Sitcom name-checks Slow 1

A British sitcom called The Café recently used In Praise of Slow as a prop. The inside joke is that the granny reading it is already slower than anyone else in the show.

There are two clips. This is clip 1.

Audi’s Slowest Car Ad

Many brands are aligning themselves with Slow. Sometimes the product itself  fits snugly with the Slow ethos; sometimes less so. Either way, it’s another sign that  the idea the slower can be better is gaining currency.

This is an ad from Audi. In 2007, the German automaker launched its new sedan with the slogan “The Slowest Car We’ve Ever Built.”

They didn’t mean their latest model would struggle to overtake a vintage Lada. When they said this is the “slowest” car we’ve ever built, what they meant was this is the “best” car we’ve ever built.

Faster is better commercial

Early indoctrination into the cult of speed. Though I have to admit that I prefer my iPhone on the fast side…

Sitcom name-checks Slow 2

A British sitcom called The Café recently used In Praise of Slow as a prop. The inside joke is that the granny reading it is already slower than anyone else in the show.

There are two clips. This is clip 2.

Anti-Speeding, Pro-Slow TV Ad

If Carlsberg did anti-speeding campaigns, they’d probably be a bit like this one from Western Australia.

Forget the tired old shock tactics of yesteryear. Instead of trying to browbeat or terrify people into driving more slowly by bombarding them with gory images of mangled corpses, bashed up cars and severed limbs, the Enjoy the Ride campaign puts the stress on all the benefits that flow from following the speed limit.

Fewer accidents, to be sure, but also: Less money spent on fuel. Fewer toxic emissions into the environment. A calmness that allows you to take in the scenery, listen to music or talk radio, chat to your passengers or just let your mind wander (not too much, obviously.) Your car becomes a Zen refuge rather than a torpedo of road rage.

In other words, Enjoy the Ride embeds the old discussion about speeding in a broader conversation about why slowing down can pay handsome benefits in every walk of life.

Very Slow.

I helped to front the campaign. Here is the ad that screened on Australian TV and went on to win awards.

L’escargot

Une belle vidéo sur la nécessité de ralentir. Mon livre, Éloge de la Lenteur, est là…

Unplug to connect

A sweet reminder of why unplugging the gadgets can bring us closer together.

Orange Turn Off Phones Ad

Many brands are tapping into the growing yearning to unplug, slow down and live more fully. Sometimes the product itself  fits snugly with this Slow ethos; sometimes less so. Either way, it’s another sign that  the idea the slower can be better is gaining currency.

This is an ad from the Orange mobile phone company. It sings the praises of unplugging from technology. The tagline is: “Good things happen when your phone is switched off.”

This sounds like commercial suicide for a phone company, but it’s not. Orange knows that we’ll carry on using our phones. But they also know that more and more people are waking up to the fact that being “always on” erodes our quality of life  – and they want to be part of that conversation.

Spot para Motorola tablet

Un spot de Argentina para lanzar la nueva tablet Motorola Xoom.

La tapa de Elogio de la Lentitud aparece a los 25 segundos…

 

A commercial to launch the new Motorola Xoom tablet. The cover of In Praise of Slow (Spanish edition) features at 25 seconds.