Have scientists found the best coffee in the world? That’s the premise in “Lab Rats,” a new, gonzo spot for goodboybob coffee–a DTC roasting company with a growing number of physical locations. Created by independent ad agency Erich & Kallman, the 45-second commercial–directed by Erich Joiner of Tool–features a fictitious lab experiment in which scientists test the theory on some very special lab rats.
Approaching different lab rats equipped with literal human senses, a scientist feeds a drop of goodboybob to a rat with a CGI mouth, causing the rat to exclaim, “That’s the best coffee I’ve ever tasted!”
“I was watching the movie Elf,” said Eric Kallman, founder and chief creative officer of Erich and Kallman. “There’s a funny scene where Buddy enters a random diner to congratulate them for the “world’s best coffee” sign they have in the window. We started joking about how one would actually go about proving such a thing, and that eventually led to our lab rats script.”
The goodboybob brand was started by director Joiner. Its first loation was alongside Tool, the creative production company he founded in 1995 in Santa Monica. Since its founding, goodboybob has added two additional locations in Los Angeles and won two Golden Bean awards. An old friend and industry peer of Kallman’s, Joiner was happy to put the campaign creative into the agency’s hands.
“I’m surprised and thrilled at how fast goodboybob has taken off,” said Joiner. “To keep the momentum going, its first visual spots had to be original, entertaining and express what I’m being told by our customers–that it’s the best tasting coffee they ever had. Erich Kallman knew precisely how to land the right balance of informative and funny, and I’m pleased to say they knocked it out of the park.”
CreditsClient goodboybob coffee Agency Erich and Kallman Production Company Tool Erich Joiner, director; Dustin Callif, president; Nancy Hacohen, VP, exec producer; Joby Ochnser, line producer; Amy DeLossa, head of production; Eric Schmidt, DP; Justin Trask, production designer; Jules Sylvester, animal wrangler. Editorial Cut+Run San Francisco Pete Koob, editor; Kristen Jenkins, sr. producer. Finishing House Parliament Phil Crowe, creative director; Enca Kaul, managing director/EP; Narbeh Mardirossian, Flame; Brett Grisham, VFX supervisor. Color Royal Muster Gregory Reese, colorist; Thatcher Peterson, managing director/EP. Audio M2 San Francisco Mark Pitchford, sr. engineer; Sarah Benedict, producer. Music House APM William Schade, Martinz Comuzzi, sr. producers.
NHS England, M&C Saatchi UK, Director Tom Tagholm Team On PSA Highlighting The Overlooked Signs Of A Stroke
National Health Service (NHS) England has unveiled a multichannel campaign, “Act FAST,” to raise awareness of the individual signs of a stroke and get people to call 999 as soon as they suspect they may be experiencing any one symptom. The push, which is part of the ongoing “Help Us, Help You” campaign, was developed in partnership with M&C Saatchi UK.
The campaign depicts everyday situations where everything might seem relatively normal, but where there’s the sign of someone experiencing a stroke.
A key component of the campaign is this :30--directed by Tom Tagholm of Various Films--which sets up the idea that initially, a stroke might not seem like much, highlighting key symptoms: from struggling to use a paint roller, to not being able to smile when watching TV, to slurring your speech when reading a story to your grandchild. The PSA emphasizes that time is critical, ending with the line: “Face or arm or speech, at the first sign, it’s time to call 999.”
Jo Bacon, Group CEO, M&C Saatchi UK, said, “We want to ensure people take action on the first symptom, rather than waiting for more conclusive signs. To help them understand that even when everything seems normal, something serious might be happening.”
Matt Lee, executive creative director, M&C Saatchi UK, commented: “This is important work. We wanted to explore that precise moment when your world shifts, quietly yet powerfully, off its axis during a stroke. We highlight how a tiny external moment can actually be seismic—an extraordinary gear change, framed in a really ordinary way.”
Director Tagholm shared, “My Dad suffered a stroke a few years ago and was saved from the worst by acting quickly, and by the work of the NHS. So there’s... Read More