This week we’ve got lightning storms from space, 19th-century presidents breathing fire, baby monkeys, Street Fighter, robots solving Rubik’s Cubes and much more. 

Here are the best branded Instagram videos I’ve seen in the past month…

NASA

It doesn’t get much cooler than this. A time-lapse of lightning storms on Earth filmed by British astronaut Tim Peake as he orbited the planet at 15,500 miles-per-hour.

NASA instagram video

Red Bull

If you haven’t mountain biked through a village at God-knows-how-many miles-per-hour with a camera strapped to your face, you haven’t lived. 

Red Bull instagram video

Jamie Oliver

I’ve included this one because I did actually use it as the basis for my own pancake efforts, meaning it must have been a successful branded Instagram video. 

jamie oliver instagram video

GoPro

This one is just awesome. Drones and GoPro cameras go together like digital marketers and laptops, and I’m happy to see an increasing number of people creating videos in this way.   

GoPro instagram video

KFC

Everyone’s favourite purveyor of deep-fried stuff has come out with this slightly creepy but quite comical number, featuring ex-President of the United States Andrew Jackson breathing fire like a dragon after chewing on some hot chicken. 

KFC instagram video

Nike

Given my recent declaration of love for them it was a given I’d include at least one or two cinemagraphs on this list, and this effort from Nike is one of the better examples I’ve seen.

Nike instagram video

National Geographic

I love seeing how similar monkeys are to humans. They are essentially just really hairy people who don’t talk much. 

This clip plays to National Geographic’s nature-happy audience, showing a baby monkey playing in much the same way a human baby might. 

National geographic instagram video

Flixel Photos

More cinemagraphs. This clever piece creates an optical illusion in which a woman appears to wink. But it’s actually just a cat blinking. 

Or winking, to be fair. Can’t see enough to confirm either way. Perhaps it only has the one eye…

Flixel Photos instagram video cinemagraph

Oreo

Even more cinemagraphs? You better believe it. 

I’ve included cinemagraphs from Oreo before because it’s pretty damn good at them.  

I particularly like this one because I think it nailed the drip falling into the liquid, which I imagine is probably quite difficult to achieve. 

Oreo instagram video

Bath and Bodyworks

This animation from Bath and Bodyworks is fun, colourful and frankly a joy to behold. 

Bath and Bodyworks Instagram video

Playstation

This one sent me on a wild nostalgia trip back to the days when I used to put 50p in the Street Fighter 2 arcade at the local leisure centre. 

Good times, man. Good times…

Playstation branded instagram video 

McDonald’s 

After watching this I was immediately overcome by an insatiable craving for Big Macs. Ergo, it has achieved what it set out to do. 

Seriously, though, the animation is nicely done and it’s more than a little satisfying to watch. I looped it at least 15 times before running out of the office to find the nearest golden arches.

Mcdonald's branded instagram video

Guinness World Records

Who wouldn’t be impressed by a robot solving a Rubik’s Cube in record-breaking time, complete with slow-motion replay?

If the answer is you then you need to rethink your I’m-impressed threshold. 

Guinness World Records branded instagram video 

Nissan

I’m no petrol head, but even I couldn’t help but be impressed by this. Crank your headphones up loud because this one is kind of boring without sound.

Nissan branded instagram video