Every year we see a ton of year-end top ten list articles from publications around the web…just in time for us to go on holiday and not fully indulge in them. It’s a lot to keep up with, so we’ve consolidated the best lists into the ultimate round-up of round-ups. Read up and then you can officially move on to 2012 as an expert on all of last year’s viral video highlights.
YouTube
YouTube was kind enough to compile a list of the ten best video ads of the year, based on view counts. The list leaves room for smartwater’s Jennifer Aniston commercial, Apple’s first Siri video, and of course DC Shoes for this incredibly popular ad featuring some insane stunt driving:
AdWeek
AdWeek and the Hollywood Reporter got together to rank the top 10 commercials of the year. They gave roster spots to Google’s “Dear Sophie” ad, Chrysler’s acclaimed “Born of Fire” commercial, and this fantastic ad from Chipotle:
BBC
The BBC gave us their own version of the Top 10 YouTube Videos of 2011 (which combines video ads and standard user videos into the same pool, and seems to be based on view counts). Ultimate Dog Tease–one of my favorite videos–took the top spot. Here’s a look:
Mashable
Mashable brought in Feed Company’s Josh Warner to talk about something more subjective–the “most innovative” video ads of the year. Warner includes the K-Swiss Kenny Powers campaign, YouTube’s Life In A Day, and the Ojai Valley Taxidermy TV Commercial. Here’s the entry for Go Pro that made the list:
Venture Beat
Venture Beat also combines video ads and non-ads into one top ten list–theirs is the “most hilarious and surprising” videos of 2011, like the cat mother hugging her baby, Nyan Cat, and this gem about bike lanes in New York City:
Billboard
Billboard magazine charts the music industries’ 10 best viral videos of the year in the world of music–including amateurs and pros. Rebecca Black made the list, as did Lady Gaga (obviously) and the Saturday Night Live digital short crew. Here’s KarminMusic’s explosively viral cover of “Look At Me Now,” which grabbed over 51 million views:
Time
Time Magazine has a Top 10 Viral Videos of 2011 feature. They like My Drunk Kitchen, Anderson Cooper’s laughing fit on the air, and some other great gems of the past year. And they actually present their list in video form. Here’s Jorge & Alexa Narvaez, who made Time’s list with their adorable cover of “Home”:
There’s a year-end video list for almost anything you might be interested in. There’s a top ten animal videos of the year list. Social Times gave us a list of the top 10 Christmas Light Display videos. The Telegraph gave us the 10 best fashion videos of 2011. Even Golf.com put out a year-end video list, giving us the 10 best Viral Golf videos of 2011.