Audience twice chooses Nike Livestrong Chalkbot at 2010 AICP Next Show

New York, NY — The Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) held their annual Next Awards Show Tuesday, June 8, at New York’s Museum of Contemporary Art (MOMA). The awards, now in its fourth year, examines outstanding marketing communications in five categories: viral/web film; integrated campaign; website/microsite; experiential; and product integration. In addition to honoring interesting work in non-traditional mediums, the Next Awards also offers the audience an inside look into some of the winning productions, as well as a chance to vote for their favorite work. Visit www.aicp.com for more about the Next Awards.

Viral or web film winners

Winners in the viral/web film category included Google’s “Chrome” from BBH New York. The Aaron Duffy-directed spot created by 1st Avenue Machine compared the performance of Google’s browser to other high-speed phenomenon. LG marketing engine Give It A Ponder tapped Y&R New York to create “Unicorn.” The web short directed by Smith & Jones Films’ Ulf Johnansson involves beard-swapping and a conversation between a man and young girl. The Audience Choice went to viral film veteran’s OK Go for their music video “This Too Shall Pass.” James Frost of Zoo Films directed this single-shot ode to Rube Goldberg design.

Integrated campaign winners

BBDO worked on HBO’s “Imagine” integrated campaign, which features an interactive website, public installation, and short films directed by Biscuit’s Noam Murro to promote the premium network. Also winning in this category was Gatorade’s “Replay” out of TBWA/Chiat/Day. The campaign, directed by Kris Belman and Scott Balcerek of Caviar, centered around a rematch between former high school rival football teams. Portland, Oregon’s Wieden + Kennedy worked on Nike Livestrong Foundation’s “Livestrong” integrated campaign, which garnered attention for the DeepLocal-created “Chalkbot“, a Twitter-powered machine that painted messages along the Tour de France route from people affected by cancer. The audience gave Gatorade’s “Replay” their nod.

Website or microsite winners

BBDO teamed up with The Barbarian Group for HBO’s www.hboimagine.com, which features short, parallax-dependent films directed by Biscuit’s Noam Murro. An interactive music video website for the Cold War Kid’s “I’ve Seen Enough,” directed by Tool of North America’s Sam Jones, was also listed in this category. The website invites visitors to use a mixer to change the sound and instrumentation of the song. “We Choose the Moon” by The Martin Agency for the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library Museum received the Audience Choice honor. The interactive website lets visitors relive the 1969 flight to the moon with thousands of pieces of archival footage, images and sound clips.

Experiential winners

HBO’a “Cube” film installation, which played the Murro-directed films, was set up in cities across the US. Wieden + Kennedy, New York, got help from Brand New School to produce the ESPN Monday Night Football “Interactive Storefronts.” The project is a series of walls in different cities featuring a virtual quarterback that throws passes to interested passersby. Nike Livestrong Foundation’s “Chalkbot,” which earned the Audience Choice honor, was the final honoree in this category.

Product integration winners

Macy’s “Yes, Virginia” campaign from JWT New York clinched a win in the product integration category. Peter Circuitt of The Ebeling Group directed an animated holiday film based Virginia O’Hanlon’s famous letter to the New York Sun in 1897. Australian beer maker Tooheys Extra Dry enlisted Radical Media’s Zack Merck to create their “6 Beers of Separation” product integration. The campaign invited four individuals to test the so-called six degrees of separation theory of human connection by asking them to share a beer with a succession of five people with the ultimate goal of meeting their heroes. Nike Livestrong Foundation’s “Chalkbot” was the final winner in this category, as well as the winner of the Audience Choice honor.