5 Questions for GSD&M's Tom Hamling on the "Bounty of Earth" Super Bowl 50 Ad

There is no greater pressure cooker in the advertising industry than being tasked with creating a unique compelling and memorable ad for the Super Bowl where 30 seconds of air time cost 5 million GSDampampM faced this formidable challenge and nailed it with a ridiculously funny ad titled quotBOUNTY OF EARTHquot for Avocados from Mexico Tom Hamling Group Creative Director at GSDampampM was nice enough to take some time to answer a few questions from AdForum39s James Thompson about creating the ad and handling the pressures of Super Bowl expectations Oh and he offers a uniquely creative prediction for the big game39s outcomeamp160AdForum The amp8220BOUNTY OF EARTHamp8221 ad is hilarious Being amp8220funnyamp8221 however is one the most challenging and dangerous propositions for creatives in advertising Not everyone shares the same sense of humor and when humor fails it fails almost comprehensively How did you know this ad was going to be so relatable and funny and how important is humor in advertisingGSDampampM Youamp8217re right Humor is very subjective I think what weamp8217ve learned when it comes to making funny Super Bowl ads is that you really need something for everyone Some of the jokes should be easy and lowhanging while others should be more insideramp8230more layered That not only helps with what you put on screen but also in all the social talk that happens during and after the game One manamp8217s Rubikamp8217s Cube is another manamp8217s Emoji for lack of a better metaphorAdForum There is so much depth and thoughtfulness to the amp8220BOUNTY OF EARTHamp8221 adamp8212which admittedly is an awkwardly highbrow interpretation of such a hilarious and unpretentious ad From Scott Baio to the Rubikamp8217s Cube there is plenty of cultural commentary However the line amp8220This is the white and gold dress that caused a civil waramp8221 is of particular interest In war the victors write the history Who at GSDampampM decided that the BlackandBlue loyalists lost the civil war and how was that decision madeGSDampampM Ha There was actually a big debate about this We shot it both ways The script initially called it amp8220the black and blue dressamp8221 but we decided in the edit that itamp8217s funnier if we call it amp8220white and goldamp8221 because it will get people to argue about it again There were actually 3 people on set who still believe itamp8217s amp8220white and goldamp8221 Which it clearly is notAdForum Is there a Chia Pet in the offices at GSDampampM and if so where does it live If not how did the Chia Pet make it into the BOUNTY OF EARTH ad and how did it survive changes in cultural relevance over the millenniaGSDampampM I actually have never seen a Chia Pet around the office Not sure any of them made it back here Which means that there are about 20 new Chia Pets floating around the suburbs of Toronto where we shotAdForumamp160There is so much pressure with respect to Super Bowl ads with a 30second spot costing 5 million How did the creative team at GSDampampM handle that pressure and was this campaign treated any differently than other campaigns with lowerprofile launches If so how If not why notGSDampampM This is actually GSDampampMamp8217s third year in a row to make a Super Bowl spot We did RadioShack two years ago and Avocados from Mexico for the past two years I personally feel like the pressure has lessened each time Ultimately our goalamp8230no matter the size of the project is to make something that breaks through People donamp8217t seek out advertising Itamp8217s our job to make something that entertains themAdForum Who does GSDampampM want to win Super Bowl 50 and what will be the final scoreGSDampampM I think I speak for all of GSDampampMamp8230and all of Omnicom reallyamp8230when I say that I think that the Tennessee Titans have a decent shot of pulling this thing off with a late rally in the 4th quarteramp160The opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecom MyersBizNet Inc management or associated bloggers

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5 Questions for GSD&M's Tom Hamling on the "Bounty of Earth" Super Bowl 50 Ad

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James Thompson

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

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5 Questions for GSD&M's Tom Hamling on the "Bounty of Earth" Super Bowl 50 Ad

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