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Some Japanese companies are known for making really clever commercials, others are known for making some really dumb commercials (looking at you Sony).
Mobile carrier au (pronounced “A-U”) has proven itself a part of the former camp with its fantastic new commercial, “FULL CONTROL/Xmas”, which shows what Tokyo might look like if it were turned into one giant nightclub.
The commercial advertises au’s new 4G LTE high-speed wireless communication service. 4G LTE is designed to provide up to 10x the speeds of 3G mobile networks and au plans to have the service available to 98% of Japan by March 2013.
The advertising campaign for the service is called “Making surprise the standard”, and the commercial takes a look at what might happen if we could control the sights and sounds of our cities with our smartphones. Somehow we doubt that reality would be as inspiring a picture as the one this commercial paints — I know the first thing I would do with this technology is Rickroll Shibuya Crossing — but it’s still a sweet 60-second clip.
And in case you were wondering, no, they didn’t actually fly a giant disco hot air balloon over Tokyo — though it’s not exactly CG, either. According to the video description, an actual hot air balloon and search lights were used and it took nearly 20 hours in the studio to get the angels of the lights just right.
au is also uploading a series of three videos showing how they made the commercial, the first of which you can check here (the other two haven’t been released at the time of this writing).
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© RocketNews24
18 Comments
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oberst
but it's still illegal to dance.
Daijoboots
Not for long. Lawmakers will buy this phone and start freestylin' around Hachiko.
Serrano
This commercial isn't that clever, it won't make me buy this.
Ewan Huzarmy
So ads are now considered worthy of articles in 'entertainment' . I remember when great TV programmes used to be interupted by annoying ads ...... now that scenario seems to have been flipped .
The idiots are winning !
alliswellinjapan
Coca Cola could have done or may have already done the same thing.
Onniyama
but don't they know Tokyo is trying to stamp out dancing at nightclubs?
kaminarioyaji
@Ewan Huzarmy,
Given how 99.9% of JTV ads are delivered with the minimum of artistic consideration - "talents" simply holding the product in their hand whilst spouting the marketing spiel, "cute" women saying everything in unison, or food ads in which everyone proclaims it's "Oishii!" (beer ads are particulalrly bad with their "Wipe your mouth with your arm, smack your lips and say "Kaaaa!" to show how refreshing it is" charade)... And all of them ending with a 2-3 note jingle, I'd say that any attempt at something a bit more creative was worth a few column inches.
Not sure about the cheesy santa DJ though...
papigiulio
the CM is ok, not great. Ill take a stylish Sekisui house CM or a tomme lee jones BOSS CM anytime over au.
sighclops
@ kaminarioyaji
This.
taj
Taxi made me laugh.
HollisBrown
Ironic: Tokyo as a nightclub featuring people dancing, when it's illegal to dance in nightclubs in Tokyo.
Unoriginal: Daft Punk on a commercial
nath
which Angels , or you mean Angles?
warispeace
This is just an in-your-face, energy indulgent, commercial by a pro-nuclear company (KDDI attached to Toyota) that has no respect for the people near Fukushima Daiichi who had to abandon their homes and all the children exposed to radiation. It's all back to business as usual as if 3.11 never occurred and man-made climate change is a hoax.
blue_monday
Seiyu did it first
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xas63mC6AwY
and cheaper
cartier
This commercial is not original at all. It is a blatant rip-off of the Nokia Lumia debut in London. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SX2Gd-kqV5s
Fadamor
Did Tokyo pay the licensing fee to let their buildings party?
nath
cool commercial, but its not like I could do this if I buy the phone
and the no dancing in nightclubs, what? that's stupid. if they can't dance then they can't be called nightclubs then. thats wrong. but then they have these places where the men go to be served by women, or the other way around (forgot whats it called) and get drunk.