Regional fare makes it mark on Super Sunday with this :30 titled "Remote" for the nonprofit Minnesota Partnership for Action Against Tobacco (MPAAT), out of agency Clarity Coverdale Fury, Minneapolis. Debuting in Minnesota during the Feb. 1 telecast of the Super Bowl, the spot opens on a man seated on an easy chair in his living room. He pats his front shirt pocket in search of something, but to no avail. Then you can see from his expression that the proverbial light bulb has flickered on over his head. However, that inspired moment seems tempered by his looking over his shoulder to make sure he’s not being watched.
He reaches for a remote control device on a nearby end table. Then we see what that device controls—a toy pickup truck in the next room. Nestled in the flatbed of the truck is a package of cigarettes. And via remote control, the truck starts making its way toward the living room. Man and smokes seem destined to meet—until the truck passes a staircase, at which point a toy plane zooms into view. Clearly in attack mode, the plane hovers over the truck and drops a perfectly targeted bomb. It’s a direct hit as the truck and its tobacco cargo explodes, fittingly all going up in smoke.
The man is crestfallen, the expression on his face both comical and despondent at the same time. Then entering the picture is a woman, presumably the man’s wife. She’s carrying a larger hand-held remote control console; clearly she piloted the plane’s successful mission.
Supered across this spousal scene is a query: "What’s your plan to quit smoking?" The spot then cuts to the logo for Quitplan, an MPAAT program designed to help smokers kick the habit. A toll free phone number appears on screen, accompanied by a brief voiceover description of Quitplan and what it offers. Via phone or the Quitplan Web site, people can get expert help in formulating viable, individually tailored plans to quit smoking.
Relative to the regional Super Bowl buy, Rob Rankin, VP/branded development supervisor of Clarity Coverdale Fury, stated, "It’s a fantastic opportunity to reach our target audience. Ads have become as much a part of the game as the game itself. It’s also only a month after the first of the year, when many people have resolved to quit smoking, so the timing of our message couldn’t be better."
Tom De Cerchio of Incubator Films, West Hollywood, Calif., directed "Remote." Tamsin Prigge executive produced for Incubator. (Prigge has since left the company, succeeded by executive producer Katie Wells.) Line producer was Marie Walsh. The DP was Doug Koch.
The core creative team at Clarity Coverdale Fury consisted of executive creative director/art director Jac Coverdale, creative director/copywriter Jerry Fury and producer Jenee Schmidt. Editor was Jim Stanger of Channel Z, Minneapolis. Steve Medin and Sue Lakso of Crash & Sue’s, Minneapolis, were online editor and colorist, respectively. Audio mixer was Ken Chastain of Echo Boys, Minneapolis. Echo Boys’ Tom Lecher was sound designer/arranger/composer. Lead artist/designer was Christopher Wargin of Radium, which has shops in San Francisco and Santa Monica. Lori Joseph produced for Radium.
