Awesome Ads

Is that a carrot in the sauna, or do you just need glasses? This jocular ad for UK optical company Specsavers features Gordon Ramsay and a bumbling gent who could really use an eye exam.

ASICS installed a video wall in the Columbus Circle subway station and challenged passersby to race against top U.S. marathoner Ryan Hall for just 60 feet. What do you think happened? (Thanks Juan!)

To promote the 2nd season of Boardwalk Empire, HBO is running an authentic 1920s train in the 2/3 line of the New York City subway this September. This train’s first run was way back in 1917.

The ever-creative ad agency Ogilvy presented several conspiracy theories as plastic model kits in their ad campaign for model hobby manufacturer Tamiya. Hit the link for the full sized pics.

Levi’s Europe let Portugese street artist Alexandre Farto, aka Vhils, be the creative mind behind their Now is our TIME! campaign launch in Berlin. Looks like he had some pretty explosive ideas.

The ad team at Ogilvy & Mather recently put up these awesome billboards for Hot Wheels, including a giant loop (car not included), and a pair of giant kids who turn a real road into a giant plaything.

German job hunting site jobsintown.de created ads that make it look like there’s actually someone inside these machines doing all the work. The caption says, “Life’s too short for the wrong job.”

If you’re considering colleges for next fall, you might move the University of Lincoln to the top of the list after you see this video. The powers that be actually banned this promotional ad – big mistake.

Oh, you clever BBC: “When you take a class-ridden society with no ability to address it’s emotions and let it simmer for a thousand years you frankly have the perfect recipe for drama.”

This amusing Dutch Volkswagen Golf ad shows us the truth about buying a car from a little old lady; she looks like she only drove her car to church on Sunday – and then at the Nürburgring on Monday.

Unlogo uses video filtering software to detect and replace brand logos. The software is open source, so it can be tweaked for other purposes. Perhaps to obscure adult-only footage? Or video bombs.

Created as a promotional gimmick for STIHL leaf blowers, Euro RSCG Dusseldorf built this wall calendar that automatically sheds each day by dropping its pages to the ground like falling leaves.

A couple of years back, Sony had an awesome Bravia commercial with a ton of bouncy balls rolling down a hill. Nissan pays tribute with a slightly more destructive variant – bowling balls.

Rodolfo Sampaio, Marco Martins and Adriano Matos of Brazil-based Moma Propaganda ad agency created these retro-style ads for YouTube, Skype, Twitter and Facebook for Maximidia 2010.

These tough-ass minifigs were inked using ballpoint pens. Barcelona-based Grey agency made these pictures for a series of Pilot pen advertisements. We wonder if LEGO would approve of these.

This clever ad for HP Photosmart printers was shot by printing out each frame of its animation in real time. We’re amazed they didn’t jam or run out of ink. Nothing like a little movie magic.

The 2010 Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival showcased some of the funniest, most creative and thought-provoking ads. Here are some of the best ads featured in the festival.

Elevator passageways at London Underground’s Notting Hill Tube Station were sealed to modernize in the 1950’s; recent work at the station has revealed a rich time capsule filled with vintage ads.

These advertisements for Disney’s Star Wars Weekends at their Hollywood Studios theme park are truly inspired. Our favorite? Yoda carving Mickey Mouse hedges with his lightsaber.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably seen a few of those sentimental Google search ads on TV. College Humor’s parody is all about looking for love in the Star Wars universe.

We admit Neo-Fight.tv’s Apple Ad doesn’t come close to beating the original Old Spice Ad; still, it’s a refreshing new scent compared to Apple’s somewhat stale Get A Mac spots.

Guaranteed to leave dogs (and their owners) with wagging tails, Pedigree: Catch shows dogs catching treats in super-slow motion; it was shot using a Phantom camera at 1,000 fps.

It was our favorite Superbowl ad, but something always smelled fishy about Old Spice’s shower-boat-horse; Leo Laporte interviews the creators to learn how they did it. Thanks, everyone!