My shots Monday: Equine Advertising

There’ll be a few smug faces in the office today as winnings are collected for Grand National sweepstakes following the biggest event in horse racing on Saturday afternoon.

For the majority though, it’ll be a pat on the back for taking part and consolation in our latest My shots Monday playlist showcasing a selection of the best ads featuring horses from the past few years.

And they’re off

Whipping us into shape is an exhilarating spot from 4Creative for the annual event itself. Directed by Keith McCarthy the film takes to the streets, rampaging through parks and residential roads, jumping cars and even cutting in on a wedding at one point. The spot was made to mark the arrival of the event to Channel 4 last year and its coverage. 4Creative recently followed up the ad with this year’s instalment, The Original Extreme Sport.

Black Beauty

If you’ve ever watched the National, you’ll know that a horse’s behaviour can be erratic and swapping the streets for a golf course in Nike’s The Arrival ad, we see just how powerful and assertive the animal can be. Shot with two horses on Alexa and Phantom cameras, the 30-second piece sees the horse demonstrate its sheer awesomeness and beauty as it pounds the ground with conviction to promote the brand’s 20XI golf ball and its power and agility. The ad was created through Wieden+Kennedy Portland and was broadcast in 2011 as part of a three-spot campaign.

Brotherly love

A dog may be man’s best friend but in Busweiser’s 2013 Super Bowl spot a Clydesdale challenges the notion and does a pretty good job of it for a stable worker. Bonding through the years as he looks after his companion through youth and adulthood before one day sending the horse off to the big wide world of show parading, the pair are reunited three years later in a story from the beer brand that tugs on the heartstrings. Brotherhood was created by agency Anomaly and shot by RSA’s esteemed director Jake Scott.

Endless emotion

A similar story of love and friendship is presented in Akestam Holst’s ad for Swedish betting firm ATG. Introducing a man who finds himself on a bus daydreaming about a horse, the commercial travels through various scenes to depict the strength of their relationship and what the animal, symbolic for horse racing in general, means to him. Rane Tiukkanen directs the commercial and the scenes are supported by Shirley Bassey’s Where Do I Begin? (Love Story) track.

Trotting in traffic

One of the more bizarre ads we’ve featured over the years, but one to definitely celebrate on our playlist is Citroen Baby from French Agency H. The commercial features a young toddler with long flowing blonde hair on horseback as it gallops across a beach to another classic soundtrack in Spandau Ballet’s True. All seems glorious in the outlandish scenario until the music fades out after the baby gets stopped at a red traffic light of all things on the sandy shore.

Soon we realise that the images represent a man in his new Citroen DS3 Cabrio and when the light turns green he zips off in the shiny new vehicle. The ad is directed by MJZ’s Tom Kuntz and concludes our selection of Grand National-themed horseplay.

Check out the playlist here.