There's a lot to love about TBWA\Media Arts Lab's new Apple ad, a delightfully frenetic 30-second set piece—done in a stop-motion-like style—that sees MacBook Airs festooned by stickers reflecting their users' tastes, personalities and purposes.
"The notebook people love" is the tagline. And it's a message that's communicated giddily (almost like a throwback to Apple's classic iPod work) with shot after shot of icons, cityscapes, planets, digital gadgets, pop-culture characters and more—all cavorting and posing around the Apple logo in the middle of the notebook's lid.
The references are wide-ranging, including Breaking Bad, The Simpsons, Peanuts, Ice Age, Snow White, Pac-Man, Chi the cat, Batman, Wonder Woman, Catwoman, the Tasmanian Devil, Hello Kitty and Mickey Mouse. A Beats logo also makes a cameo, of course.
Love is the key word for Apple around the Air these days, as the company emphasizes the emotional connection users have for the ultra-thin laptop. In the spot, that passion nicely manifests itself through personalization—in the countless ways owners have made their machines uniquely their own with artwork.
The spot, with music by Hudson Mohawke, moves quickly—blink and you'll miss something. But of course, that will reward repeat viewings. And if you want to slow things down, check out the "Stickers" page on Apple's website, showing some of the decals from the spot.
The one caveat here is that "Stickers," in its style, is somewhat reminiscent of the "Play Your Heart Out" spot for Google Play, which has logged more than 10 million views on YouTube since early May. That spot, similarly, had characters from games, music and movies interacting with the triangular Google Play logo.
The Air spot is more tactile, though. And unlike the Google Play ad, it's less about pop culture or entertainment or even the product, and more about the passion of the user. That's always been Apple's strong suit, and it's nice to see a commercial that gets back to it in style.
CREDITS
Client: Macbook Air, Apple
Agency: TBWA\Media Arts Lab