PRIVATE VIEW: Marc Lucas

<p>I'm a fan of advertising. I pore through annuals and chew through </p><p>books on the topic at a rate of knots. I get a thrill from seeing great </p><p>work, regardless of where it's from or what it's for. Recently I hosted </p><p>a judging for an advertising festival during my vacation because I </p><p>wanted to see the ads (to my wife's ire). So when media magazine asked </p><p>me to be a guest reviewer, I was stoked. If nothing else, it would be an </p><p>opportunity to restore the karmic balance of some gruelling focus groups </p><p>I had just attended. When I got my allocation of ads, I was looking for </p><p>work to like, work that made me jealous, work that made me grin in </p><p>appreciation. With one exception, I was disappointed. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Compaq: It's easy to criticise work. Many clients make it a rule to </p><p>identify three positive elements in a piece of work before pointing out </p><p>its shortfalls. In a similar spirit, I will say the headline gave me </p><p>hope as the file opened on my desktop. The product shots are clean and </p><p>the layout is sparse, but that's about the best I can say. If I saw this </p><p>ad in the paper, I'd be hard pressed to remember I'd even seen it, let </p><p>alone remember what it's saying or what it's for. Sorry. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Swiss Army: Swiss Army watch is a product that has inspired some </p><p>excellent ads from agencies all over the world. These posters, while </p><p>timely and topical, are tenuous at best. Quotes about war, coupled with </p><p>military stock shots, do not an ad make. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Virgin Mobile: The trouble with being asked to review work from other </p><p>markets is that you can never be sure if it's better in context than </p><p>sitting on your desk. These mobile phone ads might be better if you know </p><p>who you're looking at and what they've been doing recently, but as a </p><p>lapsed Australian who's spent the last 12 years living away from home, </p><p>they leave me a bit baffled. The sad thing is, I'm not sure they'd be </p><p>any better if I did recognise the talent. Shame, really. I expected more </p><p>from Virgin. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Double A Paper: There are product categories where it's a struggle to </p><p>find something to say, let alone saying it in a way that's memorable and </p><p>engaging. I would put copy paper at the top of that list. "No jam" is a </p><p>simple message and this campaign renders it in an intrusive manner. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The print is elegant, the outdoor cuts through and the TV is zen in its </p><p>simplicity. I suspect people don't give much thought to their copy paper </p><p>until they run out, but when they do they'll probably remember that </p><p>Double A Paper doesn't jam. Nice work. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Fight Crime: I suspect that I'm losing something in the translation with </p><p>this one. While showing a teenager at the end of marionette strings, the </p><p>audio gives us snippets of voices from his life - the drug dealer, the </p><p>teacher, the gangster. The announcer tells us "with the right support, </p><p>young people will not become puppets of crime" as giant scissors cuts </p><p>the strings. All very admirable, but what would you like us to do? </p><p>Teenagers know more than this spot gives them credit for. The </p><p>simplistic, over-wrought, hand wringing tone undermines the credibility </p><p>of this and efforts like it. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>1010 CSL: This commercial opens with a quote from Chopin, "I wish never </p><p>even to have a taste of mediocrity." It's a bit late for that, I'm </p><p>afraid. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Featuring Li Yundi, the Gold Medal winner of the Chopin International </p><p>piano competition, this was obviously a big investment; big cast, great </p><p>locations, 'name' talent and slick production values - the only thing </p><p>missing is an idea. The trite vignettes (particularly the construction </p><p>workers) didn't help much, either. The few times I've seen this on TV, </p><p>I've been left wondering 'why?' The blurb that media sent over says they </p><p>want to "build their brand by associating with quality". Flawed logic </p><p>that led to deeply flawed advertising. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>1. Compaq </p><p>Project: Evo launch </p><p>Client: Compaq Asia-Pacific </p><p>Brief: Launch a new business offering in a highly competitive category </p><p>Agency: Draft Singapore </p><p>Creative directors: Graham Fordyce, Anthony Peplow </p><p>Copywriter: Graham Fordyce </p><p>Art directors: Lim Chye Ling, Anthony Peplow </p><p>Media used: Regional and local print, email and events </p><p>2. Swiss Army </p><p>Projec: The Peace Movement </p><p>Client: Jay Gee Enterprise </p><p>Brief: Position Swiss Military Watch as a brand that is different from </p><p>all the other watch brands selling on adventure or lifestyle factors </p><p>Agency: Gosh! Advertising, Singapore </p><p>Creative director: Lim Soon Huat </p><p>Copywriter: Noel Yeo </p><p>Art director: Jonathan Nah </p><p>Media used: print, in-store posters and Zo-cards </p><p>3. Virgin Mobile </p><p>Project: Virgin Mobile </p><p>Client: Virgin Mobile Australia </p><p>Brief: Communicate to existing mobile phone users the benefits of </p><p>changing carriers </p><p>Agency: George Patterson Bates, Australia </p><p>Creative director: The Glue Society </p><p>4. Double A Paper </p><p>Project: Double A Paper </p><p>Client: Agro Advance </p><p>Brief: Deliver a simple, single-minded message that says that Double A </p><p>paper does not jam. </p><p>Agency: JWT, Singapore </p><p>Creative director: Norman Tan </p><p>Copywriter: Joji Jacob </p><p>Art director: Benson Toh </p><p>5. Fight Crime </p><p>Project: Fight Crime Publicity Campaign 2001/2002 </p><p>Client: Hong Kong Government </p><p>Brief: Prevention of juvenile crime in Hong Kong </p><p>Agency: PMP Advertising, Hong Kong </p><p>Creative director: David Wong </p><p>Copywriter: Vincent Tse </p><p>6. 1010 CSL </p><p>Project: Pianist </p><p>Client: Hong Kong CSL </p><p>Brief: Focus on CSL's vision to "create a simple life" for its </p><p>customers by creating a world of perfect communication </p><p>Agency: Euro RSCG, Hong Kong </p><p>Creative directors: Rachel Chau, Angela Pong, Almon Lam </p><p>Copywriter: Yvonne Fok </p><p>Art directors: Billy Tang, May Wong </p><p>Media used: TVC, print, direct mail </p><p>Interested in having your campaigns reviewed? Send submissions to </p><p>Alfred Hille in the form of trims, transparencies or video printouts </p><p>for TVCs plus the TVC itself, and proofs for print ads and posters. </p><p>Please send all material to media, 28/F, Dorset House, 979 King's Road, </p><p>Quarry Bay, Hong Kong. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>