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chinese new year ads

THE BEST CHINESE NEW YEAR ADS THROUGH THE YEARS

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    Chinese New Year is one of the biggest occasions in the calendar, with celebrations traditionally taking place over the course of 16 days. Chinese New Year 2023 falls on Sunday 22nd January and marks the start of the Year of the Rabbit. With so many families getting together and giving gifts over the New Year period, it’s obviously a prime time for advertisers. What have been the best Chinese New Year ads?

    The Best Chinese New Year Ads

    • Coca Cola – Chinese New Year Real Magic
    • RHB Chinese New Year 2022: A Spark for Change
    • McDonald’s – My Mum is the Greatest Hairdresser
    • HSBC – The Luckiest Red
    • Grab CNY – Prepare for HUATEVER
    • Oreo Red Velvet
    • Julie’s Biscuits – The Worst Feng Shui Master
    • Singtel – The Hunt for the Lucky Tiger
    • Singapore Ministry of Communication and Information
    • Digi – The Undivided Heart
    • Knife – Always Be There
    • Tiger Beer – Year of the Tiger
    • Coca Cola – CNY Confessions
    • Panda Express – Traditions Shared
    • H&M
    • Shot on iPhone
    • Skittles – Frustrate the Rainbow
    • Nike – The Great Chase
    • Air Asia – The Boy and the Lion
    • Ribena – Purple Flight

    Recent Chinese New Year Ads

    Coca-Cola Chinese New Year Real Magic

    Coca Cola’s adorable ad features a family of animated tigers gathering round their table for a traditional Chinese New Year feast.

    Director Yves Geleyn created a simple yet symbolic story about a father and son, with artistic inspiration drawn from traditional Chinese folklore, illustration and sculpture, and landscape inspired by the majestic Tianzi Montain. The story illustrates how different generations can often find it hard to connect at family gatherings and shows father and son reconnecting as they chase an errant bottle of Coke down the mountain together, bringing the fun back into their relationship.

    The soundtrack is gentle and orchestral, but with dramatic moments that propel the expert storytelling.

    RHB Chinese New Year 2022: A Spark for Change

    This ad is inspired by a true story in which ten children in Teluk Intan, Malaysia, took it upon themselves to clean up their fishing village when it faced a waste management crisis. Their action inspired the adults to be more mindful of waste disposal, proving that one small act can lead to a big positive effect.

    RHB bank’s film breaks with traditional Chinese New Year campaigns, which usually focus on family gatherings. The storyline stresses that individuals taking action inspires others, which fits with the brand’s long-running ‘Together we progress’ brand tagline.

    The soundtrack mixes piano and orchestral elements, with traditional Chinese instrumentation towards the end.

    McDonald’s – My Mum is the Greatest Hairdresser

    McDonald’s Malaysia tells the story of a girl whose mum would create amazing hairstyles for her every Chinese New Year. However, as a teenager, when some boys tease her about her hair, she refuses to let her mum near it again.

    As a grown-up career woman, she reminisces; will she let the greatest hairdresser come up with another style for her? Of course she will. It’s a heartwarming message about how family traditions strengthen ties, with an emotional soundtrack that blends traditional instruments with piano touches.

    HSBC – The Luckiest Red

    The Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank joined forces with Wunderman Thompson Canada to uncover the most frequently used shade of red, in order to elevate Asian artists in the US market. HSBC Bank USA partnered with The Asian Art Museum of San Francisco to examine their 18,000-strong collection; an AI-based programme called Adobe Sensei identified ‘the luckiest red’, which has been digitally matched by Pantone.

    Red is a colour that’s synonymous with Chinese New Year because of the legend of a beast called Nian in ancient China; the secret weapons to drive it away were items that are red in colour and loud noises such as firecrackers and fireworks. Red is also the colour of luck and good fortune in Asian culture. Asian Americans were encouraged to use ‘the luckiest red’ to create artworks which were then shared by HSBC Bank USA in May of this year, to celebrate Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

    The soundtrack is of subtle Chinese percussion and calming piano, to accompany the visuals of some of the huge number of artworks, sculptures and objects in the Museum’s collection.

    Grab CNY 2022: Prepare for HUATEVER

    Grab CNR’s New Year campaign has the same vibe as Argos’s Christmas campaign – i.e. it’s been ages since we’ve been able to celebrate together with our extended family and friends network, and we need to prep for a full-on invasion.

    A classic family – mum, dad, daughter, son – marshal their resources ‘with the best armour money can buy’ (i.e. the perfect New Year outfits) and groceries via a selection of Grab apps. The dad is in full army uniform, giving a rousing speech about how this year they’re going to host an event that will be talked about for generations to come. The soundtrack is reminiscent of an epic Marvel trailer, with taiko drums and plenty of action-style tension and blasts of choral singing.

    Oreo Red Velvet

    Oreo created a super-cute animated ad for their limited edition ‘red velvet’ biscuit. The cookies are used to make everything from pagodas to lanterns hung across the street and the classic Chinese dancing lions. A string of the biscuits explode as firecrackers and they even make very effective drums!

    The ad uses traditional Chinese music to heighten the effect.

    Julie’s Biscuits – The Worst Feng Shui Master

    Oh dear, poor Master Wong the Feng Shui master predicted that 2020 was going to be a great year. Unfortunately, we all know how that worked out – for literally the whole world. His luck (and predictions) continue to go from bad to worse and he’s relentlessly mocked on the TV.

    He thinks it’s because he lost his lucky jade ring – but what’s this? A hostage-style note slipped under his door, telling him to go to Julie’s HQ as they have his ring… Turns out the head honchos at Julie’s want Mr Wong’s advice, which he duly gives and their profits soar. However, they’ve actually done the opposite of everything he said.

    The twist is, this becomes the key to him being hugely successful. He now has a tonne of clients they just… do the opposite of what he says!

    Singtel – The Hunt for the Lucky Tiger

    Singapore-based telecoms company Singtel has had a series of ads featuring the rival Ang and Huang families. The third in the series finds the feuding families reluctantly reunited on staycation at a 5G-powered Sentosa Island, and in direct competition as they take each other on in a treasure hunt for the lucky tiger. This includes an AR trail through the jungle, powered by 5G.

    The short film is soundtracked with everything from classic comedy to action-drama, including Mission: Impossible-style music for a section including a drone. And of course there’s a happy ending, emphasising the importance of family and friendship.

    Singapore Ministry of Communication and Information

    Agency Grey Singapore put together this warm, light-hearted film, which, once again focuses on how Singaporeans have adapted to the uncertainties and challenges of a get together under Covid 19. No more gigantic guest lists and wondering who’ll get along with whom (and who’s more senior). By necessity, things have been slimmed-down for Chinese New Year. The central message is that celebrations don’t have to be big to be meaningful – plus there’s a quick reminder that getting your booster shots will mean you can join in without worrying.

    The music goes from a party feel when the family are shown having their more usual get-togethers a few years ago, to some traditional percussion as the two youngest members try to make sense of a massive potential guest list and then a calming piano and strings section when their Grandma makes the decision to keep it small this year.

    Digi – The Undivided Heart

    Malaysian mobile service provider Digi Telecommunications tell the story of Amy Ling, a young woman who takes over her parents’ restaurant and has to find ways to revitalise it. She’s shown having a Zoom call with the rest of the family to discuss digitising the business, bringing in new uniforms and renaming the restaurant. However, not everyone’s on board with her brave new world and vision for The Tiger Palace.

    After disagreeing with her uncle, the two come back together, recognising that ‘family is above everything’. The ad signs off with the message, ‘the strength of family is the greatest prosperity we can share’ and ‘may love reconnect us to all that matters’, to the strains of a piano-led ballad.

    Knife – Always Be There

    Oof, if you want a proper emotional gut-punch, then watch Knife Oil’s film. The two stories show a young man who’s been made redundant and is trying to cover up how much he’s struggling from his parents. The other focuses on a young woman who’s a cookery influencer. She misses urgent phone calls from her brother, saying their father has had a stroke.

    Both return to their families and are supported and offer support between the generations, emphasising the importance of eating together.

    Tiger Beer – Year of the Tiger

    The No. 1 international premium beer in Asia teamed up with global football icon Son Heung-Min to encourage people to set aside their fears and achieve their boldest ambitions in the Year of the Tiger.

    Son’s journey has taken him from South Korea to becoming an international football icon who is the highest-scoring Asian player in Europe’s premier club competition, and the first Asian player to win the Golden Boot.

    Sean O’Donnell, Global Brand Director, Tiger Beer, explained that, ‘Tiger Beer was born from defying the odds with a bold and courageous spirit. Brewing beer in the tropics was thought to be impossible until we did it. Son is a global icon who perfectly embodies this spirit of Tiger Beer – he is courageous, confident, and unstoppable. We believe that we are all born with a Tiger inside us – a version of ourselves that knows no limits to what is possible – but few of us are able to uncage it. We are delighted to be working with Son to inspire people everywhere to use the Year of the Tiger as the catalyst to realise their true selves.’

    The soundtrack to the full ad is an original composition by Adrian Sergovich.

    Chinese New Year 2021 Ads

    Coca-Cola – CNY Confessions

    Coca Cola’s Chinese New Year ads are now something of a tradition and tap into the brand’s talent for storytelling. For 2021, they focused in on what many brands had picked up on – the fact that Covid 19 had taken away something that many people – young people in particular – had taken for granted. So, the first half of the ad is about three young characters flagging all the things they don’t like about New Year get-togethers – the long, uncomfortable journey to get there; the constant demands to go and pick up more food from the shops, and the fact that there are so many family members staying, you don’t have any space for yourself, even in your own bed.

    After a year of being on their own for New Year, the three realise how much the get-togethers mean to them: the rice cakes that ‘Little Piggy’s grandmother makes for him; the karaoke and noisy relatives, and running errands as a way of showing love for your family. It’s heartwarming and focuses on ‘the little simple joys found in the normalcy that brings us together’ according to Cia Hatzi of McCann Worldgroup, who created the ad.

    Panda Express – Traditions Shared

    American-Asian fast food chain Panda Express is the largest Asian-segment restaurant chain in the US. Created by ad agency The Many, the Chinese New Year Panda Express video

    focuses on the idea that Lunar New Year is all about coming together and sharing traditions with those we love most.

    The family-owned brand’s 2021 ad tells the sweet story of a young boy, Jordan, who is invited by his neighbours, the Lees, to experience New Year with them, complete with authentic Chinese dishes and, of course, the giving and receiving of lucky red envelopes.

    The reveal at the end of the film is that Jordan is now grown up and keeps the tradition of sharing good fortune by giving the Lees a box of Panda Express spring rolls, as they’re having to spend New Year on their own. His own family is then shown sitting at their table celebrating the holiday and passing down the tradition to their son with a Panda Express family meal.

    The film was directed by Erica Eng, who is a fifth-generation Chinese American, and the whole crew incorporated Chinese Americans who contributed everything from items from their homes to decorate the sets to the food stylist taking inspiration from her family’s Lunar New Year meals. The soundtrack is orchestral, bringing in sparkling moments of magic with tinkling chimes as the story evolves.

    H&M

    H&M put the focus on individuality by showing a variety of people prepping for their Lunar New Year celebrations, all working H&M clothes in their own way. One of them is Wang Shuang, a football star in the Chinese Women’s Super League.

    The track used is ‘You’ve Got the Love’ by David Yang and Veegee; its mix of slower sections are expertly used for the quieter moments of the film, followed by the driving chorus for nightlife shots and two of the characters dancing on a rooftop.

    Shot on iPhone – Chinese New Year Nian

    Apple has made a tradition of inviting famous directors to make a short movie each year for Chinese New Year, shot on iPhone. In 2021, a Chinese New Year legend, Monster Nian, was reimagined as a contemporary coming-of-age story.

    The film was directed by Lulu Wang and created by the team behind the Golden Globe-nominated film, The Farewell. Charming, fantastical, magical and very atmospheric, the story shows a curious, brave little girl, who declares herself unafraid of the fearsome Nian and goes looking for him in the forest, finding him in a cave. The two become friends and try to join in a New Year celebration, but the Nian is frightened by the firecrackers and fireworks and runs away.

    Every new year, we set off all these fireworks. Is it really to scare off the monsters? Or is it to light up the dark night sky and all the places we want to go?

    The girl’s parents worry about her and want to protect her, but her mother realiaes that actually, they should learn from her courage, and be willing to explore the magical side of life. All three go into the forest, and the final scene shows the family sharing a meal around their table – complete with the Nian.

    The soundtrack is used sparingly, with piano and orchestral touches to highlight the emotions.

    Skittles – Frustrate the Rainbow

    Skittles capitalised on their reputation for humorous ads with this 2021 Chinese New Year ad. Instead of the usual focus on spending quality time with friends and family, the brand came up with a cunning twist on the red packets that are traditionally exchanged.

    Skittles created a mobile game on the WeChat app, with a digital red packet that required 50,000 consecutive taps to open it – whoever reached the target fastest would win $7,750. The ad featured two players sitting on a sofa and tapping away, whilst aging drastically and humorously discussing how much of a waste of time it all is, accompanied by the sound of manic tapping.

    The Best of the Rest

    Nike – The Great Chase

    Nike took its first strides into the Chinese New Year ad market in 2020 with ‘The Great Chase’. The ad put a witty spin on the tradition of family giving each other ‘hongbao’ red envelopes. The envelopes are often filled with money and given to children by elder relatives for good luck.

    In Wieden+Kennedy Shanghai’s spot, an aunt attempts to give an envelope to her niece, who repeatedly politely declines. The two are shown in a fun game of cat-and-mouse as the little girl grows up and eventually dons a pair of Nikes to try to outrun her determined aunt (who instead upgrades to a tech solution, sending the envelope via a banking app.)

    The chase continues for years, through factories and festivals, fields and rooftops, until the niece is an adult, with a family of her own. It’s time for her to give her aunt an envelope. Psych! Auntie’s got her own pair of Nike’s, inspired by Chinese mythology. The brand said, ‘it’s a playful approach on a Chinese tradition, reminding the audience to celebrate and have fun, to stay active during a time when we typically eat a bit too much.’

    The ad features a Chinese-language version of Doris Day’s ‘Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps’.

    Air Asia – The Boy and the Lion

    Air Asia’s ad shows the excitement of travelling to visit family for New Year through the eyes of a small boy. It’s his first tine going to his grandma’s and there’s emotional piano for the family sequences as they celebrate around the dinner table. This gives way to traditional Chinese music when the boy finally gets to meet the Lion and join in with dancing in the street.

    Ribena – Purple Flight

    Ribena "Purple Flight" from stevo on Vimeo.

    Ribena’s ads are always fun, and this Chinese New Year spot is no exception. When Traditionalist Liondance Grandpa goes up against his TechnoParkour Grandson, sparks will definitely fly! The ad features traditional drummers and percussionists, which then segues into an EDM track.

    Looking For More?

    If you’re celebrating Chinese New Year, then check out our playlist, featuring everything from traditional Chinese instruments to hybrid Chinese pop. And for more deep dives into advertising, check out The Edit, for the best of Coca Cola ads, Nike, Ribena and how brands tell their stories.

    Need Music for Your Project?

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    ribena ads

    THE BEST RIBENA ADVERTS

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      Did you know that Ribena is over 80 years old? Yes, first released in 1938, Ribena has been tickling our tastebuds for far longer than you’d expect. Which means that over its eight decades, there have been some fantastic Ribena ads! We look at some of the boldest and the best from the brand’s history.

      A Heritage British Brand

      Ribena was produced by the British pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) until 2013, when the brand was sold to Japanese conglomerate Suntory.

      Ribena’s original positioning was as a healthy drink for kids – it was distributed to children as a Vitamin C supplement during World War II by the government. Why is it called Ribena? Well, the name is derived from the fact that it was made from blackcurrants – whose botanical name is Ribes nigrum.

      Ribena’s ongoing success story was proven by its sale to Suntory – GSK sold it and Lucozade to the Japanese multinational for £1.35 billion.

      Future-Proofing the Brand

      In 2019, Ribena launched a new creative platform in a bid to ‘future proof’ the brand. It repositioned itself to focus on its heritage by creating the new tagline, ‘Blackcurrant Artistry since 1938’. Most brands reposition themselves to appeal to younger customers, but Ribena’s aim at this point was to align itself with an older audience.

      The first Ribena TV ad for the new campaign was created by agency Wunderman Thompson and featured a comedically intense hipster ‘blackcurrant artist’, Andrew Berry, who explained the method behind making Ribena. It’s a tongue in cheek approach to craftsmanship, as Charlotte Flook, the brand’s head, told Marketing Week.

      ‘It’s important [to talk about heritage] as consumers are continuing to look for brands with purpose. There are lots of brands that talk about their craft and their heritage, but it’s about doing it in a way that is modern and relevant for the average consumer.’

      The ad has a gentle, bucolic feel, with an orchestral soundtrack lifted by a soaring vocal as Andrew starts to wax particularly lyrical about the ‘fruits of his labour’.

      Poor Andrew was later comically tortured by ‘Ribena Fruitologist’ James Bloom in the spot for the brand’s Frusion drink:

      ‘Was there creative tension?’ asks Andrew, rhetorically, as James blows up a watermelon in the background and creates low-level havoc. But the two manage to successfully work together to create the new drink, backed by the calming tones of Bach’s Cello Suite.

      When it’s Ribena High Pressure Parking Palaver (2022)

      Ribena’s most recent campaigns focus on a new strapline, ‘chin up, my friend, chin up’. The brand have joined forces with agency BBH, who have opted for a major shift in direction. Ribena is being positioned as the thing to get you through those awkward moments when you might be cringing.

      The first ad features a hapless man having a right palaver trying to parallel park. Gently harassed by a bunch of scruffy-looking animatronic cats – nature’s most judgey animal – on his bonnet, his sunroof and wandering around in the street disappointedly saying, ‘maaaate’, this is an off-beat take on a daily occurrence.

      Charlotte Flook revealed that, ‘”Chin Up” puts our brand’s cheeky, irreverent personality at its heart by encouraging the nation to reach for a Ribena to help them laugh through life’s awkward little stumbles.’

      The second ad will chime with anyone who’s tried to surreptitiously check their appearance – the woman eventually reaches for her bottle of Ribena ‘when it’s Ri-bena bit awkward.’

      We can’t wait to see which small, cringey bit of modern life will crop up in the next ad in the series.

      Ribena Commercials

      Ribena Minis (2017)

      Ribena ads often focus on a sense of adventure, and in this one, our hero puts a Ribena Mini bottle through its paces round the house to test its ‘less spills, less mess’ cap, perfectly designed to create playtime thrills.

      The ad has a mix of big, bold Taiko-style drums for the ‘adventure’ elements – think the re-booted Jumanji series, and Indiana Jones elements – combined with a more everyday, light-hearted track. Putting the two together brings the comedy.

      Ribena Tropicoliday (2015)

      Ribena ‘turned up the tropical’ with its competition to ‘Win a #Tropicoliday’ in 2015 to promote its tropical range – Mango & Lime, Pineapple & Passion Fruit and Orange & Guava.

      Consumers had the chance to win one of five tropical holidays by finding one of three special bottles on the shelf. Once all three had been found, the contestants had to battle it out via a series of tropical-themed trials. And as if that weren’t enough, each of the three were supported by a social media star: Alfie Deyes, Sam King and Hazel Hayes. Watch how much fun was had by all in this promo film:

      You Can’t Get Any More Ribenary (2015)

      With owls shooting lasers from their eyes, giant and tiny robins balancing on blackcurrants, sunglasses and moustache-sporting rabbits and a girl riding a small hedgehog riding a larger hedgehog, it’s fair to say that this is one of the more surreal ad adventures – and in our view, one of the best Ribena ads in terms of being both visually memorable and having a banging earworm.

      Award-winning animation house NOMINT’s Christos & Yannis worked closely with JWT London to target young adults as part of a £6 million marketing campaign. JWT’s creative director John Cherry said that, ‘we’ve attempted to create an intense, playful and visually striking campaign, bringing to life the almost impossible-to-describe taste of Ribena’.

      As for that super-catchy track? ‘Zooby Doo’ by Tigermonkey keeps the ad, and everyone in it, bouncing along.

      If you’re wondering what it reminds you of, then it’s this iconic Flat Eric/Mr Oizo track from the Levi’s ad:

      The Ribena Colouring Café (2016)

      A remix of ‘Zooby Doo’ was used for the Ribena Colouring Café ad, which was ‘all about grabbing life by the felt tip’. Colouring-in connoisseurs were able to bring a unique illustration by artist Alex Lucas to life, courtesy of lots of individual pieces. Every Saturday, artist Lucas opens her front window, selling artwork through her ‘Window Shop’ in Bristol.

      The ad promotes the idea of leaving the world outside for an hour and adding a splash of colour, tapping into the vogue for grown-up colouring books that took off as part of the mindfulness trend (in the first months of 2015, 12 million adult colouring books were sold, from illustrators such as Johanna Basford.) The wall of the Ribena Colouring Café is shown through time-lapse filling up with each artist’s mini canvas, plus a light show once the piece is completed.

      It's a joyous example of how much fun art is, and how something simple can bring people together.

      Want More?

      There’s nothing we love more than a well-crafted ad, from IKEA’s Wonderful Everyday campaign to Nike’s biggest hits. Read our monthly ad breakdown to keep up to date, or check out which of our tracks have been used by brands recently over on The Edit.

      And if you want music to license for advertising, then we have everything from orchestral classics to brand new releases. Our in-house music experts put together playlists covering every mood and genre, including seasonal specials, if you want to capture a summer sound, or harness the festive spirit.

      Need Music for Your Project?

      At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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      This page was last updated 23/05/2024.

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      samsung ads

      SAMSUNG AD BREAKDOWN: MICRO MIRACLES

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        What’s behind the tech that we all use every day? Turns out, it’s down to the micro miracles which Samsung Electronics are celebrating in their latest ad. To be precise (and precision really is the name of the game here), it’s semiconductors which are the nanoscopic, unsung heroes of technological progress. But how to go about telling a story that’s invisible to the human eye?

        Tiny Tech: Giant Impact

        Samsung Electronics worked with BMB and Cheil Worldwide to bring to life a brief focusing on the mighty power of the tiny semiconductor. They’re used in a huge array of tech applications – some of which are everyday and some are totally out of this world, from video calls to gaming or spectacular structures, and from cars to space rockets and satellites.

        BMB’s in-house production wing CYLYNDR’s solution as to how to tell the semiconductor story was to demonstrate an array of their uses – but by building and filming miniature models, some of which were so small they could only be captured using a scanning electron microscope! Pollen grains, grains of sand, a salt crystal – a model satellite built for the ad was 22,000 times smaller than a real one, and featured details that were less than the width of a human hair.

        Truly state-of-the-art equipment was required to film these microscopic marvels, so the team brought in 3D nanoprinting and embarked on a collaboration with photographer and ‘microscopist’ Stefan Diller. For action sequences including a woman making a mobile phone call, the team first had to scan actors in specific poses, then produce digital 3D renders. To print the models, there’s a process called Two-Photon Nanolithography: firing a controlled laser into polysensitive resin causes it to form a solid microscopic object and the intricate models were brought to life in phenomenal detail.

        The team then captured the models in-camera using a scanning electron microscope which uses a focus beam of electrons that reflects off the model’s surfaces and captures dynamic moves using nanoflight®.

        Go behind the scenes of the ground-breaking film to see the team in action and have your mind truly blown:

        The film is accompanied by a delicate, trilling piano soundtrack, which pairs perfectly with the zooms into the micro models; the lightness of the track also balances up the male voiceover.

        As Samsung say, ‘every dream, no matter how miraculous, begins on a microscopic scale’ and this ad embodies and brings to life that idea in incredible 3D. ‘State-of-the-art’ is a phrase that’s overused, but this time, it’s the only one that fits the bill.

        Ad-spiration

        Explore the best campaign work from other brands in our deep dives, from the top ads of 2022 to IKEA’s Wonderful Everyday campaign. Or check in on The Edit, for our pick of the ads each month.

        Looking for music for your campaign? Our original, high-quality music spans all genres and moods. We’ve got new releases every fortnight, plus we make life extra easy with our hand-picked playlists, including piano background music to create a soundtrack like Samsung’s, that will let your visuals speak for themselves.

        Need Music for Your Project?

        At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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        best ads 2023

        THE BEST ADS OF 2023

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          It’s time to wrap up 2023, so let’s take a look at the year’s best commercials. Popular TV commercials come in all shapes and sizes, and for all manner of brands, products and services.

          Take a closer look at the best from Adland, courtesy of the following brands:

          McDonald’s – Raise Your Arches

          When you want an off-beat ad, which director would you turn to? McDonald’s went with Edgar Wright, the director behind films as diverse as Shaun of the Dead and Baby Driver. If you’ve seen the latter, you’ll know how crucial music is to the director, and the ‘Raise Your Arches’ ad is no different.

          Because the key thing about Wright’s ad is that the product – McDonald’s – doesn’t feature at all. Instead, hungry office workers raise their eyebrows at each other to the beat of Yello’s 1985 hit, ‘Oh Yeah.’ The track’s most famous previous outing was in cult slacker hit Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

          A worker puts a Post-it with an ‘M’ onto her colleague’s screen, before raising her eyebrows, kick-starting an entire office de-camp to the home of the Golden Arches for their lunch break.

          Leo Burnett UK and Moxie Pictures were behind the concept. The agency said, ‘We were beyond excited to work with the brilliant Edgar Wright to bring this idea to life – from the visual look and feel he creates to what he does with music and choreography, he’s got that knack of making work that grabs your attention for all the right reasons.'

          Coca-Cola - Masterpiece

          Are commercials art? Well, Coca-Cola’s ‘Masterpiece’ definitely made the case for them to be under consideration. An art student is in a museum, looking uninspired and on the verge of nodding off, when suddenly, a Picasso/Braque-style Cubist portrait by French artist Aket comes to life. Its arm reaches out and across to a neighbouring wall, which features Andy Warhol’s ‘Large Coca-Cola’.

          The ice-cold bottle of Coke is then tossed around the canvases (and a large classical sculpture), taking on their particular styles as it goes. Warhol is joined by Munch’s ‘The Scream’, ‘The Shipwreck’ by Turner, a Hiroshige and a Van Gogh. These are interspersed with pieces by up-and-coming artists from around the world, such as Stefania Tejada, Vikram Kushwah, Fatma Ramadan, Wonder Buhle, and Aket, before Vermeer’s ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’ finally flips the cap off and places the bottle onto the student’s bench. A quick slurp, and his charcoal flies across his sketchpad – with a cheeky wink from Vermeer’s ‘Girl’ to finish up with.

          Directed by Academy Films’ Henry Scholfield, who’s best known for creating music videos for Ed Sheeran, Stormzy (‘Vossi Bop’) and Rosalia, several of the artworks were shot in live action as part of their extended sequences; plus the spot also makes use of ‘cutting-edge AI’, according to Ajab Samrai, global CCO at Blitzworks, the agency that created the campaign.

          The soundtrack of sprightly and dramatic orchestral music is performed by the Budapest Scoring Orchestra.

          Vanish – Me, My Autism and I

          ‘Making clothes last longer matters for us all, but for some it really matters’. Whilst many of us are aiming to keep our clothes in good condition for environmental reasons and as a corrective to ‘fast fashion’, Vanish’s ad had a deeper social purpose. The winner of this year’s Channel 4 Diversity in Advertising Award shone a light on the importance of key items of clothing for autistic people.

          Vanish teamed up with Havas London and Ambitious about Autism to create their impactful docudrama film, produced by SMUGGLER London and shot by Oscar-winning director Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech). The film aims to spark conversation and awareness around autism in girls.

          Research reveals that 73% of autistic people use clothes to help regulate their senses, and 75% say keeping the look, smell and feel of clothes the same is important to them.

          Fifteen-year-old Ash is shown navigating home and school life, and the challenges she faces. A key part of her feeling secure is her favourite black hoodie and we’re shown how much it upsets and unbalances her when her sister ‘borrows’ it.

          In terms of representation, not only is Ash in the film autistic, but her real-life family and friends appear beside her. Director Tom Hooper revealed that, ‘everything in the film is based on Ash and the family’s experience of living with autism. The script was completely rewritten to reflect their lived experience and we used improvisation on set throughout so that I could capture their voices.’

          The soundtrack brings together both sound effects and music. The film starts off with a distorted humming, backgrounding the anxiety of what would seem to be a straightforward morning schedule of getting up, out of the house and to school. There’s music on the radio in the car as Ash’s mum drives her two daughters and a friend of Lily’s to school, which Ash asks her to turn off, as the noise in the car is clearly upsetting her. As other sequences at school play through, the background music is unobtrusive and level, but with a slightly melancholy edge. It becomes unsettling when Ash accuses Lily of taking her hoodie and they fight, before expanding to sound more calming and positive at the end, where Ash is shown enjoying a class.

          Burger King – We Give Up

          McDonald’s aren’t the only fast-food brand to use humour in their campaigns this year. Ad agency BBH cooked up a tongue-in-cheek story for Burger King – released as part of the promotion for Burger King’s official Chicken Royale Day – an event on 7th June where the Home of the Whopper offered fans a Chicken Royale for just £1 via the Burger King app.

          However, gone are the days of showing a gorgeous grilled chicken fillet landing on a bed of lettuce – instead, this is a counter-intuitive retro whizz through decades of marketing for the Whopper and its home, with a groovy soundtrack to match (we defy anyone not to have the 60s-style ‘Whopper, Whopper’ refrain bouncing round their brain for hours afterwards). The jingle gives way to jazzy hi-hats for the 70s, and classic 80s synths.  Our ‘hero’ travels through carefully created streets from the 1960s to the 2020s, bombarded by Whopper ads wherever he looks, only to get to the counter and order… a Chicken Royale. ‘We give up’, runs the tagline, as the jingle changes to a 60s ‘Royale, Chicken Royale’ refrain.

          Soco Núñez de Cela – Brand and Communications Director at Burger King, said, ‘At Burger King, we’ve hero-ed our iconic Whopper for decades. This year, we wanted to flip the status quo and celebrate a fan favourite, the Chicken Royale instead.

          Greenpeace

          Greenpeace brought heavyweight voice talent on board for their campaign film, highlighting the shocking extent of the threat to ocean health, and the dangers and stresses our oceans are facing.

          In the animation, Camila Cabello voices an eel, trying to help Jane Fonda’s determined flying fish to reach safety and clean water. The pair encounter plastics, deep sea mining, industrial fishing nets and dead fish on their journey. The flying fish ends up on her own, after mistakenly following debris that looks like the eel, before being rescued and helped out of the murk to the sanctuary of clean waters by a friendly whale, voiced by Mission Impossible actor Simon Pegg, a longtime Greenpeace supporter.

          The ad finishes with Pegg’s voiceover, highlighting that, ‘our oceans are under threat and time is running out. World leaders finally agreed a Global Ocean Treaty that can protect the oceans, our home. Now they must use this Treaty to create ocean sanctuaries where marine life can recover and thrive.’

          Fiona Nicholls of Greenpeace’s Protect The Oceans campaign said: ‘Ocean sanctuaries provide relief from the growing threats that sea creatures face from climate breakdown, pollution and overfishing. But as well as giving wildlife and ecosystems a fighting chance, they sustain the billions of people who still get nourishment and a livelihood from the ocean.’

          Just Eat

          Just Eat have become famous for their celeb-filled ads – from Snoop Dogg to Katy Perry, their campaigns are full of fun, wit and OTT styling. In what could be the hottest collab of the year, pop icon Christina Aguilera and rising rapper Latto are the delivery service’s latest stars.

          The dining divas team up in a baroque mega-mansion (complete with its own canal and super-glam gondola) in a fusion of hip hop and opera, incredible costuming, elaborate choreography, hordes of orange-clad delivery dudes and Christina’s lung-busting vocals causing a vast chandelier to shatter.

          From Thai salad to tacos, sushi delivered by a dinky train (Yo Sushi, can we have one of these at St Pancras while we’re waiting for the Eurostar?), mezze to macarons and acai to iced coffee, the message is that there’s way more to Just Eat than fast food. With everything from premium dishes to groceries, the carefully crafted lyrics also reflect the rise in demand for food delivery in non-traditional takeaway moments, including breakfast, brunch and lunch.

          The amazing choreography was done by legendary hip hop choreographer Hi-Hat, who’s worked with the likes of Rihanna and Jay-Z.

          John Lewis – Snapper: The Perfect Tree

          What do you get when you cross Little Shop Of Horrors with Andrea Bocelli? John Lewis’ 2023 Christmas advert, Snapper: The Perfect Tree. Following last year’s heart-warming ad The Beginner, Saatchi & Saatchi’s surreal spot tells the story of Alfie, a small boy who buys a mysterious ‘Grow Your Own Perfect Christmas Tree’ kit from a flea market.

          Come Christmas morning, little Alfie is sad watching Snapper alone outside, and takes a gift out to open alongside the giant plant. Alfie is soon followed by the rest of his family with their presents, which Snapper gobbles up and spits out, each magically unwrapped. The moral of the story is summed up in the advert’s tagline, “Let your traditions grow.”

          Set to the jaunty strains of Andrea Bocelli’s operatic original ‘Festa’, this is also the first John Lewis advert in years not to foreground a stripped-back acoustic cover, owing to the brand changing their creative agency this year from long-term partners Adam & Eve/DDB to Saatchi & Saatchi.

          The ad was directed by French collective Megaforce, who have previously done some beautiful, inventive work for Burberry. Will it be one of the most memorable Christmas adverts 2023? Only time (and, we suspect, sales of cuddly Venus flytrap toys at John Lewis), will tell…

          Deep Dives

          Can’t get enough great ads? Check out our deep dives on the dark art of subliminal advertising; a selection of ads that stirred up controversy; the history of women in advertising, and our pick of the best ads from last year.

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          THE BEST TWIX ADS: THE ULTIMATE LIST

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            Feeling a bit peckish? You might want to reach for a Twix. But how have Mars, Inc. persuaded us to pick a Twix since the product was first launched in the UK in 1967? Let’s take a look at some of the best Twix adverts of all time…

            Pick a Side

            Just over a decade ago, Twix launched their ‘Pick a Side’ campaign. Were you Left Twix or Right Twix? Mars’s idea was to create a rivalry between the two, putting the brand ‘at the heart of a great story’. The campaign ended up being so successful, with separate packaging for Left and Right, that ‘is there really a difference between Left and Right Twix’ is a regularly-Googled question.

            Mars created an origin story, featuring partners Earl and Seamus, who created the biscuit/caramel/chocolate combo together, but then came to bitter blows and divided the company in two.

            However, both decided to build a factory, which ended up being… next to each other. ‘Each took very different approaches’, we’re assured. ‘Left Twix lavished caramel on biscuit’, whilst ‘Right Twix topped biscuit with caramel’. ‘Left Twix then covered it with chocolate, while Right Twix smothered it in chocolate’. The tagline, ‘try both, and pick a side’ definitely subconsciously fools you into the idea that the two products might be different, even though they’re demonstrably not.

            The ad has a throwback, oompah-style comedy soundtrack to reinforce the 19th-century stylings of the factories and their owners.

            The idea continued with the ‘Twix Factory Tour’ ad, where a Left Twix employee is infuriated by an annoying tween with shades of Charlie and The Chocolate Factory’s Mike TeaVee keeps saying that Right Twix have the same things that Left Twix do in their factory. Our guide shuts him up with a handily deployed strip of packing tape. ‘Do they have packing tape like that over at Right Twix?’ he asks him sarcastically.

            Twix then brought the Left/Right concept into a more urban scenario with the ‘Bouncer/Doorman’ ad:

            Saying that Left Twix and Right Twix are the same is ‘as ignorant as saying that you, a bouncer, are the same as me, a doorman’.

            Is your Twix the perfect partner for coffee? Well, that very much depends on where you work, whether your vending machine works for both Left and Right Twix, and which of the two bars you have a preference for. David, unfortunately, prefers a Right Twix and so is out of luck. Switch to Left, David!

            Funny Twix Commercials

            Upping the humour even further is the Bears/Camping Twix ad made by adam&eveDDB Chicago from May 2022.

            Twin campers reflect that it doesn’t matter if you choose Left or Right, ‘because they’re both chewy, crunchy and delicious.’ Two brown bears watching the campers agree that it doesn’t matter which they choose as they’re both… ‘chewy, crunchy and delicious’. ‘You know what else I like?’ asks the bear. ‘The sound of the snap’, says one of the campers, ‘As you bite into it’ finishes the bear.

            It’s silly, it’s simple, it’s funny and it’s memorable. After all, when there are so many stressful decisions to make every day, it’s nice to know that Twix (or choosing which identical man to eat) is the one decision you can’t get wrong. The spot was awarded a D&AD Yellow Pencil award for a Social Commercial Under 30 Seconds, and also scored big at last year’s Cannes Lions awards.

            Animals are clearly a fun concept for Twix – ‘Philosophical Chickens’ is another humorous ad, this time for Twix Cookie Dough, launched in February 2023.

            Two wide-eyed Geordie chickens are enviously watching a man eating a Twix bar with cookie and cookie dough. ‘Kinda makes you wonder which came first – the cookie, or the cookie dough?’ ponders one. The other looks startled and lays an egg, making the connection to the age-old philosophical chicken/egg conundrum.

            90s Twix Ads

            The Twix commercials from the 90s in the UK featured irritating black and white uber-nerd character Norm, who would pop up, largely where he was least wanted. Having a Twix enabled you to ‘take a break from the Norm’ as he doled out unwanted commentary.

            In this ad, a young man wants a sporty motor; Norm appears, giving sage advice on buying something sensible, but is reduced, bite by bite of our hero’s Twix, until he eventually disappears in a puff of biscuit-caramel-and-chocolate smoke.

            He was also on hand to offer his opinion when clothes-buying in this spot. But did our heroine want Norm’s thoughts on the suitability of grey polyester? Of course not! Be gone, Norm, she’s got bright colours to wear!

            This one from 1998 is a particularly surreal example of the series:

            Norm is launched into everything from a pool match to a fashion catwalk and then into a couple’s cab by cheeky Twix-eaters.

            Norm’s ads are soundtracked with 60s-esque, Austin Powers-style music to reinforce what a throwback he is.

            This ad from 2010, however, just encourages you to scoff both fingers of your Twix at once, because one might be lonely without the other (aww). The concept is held together by the soundtrack, which is Bryan Ferry’s ‘Let’s Stick Together’.

            Celeb Twix Ads

            Want to know an A-lister’s favourite snack? Of course you do. Here’s Usher proving his fondness for a Twix as he whizzes around a futuristic cityscape, goes underwater and has a dance about on the moon, whilst rapping:

            Alternatively, ‘it’s all in the mix’ with Lil’ Bow Wow in a mash-up with an En Vogue-style girl group and a bouncy, polka-esque band (you’ll have ‘Chewy caramel, chewy chewy’ lodged in your brain for days).

            Anastacia takes it up another level, adding in some brass and her distinctive vocals:

            80s Twix ads also traded on brilliantly catchy tracks – witness the – dare we call it a rap? – for ‘The Snack Gap’ ad:

            Yep, whenever there’s a snack gap, Twix fits. This one’s particularly great if you’re a fan of 80s fashions, as well as old Twix commercials.

            Take A (commercial) Break

            So, there you have it, our roundup of the best Twix ads! For the best of more brands, check out our deep dives on Adidas, Coca-Cola and Ribena, plus the Wonderful Everyday of IKEA.

            Read our monthly ad breakdown to keep up to date, or check out which of our tracks have been used by brands recently over on The Edit.

            And if you want music to license for advertising or lifestyle content for YouTube, then we have everything from orchestral classics to brand new releases. Our in-house music experts put together playlists covering every mood and genre, including seasonal specials, if you want to capture a summer sound, or harness the festive spirit, such as Hallowe’en or Christmas.

            Need Music for Your Project?

            At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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            just eat ads

            THE BEST JUST EAT ADVERTS & THEIR SOUNDTRACKS

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              Can you remember a time before Just Eat and the other delivery services revolutionised the humble takeaway? We barely do. In the dark Before Times, you might’ve had a curry or a Chinese meal delivered, every once in a while. But now? The choice is yours, literally morning, noon and night. To quote an Oscar winner, food these days is a question of Everything, Everywhere, All at Once.

              So, how does Just Eat stand out from the crowd? With its mischievous, fun-filled ads, and, of course, its sonic sign off – the tune you find yourself humming at odd moments of the day (probably accompanied by a stomach rumble), which may even have taken over from the McDonald’s whistle. Just Eat adds so much fun into their campaigns, so we take a look at the best and brightest of the Just Eat adverts, including Katy Perry, mini fist-pumps and, of course, Snoop Dogg.

              Katy Perry Just Eat Ad

              Who is the new face of Just Eat? Yes, it’s Katy Perry’s world now, and we just live in it. Pop’s Queen of Quirk and Kitsch became the face of the Just Eat ads in summer 2022. The ad is a brilliant insight into what we’re all definitely assuming is Katy’s actual home, complete with dancing ice cream cones and a Katy puppet helping her to play the piano in her attic.

              The genius of it lies in building an entire song out of the ‘Did Somebody Say Just Eat’ catchphrase. And not only that, but you find yourself singing along to it – whilst the brand reveals that you can order everything from a ‘mocha whip triple shot’ to a margarita with extra cheese, Subway and spicy chicken as Katy merrily rollerskates through her hallway with her curlers in, having ordered a ‘curry in a hurry’, eats sushi with her glamorous Afghan hounds whilst watching a movie in her own cinema room, has a Sub in the tub and wears a massive puffa coat in her empty fridge. Because why would you grocery shop when you can Just Eat?

              You’ll be humming, ‘Ding Dong, ding-da-da-ding dong’ for the rest of the day. It’s a work of Day-Glo genius all round, which was created by McCann London with the perfect pop song written by Perry herself, Kris Pooley, McCann London and the team responsible for the original track with Snoop Dogg. Plus, the ad was directed by iconic music video veteran Dave Meyers – who was responsible for ‘Swish Swish’ and ‘Firework’, so knows Katy and her aesthetic well.

              As for what makes Katy the perfect face for Just Eat, as she herself said, ‘Coincidentally, most of my records and eras have had food undertones to them, from strawberries to peppermints to now mushrooms. Ordering takeaway is a regular Saturday night for me, so it was fun to channel that into a video that is a combination of the things that bring joy to my life: poppy bright colours, wild outfits, and food puns sung over a catchy tune.’ Couldn’t have put it better ourselves.

              The Just Eat advert 2022 took the company’s marketing into a whole new league – it’s now a global creative brand platform, running across 18 markets in 20 languages. It’s a far cry from its UK launch in March 2006, when it had sales of just £36 for the month – only two years later they’d passed the five million order milestone.

              Did Somebody Say Just Eat?

              Even the brand themselves didn’t know how huge the ‘Did Somebody Say’ catchphrase and campaign was going to be. Susan O’Brien, VP Global Brand revealed to Creative Salon that, ‘we couldn’t have predicted the success of Did Somebody Say featuring Snoop Dogg. It just put the brand firmly on the cultural map, anchored the message that Just Eat is the answer to all food cravings, and connected us with audiences, building brand love and consideration in a fiercely competitive sector.’

              Yep, it’s arguable that The Doggfather really set Just Eat onto the path of delivery domination. The collaboration between Just Eat, McCann London, Byte, Craft and UM got an incredible reaction – especially as it launched in the middle of a global pandemic in 2020.

              Riff Raff Films director Francois Rousselet teamed up with rapper and pop culture icon Snoop Dogg to create a ‘Snoopified’ sequel to an earlier spot which featured the ‘Did Somebody Say Just Eat?’ earworm.

              Spoofing opulent rap videos, Snoop spits bars about sushi whilst reclining on a luxurious clam shell sofa, travels around on private jet Eat Force One and creates his own version of the classic music show Soul Train (Soul Food). Did you love Snoop more reclining in a giant bubble bath while still dressed in his tracksuit, or sitting on top of a gigantic stack of waffles with chocolate sauce dripping down them? It’s cool, it’s colourful, but above all, it’s just damn funny.

              As the ad’s copywriter Phil Dudman pointed out, it was a time when we all needed some joyful silliness and, in terms of the evolution of a brand message, ‘this is a brand that wouldn’t have considered sending itself up a couple of years ago. Let alone ripping the piss out of its own campaign. We’ve finally gone from trying too hard to tell a joke to genuinely sharing one. Perfectly fronted by an artist wo has always shown his funny side and likes his food as much as his herbs.’ As he said, the campaign delivered ‘a brand personality our competitors can’t match. And it’s gone from delivering food, to delivering a feeling.’

              Not to mention it was a huge hit on social media and in the press – and the best bit? Snoop himself obviously loves it. During an O2 gig in March 2023, in amongst ‘Drop it Like it’s Hot’ and ‘Who Am I (What’s my Name)’, the rap icon just happened to show the ad. Journalist Nick Reilly on Twitter said, ‘Dying at Snoop playing the entire Just Eat advert during his O2 show. He introduced it by saying he had the munchies and really needed some food.’ There are brand ambassadors, and then there’s Snoop Dogg.

              Doggy Dogg Christmas

              Christmas ads don’t all need to be John Lewis-style heart-tuggers. When you’re Just Eat, with Snoop giving you a whole lot of brand recognition, it’s time to have some fun.

              Christmas 2020 was transformed into a Doggy Dogg festive event – the opening shots of the ad show a pair of Snoop Dogg-embroidered slippers and (presumably) Snoop whistling a couple of bars of ‘O Christmas Tree’, before putting a model dog on top of the pillars either side of a set of glitzy gates.

              Kick back and relax as a blinged-up dog(g) sings a brilliant holiday-themed version of the Just Eat song (‘gettin’ sushi delivered by a reindeer’/ ‘Got my man Mr Claus on the line, let him know, that it’s Just Eat time’) in his massive mansion, surrounded by guests who are down for a good time.

              Even the BTS is fun:

              Love Island Idents – ‘Get Stuck In’

              If ever there was a show which demands a takeaway, it’s surely Love Island. Which made the show and Just Eat perfect partners – aka ‘100% my type on paper’. The fun idents feature a plethora of UK comedy talent – including Roisin Conaty, Isy Suttie, Inel Tomlinson, Tez Ilyaz, Jamali Maddix and rapper Lady Leshurr – voicing geckos, a chameleon, lovebirds and a tortoise as they chat about dating and food, bringing in some of the show’s key catchphrases.

              McCann London were behind this third outing for the brand pairing, with the animatronics designed, built and puppeteered by the award-winning John Nolan studio.

              Everybodyyy (Yeeah) Chicken Satayyy (Yeeah)

              Nostalgic for the 90s? Who isn’t? In 2016, Just Eat turned out a Chinese takeaway-themed hit with their ‘Manband’ ad. Four guys are lounging in their open-plan kitchen/sitting room before launching into a classic black-and-white-with-aviator-shades formation reworked rendition of Backstreet Boys’ ‘Everybody (Backstreet’s Back)’.

              The best bit? It’s a toss-up between only one guy being under the cascading rainfall, and the delivery boy singing, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m back again’ with a Vocoder effect as the door opens at the end.

              The Early Earworm

              Before Just Eat got Snoopified, there was the first incarnation of the ‘Did Somebody Say…’ earworm in 2019 – which, it’s fair to say, divided opinion. The brand itself captioned the ad on YouTube: ‘Warning – you’ll be singing this for days’, clearly aware that they were onto a winner, whether it drove people mad or not.

              The ad, the first for Just Eat by McCann London, features a young couple watching TV. The woman asks her partner if he wants to order a takeaway, at which point the characters on the TV – from a black and white film, to a gameshow, Wrestlemania contestants to Love Islanders, a massive Game of Thrones-style battle throng and Stewie from Family Guy – all start singing, ‘Did Somebody Say Just Eat?’ from the screen.

              The Gospel-tinged tune was a hit: a brand legend was born.

              Just Eat Promotions

              ‘We Got It’ was a Just Eat promotion that launched in January 2021, which celebrated the delivery service expanding into major brands. The ads ran alongside the ongoing ‘Did Somebody Say’ campaign.

              With ‘We Got It’, McCann London focused in on the theme of highly personalised customer targeting, with the lead actress morphing into wildly different characters in her sitting room. All her furnishings and decorations are then rapidly rebranded with brand logos (KFC, McDonalds, Greggs) and she’s overlaid with a bunch of animal filters. They’ll deliver to your crib, palace or bunker (!) – further props to the set designers for their genius reinterpretation of the space each time. It’s an ad that packs in a lot, but the message never gets scrambled: you can now get all your favourite food brands delivered, wherever you want them.

              Director Finn Keenan said, ‘the script is a brilliantly cheeky observation of those “personal” targeted commercials. A knowing nod that we’re all a bit over that “we know you better than we know yourself” approach. So, we took the idea of those over-friendly ads, and doubled down on how ridiculous they can be. I was delighted at how much I was allowed to push the idea and put our hero, the wonderful Daisy Badger, through an absolute onslaught of intense, in-your-face advertising.’

              The soundtrack focuses on rapid sound effects to illustrate each visual transition, plus an ethereal choral as our customer is presented with all her fave foods from the brands. Then, of course, the ‘Did Somebody Say Just Eat’ sting to finish.

              The new Just Eat ad 2023 showcases the fact that now you can get your groceries through Just Eat too:

              The Matt Berry-esque voiceover has been updated (‘looks like you’re so busy – sitting, knitting… rage-quitting’ – very 2023), but the actress and her sitting room are the same as before, except now the latter is filling up with bags full of groceries. There’s going to come a point where none of us ever needs to leave the house again…

              Balti Rocks

              All the way back in 2015, Just Eat used a reworked version of Bonnie Tyler’s classic 80s power ballad, ‘Holding Out for a Hero’ to soundtrack a man who fancies a curry. ‘I need a balti. I’m holding out for a balti lamb tikka tonight. It’s got to be hot and it’s got to be fresh, and it’s got to have mushroom fried rice, mushroom fried rice’ sings our hero, as his suburban sitting room disintegrates around him and he’s transformed into a mullet-haired rocker on stage, surrounded by flames and yes, a giant balti dish.

              Daft, but obviously memorable, this was part of the ‘Mini Fist Pump’ campaign.

              His partner, meanwhile, preferred to go dance crazy with her Chicken Madras:

              Did Groove Armada ever think that ‘I See You Baby’ was going to be repurposed to pimp out takeaway curry? Probably not, but that’s the joy of sync sometimes.

              Hot Stuff

              Want to know how your Just Eat delivery arrives so quickly? Probably down to the fact that their bikes don’t actually use the roads.

              Nope, Just Eat takes to the air, with some Red Arrows-style formation flying, all set to Donna Summer’s disco classic, ‘Hot Stuff’, to demo just how many deliveries they’re doing on an average Wednesday night.

              Just Eat’s Mini Fist Pump

              The brand’s Mini Fist Pump ads were launched in September 2014. The campaign celebrated life’s small victories, capturing the feeling of ordering a takeaway, all the way through to the moment when you hear the knock on the door announcing the arrival of the delivery driver (or these days when you see the magic dot making its way up your street on the app map).

              From getting a free bar of chocolate from the vending machine to having a hot guy sit next to you on a flight and your partner suggesting a takeaway whilst you’re waiting for a bus in the pouring rain, these are the mini fist pump moments.

              Creative agency The Red Brick Road’s longer version featured more moments, this time to the jaunty soundtrack of ‘Wouldn’t it be Lovely’ from Oliver!

              Top marks for the pregnant pandas in particular – though possibly that deserves more than a mini paw-pump, given how notoriously rare panda cubs are.

              Victoria Bloom, UK head of brand, explained the idea behind the campaign: ‘The mini fist pump perfectly personifies the feeling you get when ordering a takeaway. It’s just like finding a fiver in an old pair of jeans or grabbing the last seat on a packed train. Our new campaign is about celebrating every last one of these little wins that brighten up our daily lives along the way. After all, the entire Just Eat takeaway experience is packed full of mini fist pump moments, from the first few taps of your order to the last bite.’

              Magic is Real

              ‘Magic is Real’ also used a catchy song – although this one was more like one of those tracks from a Disney musical that transports you through a montage.

              A guy running a Chinese takeaway dances his way through the kitchens, with food and kitchen knives flying around and working their magic. By the end, it’s an all-singing, all-dancing street scene, filled with takeaway owners and another flying delivery bike.

              The First Just Eat Advert

              One of the first Just Eat ads was a decade ago. ‘Don’t Cook, Just Eat’ used a Reservoir Dogs/Peaky Blinders-style gang of furious takeaway chefs rampaging through town armed with whisks, ladles, chopsticks and cheese graters, ‘angry because you is cooking all the time.’

              Cooking is not something to just tinker about with at home, yourself! No, it must be left to the professionals. These guys.

              It’s a fun ad, soundtracked by 60s-style heist music, heavy on Bond-esque brass to give it that Mob boss vibe.

              Did Somebody Say…

              You need music for advertising? Well, much like Just Eat, we have anything you fancy, no matter the genre or mood. We’ve got handy playlists; collections – with Snoop-style hip hop and tracks that are just made for sync. Oh – and the ideal music for food content, whether you’re ordering in, cooking or demo-ing.

              Want more on the best brand ads? Check out The Edit, where you’ll find everything from Coca-Cola to McDonalds, and The Wonderful Everyday of Ikea for inspiration.

              DISCOVER: MUSIC FOR ADS

              Need Music for Your Project?

              At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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              AUDIO NETWORK VINYL

              THE BEST GYMSHARK ADS: THE ULTIMATE LIST

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                Need new gym kit? We’re betting Gymshark is on your list. The Brit fitness wear and accessories brand was founded just over a decade ago and has used a combination of influencer marketing, user-generated content, social media and community creation to build its brand.

                Gymshark was founded in 2012 by teenager Ben Francis, from his parents’ garage in Birmingham and is now a global brand worth over $1.4 billion, selling to consumers in 180 countries.

                Gymshark Instagram Ads

                The best way to sell activewear? Show influencers for your target audience wearing it. It’s an easy tactic to maximise that marketing budget and it was the original way that – as a fledgling company – Gymshark made its mark.

                Gymshark are highly selective in the influencers they use; you can’t apply to be an ambassador, you have to be invited to be one. Their earliest partners were YouTube body builders Nikki Blackketter and Lex Griffin.

                This approach means that the brand has not only fostered a significant following across all the digital platforms, but also built a community of like-minded people; it’s more than just a fashion line, it’s a space for people who share common values and a serious interest in fitness.

                The influencers create a wealth of content for the brand by posting and tagging regularly. Their interactive marketing campaigns, such as the 66 Days, Change your Life challenge where people posted before and after photos, which debuted in 2018, has led to it being an ongoing campaign.

                The brand are huge on Instagram with over 10 million followers. They max out their engagement every year with their two exclusive sales: one for Black Friday, and one during their birthday month in July.

                Blackout for Black Friday

                Blackout for Black Friday saw Gymshark working with the Facebook Creative Shop to devise a campaign; they decided to switch up their tactics, using blacked-out pictures rather than their usual emphasis on bright images. The campaign, featuring user generated content, Instagram Stories and carousel ads, reached over 16 million people.

                Gymshark’s Chief Creative Officer Noel Mack told Marketing Week that, ‘Instagram is a huge part of our story because of the communities we create, but the challenge is always how to stand out among so many online businesses vying for consumers’ attention. We’ve been building our following organically, since day one of the brand. We like to think a Gymshark Instagram post is very recognisable because of our unique photography style, almost over-exposing pictures to create a really aspirational look, drawing particular attention to the athlete and our product.’

                Their ‘Big Deal Energy’ Black Friday ad was certainly a standout, featuring KSI, Behzinga, Munya Chawawa and Calfreezy and with a soundtrack that’s as fast as its edits:

                Go behind the scenes of the incredibly high energy spot, as KSI shows off his new games room, Behzinga destroys things and Calfreezy goes full Ron Burgundy.

                Gymshark Advertising

                Gymshark position themselves as an aspirational brand, and their content reflects that. Gymshark campaigns are often built around a sense of community – we’re all joining together in working out. ‘United We Sweat’ definitely focuses on this aspect of sharing in highs and lows, pains and losses.

                It’s framed as exercise being a way to fight against the world ‘trying to pull us apart – spreading bad news, never good news’. Workouts – whether in a park or a gym, the weights room or a rugby pitch – can be a way to ‘drown out the noise’ and where ‘we don’t have to look the same’.

                The ad celebrates diversity and choosing to take part in whatever sport or activity you want to – and share in the friends and ‘family’ that surrounds it.

                Habit Forming

                Gymshark’s ethos in their campaigns is to show people striving to be their best. They say it takes 66 days to build a habit – that’s the premise of this ad, which follows gym-goer Elliot on the first 66 days of his journey, with daily 6.00am starts and workouts involving weights and treadmill running, cross-trainers and rowing machines.

                The soundtrack is ‘Fear’ by Andrew Judah, which is gently uplifting and inspiring.

                The campaign has evolved, with 2021’s ad featuring comedian Munya Chawawa bringing a more lighthearted spin, and a wider range of exercises.

                Alternatively, the ‘strongest man in the universe’, Hafthor Bjornsson (Game of Thrones) and his mini-me, Half-Hafthor are here to tell you about the daily steps that can take you to your overall goal.

                Build Your Legacy

                The Legacy collection features the original Gymshark logo and a fit that’s specially created for a bodybuilder’s physique.

                Want to know how a legend is made? Look to this ad, which has a voiceover from Dorian Yates, six-time winner of Mr Olympia from 1992-1997, who was recorded in Marbella during a quick turnaround 24-hour trip; the speech was created by one of Gymshark’s copywriters, Harry Foley:

                ‘It’s the glamour of success that receives all the attention and respect, but we really wanted to promote the idea that it should go to the aspiration of “The Journey”. Those early steps you’re taking are the same ones your idols took when they began, so keep following.’

                Go behind the scenes to see the ad’s filming techniques, 3D-modelling and the inspiration provided by classical sculptures:

                The man behind ‘Build Your Legacy’ is Ash Evans, who created all the motion graphics. His idea was that, ‘the original Gymshark athletes, Lex, Ogus and Lavado, were immortalised as statues, whilst David is still building his legacy training in the gym.’

                The soundtrack has an ethereal vocal which bolsters the mythical Greek/Mount Olympus feel that’s generated by the statues.

                Look Good, Lift Ugly

                This campaign used a billboard in New York’s Times Square, challenging the perfect image of gym-goers. The ads featured TikTok fitness influencer Dave Olesinski, personal trainer Oyinda Okunowo and Gymshark community member Jada O’Neill.

                ‘We had a word with ourselves and decided we wanted to do something to tackle this stereotype. We also wanted to lean on our heritage of encouraging and backing no-nonsense hard workers in the gym,’ Gymshark chief brand officer Noel Mack told Marketing Beat.

                ‘And we wanted to have a bit of a laugh with it at the same time. So, to all those people who worry about their facial expressions or how they look when working out, we’re here to say: “We got you”, but at least your outfit will look exceptional!’

                Gymshark Workouts

                Gymshark post hundreds of workouts on their YouTube channel, including the Strength Test series and Humans of Conditioning, a series that celebrates the trials and triumphs of ‘some of the most extraordinary people on the planet’.

                The Train for Life series takes you into the gym and into the mindset of a Gymshark athlete, such as Whitney Simmons:

                Or try one of their ‘Follow Along’ workouts:

                Does Gymshark Have Gyms?

                Currently, there’s just one, the Gymshark Lifting Club (GSLC), located in the Blythe Valley Business park in Solihull, close to the company’s Head Quarters.

                Music for Fitness Content

                If you’re looking for music to license for fitness or sport content, then we have a huge range. From winter to summer, highs to lows, your 66 Day Challenge-style journey and the determination to keep going – take your pick from our specially-chosen playlists. Check out our motivating sports hip hop to get your started.

                DISCOVER: MUSIC FOR SPORTS

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                BLEU DE CHANEL LATEST AD BREAKDOWN

                ADVERTISING, OLD /
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                  If you’ve been wondering why everyone’s talking about the new Bleu de Chanel campaign, then we have the answers. For a start, there are some BIG names involved – it’s being directed by one of cinema’s biggest icons, Martin Scorsese. Yes, Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, The Wolf of Wall Street – that Martin Scorsese. And it stars one of Hollywood’s major young stars, Franco-American actor Timothée Chalamet, soon to be seen in one of autumn/winter’s biggest blockbusters, the highly anticipated Dune: Part Two in November, and the Willy Wonka origin story, Wonka, due for release at the end of this year. Fans are also buzzing about the Bleu de Chanel advert song and how it adds to the campaign's allure.

                  27-year-old Chalamet is the Eau de Toilette’s new ambassador, replacing the late French actor Gaspard Ulliel, who had appeared in an earlier, Scorsese-directed campaign for the scent in 2010.

                  Ulliel and Bleu’s 2018 ad also had an acclaimed movie director at the helm: Steve McQueen (Shame, 12 Years a Slave, Widows):

                  French actor Ulliel was the face of the men’s fragrance for 12 years. He tragically died at the age of 37 following a skiing accident, in January 2022.

                  The New Ambassador for Bleu

                  Timothée Chalamet’s meteoric rise to international acclaim began with his performance in Luca Guadagnino’s 2017 coming of age film Call Me by Your Name. His disarming, magnetic portrayal earned him an Academy Award nod for Best Actor — and he also made history, as the category’s third youngest nominee ever.

                  Since then, he’s proved his flexibility, appearing in everything from Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird and Little Women to Adam McKay’s Don’t Look Up, and most recently Guadagnino’s Bones and All. Not to mention he’s portraying Bob Dylan in James Mangold’s A Complete Unknown, which starts shooting this summer.

                  Vogue Business thinks Chalamet’s appointment as the face of Bleu ‘underlines an ongoing shift away from traditional notions of masculinity across the beauty industry’, and his selection certainly points to the heritage brand setting their sights on a younger demographic.

                  Chalamet and Scorsese were spotted shooting the campaign film – which is due to drop this autumn – out and about on the streets of New York in April.

                  What do we know so far? Well, filming has taken place on a rainy platform in Astoria Boulevard Station, with Chalamet looking sharp in a suit, and there’s a scene set on the subway carriage.

                  The print ad campaign has been shot by Mario Sorrenti, who has also directed the video announcing Chalamet as the fragrance’s new ambassador, looking brooding and with a blue filter, soundtracked by – who else – The Moody Blues. Their most famous track, ‘Nights in White Satin’, originally released in 1967, is sure to find some new fans now it’s been featured in this spot.

                  It’s all we have for the moment, so, watch this space for an update when the final campaign film drops…

                  Ad-spiration

                  Check out more iconic ambassadors, with Ryan Gosling’s fun-filled ad for Tag Heuer, and Daniel Craig having a ball for Belvedere Vodka. Want more Oscar-winning directors lending their expertise to ads? Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech) has created an award-winning, heart-warming ad for Vanish. Explore The Edit for our monthly roundups of the best ad creatives.

                  Need Music for Your Project?

                  At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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                  This page was updated 27/06/2024.

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                  THE BEST HALLOWEEN CAMPAIGNS OF ALL TIME

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                    Halloween is the perfect opportunity to get creative with your campaigns. From dedicated, limited-edition Halloween branding to Halloween social media campaigns, we’ve rounded up the scariest, spookiest and silliest in Halloween marketing for your delight. From Heinz and Call of Duty to the big guns of Universal Studios and KFC’s 80s-inspired horror promo, do you dare to be scared?

                    Here are the brands who’ve produced the most frightfully fabulous Halloween marketing campaigns:

                    • Heinz
                    • Universal Studios
                    • Disney Channel
                    • KFC
                    • Call of Duty

                    The Best Halloween Campaigns

                    Heinz Tomato Blood

                    If you don’t want to splash out on fake blood from the costume shop, then ketchup makes a pretty good substitute. To promote their limited-edition Halloween branded ‘Tomato Blood’ bottle design, Heinz enlisted TikTok creator E.J. Marcus to play the role of a vegetarian vampire, Toby, in a playful ad scheduled during the premiere of AMC’s Interview with the Vampire series.

                    Cute and funny, if you’re a What We Do in the Shadows fan, then you’ll recognise the idea of having a vampire housemate. Heinz have chosen classic comedy eerie music as the soundtrack, as ‘influencer vampire’ Toby earnestly tries to persuade more vampires to go veggie – ‘Because humans are people too!’ The video is also streaming on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, targeting Gen Z buyers.

                    Universal Studios – Halloween Horror Nights

                    Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights promise terrifying haunted houses, sinister scare zones, outrageous live entertainment and exciting attractions.

                    This promo film starring ‘the scream squad’ features teen characters Selfie Queen, The Snacker, Superfan, The Jock and more, who learn that you need to stick together, or you won’t last long…

                    The film features some horror classics, such as Michael Myers and his hockey mask from the original Halloween, a creepy, Children of the Corn-style attack, plus – of course – zombies.

                    There’s a series of promos featuring horror names including Blumhouse Productions (Paranormal Activity, Insidious, The Purge, Get Out).

                    Plus, there are character stand-alones, such as this one featuring The Jock and the Killer Klowns from Outer Space.

                    And Legends Collide in this monster-themed spot starring The Snacker.

                    The visuals are all matched by creepy sound effects, references to classic horror soundtracks (including Halloween) and, of course, plenty of screams…

                    Disney Channel - Calling all the Monsters

                    And if you are staying in on All Hallows Eve with the kids, then rest assured, the Disney Channel has you covered.

                    What a festival of family-friendly frights! The Worst Witch, Frankenweenie, all the Hotel Transylvania films, Under Wraps, Bunk’d, Toy Story of Terror and so much more. You’ll need the whole month of October to watch them all.

                    KFC – La Masacre/The Massacre

                    KFC have turned to 80s-inspired horror for their Halloween campaign. The long-form video ad campaign released in Spain supports their pizza menu and unleashes hot, gory, Evil Dead-style mayhem.

                    Created by PS21 and directed by Spanish filmmaker NYSU, The Massacre was inspired by the work of horror legends Sam Raimi, Joe Dante and Tobe Hooper. The 14-minute short tells the story of five friends who drive to a remote cabin (‘Someone’s bound to have died here!’) for a weekend of fun. There’s been a communications mix-up: they have plenty of booze, but no food, until a stack of mysterious pizzas arrives… It’s probably best not to eat food from ‘Semetary Pizza’, is all we’ll say.

                    The title sequence of the film is definitely tapping into the love for horror-tastic Season 4 of Stranger Things, with the red text and 80s electronic soundtrack. It’s a great piece of horror filmmaking and keeps you hooked till the end, which is no mean feat for a spoof.

                    Call of Duty

                    Call of Duty really brought the scares with their interactive zombie street prank scare in London. Created to celebrate the release of Call of Duty: Vanguard, you can’t fault the zombies created for a Zombie Trophy Head Wall targeting unsuspecting Londoners. The interactive installation definitely succeeded in freaking people out!

                    The promo video of amusing reactions to the creepy installment starts off with classic, tension-filled music to showcase the zombie heads, before veering off into a more comedic track, featuring a German vocal. This ties into a theme of the fun offered by the game: ‘The only thing better than killing a zombie, is killing a Nazi zombie.’

                    Still Want More?

                    We have loads more of the best Halloween ads on our blog, plus a deep dive on the ultimate horror movie soundtracks. And if you want to try your hand at creating your own horror content, then check out our expert guide to how to make a horror movie.

                    If you just want to get into the spirit (ha) of things, then we’ve got any number of horror and Halloween playlists for you. Plus, if you’re looking for music to license, then we have music for advertising and music for TV programmes in every possible genre.

                    Need Music for Your Project?

                    At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

                    SIGN UP

                    This page was updated 21/05/2024.

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                    BURBERRY

                    THE BEST BURBERRY ADVERTS: A FULL RUNDOWN

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                      Burberry are one of Britain’s most iconic clotheing brands, with huge numbers of fans internationally. From the Burberry check pattern to the new Burberry fragrance, Goddess, what are the best Burberry commercials, and who has starred in them?

                      Best of British

                      Burberry was established way back in 1856 by Thomas Burberry, a former draper’s apprentice. Aged only 21, he opened his own shop in Basingstoke and by 1870, the business was celebrated for its development of outdoor clothing. In 1879, Burberry introduced gabardine to the clothes – a hard-wearing, water-resistant but breathable fabric, which made his trenchcoats a garment to stand the test of time.

                      Did you know that Burberry was the official outfitter for Roald Amundsen, the first man to reach the South Pole, and Ernest Shackleton, for his 1914 expedition to cross Antarctica? Not to mention George Mallory sporting a Burberry gabardine jacket for his attempt on Mount Everest in 1924. Plus, in 1937, A.E. Clouston and Betty Kirby-Green broke the world record for the fastest return flight from London to Cape Town in The Burberry aeroplane, which was sponsored by the brand. These are clothes that come with a lot of history.

                      The iconic ‘Burberry check’ has been in use since at least the 1920s, mainly as a lining in its trench coats. However, it was Jacqueline Dillemman, a buyer in Burberry’s Paris store, who had a flash of inspiration in 1967, while preparing a presentation for British ambassador Sir Patrick Reilly. She removed the check lining from a coat, wrapped it around luggage and an umbrella and a branding icon was born.

                      Asif Kapadia (Amy, Senna), directed short film The Tale of Thomas Burberry, starring Domhnall Gleeson as the eponymous designer, with Dominic West as Shackleton, plus Lily James and Sienna Miller.

                      It’s definitely a story that deserves the full, big-screen treatment!

                      Night Creatures

                      The fashion house’s autumn/winter 2022 ad opens with three friends travelling home on the night bus through London, discussing a sci-fi movie they’ve just seen. When their bus is stopped by a mysterious, long-legged creature, you’d be forgiven for assuming that there’s going to be destruction, horror and the struggle for our three protagonists to escape a gory fate.

                      The ‘monster’ might well remind you of the tripods from War of the Worlds – or, if you’re a certain age, the ‘peace… no peace’ scene from Independence Day…

                      But happily, Burberry have something far more joyous planned for this alien interaction. A dance through London’s streets ensues, bringing in everything from freerunning to ballet and experimental movement. The choreography was put together by La(Horde), a collective founded in 2013 by artists Marine Brutti, Jonathan Debrouwer and Arthur Harel.

                      The trio have created choreographic works, films, video installations and performances that always evolve around the body in movement.

                      May the Force Be With You

                      French directing collective Megaforce have created numerous films for Burberry. They explained that, ‘we wanted to express the bold attitude that it takes to dive into the unknown: the fearless and playful spirit of adventure.’

                      Celebrating curiosity has always been part of the Burberry brand, with the house’s founder, Thomas Burberry, creating outerwear that combined creativity and curiosity.

                      Night Check is the latest iteration of the brand’s signature pattern; bright white stars appear in the dark blue. Plus, there’s an Exaggerated Check, which is a supersized take on the signature Burberry pattern. They’re shown off by the delicate, sinuous dance that the three stars of ‘Night Creatures’ enjoy across London, culminating in sailing off under a beautifully lit Tower Bridge. The film’s nocturnal ballet celebrates the best of Britishness in a joyful, unexpected, way.

                      The music for ‘Night Creatures’ is as magical as the visuals. The beautiful ‘Celebrations’ was composed by Guillaume Humery, who performs under the name of Yom. Originally a classical clarinettist, Humery has also studied Eastern European klezmer music.

                      The music kicks in as the three dancers take flight on the night creature’s tentacles. The twinkling, delicate track is underpinned by piano with classical influences, which contributes to the otherworldly feel of the film.

                      Burberry Open Spaces

                      Choreography collective La(Horde) have worked with everyone from 70-year-olds to blind performers. Their ‘Open Spaces’ film features four bold individuals defying gravity as they bound weightlessly through fields, twisting high above a towering forest and floating beautifully over a cliff edge as they come together at the end.

                      The pioneering film from 2021 blends reality with fantasy, helped by effects house The Mill, who crafted visual effects and photoreal CG.

                      ‘Open Spaces’ swept up 5 Stars, Ad of the Week and Work of the Week from Campaign Magazine UK, Adweek, The Drum and David Reviews.

                      Burberry Summer 2023 Swimwear Collection

                      The luxury house unveiled its summer 2023 swimwear collection by channelling its signature code of adventure. Celebrating escapism, it features the Burberry Check, first used to line the brand’s raincoats in the 1920s.

                      Photographer Tyrone Lebon worked with Burberry’s creative director Daniel Lee on the ad, which features modes Alex Schlab, Angelina Kendall, Matheus Mesquita, Tianna St. Louis and others.

                      The original score is by Vegyn, known for his work on Frank Ocean’s ‘Blonde’ and ‘Endless’ – it’s got a dreamy feel that works really well with the beautiful, Super 8-style shots of the models playing in the sea.

                      Burberry Festive ‘Open Spaces’

                      Megaforce’s magical formula of larger-than-life grandeur, but grounded in real experiences resulted in more awards when they created the snow and ice-filled ‘Singing in the Rain’-inspired ‘Open Spaces’ film for Burberry in November 2020.

                      Another impeccably dressed quartet dance through the streets, again choreographed by La(Horde) to a beats-driven remix by Lank & Tank feat. Dreya Mac.

                      Burberry and Billy Elliot

                      Burberry’s festive ads always eschew the traditional Christmas vibe – in 2015, creative director Christopher Bailey teamed up with photographer Mario Testino to pay tribute to 15 years of Billy Elliot. The star-studded ad featured a whole host of British talent – from Romeo Beckham to Downton Abbey’s Michelle Dockery, Naomi Campbell and Rosie Huntingdon-Whiteley to Elton John, James Bay, George Ezra and Julie Walters leaping around.

                      The A-listers were soundtracked by T Rex’s ‘Cosmic Dancer’.

                      Burberry Perfume Adverts

                      Burberry Goddess Advert

                      The Burberry fragrance ad for Goddess features as its brand ambassador the star of Barbie and Netflix’s Sex Education, Emma Mackey.

                      The British-French actress appears alongside a pride of lionesses, created using footage of the animals in the wild and CGI technology, to represent the power of female strength and inner confidence.

                      DJ and producer TSHA created the track ‘Goddess’, with vocals by Shygirl, specifically for the new Burberry ads.

                      Burberry Hero

                      Burberry certainly love pairing their brand ambassadors with animals - inspired by the Burberry Animal Kingdom (founder Thomas Burberry chose to present his company with the emblem of a knight on horseback, with a unicorn on his family crest.)

                      Few, however, have been as eye-catching as ‘Hero’s horse galloping into the ocean pursued by a shirtless Adam Driver before both emerge, seemingly having become some kind of 21st Century centaur.

                      Director Jonathan Glazer (Under the Skin, Sexy Beast) shot the commercial in Tenerife, Spain, and it’s accompanied by lyrics from a portion of FKA Twigs’ song ‘Two Weeks’.

                      The launch of Hero in 2021 was the first new fragrance under the leadership of the brand’s creative director Riccardo Tisci – and unlike campaigns for shoes, clothes or accessories, which are replaced every season, fragrance campaigns can last for years (David Gandy for Dolce & Gabbana’s Light Blue, anyone?)

                      The ad did what every great spot does: sets a mood, grabs your attention and then sticks in your head (with a hefty sprinkle of ‘WTF’ that definitely set social media alight).

                      Go behind the scenes with underwater Director of Photography Andy McLeod:

                      My Burberry Blush

                      Lily James is in a gorgeous blush pink mac for this ad for the brand’s floral, fresh fragrance. It’s beautifully simple and given depth by Duffy’s cover of the 1950s classic, ‘I Put a Spell on You’. Originally written and recorded by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, it’s had several hundred cover versions in the decades since, including a version by Nina Simone and a Hallowe’en classic, a performance of the song by Bette Midler in Disney movie Hocus Pocus, proving its versatility.

                      Burberry Her

                      Cara Delevingne was originally scouted by Burberry’s Christopher Bailey in 2012 and made her first catwalk appearance at London Fashion Week walking for the Burberry Prorsum A/W collection.

                      The model sports a punky bleached dye-job in this ad for the brand’s Her fragrance, as she drives around some of her hometown London’s landmarks. The ad was filmed by German artist and fashion photographer Juergen Teller, and multi-talented Cara also provides the soundtrack, with her own cover of the song ‘Maybe It’s Because I’m a Londoner’, which has a laid-back, Lily Allen-esque vibe.

                      Burberry The Pocket Bag

                      Looking for a true left-field fashion ad? This spot from summer 2020 has you very much covered. Starring supermodel Bella Hadid, it’s a high-concept film involving a panther and Bella being delivered to a warehouse in a giant wooden crate. She then spends the rest of her time prowling around the place (the janitor buffing the floors studiously ignores her), whilst the panther mooches about, unfazed by fashion royalty or this season’s It bag.

                      It was the brand’s first campaign dedicated exclusively to a bag and was filmed by Inez and Vinoodh, a Dutch-American fashion photographer duo.

                      Bella Hadid said, ‘I absolutely loved shooting this campaign, letting my inner animal spirit run free! We had so much fun on set, the mood was really sultry and playful, I felt we were really capturing that feline energy and power.’ The creative team also included legendary stylist Katy England.

                      The track, ‘Calcination’ by electronic musician Jlin, has a Japanese feel, with cymbal clashes at the start, and ethereal, mysterious vocals to match the slightly surreal atmosphere.

                      Burberry Spring/Summer – Cara and Jacob

                      Everyone’s favourite Brit and Burberry girl Cara Delevigne stars in this summer ad, with Jacob Young. It was the first ‘evolving’ campaign, with new models revealed every month.

                      The ads were shot on Brighton beach by famed fashion photographer Mario Testino, a long-time brand collaborator. ‘We wanted to create a dynamic, evolving campaign that reflects the diversity of our broad global consumer, revealing new British cast members each month, all with their own identity, embodying the different attitudes of the Burberry guy and girl.’

                      It’s a gorgeous mix of black and white and bleached-out colour, accompanied by The Feeling’s piano ballad ‘Rosé’, originally from their debut studio album. The version you hear was recorded as an ‘unplugged’ at Abbey Road, specifically for the Burberry Body fragrance campaign.

                      Lead vocalist Dan Gillespie Sells had done a shoot for Burberry; Chief Creative Officer Christopher Bailey liked his original piano vocal version, so the band re-recorded it at the iconic studio with strings to give it more of a feeling of refinement, and also to heighten the emotion in the song.

                      Check out the artfully shot fragrance ad which features the track, and stars supermodel Rosie Huntingdon-Whiteley who – by the looks of it – isn’t letting anything come between her and her glamorous gold Burberry mac.

                      It was another ad shot by Mario Testino and marked the return of Huntingdon-Whiteley as a brand ambassador, having first been the face of Burberry in 2010.

                      Burberry Prorsum – The Parka

                      Cara D can also be found larking around in an ad for the brand’s parka for Spring/Summer 2012, together with Eddie Redmayne, having a laugh in a very British way (he’s got his mug of tea with him, which is rather sweet.)

                      Another cover was provided by U2, this time taking on ‘Everlasting Love’ – originally released in 1967.

                      Ad-spiration

                      So, there you have it – an expert mix of glamour and brand history, iconography and perfectly-chosen tracks, which all make Burberry ads some of the most gorgeous fashion campaigns around.

                      Looking for music to license for advertising? We have everything you need, in any genre and to match every mood, including tracks for seasonal campaigns. From classical to bang up to date, our catalogue has hand-picked playlists, (including our dedicated fashion selection) and new music releases every fortnight.

                      Need Music for Your Project?

                      At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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