Skopje, 17 February 2025 (MIA) — Drawing the line at exploiting animals and unafraid to make it known, "PETA: Mindful Mobsters" (2025) is the first-ever People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals ad series released for the Super Bowl — and it was directed by Macedonian filmmaker Angel Apostolski.

According to the largest animal rights organization in the world, the gangsters in the ads expose the cruelty cows and sheep are subjected to by the leather and wool industries, which is as dark and disturbing as organized crime.

“Even tough guys can’t stomach the cruelty and abuse that goes into leather jackets and wool sweaters,” said PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange in a press release.

According to PETA, cows have friends and mourn when a loved one dies, but those killed for leather may be skinned and dismembered while still conscious.

"Sheep can remember 50 different faces and leap with excitement when they see their family, yet at sheep farms in New Zealand—one of the world’s top wool producers—workers drag sheep across the floor and sew up their bloody wounds without painkillers—abuses captured on video at shearing sheds all over the world," the release adds.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to wear”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness.

Angel Apostolski (b. 1978, Skopje) is a Macedonian director and writer known for making commercials that feel like short films. In addition to "PETA: Mindful Mobsters" (2025), which has made him one of the few European directors who have directed Super Bowl ads, he is also known for "Citizen X" (2004) and "Projection" (2002).

A graduate of the Sofia National Academy of Theatre and Film Arts, he lives between Sofia and Amsterdam. He is working on his first feature film. mr/