Iconoclast captures wonder and whimsy for technical brands

Iconoclast’s 2024 portfolio is a showcase of the production house’s savvy for expressing creativity and whimsy within sometimes drab or technical categories. See all of Ad Age’s 2025 Agency A-List winners here Take tech, for example. Rather than being bogged down in feature or spec lists, Iconoclast’s work for Apple and Pinterest took fantastical approaches in expressing the value of the brand’s products. Directed by Megaforce, and made with agency TBWA\Media Arts Lab, Apple’s spot for its M4 chip and line of M4-powered devices swapped product showcase for an iron-twirling powerlifter, who personifies the chip. “No Sweat” starts by establishing the difficulty the athlete will face in hoisting the bar stacked with weights. But it quickly subverts expectations as the lifter begins to gracefully leap, spin and flip across the floor with the bar, building to a finale in which he balances the weights with just his pinkie finger. Similarly otherworldly, the “It’s Possible” campaign for Pinterest created alternate realities to visualize the niche interests the platform can cater to. Directed by duo Alaska for Pinterest’s in-house agency, the spots mix practical sets with CGI effects to cleverly riff on the vision board platform. In one, explorers venture into a pastel world of crochet and giant cats, scaling yarn cliffs and observing felines in fancy hats. Iconoclast also brought a new voice to auto advertising, literally, through pop star Dua Lipa. The spot for Porsche, co-directed by Dua Lipa and Clément Durou of We Are From L.A., supersizes auto ad tropes such as glamorous night drives, galloping horses and beautiful roadways through the singer’s imagination. High-speed chases and lunar rides meet zombies, backseat birth, elephants and a lot of Lipas in the filled-to-the-brim commercial, created with agency Grabarz & Partner. As part of Nike’s alternate messaging campaign, “Winning Isn’t for Everyone,” Iconoclast’s Megaforce directed multiple spots for the campaign’s “Winning Isn’t Comfortable” iteration. The spots, made with Wieden+Kennedy Portland, show the pains and resilience of those committed to the craft of running. One, called “Morning,” is an ode to non-morning people forced to wake up early to get in a run. Another shows post-New York Marathon runners struggling with the city’s many staircases. Beyond commercials, Iconoclast had great success with A$AP Rocky’s Grammy-nominated “Tailor Swif” music video, directed by Vania & Muggia. The video, playing off fast-paced meme and TikTok culture, picked up the music video Grand Prix at Ciclope. In 2024, Iconoclast signed multiple notable directors, including Justine Triet, who won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and the Cannes Film Festival’s Palme d’Or for “Anatomy of a Fall.” Iconoclast will represent Triet in France and the U.S. The production company also brought Omar Karim to its U.K. roster. Karim blends AI and traditional filmmaking techniques in his work. See all of Ad Age’s 2025 Agency A-List winners here

Iconoclast captures wonder and whimsy for technical brands

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