March 26, 2018

"This Look Inside Spike Jonze’s Apple Ad Is as Fascinating as the Film Itself/A behind-the-scenes video worthy of its subject."

Video of the ad and the documentary about the ad here, at AdWeek.

26 comments:

the 4chan Guy who reads Althouse said...

Is doing a behind-the-scenes film on Spike Jonze making an Apple ad actually an ad for Spike Jonze himself?

"...(Jonze) never stops moving throughout, and you get a real sense for how physically plugged in he is to the ideas here ..."

Knowing he is being filmed, is he acting the part of the hip 'plugged-in' director because it is a good way to market himself?

Secondary Reinforcement Advertising: hire the hip director, film him filming your commercial to show how hip he is, and thus highlight the hipness to show how hip you must be for having hired him.

Of course, Spike is mostly considered hip by the people who thought he was hip fiftreen-plus years ago in his prime.

The people who know work for publications about advertising.

Not realizing Hip has moved on.

The Germans have a word for this.

MayBee said...

I'm surprised this is a Spike Jonze ad. My son and I first saw it together and said, "Apple is losing its magic touch". Hmmm.

I don't hate it like I hate the little girl with the iPad ad, but I don't love it.

BarrySanders20 said...

Saw the ad this weekend. Hated it. Also hated the Apple ad where the high schooler turns on everything with her face. I am obviously not the target audience for these, but they made me not want to upgrade my current iPhone or buy any of that Alexa-type stuff. Fail for them in persuading me to buy their product. But the ad-man apparently is a cool cat. Not Spike Jones, who is in all the Capital One ads, but Spike Jonze. Different color Spike, different dude.

Bob Boyd said...

I wasn't comforted by the idea that the featured technology will take us through the looking glass.

Curious George said...

"MayBee said...
I don't hate it like I hate the little girl with the iPad ad, but I don't love it."

This is for you then.


Darrell said...

I'd like someday to be an off-camera dancer. And a dead-mic announcer.
And get paid to do it.

Fernandinande said...

"Tim Nudd" has an unfortunate name.

"They" are trying to manipulate you with their weaponized data on effective advertising methods and markets, but now it's Apple-y wonderful rather than Trump-y creepy.

the 4chan Guy who reads Althouse said...

"This Look Inside Sixty Minute's Interview with Stormy Daniels Is as Fascinating as the Interview Itself/A behind-the-scenes video worthy of its subject."

Anderson Cooper never stops being Serious throughout, and you get a real sense for how Seriously plugged in he is to the interview process.

Observe the Sixty Minutes crew congratulate themselves as they contribute to this Important Piece of Investigative Work.

Watch Anderson Cooper primp and practice his Serious News Interviewer Face.

Remember: they are selling you a Product.

The Product is Importance.

Because your concept of Importance is the old model, and the New One has been updated with many new features.

And now you can do Hypocrisy with stunning new filters.

The Germans have a word for this.

Barry Dauphin said...

Seems like a decent music video but not a very good ad.

Darrell said...

The ad would only work if she were nude throughout.
And she wasn't.

Sebastian said...

Drab to drab, dust to dust, some arbitrary moves in-between: such is life.

wildswan said...

The Germans Have a Word for That. said...
And now you can do Hypocrisy with stunning new filters.

Seems like a pretty creepy ad to me. When your life is like a scene in Bladerunner 1 have lots of fun with robot and AI. In a dream with stunning new filters and a person who looks exactly like you. Then wake up and - nothing has changed. If Alexa had given a creepy little laugh at the very end, then maybe we'd have had a good beginning for a sci-fi story.

Wince said...

I thought the short form of the ad I've seen before was better.

Simple concept of the device expanding one's existing boundaries.

YoungHegelian said...

"Hello, this is the building super. Your neighbors have called complaining about strange & loud noises coming from your apartment. You're not doing any construction work in there, are you?"

Darrell said...

Simple concept of the device expanding one's existing boundaries.

See, I thought SIRI was off-gassing hallucinogenic compounds into the room. I fully expected the dancer to throw the Apple device out the window at the end.

Anonymous said...

So you gain total freedom from your day-to-day hum-drum life by having an AI pod choose what you listen to ?

(BTW, the ad is brilliant and it makes the concept of turning your your life over to APPLE appealing.)

richlb said...

It's a great ad visually-speaking. But will it sell Homepods? That's really how you measure its success. I suspect not. Apple just stumbled too much out of the gate and let Amazon and Google get a foothold in this market. And their offering doesn't really upset the apple cart (heh) with amazing features, save for integrated iTunes and Siri.

richlb said...

Also, the spot reminds me of one of the best music videos of all time, filmed by Michel Gondry, a director with a similar visual palette to Jonez.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5FyfQDO5g0

madAsHell said...

Everything I know is new again!!

Kate said...

Lovely, lovely dancer. Beautiful piece of artwork. Also, the fact that most of the ad utilized practicals (rather than cgi) pleasantly surprised me. Nice little moment in time. Thanks for the post.

rehajm said...

Somebody watched Jamiriquoi’s Virtual Insanity video so many times their memory became an original idea.

Shorter: It’s been done.

Known Unknown said...

"Knowing he is being filmed, is he acting the part of the hip 'plugged-in' director because it is a good way to market himself?"

No. That's Spike Jonze.

Luke Lea said...

The documentary about the making was much more interesting than the final product. So much time, money, and effort spent on an inconsequential ad for Apple, the most valuable corporation in history? And all based largely on a single fashionable product, the iphone? I say sell!

Ann Althouse said...

Watched Jamiriquoi and Chemical Brothers, both recommended above.

Jamiriquoi I remember but had not scene in a long time. Love it. Kept wondering how they moved the floor, but they moved the set. Obvious once you know that.

Chem Bros I had to turn off. It’s too much like the real life vertigo I’ve suffered from at times.

Ann Althouse said...

Seen!

Brian McKim and/or Traci Skene said...

Must agree with the above. Jonze's video is a pale ripoff of John Michel Gondry's awesome "Let Forever Be" video, which he made for the Chemical Brothers. Next year the video will be 20 years old. (Didn't know until today that the vocals are from a Gallagher brother!)