TED isn't a big fan of the traditional 30-second spot. For its Ads Worth Spreading contest, the organization continually chooses un-ad-like advertisements that are much lengthier than your typical TV commercial—and often never appear on TV at all. This was true last year with the first batch of winners, and is true again this year—check out the 10 winners for 2011/12 after the jump. We've written about most of them here at Adweek. (The Canal+ and Chipotle spots were on our list of the 10 best commercials of 2011.) "We sought out ads that were driven by ideas," said TED Curator Chris Anderson of this year's winners. "At TED, we've seen the power of imagination and innovation. We want to reward companies that have invested in longer-form, beautifully crafted campaigns that value human attention and intelligence, and take the time to tell a thought-provoking story."
• Canal+: The Bear
Brand: Canal+
Agency: BETC
• Chipotle: Back to the Start
Brand: Chipotle
Agency: Creative Artists Agency Los Angeles
• Engagement Citoyen: The Return of Dictator Ben Ali
Brand: Engagement Citoyen
Agency: Memac Ogilvy Tunisia
• L'Oreal Paris: Aimee Mullins
Brand: L'Oreal Paris
Agency: R/GA New York
• Mazda: Defy Convention
Brand: Mazda
Agency: Team Cosmos/JWT Germany/Team Mazda Europe
See the other five winners after the jump.
• Microsoft: Kinect Effect
Brand: Microsoft
Agency: twofifteenmccann San Francisco
• NTT Docomo: Xylophone
Brand: NTT Docomo, Inc.
Agency: Drill Inc., Dentsu Inc. Tokyo
• Prudential Day One: Linda
Brand: Prudential
Agency: Droga5 New York
• Rethink Breast Cancer: Your Man Reminder
Brand: Rethink Breast Cancer
Agency: john st. Toronto
• Sharpie: Start with Sharpie
Brand: Sharpie
Agency: Draftfcb Chicago