Amsterdam agency Gummo was approached by TNT Post to design a series of stamps that would communicate some “extraordinary and yet to be completed architectural projects” in the Netherlands – click image to see all stamps. Together with the Dutch Architecture Institute (NAi) Gummo selected five visionary projects. But when Gummo realised that the size of the stamp would limit the agency in showing the projects in their full glory, it became inspired to use augmented reality – executed by DPI Animation House in The Hague. You can experience the AR on a website called Toekomst in Beweging (“future in motion”) and see a small demonstration here. There’s also a bonus AR image of the renovated NAi building when you show your webcam all the stamps at once.

TNT postal service asked KesselsKramer to create a new innovation for stamps. The result is the ‘smallest shortest films’, a one second film that was cut in 30 stills to show as a set of stamps. The film, launched during the 30th anniversary of the Dutch Film Festival in September, was directed by Anton Corbijn, a world famous Dutch photographer – though at the moment he is especially hot for having directed George Clooney without clothes in The American. The model in front of the windmill is Carice van Houten. She played Tom Cruise’s wife in Valkyrie and is Holland’s most successful actress. The image was inspired by a Dutch stamp from 1951 by Cas Oorthuys. Corbijn made a few one second films, but chose this one because it gives the traditional setting a bit of an edge. To get these people to work on your project is quite a smart way to create some PR around it. Nice work.

Already since 1924 Holland has a tradition of Kinderpostzegels (children stamps). The stamps are issued once a year by TNT Post, distributed by school children throughout their neighborhood and sold with a surcharge. The money of this charity goes to projects that focus on the welfare of vulnerable children. Every year the stamp has a different theme and this year it is ‘let the children learn’. The distinctive and clean design of the stamps and this commercial was done by Christian Borstlap and brought to life by director Paul Postma. And the catchy music by Hopkins and Kenjamin tops it off nicely!