Commercials Can Be...Art?

 

          I find it interesting that so many of us complain about the ridiculously poor films coming out of Hollywood, and yet we completely neglect perhaps an even greater epidemic: the amount of ridiculously foolish commercials that are produced each year. Many of these commercials are not only poor quality, but they can be downright offensive in their stupidity and lack of logic or relation to the product they are trying to sell. Now don't get me wrong, I know that the very famous commercial from which the above image is taken does not directly talk about the product and its qualities, but the creators at least attempted to appeal to the audience through empathy and in a uniquely heartfelt presentation. Compare this to most modern commercials, and the difference is stupendous. Not only do they not attempt present the product in unique ways, but many times they don't try to push the medium and do something neat with the aesthetic. The commercial below shows what can be done, if the creators choose to push the medium, and present the product in a unique way. The characters in the car are 2D, but the car is 3D. The car may be 3D, but the backgrounds are 2D. To top it all off, the monsters stalking the 3D car are cutouts. I would have to say that it looks like it is obviously influenced by Maurice Sendak's Where The Wild Things Are.

 

 

 

     I can't help but wonder whether or not, if instead of relying on slap-stick comedy so much, the creators thought of their work more as art. I think that we should hold those in the art of commercials to a higher standard, just like we should hold Hollywood to a higher standard. Now, before I close I will say that I realize that commercials have a different purpose than movies. But I think that commercials are no different to movies in that both are trying to show you something that will convince you that this is worth your time. I think that commercials could be even more successful if they learned to convince us to like not only the product, but how well they can present it. Below are some more examples (and yes, I know that I said that humor should be used less, but these are handsomely done).