Oh Pepsi & your continuity errors ...

I'm a big fan of commercials. Every year I go to the Cannes Advertising Festival, which normally showcases the best commercials from all around the world. It's interesting to see the various methods of persuasion and how they vary depending on the location and agency. I must admit, the Cannes Ad Films are always my favourite and I look forward to seeing them each year.

I was shown this commercial the other day and although clever, I did manage to find a continuity error near the end. You're looking at a billion dollar company (Pepsi) whose ads are world renown ... you would *think* that this would have been noticed. The rivalry between Pepsi and Coke has gone on for decades and has become a staple in both company's ad campaigns. So, nothing new to have Coke present in this commercial. Entitled "Diner 2," the noticeable error occurs at the 44 second mark where the Pepsi rep videos the Coke rep drinking the new Pepsi MAX (...how dare he). The coke switches hands in the video in order to fully show the product but if you look closer, you'll notice that the Coke rep is holding it in the opposite hand. I don't know ... it may seem silly, but c'mon ... Pepsi execs should be noticing stuff like that. As a previous film student and now studying advertising & design, it's small stuff such as the continuity error that really ruin the commercial for me. Yes, it's a clever concept but man, get your editing straight!