Big Ad
Carlton Draught2005
Big Ad is a 2005 60-second television commercial (released online first) for Carlton Draught, created by George Patterson Partners / Y&R, Melbourne.
The line
It's a big ad. My God, it's big!
Why it works
Advertising parodying its own megalomania. Two robed armies charge across New Zealand mountains singing, to "O Fortuna," lyrics about the ad itself: "It's a big ad... expensive ad... this ad better sell some bloooody beer!" — before aerial shots reveal the armies form a man drinking a Carlton Draught. Seeded online on July 21, 2005, two weeks before TV, it drew hundreds of thousands of downloads in days and over a million viewers in 132 countries within a fortnight — an early, deliberate proof that a TV ad could be launched like a viral film. It is studied for self-aware comedy as a beer-brand strategy, for the online-first release model, and for its award sweep including a One Show Gold Pencil and Cannes Gold Lion.
Techniques
- Humour Parodies advertising's own grandiosity, with two robed armies charging across mountains only to form a giant man drinking a beer.
- Jingles and music Sets self-mocking lyrics about the ad's size and expense to O Fortuna, making the sung joke the centrepiece of the spot.
Sources · 3
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