BLOGS

Vote for us or die in a horrible ball of flame

By lukeryan on Aug 17 2010, 06:12AM

There's an art to a good campaign ad. In that spare 30 seconds, or comparatively luxurious full minute, one has to conjure up a feeling of overwhelming terror, smear the opposition, mention your own candidate and perhaps even say something constructive about their policies (although that last one is definitely an optional addition). The Americans have elevated the campaign ad to a high art - I compiled my list of the top ten here - but it's always been a shakier proposition in Australia. Maybe it's our lack of population. Maybe it's the general air of mediocrity we cultivate in our political circles. Maybe it's just a flow on effect from the dulling of our sensibilities produced by compulsory voting. But for whatever reason, our campaign ads are typically as interesting as being slowly dragged face first across a glacier. So, has anything changed this election?

Uhhhhh...

As a bit of history, according to the Gruen Nation this is close to Australia's earliest filmed political ad. I'm guessing one take, no rehearsal. All class.

Asylum seekers or rather the boats they (very occasionally) come in on have been a topic of high consternation again this election, so the Liberals, famous for their stated desire to shoot refugees out of a cannon and back to their homelands, have been busy conjuring up images of invasion to get a sensible debate going.

Aieeee! I don't know what's going on, but shit me I'm terrified of it. Fortunately, those industrious folk over at GetUp have produced an antidote to all the high stakes rhetoric.

GetUp have also been doing well with this ad, where they take some of Tony Abbott's more incriminating quotes (admittedly some of which date back to his university days, a time of my life when I probably would have called myself a gender-neutral Communist given half the chance) and get women to say them. Simple and effective.

Although, speaking of Tony Abbott, I think it's telling that in this ad, the follow up to Abbott's election launching "Real Action Tony" ad, they cut Abbott down to 15 seconds airtime. In keeping with the Liberal Party's general "Remember your lines and try not to bump into the furniture" policy when it comes to the man. But man, I could listen to that Real Action theme song allllll day. So catchy. So modern.

And as an enjoyable aside, here's the UK's David Mitchell on why "ending government waste" is just, like, the most vacuous claim ever.

Labor has been keeping things traditional too. Just a whole lotta "moving forward" and Julia Gillard looking so soft focus she could be taking a break from filming a new series of Days of our Lives.

Boooooooring. Need some high-quality Liberal fear-mongering to chase that.

Subtle and well-produced. That kid should have looked left and right. The minor parties are usually good for some proper LOLs. Let's see what Family First are up to

Good lord. Quite the power packed 16 seconds. Perhaps hampered by the sense that they couldn't actually afford a proper police siren sound to take them out. And that it appears to have been done in Microsoft Paint. More enlightening is the Sex Party with JerkChoices:

Curious idea, but just a bit creepy by the end. Yes, vote 1 Sex Party and all will jerk... together. You too, grandma. This is an effort by the ACTU, so semi-officially Labor backed, but I'm really not sure the good folk down at Labor want to get too close to this one. Abbott sounds like a sex offender and his junk... it's hypnotic.

And finally, coming back to Gruen Nation, last week they broadcast this "ad" for The Greens, which, from what I can tell, has since become the most watched election ad on YouTube. Exceedingly simple, hopeful and well done. And unfortunately unbroadcastable because the ABC is all about the political neutrality.