Sudafed “Big Head” Spot by Assembly

A Sudafed commercial may not be the pinnacle of artistic achievement, but the care and attention to detail in this commercial elevates it beyond typical pharmaceutical marketing. Auckland, New Zealand-based Assembly created the :30-second ad “Big Head” for the JWT Sydney agency. It was directed by Matt von Trott with modeling and animation by Josh Fourt-Wells, Geoff Kirk-Smith and Gary Sullivan.

The ad is refreshingly simple—just one shot until the cut to the product at the end—with strong visual concepts and loosely appealing CG animation that is animated on twos for snappy cartoon effect. The character who makes the silly face at the end and pushes the cup behind the water cooler with his foot is a delightful and unexpected bit of characterization that is all too rare in advertising nowadays.