Volkswagen Freaks Out a Whole Movie Theater With Devious 'Don't Text and Drive' PSA One small distractionBy Rebecca Cullers
June 10, 2014, 11:47 AM EDT
We've seen lots of "Don't text and drive" ads lately. With this one from Ogilvy Beijing, Volkswagen drove the message home to a captive movie-theater audience in a way they'll surely remember.
Watch the spot first to get the full impact.
Obviously the video begs the question about how, exactly, the stunt was pulled off. It says a "location-based broadcaster" was used—presumably this is done through geo-fencing,though you would think people would have to opt in to receive text messages that way.
But if the footage is genuine, it's a remarkable way to demonstrate that mobile-phone use is now the leading cause of death behind the wheel. Advertising is a great way to get that message across, at least until VW figures out a way to use German engineering to solve our obsession with cellphones.
Tuesday, 7 January 2014
THE BEST BRANDED ENTERTAINMENT OF 2013 EXAMPLES HONDA HELPS SAVE THE DRIVE-IN THEATER Honda Motor Co. went old school with an effort to save aging drive-in movie theaters unable to upgrade their venues with new digital projectors. The Japanese automaker wound up helping nine theaters across the country and put a spotlight on an area of the exhibition biz that’s become an aging relic but a nostalgic part of car culture.
AUDI REVS UP YEAR-ROUND DEALS When it comes to entertainment, carmakers typically put their marketing dollars around a single summer tentpole, but Audi made sure the German auto brand was associated with top properties year-round, with showy promos in and around “Iron Man 3,” “The Wolverine” and “Ender’s Game,” while also sponsoring the Emmys, AFI Fest and the Toronto Film Festival and hosting events around the Golden Globes and Oscars. It also one-upped Mazda this summer with a humorous short starring the two Spocksaround the release of “Star Trek Into Darkness.” Mazda was the film’s official car partner.
Also noteworthy:Infiniti produced “Deja View,” a choose-your-adventure film. Jaguar cast “Homeland’s” Damian Lewis in its own film, “Desire.”Canon gave new filmmakers a push with “Project Imaginat10n.”Doritos put a WWE fan in the ring at “SummerSlam.” And a brand could have generatedsome buzzworthy goodwill with fans of “Veronica Mars” by picking up the tab when its creator was raising money for a bigscreen version on Kickstarter. The film bows at Sundance.
Forecast: A brand will step up to produce an original series for Netflix, Hulu, Amazon or the new videogame consoles from Microsoft and Sony. Carmakers will also generate considerable mileage from high-profile placements in films like “Transformers: Age of Extinction” and “Need for Speed.”
