From Droga5′s Sydney office and post-production studio Afterparty comes a new TV spot that makes Pascall Chocs Mallow Bites look like naked, writhing bodies. In fact, according to the press release we got about this, director Paul Goldman “shot the entire spot using live action bodies prior to the animated marshmallow recreation. Afterparty used motion capture technologies to translate this action to the animated marshmallow that Goldman envisioned for the spot.” So, that sounds like his must have been pretty fun to shoot, huh?

Pascall Chocs Mallow Bites are so sexy that, upon eating one, you will apparently feel compelled to scream out your partner’s/assembly line co-worker’s name in elation. And, when you yell “Roger” in an Australian accent, it kind of sounds like you’re yelling “blowjob” to an American who’s watching this on his computer, which is unsettling but somewhat intriguing. Yep, definitely not for kids–just for adults battling insomnia and obesity, hoping to catch reruns of 90′s Real Sex episodes at 3 a.m. on HBO. (Sorry, looks like it’s just another encore showing of Ratatouille.)

The spot is currently running in Australia, where it targets middle-aged women before it makes its way onto FOX’s annual countdown of “banned” foreign ads. Enjoy the tender sounds of Boyz II Men’s 1994 R&B hit “I’ll Make Love to You,” and view credits for the brave men and women who finally made adults-only marshmallows a reality after the jump.

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“Yes, our friend Chet is leaving for Droga.

When he came here, it was the start of TBG taking strategic planning super seriously as a discipline and has resulted in a pretty stellar team of folks. It has also meant bigger mandates from bigger clients.

With his departure, we’re doubling down on the planning department and are currently talking to some of the sharpest thinkers in the market.

We’ll get you next time Droga, next time.”

Prior to his first stint at Droga5, Gulland held a senior strategist post at Anomaly.

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Nearly a year to the day since picking up Hennessy’s creative duties, Droga5 is unleashing a new star-studded campaign for the “very special” cognac featuring boxing phenom Manny Pacquiao, legendary film director Martin Scorsese, and the “First Lady of Neo-Soul,” Erykah Badu.

In case you didn’t know, “cognac” isn’t just a type brandy best suited for imbibing whilst on the set of a Busta Rhymes music video. In fact, Cognac is also town in France where the  beverage originates. According to the campaign’s site, “What’s Your Wild Rabbit?,” the region of western France near Cognac (where Hennessy is made) is a haven for elusive wild rabbits, around which a rich mythology has grown. According to legend, the wild rabbit is supposedly the force responsible for driving people from one success to another. This explains why, in the above spot, Pacquiao refers to “fighting the fight that really matters” as his own wild rabbit. That, or he’s hammered on Hennessy and apple juice shooters and is totally delirious.

The campaign’s site also features a collection of videos that goes behind-the-scenes of Pacquiao’s, Scorsese’s, and Badu’s “Wild Rabbit” spots. See those, as well as each celeb’s drink menu, by visiting the site here. See Erykah Badu unleash her famous hair after the jump.

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We’re rather enjoying this little back-and-forth between McGarryBowen and Droga5, the latter of which of course just “announced” this week that it lost its own holiday card business to the former. Well, as you can see from the Facebook pic above, the McGB camp is glad to welcome the Droga5 account to its ever-growing portfolio. Why don’t they just unite, call it McGarryDroga and get it over with.

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Read it verbatim after the jump.

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It didn’t take long for Heineken USA to make up its mind as to who it was tapping next to serve as agency of record for its Amstel Light brew. After just a month-long review, Droga5 has been appointed as Amstel’s new AOL, effective immediately, and is now officially 2-for-2 this week having already picked up more business from Puma.

Regarding the decision, Amstel Light VP of marketing Colin Westcott-Pitt says, “We are confident that Droga5, an agency known for its bold creativity and unconventional campaigns, is the right partner to take Amstel Light to the next level during this pivotal moment for the brand. We have a unique opportunity to leverage recent improvements in brand health and our increased emphasis on innovation to bring Amstel Light back into the spotlight, and we’re excited to get started.”

No word on who else participated in the Amstel review.

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A little over three years after joining forces with Puma, Droga5 has added more business from the brand in the form of its Teamsport unit, thus now making the agency the global AOR for the entire account. The appointment of Droga to Teamsport marks the end of Puma’s relationship on this account with Syrup (example of work here), which handled responsibilities for Teamsport strategy, creative direction and campaigns since the beginning of 2009.

Just don’t expect anything immediate from Droga5 for this specific new business, though, as Teamsport work from the agency isn’t expected to debut until the first quarter of 2013. In the meantime, the Drogas will be rolling out 2012 Olympics work beginning next month and starring Usain Bolt. Regarding the decision, Puma CMO Antonio Bertone says in a statement that it was time to “consolidate” brand efforts with “one strategic partner” as the brand looks beyond to the 2014 World Cup and even the 2016 Olympics.

We’ve been told that there was no review for Teamsport.

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With her move up the ladder, Thompson will allow creative chairman/agency namesake David Droga and CEO Andrew Essex to focus on other agency activities  including external opportunities, strategic partnerships and building transformative technologies. In a statement regarding Thompson, Essex says, “She has imposed her preternaturally calm but indisputable professionalism on this agency, and we are much better for it. It seemed long overdue to give her a title that actually meant something, and officially acknowledge her invaluable contribution.”

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True, the golden age of advertising depicted on Mad Men has seen its heyday, and there’s no sign of it coming back anytime soon. Perhaps inspired by Don Draper’s full-page fictional New York Times anti-smoking declaration on the show this past season, Droga5′s ad reads as an idealist’s credo for how those in the advertising business should view their work and, more importantly, themselves.

Instead of dissecting this word for word, we’ll let you decide whether or not this bold statement is just another clever marketing scheme, or if it’s a genuine call to arms. But, as the folks at Campaign Brief point out, this sort of thing doesn’t happen too often.

View a larger version of the ad after the jump or by clicking here.
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The decision engine from Microsoft we all know as Bing along with Droga5 are launching a multi-platform search experience and interactive game that’s tied to Jay-Z’s upcoming memoir, Decoded. If fans of the music mogul can step away from Google for a sec, they can now use Bing and decide how to find the very locations that inspired the Hova’s lyrics.

The online experience utilizes multiple facets of Bing, including Bing Maps and Bing Entertainment, to give fans full access to the stories behind Jay-Z’s songs. Over the course of a month, fans will come together as a community to compile Decoded online before it hits bookshelves.

Ads for Decoded have been placed on 600 unique traditional, nontraditional and digital advertising placements (comprised of pages from the book) in 15 cities around the world. As an added bonus, every participant will be entered into a contest for a grand prize that will send one fan to see Jay-Z and Coldplay at their Las Vegas concert on New Year’s Eve.

Decoded, which lands in stores November 16, is being released by Spiegel & Grau, an imprint of Random House Publishing Group.

More: Droga5 Moves Five

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Call it a reunion of sorts as agency namesake David Droga announced that Mother London creative director Nik Studzinski is heading across the Atlantic to join Droga5′s New York office as co-ECD. Studzinski, who first met Droga when the former was head of art and the latter was ECD at Saatchi & Saatchi London, will take over on September 1 for Duncan Marshall, who headed Down Under a few months back to assume the ECD post at Droga5 Sydney.

Studzinski, who spent three years as CD at Mother, also served as an ECD at Publicis London for several years.

via Campaign Brief

More: “Droga5 Moves Five”

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David Droga turned into a man of some thousand words recently and offered several talking points during a chat with WSJ Magazine EIC Tina Gaudoin. The Wall Street Journal offshoot gave us a sneak peek at their September issue in which the Droga5 chairman and mastermind behind efforts like Tap Project waxes philosophical about “change, charity and the consumer” when discussing the ad industry.

Among his nuggets, which he expounds fully here, are:

-”I secretly wish I had experienced advertising in the ‘Mad Men’ period.”

-”This is not survival of the fittest–it’s mutation of the species that is crucial for our industry.”

-”Your campaign shouldn’t just die the day you spend your last cent.”

-”Online is amazing, but it in itself is not a solution.”

-”95 percent of the stuff out there is rubbish.”

Droga’s goal according to the piece is to build “the most influential agency in the world,” but if that doesn’t work, the man can at least model the hell out of a Prada suit.

More: “Credit Where Credit is Due? Droga5 Vs. Poke New York”

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Ah, it’s awards season. Let the scandals, dust-ups and hurt feelings begin! Sigh… Poke New York is a bit upset with Droga5. Over on the digital agency’s website, a post has appeared that reads:

“So, a while back we partnered with the awesome crew over at Droga5 to help them develop the Million, a project in conjunction with the New York City public school system that aims to ignite students’ interests in their studies by offering a free cell phone that’s fueled by merit-based achievements (grades, attendance, etc.).”

Who knew? The Million, which is great project, won an Andy last week, as well as the Richard T. O’Reilly Award (for Public Service Announcement. On the Andy’s entry form, Poke was listed as a production company and this is where the agency is taking issue, albeit very sweetly:

“It was a true partnership where POKE worked hand in hand with the fine folks at Droga to create a comprehensive digital and mobile strategy along with a full-term roll-out plan on how to take Million to the world.

Now, our sources say that Droga5 filed all the entry forms and Poke was never ask about how they wanted to be listed. Then again, (from what we know) Poke never interjected to make sure they got the accolades they felt were due. Here we go again… how much hand did the digital agency have in the strategy, as well as the execution of a campaign? Poke declined to comment. A message was left for Droga, but alas… this snafu over credit will just have to be piled atop the rest.

More: Cannes Is Kind Of Like A Game Of Bolita

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Meet Sean Norman Stewart. He’s some kind of film art guy. Not really sure actually, but like many a creative before him, Sean has decided that a video cover letter to an agency might land him a gig. In this case, the agency in question is Droga5. The 24-year old’s video is heavy on the irony and light on the substance. Sean rounds off his pitch with the promise that hiring him will “maximize your partner’s pleasure in bed.” Hmmm…. Just because the agency was featured on the Daily Show does not mean that solipsism and irony is going to get you anywhere. Remember Honeyshed? It could be very possible that Droga is over the whole mockery, tongue-in-cheek bit after that million plus debacle.

Sigh. Kids today… there’s no reasoning with ‘em. Sean? We wish you luck, dude.

More: Honeyshed’s Dismal Vagina Monologue

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On the The Daily Show last night, Droga5 made an appearance as part of the show’s sketch about rebranding the Republican Party. It’s in the second segment of the video if you’re going to watch above. Okay, even I can’t hate. That’s some hot shit.

More: Honeyshed’s Dismal Vagina Monologue

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