Nothing goes better with a hot dog than a Pepsi. That’s the simple message effectively communicated in the :60 "Summer Job," a wonderfully warm and sweet new spot created by BBDO New York and directed by Samuel Bayer of bicoastal RSA USA. "Summer Job" is part of a brand new campaign—Pepsi-Cola’s first major campaign shift since 1999—promoting Pepsi as a perfect match for food and fun, and introducing a new tagline: "It’s the Cola."
As "Summer Job" opens, we see a bespectacled girl dressed in a bulky hot dog costume, as the Blind Melon song "No Rain" begins to play in the background. She is standing on a street corner in front of a restaurant called Wiener World. Fliers in hand, hot dog girl gamely tries to whip up interest for Wiener World, vocally heralding the grand re-opening of the establishment. But no one is interested. People either avoid the girl, or take the fliers she is handing out only to deposit them in a trash can located a few feet away. At one point, an older man in an electric wheelchair rolls abruptly by her, almost causing hot dog girl to fall down on … well, her buns. Then three girls walk by, take a look at hot dog girl in her silly costume and openly laugh at her.
Dejected, hot dog girl tosses the rest of her fliers in the trash and trudges down the street looking sad and lonely. But she suddenly perks up when she spots a boy her age across the street. He is wearing a Pepsi can costume and is out on the street promoting the product for a gas station mart.
Their eyes meet, and it is clear that hot dog girl and Pepsi can boy are soul mates. After exchanging waves and smiles, the two meet in the center of the street, then stroll hand in hand into the sunset. "Hot dogs love Pepsi. Pepsi loves hot dogs. It’s the cola," a voiceover intones as we see a close-up of the bubbly beverage (the tabletop shot was directed by Leo Kocking of Identity, New York), with the Pepsi logo and the tagline "It’s the Cola" superimposed over it.
FRANK TALK
While the average viewer may be unaware of this, most people in the commercial production industry will undoubtedly take notice of the fact that the Pepsi spot is—while not at all a remake of—reminiscent of the music video for Blind Melon’s "No Rain," which was directed by Bayer in 1993. The "No Rain" video featured a girl in a bee costume who, like hot dog girl in "Summer Job," felt isolated and alone but ultimately finds kinship.
According to BBDO executive VP/executive creative director/art director Don Schneider, Bayer’s "No Rain" music video and the song itself served as the impetus for this ad. "You know that we’d be lying if we didn’t say that the video and the song inspired the spot," Schneider shared, noting it was only natural to hire Bayer to direct the commercial. "It was one of those situations where you don’t have to hope the director gets what you’re trying to do. We knew he got what we were trying to do."
"He’s such a brilliant visual storyteller," BBDO executive VP/executive creative director/ copywriter Bill Bruce added.
Certainly, Bayer has delivered for BBDO in the past, directing a slew of breathtaking Mountain Dew ads for the agency, including "Animated," which was showcased as SHOOT’s Top Spot of the Week earlier this year (4/25, p. 10).
So why was Bayer interested in tackling this particular job? For starters, it brought back memories. "In my career, the Blind Melon video was very important to me," Bayer reflected, pointing out that while it was Nirvana’s "Smells Like Teen Spirit" that first put him on the map, it was Blind Melon’s "No Rain" that generated interest in him among agency creatives.
"I really loved what [BBDO] was doing in this spot," Bayer continued. "They said, ‘Let’s create something that’s sweet, that’s got real emotion.’ And I just loved the idea—the heart, the soul and the humanity of what the commercial could be."
WIENER ROAST
Given the fact that the performers primarily had to communicate via facial expressions and gestures, casting the right talent was key. The role of hot dog girl went to Francesca Tosti, and Eric Artell was cast as the Pepsi can. Both Tosti and Artell "had that spark in their eye, and that’s what lights the whole thing up," BBDO executive producer Hyatt Choate explained.
While the casting process was involved, Bayer pointed out that the most challenging aspect of the job was getting the hot dog and Pepsi can costumes made. He praised the work of wardrobe stylist Bonnie Stauch, who had a very small window of time to create the costumes after Tosti and Artell were cast.
With the cast and costumes in place, "Summer Job" was shot last October over a two-day period in Monrovia, Calif., a small town just outside of Pasadena. Bayer directed and DPed the spot. During the first half of the first day of the shoot, Bayer placed hot dog girl on a street corner in front of a building dressed to look like Wiener World and instructed her to engender enthusiasm for the restaurant among passersby.
"By doing that, Sam did a really good job of getting reactions where it doesn’t feel like people are acting," Bruce commented. In fact, several of the people we see in the spot are real people who had no idea a commercial was being shot until they were chased down and asked to sign releases.
Meanwhile, Schneider credited Bayer with masterminding another clever casting ploy. "You know where the three girls walk by and kind of make fun of [the hot dog girl]? Well, Sam cast three of the girls who had tried out for the part but didn’t get it," Schneider laughed, "so there was possibly some real bitterness there."
Once the spot was shot, editor Tom Muldoon of Nomad Editing Company, Santa Monica, whittled the footage down to the :60 and :30 versions currently airing. "He nailed it right out of the gate," Schneider said. "I don’t think I changed a thing."
Bayer was also pleased with the final edit, as well as the performances he got out of his talent. "Everything is very subtle and very sweet and very believable. What we’re really talking about is something that’s intangible: How do you get heart, soul and emotion across in advertising?" Bayer mused. "I think what I’m proudest of is that in a very short period of time your heart goes out to that girl, and you really like her."
