Following on from Part 1, we will follow on with our review of some of the best Chinese pieces of advertising & design submitted to the D&AD Awards in the last few years. Enjoy…
Wu Liang Ye
— Zhou Yu/Zheng He (Poster Campaign)
Year: 2008
Winner: Ogilvy Guangzhou
Award: D&AD Annual entry
High-priced Bai Jiu (clear spirits) are traditional alcoholic beverages drunk in China for celebratory purposes. They are also given as business gifts. The consumers are largely high-ranking military personnel and senior business executives. Our product Wu Liang Ye Bai Jiu features a glass ship inside each bottle, so the stories of Admiral Zheng He and General Zhou Yu were used.
They all struggled against the odds and faced difficulties before reaching their destinations successfully. Likewise, consumers of Wu Liang Ye Bai Jiu have journeyed through life and are now tasting success. The advertising media used included outdoor bus stop media in all major cities in China.
North Face
— Red Flag (Mobile Campaign)
Year: 2010
Winner: Ogilvy Shanghai
Award: D&AD Annual entry
The North Face believes everyone can be an adventurer. In the world of outdoor adventure explorers lay claim on every summit conquered by planting a flag. To get people out of their comfort zone we wanted to give them a taste of how great it is to have discovered a new placeand claim credit for being there first.
Over a period of 18 days, people could use their mobile phones to plant virtual red flags at any location they wanted to claim. People kept score on the event website and outdoor electronic board, where a live counter tracked the total numberof flags planted across China.
Taiwan Smokers Helpline
— X-ray photo light boxes (Outdoor Campaign)
Year: 2009
Winner: Bates Taiwan
Award: D&AD Annual entry
The aim of this campaign was to show that when smokers need a cigarette to relax, not only is smoking unlikely to help, but it also causes osteoporosis. We used smoke to compose loose bones to look like X-ray of the spine, carpal bones, and pelvis.
These visuals were projected through the outdoor light boxes in an exact imitation of X-ray photo examiners in hospitals. When smokers saw the ads, it was like they were looking at their own X-ray, and they understood how harmful smoking is to their health.
Guinness
— Chinese Painting
Year: 2009
Winner: Grey Beijing
Award: D&AD Annual entry
Whether you are busy at work or at play, a pint of Guinness is always what you look for at the end of the day.
GSK
— Bush / Britney / Milkman
Year: 2009
Winner: Grey Beijing
Award: D&AD Annual entry
In order to demonstrate how indiscriminate a virus is, this campaign reproduces the chains of infection caused by people from different walks of life. The concept reinforces how one can ‘save the day’ by putting a stop to a virus.
Soap
Year: 2010
Winner: Ogilvy & Mather Taiwan
Award: Yellow Pencil
This short movie is part of the launch campaign for a motel. The movie shows how well the motel’s appliances and services are observant of human nature. ‘Soap’ shows a crooked story beneath the scentless soap.
Nike Hong Kong
— Paper Battlefield
Year: 2009
Winner: McCann Worldgroup (HK)
Award: D&AD Annual entry
Competing in and being a part of the most prestigious and competitive Nike League is the dream of every aspiring young basketballer. It is also an opportunity for the teens to show off their skills. So we took the spirit of competition and literally translated it into posters. Images of the top ten players with their individual skill were used as printing templates. The players were invited to our silkscreen workshop to print their image on top of each other. They handmade 350 posters. The posters became the battlefield; the random cross-printing, the battles. More importantly, the process conveyed our message.
WWF China
— Panda Series
Year: 2009
Winner: BBH China
Award: D&AD Annual entry
In China, there’s a misconception that WWF only protects pandas, because of its iconic logo. The challenge was to debunk the misconception by showcasing WWF China’s success in wetlands, forestry and wildlife programmes.
CMCC
— Green Box
Year: 2007
Winner: Grey Beijing
Award: D&AD Annual entry
Beware – the damage is spreading. Dispose of your used cell phone batteries properly. Bring them to our service centres and drop them into our Green Box. Do your bit to save the Earth.
The Metro
Year: 2010
Winner: Communication University of China (Hailin Zhang, Leilei Xia, Xiaoli Li, and Yiwen Wang)
Award: STUDENT AWARD – D&AD Annual entry
Journey to the East (BBC Olympic Coverage)
— BBC
Year: 2009
Winner: RKCR/Y&R
Award: D&AD Annual entry
This is NOT a Chinese submission but its a really nice take on the classic Chinese tale, ‘Journey to the West’.
To promote the BBC’s exclusive coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, a campaign was created based on the ancient Chinese fables of ‘Monkey’. The trailer featured three characters who used their Olympian prowess as they, like the athletes themselves, overcome obstacles on their journey to Beijing.
The music and animation, by Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett from Gorillaz allowed the integration of PR, online content, programming and title sequences.
So there you have it.? Let’s hope China can take back some Yellow Pencils from the upcoming 2011 awards.
Keep checking back for updates on this year’s submissions.
