Hidden Gems: The 13 Best Ads of 2024 That You Haven’t Seen

ADWEEK recently crowned its 20 best ads of 2024, but this list is different.

These are ads that flew under the radar or that you may have overlooked – but that doesn’t make their creative quality any less excellent. For the second consecutive year, ADWEEK shines a light on those campaigns that may not have swept industry awards shows or dominated headlines, but still deserve recognition. 

Among this group are a self-aware spoof from a luxury fashion house, a comedic road trip from a period care brand, a tourism ad that used reverse psychology, a museum that sent people on a treasure hunt, and much more. 

In no particular order, here’s ADWEEK’s list of 2024’s Hidden Gems. 

Rainbow Wool | ‘Gay Rams’ by Serviceplan Germany

Supporting the LGBTQ+ community extends to the animal world in a fun and thought-provoking campaign for Rainbow Wool from agency Serviceplan. Since homosexuality remains a crime in 62 countries worldwide, a sheep farm in Germany set out to combat inequality by producing a textile made from the wool of gay rams. Serviceplan helped launch Rainbow Wool’s first fashion collection, featuring Tokio Hotel singer Bill Kaulitz, in a buoyant video that explains the product and the plan. –Kyle O’Brien

Courageous Conversation Global Foundation | ‘America Erased’ by Wieden+Kennedy New York

With diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) issues under continued attack in the U.S., book banning is on the rise. As a result, some painful truths and valuable lessons that shaped the country’s history are being overlooked. That’s why Wieden+Kennedy New York partnered with the Courageous Conversation Global Foundation on “America Erased” to highlight the dangers of bans and censorship, particularly to marginalized communities. Their aim was to spark a movement defending students’ freedom to learn about their country’s complete history. –Kyle O’Brien

Duolingo | ‘Do Your Lesson, No Butts’ (in-house)

In a five-second ad that ran during the Super Bowl, language learning app Duolingo shocked, confused, and delighted audiences who watched the brand mascot’s rear end expand and explode into a smaller green owl. Duolingo’s message behind the bizarre spot was for users to do their daily lessons, “no butts about it.” While it may have puzzled viewers, prompting some to scour the internet to figure out the meaning, some were already in on the BBL (Brazilian butt lift) joke. Either way, the brand managed to make a splash in a short time frame. –Kyle O’Brien

Teleflora | ‘MotHER: A Teleflora Love Story’ by The Wonderful Agency

Teleflora has made its advertising bones in recent years by telling heartwarming (sometimes heartbreaking) and unconventional love stories. With its 2024 Mother’s Day campaign, it hit all the feels with a long-form spot that highlighted adventurous, rule-breaking, stigma-busting women who at some point added “mother” to their many dimensions. Because mom wasn’t always a mom, you know—she had a life before childbirth. By focusing on the whole person, Teleflora broke the mold for mom-centric marketing and continued its successful two-hankie streak. –T.L. Stanley

StōK Cold Brew | ‘Wred Dragon’ by Maximum Effort

Is that really Sir Anthony Hopkins under the furry, crimson mascot costume for Wrexham AFC? Yes, it is, insists this melodramatic, documentary-style ad that marked the Danone-owned brand’s first foray into the Super Bowl. Airing regionally and via streaming, the low-key, hilarious spot was a Big Game standout, shamelessly hijacking a U.S. football holiday to hype a U.K. professional soccer team and its coffee sponsor. It also gave viewers yet another reason to love the indefatigable Hopkins. –T.L. Stanley

Show-Me Organics | ‘Taste Your Own Medicine’ by Bandits & Friends

The David in this case (Missouri cannabis company Show-Me Organics) continued to battle its Goliath (Big Pharma) with a bold challenge to opioid makers to use the drugs they peddle to American consumers. At the heart of the effort, a short documentary advocated for weed as an alternative to addictive prescription drugs, using pharmacy owners-turned-cannapreneurs as its relatable stars. The content tapped into public anger over the opioid epidemic, calling out pharmaceutical execs by name on social media, as a daring follow-up to the satirical 2023 campaign, “Ask Your Doctor.” –T.L. Stanley

Hong Kong Ballet | ‘Tutu Academy’ by Design Army

If there’s ever a chance to see the Hong Kong Ballet in the flesh, by all means, take it. If not, watch (and rewatch) this stunning short film that celebrates its 45 years in business and debuts a new training program. The long-time agency and brand partners, well-versed in genre-hopping, have landed somewhere between fantasy and sci-fi for the latest marketing effort. Along with the sheer entertainment value—eye-popping visuals and gravity-defying moves—the video gives another master class in how to promote classical dance to contemporary audiences. –T.L. Stanley

Thinx | ‘12 Hour Period Road Trip’ by BBDO LA and BBDO Atlanta

Natasha Leggero and X Mayo star in this Girls Trip-style short film for period care brand Thinx that combines a product demo with cheeky improv, slapstick humor, and sight gags, set against the urban sprawl of Los Angeles. Coming up with an alternative tagline, “Comedians in Cars Testing Panties,” was laughably easy. The friends, who were actually on their periods during filming, ad-libbed and road-raged their way through LA’s notorious traffic while keeping up a free-flowing conversation. And we’re all the better for it. –T.L. Stanley

Loewe | ‘Decades of Confusion’ (in-house)

Many people over many years have been confused about how to pronounce the name of luxury fashion house Loewe. The brand is in on the joke in a short film starring Dan Levy and Aubrey Plaza, written by Levy, and directed by Ally Pankiw. With deadpan humor, quirky characters, plenty of wigs, and iconic looks from the Loewe archive, the film captures awkward moments at spelling contests through the decades, taking viewers on a journey through the brand’s history. It is also refreshingly funny and self-aware for the typically austere luxury category. –Brittaney Kiefer

Visit Oslo | Is it Even a City? by Newslab

Reverse psychology is a powerful persuasion technique. Case in point: Visit Oslo’s tourism ad, which tells people they shouldn’t come to the Norwegian capital. Laced with irony, the spot features an Oslo native who questions if his hometown is even a city, given its small size and accessibility compared to tourist-packed metropolises like Paris and New York. Visit Oslo’s viral ad struck a chord in a season of protests and government crackdowns against over-tourism in popular destinations such as Barcelona and Venice. A low-key, unpretentious getaway like Oslo might be just what a new generation of travelers are seeking. –Brittaney Kiefer

V&A Museum | ‘If You’re Into It, It’s in the V&A’ by adam&eveDDB

The V&A Museum in London invited people on a wild treasure hunt throughout the country. Transcending the borders of a typical marketing campaign, the storied institution and agency adam&eveDDB hid objects in plain sight that catered to a wide array of niche interests: a ceramic pot in an antique shop; an engraved plaque on a theater seat; golf balls at a driving range; customized soccer jerseys at Premier League matches; a silver tankard at a metal detecting hotspot; and many more. The elaborate initiative, many months in the making, appealed to younger generations by highlighting the relevance of the V&A’s collection of more than 2.8 million objects. –Brittaney Kiefer

Bodyform | ‘Never Just a Period’ by AMV BBDO

Since 2017, when it became the first U.K. advertiser to depict real menstrual blood instead of the typical stand-in blue liquid, Essity menstrual care brand Bodyform and longtime agency partner AMV BBDO have a long history of breaking taboos about women’s bodies. Its latest outing, “Never Just a Period,” explores women’s experiences that rarely appear on screen: unexpected discharge smells, getting your period while breastfeeding, having a coil inserted, and so on. There are moments of comedy, joy, and shared pain that aim to educate and resonate with generations of women who may feel overlooked or dismissed. –Brittaney Kiefer

Magnum | ‘Find Your Summer’ by LOLA MullenLowe

Ice cream may not be the first treat you reach for in winter, but an artsy campaign breaks Magnum out of its typical summertime niche. Shot by famed commercial director Juan Cabral, a moody film shows people finding reprieve from the dark, cold months with Magnum ice cream. Press and outdoor ads capturing similar moments of beauty in winter wouldn’t have been out of place on a gallery wall. –Brittaney Kiefer