It's been more than 20 years, but ESPN's "This is SportsCenter" is still going strong.
In Wieden + Kennedy New York's latest work for the classic campaign, pro golfer Jordan Spieth brings his caddie, Michael Greller, to the network's cafeteria for advice—not on which club to use but on whether a fork or spoon is better for eating a bowl of mac and cheese.
It's a fun little gag, and yet another solid extension of the campaign's broader premise of peeling back the curtain on the (sometimes weird and obsessive) personalities of star athletes and newscasters inside the SportsCenter offices.
Director David Shane, a comedy heavy-hitter and campaign regular, deftly captures the key, absurd moment of indecision. The well-written spot takes that joke one step further with a little twist ending, as anchor Stan Verrett spies on the exchange between Spieth and Greller, and takes guidance for his own lunch. (Verrett, historically, is in need of some help.)
So the work scores extra points for the meta crack on sports commentary as a genre: Sometimes, the ad seems to say, it may well be like listening to someone deliver a blow-by-blow on how to chow down on a microwaveable meal.
CREDITS
Client: ESPN
Spot: "Utensils"
Agency: Wieden + Kennedy New York
Executive Creative Directors: Karl Lieberman
Creative Directors: Brandon Henderson, Erwin Federizo
Copywriters: Alex Ledford, Charles Hodges
Art Directors: NJ Placentra, Gary Van Dzura
Executive Producer: Temma Shoaf
Head of Integrated Production: Nick Setounski
Account Team: Mike Welch, Matt Angrisani, Liz Lindberg
Project Manager: Kristin Daly
Business Affairs Manager: Tana Prosper
Head of Business Affairs: Sara Jagielski
Traffic: Sonia Bisono, Andy Hume
Production Company: O Positive
Director: David Shane
Director of Photography: Dave Morabito
Executive Producer: Marc Grill
Producer: Ken Licata
Editorial: Mackenzie Cutler
Editor: Nick Divers
Assistant Editor: Zoe Newman
Post Executive Producer: Sasha Hirschfeld
VFX/Finishing: Schmigital
Flame Artist: Jimmy Hayhow
Flame Assistant: Joseph Miller
Mix: Mackenzie Cutler
Mixer: Sam Shaffer
Color Grade: Company 3
Colorist: Tim Massick