Timberlake's take on directing

Who's to say that someone who does great work in front of the camera can't take a step behind the lens and try their hand at advertising? Ok, so maybe some people should just stick to their original career.

Thankfully, when Justin Timberlake decided to try his hand at directing, he was actually quite good. He came up with a series of sexy ads for 901 silver tequila that all seem to fit together, while each offering something completely different.

There's something witty in the style of shooting where a quick glance by the speaker is translated flawlessly by a swift camera maneuver. The dialogue is intriguing and the overall style is punchy, yet sexy. The voiceover by Timberlake at the end is appropriate – his tone matches the rest of the footage really well.

His style is so concrete across all the ads, but each one said something different. I look forward to seeing more from him. 901 is actually a brand that he started, so it's nice to see something done by someone within a company that's actually fun to watch.

Here are the other two ads: one being scary sexy, and the other having a more traditional smolder.  

Friends in High Places

Excuse me while I gush for a minute about one of my favorite actresses: Christina Hendricks. She plays a powerful female office manager in the show Mad Men and I can't help but fall in love with the work she does outside of the show. She has recently signed on as the spokesperson for London Fog, which ties in perfectly to the brand's existing presence in Mad Men (straight from Season 3).

Past the gushing, on to the meat-and-potatos of this post:

I'm surprised that more brands haven't come forward seeking connections between their products and the hit show. London Fog has done a great job getting people like me to pay attention to their brand. You've got fans who aren't afraid to admit to re-watching season after season of the hit series, so even products shown in Season 1 could benefit from hiring Man Men actors and actresses. And anyone who's loyal to a show knows that there's a certain excitement that comes from seeing one of your favorite characters doing work elsewhere.

Mercedes-Benz did a spot using John Hamm (Don Draper on Mad Men) for voiceover and it worked great:

You get to know and love these characters in the show, for their faults and for their triumphs, so you instantly relate to the products that they sell. Here's hoping that these brands keep it up!