The Lonely Island: "A Wildly Popular Video Would Be Better Than A Regular Commercial"

I blame "Mad Men" chic. Everyone in comedy it seems wants to be Don Draper, including Jason Bateman and Will Arnett.

The new incarnation of Ad Week has been good at chronicling how advertising chic is changing. Comedy is the perfect format for bite-sized digital shorts. “Unless you’re making the ASPCA commercial with the sad puppies and the Sarah McLachlan music,” Will Arnett said to AdAge, “it’s very difficult to get people to consume through dramatic advertising.” “You can make someone laugh quicker than you can push them to emotion,” said Jason Bateman. “There’s a kind of implied agreement that if you’re gonna give it to me, you better give it to me fast.”

Now The Lonely Hearts, creators of “Dick in a Box” and, we cannot fail to note, “Jizz in My Pants,” may just be the future of advertising. Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone use the virality of good -- and sometimes raunchy -- comedy to hawk products.  From AdAge:

Are viral videos better than commercials? Viral means “wildly popular,” so, yes, a wildly popular video would be better than a regular commercial.

Are you really brand “creatives,” or is that a schtick?
We are really creative directors. We direct the creative by saying things like, “Let’s run it up the flagpole and see who salutes it!” and “Get me that mimeograph of the Johnson files!” But honestly, they gave us a lot of creative freedom, which is awesome.

Why Rokk Vodka?
Because it tastes great and it’s less filling. Also, it won’t hurt your pocketbook, so you can save up for that yoga mat you were thinking about buying.

If you were asked to write a Rokk Vodka jingle, how would it go?
(To the tune of “Ye Olde Jester”) “Rokk Vodka drink, aye, aye/Drink it with your mouth, oy, oy.”

Are you a threat to Madison Avenue or a friend?
Madison Avenue is a great friend. Just last week it gave us a ride to the airport. Talk about generous!

Will you take on more clients?
We’re open to working with other brands in the future, but have no plans.

In other words, the dumbdumn model is actually quite smart. Not Don Draper smart, mind you, but ironic, comedian, slapstick smart. But these are the times. The full interview here.