Seen and noted

BEST TV
1st Choice: Action Contre La Faim: One Bullet. This haunting dissertation on the effects of one bullet, and it's not so subtle consequences really grabbed me. The animation, beautiful, with it's muted reds and ochers, is a sure stand out in the awareness genre. The story itself is potent because, put simply, it's true. The best ideas, - ones that connect with our humanity, are often the simplest, yet stand on the shoulders of great truths. (comedy especially) My favorite part overall is that this story doesn't get messy. (No distractions or superfluous segues) It's clean, linear editing tells me the story of one bullet and it's effects on the many. You can apply this tale to many 'one bullet' stories and that's why I found it so potent. Bravo for impact.

Runner up: Coca-Cola: Don't Look Back. Between clouds peeing skittles and Dr. Pepper's ode to the wilderness man, Coca Cola's New Burn Energy Drink takes the cake for absolute absurdity. I'm not quite sure if this was the worst thing I've ever seen or the best. -It's for that reason it's runner up for me. The outrageous visuals harken back to my college days where chemical substances mixed really well with exacto blades, a fistful of magazines and a color copier. The message is on point because, really, there is no message and the agency (and client) that did this piece clearly get that. Strange and fun, sometimes, that's all a beverage needs to be. Music track alone would get a DJ banned. Well done.

BEST PRINT
1st Choice: Santa Casa de Misericordia de Sao Paulo: Lungs. Beautiful. Simple. Graphically striking. Not overly written. - Hallmarks of a great print ad. I really love the choices that were made to communicate the importance of organ donation. While the design is not necessarily unique, the negative space around an iconic figure, working with an obvious headline, tells the story that needs to be told without banging me over the head with it.

Runner Up: This was hard for me as I found all of the ads formulaic 'Cannes' . The visual puns just kept coming in this week (and maybe that's why they work for the international stage so well) as most cultures will get the all of the ads no problemo. But, I have to pick one. So I'm going for the Land Rover ad simply because it was trying to evoke a romance that's true to the Land Rover Brand. The shot of the bag is interesting but doesn't quite connect with the background color. The idea is still better than the execution. This print ad was sort of close but the company around it made it better.

BEST OUTDOOR
1st Choice: Screen Colons Canada: Seats. Now that's great outdoor. When advertising gives you a message right where you need it, it tends to work. This clever little train seat take over is memorable as it's undeniably effective. While I appreciate the seriousness of cancer and it's tragic effects on people, the lightheartedness of the delivery device makes the message stick, which in turn, for me, brings greater awareness.

Runner Up: Seat UK, Intensify the Everyday. Most of the contenders this week were fairly borrowed from great ideas past, and while there are really no new ideas out there, how we choose to tell these stories is where the newness comes in. We've seen the great drama stunt for TNT, this one for Seat UK takes it to a whole new level. Solid fun.

BEST INTERACTIVE
1st Choice: RAC: Attention Powered Car. While there's no irony lost on how this technology is saving us from technology, this is truly an inspired idea still in it's infancy. Not sure how many lives are lost due to driving inattention each year, but as this (and like) ideas continue to develop, those figures are sure to change. I applaud the true meaning of 'interactive' on this one and look forward to where this goes.

Runner up: Oscar Meyer Bacon App. It's a bacon app. That's a win for everyone. The love of bacon turn perfume turn super high fashion turn dream turn iPhone app, lets the world know that dreams, do in fact come true... (If there was a buy now button I would own one and so should you.)




This week's guest judge is Andrew Christou, chief creative officer at Publicis, Seattle.

Andrew's 20+ years of experience in the advertising industry has been marked by a commitment to creative leadership and brand building. Andrew's career began at BBDO New York. He continued his success at Wieden + Kennedy and Fallon McElligott, and was a founding partner at Berlin Cameron United.

Andrew joined Publicis Seattle in 2010 and leads the creative department across all Publicis Seattle clients. Andrew came to Publicis Seattle directly from Saatchi & Saatchi Los Angeles, where as Creative Director on Toyota, he led the MotorSports Division as well as launched the 2010 Prius, which proved to be the most comprehensive launch in Toyota's history.

Andrew has won numerous awards including The One Show, Art Directors Club, AICPs, Cannes, Clios and Best of Shows for Addy Awards, as well as Adweek’s top spots and Creativity's top pick honors. He is a graduate of the School of Visual Arts and is an accomplished commercial director, having worked on commercials across the world through Propaganda Films and Moxie Pictures from 2000 to 2006.