Bestads Six of the Best Reviewed by Vince McSweeney, CCO, McCann Central, UK

Each week Bestads picks the very best advertising in the world, in every medium – which is reviewed by a top creative director or team to select their own personal favourites.

This week’s guest judge is Vince McSweeney, chief creative officer, McCann Central, UK.

BEST TV
Winner: MTN ‘Big Things‘. This spot had me smiling from the very start. The cheeky look on the little girl’s face as she dials the random mobile number sets up the following mayhem perfectly. What I didn’t realise until later was that all the scenarios end up positive. And maybe that’s because I spent most of my first viewing thinking the payoff would be about mobile phone security. It isn’t. As such, I felt a little let down by the ending. But that’s me overthinking it. And it’s such an over-the-top and fun ad, it doesn’t deserve too much thinking. It’s likeable and it makes me feel good about the brand. Job done.

Runner-up: iPhone 15’s Ceramic Shield ‘Swoop‘. This ad gave me chills. As someone who grew up in Australia and rode my bike to school every day, swooping season is very familiar to me. I’ve lived in the UK for quite a while now, so I can’t be 100% sure, but to the best of my knowledge this scenario has never been used to advertise a product before. Which, given the immediate understanding by most of the Australian population, seems an incredible oversight. But it’s a fitting use of the situation. It’s shot really well – I love the slow-mo as the product bounces toward camera. And it gives me a clear understanding of the benefits of the phone in a way that I can (unfortunately) relate to. I just need the follow-up ads to feature 20c lolly bags from the Milk Bar and speckies with my mates at recess, and that’s pretty much my whole childhood. READ ON…