3 Ways With...Puppets

Puppets have an over 3000 year history, beginning when a caveman took a bit of mammoth hide, shaped it into a creature, tied it with mammoth guts, and did a satirical bit about inter-cave politics (or, in real life, it began in Ancient Egypt according the eight seconds of Wikipedia-ing I just did). It also has a rich history of appearing in advertising. Find out the three best ways to use puppets in your latest project in out guide to the art form in ads, written to celebrating the amazing new series of puppet-based idents created by Mark Denton for i Newspaper.

1. Childhood Nostalgia

Most of us have fond memories in one form or the other, from Punch and Judy shows that my older colleagues promised really existed once to the Muppets and Postman Pat. Ads looking for that warm nostalgic feeling, therefore, are willing to pull our heartstrings by literally pulling a few strings.

Drench: Brains
Agency: CHI London

Ask anyone to name a TV show featuring puppets, and Thunderbirds is guaranteed to be one of their answers. So CHI had a hit on their hands when they brought together Brains and '90s rave music for an ad for water brand Drench. Still can't dance away the embarrassment of that 2004 live-action remake, though...

Three Mobile: When Stuff Sucks #MakeItRight
Agency: Wieden+Kennedy London

The other TV show featuring puppet people would name in the hypothetical boring conversation from the box above would be The Muppets. So when W+K wanted a puppet for their Three ad, where else to turn but the Jim Henson Creature Shop?

2. Naughty, Naughty Puppets!

For every brand that want to create warm fuzzy childhood feelings, there is a brand who want to ruin your youthful memories with puppets involved in sexy situations, or by literally making a puppet that is just a giant pair of breasts.

Axe Hair: Office Love
Agency: BBH New York

The mid-00s were a different time, weren't they? Well no, actually, because we reckon this Axe ad, where a hair puppet flirts with a boob puppet, is how Donald Trump sees all women (though his puppet master is probably more Russian than those working for BBH to make this ad...)

Vivident: Unexpected Turn
Agency: Selection SRL

What is it that advertisers love about mixing boobs and puppets? We'll leave that for the better-paid therapists to delve into, but this ad has them too, part of a selection of 'unexpected turns' that see a large whale fall onto a skyscraper, and a man come out as a marionette.

3. Puppets Out of Other Objects...Disturbing Other Objects

Why make a puppet out of felt or something that won't give you nightmares when you can make one out of meat or dead mice? We will book ourselves into that therapist when the boobs/puppet people are done.

Tomcat: Leprechaun
Agency: Barton F. Graf 9000

What are you going to do with all the mice that poison brand Tomcat kills? Why, create small theatre pieces for them of course. What could possibly be more disturbing than taxedermy theatre?...

Diesel: Pete the Meat Puppet