It’s #IndieWork day (whatever day that is now), and we have a whole smattering of Broadway-adjacent and fame-infused work to show you.
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Barrett Hofherr Trolls In ‘n Out
First up, In-N-Out is down and out from the No. 1 spot in burgerphiles’ rankings this week as Habit Burger & Grill steps up.
The challenger was ranked as the No. 1 fast food burger by USA Today readers — and with help from Barrett Hofherr, it’s reveling in the win. The agency-brand duo made sure to position Habit Burger billboards within view of In-N-Out locations, reading “Congrats on #2, In-N-Out.”
Is a new burger war afoot?
The agency also worked with Ariat International and 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy to make a mountain out of a football field. Check out the partnership here.
Haymaker for PlutoTV
Gary Sinise is in a potato costume. Again. He and other PlutoTV viewers are… literally couch potatoes. What more could you possibly want from an ad? It’s another installment in this piece of lovely.
Birdie for The Bail Project and Ad Council
Carmelo Anthony is the face of this work for The Bail Project and the Ad Council, with Birdie supporting business affairs.
Good work for a good cause. Love to see it.
Lewis
reVive Light Therapy devices—said to reduce signs of aging, relieve pain and reduce acne—are now in the hands of famous artwork subjects, including the Mona Lisa. Lewis’ concept bills the device as a means of making one’s skin a “work of art” and—in the case of the armless Venus de Milo—arming oneself against acne and aging.
These folks belong on Pun Fight.
In a more wholesome, even fatherly piece of work, Lewis also teamed up with Apple and wireless provider C Spire on a spot highlighting the Apple Intelligence features of the iPhone 16 Pro—details that remained a secret until just days before shooting began.
Surgeons and other healthcare providers are front and center in Lewis’ “Better Starts Here” campaign for AnMed Health, which highlights the lifesaving work the organization does every day.
PJX Media for Summer Fridays
Working with smart screen platform Firefly, PJX took beauty brand Summer Fridays to the streets of New York with a swarm of vehicles topped by digital billboards. The breezy aesthetic invited beauty enthusiasts to find the product in their nearest Sephora location.
JOAN Creative for Ebay
Igniting a bit of FOMO, this out-of-home campaign for eBay shows people making their friends and followers go “OOH” as they share their fly finds online.
The Many
Young racers are hitting the track in formula cars—different from their usual stock cars and street cars—each one of which is themed after a flavor of NOS energy drinks in this three-part miniseries brom The Many. Watch the trailer.
The agency also helped Panda Express partner with Hot Ones for a thrilling battle between Aubrey Plaza and Patti LuPone, who met on the set of Marvel’s witchy Disney+ series, Agatha All Along. Watch to find out who will prevail.
The Many also worked up a wok-ing good time for the Panda brand, complete with panda onesies, and highlights the brand’s takeout-friendly appeal.
Transport New York for Johnson + The Rock’s Papatui brand
We love to see men’s skincare growing as a category. Dwayne Johnson and his supple skin are in on the game with a line from Johnson called Papatui. Transport New York is helping The Rock roll with it.
Cactus for Man Therapy in MM+M
Don’t miss this great read with Cactus founder and CEO Joe Conrad, who chatted with MM+M’s Lecia Bushak about the agency’s suicide prevention work with Man Therapy.
OBERLAND for NAMI NYC
Also helping improve mental health conditions is OBERLAND, which teamed up with the National Alliance on Mental Illness NYC to help New Yorkers express what mental health means to them and raise awareness about resources for those in need.
Saylor for Onyx Collective
Jacqueline “Jax” Stewart, protagonist of the Onyx Collective-produced Hulu original series Reasonable Doubt, dresses to the nines in every episode, and Saylor assembled a reel showing off the work that Onyx puts into those unrivaled looks.
The Famous Group for the Miami Marlins
Collaborating with JayByrd Films, The Famous Group worked up this thrilling, spiraling footage of action from Marlins games. At first glance, you’d think it was CGI, but this is the real deal. Stunning.
The agency also served up some famously powerful engagement for the more than 750,000 fans at Adele’s Munich concert in partnership with Vixi.
Special U.S. for Uber Eats
Special U.S. scored coverage in People for its star-studded, football season-centric ad for UberEats. Matthew McConaughey gets mouthy while watching the game with Christian McCaffrey and Jerry Rice.
Watch and read about it via People.
CONVICTS for Qantas
Heading Down Under with CONVICTS, we have a campaign for Australian airline Qantas voiced by Chris Hemsworth (and his charming accent). It was created with creative consulting help from fellow Strayans Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin and boasts an on-screen and audibly mellifluous cadre of homegrown talent.
Check it out at AdNews Australia.
Colbert Studios for the Mass Prostate Cancer Coalition
Roughly one in nine men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime, so Colbert Studios and the Mass Prostate Cancer Coalition are inviting those who are experiencing the all-too-common condition to “join the club” with a new rebrand for the org.
Planit for Love & Cornbread
Love & Cornbread, a 501(c)(3) aiming for food equity in Baltimore City, got a fancy new wrap design for its vans courtesy of Planit.
Fortnight Collective for iDE (International Development Enterprises)
With a little creative inspiration (and a dash of righteous rage) from Fortnight Collective, entrepreneurship-focused poverty battler iDE’s Project Fury empowers women in impoverished communities to change their prospects through their work.
Stoltz Marketing Group for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game
With stunning photos taken a short drive from its Boise headquarters, Stoltz created an asset library for the government org stuffed with photos of local landscapes, wildlife and people enjoying them.
Xpedition for The Jamie Lloyd Company
Sunset Boulevard is getting a slick revival on Broadway starring Nicole Scherzinger and directed by Jamie Lloyd, with work produced by Xpedition. Don’t miss it.
