Final Report

REPORT

For our final assignment, we were required to pick an advertisement that we did not approve and dissatisfied with, reasons relating to design and culture. After picking the advertisement we dislike, we then had to re-advertise it in a way that we found more suitable. After researching and browsing various advertisements, we decided to pick the Sour Mentos Marbles ad by Mentos.  This ad was created by Ogilvy & Mather advertising agency in Mumbai, India. We chose this ad because we were shocked by the imagery used to portray the sourness of the Sour Mentos. We thought that there is a lot that could be changed from the design to make the ad suitable for the culture.

Figure 1: Sour Mentos Marbles Advertisement

Sour Mentos Marbles advertisement showcases the new sour flavors by Mentos. It is from Mumbai, India and, as shown in figure 1, uses three illustrations that depict suicidal imagery. This ad is a series of 3 different illustrations. The first one shows how a man is about to shoot and stab himself while jumping off a building. The second one shows a different man hanging himself with a bottle of cyanide and a basket with a python in each hand. Lastly, the third one shows another man who’s head is on a guillotine while holding a grenade with a train in the background that is about to hit him. From this ad, we conclude that Sour Mentos Marbles are so sour that you won’t be able to bear it and end up killing yourself.

This advertisement was made and showcased in within India in December 2012. India is a country of many distinct cultures. When it comes to food, India is very well known for its spices and spicy food. Indians are used to extreme flavors therefore a reason why this ad would be showcased in India. Other observations we made from this ad were that the main character of this ad (the man) has Indian features; the curly hair and double chin. Also, we noticed the deformed nose which we thought could be related to the Indian Gods because of the repetition of the body part. We did admire the illustration style of this advertisement.

However, we feel the exaggeration of displaying sourness in this advertisement was too extreme and negative. According to an Indian portal, ‘Indiatimes’, studies show that 2010 recorded the highest suicide rates ever in India in 5 years. Reasons for this were uncertain; therefore could the Sour Mentos Marbles ad have played a role in these high rates? It is possible considering the fact that Mentos is common around many age groups, especially young children and adolescents. When making an advertisement, the target audience is very important. From this ad, we feel as though this was not well thought of and considered.

We see a need for change in this ad because firstly, it depicts suicide and has a negative impact on its viewers. Secondly, it does not reflect the Indian culture in the right manner; a more subtle approach could be taken that still makes the ad shocking but in a more positive way. For example, it can be comical and funny with no negative imagery.

 

 Our redesigned ad will also be a series of 3 posters. We chose our concept to be Concentration, portraying the Sour Mentos Marbles as energy boosters and mood lifters. We decided to use form of advertising known as Celebrity advertising; using famous icons to sell a product. When people see their idols in an advertisement, they get a sense that if they use the same product, they may become just like them, therefore making the product more marketable. The three icons we used are Shahrukh Khan who is an actor, Sachin Tendulkar who is a cricket player, and Priyanka Chopra, a former Miss World and actress. They are easily recognized by local people all around India.

 

Figure 2: Priyanka Chopra

Figure 3: Sharukh Khan

Figure 4: Sachin Tendulkar

The illustration style we chose to use is Caricature. The initial Sour Mentos ad we chose had elements of exaggeration. We wanted to keep that therefore chose Caricature because it is comical and exaggerated with its emotions. We wanted to make sure we showed the three different emotions clearly; tired, sour face and happy face. Our storyline for this is that the three characters are feeling tired and exhausted with no energy. They then take the Sour Mentos Marbles and have an instant reaction. Suddenly they’re hit with a burst of energy and joy. The concept of concentration is displayed through the change in emotion, posture and facial expressions of the characters. For our ad, we used an Indian inspired font named Samarkan shown in figure 5. Figure 6 shows the original Indian writing known as Devanāgarī.

 

Figure 5: Samarkan Font

Figure 6: Original Indian writing called Devanāgarī

Bibliography

·      Adsora. 2011. Mentos Marbles Sour ads. [Online] Available at: <http://www.adsora.com/food/mentos-marbles-sour-ads> [Accessed: 1 June 2013].

·       BusinessDictionary. celebrity advertising. [Online]. Available at: <http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/celebrity-advertising.html> [Accessed: 21 June 13].

·       Dr. Sigdell, J. E. The Christ Mantra. [Online]. Available at: <http://www.christian-reincarnation.com/ChristMantra.htm> [Accessed: 30 June 13].

·      IMDb. Most Popular People Born In "India". [Online] Available at: <http://www.imdb.com/search/name?birth_place=India> [Accessed: 21 June 2013].

·      The Times Of India. 2011. 2010 records highest suicide rate in 5 years. [Online] Available at: <http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-03-19/goa/29145817_1_suicide-cases-drastic-step-lives-last-year> [Accessed: 12 June 2013].

Picture Credits

Figure 1: Adsora. 2011. Mentos Marbles Sour ads. [Online] Available at: <http://www.adsora.com/food/mentos-marbles-sour-ads> [Accessed: 1 June 2013].

Figure 2: Indiasite. Priyanka Chopra Biography. [Online] Available at: <http://www.indiasite.com/Personalities/Priyanka-Chopra> [Accessed: 21 June 2013].

Figure 3: Mediapara. 2012. SHAH RUKH KHAN IS HONORED. [Online] Available at: <http://www.mediapara.com/shah-rukh-khan-is-honored/> [Accessed: 21 June 2013].

Figure 4: India Today. 2012. Ranji Trophy: Sachin Tendulkar hits a ton. [Online] Available at: <http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/ranji-trophy-sachin-tendulkar-scores-a-hundred/1/227366.html> [Accessed: 21 June 2013].

Figure 5: DownloadAtoZ. Samarkan, Oblique Fonts. [ONLINE] Available at: <http://font.downloadatoz.com/font,12043,samarkan-oblique.html> [Accessed: 21 June 13].

Figure 6: Dr. Sigdell, J. E. The Christ Mantra. [ONLINE] Available at: <http://www.christian-reincarnation.com/ChristMantra.htm> [Accessed: 30 June 13].

Our Advertisement in the streets of Mumbai

OUR FINAL REDESIGNED ADVERTISEMENTS

Poster Layout Design

The layout of our poster :

The chosen layout design for our poster can be called the "Z" Layout.

As it includes a headline which then leads the eyes down to the illustration which fills up all the empty middle space then logo (or tagline) at the bottom ...it only shows the essential elements of our ads, and that is exactly what we wanted to do. 

We put our tagline at the bottom , then our illustration in the middle, and a small Mentos Marbles logo on the bottom right corner of out poster, because that way there is an emphasis on our illustrations as they are the main subject of our advertisements.

Definition of the “Z” Layout:

The “Z” layout is a popular design layout borrowed from advertising. In most print advertisements, the elements that must be included in the ad are the headline and the company name and the logo. These elements are often placed at the top and bottom of an ad, where the logo provides a stopping point for the eye and leads it back into the page. Think “Zorro.”

The two movie posters above show the “Z” layout. Both contain headlines that lead the eye from left to right across the top of the poster. In the Harry Potter poster to left, the diagonal line that leads the eye to the bottom left of the poster is more difficult to discern than the diagonal line created by Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh in the “Gone With the Wind” poster, but the line is there in the diagonal shadows. The designer for the Potter poster created enough of a diagonal shadow line to lead the eye from bottom right back into Harry Potter’s silhouetted image. Brilliant.

In both posters, the bottom of the “Z” is used for pertinent movie information.

References:

Unknown. 2008. Untitled. [online] Available at: http://web.simmons.edu/~benoit/lis470/readings/Poster%20Composition.pdf [Accessed: 29 June 2013].

Final Artwork development- Illustrations

SAD/TIRED FACES

SOUR FACES

 HAPPY/ENTHUSIASTIC FACES

Research

Inpirations.

When doing some further research for redesigning our advertisement, we decided to look at other Mentos Advertisements that we found suitable and successful. We were looking for drawing styles that we could use for our New redesigned ad. The 'black outline' and cartoon drawing style came from the Mentos Gum ad. We liked the simplicity of the illustration. We also got the Caricature inspiration from another Mentos ad called 'Mentos Sweets'. Both these advertisements were produced by the same advertising agency known as Perfetti Van Melle.

Perfertti had been founded in the town of Latinate, Italy, in 1946, by brothers Ambriogio and Egidio Perfetti. The brothers initially called their company Dcoificio Lombardo, and the small company began producing candies and confectionery for the near by market in Milan. The Perfetti grew quickly, expanding their factory into the 1950s.Perfetti Van Melle S. P. A. is the world’s sixth- largest candy and confectionery producer and number two in Europe. Representing the combination of Italy’s perfetti with Netherlands’ Van Melle, Perfetti Van Melle produces and markets a host of top- selling candy brands, including Mentos, Fruitella, Brooklyn, Alpenlive, Golia, and Frisk. Perfetti Van Melle has a worldwide presence, with factories in Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, and elsewhere in Europe, as well as manufacturing sites in the United States, Brazil, Turkey, India, China, Indonesia and Vietnam. 


References:

Mentos Sweets: "ROCK" Print Ad by Neogama Bbh | Creative Advertising & Commercials Archive. Awarded Ads database. 2013. Mentos Sweets: "ROCK" Print Ad by Neogama Bbh | Creative Advertising & Commercials Archive. Awarded Ads database. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.coloribus.com/adsarchive/prints/mentos-sweets-rock-11764605/[Accessed 04 July 2013].

Phyco spectrum, IBA, PHYCORE, algal technology, biofuels, biodiesel, phycoremediation, effluent treatment, dyeing effluent, CO2 mitigation, global warming, waste water treatment, world's first phycoremediation plant, Dr V Sivasubramanian, Journal of Algal Biomass Utilization, JABU. 2013. Phyco spectrum, IBA, PHYCORE, algal technology, biofuels, biodiesel, phycoremediation, effluent treatment, dyeing effluent, CO2 mitigation, global warming, waste water treatment, world's first phycoremediation plant, Dr V Sivasubramanian, Journal of Algal Biomass Utilization, JABU. [ONLINE] Available at: http://drvsiva.com/perfetti.html. [Accessed 04 July 2013].

Mentos Gum: "Girl" Print Ad by Euro Rscg Tel Aviv | Creative Advertising & Commercials Archive. Awarded Ads database. 2013. Mentos Gum: "Girl" Print Ad by Euro Rscg Tel Aviv | Creative Advertising & Commercials Archive. Awarded Ads database. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.coloribus.com/adsarchive/prints/mentos-gum-girl-14780705/. [Accessed 04 July 2013].

Caricature Sketches

Celebrity Advertising

What is Celebrity Advertising?

For our advertisement, we decided to use a common type of advertising known as Celebrity advertising. Celebrity advertising is using a famous person's image to sell products or services by focusing on the person's money, popularity, or fame to promote the products or services.
When people see that one of their idols is using a certain product, this gives the customer the impression that they may also become like them if they use the product.

Above is an example of Celebrity advertising. Popular actress Reese Witherspoon is the face of Avon lipstick ad.  This advertisement does both by providing a clear, close-up look at the product itself, as well as a striking display of the product in use, vividly enhancing the beguiling smile of the celebrity model.

Therefore having said this, we chose to focus on 3 very famous and successful people in India.

ShahRukh Khan
Brief Biography:
Sharukh Khan was born on 2 November 1965 in New Delhi. Shahrukh Khan often called as SRK is one of the biggest heartthrobs of not only million of Indians but also of his fan following throughout the world. Khan grew up in Delhi and his interests in acting cultivated during his school days. SRK studied acting under celebrated Theatre Director Barry John at Delhi's Theatre Action Group and chose to pave his way to Indian cinemas. Although today he is one of the most sought after actors in Bollywood, has numerous best actor awards, and has branched out into film production and television presenting as well but he started his career with Indian television series.

Sachin Tendalkar
Brief Biography:
Sachin Tendulkar was born on the 24th of April 1973 in Mumbai. He is one of the best Cricket players In India, being the best batsman of the team. Since his debut against Pakistan in 1989, Sachin Tendulkar has been shining like a star in the international cricketing arena.
Achievements And Accolades
Ever since Sachin made his debut against Pakistan at the age of 16, he has not looked back. Sachin has piled up runs against all teams in the world. Sachin Tendulkar is rightly hailed as the master blaster as he treats most of the bowlers with utter disdain. This man employs almost every shot mentioned in the cricketing manuals. Sachin Tendulkar is capable of tearing apart any bowling attack.

Priyanka Chopra

Brief Biography:
Priyanka was born on July 18, 1982, in the Chopra family consisting of her dad, Dr. Ashok and mom, Dr. Madhu (nee Akhauri), and has one younger brother. Her dad is Punjabi-speaking, while her mom is a Malayali from Bihar. As a child, she suffered from Asthma and was very close to her dad. Her family affectionately called her Mimi.
In 2000 she returned to India and enrolled in Jai Hind College and Basant Singh Institute of Science in Churchgate, Bombay, but had to leave abruptly as she was crowned Miss India. She was subsequently crowned Miss World in the same year - a year which proved to be a year for Indian Beauty Queens - as Lara Dutta and Dia Mirza were also crowned Miss Universe and Miss Asia Pacific respectively. Ironically, beauty pageants are banned in India's conservative state, Uttar Pradesh.
After completing her responsibilities as a Beauty Queen, she first appeared on the tinsel screen in India in a Tamil movie 'Thamizhan'.

References:
What is celebrity advertising? definition and meaning. 2013. What is celebrity advertising? definition and meaning. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/celebrity-advertising.html. [Accessed 02 July 2013].

You, Me and Ads: See What Print Ads Worked Best This Summer. 2013.You, Me and Ads: See What Print Ads Worked Best This Summer. [ONLINE] Available at: http://youmeandads.blogspot.com/2008/09/see-what-print-ads-worked-best-this.html. [Accessed 04 July 2013].

Sachin Tendulkar Profile - Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar Biography - Information on Sachin Tendulkar. 2013. Sachin Tendulkar Profile - Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar Biography - Information on Sachin Tendulkar. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.indiaonlinepages.com/sports/cricket/cricketers/sachin-tendulkar.html. [Accessed 04 July 2013].

Priyanka Chopra - Biography. 2013. Priyanka Chopra - Biography. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1231899/bio. [Accessed 04 July 2013].

CHOSEN ILLUSTRATION STYLE.

CARICATURE.


After having done our research and exploring different illustration styles, we chose to make our advertisement using an illustration style known as Caricature. Caricature plays with exaggeration mainly of facial expressions which make the image appear comical and humorous.

One of the reasons we chose to use this illustration style is because the ad we chose to improve also has elements of exaggeration in facial expressions as well as proportions of the body; with the head being bigger than the rest of the body. This is similar with the Caricature style. However what we will do different from the original ad is to add more humor and portray positivity rather than negativity and suicide.

Caricatures are very commonly made of famous people. This is another reason as to why we chose this illustration style. We chose to use famous Indian Icons; an actor, cricket player, and a former Miss world. We chose to use different professions so that our target audience is wider.

Caricatures are very well known around the world and also in India. An artist we found that is a successful Caricature artist goes by the name M.R. Rajaman. He was the first digital caricaturist of South India. Below are a few of his works.

Referencing: Welcome to Caricatureindia online digital caricature art.. 2013. Welcome to Caricatureindia online digital caricature art.. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.caricatureindia.com/index.html. [Accessed 01 July 2013].