The Audacity Pumpkin Off!

This week Monday saw the first annual Audacity Pumpkin Off. We were all hard at work last week creating our masterpieces. Competition was tough – an air of tension and the smell of dissected pumpkin filled the office until Monday’s grand finale. Designs ranged from the inventive, the skilled and the downright creepy!!

Celebrity guest Sally (from downstairs) was asked to judge the anonymous pumpkins, and decide who would be the winner of a cauldron full of Halloween treats.

And the winner was….

…..Steph, and her ghostly pumpkin!

NEW SIMPLE CAMPAIGN LAUNCHES TODAY!

We're proud to announce the launch of our fourth TV advert for Simple - on air today!

The campaign continues to challenge the conventions of beauty advertising and communicate Simple's philosophy of goodness. Using iconic imagery of a pure white rose, the latest ad shows how delicate skin can be dried out by wind, sun and everyday life.

Click below to watch our latest work:

This ad heroes Simple's Kind To Skin Moisturisers and introduces a newcomer to the range, their latest innovative product, the Moisture Boost Hydro Mist. We've all got one on our desks, perfect for when you need that little refreshing moisture boost! And fear not, no mascara smudges with this fab little spray, it works even over makeup.

Audacity launches Malibu sponsorship idents!

Based on the insight that Malibu's target audience dream of living the celebrity lifestyle, and complimenting the E! Nights programming, the idents show a group of friends going about their normal lives, which are surprisingly and humorously interrupted by 'celebrity moments'.

The idents are part of the Malibu UK's current 'sets the stage for fun' TTL campaign, which has been created and executed in partnership with Audacity. The campaign, which was launched at the start of 2011, has included a limited-edition bottle, social media campaigns, POS activity and a series of successful events.

The idents will run on E! Entertainment for 4 months. Tune between 9pm and midnight or click the links below to see the idents. We'll be adding a few more idents to our blog in the coming weeks so watch this space for some exciting new Malibu combinations!

Malibu launches new pre-mixed cans!

Audacity has had a busy summer working with Malibu and we've just put the finishing touches to their 'Summer to go!' campaign. These new Malibu 6-sheet posters support the launch of Malibu's great new range of pre-mixed cans. They come in handy 250ml cans in three scrumptious flavours – Malibu & Pear, Malibu & Cranberry, and Malibu & Cola. We think they’re just perfect for festivals and picnics in the park.

We love how the versatility and convenience of these tasty drinks compliments Malibu’s summery and upbeat brand message. The posters are out now and will run as a national campaign until the 21st August 2011.

Malibu has also launched a range of convenient, lightweight 1 litre cocktail pouches with flavours including Island Punch and Carribean Cosmo. We were lucky enough to receive a few samples, which we washed down accompanied by some fabulous cupcakes brought into the office by Liz - what a treat!!!

Summer's Here! (Kind of...)

The summer's here again and that means it's time for Ubisoft's beach themed summer event!

Last Thursday Liz, Jane, Steph and George made their way to Shepherd's Bush to have fun trying out Ubisoft's latest games and hunting down the elusive 'meat buffet' (Amy's been going on about it all year).

The Audacity gang had loads of fun stuffing their faces with pick n mix and making fools of themselves on the new Driver game which will launch this September.

Our Call of Juarez: The Cartel ads are currently on air in the UK. Check it out here:

Simple Kind To Eyes Roll-On TV Launches

After winning the Simple account last year, Audacity is proud to announce the launch of our third Simple TV advert.

The ad focuses on the fantastic Kind To Eyes Roll-On, a must have wonder product which hides bags and revitalises even the most puffy of eyes (trust us, we know!). And just like all of Simple's products, Kind To Eyes Roll-On is free from colours, perfumes and harsh chemicals.

The ad launched earlier this month with 10 and 30 second executions. You can catch it on all major TV channels or check it out here:

Three cheers for Liz!!!

Audacity is very proud to announce that Managing Partner, Liz, has been selected as one of the top ‘35 under 35’ businesswomen in the UK. Liz has been profiled in the Sunday Times and Management Today as one of the country’s most successful and influential young talents and we couldn’t agree more. The prestigious award is a celebration of 12 amazingly successful years in the industry, working for Grey Advertising, Soul and running a club night in Brixton before setting up Audacity with Bruce. Click here for the full scoop.

So now you know about Liz-the-businesswoman, but there are many other strings to her bow. So we decided to ask Liz a few questions of our own to find out a little more about our award-winning boss…

So, Liz, do you have any nicknames?

Eba - my family name, inherited from Lady Elizabeth Addis.

You're not shy of a social event, what's your best party trick?

My cork trick...

What has been your favourite Audacity moment?

Making Campaign top 100 ranking in our first year.

And your most embarrassing?

George's Secret Santa gift 2010....I won't say any more!

What is your most prised possession?

My handbags, my watch and my husband.

Congratulations Liz!

Malibutique, Child of Eden and The Arrows

First off, we’re pleased to introduced the ‘Malibutique’: Malibu’s new event touring shopping centres in London, Birmingham and Manchester. Targeting women aged 25, the event brings together great partner brands offering beauty tips, fashion, tanning advice, nails and of course great Malibu cocktails. You can see the video of the London Westfield event here:



Part of the Summer ’11 campaign we’ve already blogged about, Audacity created the identity for the Malibutique and all the video signage as well as working to adapt the Summer ’11 Malibu bottle artwork to the event. Next stop is Birmingham (from 7th – 10th July). Maybe we’ll see you there!

From one form of recreation to another, Ubisoft are launching Child of Eden – a revolutionary new rhythm action game for Kinect – this Thursday. The launch has been supported by video on demand (VOD) advertising as well as a unique event in Soho... The Child of Eden Experience is a takeover of a shop on Dean Street. The pop-up event is psychedelically styled and is dedicated purely to trial of the new product. You can find out more yourself here: www.facebook.com/childofeden.

Finally, we’re proud to announce the formation of Audacity’s latest sports team: The Arrows. Mooted to be making their debut at Campaign’s forthcoming darts tournament, the team have already bought a dart board to begin practicing. Watch out rivals (and watch out anybody within five metres of the practice board!).

Audacity hit the track

“There are only three sports: bullfighting, motor racing, and mountaineering; all the rest are merely games.”
Ernest Hemmingway

It’s thirty minutes until the race begins and the tension is mounting. The Audacity racers wait nervously by the pit lane in their racing suits. The stewards are beginning to take their places around the track and there’s excitement in the air. A few minutes later the drivers are ushered into the cars. Jane is stone-faced with concentration. George closes his eyes, mentally picturing his approach to the first corner. Rachael grips the steering wheel and readies her foot for the accelerator... and then they’re off!



One practice session, qualifying and a Grand Prix later, Audacity’s day of karting is complete. The winners celebrate on the podium with their trophies as the final times appear on screen. Team Audacity dissect their performance – the overtaking moves, the killer laps and the collisions. A great time has been had by all and Audacity’s third birthday has been marked in style!



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We spent last Friday evening at TeamSport’s revolutionary new Tower Bridge track featuring 800m of circuit split over two levels and super-fast carbon-neutral electric karts. We’d thoroughly recommend the experience. Thanks to everyone at TeamSport for giving us a fab time. Audacity will be back!

Malibu Summer ’11 Campaign breaks

Today’s blog entry is all about Malibu. It’s a tipple that divides opinion, but Dave and George have already grown partial to it judging from the dwindling size of our agency stockpile. Over the past few months we’ve been working with the lovely team at Pernod Ricard on various elements of their Summer 2011 campaign. Two of these have just gone live...

First off, the centre-piece of the campaign. The new Malibu Limited Edition Bottle (pictured below). We’ve been working with up-and-coming designer Nikki F to create the new design and we’re thrilled with the results. It channels the vibrant colours of the Caribbean to create a bottle with fantastic standout on the shelf. Coming to stores this week!



For another strand of the campaign, we’ve been tasked with communicating Malibu’s versatility. And what better way to do so than to physically demonstrate the beautiful refreshing drinks that Malibu can create at the point of purchase. We’ve produced four bespoke executions for bar screens up and down the country. They were shot in glorious slow-motion and we’re thrilled with the results. Take a look at them here: Malibu & Cranberry, Malibu & Cola, Malibu & Orange, Malibu and Lemonade.

Phew, all that gorgeous liquid is making me thirsty. I’m off for a Malibu and Cranberry...

Record breaking results and Mummy's Yummies

Take a bow Team Simple! Tracking results are in and the new campaign has scored the highest tracking results ever for this type of product. Not bad! The Rose execution was shown to have strong, clear and positive cut-through with creative ad recall rising to an all time high of 63% and the highest ever Prompted Ad Recall for Wipes. Wow.

Let’s hope Audacity’s newest client can be as big a success; we’re proud to announce that Mummy’s Yummies – the newly launched home-baking brand – has appointed Audacity to handle its integrated communications. You can find out more about the products here, but take it from us that the end product is fantastic. Personally, I think the mixes look so tempting that you could eat them straight from the jar!

Simple, slow-mo and sunburn

Gosh, to say the last few weeks have been busy is something of an understatement.

First off, our next Simple ad is on air this week. The ad features their fabulous new corrector pen which (as the name suggests) allows you to correct mistakes when applying eye make-up. It’s a great product, and this is the first time it’s been supported by advertising so much excitement!

Also this week we’ve just wrapped a rather unusual shoot for Pernod Ricard. Hopefully we’ll show you the results on this blog soon so we won’t spoil the surprise. But let’s just say it involved a super slow-motion camera, litres of drinks and mixers and a stepladder.

In other shoot news, George and Jane have just returned from a shoot in glamorous Miami. It was a busy schedule of filming by all accounts – so busy in fact that George didn’t find time to apply sunscreen. Unfortunately, George won’t allow us to put up a picture, but his skin is now the colour of our red pantone mugs.

Audacity's new campaign for Simple launches today

Audacity's new campaign for Simple, the UK's number 1 skincare brand, is on air from Monday 14th February.

You can view the ad online here

The campaign represents a step change for the Simple brand. The campaign uses iconic imagery of a pure rose, as an analogy with delicate skin, which is savaged by ingredients that are excluded from Simple's products: artificial colours, perfumes and harsh chemicals. The campaign challenges the conventions of beauty advertising to communicate Simple's philosophy of goodness, and its use of the purest possible ingredients to care for skin.

The first execution heroes Simple Kind To Skin Cleansing Wipes, the UK's biggest selling beauty product. Further executions will launch Simple's new Eye Make-Up Corrector Pen and support its Kind To Eyes Revitalising Eye Roll-On.

Behind the Scenes of Life’s a Pitch

For this blog entry, we’ve decided to take you behind the scenes of www.lifesapitch.co.uk - BT’s new football site for which we create and manage the content. The site has a rich tapestry of content including contributions from some of the country’s top sports writers.

The site hosts journalist blogs, fan blogs, podcasts, news, player interviews and more.
The premier pieces of content each week are the podcast. Four are filmed each week over two days. And because it’s football, we have to be able to react with our agenda to breaking stories and results sometimes just hours before the recording. We agree a set of topics to discuss on the morning of the filming and we then usher in our panellists. All are top football writers from the country’s press. There’s a quick briefing before each session and then everyone is sat down ready for the recording.

We only have one hour of time to records two podcast so the whole recording is done “as live”. We have a soundpiece in the ear of the presenter which allows us to give instructions and directions without interrupting the flow. The podcasts are filmed with three cameras and are vision mixed live on the day.

Once the two shows are filmed, we say goodbye to our panellists and head to the edit suite to put the finishing touches on the edit and add a final layer of polish.

The podcasts are then encoded and uploaded to the Life’s A Pitch website via our own CMS – all within the day. They’re live on the website before the evenings matches and are ready for the football-loving public to digest – either on the site itself or via iTunes.
You can see an example podcast here

An audacious start to the New Year!

Happy new year from everyone at Audacity! The last few days have been something of a frenzy of activity. No gentle start to the New Year for us. Half the office is occupied in gearing up for an epic four-day shoot for our new client Simple and it’s been casting and pre-production galore over the last few days.

Amongst our other projects, we’re still working avidly on the new Life’s a Pitch football site – we’re producing two video podcasts a week every week with a panel of expert journalists. The topics are diverse and the debate is lively. They go live on the site and on itunes every Monday and Friday so keep an eye out for them.

Continuing in football vernacular, we’re also pleased to unveil our new signing Emily Hoffman. Signed from Publicis United for an undisclosed fee, she’s already made her debut and she’s well on the way to becoming a fan favourite.

Stay tuned for news of more interesting happenings. Throughout this year we’ll be blogging from behind the scene of some of our campaigns to give you an insight into what goes in to making our work.

Until next time.