritos
No mention of the product name, no brand imagery, no jingle, but who needs them when you’re as iconic as the crunchy snack that rhymes with “I need those”? This commercial relies heavily on the very sharp, humorous script, along with pace and it takes anti-ad ads to “another level”.
TIM – The Invisible Me: PSA
Producing a ridiculously emotive public service announcement is what director John Grammatico set out to achieve and boy has he fulfilled his mission. “TIM is the story of an insecure student who must find the courage to be seen.” And as for the music, “Mr Sandman” by SYML – just brilliant!
Souvenirs from Travel: China Airlines
“When you were back from traveling, you would bring something with you…” It’s all about the narrative in this fantastic TV commercial for China Airlines. The whole thing hinges on one simple, written phrase “Brought from…”, it’s ingenious.
A Sponsored Post: Samsung Galaxy | Samsung
We started with a TV commercial for a mobile phone and we’re ending with one too. A Sponsored Post “pokes a little bit of fun at those “organic” posts from influencers which are obviously sponsored by a brand”. It’s unashamed, it’s scathing, it’s really funny and not at all subtle!
