A year after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, we remember all the time we lost and the periods of reflection we had. For months around the world, we watched out our windows: gazing at empty streets, neighbors singing and clapping, protestors marching for equality; gazing at the uncertainty of the road that lay ahead.
During lockdown, directors Nadav Kander and Johan Kramer of Chelsea Pictures had an idea–to capture this contemplation and the ideals of a better future in a way that every person could understand, so that we might remember this moment in time long after it’s passed. Staring out your window–through the looking glass–to a more equal and sustainable future for everyone.
Produced by Chelsea Pictures, Don’t Go Back to Sleep is a reflection of the year in the early lockdown period. All pictures were taken inside homes looking out of windows during the Lockdown from March-June. The piece is narrated and co-created by famous landscape and portrait photographer Kander, who reads a quote from Rumi which resonates with the place we are in as a society now. Through the pandemic, U.S. election and environmental crisis, the message is simple: as we begin to find a place in our new normal, don’t go back to sleep on the issues we have yet to resolve.
Final Cut served as editorial/post house, additionally providing sound design and mix.
CreditsCreative Nadav Kander, Johan Kramer, Lisa Mehling, Tatiana Lewis, co-creators. Production Company Chelsea Pictures Editorial Final Cut Sophie Soloman, post editor; T. Terressa Tate, Amanda Fuentes, post sound mix & design; Peter Walker, post producer; Andrea Cantor, post assistant producer; Sarah Roebuck, post exec producer; Stephanie Apt, post president. Music Bill O’Connell, composer & performer. Narrator Nadav Kander Contributors Ali Buchalter, Austin Irving, Bruce Hunt, Cathy McGoldrick, Daan van Dam, Daniel Bouquet, Deidre Foote, Denise Blate Roederer, Eric Treml, Fernanda Dias Viana, John Mehling, Kathleen Dinetz, Kenna Zimmer & Ken Kochey, Kylie Brown Rosenson, Lisa Mehling, Lochlainn McKenna, Lynn Gruszow, Matt Carter, Mikey Farr, Nadav Kander, Pedro Bastos, Penny Lee, Rhiannon Stanford, Richard Flintham, Shanna Done, Shanah Blevins, Talia Kander, Tirso Diaz Jares Rueda, Ton Peters, Zoe Tomlinson
Top Spot of the Week: Samsung, BBH Singapore, Director Rhys Thomas Get Fit For A Surf Holiday
Samsung’s new global campaign from BBH Singapore, featuring Samsung Health and Galaxy AI, tells the story of a young professional couple who compete to get fit for a surf holiday.
Titled “A Samsung Health Story: Racing to Fiji,” this film taps into Gen Z’s wellness dilemma and the fact that they can often find health information overwhelming; in particular, BBH Singapore took inspiration from young people who reference their “quarter life crisis” on social media. This film tells the story of Stacey and Steve who decide to go surfing in Fiji, something they did five years ago but haven’t done since they started their jobs. However, there’s one problem: they need to get fitter first.
Featuring a range of Galaxy products powered by Galaxy AI, they rebuild their fitness to prepare for the trip, competing playfully to spur each other on. We see them comparing their Energy Scores (a new feature on the Samsung Health app), recording their runs and swims on their Samsung Galaxy Watches, trying and failing to get fit at work and on their commutes and striving to improve in the run up to the trip. When they get there, however, there’s a fun twist, and the film ends on a cliffhanger.
The ad is expected to be the first in a series, which will develop the characters and their “world” in future episodes. This longform (two-and-a-half-minute) version of the spot delves deeper into the storytelling, in a fresh approach for Samsung’s product campaigns, while the shorter edits focus on driving exposure to specific features.
BBH Singapore also leaned into the entertainment aspect of the spot; it was directed by comedic specialist Rhys Thomas at Stink Films, who has a major TV background. Best known for his work on Saturday Night... Read More