Mama, we made it. Two newly minted VCU Brandcenter grads will be on the big screen this Super Bowl Sunday. Or at least their ad will be.
About the commercial
The project revolves around Oakley Meta AI-enhanced glasses and the high-profile stars sporting them. Expect appearances from filmmaker Spike Lee, retired NFL player Marshawn Lynch, global creator iShowSpeed, professional golfer Akshay Bhatia, and several Olympian icons.
About the VCU alums
After earning diplomas, it didn’t take long for Art Director Alex Ward and Copywriter Boyan Zlatarski to secure their footing. The two now work with the creative ad agency Mother New York.
Executive Director Vann Graves concluded the 2025 ceremony with, “Today marks the end of your time at the Brandcenter, but it’s just the beginning of your time to create impact in this world.”
Photo via VCU Brandcenter
“Winning a project this big just six months after graduating from VCU Brandcenter definitely wasn’t on our bingo cards,” Ward and Zlatarski told RICtoday. “But the rigorous prep we got in Richmond gave us a solid production foundation, and the confidence to learn on the fly.”
In addition to the Brandcenter, rats might have had something to do with the students’ sudden rise, or rather, Ads for Rats. The 2025 creative campaign earned Ward, Zlatarski, and their team back-to-back D&AD New Blood Pencil awards.
How to watch
The commercial will air across two 30-second slots on game day, Sunday, Feb. 8. According to Meta, one will air during the first quarter and the other during the third quarter.
If you can’t wait that long, you’re in luck.
