-Former Campaign India editor Anant Rangawsami wrote his own tome on advertising in his home country called The Elephants in the Room. Take a gander and download here.

-The IAB unveiled its second annual list of top mobile shopping-savvy cities. link

-Johnson & Johnson is conducting a U.S.-focused media-buying review, which is currently valued around $1 billion.

-HP’s investment in British software company Autonomy seems to have backfired. link

-W+K Portland is doing its part to help out Hurricane Sandy efforts by selling off the “Stay Afloat” folder designed by graphic designer Nishat Akhtar (above). link

-Commercial director Oliver Castro has joined Scott Gardenhour and Michael Bay‘s commercial prodco, The Institute.

-Director/Fulbright Scholar Marco Gentile joined the roster of Michael Bay‘s The Institute.

-Ogilvy Chicago helps Kimberly-Clark brand Huggies make a political statement of its own via Facebook (above). link

-Bi-coastal music service company MAS (“music and strategy”) promoted founding partner/EP James Alvich to managing director. link

-BooneOakley co-founder John Boone is offering freelance creative help to agencies affected by Hurricane Sandy. link

-Hungry Man signed U.K.-based director Richard DeAragüés to its roster.

-Dentsu’s $5 billion takeover of Aegis might have to wait a little bit longer due to Chinese clearance issues. link

While we’re stuck Stateside, we’ll give you quick Cannes Lions field reports from our roving reporter, Yunilda Esquivel, an executive producer at Michael Bay and Scott Gardenhour‘s commercial production company, The Institute. Without further ado, the floor is yours, Yunilda.

After picking up my Festival credentials, I stumbled upon Ogilvy & Mather Asia’s display for their impressive new release, RAW: Pervasive Creativity in Asia. Two years in the making, the book explores the cultural richness of things like local markets and millenary traditions in a grassroots Asia, showcasing how creativity is being used everywhere and everyday to get ahead. I was completely blown away by the ingenuity and the message. Here I am with the authors, David Mayo, president of Ogilvy & Mather ASEAN and Kunal Sinha, chief knowledge officer for Ogilvy & Mather Asia Pacific. The book’s photographer, walking legend, Steffan Billhardt, is in the background. To everyone out there: this (expanding your mind) is what Cannes is all about.

In an outdoor marketing stunt more creative and inspired than the last three Transformers movies combined, Universal Studios and agency David&Goliath morphed L.A.’s Staples Center into a scene of intergalactic destruction.

Publicizing Universal Studios’ new attraction, “Transformers: The Ride 3D” (which officially opened on Friday), David&Goliath’s team gave the Staples Center a drastic makeover in early April. Considering no one ever goes near downtown L.A. at night, it’s entirely possible that no one noticed people painting an 80-foot Deceptacon hole in the side of the building. As an added bonus, the chaotic scene even featured sandwich board-toting crazy people shouting about the end of days, adding an air of authenticity to the whole thing.

So, is the ride any good? According to Universal Studios park director Molly Orr, who was quoted in a story about the event on L.A.’s CBS affiliate, “Michael Bay, who directed the Transformer films, was one of the creative consultants on this ride.” In other words, though it may look cool, the ride lacks substance, much of a storyline, and is a punching bag for critics nationwide. In any case, expect explosions, and plenty of them.  D&G credits after the jump.

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-Leo Burnett and the One Club have teamed up for a “Creative Boot Camp” in Chicago. link

-Even elephants dig the new Samsung Galaxy Note according to a new clip from the Viral Factory (above).

-BBH Labs explains where we go from “Homeless Hotspots.” link

-U.K.-based digital training firm UTalkMarketing has rebranded and launched two new content platforms. link

-Sir Martin Sorrell says WPP will double spending on Facebook this year. link

-Director Bucky Fukumoto, who most recently helmed the “Duel of the Masters” ad starring Shaq and Tiger, signed to the roster of L.A.-based production studio Locksmith Content.

-PromaxBDA announced the winners of its 2012 Europe Awards. link

-Naked Communications has opened up shop in Brazil. link

-NYC-based digital media management platform Traffiq has promoted SVP of client services Lori Goldberg to president of the company.

-Draftfcb Cape Town ECD Mike Barnwell tells us why agency language should change. link

-Michael Bay will try his best not to ruin our childhood, according to Michael Bay.

Three months after snagging Call of Duty duties from TBWA\Chiat\Day LA, 72andSunny has rolled out its new work for the Activision franchise, which from the looks of it, doesn’t drift too far from the gonzo, celebrity-driven approach employed by Chiat for Black Ops. But instead of Jimmy Kimmel and Kobe Bryant, this time we have Avatar‘s Sam Worthington and a slimmed-down, unlikely hero in Jonah Hill, who play vet and noob, respectively, as well as Superman himself, Dwight Howard. The spot, directed by Peter Berg and featuring the rather appropriate “Shoot to Thrill” from AC/DC, is just as over-the-top as the game play itself and dominated commercial breaks during yesterday’s NFL coverage. It’s something Michael Bay would surely approve of, but where does 72andSunny’s Call of Duty debut rank when it comes to video game ad of the year? Modern Warfare 3, by the way, hits shelves tomorrow.

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Remember those huge cellphones? There was one point (maybe after watching Zoolander or something) that I thought phones would just keep getting smaller and smaller. Then I got an HTC Evo for Christmas, and wow, that thing is giant. I usually gain an audience when I’m texting people or playing games while riding on public transportation.

The nice things about this spot from Huntington Beach-based, in-house agency Innocean and production company O Positive is that it only runs for 30 seconds. While it’s a cool idea to juxtapose the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid with technologies of the past, this ad could have really gone overboard to the point that it would be easy to forget that’s it for a car. Mad props to director Jim Jenkins, though, for creating a quirky, anachronistic city that’s as unusual as it is charming.

Also, it sort of makes you wonder, how hilarious would it be if Michael Bay directed a silent film? Credits after the jump.

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-IAB president/CEO Randall Rothenberg is leaving the organization on Jan. 17 to become chief digital officer at Time, Inc.

-Dina Howell was named worldwide CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi X. link

-SF-based Heat, which has been responsible for a few EA Sports ads as of late, promoted Warren Cockrel to its first-ever CD post.

-The Gulf oil spill was the top trend for 2010 on Twitter. link

-Not to be outdone, Google launched YouTube Trends (above) to keep on the latest viral vids. link

-In case you haven’t heard, Michael Bay‘s shop The Institute hired a dedicated ad sales team. link

-USA Today: The FTC’s proposed “do not track” could revolutionize online advertising. link

-Sarkissian Mason launched a new branding campaign for eMusic. link

It’s not often that we come across (no pun intended) a holiday spot directed by Michael Bay, so I was dying when I saw this. The Institute, an Emmy award-winning commercial production company co-founded by the Transformers auteur and Scott Gardenhour teases us with their newest holiday commercial for Vicky’s. And, because we love you so much, we’re proud to share Part 1 of a webseries they’ll be airing throughout the month of December that gives a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the commercial. I don’t know about you, but I’d much rather see a chick on a horse than that Old Spice dude on a horse. Oh, and you’re welcome.